Opened Scriptures Bible Studies

  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. We now come to the prayer of Ezra as he learned of the sin of the Jews. He was heartbroken because this sin is one reason why they were sent into exile for seventy years. He was heartbroken because God had given them grace and allowed a remnant to return to Jerusalem, to rebuild the altar and the temple. The timing of his prayer coincided with the evening sacrifice.  We learned that the morning and evening sacrifice were times of confession, repentance and cleansing....

1 Corinthians 12:1-3  Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant.  2)  Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led.  3)  Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.  The Spirit of God directed Paul to address very real abuse and misunderstanding of gifts dispensed by the Spirit to carelous Christians. During the birth of the church and while the apostles were alive, God used miracles to authenticate their ministry.  Thus, in the early church we read of the apostles healing the sick, raising the dead, casting out demons, or speaking in tongues. Just as God used signs in the Old Testament to certify that a prophet was speaking for Him, so He did in the New Testament with Christ's apostles.   Prophets were still needed until God completed the New T...

Misuse of spiritual gifts is connected with ignorance of God's Word. 1 Corinthians 12:1-2  Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant.  2)  Ye know that ye were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as ye were led.  In our last post we set the context for Paul's rebuke and corrections connected with how the Corinthians misused spiritual gifts. We pointed out how rituals of pagan idolatry were geared to stimulate and satisfy fleshly lusts. We noted how their religious activities involved achieving mindless ecstasy.  Why so? Because the Corinthians were swept up and seduced by immorality and emotional responses without engaging their minds. Pagan ideas corrupted their thinking about marriage, moral issues, and a host of other things addressed by the apostle. Therefore, Paul is going to make known to the Corinthians the truth that they are ignorant of.  An apostolic litmus test to determine if the Spirit of God is spea...

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. We are working our way through the book of Ezra in Sunday school. This lesson begins with seeing how God answered the prayers and fasting of Ezra. He granted the Jews a safe journey and we noted how Ezra was careful to avoid the appearance of evil by entrusting the gold, silver and brass to priests and Levites.  He faithfully discharged his duties in bringing more priests, Levites, porters, along with the precious metals to Jerusalem. Next, Ezra was made aware of a sin issue t...

I need to give some historical context to what Paul is going to focus on in chapter twelve.  As we move into chapter twelve, Paul is going to address another major area of failure in the Corinthian church.  It will take some time to move through chapters twelve through fourteen, as we examine this vast and often misunderstood topic. He is going to give rebuke and correction regarding spiritual gifts by explaining their purpose and use.  It will help to remember that many Corinthians were idolatrous pagans before they heard the gospel of Christ. Pagan practices included gluttonous eating at their feasts, and consuming excessive wine.  Thus they were known for drunken debauchery.  The Acro-Corinth was a mountainous outcropping about 1800 feet high.  Citizens could flee to higher ground in the event of an invasion.  There is a winding, well defended path that leads from the city of Corinth to a relatively open space at the top.  In Paul's time there ...

Remember, the Lord's Supper is to be a solemn reflection on Christ our Passover. 1 Corinthians 11:20-22  When ye come together therefore into one place, this is not to eat the Lord's supper.  21)  For in eating every one taketh before other his own supper: and one is hungry, and another is drunken.  22)  What? have ye not houses to eat and to drink in? or despise ye the church of God, and shame them that have not? What shall I say to you? shall I praise you in this? I praise you not.  Some Christians at Corinth dishonored the Lord Jesus Christ by the way that they acted during the Lord's Supper. They blended a pagan love feast marked by drunkenness and gluttony with the sober observance of Christ's sacrifice for us. Wealthy people brought the best food and drink and the poorer ones brought inferior food and drink.  However, when the Spirit of God had His way in the early church, all the food was shared, with no regard to whether it was better food or n...