Bible Study series: Acts 13:13-15. His discourse is superb, well worth studying in detail.
Paul and Barnabas Arrive at Pisidian Antioch and Paul Begins a Discourse
Reply
Tag Archives: Bible Study series
“I Am in the Father and the Father Is in Me”
Bible Study series: John 14:1-14. This is a rich section of Scripture:. Samples: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in me.” “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” “If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.” You get the idea.
Deliverance of a Boy with Unclean Spirit
Bible Study series: Luke 9:37-43a. This was a great deliverance.
Lessons from the Withered Fig Tree
Bible Study series: Mark 11:20-25. Jesus gives us permission to speak to obstacles (and diseases and evil spirits). But everything must surrender to the will God, even our words. And speaking to obstacles right in front of us is not the same as decreeing, which only God does. Don’t confuse the categories and roles.
Return of the Unclean Spirit with Seven Others
Bible Study series: Matthew 12:43-45. The house that has been swept clean must be filled with the Spirit and the word.
Barnabas and Saul Reach the Island of Cyprus
Bible Study series: Acts 13:4-12. Cyprus was Barnabas’s home island. Begin at home.
Jesus Foretells Peter’s Denial
Bible Study series: John 13:36-38. Peter’s boast was deflated. But Jesus was right.
The Transfiguration of Jesus, in Luke’s Gospel
Bible Study series: Luke 9:27-36 This is a display of the glory the Son enjoyed before he came down from heaven to earth.
Jesus Clears Out an Area of the Temple, in Mark’s Gospel
Bible Study series: Mark 11:15-19. Jesus said this is his Father’s house. Time to clear out one area of the temple. This was another action parable. It sent a message to the temple establishment.
Religious Leaders Demand a Sign
Bible Study series: Matthew 12:38-42. He did not grant their request, but told them of another prophet and his sign.
Barnabas and Saul Are Sent Out from Antioch
Bible Study series: Acts 13:1-3 So begins Paul’s / Saul’s first missionary journey. Barnabas went with him. God sent them out through prophecy.
The New Commandment
Bible Study series: John 13:31-35. “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for each other.”
‘Let Him Deny Himself and Pick Up His Cross Daily and Follow Me.’
Bible Study series: Luke 9:23-26. We must crucify our own selfishness and follow Jesus.
Jesus Rebukes a Fig Tree
Bible Study series: Mark 11:12-14. This is an action parable. Jesus lived in an agrarian society, where animals were slaughtered and trees uprooted or chopped down often enough. Just talk to a farmer today.
A Tree and Its Fruit
Bible Study series: Matthew 12:31-37. Jesus also discusses the blasphemy of the Spirit.
Barnabas and Saul Return to Antioch
Bible Study series: Acts 12:25. Saul (Paul) had gone to Tarsus. It is time for Barnabas to get him for their missionary trip in Acts 13-14, though neither one realizes it at this time. But God does.
Jesus Foretells His Betrayal
Bible Study series: John 13:21-30. This was part of God’s plan to get his Son on the cross.
Jesus’s Questions and Peter’s Confession
Bible Study series: Luke 9:18-22. Who do you say that I am? How would you answer his question?
Jesus Enters Jerusalem Triumphantly
Bible Study series: Mark 11:1-11. He was destined to die, but for now the people honor him.
Jesus Binds Beelzebub
Bible Study series: Matthew 12:22-30. He bound or tied up Satan. Now we followers of Jesus can walk in victory, in his name.
Progress of the Word of God
Bible Study series: Acts 12:24. Nothing’s gonna stop it.
Jesus Washes His Disciples’ Feet
Bible Study series: John 13:1-20. Now begins the Upper Room Discourse. Jesus sets the right attitude. Be a servant.
Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand
Bible Study series: Luke 9:10-17. He cared for their needs in practical ways.
Jesus Heals Blind Bartimaeus
Bible Study series: Mark 10:46-52. Evidently Bartimaeus reported his healing to Mark’s community. That’s why Mark knew his name.
Jesus Is the Chosen Servant
Bible Study series: Matthew 12:15-21. In the previous section, the Pharisees were plotting to destroy him. Matthew writes, however, that Jesus is the Chosen Servant, chosen by God.
Divine Judgment on Herod Agrippa
Bible Study series: Acts 12:20-23. Herod accepted the praise that only God should get.
Jesus’s Word Judges People
Bible Study series: John 12:44-50. Jesus loves the world, and now his word (message) judges them. It will also judge them on the last day.
Herod’s Confusion about Jesus
Bible Study series: Luke 9:7-9. Herod was speculating about who the Messiah was.
Jesus Heals a Man with a Withered Hand on the Sabbath
Bible Study series: Matthew 12:9-14. He has a successful healing ministry because he was the Anointed One, the Spirit was on him, and the Father directed him.
An Angel Helps Peter Escape from Prison
Bible Study series: Acts 12:6-19. He went to Mary’s house and knocked, and the servant girl Rhoda answered the door. She told those in the house praying for Peter that he was outside, but they did not believe her.
Many Jews Do Not Believe, but Many Others Do, though in Private
Bible Study series: John 12:37-43 Many did not believe, but some rulers did, but they did not confess in public because they were afraid of the Pharisees and kicked out of the synagogue.
Jesus Commissions the Twelve
Bible Study series: Luke 9:1-6. He loves people and wants to reach them with his disciples. He was also training them to go out into all the world (Luke 24:47; Acts 1:8).
Jesus Again Foretells His Death and Resurrection, in Mark’s Gospel
Bible Study series: Mark 10:32-34. Jesus understood his ultimate mission. He was ready.
Plucking Grain on the Sabbath
Bible Study series: Matthew 12:1-8. Did they really break the Sabbath or just the traditions built around it, functioning like a wall to protect it?
Martyrdom of James and Imprisonment of Peter
Bible Study series: Acts 12:1-5. God did not intervene for James, but he did for Peter. Pray according to God’s will and intervention to be done.
Jesus Ministers to Woman with Issue of Blood and Jairus’s Daughter
Bible Study series: Luke 8:40-56. Two females needed help. The daughter needed to be raised from the dead.
Jesus and the Rich Man
Bible Study series: Mark 10:17-31. What will Jesus say to the rich man? Did his love for wealth hold him back?
‘Come to Me and Rest, for My Yoke Is Easy and My Load Is Light’
Bible Study series: Matthew 11:28-30. These are the three most beloved verses in all the Bible, so I approach them with humility and even fear and trembling. Wonderful.
Famine Relief Is Sent to Judea
Bible Study series: Acts 11:27-30. A famine is predicted.
His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem
Bible Study series: John 12:12-19.It was a triumphal entry on his way to death, which he had already predicted.
Jesus Frees the Gerasene Demoniac
Bible Study series: Luke 8:26-39. Demonic oppression is real. Don’t look for it but don’t deny it, either.
Jesus Blesses the Little Children
Bible Study series: Mark 10:13-16. We should also bless children, especially those in our own household. Don ‘t mistreat them.
Only Jesus Knows the Father and Reveals Him
Bible Study series: Matthew 11:25-27. Jesus reveals his Father to those who are hungry. He is still doing this revelation ministry today, from his throne in heaven.
Antioch Becomes a Thriving Christian Base, and Barnabas Finds Saul
Bible Study series: Acts 11:19-26. They were first called Christians there. Barnabas is reintroduced. He is a good man, full of the Spirit.
The Plot to Kill Lazarus
Bible Study series: John 12:9-11. Many Jews believed in Jesus now because of the resurrection of Lazarus. The establishment had to eliminate him.
Jesus Calms the Storm, Who Is This Man?
Bible Study series: Luke 8:22-25. The disciples were trying to figure him out.
Jesus Teaches on Marriage and Divorce in Mark’s Gospel
Bible Study series: Mark 10:1-12. God himself set up marriage. We trifle with it to our own hurt.
Woes Pronounced on Unrepentant Cities
Bible Study series: Matthew 11:20-24. If you reject Jesus, you put your soul in peril. The same goes for entire towns.
Peter Is Questioned about Gentile Salvation and Replies
Bible Study series: Acts 11:1-18. Peter returned to Jerusalem and had to answer for his visit with Gentiles.
Mary Anoints Jesus’s Feet
Bible Study series: John 12:1-8. She was moved to be in Jesus’s presence. And she was preparing him for burial.
The Mother and Brothers of Jesus
Bible Study series: Luke 8:19-21. The natural reading is that these are his full brothers, not step-brothers.
Avoid Temptations to Sin, and Be Salt
Bible Study series: Mark 9:42-50. Keep your life scandal free. Then be salt for the kingdom community and the world.
Messengers from John the Baptist Ask Jesus If He Is the Coming One
Bible Study series: Matthew 11:1-19. John was in prison. He has room for doubt. Jesus reassured him.
Cornelius and Other Gentiles Experience Their Own Pentecost
Bible Study series: Acts 10:44-48. This scene continues on the fourth one. Everyone needs their own Pentecost.
The Plot to Kill Jesus
Bible Study series: John 11:45-57. Jesus left Jerusalem for a while.
He Who Is Not against Us Is for Us
Bible Study series: Mark 9:38-41: Be for Jesus, not against him. Then help his disciples. You won’t lose your reward.
Rewards for Treating God’s Missionaries Hospitably
Bible Study series: Matthew 10:40-42. Missionaries deserve the utmost respect.
Peter Says That Jesus Is for Everyone, in an Overview of Jesus’s Ministry
Bible Study series: Acts 10:30-43. This is the fourth scene in the major kingdom change. It is always best to keep the gospel Christ-centered.
Jesus Raises Lazarus from the Dead
Bible Study series: John 11:38-44. This is the culmination of the story.
The Purpose of Parables and the Parable of Soils (Sower), Explained
Bible Study series: Luke 8:9-15. Are you hungry enough to dig into God’s word to mine its truths? Will you stay with your faith or walk away? Will you let Satan steal the word from your heart? Your soul is at stake.
Who Is the Greatest?
Bible Study series: Mark 9:33-37. Take the low road before God. Be a servant. Become like little children. Don’t lord it over people.
He Came to Bring a Sword (Division), Not Peace in the Household
Bible Study series: Matthew 10:34-39. It’s time to count the cost, in Jewish and Muslim families.
The Spirit Speaks to Peter to Visit Cornelius
Bible Study series: Acts 10:17-29. This is the third scene in the kingdom change on who is acceptable to God. Peter is summoned to a divine appointment. You too can hear the voice of the Spirit.
Parable of the Soils (Sower), Introduced
Bible Study series: Luke 8:4-8. Where is your heart when you hear the gospel? Soft? Ready? Hardened? Anxious? Vulnerable to Satan?
Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection in Mark’s Gospel
Bible Study series. Mark 9:30-32. He understood his mission, tough though it was.
Fear God, Not People
Bible Study series: Matthew 10:26-33. You have to get the right perspective. People can harm the body but do nothing to the soul.
Peter Receives a Vision about Unclean Things
Bible Study series: Acts 10:9-16. This is the second scene in the biggest shift of God’s dealings with people.
‘I Am the Resurrection and the Life’
Bible Study series: John 11:17-27. Jesus teaches before he performs his miracle. Are we listening? Or do we only love the miracles?
Women Travel and Financially Support Men
Bible Study series: Luke 8:1-3. Women were important for the earliest Jesus Movement before his resurrection, and afterwards.
Jesus Expels a Demon from a Boy
Bible Study series: Mark 9:14-29. Demonization is real. Be free of it.
Jesus Predicts Persecution of His Missionaries
Bible Study series: Matthew 10:16-25. Get ready. You will be misunderstood and even persecuted when you preach the gospel in a hostile religious environment.
An Angel Visits Cornelius the Centurion, in a Vision
Bible Study series: Acts 10:1-8. This is the opening scene of a global change on who can be saved. It is an amazing story we are about to read.
Lazarus Gets Sick and Dies; Jesus Had Delayed Coming to Heal Him
Bible Study series: John 11:1-16. Why did Jesus delay when Lazarus was sick? Then he died. Is it too late now?
A Sinful Woman Is Forgiven
Bible Study series: Luke 7:36-50. Jesus set her free from her past.
Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration
Bible Study series: Mark 9:1-13. Jesus reveals more of the glory of the kingdom in himself.
Jesus Calls and Commissions the Twelve Apostles
Bible Study series: Matthew 10:1-15. The apostles will eventually go into all the world and preach the gospel (Matt. 28:18-20)
Peter Raises Tabitha (Dorcas) from the Dead
Bible Study series: Acts 9:36-43. Peter prayed first to hear from the Spirit. He then spoke to her and a miracle happened.
Jesus Leaves Jerusalem
Bible Study series: John 10:40-42. He went to the region beyond the Jordan River (eastward). And many people believed in him because of the signs.
Jesus Tells the People Who John the Baptist Was
Bible Study series: Luke 7:24-35. John was a great prophet, but the least in the kingdom was greater than he. He was a transitional figure.
Take Up Your Cross and Follow Jesus
Bible Study series: Mark 8:34-38. These verses may be the most important ones for our discipleship. We must kill our sins and vices and selfish ambition and foolishness and stubbornness (etc.).
Jesus Heals Two Blind Men
Bible Study series: Matthew 9:27-31. The two men cried out for mercy. Jesus asked them what they wanted. They had to say it. This took place near the Lake of Galilee, up north.
Peter and the Healing of Aeneas
Bible Study series: Acts 9:32-35. Peter performed this wonderful miracle on his preaching tour.
‘The Father Is in Me and I in the Father’
Bible Study series: John 10:31-39. Jews (the establishment) wanted to stone him for his proclamation that he close to his Father.
John Sends Disciples to Jesus to Answer His Doubts
Bible Study series: Luke 7:18-23. Signs and wonders were proof that Jesus was the Messiah. They prove this truth even today.
Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection and Rebukes Peter
Bible Study series: Mark 8:31-33. Peter had just declared that Jesus is the Messiah. Then he speaks for Satan and his cause.
Jesus Resurrects a Ruler’s Daughter and Heals Woman with Issue of Blood
Bible Study series: Matthew 9:18-26. Two females in need, and he helps both of them. Wonderful.
Summary Verse: The Church Grows
Bible Study series: Acts 9:31. This one of six summary verses. The church prospers.
‘I and My Father Are One’
Bible Study series: John 10:22-30. This is a clear text that supports the Son’s deity.
Jesus Raises a Widow’s Only Son from the Dead
Bible Study series: Luke 7:11-17. This shows that Jesus is the Messiah, true, but it also demonstrates that he loves people who hurt.
Peter Declares that Jesus Is the Christ
Bible Study series: Mark 8:27-30. This is his confession of faith.
Questions about Fasting and Parables of New Cloth and New Wine
Bible Study series: Matthew 9:14-17. God is doing a new thing.
Saul Goes to Jerusalem and Barnabas Supports Him
Bible Study series: Acts 9:26-30. He will soon return to his hometown. Sometimes retreat is the best option when things don’t go your way. Wait for God’s timing.
Jesus Is the Good Shepherd
Bible Study series: John 10:7-21. Will we submit to him like sheep and follow him?
A Gentile Centurion with Great Faith
Bible Study series: Luke 7:1-10. He had greater faith than anyone among God’s people. He amazed Jesus.
Jesus Heals a Blind Man in Two Stages at Bethsaida
Bible Study series: Mark 8:22-26. We can learn from this healing, when we pray for the sick.
Jesus Calls Matthew
Bible Study series: Matthew 9:9-13 Jesus associated with tax collectors. Why not call one of them, under the Father’s guidance?
Ananias Prays for Saul Who Then Boldly Proclaims the Messiah
Bible Study series: Acts 9:17-25. Jesus revealed many things to Saul, before he preached. He did not speak from the hip.
Jesus Is the Door and His Sheep Hear His Voice
Bible Study series: John 10:1-6. Those who will become his sheep are listening and will walk through the door.
Jesus Teaches His Kingdom Citizens to Listen and Obey
Bible Study series: Luke 6:46-49. Build your house on the rock (Jesus’s teaching).
Disciples Are to Watch Out for Yeast of Pharisees and Herod
Bible Study series: Mark 8:14-21. False teaching nowadays is everywhere.
Jesus Heals a Paralytic
Bible Study series: Matthew 9:1-8. Jesus can forgive sins.
Ananias Is Commanded to Pray for Saul
Bible Study series: Acts 9:10-16. We have to obey God even when we don’t understand it.
Jesus Opens the Eyes of the Spiritually Blind
Bible Study series: John 9:35-41. Jesus uses the opening the blind eye to teach about spiritual blindness.
Jesus Teaches His Kingdom Citizens to Look for Character
Bible Study series: Luke 6:43-45. We must look for character in those who minister among us. Character over gifting.
Pharisees Demand a Sign
Bible Study series: Mark 8:11-13. Jesus does not grant their demand. He moved on.
Jesus Delivers Two Gadarene Demoniacs
Bible Study series: Matthew 8:28-34. Jesus traveled out of his way to set them free.
Irony Alert! Saul Is on Mission to Arrest Christians but Risen Jesus Arrests Him
Bible Study series: Acts 9:1-9. God arrested Saul while he is on his mission to arrest Jewish believers in Jesus.
The Pharisees Investigate the Healing
Bible Study series: John 9:13-34. The ex-blind man got the better of them. I once was blind, but now I see!
Jesus Teaches His Kingdom Citizens to Be Careful about Judging Others
Bible Study series: Luke 6:37-42. Just be aware that your judgment on others could turn back over on you.
Jesus Feeds Four Thousand
Bible Study series: Mark 8:1-10. God can work a miracle with a few resources.
Jesus Calms the Storm
Bible Study series: Matthew 8:23-27. It’s time to trust, when Jesus is with you.
Philip Meets an Ethiopian Eunuch
Bible Study series. Acts 8:26-40. This was a divine appointment, set up by the Spirit and an angel.
Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind
Bible Study series: John 9:1-12. This was a great sign.
Jesus Teaches His Kingdom Citizens to Love Their Enemies
Bible Study series. Luke 6:27-36. In the Sermon on the Plain, Jesus issues a summons or call to radical discipleship. Have you done anything radical or countercultural, like giving money to your church, when your accountant says not to? Do you know someone who has given all for Jesus, to the point of martyrdom? What is your story?
Jesus Heals a Deaf and Mute Man
Bible Study series. Mark 7:31-37. The crowds were amazed. But Jesus worked the miracle to help the man, not to amaze the crowds.
Are You Ready to Truly Follow Jesus?
Bible Study series. Matthew 8:18-22. Enthusiasm is great, but can you count the cost?
Peter and John Visit Samaria
Bible Study series. Acts 8:14-25. Peter and John need to validate Philip’s ministry in Samaria.
‘Before Abraham Was, I Am’
Bible study series: John 8:48-59. Jesus proclaims his deity, by the Father’s permission, who glorifies his Son.
Blessings and Woes
Bible Study series. Luke 6:20-26. Jesus begins the Sermon on the Plain. He is teaching his disciples, his kingdom citizens. Get ready for blessings and some tough times and trials.
A Syrophoenician Woman’s Faith
Bible Study series: Mark 7:24-30. Jesus lifts her faith by putting her off at first, just to bring out the faith he saw in her.
Jesus Heals Many People
Bible Study series: Matthew 8:14-17. Another summary about Jesus’s healing ministry. Matthew quotes Isaiah 53:4. He carried our diseases.
Your Father Is the Devil
Bible Study series: John 8:37-47. Jesus did not hold back.
Jesus Ministers to Crowd of Disciples and Multitudes
Bible Study series: Luke 6:17-19. This is a good summary of Jesus’s ministry.
Tradition or the Word of God? Externals or Internals?
Bible Study series: Mark 7:1-23. The word of God is central. Traditions take a back seat.
Jesus Heals a Centurion’s Servant
Bible Study series: Matthew 8:5-13. The centurion’s faith shocked him.
Persecution Breaks Out, and the Church Disperses to Judea and Samaria
Bible Study series: Acts 8:1b-4. There was a general persecution ,and Saul also persecutes them. Everywhere the Christians went, they preached the gospel. Only the apostles remained in Jerusalem.
Knowing the Truth Will Set You Free
Bible Study series: John 8:31-36. Jesus and his gospel is the truth. Know them and you will be free.
Jesus Spends Night in Prayer and Selects Twelve Apostles
Bible Study series: Luke 6:12-16. Jesus was a man of prayer.
Jesus Heals Everyone Who Reached Out to Him at Gennesaret
Bible Study series: Mark 6:53-56. This is his ministry of putting bad things right. The kingdom of God has come.
Jesus Is Willing to Cleanse a Leper
Bible Study series: Matthew 8:1-4. Jesus healed everyne needing healing and who approached him.
Stephen Is Martyred
Bible Study series: Acts 7:57-8:1a. Criticizing the temple was a serious offense. He paid with his life. He was the first recorded martyr. (8:1a is divided up like that to fit the flow of the narrative from here to the next chapter.)
Jesus Heals a Man with Withered Hand on Sabbath
Bible Study series: Luke 6:6-11. Jesus broke down the wall which religious leaders had built around the Torah (first five books of the Bible).
Jesus Walks on Water
Bible Study series: Mark 6:45-52. Do not fear! Jesus miraculously comes to save you.
Two Foundations
Bible Study series: Matthew 7:24-29. Will you obey his words or hear them and then do as you please?
The Sanhedrin Reacts and Stephen Sees the Son of Man
Bible Study series: Acts 7:54-56. Now the “empire” (Sanhedrin) strikes back.
Jesus Is the Light of the World
Bible Study series: John 8:12-20. Jesus = the Light = the Truth
Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath
Bible Study series: Luke 6:1-5. He owns it.
Jesus Goes on Retreat and Then Feeds the Five Thousand
Bible Study series: Mark 6:30-44. The apostles report back after their short-term mission trip. Then they go on a retreat. Afterwards, he feeds the five thousand.
Trees and Their Fruits and False Followers
Bible Study series: Matthew 7:15-23. You can prophesy and work miracles in huis name but not know the Lord. “Depart from me! I never knew you!” We can know them by their fruit.
Stephen Denounces Sanhedrin’s Hypocrisy
Bible Study series: Acts 7:51-53 Stephen is coming on strong. Fearless!
A Woman Caught in Adultery
Bible Study series: John 8:1-11 Mercy triumphs over judgment.
God Is Doing a New Thing through Jesus
Bible Study series: Luke 5:33-39. New wine in old wineskins?
Herod Executes John the Baptist
Bible Study series: Mark 6:14-29. Let’s do a deep dive into John’s life.
Enter through the Narrow Gate; Walk the Narrow Path
Bible Study series Matthew 7:13-14. Kingdom citizens enter through the narrow gate and walk on the straight and narrow path
Stephen Says God Does Not Dwell in Things Made with Hands
Bible study series: Acts 7:44-50. God does not live in the temple. Stephen reveals God presence is not limited to the tabernacle of Moses or Solomon’s temple.
The Authorities Do Not Believe in Him
Bible Study series: John 7:45-52. They did not arrest him, as noted in another post. The officers were so amazed at his teaching that they did not bring him in.
Jesus Calls Levi and Dines with Him
Bible Study series: Luke 5:27-32. Levi said yes. Let’s celebrate!
Jesus Sends Out the Twelve
Bible Study series: Mark 6:7-13. Proclaim repentance. They healed saw many healings and deliverances. They used oil to pray for the sick.
The King Teaches on Persistent Prayer + the Golden Rule
Bible Study series: Matthew 7:7-12. Prayer must be persistent. And we must do good to people. There is a connection.
Dr. Jim's Essential Bible Teaching 