Lesson 5 (Oct 24-30, 2020), Jesus as the Master Teacher

 Revealing the Father

1. How did Jesus reveal the Father in new ways which had not been done before by prophets?
2. What did the apostle John mean when he said Jesus brought light into a dark world? What was that light?
3. Do you human beings wish to see God or not?
4. What did Jesus mean when he said "If you have seen me you have seen the Father?" Did he mean he and the Father were similar physically, or spiritually or both?
5. What did Bible characters such as Hagar and Jacob mean when they declared that they had seen God and were still alive?
6. How can we reveal God to others?

Reading the Teacher's Mind

1. Why is it so difficult for us  humans to be humble?
2. What were the risks that Jesus took in coming to this world as a human? What made him take those risks?
3. Why did Paul write to the church to help bring two women members/workers together? Is it easier to settle quarrels between men or women?

The Master Teacher and Reconciliation

1. Why do we need "go-betweens" and reconciliation processes? How does it help?
2. What are the risks in trying to reconcile quarreling people?
3. What keeps people from reconciling? 
4. How did Jesus go about reconciling humans and God? What did he do?

The Master Teacher's First Pupils

1. Why did God choose shepherds to be the first witnesses of Jesus birth? Who were other options, and why do you think they were not chosen?
2. Why do you think God chose wise men from far away to visit Jesus, and not local rich men?
3. What convinced these visits that Jesus was the Son of God? How much did these visits affirm to Joseph and Mary that Jesus was God's son? Did they need this confirmation? 

Lesson 4 (Oct 17-23, 2020), "The Eyes of the Lord:" The Biblical Worldview

 The Eyes of the Lord

1. How do we know what is real and what is unreal? How do I know that I am?
2. Why is there a belief in God, and why do some people not believe there is a God?
3. Why do Christians believe that God is love? Why do pagan religions believe in gods who do not love?

Leibniz's Question

1. Why did God tell Moses to start the Bible with the story of creation, instead of say, His laws?
2. Why do some Christians believe in "theistic evolution?" How would belief in evolution change your attitude to life?
3. How does keeping Sunday instead of Sabbath affect our relationship to God?

 The Biblical Worldview

1. Is there any neutral ground between belief in God and atheism?
2. How important is it to our faith, that the flood of Noah be worldwide, and not an exaggerated huge local flood?
3. What does the Bible teach about the age of the earth?

Worship the Redeemer

1. Why is Jesus revealed to us as "the Word?" In what sense is Jesus our Bible?
2. Why does the Bible exhort us to "Fear God?" What other words could have been used? Why were those words not used?
3. Why are humans asked to worship God and give Him glory? Do those come by asking or is it a natural response?

The Law of God

1.  What are the possibilities that the ten commandments are of human origin?
2. Why did the Israelites in the time of the judges live like there was no law? Why is it different now?
3. How is law keeping connected to restoring in humans the image of God?

Lesson 3 (Oct 10-16), 2020), The Law as Teacher

 To Love and To Fear God

1. What is the difference between having a "fear of the Lord," and being afraid of Him? 
2. What other words can be used to convey the idea of "fear of the Lord?" How can one love and fear at the same time?
3.  Why do you think most Bible passages that use "fear of the Lord" to describe a person follow it with "shun evil" (Prov 3:7; Job 1:1), or fear God and keep his commandments (Eccl 12:13)?  Since all have sinned, and none has shunned evil totally, what do you think that means?

A Witness Against You

1. How successful was Moses in inspiring the Israelites to be faithful?
2. What did Moses do to ensure the faithfulness of the Israelites? What more, if anything, could have been done?
3. Why do rules exist and why do people not like them? 

That You May Prosper

1. How does keeping the law contribute to prosperity more than breaking the law?
2. If we are not saved by the law why do Christians have to keep it?
3. How do other Christians feel about the Law? Is there any difference in how they feel about in theory and in practice?

The Toils and Struggles of Law Keepers

1. Does law keeping come easier for some people than for others? Why or why not?
2. Why did the Israelites fall into disobedience so often when they knew what happens as a consequence?
3. Why did the psalmist (Ps 73) almost lose his footing when he saw the prosperity of the wicked? How did he resolve his problem?

Jesus Our Example

1. What purpose did Jesus life (as opposed to his death), serve for humanity? 
2. What is the value of an example if we cannot follow it?
3. On what basis could the psalmist say the law was sweeter than honey? How come the most intricate of all poems in the Bible (Ps 119) is on the law, rather than grace?

Lesson 2 (Oct 3-9, 2020), The Family

 

The First Family

1. How old are children when they know the difference between right and wrong? 
2. What do you think led Cain to take up gardening and Abel to take up animal husbandry?
3. How would you rate Adam and Eve's success as parents as far as teaching their children about religion?

The Childhood of Jesus

1. Was Jesus allowed to choose which family he wanted to be born into? If so, what qualities would he have wanted in his mother, and what in his father?
2. Why were Zachariah and Elizabeth given more instructions on how to bring up John the Baptist than Joseph and Mary were given about how to bring up Jesus?
3. How much does God guide parents who seek His assistance?

Communication

1. How long should a couple wait before having children, and why?
2.  Are good communicators born or developed?
3. What are significant differences between training an animal and training a child?

The Role of Parents

1. Why does the memory verse in Proverbs 1:8 refer to what the father says as "instruction," and to what the mother says as "law?" Is the difference in authority or content? Or is there no difference?
2. What is involved in being "head of the family?" Why is it necessary to have a head? To what extent can roles be exchanged?
3. Why is God depicted as "Father" and not "Mother?"

Lest We Forget

1. How successful were the Israelites in carrying out the command to teach their children their history?
2. To what extent is it the fault of parents or teachers if children are not interested in learning?
3. What is the best time of the day to teach children?

Lesson 1 (Sept 26-Oct 2, 2020), Education in the Garden of Eden

 The First School

1. What would be advantages in holding classes outdoors? What are the disadvantages?
2. Why did God ask Adam and Eve to look after the garden? What did that involve in a sinless world? What would have happened if they failed to do that properly?
3. If one had to live in a forest or island today what would be deemed essentials? 

Intrusion

1. Would the tree to test the couple have been God's idea or Satan's?
2.  Would the presence of the tree have been enough of a test without the tempting serpent?
3. Was Eve created after the instruction to Adam not to eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil? 

Missing the Message

1. How possible is it that Adam didn't convey the prohibition as strongly as God?
2. Did Satan say anything that was false? Why do we call him a liar?
3. What makes us think that Adam was not with Eve when she bit the fruit?

Regaining What Was Lost

1. Why do teachers send disobedient students out of the classroom? What does that accomplish? Can the same objective be achieved in another way?
2. Could the Tree of Life have been removed from the garden? Why did Adam and Eve have to be expelled from Eden?
3. What is the difference between "education" and "knowledge"?

The Despisers of Authority

1. What makes one a good student? Are good students born or made?
2. Do some students have an unfair disadvantage in a class? Is there any disadvantages when it comes to learning about God and salvation?
3. How does respect for authority erode?

Lesson 13 (Sept 19-25, 2020), A Step in Faith

 Self-Sacrificing Love

1. Why would anyone think that Jesus was less God than the Father? What was Jesus before he was the Son?
2. Why do you think it was Jesus who volunteered to redeem humans rather than the Father or the Holy Spirit? What motivated Him to do so?
3. What are reasons that humans are reluctant to work for the salvation of others?

Commitment's Call

1. Why do you think Peter's response to the miraculously huge catch of fish at Jesus' instruction to lower the net was to confess that he was a sinful man? 
2. In what ways is evangelism like fishing? Why did Peter and John have to give up fishing to follow Jesus? Is it possible to witness part-time?
3. What did Matthew have to give up to follow Jesus? Would it have been hard or easy? Why was he ready to follow?

Paul, God's Chosen Vessel

1. Is it possible to have an encounter with God today as Paul had? What did God see in Paul that He called him?
2. Should young people be sought out and called to be pastors or is it better for them to make the decision on their own?
3. How can one tell who will make a good pastor-evangelist?

The Demands of Love

1. How can we tell if we have enough love for people?
2. How can we develop love for people, if we don't have it?
3. Did the disciples have love for people to begin for Jesus to develop or did He have to put it in them?
4. What is the difference between feeding sheep and lambs? Why do you think Jesus change the instruction?

Love's Commitment

1. What changed Peter from a denier to champion for Christ?
2. What enables people to become martyrs?
3. What evidence is there that Paul, Peter and John demonstrated love for people?

Lesson 12 (Sept 12-18, 2020), A Message Worth Sharing

 Peter's Present-Truth Message

1.  Is truth universal and timeless? If so what is meant by present-truth?
2. Could Jesus have come before 1844?
3. Why has every generation believed theirs to be the last? 

Revelation's End-Time Focus

1. Percentage-wise, how much of the Bible would you estimate is devoted to (a) the first coming of Jesus, (b) the second coming of Jesus, and (c) the third coming of Jesus (after the millennium)? What would you say is responsible for those priorities?
2. How much did the Old Testament prophets distinguish between these comings?
3. How can you account for the difference in the book of Revelation compared to the rest of the New Testament?

Revelation's End-Time Message

1. Why is Jesus at the second coming depicted with a crown and a sickle? What do these symbolize?
2. How can one tell when the harvest of this world is really ready?
3. When are seasons of sowing and harvest in the history of the church?

Understanding God's Message More Fully

1. What does "Fear God" mean?  Could they give the wrong impression? Why does the Bible use those words?
2. Why does God have to ask us to give Him Glory? How is it different from human beings asking for praise?
3. What tells us that the first angel's message of "Fear God, give glory, worship" is connected to the Sabbath?

 God's Final Appeal

1. Since when has Babylon represented enemies of God?
2. Was the  early Adventist church justified in believing that all church organizations were Babylon?
3. Did the Adventists have to organize into a denomination or could they have remained a movement? Would that have been better or worse?