Tag: Sin

Sanctification, Sin, Sunday School

Obedience: Adam, Eve, Cain, and Babel vs. Abel, Enoch, Noah, and Job ~ Sunday School Lesson ~ 1-5-14

Michelle Lesley

sunday school

These are my notes from my ladies’ Sunday School class this morning. I’ll be posting the notes from my class here each week. Click here for last week’s lesson.

This week, we started a new study. We will be reading through the entire Bible in 2014 using “Back to the Bible’s” chronological reading plan (reading Biblical events in the order in which they actually happened). Each Sunday’s lesson will cover a story(s)/event(s) contained in the previous week’s (Sun. – Sat.) reading.

Through the Bible in 2014 ~ Week 1 ~ Jan. 1-4
Genesis 1-11, Job 1-5
Obedience: Adam, Eve, Cain, and Babel vs. Abel, Enoch, Noah, and Job


What is obedience? (Deuteronomy 15:5) Obedience is simply doing what God commands. Bringing our lives/behavior/hearts in line with what God tells us to do.

Why are we to obey God? (John 14:15, 21, 23-24, 1 John 5:3) We do NOT obey God’s commands in order to get to Heaven or to balance out our sin. Our obedience shows that we are already saved because it springs from the love and gratitude in our hearts to Christ for saving us from our sin.

What can we learn about disobedience from…

Adam & Eve:
Flee from, don’t flirt with, temptation. (Genesis 3:1-5) Eve didn’t flee temptation, she stood around, had a conversation with it, and let it convince her.

Your disobedience doesn’t just affect you. (Genesis 3:6-24) Eve’s sin caused Adam to sin, which caused the whole world to sin for every successive generation. Your sin can have far reaching effects.

Cain:
Sin snowballs. (Genesis 4:1-16) First Cain disobeyed God’s parameters (not stated in Genesis) for offerings. The root sin of this was rejection of God’s authority. God didn’t have the right to tell Cain what to do, he’d do it his own way.

This led to anger (not grief, shame, or repentance at his disobedience—anger) at God for rejecting his offering. His anger was rooted in the sin of mischaracterizing God as unfair or wrong. Anger led to murder, then murder led to lying to God to cover it up.

God graciously warns us about disobedience. (Genesis 4:7) He’s such a good God, that just as He warned Cain of the consequences of disobedience, and that he needed to avoid temptation, God gives us a Bible full of examples of the dire consequences of disobedience, culminating in the death of Christ to pay the penalty for sin.

Babel:
We must obey God even if it’s hard, we don’t want to, or it doesn’t make sense to us. (Genesis 9:1,7; 11:1-9) After the flood, God told Noah’s family to spread out and fill the earth. 11:4- They wanted the exact opposite. They were supposed to bring glory to God’s name, but they wanted glory for themselves.

God is sovereign and will have His way despite our disobedience. (Genesis 11:8-9) Nothing, including our disobedience takes God by surprise or thwarts His plans.

What can we learn about obedience from…

Abel:
Obedience isn’t always a grand gesture. Obedience in the “small” things is just as important to God. (Genesis 4:1-16) If it weren’t for Cain’s disobedience, we probably wouldn’t know about Abel’s obedience. How many times that weren’t recorded had he obediently offered a sacrifice? Abel’s obedience is the true hero of this story, yet he’s little more than a bit player. He simply and quietly obeys God, and God “has regard” for his offering.

Faith in Christ and love for Him are what motivate obedience that is pleasing to God. (Hebrews 11:4) Not fear of punishment, not grudging legalism.

Enoch:
Obedience is to be a day by day, continual practice. (Genesis 5:22-24) “I’ll obey when I feel like it, when it’s convenient, etc.,” is totally foreign to God’s definition of obedience. In some stories we see special “big” acts of obedience, but in Enoch’s life we see a steady, daily walk with God. That is the type of story most Christians will live out.

God rewards obedience. (Genesis 5:24, Hebrews 11:5) Possibly materially, definitely spiritually.

Noah:
God requires our obedience even if everyone around us disobeys. (Genesis 6:5-8) Noah (and his family) was the only one on EARTH obeying God. Had he chosen a life of rebellion like the others, he would have died like the others.

The world will often respond negatively to our obedience. (Genesis 6:5, John 15:18) “…every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” That’s not a heart that loves and embraces the things of God. John 15:18: “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me [Jesus] before it hated you.” Just as the world hates God, so, when we display His truths in our lives, they will also hate us.

Job:
Obedience and faithfulness does not guarantee health, wealth, or smooth sailing. (Job 1:8-19) Job was the most blameless and upright guy on earth, according to God, and for God’s own purposes, not to punish Job for disobedience, He took away all the good things in his life.

We obey God even in the most difficult circumstances (Job 1:20-22) Even in times of extreme difficulty, we worship, we obey, we don’t charge God with wrong. Because God doesn’t owe us material goodies or positive circumstances as payment we earn with our obedience, neither can we “quit our job” of being obedient when tough times come. God may be trying to bless us with something even more valuable: knowing Him more closely, feeling His comfort, maturing, leading someone to Christ, taking us home to Heaven, etc.

We are only servants, called to obey a kind and loving Master (Luke 17:7-10; Matthew 25:23)

Hell, Salvation, Sin, Sunday School

What is salvation? What is the gospel? (Cont’d) ~ Sunday School Lesson ~ 9-29-13

Michelle Lesley

sunday schoolI recently started teaching a women’s Sunday School class at my church. Right now we are taking a look at some of the challenging questions and issues we face as Christians. I’ll be posting the notes from my class here each week. Click here for last week’s lesson.

What is salvation? What is the gospel? (Cont’d)

I. God is holy. (Isaiah 6:1-5)

A. What do we mean when we say God is holy?

 1. God cannot tolerate sin in His presence (Deuteronomy 23:14)

 2. Since we are sinful, we cannot be in His presence (Exodus 33:18-23, Psalm  24:3-4).

Problem 1: God is holy, and we can’t be in His presence because we’re not.

II. God demands that we be holy. (Leviticus 11:44-45, Matthew 5:48)

A. We can’t, because:

1. We’re born with a sin nature (Psalm 51:5)

2. Because we’re born with a sin nature, we begin sinning before we are capable of understanding what sin is. When we’ve sinned once, we’re guilty of breaking the whole law (James 2:10-11, Romans 3:10-18)

 Problem 2: God demands that we be holy as He is holy, but we can’t, due to our sin.

 III. Because God is holy, He must punish sin.

 A. God doesn’t just forgive everybody when they die.  (John 3:36, 2 Peter 3:9)

B. Good works do not “balance the scales” and make up for our sins (Galatians 2:15-16, Romans 3:20).

C. God’s punishment for sin is eternal death and suffering in Hell (Romans 6:23; 2 Peter 2:4, 9-10; Revelation 20:13-15).

 Problem 3: Because of our sin, we deserve hell.

 IV. Extra Study Resources:

 A. “Fear and Trembling” by R.C. Sproul

B. “How is Eternity in Hell a Fair Punishment for Sin?” from GotQuestions.com

C. “Is Universalism Biblical?” from GotQuestions.com

D. “Why Did God Create Us With Sin in the World?” from CARM.org

This lesson will be continued next week.

Bible, Gospel, Salvation, Sin, Sunday School

What is salvation? What is the gospel? ~ Sunday School Lesson ~ 9-22-13

Michelle Lesley

sunday school

 

I recently started teaching a women’s Sunday School class at my church. Right now we are taking a look at some of the challenging questions and issues we face as Christians. I’ll be posting the notes from my class here each week. Click here for last week’s lesson.

What is salvation? What is the gospel?

I. What is the one thing Jesus can do for us that we can’t do for ourselves?

II. Why do we need salvation?

A. Creation was perfect (Genesis 1, key verse: 31): “It was good.”

B. Fall of man (Genesis 3). What does this have to do with us today?

1. Death entered the world as a result of the fall  (Romans 5:12, 15-19)

2. Sin “genetically altered” every person from Adam on (Psalm 51:5) and now we are all sinners.

III. How do we know we need salvation?

A. The Law

1. The Law shows us what sin is (Romans 7:7-11)

2. The Law shows us we are guilty of breaking it (James 2:10-11)

3. The Law is written on our hearts and condemns us when we do wrong (Romans  2:15)

4. The Law shows us the futility of trying to keep it and leads us to cry out to God for help. (Galatians 3:10-11, 23-24)

IV. Extra Study Resources:

A. “How Did the Fall Affect Humanity?”  ~ Got Questions Ministries

B. “Law”  ~ Theopedia.com

C. “The Law and the Gospel” by John MacArthur

D. “The Gospel” by Matt Chandler

This lesson will be continued next week.

Faith, Sin

Repeating Wrongs Renders Right?

Michelle Lesley

“Four hundred thirty seven.”

“Sorry, that’s not right. Try again, Buddy.”

scribble scribble scribble

“Oh, ok. Four hundred thirty seven.“

“No, Honey. You just said that, and I just told you it was wrong. Give it another try.”

“But it’s 437!”

“Son, I have the answer book right here in front of me. The answer is not 437. Repeating the wrong answer over and over again doesn’t magically make it right.”

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had this conversation -nearly verbatim- with each of my four children in the fourteen years I’ve been home schooling.

But I can tell you that this morning was the first time I realized that this is the same way many people relate to God and the Bible.

When this dialogue takes place between my child and me, it is because the child has done something wrong. He has forgotten to carry the one. Confused a peninsula with an isthmus. Mistaken an adverb for an adjective.

But he can’t see what he’s done wrong, or indeed, that he’s done anything wrong. And because he’s blind to his wrongness, his default position is to assume that he is right and I am wrong. Forget that he’s in fifth grade and I have a bachelor’s degree, half a master’s degree, and nearly two decades of teaching experience. Never mind that this is the fourth time I’ve taught fifth grade from this very same book. Completely disregarded is the fact that I have the teacher key right in front of me that shows exactly what he did wrong and what the right answer is.

No. He’s right. I’m wrong. The book is wrong. Math is stupid.

Foolishness is indeed bound up in the heart of a child.

But foolishness is bound up in all of our hearts when it comes to sin:

“My husband doesn’t treat me right.
God wouldn’t want me to be miserable
for the rest of my life, so my relationship
with the guy at work is just fine.”

“What the Bible says about
homosexuality only had to do
with male cult prostitutes, so my
monogamous homosexual relationship
with my partner isn’t a sin.”

“I’ve gone to church all my life.
Once, I even repeated a ‘sinner’s
prayer’ and was baptized. It doesn’t
matter what my life looks like now,
I’m sure I’m saved because of that.”

“The Bible says women aren’t
to instruct men in the church?
But I feel that God has called me
to be a pastor, so that verse must
not mean what it clearly says.”

Over and over we say it, hoping to convince ourselves, to drown out God’s law that’s written on our hearts, and to shout down anyone who would call us to repentance. Because we’re blind to our wrongness, our default position is to assume that we’re right and God, and His Word, are wrong. Never mind the fact that He’s God -Creator of the entire universe, knows everything, sees everything, has power over everything, and is perfect in holiness- and we’re, well… not.

No. We’re right. He’s wrong. The Bible is wrong. People who agree with God’s Word are just haters.

But, just like I tell my children: repeating the wrong answer over and over again doesn’t magically make it right.  When each of us stands before God on the day of judgment, it’s not going to matter how many times we’ve tried to convince ourselves, others, and God that our way is right. It’s only going to matter what God says is right.

There is a way that seems right to a man,
but its end is the way to death.
Proverbs 14:12

Bible, Church, Sin

Matthew Henry on Leviticus 19:17

Michelle Lesley

images

Do you use commentaries as you study the Bible? My favorite commentaries are Matthew Henry’s “Commentary on the Whole Bible.” (It’s pretty cheap on Kindle {get the unabridged version!} and absolutely free on BibleGateway.com).

I’m studying the book of Leviticus right now, and, this morning, Leviticus 19:17 was one of the verses on deck. I really liked Matthew Henry’s teaching on it, so I thought I’d share it with you. Since 17 century British English can be a little cumbersome in the 21st century, I’ve written a brief synopsis below each of his points. My words are in purple.

“You shall not hate your brother in your heart, but you shall reason frankly with your neighbor, lest you incur sin because of him.” Leviticus 19:17

VII. We are commanded to rebuke our neighbour in love (Lev. 19:17): Thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour. 1. Rather rebuke him than hate him for an injury done to thyself. If we apprehend that our neighbour has any way wronged us, we must not conceive a secret grudge against him, and estrange ourselves from him, speaking to him neither bad nor MatthewHenrygood, as the manner of some is, who have the art of concealing their displeasure till they have an opportunity of a full revenge (2 Sam. 13:22); but we must rather give vent to our resentments with the meekness of wisdom, endeavour to convince our brother of the injury, reason the case fairly with him, and so put an end to the disgust conceived: this is the rule our Saviour gives in this case, Luke 17:3.

Synopsis: If somebody sins against you, don’t hold a grudge or seek revenge. Go to him in love, talk it out, and forgive him.

2. Therefore rebuke him for his sin against God, because thou lovest him; endeavour to bring him to repentance, that his sin may be pardoned, and he may turn from it, and it may not be suffered to lie upon him. Note, Friendly reproof is a duty we owe to one another, and we ought both to give it and take it in love. Let the righteous smite me, and it shall be a kindness, Ps. 141:5. Faithful and useful are those wounds of a friend, Prov. 27:5, 6. It is here strictly commanded, “Thou shalt in any wise do it, and not omit it under any pretence.” Consider, (1.) The guilt we incur by not reproving: it is construed here into a hating of our brother. We are ready to argue thus, “Such a one is a friend I love, therefore I will not make him uneasy by telling him of his faults;” but we should rather say, “therefore I will do him the kindness to tell him of them.” Love covers sin from others, but not from the sinner himself. (2.) The mischief we do by not reproving: we suffer sin upon him. Must we help the ass of an enemy that has fallen under his burden, and shall we not help the soul of a friend? Exod. 23:5. And by suffering sin upon him we are in danger of bearing sin for him, as the margin reads it. If we reprove not the unfruitful works of darkness, we have fellowship with them, and become accessories ex post facto—after the fact, Eph. 5:11. It is thy brother, thy neighbour, that is concerned; and he was a Cain that said, Am I my brother’s keeper?

Synopsis: It is our biblical duty to call brothers and sisters in sin to repentance because we love them. We should both give and take correction in love. If we fail to correct our brothers and sisters, we are actually hating them instead of loving them. If we do not correct them, we are accessories to their sin.