Bible Study: (Book of Proverbs; Knowledge, Understanding, and Wisdom)
Date: ………10/17/14
Study: Week # 4
Prayer:
Our Father, which art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy Name, Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done in our life today as we study this chapter. Your will is for us to learn of You each day, read Your Word, and study to show ourselves approval to You and only to You. Father, give us today what we need to understand Your will for us, so we can bring glory and honor to You, Your Son, and Your Holy Spirit. Forgive us Father for any wrong doing we have done. We stand forgiving others who have wronged us today. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from all evil. For Thine is the Kingdom, the power, the glory, all understanding, all knowledge, and all wisdom. We give You all glory, all praises be unto You, in Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
Title: Understanding Part 2
The Bible is all around us. People hear Scripture readings in church. We have Good Samaritan (Luke 10) laws, welcome home the Prodigal Son (Luke 15), and look for the Promised Land (Exodus 3, Hebrews 11). Some biblical passages have become popular maxims, such as "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you (Matthew 7:12)," "Thou shalt not steal (Exodus 20:15), and "love thy neighbor" (Matthew 22:39).
Listed here are 10 points for fruitful Scripture reading, and understanding.
1). Bible reading is for God's people. The Church encourages God's people to make reading the Bible part of their daily prayer lives. Reading these inspired words people grow deeper in their relationship with God and come to understand their place in the community God has called them to in Himself.
2). Prayer is the beginning and the end. Reading the Bible is not like reading a novel or a history book. It should begin with a prayer asking the Holy Spirit to open our hearts and minds to the Word of God. Scripture reading should end with a prayer that this Word will bear fruit in our lives, helping us to grow and be more faithful people.
3). Get the whole story! When selecting a Bible, look for one you can understand.
An edition that will include the Church's complete list of books along with introduction and notes for understanding the text. An edition that will have Jesus Words in red print is a good ideal.
4). The Bible isn't a book. It's a library.
The Bible is a collection of 66 books written over the course of many centuries. The Bible is the sacred Book, or collection of books, accepted by the Christian Church as uniquely inspired by God, and thus authoritative, providing guidelines for belief and behavior. Many verses throughout the Bible attest to its divine origin (Genesis 6:9-13, Exodus 20:1-17, 2 Timothy 3:16, 2 Peter 1:20-21, Revelation 1:1-2, etc.) But the Bible was not simply dictated word-for-word by God; it is also the work of its many different human authors. The different writing skills, writing styles, personalities, world views, and cultural backgrounds of the human authors can be seen in their works. Many of the New Testament books were originally written as letters rather than as Scripture. Some Bible writings include the authors' own research and recollection of historical events (Luke 1:1-4) and their own opinions (1 Corinthians 7:12).
5). Know what the Bible is – and what it isn't.
The Bible is the story of God's relationship with the people he has called to himself. It is not intended to be read as history text, a science book, or a political manifesto. In the Bible, God teaches us the truths that we need for the sake of our salvation.
6). The sum is greater than the parts. Read the Bible in context. What happens before and after – even in other books – helps us to understand the true meaning of the text.
7). The Old relates to the New. The Old Testament and the New Testament shed light on each other. While we read the Old Testament in light of the death and resurrection of Jesus, it has its own value as well. Together, these testaments help us to understand God's plan for human beings.
8). You do not read alone. By reading and reflecting on Sacred Scripture, we join those faithful men and women who have taken God's Word to heart and put it into practice in their lives. We read the Bible within the tradition of the Church to benefit from the holiness and wisdom of all the faithful.
9). What is God saying to me? The Bible is not addressed only to long-dead people in a faraway land. It is addressed to each of us in our own unique situations. When we read, we need to understand what the text says and how the faithful have understood its meaning in the past. In light of this understanding, we then ask: What is God saying to me?
10). Reading isn't enough. If Scripture remains just words on a page, our work is not done. We need to meditate on the message and put it into action in our lives. Only then can the word be "living and effective."(Hebrews 4:12).
Understanding, or realization of the presence of God within us, is as Jesus said, "the gift of God" (Jn. 4:10). It comes to any and all who learn how to seek it aright. Emerson said, "This energy [consciousness of God in the soul] does not descend into individual life on any other condition than entire possession. It comes to the lowly and simple: it comes to whomsoever will put off what is foreign and proud: it comes as insight: it comes as serenity and grandeur. When we see those whom it inhabits, we are apprised of new degrees of greatness." ...
One may so desire a partial revelation of God within himself, a revelation along one line—as, for instance, that of health—as to seek it with all his heart. And if he has learned how to take the desired gift, by uncompromising affirmation that it is his already, he will get understanding, or realization, of God as his perfect health. So as with any other desired gift of God, this is a step in the right direction. It is learning how to take God by faith for whatever one desires. But in the onward growth, the time will come to every man when he will hear the divine voice within him saying, "Come up higher," and he will pass beyond any merely selfish desires that are just for his own comfort's sake. He will good that he many have the more to give out, knowing that as good (God) flows through him to others, it will make him "every whit whole" (Jn. 7:23 KJV).
When you first consciously desire spiritual understanding, you do not attain it at once. You have been living in the external of your being and have believed yourself cut off from God. Your first step after coming to yourself like the prodigal son is to say as he did, "I will get up and go to my father" (Lk. 15:18) to turn your thoughts away from the external seeming toward the central and real; to know intellectually that you are not cut off from God, and that He forever desires to manifest Himself within you as your present deliverance from all suffering and sin. Just as Jesus taught, we begin our journey toward understanding by cutting off the branches of our selfishness. We try to love instead of to hate. Instead of avenging ourselves, we begin to forgive, even if it costs us great mental effort. We begin to deny envy, jealousy, anger, sickness, and all imperfection, and to affirm love, peace, and health.
Begin with the words of Truth that you have learned and which perhaps you have as yet only comprehended with the intellect. You must be willing to take the very first light you receive and use it faithfully, earnestly, to help both yourself and others.
Sometimes you will be almost overcome by questions and doubts arising in your own mind when you are looking in vain for results. But you must with effort pass the place of doubt; and some day, in the fullness of God's time, while you are using the words of Truth, they will suddenly be illumined and become to you the Living Word within you—"the true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world" (Jn. 1:9). You will no longer dwell in darkness, for the light will be within your own heart, and the word will be made flesh to you; that is, you will be conscious of a new and diviner life in your body, and a new and diviner love for all people, a new and diviner power to accomplish.
This is spiritual understanding. This is a flash of the Most High within your consciousness. "Everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!" (2 Cor. 5:17) This will be the time when you will not talk with men with an eye to their opinion. This is when you will suddenly become plain and true, when you will cease to desire admiration, when all words of congratulation from others on your success will fill you with an inexpressible sense of humility, when all mere compliments will be to you as "a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal" (1 Cor. 13: 1). Truly, from that inspiration, a man comes back with a changed tone!
With spiritual understanding comes new light on the Scriptures. The very Spirit of Truth, which has come to abide with you forever in your consciousness, takes the deep things of God and reveals them to you. You will no longer run to and fro, seeking teachers or healers and rely solely on them for guidance. You know that the living light, the living word within you, will "guide you into all the truth" (Jn. 16: 13).
What we need to do is to seek the revelation of the living Christ within our own being, each for himself, knowing that only this divinity come forth can make us powerful and happy. Every person in his heart desires, though he may not yet quite know it, this new birth into a higher life, into spiritual consciousness. Everyone wants more power, more good, more joy. And though, to the unawakened mind, it may seem that it is more money as money, or more goods that he wants, it is, nevertheless, more of good (God) that he craves, for all good is God.
Many today are conscious that the inner hunger cannot be satisfied with worldly goods and are with all earnestness seeking spiritual understanding, or consciousness, of an immanent God. They have been seeking long, with a great desire of unselfishness and a feeling that when they have truly found God, they will begin to do for others. Faithful service for others hastens the day-dawning for us. The gifts of God are not given in reward for faithful service, as a fond mother gives cake to her child for being good; nevertheless they are a reward, inasmuch as service is one of the steps that lead up to the place where all the fullness of God awaits men. And while spiritual understanding is in reality a "gift of God," it comes to us more or less quickly in proportion as we use the light that we already have. ...
Seek your own Lord. Take the light as it is revealed to you, and use it for others, and prove for yourself whether there be Truth in this prophecy of Isaiah, that "then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday" (Is. 58: 10) and "then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly" (Is. 58:8).
Scripture References:
Proverbs 2:11-16
Proverbs 16:22
Proverbs 8:1
Proverbs 4:1-5
Proverbs 27:15-16
Proverbs 2:9
Proverbs 3:5
Questions:
1). What is rightly dividing the Word of God?
2). List the 10 points for fruitful Scripture reading and understanding.
3). When you take God by faith you can do what?
4). Explain using the words of Truth.
5). To know intellectually is not enough, but we must know____________.
6). What is another word for spiritual understanding?
7). When you crave for more revelation, you crave for more of___________.
8). How do Isaiah describe
Weekly Reading: (optional)
Proverbs: Chapters 13-16
God grant us the serenity to accept the things we cannot change; courage to change the things we can, and the WISDOM to know the different, amen…..
God bless this study (II Timothy 2:15)
Date: ………10/17/14
Study: Week # 4
Prayer:
Our Father, which art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy Name, Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done in our life today as we study this chapter. Your will is for us to learn of You each day, read Your Word, and study to show ourselves approval to You and only to You. Father, give us today what we need to understand Your will for us, so we can bring glory and honor to You, Your Son, and Your Holy Spirit. Forgive us Father for any wrong doing we have done. We stand forgiving others who have wronged us today. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from all evil. For Thine is the Kingdom, the power, the glory, all understanding, all knowledge, and all wisdom. We give You all glory, all praises be unto You, in Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
Title: Understanding Part 2
The Bible is all around us. People hear Scripture readings in church. We have Good Samaritan (Luke 10) laws, welcome home the Prodigal Son (Luke 15), and look for the Promised Land (Exodus 3, Hebrews 11). Some biblical passages have become popular maxims, such as "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you (Matthew 7:12)," "Thou shalt not steal (Exodus 20:15), and "love thy neighbor" (Matthew 22:39).
Listed here are 10 points for fruitful Scripture reading, and understanding.
1). Bible reading is for God's people. The Church encourages God's people to make reading the Bible part of their daily prayer lives. Reading these inspired words people grow deeper in their relationship with God and come to understand their place in the community God has called them to in Himself.
2). Prayer is the beginning and the end. Reading the Bible is not like reading a novel or a history book. It should begin with a prayer asking the Holy Spirit to open our hearts and minds to the Word of God. Scripture reading should end with a prayer that this Word will bear fruit in our lives, helping us to grow and be more faithful people.
3). Get the whole story! When selecting a Bible, look for one you can understand.
An edition that will include the Church's complete list of books along with introduction and notes for understanding the text. An edition that will have Jesus Words in red print is a good ideal.
4). The Bible isn't a book. It's a library.
The Bible is a collection of 66 books written over the course of many centuries. The Bible is the sacred Book, or collection of books, accepted by the Christian Church as uniquely inspired by God, and thus authoritative, providing guidelines for belief and behavior. Many verses throughout the Bible attest to its divine origin (Genesis 6:9-13, Exodus 20:1-17, 2 Timothy 3:16, 2 Peter 1:20-21, Revelation 1:1-2, etc.) But the Bible was not simply dictated word-for-word by God; it is also the work of its many different human authors. The different writing skills, writing styles, personalities, world views, and cultural backgrounds of the human authors can be seen in their works. Many of the New Testament books were originally written as letters rather than as Scripture. Some Bible writings include the authors' own research and recollection of historical events (Luke 1:1-4) and their own opinions (1 Corinthians 7:12).
5). Know what the Bible is – and what it isn't.
The Bible is the story of God's relationship with the people he has called to himself. It is not intended to be read as history text, a science book, or a political manifesto. In the Bible, God teaches us the truths that we need for the sake of our salvation.
6). The sum is greater than the parts. Read the Bible in context. What happens before and after – even in other books – helps us to understand the true meaning of the text.
7). The Old relates to the New. The Old Testament and the New Testament shed light on each other. While we read the Old Testament in light of the death and resurrection of Jesus, it has its own value as well. Together, these testaments help us to understand God's plan for human beings.
8). You do not read alone. By reading and reflecting on Sacred Scripture, we join those faithful men and women who have taken God's Word to heart and put it into practice in their lives. We read the Bible within the tradition of the Church to benefit from the holiness and wisdom of all the faithful.
9). What is God saying to me? The Bible is not addressed only to long-dead people in a faraway land. It is addressed to each of us in our own unique situations. When we read, we need to understand what the text says and how the faithful have understood its meaning in the past. In light of this understanding, we then ask: What is God saying to me?
10). Reading isn't enough. If Scripture remains just words on a page, our work is not done. We need to meditate on the message and put it into action in our lives. Only then can the word be "living and effective."(Hebrews 4:12).
Understanding, or realization of the presence of God within us, is as Jesus said, "the gift of God" (Jn. 4:10). It comes to any and all who learn how to seek it aright. Emerson said, "This energy [consciousness of God in the soul] does not descend into individual life on any other condition than entire possession. It comes to the lowly and simple: it comes to whomsoever will put off what is foreign and proud: it comes as insight: it comes as serenity and grandeur. When we see those whom it inhabits, we are apprised of new degrees of greatness." ...
One may so desire a partial revelation of God within himself, a revelation along one line—as, for instance, that of health—as to seek it with all his heart. And if he has learned how to take the desired gift, by uncompromising affirmation that it is his already, he will get understanding, or realization, of God as his perfect health. So as with any other desired gift of God, this is a step in the right direction. It is learning how to take God by faith for whatever one desires. But in the onward growth, the time will come to every man when he will hear the divine voice within him saying, "Come up higher," and he will pass beyond any merely selfish desires that are just for his own comfort's sake. He will good that he many have the more to give out, knowing that as good (God) flows through him to others, it will make him "every whit whole" (Jn. 7:23 KJV).
When you first consciously desire spiritual understanding, you do not attain it at once. You have been living in the external of your being and have believed yourself cut off from God. Your first step after coming to yourself like the prodigal son is to say as he did, "I will get up and go to my father" (Lk. 15:18) to turn your thoughts away from the external seeming toward the central and real; to know intellectually that you are not cut off from God, and that He forever desires to manifest Himself within you as your present deliverance from all suffering and sin. Just as Jesus taught, we begin our journey toward understanding by cutting off the branches of our selfishness. We try to love instead of to hate. Instead of avenging ourselves, we begin to forgive, even if it costs us great mental effort. We begin to deny envy, jealousy, anger, sickness, and all imperfection, and to affirm love, peace, and health.
Begin with the words of Truth that you have learned and which perhaps you have as yet only comprehended with the intellect. You must be willing to take the very first light you receive and use it faithfully, earnestly, to help both yourself and others.
Sometimes you will be almost overcome by questions and doubts arising in your own mind when you are looking in vain for results. But you must with effort pass the place of doubt; and some day, in the fullness of God's time, while you are using the words of Truth, they will suddenly be illumined and become to you the Living Word within you—"the true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world" (Jn. 1:9). You will no longer dwell in darkness, for the light will be within your own heart, and the word will be made flesh to you; that is, you will be conscious of a new and diviner life in your body, and a new and diviner love for all people, a new and diviner power to accomplish.
This is spiritual understanding. This is a flash of the Most High within your consciousness. "Everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!" (2 Cor. 5:17) This will be the time when you will not talk with men with an eye to their opinion. This is when you will suddenly become plain and true, when you will cease to desire admiration, when all words of congratulation from others on your success will fill you with an inexpressible sense of humility, when all mere compliments will be to you as "a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal" (1 Cor. 13: 1). Truly, from that inspiration, a man comes back with a changed tone!
With spiritual understanding comes new light on the Scriptures. The very Spirit of Truth, which has come to abide with you forever in your consciousness, takes the deep things of God and reveals them to you. You will no longer run to and fro, seeking teachers or healers and rely solely on them for guidance. You know that the living light, the living word within you, will "guide you into all the truth" (Jn. 16: 13).
What we need to do is to seek the revelation of the living Christ within our own being, each for himself, knowing that only this divinity come forth can make us powerful and happy. Every person in his heart desires, though he may not yet quite know it, this new birth into a higher life, into spiritual consciousness. Everyone wants more power, more good, more joy. And though, to the unawakened mind, it may seem that it is more money as money, or more goods that he wants, it is, nevertheless, more of good (God) that he craves, for all good is God.
Many today are conscious that the inner hunger cannot be satisfied with worldly goods and are with all earnestness seeking spiritual understanding, or consciousness, of an immanent God. They have been seeking long, with a great desire of unselfishness and a feeling that when they have truly found God, they will begin to do for others. Faithful service for others hastens the day-dawning for us. The gifts of God are not given in reward for faithful service, as a fond mother gives cake to her child for being good; nevertheless they are a reward, inasmuch as service is one of the steps that lead up to the place where all the fullness of God awaits men. And while spiritual understanding is in reality a "gift of God," it comes to us more or less quickly in proportion as we use the light that we already have. ...
Seek your own Lord. Take the light as it is revealed to you, and use it for others, and prove for yourself whether there be Truth in this prophecy of Isaiah, that "then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday" (Is. 58: 10) and "then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly" (Is. 58:8).
Scripture References:
Proverbs 2:11-16
Proverbs 16:22
Proverbs 8:1
Proverbs 4:1-5
Proverbs 27:15-16
Proverbs 2:9
Proverbs 3:5
Questions:
1). What is rightly dividing the Word of God?
2). List the 10 points for fruitful Scripture reading and understanding.
3). When you take God by faith you can do what?
4). Explain using the words of Truth.
5). To know intellectually is not enough, but we must know____________.
6). What is another word for spiritual understanding?
7). When you crave for more revelation, you crave for more of___________.
8). How do Isaiah describe
Weekly Reading: (optional)
Proverbs: Chapters 13-16
God grant us the serenity to accept the things we cannot change; courage to change the things we can, and the WISDOM to know the different, amen…..
God bless this study (II Timothy 2:15)
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