Sabbath School Quarterly Commentary: Recent Episodes
NNSW Evangelism
Listen to the commentary on the Sabbath School Quarterly by the North New South Wales Conference Sabbath School Department of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.
In the seventh lesson on "On Death, Dying, and the Future Hope", Morgan discusses with Rodney Maller the topic "Contrary Passages?".
In the seventh lesson on "On Death, Dying, and the Future Hope", Morgan discusses with Natasha Sua the topic "The New Testament Hope".
In the sixth lesson on "On Death, Dying, and the Future Hope", Morgan discusses with Michael Chapman and Tarenne Greenwood the topic "Christ’s Victory Over Death".
In the sixth lesson on "On Death, Dying, and the Future Hope", Morgan discusses with Steven Duncan the topic "He Died for Us".
In the fifth lesson on "On Death, Dying, and the Future Hope", Morgan discusses with David Bertelsen about Resurrections Before the Cross.
In the third lesson on "On Death, Dying, and the Future Hope", Morgan discusses with Natasha Sua about the Old Testament Hope
In the third lesson on "On Death, Dying, and the Future Hope", Morgan discusses with Rodney Maller how to Understand Human Nature.
In the second lesson on "On Death, Dying, and the Future Hope", Morgan discusses with Declan Van the Death in a Sinful World.
In the first lesson on "On Death, Dying, and the Future Hope", Morgan discusses with Mark Sutherland the Rebellion in a Perfect Universe.
In the last lesson of "In the Crucible With Christ", Morgan talks one more time with Natasha Sua about how Jesus Christ is our example for many things, including how to react to trials and suffering. In the end, Gavin Anthony wrapped up this quarter.
In the twelfth lesson of "In the Crucible With Christ", Morgan talks one more time with Gavin Anthony about how moulding God's children into reflections of His image first requires them to die a spiritual death to themselves and their self-reliance.
In the eleventh lesson of "In the Crucible With Christ", Morgan talks with Jacob Ellis about how patience can be among the hardest traits to exhibit during trials, but God sets an example for us about the importance of waiting.
In the tenth lesson of "In the Crucible With Christ", Morgan talks with Lyndelle Peterson about how meekness and humility are not discussed much in our culture, but God promises that learning these skills from Him can help us endure our trials to the glory of God.
In the ninetieth lesson of "In the Crucible With Christ", Morgan talks with Natasha Sua about how praising God may not feel natural when life is hard, but the Bible promises that praise in these times is exactly what the Christian should do.
In the eighth lesson of "In the Crucible With Christ", Morgan talks with Jacob Ellis about how it can be difficult to "see" the invisible God when things are falling apart around us, this is when we should seek God the most.
In the seventh lesson on "In the Crucible With Christ", Morgan discusses with Matt Parra how watching God interact with His people as they go through the trials of life helps us understand how we can find hope amid the turmoil.
In the sixth lesson on "In the Crucible With Christ", Morgan discusses with Marcial Hernandez how relating to God often requires perseverance and struggle, but God's grace can transform the human heart and character no matter how hard the trials we face.
In the fifth lesson on "In the Crucible With Christ", Morgan talked with Natasha Sua about how experiencing extreme pain or difficulty can cause people to reject God or form untrue opinions of Him. The Bible helps us understand the danger God risks when He "turns up the heat" on His children.
In the fourth lesson of "In the Crucible With Christ", Morgan talks with Jacob Ellis about God's plan and how it is to conform His children into the likeness of Himself, but often the only way we can see God's true image is through fiery trials.
In the third lesson of "In the Crucible With Christ", Morgan talks with Lyndelle Peterson about how God plays a role in our lives, even when we face trials, and understanding how God fits into the trials we face isn't always easy to understand.
In the second lesson of "In the Crucible With Christ", Morgan talks with Marcial Hernandez about living in a world of sin comes with inevitable trials and how the Bible helps us put these trials into a proper God-centered perspective.
In the first lesson of "In the Crucible With Christ", our host, Morgan Vincent, talks with this quarter's study guide author, Pastor Gavin Anthony, about how Psalm 23 helps us to understand the journey on which God leads us throughout our lives.
Though God intimately knows the future, we are still free in the choices we make. How do we reconcile these two ideas?
What are ways that others should be able to see, from the kind of lives that we live, the reality of our God? Though we can be forgiven and accept God’s forgiveness, how do we learn to forgive ourselves, no matter how unworthy we are of that forgiveness?
How can we learn to trust God and cling to His promises when events don’t appear providential at all, and indeed, God seems silent?
What are the idols of our culture, our civilization? How can we make sure we aren’t worshiping anyone or anything other than the Lord?
How can we learn to trust God when we don’t see “justice” being done, when we see people who do evil get away with it, or when we see the innocent suffer?
Why is it so comforting to know that while not all things are God’s will, He is still in charge?
How can we learn to keep focused on Christ and His righteousness as our only hope of salvation? What happens if we try to start counting up our good works? Why is it important that we not give up, despite times of doubt?
What kind of influence do our actions have on others? What kind of message are we sending about our faith by our actions?
What example do we have from history, or even the present, of the trouble that can come from those who seek to make a name for themselves?
What lesson can we learn from the Noah story regarding our role in warning the world about coming judgment?
If Satan was able to deceive a sinless Eve in Eden, how much more vulnerable are we? What is our best defence against his deceptions?
The book of Genesis and, hence, the whole Bible begins with God’s acts of Creation. This fact is very important because it means that our creation marks the beginning of human and biblical history. This truth also implies that the Genesis Creation story has the same historical veracity as other events of human and biblical history. The two Creation texts in Genesis 1 and 2 contain lessons about God and humanity. As we study this week, we will understand better the profound meaning of the seventh-day Sabbath. We will ponder God’s act of creating humans in His image, and out of the dust too. We will be intrigued by the purpose of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and by its connection with the tree of life. The most important lesson of the biblical stories of the beginnings is a lesson on grace. Our existence is purely an act of grace. God created the heavens and the earth while humans were not yet present. Just as our creation was, our redemption is, too, a gift from God. And how profound it is that both concepts, Creation and Redemption, exist in the seventh-day Sabbath commandment.
Why is it important to remember that God is leading us as a group? What are my responsibilities to the group? What are the best indicators that brotherly love is strong in a congregation?
The shaking of the heavens and the earth means, then, the destruction of the earthly powers that persecute God’s people and, more importantly, the destruction of the evil powers (Satan and his angels) who stand behind the earthly powers and control them.
Why is it important to recognize that our faith results from and feeds on God’s faithfulness? How can we learn more to trust in His faithfulness to us and to the promises He has made to us?
Why should the reality of what Christ has done, not only on the cross but what He is doing now in heaven, give us assurance of salvation?
The sanctuary sacrifices teach us that the experience of salvation is more than just accepting Jesus as our Substitute. We also need to “feed” on Him, share His benefits with others, and provide reparation to those whom we have wronged.
By living a perfect life, and then by dying in our place, Jesus mediated a new, better covenant between us and God. Through His death, Jesus canceled the penalty of death that our trespasses demanded and made possible the new covenant.
What do you feel when you think that God has made an oath to you? Why should that thought alone help give you assurance of salvation, even when you feel unworthy?
God is holy, and sin cannot exist in His presence; so, our own corrupted nature separated us from God. This week, we are going to study the amazing things the Father and the Son did to bridge that gulf.
What are ways that you can learn to experience more deeply that reality of just how close Christ can be to you? Why is having this experience so important to your faith?
Right after Adam and Eve sinned, God promised them a “seed,” a Son who would deliver them from the enemy, recover the inheritance that had been lost, and fulfill the purpose for which they had been created (Gen. 3:15). This Son would both represent and redeem them by taking their place and, ultimately, by destroying the serpent.
A Jewish document written a few decades after Hebrews, around a.d. 100, contains a prayer: “All this I have spoken before you, O Lord, because you have said that it was for us that you created this world. . . . And now, O Lord, behold, these nations, which are reputed as nothing, domineer over us and devour us. But we your people, whom you have called your first-born, only begotten, zealous for you, and most dear, have been given into their hands.”—James H. Charlesworth, ed., The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, vol. 1 (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1983), p. 536.
Have you ever imagined what it would be like to hear Jesus, or one of the apostles, preach? We possess written excerpts and summaries of some of their sermons, but these provide only a limited idea of what it was like to hear them. God, however, preserved in the Scriptures at least one complete sermon for us: Paul’s letter to the Hebrews.
How does the story of Moses’ death and later resurrection show us how the New Testament, though often based on the Old Testament, does take us further than the Old Testament and can indeed shed much new light upon it?
Whether using direct Old Testament quotations, or allusions, or references to stories or prophecies, the New Testament writers constantly used the Old Testament to buttress, even justify, their claims.
This week we will focus on how the book was used by later writers. What parts of Deuteronomy did they use, and what points were they making that have relevance for us today?
God often tells His people to remember all the things that He has done for them; to remember His grace for them and His goodness toward them. How easy it is to forget what God has done for us.
Because we are sinful, repentance should be a central part of our Christian existence. And, this week, we will see the idea of repentance as expressed in Deuteronomy.
Right from the start, the Bible presents us with just one of two options: eternal life, which is what we were originally supposed to have, and eternal death, which in a sense is merely going back to the nothingness out of which we first came.
Deuteronomy could be seen as one big object lesson in grace and law. By grace God redeems us, doing for us what we couldn’t do for ourselves, and in response we live, by faith, a life of obedience to Him and to His law.
What does it mean to add or to take away from God’s commands? Outside of the obvious, such as the attempted change of the Sabbath, how might something like that happen so subtly we don’t even realize what is happening?
Loving God with all the heart and soul and strength means that our love for Him should be supreme over our love for everything and everyone else, because He is the foundation and ground of all our being and existence and everything else.
God out of His saving grace and love offers you a salvation that you do not deserve and cannot possibly earn; and you, in response, love Him back “with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength” (Mark 12:30, NKJV), a love that is made manifest by obedience to His law: “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments” (1 John 5:3, NKJV).
This week, we look at how we can rest in Jesus in the face of global unrest and our own personal unknown future, at least in the short term. In the long term, things look very promising, indeed!
This week, we look at Jonah and what we can learn from his restlessness and lack of peace.
How can you help others find rest in Jesus when they think that their sins have been too grievous, that their hearts cannot be changed, and that their cases are truly hopeless?
Sabbath is a celebration of freedom from all the things that keep us in bondage. On Sabbath, we are reminded that there is freedom from sin, not in our own power but in the power of God, which is offered to us by faith.
During this week, we will study God’s wonderful invitation to enter into a dynamic rest, again and again, with every seventh day. How can keeping the Sabbath holy be a reminder of freedom and liberation? How can we avoid making it restrictive and legalistic?
God wants to cure us on the inside first. Sometimes He chooses to bring us immediate physical healing, sometimes we will have to wait for resurrection morning to experience physical healing. How can we find rest and peace, even when our prayers for healing are not answered, at least now?
This week we will look at forgiveness and what it can do for restless human hearts. Without forgiveness, we remain victims. Forgiveness has more to do with ourselves than with the person or persons who have wronged us.
This week we turn to the story of Joseph and his family ties in order to watch God at work bringing healing and emotional rest despite dysfunctional family relationships.
Why is living a life of obedience to God’s law one of more restfulness than one in which we disobey that law?
This week we look briefly into the life of the man after God’s own heart to find out how he discovered the true cost of God’s rest.
In this week’s study, we want to discover some of the roots of our restlessness. There are many things that can prevent us from finding true rest in Jesus. Some of these are obvious and don’t require much attention. Others may be less obvious to us, and, as with the huge aspen organism unseen beneath the ground, we may not always be conscious of the attitudes and actions that separate us from our Savior.
In this week’s study, we look at some examples of strange human restlessness that was brought about, not by impending natural disasters such as earthquakes but, rather, by the basic sinfulness of fallen human beings who were not resting in what Christ offers all who come to Him in faith and obedience.
Acknowledging Jesus as the Lord of our lives also involves taking seriously our responsibility to make time to rest. After all, the Sabbath commandment isn’t merely a suggestion. It is a commandment!
Why should we feel joy? What is it about the covenant that should free us from the burden of guilt? What does it mean to have a new heart?
Why must salvation be a gift? Why could only Someone equal with God ransom our souls? How can we make the promises and hope found in the Cross our own?
The old covenant-sacrificial system was replaced by the new; instead of animals being sacrificed by sinful priests in an earthly sanctuary, we now have Jesus, our perfect Sacrifice. He represents us before the Father in the sanctuary in heaven, which forms the basis of the new covenant and its promises.
The “new covenant” is, in a sense, a “renewed covenant.” It is the completion, or the fulfillment, of the first one.
Where does the Sabbath have it origins? What evidence proves that the Sabbath existed before Sinai? What makes the Sabbath such an appropriate covenant sign?
God’s law was an integral part of the covenant. Yet, it was a true covenant of grace. Grace, however, never nullifies the need for law. On the contrary, law is a means by which grace is manifested and expressed in the life of those who receive grace.
Whatever God asks us to do, our relationship with Him must be founded upon faith. Faith provides the basis upon which works follow. Works, in and of themselves, no matter how purely motived, no matter how sincere, no matter how numerous, can’t make us acceptable in the sight of a holy God.
Our study this week focuses on the identity and role of God’s true Israel in every age, including our own.
What is the greatest of all the covenant promises? What effect should God’s promise of a new earth have on our personal Christian experience?
God called Abraham into a special relationship with Him, one that would reveal the plan of salvation to the world.
In what ways is God’s grace revealed in the covenant with Noah before the Flood? What does the covenant God made with humanity after the Flood teach us about His universal love for us?
This week is a quick summary of the whole quarter, as we take one day each to look at the early covenants, the ones that were all, in their own way, present-truth manifestations of the true covenant, the one ratified at Calvary by the blood of Jesus, the one that we, as Christians, enter into with our Lord.
The biblical account of the Creation of humanity is one filled with hope, happiness, and perfection. Each day of Creation ended with the divine pronouncement that it was “good.” Certainly that didn’t include typhoons, earthquakes, famine, and diseases. What happened?
Why is the promise of eternal life in a new heaven and a new earth so basic to our Christian belief? What good would our faith be without that promise?
Sin can destroy our relationship with the Lord and thus lead to our eternal ruin—not because sin drives God away from us but that it drives us away from God.
What will better attract people to the truth as it is in Jesus: strict adherence to dietary laws or a willingness to help the hungry? Strict rest on the Sabbath or a willingness to spend your own time and energy helping those who are in need?
The weight, the guilt, the punishment for the sins of the whole world—every sin, by every sinner—fell upon Christ at the Cross, at once, as the only means to save us! What does it tell us about God’s love that He would do this for us, even at such a great cost?
Deliverance requires a Deliverer. God’s servant nation would be delivered by two deliverers: Cyrus, who would set the captives free from Babylonian exile, and an unnamed Servant, whose identity as the Messiah is progressively revealed. This Servant would restore justice and bring the community of survivors back to God.
What do Bible promises about the end of suffering mean to you now, amid your present suffering? What good would our faith be without those promises? Why, then, is it so important to cling to them, no matter what?
In response to the cry of a faithful king, God saved His people and showed who He is: the omnipotent King of Israel who controls the destiny of earth.
Ever since sin was born in the heart of a mighty angel, pride has not respected the boundaries of reality (in angels or people). This week, among other things, we’ll take a look at the origin of pride and self-exaltation.
Though time and again God seeks to woo us by revealing His love and character, He will also allow us to face the fruit of our wrong decisions; i.e., pain, suffering, fear, turmoil, and so forth, all in order to help us realise just what turning away from Him leads to.
What can we do, now, today, to learn to keep our faith intact, so that when tomorrow’s calamities come, we can stay firm?
What does this study teach us about God’s forbearance and willingness to bring all of us to salvation? God does not promise that His people will not endure hardship and pain, but He promises to be with them.
Not only does God’s sanctuary throb with awesome power; it’s a place where weak and faulty people such as we can find refuge. We can be reassured by knowing that God is working to rescue us through Christ, our High Priest.
God does not cut off anyone who responds to Him. He appeals as long as there is hope for a response. He does not immediately take No for an answer, because He knows we are ignorant and deceived by sin.
We are promised that we will be given an understanding of things that, for now, remain hidden to us. What a wonderful hope, too, that once we do see and understand things that now seem so difficult, we will have nothing but praise for God!
Jesus wanted to emphasise that the Sabbath should not be a burden. It was created as a unique opportunity for people to learn of the character of God who made the Sabbath and learn experientially by valuing His creation.
Christians need to learn how to work God’s way. Work is more than an economic necessity. Rightly understood, one’s lifework is an avenue of ministry, an expression of one’s relationship to the Lord.
This week we will look at some principles involved in how we can teach the arts and sciences from the Christian perspective and worldview.
Learning to know God is our foremost response to His grace. We cannot earn such grace, but we can learn it, and what is Christian education if not, at its core, education teaching us about this grace?
Worship, proper worship, is so important that, in fact, it becomes central to the issues in the last days, before the second coming of Christ. Thus, Christian education needs to include the whole question of worship: what is it, how do we do it, why is it important, and whom do we worship?
True Christian education must be about pointing us to the only solution for our rather dismal state. This week we’ll look at our only solution, our Master Teacher.
In sending His Son to this planet, the Father sent the Master Teacher on a mission: to show humankind His face.
As human beings, we never look at the world from a neutral position. We see it, always and only, through filters that impact how we interpret and understand the world around us. That filter is called a worldview, and it’s so crucial that we teach our young people, and even older church members, the biblical worldview.
This week we will study the role of God’s law in the whole question of Christian education. As part of Christian education we need to keep God’s law as a central component of what it means to live by faith and trusting in God’s grace.
What does the Bible say about education in the family, and what principle can we take away from it for ourselves, whatever our family situation happens to be?
Through the creation story God has given so many powerful lessons. The Garden of Eden is a wonderful teacher. Matt has shared some powerful principles. True education will lead to true knowledge, the knowledge of Christ, and thus not only will we become more like Him, we may stand also to share our knowledge of Him with others.
Heaven will be worth any sacrifice we make on earth. There will be sacrifices along the way, but the joys of service will outweigh them today, and the eternal joy of living with Christ throughout all eternity will make any sacrifice we make here seem insignificant.
The Bible focuses on the two comings of Jesus. He came once to redeem us and will return to take home what He has purchased at such an infinite cost. The Bible’s last book, Revelation, was written especially to prepare the world for Jesus’ return. It is an urgent message for this generation.
If our witness about Jesus comes from a heart that has been transformed by His grace, charmed by His love, and amazed at His truth, others will be impressed with how the truth we believe has impacted our lives. Truth presented in the context of a changed life makes all the difference.
Small group ministry is ordained by God to enable each church member to grow spiritually, experience warm fellowship, and utilize their God-given gifts in service.
"Our attitudes often determine our ability to influence others. A harsh, critical, and unfriendly attitude is going to drive people away from you, and even if you are able to witness, your words, no matter how truthful, are much less likely to be received. In contrast, a positive attitude and a belief in others draws them to us. It creates a bond of friendship."
"The living witness of a Christ-like life committed to ministering to others is a powerful testimony to the words we speak and gives credibility to our witness."
'In all of our witnessing, we must keep three biblical principles in mind: what we say, how we say it, and when we say it.'
God calls us to witness for Him. Witnessing is not a special spiritual gift that only a select few possess. Witnessing is the divine calling of each Christian. For God, what matters isn’t so much what you have, but rather, what you do with what you have.
As we witness for Jesus, it is crucial to remember that we are cooperating with the Holy Spirit. He is there before us, preparing hearts to receive the message of the gospel and share it with others.
When we pray for others, we become a channel of God’s blessing to them. He pours out the river of the water of life from heaven’s throne through us to them. Satan’s whole host trembles at the sound of earnest intercession.
By watching the way Jesus worked with people, we learn how to lead others to a knowledge of salvation through Jesus Christ.
What does the Bible have to say about sharing your personal testimony? Listen in as Justin shares examples of personal testimonies that are given in the Bible, all of them are from very different types of people and experiences. If we have experienced Christ as our personal Saviour, we have something to share with the world.
This lesson gives five Biblical reasons on why we should all be witnesses. When we have experienced the salvation of Jesus and the peace and hope He gives, we cannot be silent.
The best method of studying the Bible is of no use if we are not determined to live by what we learn from Scripture. What is true for education in general also is true for studying the Bible in particular: you learn best not just by reading or hearing, but by practicing what you know. How do we live by the Word of God? Sven gives some practical steps in doing this.
Charissa discusses how to approach Scripture when dealing with difficult passages and how we can work through them.
Bible prophecy is crucial to our identity and mission. Prophecy provides an internal and external mechanism to confirm the accuracy of God’s Word. Jesus said, “ ‘And now I have told you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe’.
The historical nature of Scripture is one characteristic that distinguishes it from the sacred books of other religions. This lesson looks at some of the key issues in history as portrayed in the Bible and at some of the archaeological evidence that helps substantiate history as expressed in the Bible.
Many great thinkers were inspired by Scripture to explore God’s created world; as a result, modern science was born. Johannes Kepler, Isaac Newton, John Ray, Robert Boyle, and other early great scientists believed that their work revealed even more about the handiwork of God's creation. Julian explores some different theories other than the Bible of creation in our world today.
The first chapters of Genesis are foundational for the rest of Scripture. The major teachings or doctrines of the Bible have their source in these chapters.
What a blessing it is to have the Bible in our own language! This was not always the case and something we take for granted. How can we, being guided by the Holy Spirit, better study Scripture. Matt takes us through some principles that it is good to understand.
If our approach and interpretation of the Bible is incorrect, we will most likely come to false conclusions. This is dangerous to understanding salvation and other teachings of the Bible.
What does Sola Scripture mean? This week the Sabbath School lesson goes into this subject in greater detail. Sven goes back in history and reminds us of where this principle came from.
What role does human tradition and culture have in our religious experience, as Bible believing Christians? Pr Matt Parra has the commentary this week and has some great thoughts.
Jesus was the Word that became flesh and dwelt among us. Jesus was the very fulfilment of the law. Through Jesus' life we see the Bible come to life. He taught His disciples obedience to the Word of God and the law. Jesus constantly referred to Scripture.
Jonathan looks at how the Bible is different from every other book that claims to be inspired of God.
Pr Matt Parra unpacks Daniel chapter 12. Topics discussed: Michael as another name for Jesus, the judgment, the time of trouble, preterism, futurism and historicism and being lights in the dark world.
This week's lesson is on Daniel Chapter 10, which reveals Daniel's life of devotion and persistence in prayer. What was the result of this? Christ, the Son of God appeared to Daniel. Daniel drew near to God and God drew near to him.
Pr Matt Parra explains the prophecy in Daniel chapter 9. It is a powerful prophecy and really confirms our faith.
Pr Matt unpacks Daniel 8. The little horn, the daily and the cleansing of the sanctuary.
Lawson unpacks from Scripture the identifying characteristics of the AntiChrist in Daniel chapter 7.
There are certain areas of our lives that we should never compromise. Daniel's prayer life and communion with God was one of those areas, even if it meant the loss of his life. Listen to Matt share on Daniel chapter 6.
This week's lesson is on Daniel chapter 5. King Belshazzar's magnificent party ends with his final judgment.
Jonathan this week, looks at the dream of the tree that God gave to King Nebuchadnezzar.
Brad Moodie expounds on the story of the three Hebrew worthies and makes applications to our lives today.