Weekly Bible Study Review
March 4, 2012

 


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Class Schedule
Go to www.theocentrix.org click on the "Events" tab
for maps and more information.


Cafe Class
Culture Cafe
1359 N Altadena Drive
Pasadena CA 91104
Wednesdays 10:00 am

classroom
Read-to-Believe Class
Lake Avenue Church
Hutchins Hall Room 402
309 N Lake Avenue
Pasadena CA 91101
Thursdays 7:00 pm

peacock 1
Arbo Class
LA County Arboretum
301 N Baldwin Ave
Arcadia CA 91007
Saturday 12:00 noon
Once per month

 

January 7, 2012 

February 4, 2012 

March 3, 2012

March 31, 2012 

 April 28, 2012 

May no class

June 2, 2012 

July 14, 2012 

August 11, 2012 

September 8, 2012 

October 6, 2012
November 3, 2012
December 1, 2012
 
topofpageGreetings! 

This newsletter is sent to people who attend one of Sandy's weekly Bible studies. The left column has the current class schedule. Be sure to watch for the links in each article. Clicking on them will lead you to charts, diagrams and additional articles related to your class. 

Anyone can subscribe to this free newsletter by using the link in the upper left corner. If you would like to forward this issue to a friend all you have to do is click on the link below.



cafeclasssWednesday Cafe Class

1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians 10:1-11:34

10:1-6 Now Paul takes them back into Israel's history and reminds them about the exodus from Egypt. All the Israelites were under the cloud (pillar of cloud that led them in the wilderness) and all passed through the Red Sea. They were all baptized into Moses, ate the same spiritual food, drank the same spiritual water. Christ was the one who provided all this for them. But God was not pleased with most of them because they turned to idols. A whole generation died in the wilderness. This was an example for the believers in Corinth.

 

v. 7 Israel turned to idolatry by making a golden calf.

       Click to read Exodus 32:1-8

v. 8 They were sexually immoral and 23,000 died.

       Click to read Numbers 25

v. 9 They tested the Lord and were killed by snakes.

       Click to read Numbers 21:4-9 

v. 10 They grumbled against the Lord and were killed by a plague.

       Click to read Numbers 16:41-50


v. 11-14 Again Paul says these things happened long ago as warnings to his readers who are now living in the end times. They must not commit the same sins. "So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!" The readers will be tempted to sin, just like their forefathers were but God will provide a way out. Still they must "flee idolatry." It is God who helps them, not some pagan god or man-made idol.

Click to read more...   

rtbclassThursday Read-to-Believe Class  
Genesis

No Class this Thursday, March 8th.

Genesis 27:1-30:43

27:1-29 When Isaac was very old and blind, he told Esau to hunt some game and cook a tasty meal for him then he would give him his blessing. Rebekah heard what Isaac said and as soon as Esau left she told Jacob how he could trick his father so he could receive Esau's blessing. Jacob went along with the plan. He killed two goats which Rebekah cooked up the way Isaac liked it. She covered Jacob's hands and neck with goatskins so he would feel hairy like his brother. She put Esau's clothes on him and sent him to Isaac with the food. Jacob deceived his father and received a blessing that made him lord over all his relatives and sustained him with plenty of food and wine.

 

v. 30-40 A little while later Esau returned from hunting and brought food to his father. Isaac "trembled violently" when he realized he had blessed the younger son. Esau wept bitterly and begged his father for a blessing. But Isaac told Esau that he would live away from the earth's riches, live by the sword and serve his brother, which is what Rebekah was told when she was pregnant. But Isaac also said that Esau would one day throw Jacob's yoke off his neck.

 

v. 41-28:5 Esau was so angry with Jacob that he decided to kill him as soon as his father died. Rebekah heard about this and warned Jacob. She told him to go to her brother Laban's household until Esau calmed down then she would send for him. Rebekah did not tell Isaac all that was going on. Instead she complained to him about Esau's Hittite wives saying that if Jacob takes such a woman to be his wife then her "life will not be worth living." So Isaac sent him back to Rebekah's hometown to find a wife among Laban's daughters. He blessed Jacob and prayed that God would give him the land promised to Abraham. Click to see chart. Rebekah's brother Laban was of the clan of Terah, Abraham's father.

 

Click to read more... 

 
Since ancient times the Bible has been read aloud to groups of people who were eager to hear the words of Life. We're really no different today. Believers still look to the Bible for wisdom and instruction. We belong in the Word together. Thank you for your participation in these classes. I hope you will pass this email on to others and invite them to attend a Bible study.

Grace and peace,
Sandy Blank


cafeWednesday Cafe Class (continued)
1 Corinthians 10:1-11:34

Paul uses some form of the word "participation" six times in verses 14-21. To participate or partake in something means being "part" of it. The believers are not to take part in the "table of demons."

 

10:14-18 "Flee from idolatry." Paul states the obvious-- don't they participate in the blood of Christ when they drink the cup? Don't they participate in the body of Christ when they each eat of the one loaf? Even the people of Israel (the Jews) participated in the sacrificial altar set up for God when they ate the meat of the animal sacrifices.

 

v. 19-22 But Paul is quick to point out that pagans are not offering sacrifices to the true God but to demons. He emphatically does not want them "to be participants with demons." They cannot drink the wine and eat the bread of the Lord's Supper while simultaneously partaking of food sacrificed to demons. That would provoke the Lord to jealousy.

 

v. 23-24 Again Paul uses the saying, "Everything is permissible." He also said this in 6:12. The sentiment is that I am free and can do whatever I want. But Paul is quick to add that not everything is beneficial or constructive. The readers must be willing to restrict their own freedom for the sake of the other believers.

 

v. 25-26 So here is Paul's conclusion to the matter of eating meat sacrificed to idols which he started way back in chapter 8. The readers may eat anything that is sold in the market, even if it has been sacrificed to idols, because everything ultimately belongs to the Lord.

 

v. 27-30 Furthermore, if an unbeliever invites them to a meal (perhaps a wedding feast celebrated at a pagan temple) they may go and are free to eat whatever is served. However, if someone tips them off and tells them the food was sacrificed to an idol then they must not eat it because it would offend the conscience of the one who told them. Apparently, the one who says, "This has been offered in sacrifice" is a believer who thinks it's a sin to eat such food. Paul says for the sake of that man's conscience the mature believer who knows it's not a sin must not eat. His freedom will not be seen as freedom by the less mature man even though he gives thanks to the one true God before he eats it.

 

v. 31-33 Whatever they eat or drink or do must be done for the glory of God. They should not cause anyone to stumble in their faith but rather seek the good of others, so they may ultimately be saved.

 

11:1 Paul tells them to "follow my example as I follow the example of Christ." This verse is often taken out of context but refers to acting unselfishly in the same attitude as Christ who did not seek His own good but the good of others.

 

Head Coverings

v. 2-6 In the following passage Paul uses the term "head" in two different ways-- 1) headship or authority, and 2) one's physical head. Verse 3 says that God is the authoritative head of Christ, Christ is the authoritative head of man, and man is the authoritative head of woman.

  • Men must uncover their physical "head" when they pray or prophesy or else they dishonor their authoritative "head"-- Christ/God.
  • Women must cover their physical "head" when they pray or prophesy or else they dishonor their authoritative "head"-- man/Christ/God.

Before we go on, notice that both men and women are praying and prophesying in a public gathering of the church. Both are treated the same in that they may pray and prophesy (give words of encouragement or correction from God). If a woman does not cover her head (with a veil or scarf) it is just as though her head were shaved. It is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair shaved off (See Deut 21:10-14). Therefore, if she refuses to cover her head when praying in the assembly it is as disgraceful as being bald. But a man should not cover his head.

 

Let's try to understand this from their cultural perspective. Back then men wore turbans on their heads. The turban often indicated their status in the community. A man of high standing wore his turban proudly. For a woman, her status in the community could be seen in the way she wore her hair. High status women braided their hair, wore jewels in their hair, etc. When believers from all walks of life came together for prayer and worship it was clear which ones were wealthy or of high social status. Paul's command served to equalize them. When the men uncovered their heads by removing their turbans they all looked the same. When the women covered their hair with a veil they all looked the same. The status issue was minimized as both men and women humbled themselves before God in their gathering. Although this passage has sometimes been used to make women subservient to men it actually tells both men and women to voluntarily humble themselves so that God may be exalted.

 

v. 7-12 Man is the mage and glory of God. That is, man is a reflection of God's glory. The woman reflects the glory of man as he reflects the glory of God. Paul goes back to creation and says that woman came from man (Eve from Adam's rib) and woman was created for man (as his helper). The sign of authority on a woman's head is her hair. However, "in the Lord" (in the church) men and women are not independent of each other. Sure Eve came from Adam but every man who has been born since then has come from a woman, even the Lord Jesus. "But everything comes from God" so neither men nor women cannot boast.

 

v. 13-16 Paul appeals to common sense, for his readers knew that it was disgraceful for a man to have long hair but long hair was a woman's crowning glory. Her long hair is a covering that gives her honor and dignity. Paul abruptly ends his instruction about head coverings by saying "we have no other practice." Men must uncover their heads and women must cover theirs. Case closed!

 

The Lord's Supper (Communion)

v. 17-19 Paul is speaking specifically to the Corinthian church in the first century. Their meetings were doing more harm than good. There were divisions among them as we saw in 1:12. He's a little sarcastic here. Of course there are differences among them, says Paul, because they want to claim that some of them have God's approval more than others.

 

v. 20-22 When they come together for communion they are doing it in a dishonorable way. They don't wait for each other, one gets drunk, another goes hungry because the others eat all the food before he gets there. It's probably the poorer people who arrive late and are left with nothing to eat. That's why he says they "humiliate those who have nothing." Paul cannot praise them for any of this.

 

v. 23-29 It's obviously communion that Paul is talking about because he reminds them that the Lord took bread and wine at His last supper with the apostles and commanded that this be a proclamation of His death until He returns. It is to be a solemn event practiced by the believers together. The Corinthians were not observing it with the dignity and respect it deserved. They were eating and drinking the bread and wine in "an unworthy manner." Therefore, they were sinning not only against each other but they were sinning against the body and blood of Christ. Paul says each one must examine himself before he eats or drinks the bread and wine to see that he truly recognizes it as the body and blood of Christ. This self-examination seems to be quite specific. It's not looking at yourself to recognize that you are a sinner but looking to Christ's sacrifice and acknowledging that partaking of communion is truly a participation in Christ.

 

v. 30-34 Since the Corinthians were being so disrespectful about the Lord's Supper, Paul warns them that God is disciplining them by causing many of them to be weak and sick and some have even died. God is disciplining them in this way so they will repent and will not ultimately be condemned with the unbelieving world. But if they judged themselves in this matter and disciplined themselves then they would not have to be disciplined by God. Paul's final word on this matter is that they must wait for each other, eat at home before their gathering, and partake of the Lord's Supper with proper respect and reverence.

  

--Sandy Blank
Back...


readtobelieveThursday Read-to-Believe Class (continued)

Genesis 27:1-30:43

28:6-9 Esau heard that Isaac sent Jacob away to get a wife from his own clan. Now he realized how displeased his parents were with his Hittite wives. In an effort to get back into their good graces he married a grand-daughter of Ishmael, Isaac's half-brother.

 

v. 10-22 Jacob set out for Haran and stopped at sunset. He put a stone under his head and while he slept he had a dream. There was a stairway or ladder between heaven and earth. Angels were going up and down and the Lord stood above it. The Lord identified Himself as the God of Abraham and Isaac. He promised to give Jacob's descendants the land of Canaan on which he was now sleeping. All peoples would be blessed through his descendants and the Lord would be with him watching over him. He would surely bring Jacob back to this land. When Jacob woke from the dream he was afraid and realized he was on holy ground. He thought this place was "the gate of heaven." Early the next morning he took the stone he'd been sleeping on and set it up as a pillar. He anointed it with oil, named the place Bethel (house of God), and made a vow that if God did what He promised in the dream then the Lord would be his God. He vowed to give the Lord a tenth of everything. Tithing did not originate in the Law of Moses. Both Abraham and Jacob gave a tenth.

 

29:1-30 Jacob traveled east and came to well. He spoke to some shepherds who were nearby and asked if they knew his uncle Laban. They did know him and said that Laban's daughter Rachel was coming to the well with her father's sheep. Jacob watered Laban's sheep and then wept as he told Rachel that he was her relative. She ran to the house to tell her father and he invited Jacob to stay with him. After a month Laban offered to pay wages to Jacob for the work he was doing for him. Jacob agreed to work for him seven years in return for his daughter Rachel. Laban agreed. So Jacob worked seven years but it seemed like only a few days because of his love for Rachel. When the day of the wedding came Laban held a great feast. However, in the evening Laban deceitfully gave his older daughter Leah to Jacob as his wife. The next morning Jacob realized he had been deceived and he confronted Laban. Laban asked him to finish the week with Leah and then he could marry Rachel in exchange for another seven years of work. Leah's maidservant was named Zilpah and Rachel's was named Bilhah. Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah.

 

v. 31-35 The Lord saw that Leah was not loved so He allowed her to have children, but Rachel was barren. Leah gave birth to Reuben (see my misery), Simeon (one who hears), Levi (attached), and Judah (praise). These names indicated Leah's sorrow that Jacob did not love her.

 

30:1-8 Rachel was still barren so she demanded that Jacob give her children. He became angry with her. Rachel decided to give her maidservant Bilhah to Jacob as a wife so she could start a family through her. Bilhah's sons were named Dan (he has vindicated) and Naphtali (my struggle) because through them Rachel felt vindicated in her struggle against her sister Leah.

 

v. 9-16 When Leah saw that she was no longer having children she gave her maidservant, Zilpah, to Jacob as a wife. Zilpah's sons were named Gad (good fortune) and Asher (happy). The competition between Leah and Rachel continued. Leah's son Reuben found some mandrakes and gave them to her. Mandrakes were plants that were used to increase fertility or may have had some aphrodisiac or hallucinogenic effects. Rachel, who was still barren, wanted the mandrakes so she bargained with Leah-- give me the mandrakes and you may sleep with Jacob tonight. Leah went out to meet Jacob in the field that evening and informed him that he must sleep with her tonight because she had hired him with her son's mandrakes. So Jacob slept with her.

 

v. 17- 24 God listened to Leah and she conceived. She named her son Issachar (reward) and then later had another son named Zebulun (honor) and a daughter named Dinah. Then God remembered Rachel and opened her womb. She had a son named Joseph (may he add) and hoped that God would add to her another son. So far Jacob has 11 sons. Click to see chart.

 

v. 25-36 By this time Jacob was ready to return to his homeland and raise his family there. But Laban did not want him to leave. They made an agreement that Jacob's new wages would be all the sheep and goats that had any markings on them. This was an easy way to distinguish between Jacob's animals and Laban's. But Laban didn't want Jacob to become wealthy and leave him so he took all the speckled, streaked or spotted animals and had his own sons take them to a pasture that was a 3-day journey away.

 

v. 37-43 Jacob took fresh-cut branches and peeled their bark to expose the white inner wood. He placed the branches in the watering troughs and when the flocks mated in front of the branches they produced streaked, spotted or speckled young. Jacob separated his flocks from Laban's and made sure that the weak animals went to Laban and the strong to himself. God blessed Jacob and he soon owned very large flocks and was able to buy servants, camels and donkeys.

 

Next time we'll see if Laban allows Jacob to go back to Canaan.

Reminder: No class March 8th, we'll resume on March 15th.

 --Sandy Blank

This newsletter is maintained by Sandy Blank (Ph.D. Educational Studies, Biola; MA Biblical Studies, Grace University). If you would like further information about any of her classes or would like to know how to start a Bible study in your area please contact her at sandyblank@theocentrix.org. This newsletter is sponsored by Theocentrix, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting God-centered Bible literacy. Visit www.theocentrix.org for more information.