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By David Watson

Benchley, November 28, 2012

• Titus 2:1-2
• What does the Bible teach us about becoming sound in the faith?
  • Retain the standard of sound words (II Timothy 1:13)
    • I Timothy 6:3-5
    • I Timothy 1:10 – Sin is what is contrary to sound teaching.
    • Titus 1:9
  • Don’t chase a good ear-tickling (II Timothy 4:3)
    • II Timothy 4:1-5
    • Truth can hurt. It is always tempting to surround yourself with people who tell you what you want to hear.
  • Accept a severe reproof (Titus 1:13)
    • Titus 1:10-14 – The objective of reproof is to build someone up in the faith.
  • Genesis 4:3-8 – We have to get good at being told we are wrong and then improving rather than having a fit.
  • Proverbs 16:18 – Pride gets in our way so much.
  • Genesis 3:12-13 – Excuses get in our way.
  • Romans 12:11 – Laziness gets in our way.
  • Acts 26:14-15,19 – Paul did not prove disobedient to the vision he saw.

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By Jesse Jenkins

Benchley, November 7, 2012

• Possibilities:
  • Heaven itself
  • That which emanates from heaven
  • The highest in a particular thing
• Ephesians 6:10-12 – This passage is talking about the rulers of this world. “Heavenly places” here refers to the highest leaders of the land.
• Ephesians 3:7-11 – This passage discusses Paul’s work in taking the gospel to the Jews, Gentiles, and highest leaders of the time. He was not preaching to celestial beings. “Heavenly places” are the highest of the leaders.
• Ephesians 2:4-7 – Jesus raised us up so that we could sit in the highest seat as Christians. If we do not behave according to the dignity of the seat we occupy, we bring shame upon Christ. The highest seat we can occupy on earth in God’s eyes is that of a Christian.
• Ephesians 1:19-21 – “Heavenly places” is referring to the highest place that Christ can sit at the throne of God.
• Ephesians 1:1-4 – “Heavenly places” refers to the highest blessings we can enjoy.

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By Jesse Jenkins

Benchley, September 30, 2012

• I Peter 5:1-3: Elders are not to be bosses. They are to be servants of the congregation. See Hebrews 13:17 regarding obeying the elders.
• I Peter 5:12: Silvanus is thought to be the same as Silas who accompanied Paul on some of his missionary journeys.

By Jesse Jenkins

Benchley, July 1, 2012

• James 5:1-6 – Warnings against misuse of riches and abuse of power gained through wealth.
• James 5:9 – Do not grudge one another. Put others before yourself.
• James 5:10 – We have many examples of prophets who endured, such as Elijah, Jeremiah, and Paul.
• James 5:12 – Do not swear. Let your word be your bond. This i not an injuction against making an oath (such as before a judge and jury). It is simply saying that we should keep our word without others feeling the need to require an oath from us.
• James 5:13-15 – “If he has committed sins” – see II Timothy 4:5; Romans 4:19; Hebrews 12:3; I Peter 2:24; John 6:2.
  • Being weak is not necessarily a sin.
  • Being weary is not necessarily a sin.
  • So here, sin is something other than being weak or weary.
  • So, if any suffer hardships, let him pray.
  • Is any weak, let him call for the elders.
  • The prayer of faith will save the weary.
  • If he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.

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By David Watson

Benchley, April 18, 2012

• If we keep the right perspective and do not act selfishly, we will not have a problem with grumbling and complaining like the Israelites did. We must remember and have faith that God will provide for us.
• James 5:7-10
• Numbers 20:6 – Moses and Aaron show great reverance in falling on their faces. See also Numbers 14:5; 16:4,22,45
• Luke 18:9-13 – The tax collector shows humility while the Pharisee shows pride.
• II Corinthians 12:7-8 – Paul prays three times that his thorn be removed. When God does not remove the thorn, Paul is content with his state.
• When we have a legitimate need, we should ask God in humility.
• II Chronicles 33:9,12-13 – Manasseh shows humility and God is touched by his prayer even though Manasseh has been a very evil king.
• Numbers 20:9-10 – See Psalms 106:32-33. Moses sinned in speaking rashly with his lips, not just with his actions in striking the rock.

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By Jesse Jenkins

Benchley, February 26, 2012

• Acts 22:1-11 – Paul is struck blind on the way to Damascus.
• He saw Jesus (Acts 9:6).
• He saw that he was a sinner (I Timothy 1:15).
• This was a revelation to him because he thought he was doing God’s will.
• We must study the word of God so that we will know what sin is.
• He saw being religious was not enough (Philippians 3:5-8).
• Paul saw that the religion of his parents was not enough.
• He saw conscience is not a safe guide (Acts 23:1).
• I John 3:20-21 – The intellect, emotion, willpower, and conscience are all parts of the Biblical “heart”.
• He saw he must change when wrong (Philippians 3:5-8).
• An honest man will change from error to truth when he learns the truth.
• He saw the tragedy of living a lie (Galatians 1:15-17).
• He saw prayer does not save the sinner (Acts 9:11)
• Paul couldn’t just pray and be saved. He had to do what God commanded him to do.
• He saw that baptism is necessary for salvation (Acts 22:16).
• He saw that he must make Jesus’ word the rule of his life (Galatians 1:6-12).

By David Watson

Benchley, January 4, 2012

[Sorry, no audio for this lesson.  Sadly, the microphone died in the middle of class.]

• Galatians
• From the apostle Paul (Galatians 1:1)
• To the churches in Galatia (Galatians 1:2)
• They were deserting God and going to a different gospel (Galatians 1:6-9)!
• Galatians 5:1-13 – In what sense are Christians free?
• In this context, Christians are free from the law of Moses.
• Galatians 5:16-17 – Contrast between the flesh and the spirit.
• Galatians 5 – Is “spirit” here talking about man’s spiritual nature or the Holy Spirit?
• People disagree on this.
• If this is talking about a man’s spirit, is the passage teaching that a human’s spirit is allowed to follow its own path (cf. Jeremiah 10:23; Acts 26:9)? No!
• If this is talking about the Holy Spirit, is the passage teaching that a human’s spirit is not involved in serving God (cf. Romans 1:9; John 4:24)? No!
• Does a spiritually-minded person follow the Holy Spirit-inspired scripture? Yes!
• The Holy Spirit often uses the word “fruit” figuratively to mean the effect that God’s word has in one’s life. It might be a quality that is developed or an action that is taken.

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By David Watson

Benchley, December 7, 2011

• The apostles were specially inspired to reveal God’s will to men.
• John 13:16; II corinthians 8:23; Acts 14:14; 13:4 – uses of the word “apostle”
• Mark 3:13-19 – the list of apostles
• They started with a “drop-what-you’re-doing” kind of faith.
• Luke 5:3-11 – Peter, James, and John left their livelihood behind to follow Jesus.
• Acts 9:1-20 – Paul turned around immediately and started serving Jesus.
• Luke 18:22-23 – the rich young ruler and his reluctance to change his ways for Jesus
• They persevered through failures.
• Matthew 16:6-12,21-23 – Jesus corrects the misunderstandings of the apostles.
• Mark 4:13; 9:32; Luke 22:31-32,60-62 – More failures of the apostles.
• I John 1:8-9

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By Jesse Jenkins

Benchley, November 13, 2011

• Paul wrote the letter to Philemon to ask that his servant Onesimus might be allowed to stay with Paul to minister to him during his imprisonment.
• Philemon 1:2 – Church here could mean a congregation that met in Philemon’s house or the Christians in his family. See Colossians 4:15.
• Philemon 1:6 – Philemon was zealous in doing the good work of God. In Philemon 1:7, we see that he refreshes the hearts of the saints. Philemon lived in faith and also taught others.
• Philemon 1:11 – Apparently Onesimus was not a very good slave when he was with Philemon before. The new relationship Onesimus had with God changed the nature of his relationship with Philemon. He was still Philemon’s servant, but he was much more valuable as a Christian than just as a slave. See Colossians 4:9.
• Philemon 1:22 – This was written during Paul’s first imprisonment because he had no expectation of being released during his second imprisonment.

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By Brent Hairston

Benchley, May 29, 2011

• The old city of Ephesus is fairly well preserved and many ruins still exist.
• The letter was written by Paul, probably while he was imprisoned in Rome. (Ephesians 3:1,13; 4:1; 6:20)
• Paul at Ephesus:
  • Acts 18:18-22
    • Dropped off Priscilla and Aquila
    • Reasoned with the Jews (Acts 18:19)
  • Acts 19
    • Imparting of the Holy Spirit (Acts 19:1-6)
    • Paul performs miracles (Acts 19:11-20)
    • Paul confronts idol craftsmen (Acts 19:21-27)
    • Uproad: town clerk quiets the crowd (Acts 19:28-41)
  • Acts 20:17-38
    • Paul sends for Ephesian elders from Miletus.
    • Paul gives “farewell address” to elders (Acts 20:25).
    • Encourages strength (Acts 20:28-31)
• Paul’s purpose
  • Remind them of their calling in Christ (Ephesians 1-3)
  • Encourage them to walk as a Christian (Ephesians 4-6)
    • Ephesians 4:1 – Walk in a manner worthy of your calling.
    • Ephesians 5:1 – Be imitators of God.
    • Ephesians 6:10 – Be strong in the Lord.
• Ephesians 1:5 – “Predestined” here means that God intended for us to be adopted as sons. There are still conditions we must meet for this to be true.