I Am the Light of the World (Randy)

Jesus said, “I Am the Light of the World” while attending the Feast of Tabernacles, one of three national festivals the Jews celebrated and the one that celebrated the exodus wilderness journey in particular.  In that journey, God led the Israelites with a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.  During the feast, the Jews lit a huge candelabra to remember God’s presence on their journey, and it was by that candelabra that Jesus made his claim.  He was revealing both himself as God and the nature of God as the Light that guides us at the same time.

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Lesson Plan

I Am the Bread of Life (Chris)

As Randy discussed last week, the purpose the Bible is to reveal the nature of God.  This is true especially in the Gospel of John and even more especially in Jesus’ “I am” statements.  Today, we focus on the statement: “I am the bread of life.”

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Lesson Plan

I Am Who I Am (Randy)

This week, we kick off an eight week series of lessons where we are going to explore the seven great “I Am” statements that Jesus made as found in the book of John.  Through them, he made a startling claim and revealed the very nature of God.

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Lesson Plan

The Parable of the Dishonest Manager

Jesus sometimes shocked people, particularly those who didn’t understand his message. Here is a prime example: The Parable of the Dishonest Manager: Luke 16:1-9. This is one of the most difficult to fathom passages in the Bible. Even more than usual in the case of Jesus’ parables, there is not an obvious answer to the question of what it means. What do we think?

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The Parable of the Mustard Seed

Jesus tells three parables – The Parables of the Lighted Lamp, Seed Growing, and Mustard Seed – in quick succession in the book of Mark to give us insight into the kingdom of God. In the first one, he wants us to understand that Jesus came to be the light of this world. In the second, that God is like a farmer who sows, grows, and harvests his crops on his own. In the third, the Mustard Seed, he shows us that the kingdom may start small, but it will grow (and has grown) to a point where everyone can see it.

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The Parables of the Lighted Lamp, Seed Growing, and Mustard Seed

Jesus tells three parables - The Parables of the Lighted Lamp, Seed Growing, and Mustard Seed - in quick succession in the book of Mark to give us insight into the Kingdom of God. In this lesson, we look at the first two of these three parables. In them, Jesus wants us to understand that God is in control of his kingdom. He sent Jesus to the world to serve as a light who shines into the darkness, and he serves as a farmer who sows, grows, and harvests his crops on his own. We should never fall into the trap of thinking we are in control. Only God is.

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Watching and Waiting: Parables About Discipleship

The “Olivet Discourse” is a conversation recorded in the Gospel of Matthew between Jesus and his disciples on the Mount of Olives just before his final days. They ask him, “[W]hat will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age.” [Matthew 24:3] Three parables in this section all are linked together, and each deals with what is expected of Christians while Jesus is away from the world.

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