Opened Scriptures Bible Studies

Dealing with head coverings for men and women. 1 Corinthians 11:2-3  Now I praise you, brethren, that ye remember me in all things, and keep the ordinances, as I delivered them to you.  3)  But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.  Remember that Paul spent a lot of time in the previous chapters addressing the issue of Christian liberty and how it should be used. Paul returns to the relationship of husbands and wives and he is going to correct an issue at Corinth involving head coverings. Head coverings may seem like a strange issue to have but Paul was addressing a specific situation at Corinth. He begins by praising those at Corinth who diligently kept or observed the apostolic teaching. Paul then connects his praise with the distinction between men and women and God's plan for the home. He wants to emphasize the preeminence of God's plan for the family. The normal order established by

Remember the apostolic ordinances and comply with them. 1 Corinthians 11:1-2  Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.  2)  Now I praise you, brethren, that ye remember me in all things, and keep the ordinances, as I delivered them to you.  In the context of urging us to follow him because Paul is following Christ, the apostle gives even more instruction. He uses the word "ordinances" and this same Greek word is translated "tradition" in the other 12 places where it is used.  Ordinances or traditions refer to inspired teaching and instruction from Spirit guided apostles, that are to be observed by each church. Paul urges the Corinthians and all other believers, to remember his instructions and to observe or live according to the apostolic instructions.  The church is instructed to keep the traditions and ordinances as delivered to us by the apostles. They are not to be changed or tweaked, but maintained in purity. The reason for this is so that the trut

Doing all for the glory of God is our chief aim. 1 Corinthians 10:31-33  Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.  32)  Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God:  33)  Even as I please all men in all things, not seeking mine own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved.  We move into chapter eleven today, but the first verse really connects with the last verses of chapter ten. Paul is reminding us that whatever we do, it should be done for the glory of God. We should not do anything that offends a Jew, a Gentile or those in the church of God.  Our goal is promoting the gospel of Jesus Christ and we must avoid doing or saying anything that impedes the progress of the gospel into our communities. Follow the apostles because they followed hard after Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 11:1  Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.  The words "Be ye followers of me, as I also am o

I have a burden to speak about some of the great moral issues that we face today.  Abortion is a political hot button issue.  Christians need to know what God says about this sin so that we may vote wisely in elections.  Many professing Christians are pro-abortion. Many pastors are pro-abortion.  How is it possible for those who profess faith in the God who gave life to all living things, to demand a woman's right to kill her unborn baby? Our culture has devolved into a culture of death where women vehemently demand the right to kill their unborn babies. Globally, there are about 73 million abortions each year, a truly staggering number that shows how barbaric "civilized" people are. This is an issue that Christians must contend with and I want to give us the truth and principles from scripture to guide us. Man was created by God and did not evolve from other life forms. Genesis 1:27-28  So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and fem

A note about the archive index containing all Bible lessons posted on this blog since its inception in 2019.   An index for  all lessons  posted from 2019 through 2021, was published on  September 7, 2022. An index for all lessons posted in 2022, was published  J anuary 24, 2023. An index for all lessons posted in 2023 was posted on  February 28, 2024.  Each index lists lesson titles and the date each one was posted, so that you can study subjects that we have written about. Below is a link that will take you to the YouTube channel of Heritage Baptist Church in Smithville, Ohio, where my wife and I are members. Our Pastor, Mike Alvis, asked me to assume teaching the adult Sunday school class last October and we are currently working our way through this wonderful book of Ezra. We saw that the Spirit of God was at work in Era's life preparing him for a most unique ministry. We saw that Ezra's godly testimony had a profound impact upon a pagan king named Artaxerxes. We saw that E

The Holy Spirit guided Paul to give extensive teaching about idolatry.  I have tried to help us think about idolatry in the context of modern culture, for we must purge out any idolatry from our lives.  Paul is now guided to give clear application about idolatry to us. Christian liberty must not be abused by God's people.  1 Corinthians 10:23  All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not.  Paul reminds us that though we may have liberty to do something, we must not be brought under the bondage of it.  Thus, we may have liberty to eat meat offered to idols but we must consider our weaker brethren who view it as partaking in idolatry. For their sakes we will not eat meats offered to idols. This is part of what JEsus means when He tells us to love one another.  It may be permissible to engage in certain behaviors but what we choose to do may not edify us or others.  Paul is teaching us that if what we think abou