Prepared by William Earnhardt for Sabbath School Class, Sabbath September 17, 2022.

Main Theme: We serve God better when we surrender our will to His will.

Read in Class: Philippians 2:5-9. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: What important message is there for us in these verses?

Apply: What rights might we be holding onto that keep us from sharing God’s love and serving others better?

Share: Your friend tells you that Jesus’ example and teaching about being a servant and going the extra mile for our enemies appears to be tone deaf to the social justice issues of today. What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Romans 12:1-2. Discuss the main idea of this passage.

Study: What are some practical ways we can offer our bodies as a living sacrifice in our day to day life?

Apply: What things might you have to give up in order to become a living sacrifice?

Share: Your friend asks, how do we transform and renew our minds? What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: 1 Samuel 3:1-18. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: What is the difference between those who listen to God and those who don’t?

Apply: Preacher Charles Stanley describes how essential it is to cultivate openness to God’s voice in what he calls “shifting into neutral.” He says: “The Holy Spirit … does not speak for the sake of passing along information. He speaks to get a response. And He knows when our agenda has such a large slice of our attention that it is a waste of time to suggest anything to the contrary. When that is the case, He is often silent. He waits for us to become neutral enough to hear and eventually obey.” — The Wonderful Spirit-Filled Life, (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1992), pp. 179, 180.

What do you think Stanley means by becoming “neutral enough”? When you think about your openness to God, what things often prevent you from being “neutral enough to hear and eventually obey”? What do you need to do in your life to cultivate openness to God’s voice and a decisiveness to be obedient to His direction?

Share: Your friend asks you why God allowed Eli to be priest while not even being able to control his own sons? After all, doesn’t the New Testament teach that a leader should control his own household? What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: 1 Samuel 13:1-14. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: What did Saul do that led to his downfall?

Apply: Why do you think it was so easy for Saul to follow his own judgment, even though he had God’s clear instructions still ringing in his ears? If we know that we are so fragile and have such imperfect knowledge, why do we still try to rely on ourselves? What can we do to learn to trust in the Lord’s commands more than in ourselves?

Share: How can we encourage our leaders to rely on God instead of trusting in their themselves and their own wisdom? Is there a leader in your church family who you could call this week and pray with and for them?

“Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain” (John 12:24, NKJV).