Craig

Q1. (Psalm 1). This short psalm seems to reaffirm what we already know: the righteous will succeed and the wicked will perish. Why do we need to be reminded of this? From an emotional standpoint, what lines in this psalm stand out to you. Why do you think you like them? Christians, like all people, have short memories. We need to be reminded constantly of Godly principles and ideals. Verse 1: "Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers." I like this verse because it assures me that following Godly principles, ideals and alining myself with God is the right thing to do and will bring about shalom in my life.

For this exercise I used Psalm 42 & 43 as the basis of a sermon I delivered to my congregation and to a group of jail in-mates. The theme being that God is the answer to our depression and that we should not permit ourselves to be content to grovel in our misery, but to let God be our God. Let God heal us and bring joy to the areas of our life that is hurting. Let our God be our healer and let Him deliver on His promises to us.

Q3. (Psalm 63) Why is recognition that God loves you the basis of all faith? What does this realization bring about in your life? The knowledge that God loves me assures me that God is really interested in me. Therefore, I have faith that what He promises He delivers, i.e. "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven" (Matt. 5:3), etc. This realization impacts my life in that I can trust God to work in my life in a positive way. I pour out my soul to Him and I trust His way in living my life. I trust His way in obeying Him.

Q2. (Psalms 42-43). What is the psalmist feeling during this spiritual struggle? How does he combat his spiritual depression? Have you ever felt this way? How did you reach out to God at this time? The psalmist is feeling depression during this spiritual struggle. He combats this depression by seeking God in prayer and praising God. I have felt this way at times and in response I sought out my God. I have poured my thoughts and feelings out to God and He has responded.

. (Psalm 27) What does it mean that David desires to "dwell in the house of the Lord"? What does it mean to "seek his face"? How does David provide hope at the end of this Psalm? David desires to dwell in the presence of the Lord. In "seeking his face", David seeks to have a relationship with God. Because he seeks God and waits upon Him, David is confident that he will see the goodness of God in this life.

Q4. (5:13-14) What does it tell us about the status of the Lamb that he is worshipped alongside "him who sits on the throne"? It tells us they are co-equal. God the Son.

Q3. (Revelation 5:5) What has the Lamb done to "triumph" and so become worthy to take the scroll and open its seals? (Hint: See the "for" or "because" clause in 5:9 for the answer.) The Lamb was worthy to take the scroll and open the seals because He obeyed the Father and gave Himself/poured Himself out and was slain. By His blood, the Lamb purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation.

Q2. (Revelation 5:6) Decode (that is, identify) each of the following symbols that relate to the Lamb: The lamb itself represents .... Standing after being slain indicates ... Horns represent .... Eyes represent ... The number seven carries the idea of ... To summarize, then, the Lamb has the qualities of being of .... The lamb represents Jesus Christ -- the Lamb of God -- John 1:29 Standing after being slain indicates -- the Resurrected Jesus Christ The seven horns and seven eye represent the seven spirits sent out into all the world by God. The number seven carries the idea of perfection. To summarize, the idea of the Lamb is pictured as a victorious military leader. Bearing the marks of its slaughter, the Lamb has come to power through His death. The horn is an ancient Jewish symbol for power or strength. Seven horns would symbolize full strength.

Q1. (Revelation 5:5) Why is the Lamb called "the Lion of the tribe of Judah" and "the Root of David"? What do these titles signify about him? "The Lion of the tribe of Judah" refers to Jacob's ancient prophecy over his son Judah (Genesis 49:8-12), picturing Judah as "a lion's cub" and a "crouching lion," from whose tribe, the Jews believed, would come the Messiah: "The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his." (Genesis 49:10) "The Root of David" is a reference to Isaiah's prophecy: "A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.... In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will be glorious." (Isaiah 11:1, 10) Jesse is the father of King David, from whose descendents the Messiah would come.

Q5. In what way does each celebration of the Lord's Supper anticipate a future Passover meal? (Matthew 26:29; Luke 13:28-29; 14:15; 22:30; Revelation 19:9; 1 Corinthians 11:26) It antipates the Wedding Feast of the Lamb mentioned in Revelation 19:9. Jesus said that He would not drink of this fruit of the vine during the last supper with His disciples until He was with them in His Father's Kingdom. That is the great banquet or Feast of the Lamb when all the saints are gathered together to celebrate our victory in overcoming this world and our presence with Jesus Christ -- the Lamb of God for eternity.

Q4. Why is it so important to forgive those who have offended us before partaking of the Lord's Supper? In what sense are the Lord's Supper and unforgiveness incompatible? (Consider Matthew 26:28; 1 Corinthians 11:27; Matthew 6:14-15; 5:23-24; James 5:16.) It is important that we forgive those who have offended us before partaking of the Lord's Supper because God has forgiven us for our offenses and sin toward Him. How can we not forgive others for offending us? God has commanded us to forgive others and James said that if we fail to do what we know to be good, we sin. The sin of omission. In addition, the Royal Law: "Love your neighbor as yourself" applies in forgiving others. The Lord's Supper is all about forgiveness. There is no place for unforgiveness in the life of the Christian, especially while celebrating the Lord's Supper.

Q3. Why should the words, "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins" (Matthew 26:28) fill us with sorrow? Why should they fill us with joy? It should fill with us sorrow that God Amighty in the person of Jesus Christ went to the cross and poured out His blood for the forgiveness of our sins. Jesus Christ who knew no sin became sin and took the full force of God's wrath and punishment for sin on our behalf. It should fill us with joy to know that upon accepting what Jesus Christ did for us on the cross and repenting of sin, a person can be saved from death, eternal damnation and have eternal life and fellowship God Almighty in Heaven.

Q2. Compare the annual Jewish Passover celebration meal in Jesus' day with the Christian's celebration of the Lord's Supper. Where are the similarities? Where are the differences? The Lord's Supper and the Jewish Passover celebration were similar in that they celebrated and remembered God's deliverance and redemption of His people. For the Jew it was deliverance and redemption from death and slavery in Eygpt. For the Christian it is the celebration of deliverance from death, the atonement of sin, and redemption from sin through the blood of Jesus Christ on the cross.

Q4. From what you've read in Philippians so far, what seems to be the Philippian church's chief problem? How does Paul's description of Timothy's character speak to this problem? How does Paul's call to honor men like Epaphroditus speak to this problem? The chief problem in the Philippian church seems to be unity and humility. Timothy demonstrated geniune interest in the welfare of others which shows that he placed others before himself and was not selfish. Timothy looked out for the interests of Jesus Christ in ministering to others and placing them above himself. Further, Timothy and Paul worked together as one, as a father and son. They were united in purpose and ministry. They had a single-minded purpose in the Lord. Like Paul and Timothy, the Philippians should place others before themselves and work together for one purpose -- the interests of Jesus Christ. Honoring and recognizing those that serve and give all they have even unto adverse health, etc. for the Lord requires stepping out of individual ego. Taking the focus off the self and exalting someone else to encourage and minister to them. This is good for the soul.

Q3. (2:22) What is the significance of serving Jesus as a "slave" as opposed to serving him as a preference? What does it say about the quality of our service? Of our commitment? What is wrong with leaders who serve out of preference? Serving Jesus willingly as "a slave" as opposed to serving him as a perference is serving Him with total obediance vice serving Him if I feel like it or not on any given day or at any given moment. For me, to serve Jesus willingly as a slave is a honor vice being a bother or chore. Accordingly, I try to give my best in all that I do for Him out of love for Him.

Q2. (2:22) Who has come alongside you to teach you? What potential leader in your church needs someone to come alongside them? Do you have a person or two that you are mentoring "as a son with a father" or "a daughter with a mother"? My father, Rev. William R. Topping, has had the greatest influence in the development of my Christian life and my development as a Pastor. I am very grateful for his love, interest, and attention concerning my spiritual life. I am mentoring my own children as well as several young men and women in what it means to be a Christian as well as what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.

Q1. (2:19-21) Why was Timothy's selfless concern so rare among church leaders? Rather than pointing the finger at others in your church, consider yourself. What things has Jesus had to deal with in your life that has helped you to become genuinely selfless and focused on the concerns of others? How has he refined you? (Of course, he is still at work in us!) Timothy's selfless concern was so rare among church leaders because of human ego. Church leadership then and now has a problem with selfish egotism. Currently, God has used a recent study of The Epistle of James, the conviction of the Holy Spirit and several active ministries to continue to work on the selfishness in my life. I can truly say that my life is increasingly becoming more and more focused on the spiritual and physical needs of others than my own. And I am truly enjoying and delighting in ministering to others.

Q4. (2:17) You have gone through struggles and obstacles to your faith. If you were to look at your sufferings as a "drink offering" poured out before God, how does that honor God? How does that bring value to your struggles? It honors God in that I am giving God my life regardless of any sacrifice or hardship I encounter. It brings value to my struggles in that I engaging in those things that have ultimate worth and value.

Q3. (2:16) In what sense are we Christians to "hold fast" the Word of Life? In what sense are we to "hold forth" this Word of Life? How does this relate to the purpose of the church? We "hold fast" to the Word of Life in that we are to ground and shape our world view in God's Word. Not deviating from it. We are to "hold forth" this Word of Life in that we present the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the world around us. This relates to the church in that the church preaches and teaches the Word of God to the congregation and presents the Gospel of Jesus Chirst to the community and world around the church.

Q2. (2:14-15) How does ceasing complaining and arguing enable a church to shine as stars in a dark sky? What does this shining as stars signify? Have complaining and arguing compromised your church's witness as a God-place? If so, what can you do to change this? The world is full of people who complain and argue without any gratitude in their hearts for the many blessings showered upon them. People bully and argue to get their way, right or wrong, without much love. Paul is telling the Philippians to stop this and be united in love and work disagreements out in love so the world can see the Lord God Almighty in the body of Christ/church. If the church does this, it becomes blameless, without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse world. Therefore, the church would be like stars shining in the dark sky. I left a church in a church split over this very thing. The church seemed warm and loving on the surface, but when you got more involved over time, you encountered the selfish and nasty power plays and backbiting. Thus, no ministry and evangelism were being conducted and I did not feel good about inviting anyone to that church. It was a horrible witness to both the Christian and secular community. It still goes on in that church. They refuse to recognize this problem, even after the split. To them, the bad guys left. Sad. This type of church culture is changed through repentance, love and the power of the Holy Spirit. Most importantly, the church body has to recognize and repent of this attitude. If not, the church culture never changes and eventually dies. Church leadership must lead and set an example of love and unity in Jesus Christ to lead the way in making this kind of a change within the church.

Q1. (2:12-13). In this passage, what does it mean to "work out your own salvation"? Is this referring to salvation from sin? If not, what kind of salvation is it referring to? The salvation spoken in this passage is not of the soul, but deliverance from the snares which would hinder the Christian or the body of Christ from the doing the will of God. The Philippians had a unity problem and in this passage salvation means the solution of the problem of disunity and contention that was vexing the Philippians.

Q5. Now that you're finished with James: Practical Christianity, what did you get out of this study? How would you evaluate the study? What can be improved? James has proded my conscience with regard to various areas of my Christian life i.e. Do I have an active faith or just belief? Am I judgmental? Do I love my neighbor as myself? How do I handle or approach trials in my life? and so on. This study has caused me to reevaluate the kind of Christianity that I practice. It has inspired me to live a life of ministry like Jesus and the Apostles. This study has given me much inspiration and input for sermons and I have started a James study on Tuesday nights at my church and in my jail ministry. This has been an excellent course. Truly inspirational and insightful regarding applying practical Christianity into my life.

Q4. (5:19-20) In the light of James' emphasis on active faith vs. dead faith (2:17), why is the role of finding and bringing back the wandering sheep so important? Verse 19 describles a Christian brother/sister who has wandered away from the truth, either in doctrine or in practice. Another brother/sister makes this a matter of fervent, believing prayer, and thus lovingly turns him back to fellowship wth God and with his brothers and sisters in Christ. How important is this ministry. First, he/she will save their erring brother/sister from dying prematurely under the chastening hand of God. Second, this act will cover a multitiude of sins. They are forgiven and forgotten by God. In our zeal to reach the unsaved, we also must give sufficient attention to those persons of Christ who have wandered from the fold.

Q3. (5:14-16) In the healing prayer, what is the role of oil? What is the role of the prayer of faith? What is the role of faith? What is the role of confession of sins? God tells us to use anointing oil in the healing of the sick. The oil could act as a stimulas for faith. The role of the prayer of faith is communicating with God in prayer believing that He is going honor what is asked. The rule of confession of sin is maintaining fellowship through confession with a Holy God.

Q2. (5:14) What is the elders' role in prayer for the sick? What must be their spiritual qualifications for this ministry of prayer? The elders role in prayer for the sick is to anoint them with oil and pray to God for their healing. Their spiritual qualifications for this ministry of prayer is one of spiritual maturity, a vigorous prayer life and deep faith.