S tu td cu f S c & oû I
For the Children
Points and Problems H omer A. K ent
Outline and Exposition
A llison A rrowood ,
B. B. S utcliffe
3. "They were full of wrath" (Acts 19:28). The same sun that melts the wax Hardens the clay. So when the Gospel is preached, those who listen and obey find their hearts made warm and tènder. The hearts of those who reject the Gospel are c h i l l e d and hardened. It is a principle that may be observed wherever Christian work is carried on. 4. "Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God" (Eph. 6:13). The sèveral parts of the armor are listed in the verses that follow. It is interesting to note how perfectly every part symbolizes Christ. When the believer lets Christ fully control the life, he is possessed of the whole armor, for the Lord Jesus is the truth, our righteousness, peace, the object of salvation, our salvation and hope, the Word and our Intercessor. Com pare Romans 13:14. For the Children S howing L ove and K indness to O thers E phesians 4:29-32 MEMORY VERSE: “Be ye kind one to another*’ (Eph. 4:32). Would you not be surprised if you were to find a young prince or prin cess playing in a mud puddle in a filthy alley? Why? Because there are some things that you do not expect to see a prince or a princess doing. Sons and daughters of kings are supposed to do and not to do certain things be cause of who they are. So it is with Christian boys and girls, sons and daughters of the King of kings. Paul, in one of the letters which he wrote to some Christians, told them some bf the things which they were expected not to do as Christians, and others that they were expected to do as children of the King (Eph. 4:29-32). Christians are to ask the Holy Spirit to guard the door of their lips that no evil words may be spoken, but only words that are good and pleasing to their Lord. They are not to grieve the Holy Spirit, for it is He who has been T H E K I N G ’ S BUS I NE S i
case of Job. The immovable parts guard from Satan’s Wiles which rise from within: the lust of the flesh, and of the eyes, and the pride of life (vs. 4-17a). III. Mere defense never won a battle; victory is achieved only when offen sive warfare is waged, and for this God provides weapons for the believ er. The weapons are the sword of the Spirit and prayer in the Spirit. The sword is the Word of God, which breaks down Satan’s strongholds, and the prayer in the Spirit gives power and direction to the sword. The great need is for Christians who know how to wield these two weapons against modern opponents of Christianity. Points and Problems 1. "There arose no small stir about that way" (Acts 19:23). When the Gospel is fully preached and lived, it always creates a commotion. This commotion is one of the evidences that the Spirit is working. It is not a good sign when all men speak well of the preacher or of the church, for it in dicates that the whole counsel of God is not being declared. The presenta tion of the full truth of Christ is bound to cut across men’s private, social, and business affairs. It is felt deeply, unless men are willing to let their lives be conformed to His will. 2. "Not only this Our craft is in danger . . . but also . .'. the temple of the great goddess Diana" (Acts 19:27). Note here a two-fold effect of the preaching of the Gospel: (1) It affected the business affairs of men. Those who embraced the Gospel could no longer buy the things they once bought. Think this over and note how it applies today. (2) False gods no longer had any place in the lives of these believers. So today, when Christ comes in, all rivals must leave. If Christ is Lord, He must be Lord of all. T he O ffensive (E ph . 6:17b-18)
Lesson material is based upon outlines of International Sunday School Lessons, copyrighted by the International Coun cil of Religious Education; used by per mission. LESSON FOR DECEMBER 1 Modern Opponents of Christianity LESSON M A TER IAL: Act*. 19:23-30; Eph. 6:13-18. GOLDEN T E X T : "Finally . . . be strong In the Lord, and In the power of hi* might” (Eph. 6:10). Outline and Exposition I. Because of the preaching of the Gos pel at Ephesus, the trade of the silver^ smiths, who made and sold images of their god, was being reduced. Be cause of this interference with their business, a leader among them, De metrius, called a meeting of these craftsmen to discuss how they might hinder the work of the Gospel. He de clared that not only were their occu pation and religion in danger, but that their goddess Diana was likely to be superseded by the God of the Gospel. The silversmiths, filled with wrath, attacked Paul’s companions, and Paul himself barely escaped violence. Even, in modern times, it is not uncommon for business and religion to combine against the preaching of the Gospel. IX. The civil authorities may give some protection against material opposition, but God alone can provide protection against the unseen, but real, assaults of the devil. And the Lord does pro vide such protection in the form of spiritual armor sufficient to enable the Christian to withstand Satan’s attacks (v. 13). The movable parts of the Christian’s armor shield him from Satan’s darts, which from the outside come in the shape of bitter experiences, as in the T he O pposition (A cts 19:23-30) T he P rotection (E ph . 6:13-17a)
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