Weekly Bible Study Review

Weekly Bible Study Review

June 24, 2012

Missed an Issue?

No problem.

View our Archives.

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 91107
Tuesdays 11:00 am

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

.
Romans Challenge

Albert Baroody invites you

to read the book of Romans in two translations with three other people

in four weeks.

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

July 14, 2012

August 11, 2012

September 8, 2012

October 6, 2012

November 3, 2012

December 8, 2012

Greetings!

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.

Tuesday Cafe Class
Ephesians

Ephesians 2:1-22

2:1-3 Paul writes to the believers in Ephesus and reminds them that before they became Christians they "were dead" in transgressions and sins (spiritually dead, though physically alive). Before they followed Christ they used to follow "the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air." Paul admits that every believer, including himself, used to follow the desires and thoughts of the sinful nature. "Like the rest, we were by nature objects of (God's) wrath."

v. 4-7 But they are no longer spiritually dead. Why? Because of God's great love for them. It was God who made them spiritually alive even when they were spiritually dead. His grace made them alive with Christ. They are saved from God's wrath by God's grace. Not only are they now spiritually alive, they have also been raised up into the heavens with Christ and are seated with God. They are now "in Christ" and therefore participate in His resurrection from the dead. The reason God raised them up with Christ was so that "in the coming ages" they might be a display of God's mercy. What God has done with humanity is an unprecedented demonstration of His mercy. Paul will write more about this in the next chapter.

v. 8-10 The believing Ephesians have been saved by God's grace through faith in Christ. Both the grace and the faith are a gift from God. The believers had to be given the faith to believe. It did not come by their good works therefore no one can boast. God receives all the credit for it. They are "God's workmanship." It is God who is doing the work of saving them. Of course the believers will do good works, but God has prepared those in advance for them. No one can boast about their salvation or their good works.

Click to read more...

Thursday Read-to-Believe Class
Exodus

Exodus 29:1-32:35

29:1-9 The passage we're reading this week is part of a much larger section that began in chapter 25 and will conclude in 31:18. The Lord is giving Moses a very lengthy set of instructions concerning the Tabernacle, the priesthood and the sacrificial system. Now we will read His instructions for the consecration of the priests. Two words are used: consecration and ordination. Almost anything can be consecrated or set apart as holy-- an altar, a garment, etc. But ordination refers to Aaron and his sons when they are anointed and placed in their assignment as priests. A bull and two rams are offered along with a basket of three different kinds of unleavened bread (a loaf, a cake and wafers) made with wheat flour and olive oil. There's a basin of water near the Tent of Meeting where Aaron and his sons must wash before being dressed in their priestly garments. They must be anointed with the sacred oil. "The priesthood is theirs by a lasting ordinance."

v. 10-14 The bull is a sin offering. Aaron and his sons lay their hands on its head and then slaughter it at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. Some of its blood is put on the horns of the altar and the rest is poured out at the base of the altar. Its kidneys and the fat on its organs are burned on the altar but the bull's meat, hide and inner parts are taken outside the camp and burned there. In class we talked briefly about Hebrews 13:11-13 in which Jesus is the sin offering who is taken "outside the camp" just like this bull was taken outside the camp.

v. 15-21 One ram is slaughtered, its blood is sprinkled on the sides of the altar and the entire ram is burned on the altar. The other ram is slaughtered and some of its blood placed on Aaron and his sons' right ear lobes, right thumbs and right big toes. The priests and their garments are sprinkled with blood from this ram and with olive oil. In class we talked about how we often don't judge things the same way God does. God sees this blood and oil as making the garments holy and we see it as something that makes them dirty and should quickly be washed out. It's unlikely that these garments were washed after this ceremony. The blood stains would have remained on them.

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

Tuesday Cafe Class (continued)

Ephesians 2:1-22

v. 11-13 Now Paul explains something that will help the Gentile-Christian converts understand who they are in Christ. Formerly, that is before they became Christians, they were Gentiles by birth. What this meant for them was that they were:

called "uncircumcised" by the Jews who were physically circumcised
separate from Christ
excluded from citizenship in Israel
outsiders to the covenants of the promise-- the covenant God made with the Jews
without hope, because they had no covenant relationship with God
without God, because their false gods were not really gods at all
in the world, not in Christ

But now that they are in Christ, they "have been brought near" to God "through the blood of Christ." Paul says that these Gentile-Christian converts "once were far away" but have now have been brought near. Notice that he does not say they brought themselves near. Rather, they were brought near to God through Christ. The act of being brought near was done to them. They did not do it themselves.

v. 14-16 Christ is their peace. He is the one who destroyed the barrier that always kept Jews and Gentiles apart--the Law. Paul refers to the Law as "the dividing wall of hostility." But Christ destroyed it by "abolishing in His flesh the Law with its commandments and regulations." That is how He brought peace between Jews and Gentiles. But please note that this occurs in Christ and not in the world. In Christ there is no difference between Jews and Gentiles, thus there is peace between them. However in the world there is still to this day great hostility between Jews and Gentiles. This peace is only in Christ. His purpose was to take these two factions and make them become one new man in Himself. Then Christ reconciles both of them to God through the cross.
Ephesians diagram

v. 17-19 Christ came and preached peace to the Gentiles "who were far away" from God, and He preached peace to the Jews "who were near" God. The Jews were near because of their covenant relationship with God. Therefore, through Christ and in Christ both Gentiles and Jews "have access to the Father by one Spirit." That's why Paul can tell the Gentile-Christian converts that although they used to be foreigners and aliens they are now "fellow citizens" with the people of God. There is equality among Christians. Gentile converts are not 2nd class Christians.

v. 20-22 Paul uses a metaphor of a building to describe the people of God. The foundation of this building is the apostles and prophets. Notice that "the apostles" are associated with the New Covenant while "the prophets" refer to Old Testament prophets whose writings pointed to the coming of Christ. The chief cornerstone of this building is Christ Himself. A cornerstone is the point in a plot of land that is marked first. From that point all the angles and lines for the building are measured. In Christ, this building that is made of believers "rises to become a holy temple." It is "in Christ" that the believers are being built together to become a dwelling. God lives in this dwelling by His Spirit and this dwelling resides in Christ. Again we see Paul alluding to the Trinity-Father, Son, and Spirit. In class we had a lengthy discussion about free will and whether people make a decision to be saved or God sovereignly chooses them. We didn't settle the matter and will no doubt talk some more about this next time.

--Sandy Blank
Back...

Thursday Read-to-Believe Class (continued)

Exodus 29:1-32:35

29:22-30 The bull was a sin offering, the first ram was an offering to the Lord, the second ram was the ordination offering. The second ram's fat, kidneys and right thigh, along with one loaf, one cake and one wafer are to be waved before the Lord and then offered on the altar. The ram's breast is to be waved before the Lord and then it is the priests' share along with the thigh. This is to provide meat for the priesthood. Aaron's sacred garments will be passed down to his descendants. Future priests will be anointed and ordained in them and wear them for seven days.

v. 31-37 The meat from the second ram must be cooked in a sacred place and then Aaron and his sons must eat the meat and bread at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. These are atonement offerings to atone for their sins therefore no one else may eat them. Anything that is left over till morning must be burned up. This ordination ceremony takes seven days. A bull is sacrificed each day as a sin offering. The altar must be purified and anointed each of the seven days. Then the altar will be holy and anything that touches the altar will be holy.

v. 38-46 Two lambs along with a grain offering and a drink offering must be offered each day, morning and evening, for the generations to come. It must be done at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. That is where the Lord will meet them and speak with them. That place will be consecrated by the glory of the Lord. It is His presence that makes it holy. He will live with them and be their God.

30:1-10 The Lord told Moses to make a small altar for burning incense, overlay it with pure gold, and place it in the Tent of Meeting near the curtain of the Most Holy Place. Aaron must burn a special incense on it every morning and evening when he enters to tend the lamps. This is to continue for generations to come. This altar must not be used for anything else. Once a year, Aaron must anoint this altar with blood from the atoning sin offering.

v. 11-16 Moses must take a census of the people. Each person who is 20 and older must pay a half shekel offering that will be used to provide bread, oil and incense for the Tent of Meeting. The rich must not pay more and the poor must not pay less than half a shekel each. The Tent of Meeting serves as a memorial before the Lord and makes atonement for their lives.

v. 17-38 The Lord gave Moses instructions for the bronze water basin that stands near the altar. He also gave a precise formula for the fragrance of the anointing oil to be used to anoint the Tabernacle and all the articles within it, as well as the priests. Anyone who duplicates this fragrance must be cut off from his people. The ingredients were myrrh, cinnamon, cane and cassia. The Lord also gave instructions for the sacred incense. It was made of gum resin, onycha, galbanum and pure frankincense. As with the anointing oil, no one was to duplicate its fragrance for other uses, under penalty of being cut off from the people of Israel. This incense was to be burned only in the Tent of Meeting. Notice the familiar ingredients, myrrh and frankincense. The three wise men brought the baby Jesus gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. All three of these were important parts of the original Tabernacle and the Levitical priesthood.

31:1-11 The Lord chose Bezalel of the tribe of Judah, filled him with the Holy Spirit, and gave him the ability to work with gold, silver, bronze, precious stones, wood and all kinds of craftsmanship. The Lord also appointed Oholiab of the tribe of Dan to help him. There were many other skilled craftsmen who would make the tabernacle and all its furnishings and accessories, including the woven garments for the priests.

v. 12-18 Moses was to tell the Israelites to observe the Lord's Sabbaths (annual and weekly) as a sign between them and the Lord for the generations to come so they would know that the Lord is the one who makes them holy. Anyone who desecrates the Sabbath or works on that day must be executed. This is a lasting covenant and a sign between Israel and the Lord forever because in six days the Lord created and then He rested on the seventh. This concludes the instructions given to Moses by the Lord during the 40 days he was on Mount Sinai. Moses was given two stone tablets on which were inscribed the Testimony or covenant. The tablets "were inscribed by the finger of God."

32:1-6 Meanwhile, back in the camp, the people were getting restless because Moses was on the mountain such a long time. They were no longer willing to wait for him. They told Aaron to make a god for them to lead them out of the desert. Aaron told them to take off their gold earrings and he melted them down to make an idol in the form of a calf. Aaron actively participated in fashioning this calf with a tool. The people said it was the calf idol that brought them out of slavery in Egypt. Aaron built an altar in front of the calf and called for a "festival to the Lord." The next day the people got up early and offered sacrifices in front of the calf. They ate and drank and then got up to indulge in pagan rituals, singing and dancing in front of the golden calf.

v. 7-14 The Lord knew what they were doing and told Moses who was still up on the mountain with Him that he should go down now because the people have corrupted themselves by making an idol. The Lord knew that they were giving the calf idol credit for rescuing them from Egypt. He was angry with them and told Moses to let Him destroy them so He could start over and make Moses into a great nation. But Moses pleaded for the Israelites and appealed to the Lord to protect the honor of His Name by sparing them because other nations would think evil of the Lord if He destroyed His people. Moses also reminded the Lord of His promise to Abraham, Isaac and Israel-- that He would make their descendants as numerous as the stars and give them the land of Canaan. The Lord relented and did not destroy the people.

v. 15-24 Moses went down the mountain carrying the two stone tablets. These tablets were made by God and inscribed by God on both sides. Joshua heard noise from the camp and thought the people were at war. Moses knew it was "the sound of singing." When he saw the golden calf he was so angry that he threw the stone tablets down and broke them to pieces. The people had already broken their covenant with the Lord. He took the golden calf, melted it down, ground it into powder and threw it in the water supply so the people would have to drink it. Then he dealt with Aaron. Aaron blamed it on the people saying that he only did what they wanted him to do. He said that when he threw the gold into the fire, "out came this calf!" It seems as though Aaron got swept up in the excitement and everything just happened very quickly.

v. 25-35 The people were running wild so Moses had to do something to bring them back under control. He stood at the entrance to the camp and the Levites rallied to his side. The Lord told them to put on their swords and go throughout the camp killing people, even members of their own families, in order to bring peace to the camp again. They killed 3,000 people. This may seem like a lot of people but remember that there were more than a million Israelites in the camp. Moses praised the Levites and blessed them for their loyalty to the Lord. The next day Moses told the people what a great sin they'd committed in making the calf. He went back to the Lord and begged Him to forgive them. Then Moses said, "But if not, then blot me out of the book you have written." Moses was willing to take their place. But the Lord told him, "Whoever has sinned against me I will blot out of my book." Moses was told to lead the people onward and an angel would go before them. The Lord struck them with a plague because of the golden calf they had made.

Much more next time.

-- Sandy Blank

Back...

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.