Month / March 2024
A New Song And a New Prayer
He has given me a new song to sing, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see what he has done and be amazed. They will put their trust in the Lord. Pslam 40:3 NLT
My parents told me that one Sabbath morning when I was two years old, the elder kept praying and praying in church, and I got tired of kneeling on my two-year-old little knees, so I finally stood up on the pew and started shouting, “Amen! Amen! Amen!”
Even at two years old I must have realized that public prayers are supposed to be brief. Well, let me tell you something, I have felt like doing that a few times since then.
“Our prayers in public should be short…” (Ellen White, Prayer, p. 176)
In recent years I have been kneeling in congregational prayer for what felt like an eternity, and have thought to myself during the long drawn-out prayer, “Why doesn’t the elder praying just ask if he can preach sometime instead of turning his prayer into a sermon?”
Jesus mentored His disciples to pray longer prayers in private. In Gethsemane the night of His arrest, in Matthew 26:36-46, He even asked them to pray for Him. Jesus led by example, in long personal prayers, sometimes lasting all night (Luke 6:12). He also taught that prayers should be genuine and not rehearsed.
“When you pray, don’t babble on and on as people of other religions do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again.” Matthew 6:7 NLT
When we pray we are to talk to God as to a friend. I heard of an elderly Bible worker, who when driving to Bible studies, would make sure nothing was in the passenger seat, because He pictured God sitting there, riding with Him to the Bible study as he prayed and drove. (I hope he kept his eyes open as he prayed and drove!)
Many times in my Bible studies I ask people to have the opening prayer, and many are shy and say they don’t know how. I never pressure anyone to do anything they don’t feel comfortable doing, but several have been surprised how easy it is when I tell them how. One man, who had already heard me pray many times, told me he wanted to pray but did not know what to say. I told him, “Just say “Dear heavenly Father, please send your Holy Spirit to be with us in this Bible study. In Jesus’ name, amen.” His eyes opened wide and he smiled when he realized how easy it was.
God wants us to talk to Him as a friend. He does not wanting us just babbling the same words over and over. He wants to have a real conversation with us. The psalmist talks about singing a new song (Psalm 40:3) and a song is like a prayer, since songs and prayers are stories of our experiences. Just as God enjoys new songs, He also enjoys new prayers.
While Jesus mentored His disciples to pray in private, He also mentored them to pray in public. He gave them a model prayer, not to be repeated over and over word for word, but as a model for us to form our own prayer. God loves creativity. Not every song has to be sung the same way and neither does every prayer have to be prayed the same way. While Jesus prayed long private prayers, notice how short His public prayer is.
Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. Matthew 6:9 NLT
Jesus starts by addressing His Father and setting a tone for reverence and awe. Our prayers may also be prayed with confidence knowing our requests are reaching the throne of the universe.
May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Matthew 6:10 NLT
I have a friend who was taught long ago by his parents to always ask people how their day was, and listen to them, before going on about yourself and your day. You may think you had a tough day, but before you dive into your prayer, telling God all about your heartaches, have you ever asked God how His day went? God sees way more heartaches in one day than we will see in a lifetime. We want God’s will to be done and His kingdom to come soon, not just to end our suffering, but to end God’s suffering, as He suffers not just with you and me, but with everyone in the world who suffers.
Give us today the food we need, Matthew 6:11 NLT
When Daniel asked for God to reveal the king’s dream to him, Daniel did not save himself only, he saved the lives of all the king’s men (Daniel 2:24). In Mark 4:39 Jesus calms the storm at the disciples’ request, but the sea was not only calmed for their tiny boat. All the other boats on the water benefited from the calmness. Jesus does not pray for Himself alone to have food. He prays for everyone to have the food they need. There is no selfishness in Jesus’ prayer. There is no selfishness in any genuine prayer.
“and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us.” Matthew 6:12 NLT
Jesus could have prayed, “Father forgive everyone else for their sins, but as you know, I have never sinned,” but again there is neither self nor pride in Jesus’ prayer.
And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one. For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. Matthew 6:13 NLT
Jesus overcame by asking for the Father’s help along with everyone else. We can ask for His help and overcome as well. Jesus ends His prayer the way He began, by exalting the Father, Who gives us the confidence we need in our personal lives and ministry when we worship and follow Him.
May His will be done, and may it begin with us.
You may study this week’s Sabbath School Lesson here.
12: Worship That Never Ends-Sabbath School Lesson Teaching Plan
Prepared by William Earnhardt, for Sabbath School class, March 23, 2024.
Main Theme: Worshiping God as a faith-community also involves every aspect of our personal lives.
Read in Class: Psalm 33:3, Psalm 40:3, and Psalm 96:1.
Study: What is the common motif in these texts?
Apply: Read Isiaih 42:10-12, Revelation 5:9 and Revelation 14:3. What can we infer about the “new song” from these biblical texts?
Share: Dwell on God’s blessings in your life. If you were to share a new song, what would it be?
Read in Class: Pslam 15:1-5. Define the main idea of this passage.
Study: Who are the people worthy of worshiping in God’s presence?
Apply: Read Psalm 24:3-6 and Pslam 101:1-3. How do our choices and how we spend our time help reveal to ourselves and others who or what it is that we worship and praise?
Share: Your friend tells you the things of this world keeps distracting her from Bible study and prayer. She asks how you keep from being distracted by the world? What do you tell your friend?
Read in Class: Psalm 96:1-13. Define the main idea of this passage.
Study: What manifold aspects of worship are mentioned in this psalm?
Apply: Compare Psalm 96:1-13 with the three angels message in Revelation 14:6-12. In what ways does it teach the same basic truths as does this end-time message that we are to proclaim to the world?
Share: Your friend asks how we can make sure our praise and worship does not just become another meaningless ritual? What do you tell your friend?
Read in Class: Psalm 40:6-8. Define the main idea of this passage.
Study: What is the best way to worship God?
Apply: According to John 4:23-24 what is the best way for us to worship God? How do you practice worshiping God in Spirit and in Truth?
Share: Can you think of someone who has not been to worship service in a while? Can you invite them this week to share the worship service with you next week?
All Of Us Need Each Other
I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord. Psalm 122:1
“Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” Hebrews 10:25
Over the years, I have heard many people tell me they don’t need a church. They can just study the Bible for themselves. They don’t need to go to a church that is filled with hypocrites, even if there is always room for one more. However, you can’t have a “one-person” church and fulfill the counsel in Hebrews 10:25. By setting up His church, God does more than command us to study and worship. He commands us to do more than spread the gospel by ourselves. Hebrews 10:25 is a command to be social. Paul does not merely say, “Do not give up hope and do not stop studying the Scriptures. He says, “Do not stop meeting together in a social setting.”
Paul, of all people, knew the importance of a church. Once he was converted in Acts 9, God directed him to the city where he met Ananias and Barnabas and the rest of the church. Even though Paul had a one-on-one encounter with God, he still needed to understand the importance of living and growing in a church setting.
Paul counseled us to keep being social, because he knew it was not good for man to be alone. Now think about this for a moment. God creates Adam. Adam has God and God has Adam. Yet God does not say, “Adam has Me, and I am all that he needs.” No, God Himself says, “It is not good for man to be alone.” Genesis 2:18
Now let this soak in. God Himself is saying, “I am not all Adam needs! He needs a community.”
If you believe God is all you need and that you don’t need anyone else in your life, then you are contradicting the God you serve! He Himself says He is not all you need. You need a community of believers. God created a mate for Adam, and thus ultimately they fulfill God’s purpose of creating a community. God knew Adam needed more than just to be able to worship God alone. He needed to be able to worship and serve God with a community of believers.
If you ever date someone who tries to isolate you from your family and friends, be very concerned about that. If their love is a Godly love, they will love like God and encourage you to be social and active in your family and community. If God Himself realizes we need more in our lives than just Him, how dare a mere mortal human being tell us they are all we need! If their love is from God they will not be egotistical and tell us we don’t need anyone but them. God’s love is a healthy love which does not isolate. A love that tries to isolate is very unhealthy. Real love does not isolae from community. Real love, like God’s love encourages community.
Worshiping in a social setting such as a church, means we will meet hypocrites, and they will meet hypocrites when they meet us. Hypocrites are just people who do not live up to all of their ideals, and that is all of us. But by God’s grace, He is getting us there and will get us there. In the meantime we need each other to get there.
Years ago I had a community Bible study where people of all faiths were invited to our church on Wednesday mornings. One morning an elderly lady said something that has always stayed with me. She said, “If someone in the church keeps rubbing you the wrong way, maybe God is just using them to polish your character.” I think she is right. God says it is not good for us to be alone. We need a community of believers. Some will encourage us, and even those we don’t get along the best with, will help polish our characters.
We need each other!
You may study this week’s Sabbath School lesson here.
11: Longing for God in Zion-Sabbath School Lesson Teaching Plan
Prepared by William Earnhardt, for Sabbath School class, March 16, 2024.
Main Theme: The blessings of Zion overflow to the ends of the earth because the Lord’s person and grace exceed the boundaries of any holy place. Zion is the joy of all the earth affirming that the whole earth belongs to God.
Read in Class: Psalm 84:1-12 and Plsam 122:1-5. What is the main idea of these passages?
Study: Who is blessed by being in God’s house and what exactly are those blessings?
Apply: What are some practical ways we can make being in God’s house here on earth a blessing?
Share: Your friend says ever since her divorce she does not feel accepted at church anynore. She prefers to just watch online sermons at home on the Sabbath. What do you tell your friend?
Read in Class: Psalm 87:1-7. Define the main idea of this passage.
Study: What is said about Zion that makes it such a wonderful place?
Apply: How does Zion’s readiness to adopt all people find its fulfillment in the church’s Great Commission to preach the gospel to every nation (Matthew 28:18-20)? How does this idea fit in with our call to preach the three angels’ messages?
Share: Your friend points out that Psalm 87:6 says that it will be noted who is born in Zion when being registered. Your friend says this means that God will take into consideration where each of us were born and raised when He judges us? Is that an accurate application? What do you tell your friend?
Read in Class: Psalm 46:1-11. Define the main idea of this passage.
Study: How is the world poetically depicted here? What is God’s response to violence and destruction in the world?
Apply: How do we learn to have peace and to trust God amid a world that, indeed, has so much turmoil?
Share: Your friend asks, “How has God been a very present help to you in times of trouble?” What do you tell your friend?
Read in Class: Psalm 125:1-5. Define the main idea of this passage?
Study: How are those who trust God portrayed here?
Apply: How are the righteous tempted and what can we learn from this description of temptation?
Share: Your friend says God is no longer with the Seventh-day Adventist church, because it has apostasized and become like Babylon. What do you tell your friend?
Learning From Each Other
Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. 1 Corinthians 10:11 NKJV
Are there certain Bible characters you identify with more than others? Do you find yourself sympathizing with Joseph because you’ve been bullied by your brothers too? Have you ever felt your own boss was jealous of your success just like Saul was jealous of David? Have you ever felt alone like Elijah and cried out to God, “I am the only Christian left in my community?”
Isn’t it interesting how much we have in common with people who lived thousands of years ago on the other side of the planet? That’s because when we are studying history in the Bible or studying any kind of history, we are actually studying way more than just dates and famous events. We are studying human behavior. History keeps repeating itself on both sides of the globe because human nature is the same regardless of time or place.
One of my pastimes is trying to solve cold cases. Now I try (but not always) to avoid murder cases because I just don’t need to be filling my mind with that, but there are plenty of other cold cases and mysteries that are not so morbid. A few of the cases that intrigue me are from Australia. As I read about or watch the documentaries of these cold cases in Australia I am fascinated by how similar Australian daily life was 60 years ago with American life today. This reinforces my understanding that human nature is the same in every time and place. It also makes Australia very intriguing to me, and I hope to visit the country one day. There are no real historical places I want to visit, but I want to see the everyday places, churches and communities and meet the everyday people. I want to hear the stories of their lives and learn the lessons their experiences have taught them.
The Bible is God’s inspired Word with many examples for us to learn from, both by the stories of faith and the stories of disobedience. Just as we have much to learn from the characters in the Bible we have much to learn from one another. While our lives may be similar in some aspects, we all have different experiences that make our stories unique. While I have 30 years of experience as a Bible worker and pastor, a brand-new Bible worker may have encountered a situation I have never seen before. So even with my 30 years of experience I can still learn from a brand-new Bible worker.
We all need to study this Bible with humble hearts and learn all we can from the experiences of the Bible characters. We also need to be humble enough to learn all we can from each other. No matter how old or young we are, we all have had different experiences in different stages of our lives. I have friends in their teens who have already lost a parent, while I have friends who are retired and still have both their parents. When my retired friends finally lose a parent, there will be teenagers who have already experienced what they are just now experiencing. In their young lives they may have words of wisdom for my older friends.
Let’s be humble students of the Bible, and humble students of history so we can learn all we can to become the men and women of God that He wants us to be.
You may study this week’s Sabbath School lesson here.
10: Lessons of the Past-Sabbath School Lesson Teaching Plan
Prepared by William Earnhardt, for Sabbath School class, March 9, 2024.
Main Theme: Each generation of God’s people plays a small but significant part in the grand historical unfolding of God’s sovereign purposes in the great controversy.
Read in Class: Psalm 105. Define the main idea of this passage.
Study: What historical events and their lessons are highlighted in this psalm?
Apply: How should we, as Seventh-day Adventists, see ourselves in this line of people, from Abraham on? (See Galatians 3:29.) What lessons should we learn from this history?
Share: Your friend asks, why do we need to study the stories of the Old Testament when those laws don’t deal with us anymore. We are in the New Testament now? What do you tell your friend?
Read in Class: Psalm 106:1-23. Define the main idea of this passage.
Study: What historical events and their lessons are highlighted in this psalm?
Apply: Psalms 106:13 reads: “They soon forgot His works; they did not wait for His counsel” (NKJV). Why is that so easy for us to do in our own lives, as well?
Share: Your friend mentiones that Pslam 106:12 says they sang praises and Exodus 15 says Mirriam the prophetess led the people in singing and celebrating the Egytpians demise in the Red Sea. Why were they celebrating the death of the wicked? We aren’t supposed to celebrate anyone’s death are we? What do you tell your friend?
Read in Class: Psalm 80. Define the main idea of this passage.
Study: How are God’s people portrayed in this psalm, and what great hope do they plead for?
Apply: How have you experienced for yourself repentance as a return to God?
Share: Your friend says he has done too many bady things and it is too late in life for him to seek forgiveness and change his ways. What do you tell your friend?
Read in Class: Psalm 135. Define the main idea of this passage.
Study: What historical events are highlighted in the psalm? What lessons does the psalmist draw from them?
Apply: How can we make sure that we don’t have idols in our own lives? Why might idolatry be easier to do than we realize?
Share: Your friend says the reason history repeats itself is because human nature is the same regardless of place and time. Studying history is actually studying human nature. She asks what lessons history (In the Bible and even our history school books) has taught you, and how studying history has stopped you from repeating the mistakes of those we lived befroe us? What do you tell your friend?
In Light of The Cross 
