Bible Study for Busy Pastors and Ministers

Ready-made Lessons to Transform Members into Disciples and an Audience into an Army

Reginald F. Davis

• Publisher: Resource Publications
• Year: 2011
• Print ISBN:
  9781610972185
  9781498259637
• eBook ISBN:
  9781621892267
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Church

Pastors and ministers have one of the most challenging jobs on Earth. Of all their tasks, one responsibility they cannot neglect is teaching the word of God. Unfortunately, church leaders seldom have enough time to prepare Bible studies for their congregation. This book is a quick resource to help fill that gap. These thematically arranged Bible studies each contain an introduction to a topic and a list of relevant Scripture readings for that topic. Pastors can use the introduction to spark discussion within small groups or to focus on the specific themes during sermon writing. This book will prove to be an invaluable resource for years to come.

1

Christian Unity

Focal texts

Genesis 3:1–8; 11:1–9

Proverbs 6:6–8

Psalm 133:1–3

Nehemiah 4:1–6

John 17:9–23

Acts 2:1–8; 41–47; 4:4; 5:14

Ephesians 4:1–13

1 Corinthians 1:10; 12:1–31

1 Thessalonians 2:10–12

Galatians 6:1–10

Texts relating how sin, the invasion of unity, affects all of creation

Genesis 1:26–27; 2:15–17

Isaiah 59:1–2

Jeremiah 23:1–4

1 Corinthians 10:33; 12:1–31;14:12, 15:22

Introduction

The greatest threat to the church is disunity within the body of Christ. The church is divided across race, class, and denominational lines. H. Richard Niebuhr stated, “Denominationalism represents the moral failure of Christianity. And, unless the ethics of brotherhood can gain the victory over this divisiveness within the body of Christ, it is useless to expect it to be victorious in the world.”1

To build the kingdom of God, there must be unity among God’s people. Unity is believers in Christ working together with one mind and one heart to bring about fundamental change in humanity’s relationship with God and one another. Without the unity of believers working together, the kingdom of God is stifled, and strife, discord, suffering, and violence continue to thrive. Christians must remember that a house divided cannot stand, and a team divided cannot win. We must work together to bring down the barriers separating Christians.

Jesus said, “For the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light” (Luke 16:8 NJKV). Why? The “children of this world” know how to unify for a common purpose. They know how to lay aside minor differences and unite to achieve their goals. It seems that the “children of light” have not yet learned this. Christians must be intentional about working toward unity.

Christians not only should work toward unity but also must be intentional also in maintaining unity. To have and maintain Christian unity, Christians must be born again and filled with the Holy Spirit. Otherwise, we are defeated before we have started. Unity does not mean we will agree all the time, every time. We can disagree without being disagreeable. To maintain our unity in Christ, Christians must focus on winning the world for Christ and transforming it into the kingdom of God. Unity does not automatically come, and it doesn’t automatically stay. How can we work intentionally and purposefully toward unity? Only when we are unified in Christ can we win this spiritual war.

1. Niebuhr, The Social Sources of Denominationalism, 25.

2

Understanding the Holy Spirit

Focal te...

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction
• Chapter 1: Christian Unity
• Chapter 2: Understanding the Holy Spirit
• Chapter 3: The Holy Spirit as CEO of the Church
• Chapter 4: Spiritual Warfare
• Chapter 5: Spiritual Immaturity
• Chapter 6: Spiritual Maturity
• Chapter 7: Spiritual Encouragement
• Chapter 8: Spiritual Gifts
• Chapter 9: What Does It Mean to Walk in the Spirit?
• Chapter 10: Raising the Standard
• Chapter 11: Christian Character
• Chapter 12: Self-examination
• Chapter 13: The Role of the Pastor
• Chapter 14: The Role of the Church
• Chapter 15: Reasons for a Weak Church
• Chapter 16: Religion or Relationship?
• Chapter 17: Kingdom of God
• Chapter 18: Don’t Lose Your Purpose
• Chapter 19: The Meaning of Christian Love
• Chapter 20: A Look at God’s Chastisement
• Chapter 21: Sacrifice
• Chapter 22: Maximizing Our Power to Change Our Circumstances
• Chapter 23: Fasting and Praying
• Chapter 24: Freedom of Choice: God or the World?
• Chapter 25: Forgiveness and Reconciliation
• Chapter 26: Vows to God
• Chapter 27: Mishandling the Sacred Things of God
• Chapter 28: Repentance
• Chapter 29: Transformation
• Chapter 30: Biblical Application
• Chapter 31: Tolerance: What Does It Mean for Christians?
• Chapter 32: The Process of Desensitization
• Chapter 33: An Analysis of Satan and How to Guard against Him
• Chapter 34: Angels
• Chapter 35: What God Hates
• Chapter 36: Tough Love
• Chapter 37: God’s Prescription for the Family
• Chapter 38: Being Responsible
• Chapter 39: The Nobility of Being Different
• Chapter 40: Why the Mind Needs Transformation
• Chapter 41: Wisdom and Knowledge
• Chapter 42: Excellence in the Ministry
• Chapter 43: Sloth or Spiritual Laziness
• Chapter 44: The Meaning of Jesus’ Resurrection
• Chapter 45: The Meaning of Faith
• Chapter 46: Economics from a Biblical Perspective
• Chapter 47: Paganism vs. Christianity
• Chapter 48: Walking with God
• Chapter 49: Evangelism
• Chapter 50: What Does It Mean to Praise God?
• Chapter 51: Tithing
• Chapter 52: Commitment
• Chapter 53: Is God Our Top Priority?
• Chapter 54: The Humanity, Divinity, Trinity of Jesus Christ
• Chapter 55: A Called Out, Set Aside, and Holy People
• Chapter 56: Who Are We in Christ?
• Chapter 57: End Times and the Return of Christ
• Chapter 58: Attendance
• Chapter 59: Godly Boldness
• Chapter 60: God’s Expectations of Us
• Chapter 61: What Does It Mean to Follow Jesus Christ?
• Chapter 62: Making the Right Decision under Pressure
• Chapter 63: Covenant Relationship
• Chapter 64: Avoiding Competition in the Ministry