Last week we began by understanding the context and circumstances surrounding Jonah's call from God. Jonah the son of Amittai is anything but faithful. God calls him to arise and go northeast but he has southwest instead just to get away from God. This is extremely counter-intuitive for a Jew. Landlocked Israel has always thought of the sea as a tempestuous place, where uncertainty, chaos and disaster reigns. In this study, we'll dive right in and unpack more of Jonah's response to God's call and command.
For this study, we'll only be camping out in the first 3 verses of this book. Why? Understanding these verses is important in shaping our understanding of the rest of the book, for it sets the tone and helps prevent us from being distracted by red herrings.
This final letter was addressed to Laodicea, which was a city similar to Singapore. It was a bustling, prosperous city engaged in trade. It had no water supply and had to pipe in water from the surrounding region. Laodicea was also a medical hub and had a well-known school of ophthalmology. Things seemed to be good in this city, but what did Jesus had to say to them? What can we learn from this letter?
This penultimate letter maintains the same structure that we've seen in the previous 5 letters to the churches, but in this letter, we'll also see how Jesus uses 3 house related metaphors in His writing to this church in Philadelphia.
The idea of "fake it till you make it" is not foreign to us, especially not to those of us in the workplace or at school. But do we have this same attitude in our walks with God? Today's passage shows us Sardis, the "worst" of the seven churches, and how they had a reputation for being alive but were actually dead - a message just as relevant to us today.
Do you find yourself awkward in today’s world or do you fit in perfectly with the world’s culture today? Do you find yourself increasingly distant from the world’s desires? Today’s passage challenges the church in Thyatira and us today to leave the world’s culture to obey and worship God alone.
To the church at Pergamum, Jesus speaks about the importance of right theology. But, who needs theology? Doesn't doctrine divide? Hasn't doctrine been the cause of great divisions in the church throughout the centuries? Clearly Jesus thought teaching and theology matters, and it will do us well to listen and obey His words in Revelation.
The second of the letters is addressed to Smyrna. What did Jesus have to say to this church and what can we learn from His words?
Today we begin looking at the letters to the 7 churches. What does Jesus have to say to the church at Ephesus, the subject of Paul's letter in the book we know as the book of Ephesians?
We continue our study in Revelation and today's passage is interesting with lots of symbolism etc. But before we get bogged down with the details (or confused), let Rev 1:3 be an encouragement to us, remembering that there is blessing in the reading and study of His Word.
What is Revelation about? For many of us, the book of Revelation is shrouded in a cloud of mystery and sometimes, we read it as if it's a book of signs that predict the future. Many people get excited at this thought. We begin our new series in Revelation with the first 8 verses of this book. These verses give a broad summary of the entire book and the themes of the book of Revelation and right at the start, we'd like to state that the book of Revelation is not about the "end times". What then is it about? Read on!
As we work through the Letters of Jesus in Rev 1 to 3, it'll also be helpful for us to know and remember the themes in the entire book.
How would you summarise the Christmas story in 10 words or less? What should go in to make it a Christmas story? This study completes the Advent series by taking a look at a passage in Revelation. This is the Christmas mother we have not really heard of!
How do you respond to difficulty? Do you think of how to solve problems, do you like to share your problems with as many friends as possible? Do you feel hopeless in your problems? In today's passage, we'll read of how another Christmas mother found hope.
We begin our new Advent series on the Mothers of Christmas. We begin with Mary, the birth mother of Jesus, whose life was suddenly turned upside down with this announcement from God.
In this final study on the life of Samson, we've finally arrived at the encounter with Delilah, and Samson's eventual downfall. What final lessons can we learn from this flawed hero?
At the end of Judges 14, Samson held a wedding to a Philistine lady, but because he lost a challenge he made with the wedding guests, he went on a rampage to fulfill his part of the bargain. At the end of the chapter, we read of how he went back to his father's house, and as a result, his wife was given to his best man (Judges 14:20). We pick up the narrative in today's study, and we continue to see how the life of this judge of Israel unfolds.
Judges 14 records for us Samson's life, but his story may be surprising to many of us. As we make our way through this chapter, there will be many points that will seem very strange to us. In those moments, let us remember that the words of Judges 14 are also God's words, and there is a reason for these verses to be here.
This series takes us into the life of Samson. Some of us may vaguely remember the narrative from Sunday School classes, but as we take a closer look at each verse in this series, some parts may surprise you!
As we come to the end of this series, we need to consider how we ought to respond to the gospel. The gospel is basically good news. It is not a story and neither is it a character description. What are we telling people when we share the gospel is important because that message will have a corresponding response.
