BIBLE STUDIES....

Leading others to Christ. ~ Greg Laurie

Rick Renner.

WOMEN IN THE EARLY CHURCH.~ Rick Renner

Hanukkah & The End Times

Praying in the Harvest.

We don't want to spend our time praying if nothing is going to result from our efforts. Guy Duininck

This month we are focusing on praying effectively to bring in God's harvest

April begins our Study on the Lord's Prayer.

We will be using This Book: Could You Not Tarry One Hour ~ Larry Lea.

Available from Koorong: $14.00

This will be February's study. Outline & brief notes will go up each week for those unable to attend.

Up & running Tuesday 17th Feb at our place. I have uploaded the clip we sang today as so many of you enjoyed this one.

study 1

:Circle Lord, my, Shepherd

:Note~ Lord here is Yahweh ~ the covenant name of God

~note my is a possessive pronoun.  It denotes relationship.

~Shepherd is roi in Hebrew. It is a participle of the verb that means to feed.

Who is this shepherd?

Cross reference Genesis 48:15

And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day.

Some translations render this as shepherd.  It is exactly the same word.

Cross reference John 10:11

"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep.

Note: the Jews would have understood there is only one who is good; God, therefore Jesus was claiming deity.

Cross reference Hebrews13:20

Now may the God of peace--who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep, and ratified an eternal covenant with his blood...

Our peace is the reconciliation of the sinner with God through the shed blood of Christ.

Cross reference 1 Peter 5:4

And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive a crown of never-ending glory and honor.

 Our glory is that we shall be like Him.

The shepherd feds the sheep.  The shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.  The shepherd brings peace. He is the covenant God.  We identify Him with our saviour, Jesus.

Question: Where do we find psalm 23?

Between psalm 22 & psalm 24.

Read Psalm 22.  This is the psalm of the cross

Read psalm 24.  This is the psalm of the resurrection.

Quote from Prof. Finlayson:

One is the psalm of the cross, one is the psalm of the crook, one is the psalm of the crown.

STUDY 2.

The 2 questions addressed in this study are:

1. Who are the sheep of psalm 23?

2. What sort of world do the sheep & the shepherd inhabit?

X~reference Zechariah 13:7 & psalm 22:20 Here we see God smiting the shepherd,

Conclusion Redeemer/Shepherd ~ X~reference Romans 5:8

The sheep:Hear my voice ~ John 10:27

: need a shepherd & a shepherd needs sheep

: are gifted by the Father~ Jn 6:37 & Jn 17:6

:purchased ~ 1 Peter 1:18/19

:born into the flock

2 Greek words for hearing.  The one used in Jn 10 is akouō

 which means to heed & obey

Simple definition of a Christian is one who follows Christ.

Implication ~ if they are following they are being led.

The shepherd:

My sheep

&

I know them

STUDY 3.

John 6:44~For no one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them to me, and at the last day I will raise them up.

The first work of the Spirit is to draw us towards God & link us in union with Christ.  Nothing else is possible: faith, conversion, belief, without this first work.

It makes us a sheep of Christ's pasture.  Without that you do not belong to Christ & cannot claim this psalm as your own.

Sense of confidence & serenity.

Question Do you know Christ better now than when you were first saved?  Relationship implies ongoing growth

I John 3:14~ If we love our Christian brothers and sisters, it proves that we have passed from death to life. But a person who has no love is still dead.

This is a litmus test as to the state of our salvation.  Sheep fellowship with sheep; Christians enjoy the fellowship of other Christians.  A sheep or a Christian off on their own has something wrong with them.  It is not a natural state  according to scripture. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near. Hebrews 10:25

I shall not want =Satisfaction

רָבַץ usually translated lie but may be better translated sprawl.  It implies relaxation without worry. Four things will prevent a sheep from relaxing & laying down:

1. Fear

2.Antagonism

3. flies or insects

4.Hunger

Still waters: sheep will not drink from moving water so the shepherd must provide the right conditions for his sheep. A sheep must have water.  If they feed without water they cannot digest their food.  The food will harden in the gut & the sheep will die.  So for a Christian the food of the Word must be digested with the anointing of the oil of the Spirit or it will harden into something unpalatable!

Study4.

He restoreth my soul...

• no animal strays as readily or easily as a sheep
• coped~ a sheep that finds the most comfortable spot to lie down then can't get up again.  Will die without the shepherd's help
• cast ~ a sheep who's fleece has become too heavy before shearing [with sin, impediments, worldliness] & falling down can't rise because of the weight.  Must be sheared.  If we won't deal with our sin it will be dealt with for us ~ for our good.
• Middle Eastern shepherds lead their sheep to pasture.  
• Easier to be led than to lead
• Closer we walk the easier it is & the more protected we are
• the honour of His name rests on us & His shepherding of us because you know the quality of a shepherd by how he shepherds his sheep.

Study 5

• Change from talking about the shepherd to talking  to the shepherd!
• Growing intimacy
• Sheep go up into the mountains in spring for the lambing
• Sheep go up into the mountains at night to sleep
• Sheep lamb in the spring.  Need gentle handling then.  When the Lord is bringing forth new life in a thing or person He handles gently, tenderly
• Verse 4 is not only pivotal to the whole psalm, it is rich & deep with meaning
• 4 things to note ~ 1. There is no shadow without light; God is light & in Him there is no darkness
• ~2.It is a valley.  Mountains are spectacular but not safe.  Valleys are generally safe places.
• 3. shadows have no substance
• ~ 4. If there are shadows there is a light source.  If there is a light source you can see the destination
• Points about sheep:

1. The sheep are still walking. If they are walking they are still being led.  There is nothing much wrong with a sheep that is still on its feet walking.
2. Sheep gain confidence from the presence of the shepherd.

They are walking through!  They are not residing in the valley of the shadow of darkness.

Death is called * The Last Enemy*  Jesus defeated it on the cross.

Rod & Staff: for correction, rescue, medical aide 

Sheep need to be handled by the shepherd.  They may not like it but a good shepherd does what is best for his sheep.

Materials needed ~ 1 bible you can write in.

~ Notebook, pen/pencil if desired.

Resources to be used:

Interlinear bible found here:

http://biblehub.com/interlinear/psalms/23.htm

Subsidiary text:

The Lord our Shepherd ~ J. Douglas MacMillan

[Koorong no longer Carries this ]
Try: www.bookfound.com

This is the expository text I will be working from but there is no need to buy this.
Time: Tuesdays 10.00am [Inter~islanders this works with boat times.  I checked. ;) ]