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Q4. Since Christians don't seem immune to accident, persecution, and death, how are we to understand these psalms of protection? All I know is that our Lord is in control and He can and will protect all true believers who call on Him. I have personally experienced His loving embrace when I walked into an armed robbery and had a gun pointed to my head, as well as being manhandled. An absolute calm and peace came over me and I knew my Heavenly Father would bring me through. Why don't some believers seem to be protected? They have not fully put their faith in our Lord, and have not trusted Him whatever happens. Their souls will however be protected for eternity. Does God really protect us? Yes! How? He will never forsake us! We do not know what might have happened to us earlier if we did not have His protection.

Q3. (Psalm 121). What reassurance is it to you that God keeps you and watches over you? How does Psalm 121 make you feel? This psalm reminds me of Romans 8:28,

Q2. (Psalm 91) What does this psalm teach us about God's protection when in danger? Whoever trusts our Heavenly Father will find security and protection. Divine protection is portrayed by several images: shelter (a hiding place) and the shadow (against arid conditions), fortress (strong protection), refuge (a dwelling place), feathers and wings (God

Q4. How do you think Jesus will hold you personally accountable on Judgment Day for using your "talents"? Jesus knows our heart and our motives; He knows what we are capable of and our limitations. He is not there to judge us harshly, but by putting our faith in Him, and using the resources He gave us as best as we possibly can, we will one day hear Him say

Q3. When we are successful, to whom does the fruit of our labours belong? Only to God

Q2. (Matthew 25:15, 21, 23) What are the factors that make up a person's "ability to carry out something"? Discipline, hard work, time management, and in some cases raw talent, amongst other factors. What percentage of this is raw talent, in your opinion? In certain tasks raw talent is most important. Here I think of musicians, but in other tasks what is required is to stay focused and to be disciplined until completion of the work at hand. Why are some who succeed not necessarily the most talented? Here it boils down to hard work and dedication to the task

Q1. (Matthew 25:14-30) What do you think the "talents" represent? All our God given natural abilities, skills, and qualities. If you were to take an inventory of your "talents," what would they be? I would like to think my talents include service, comforting, and teaching. What spiritual gifts have you been given? The power of discernment, hospitality, and a listening ear. What abilities do you have? Discipline, hard work, and managing. What Bible knowledge do you have? I study diligently every day, but having started late in life, I pray that our Heavenly Father will open my heart and mind to His Word so that I will get to know Him better, be able to draw closer to Him, and ultimately become more and more like our Lord Jesus day by day. Where has God placed you in your community? In society? In your profession or industry? I

Q1. (Psalm 61:1-4) What images does the psalmist evoke to communicate his trust in God's protection? We see several word images of God

Exercise. For one of the psalms in this lesson - or another psalm with a similar theme - do one of the suggested exercises to help you experience the Psalms. These include such things as praying a psalm, meditating, reading to a shut-in, paraphrasing, writing your own psalm, singing, preparing a liturgy, and memorizing. Then report to the forum what the exercise meant to you personally or share what you've written with others. I led a Bible study on these three Psalms. This gave me even deeper insight into His Word, and made me realize how we are completely dependant on our Heavenly Father. When things are going well we tend to take Him for granted and only when in trouble do we turn to Him. Yet He is always there for us

Q6.(Ephesians 5:28-30) In what sense should we love the Church because it is our own body? We are all united with Christ

Q5. (Psalm 80) If you were to formulate a personal prayer for revival for your own life or for your congregation, how would you word it? Restore us, O Lord; make your face shine upon us, that we may again be shining lights for you. Recharge us with your power, that we may do things to bring glory to your name. Keep us as your humble servants. Restore us, O Lord; make your face shine upon us, that we may turn from our wicked ways. Forgive us our sins, and keep us close to you. This we pray in the precious name of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. What elements should be present in a prayer for personal or congregational revival? We need to ask for forgiveness of our sins, we need to turn from our sinful behaviour, we need to humble ourselves before God, we need to seek God continually, and ask Him to revitalise us with a new energy to be able to serve Him better. What would this prayer have in common with 2 Chronicles 7:14? It will have the same elements. What is required is not only true repentance but also a changed behaviour. How does this kind of prayer pave the way for revival and restoration to take place? God will answer our earnest prayers.

Q5.(Ephesians 5:27) In what sense is the Church "glorious" or "resplendent"? When it reaches perfection and is holy and without blemish. Is Paul talking about the present era or when Christ comes? When Christ comes. How do you determine this? When He Himself presents the Church to Himself

Q4. (Luke 13:18-20) According to these parables in this lesson, in what ways is the Kingdom small? It had a humble small beginning. In what ways does the Kingdom grow? It grows as more and more believers enter. Salvation is by grace through faith for those chosen by God; it does not accommodate every one. In what ways is the Kingdom door narrow? It is narrow in that it is difficult to enter. In what way is the Kingdom banquet, on the one hand, large and diverse, and on the other, selective? There will be believers of all races, and all nations

Q4.(Ephesians 5:26) How does the word of God work in the cleansing, purifying process? As we hear the Word our lives are being cleansed. Just as the blood of Christ cleanses once for all from the guilt and penalty of sin, so the Word of God cleanses continually from the defilement and pollution of sin. How should the word of God be implemented in a congregation to achieve these purposes? It must be a teaching congregation, hungry for the Word of God. The Word taught at Sunday School, Bible Studies and at every opportunity. How can we use the word for purification without relying upon threats of hellfire to scare people into repentance? We are to teach the Word in love, but never compromising to adjust to our present day norms

Q4. What do the Words of Institution say to us about forgiveness? We have been fully forgiven for our sins

Q4. (Psalm 40:17) In this verse David combines both humility and faith in his prayer to God. Why are both humility and faith necessary? We must come before our Almighty God in humility recognizing exactly who we are - His creatures, a sinner, and nothing more. Without Him we are nothing. We are to submit in obedience to Him; acknowledging Him as our Heavenly Father. We have to put our faith and trust in the promises of God; they are all we have. What happens when one of these qualities is missing? Without humility we will not receive the promised blessings of grace, wisdom, and respect. Without our faith and trust in Jesus there is no salvation.

Q3. (Luke 13:28-30) The great "feast in the kingdom of God" has guests from all over the world. Who are they? People from all four corners of the world who have asked for forgiveness of their sins, repented and have put their trust Jesus as their Saviour. Who will be the ones "thrown out" of the feast? People who assumed they would be there simply because they were related to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, will be thrown out. Why will they be excluded? It was thought only the Jewish nation would be involved in God

Q3.(Ephesians 5:26) What constitutes "holiness" of a church? A Church that is cleansed from all sin, pure, perfect, without any blemish, and separated entirely to Jesus Christ and to His service Is the church holy because of Christ's sacrifice for her, or because of her own actions, or both? Only because of our Saviour

Q3. Why did Jesus purposely point his disciples to the phrasing found in Isaiah 53? He wanted them to understand Jesus

Q3. (Psalm 40:5b) When you realize that God's thoughts and plans are focused on you in particular, how does that make you respond? During our quiet time this morning, both my wife and myself were discussing how Almighty our Lord is that He should be concerned with us. Now, later this morning, I

Q2. (Luke 13:24-27) Why do you think Jesus characterizes the entrance to the Kingdom here as "narrow"? It is an entrance that is narrow in the sense that it is not broad and open to everyone. It takes effort to enter, we have to fight off our opponents, Satan, sin, and even our old sinful nature. This does not mean we have to earn our salvation, but rather that we have to turn away from sin, repent, and turn to Jesus, placing our faith in Him as our Saviour. Why will many people "try to enter and will not be able to"? Unfortunately there will be many unbelievers who do not want to give up their ways of wickedness and reject our Lord

Q2.(Ephesians 5:25) What does it mean that Christ "gave himself up" for the Church? He died on the Cross for us

Q2. Why did Jesus refer to the violent nature of his death in the Words of Institution? Our Lord was trying to impress upon them the magnitude of His death. What did this probably mean to the disciples at the time? I don

Q2. (Psalm 69:30-32) Why does this lament (and nearly all laments in the Psalms) end with an upswing of hope and praise? What does this teach us about our own laments and prayers? Why is praise, the language of faith, so important in our prayers, especially prayers of desperate pleas for help? Having prayed our prayers and restored our relationship with Him, we are confident God will keep His promises and answer our prayers. There is now new hope, and this is the time to praise our Heavenly Father for His grace and unmerited love that He extends to us when we call on Him for mercy and peace.

Q1. (Psalm 69:12-18) How could David dare to ask anything from God after the shameful things he had done with Bathsheba and Uriah? David had messed up big time and his only way out was to call upon his Heavenly Father for help. Because of his adultery with Bathsheba and the subsequent murder of her husband Uriah he pleads for God