• Lesson 10: Church
  • Matthew 16:18 – “church” is from the Greek word ἐκκλησία, which means a “calling out,” a “meeting,” or a religious “congregation.”
  • Matthew 16:13-26 – Jesus is the Son of God, the head of the church.
  • Matthew 18:15-17
  • Acts 8:1-4 – The church was being persecuted, meaning the people were being persecuted.
  • Acts 12:1-5 – Those who were obeying Christ “belonged to the church.”
  • Acts 14:23 – Elders were appointed in each congregation.
  • Acts 20:28-30 – Elders were to oversee only one congregation.
  • Romans 16:1-15
  • I Corinthians 1:1-3 – Members of the church are called saints.
  • I Corinthians 4:16-17
  • I Corinthians 12:27-31 – Christians are members of the body of Christ.
  • I Corinthians 14:5, 19
  • Ephesians 3:8-12 – The purpose of the church is to make the wisdom of God known to everyone. It is to spread God’s word and edify others.

[Sorry, no audio available for this lesson. For a related lesson covering the false gods of Egypt, please see Egypt’s Gods and Our Gods.]

• Exodus 1-15
• Plagues against Egyptian gods
  • Numbers 33:4 – The plagues were directly targeted at the various Egyptian gods.
  • The first plague: water to blood – Exodus 7:20-21
    • Khnum – guardian of the Nile sources
    • Hapi
    • Osiris
    • Neith
    • Hathor
  • The second plague: frogs – Exodus 8:3
  • The third plague: gnats – Exodus 8:16
  • The fourth plague: flies – Exodus 8:21-23
  • The fifth plague: death of livestock – Exodus 9:6
    • Ptah: sacred bull Apis
    • Hathor: represented by cow
    • Ra: sacred bull Mnevis
  • The sixth plague: boils – Exodus 9:10-11
    • Sekhmet
    • Serapis
    • Imhotep
  • The seventh plague: hail and fire – Exodus 9:23
    • Nut – sky goddess
    • Isis and Seth
  • The eighth plague: locusts – Exodus 10:4-5
    • Isis and Seth
  • The ninth plague: darkness – Exodus 10:22
    • Ra: sun god; one of the greatest deities
    • Amon-Re and Horus
    • Aten
    • Atum
    • Hathor and Nut
    • Thoth
    • Pharaoh
  • The tenth plague: death of the firstborn – Exodus 12:29-30
    • Firstborn of Pharaoh
    • Min
    • Isis
    • Hathor
    • New Apis bull? - dead
    • Pharaoh: considered a god himself, but can’t protect his own family
  • Hardening of Pharaoh’s heart (Exodus 3-14)
    • Romans 9:17-18???
    • Pharaoh has a slave labor force of over 1 million people. God wants him to give them up.
    • God gave Pharaoh a command that Pharaoh didn’t want to obey and Pharaoh himself hardened his heart.
  • Remember! (Exodus 12-13)
    • Exodus 22:21
    • Leviticus 19:36
    • Numbers 15:37-41
    • Deuteronomy 4:20
    • Deuteronomy 5:15
    • Micah 6:4
    • Haggai 2:5
    • If the Exodus was this important for them to remember, how much more important is it for us to remember the death of Jesus?

• Three classifications of intelligent rational beings:
  • Deity – Godhood, God family
  • Angels – Angelhood, angel family
  • Man – Manhood, man family
• Manhood of Jesus affirmed in the scripture
  • Luke 9:10
  • Matthew 4:2
  • I Timothy 2:5
  • Mark 15:37,44
  • Acts 17:31
  • Romans 1:3
  • Philippians 2:4-8
• If Jesus was not man, there would be no:
  • Perfect law keeper – Hebrews 4:15
  • Way for God to be just and justify the believer – Romans 3:24-26
  • Mediator – I Timothy 2:5
  • Sacrifice – Hebrews 10:5
  • Resurrection – I Corinthians 15:12-13
  • Merciful high priest – Hebrews 2:17
  • Gospel – I Corinthians 15:1-4
  • Savior – Matthew 1:21; Hebrews 9:22
  • Salvation

• John 4:24
• Worship must be according to God’s truth
  • John 4:19-24
  • Singing – Colossians 3:16
  • Praying – I Corinthians 14:15
  • Preaching – Acts 20:7
  • Collection – I Corinthians 16:2
  • Lord’s Supper – I Corinthians 11:23ff
  • Matthew 15:7
• Worship must be with the right spirit
  • Luke 18:10-14 – problem: pride
  • Ephesians 5:19 – heart
  • II Corinthians 9:7 – heart, cheerful
  • I Corinthians 11:27-28 – manner, examine self
  • I Corinthians 14:12, 26 – edify others
  • I Corinthians 14:27-30 – humility
  • I Corinthians 14:33,40 – peace, prosperity, and order
• Both elements must be in place – Malachi 1, 2
• Clothing
  • “The clothing of the Old Covenant priests was important so ours is too.” – Exodus 28:2,4
  • “You should always wear your best when you worship.”
  • “God looks at the heart (so it doesn’t matter what we wear).” – I Samuel 16:7
    • Matthew 22:11-13
    • Matthew 23:5
  • Does it matter what we wear to a worship assembly?
  • God has not bound any specific clothes for worship, but let’s make sure everything about us reflects the seriousness and importance of the occasion for which we have assembled.
  • James 2:1-4
• Psalms 95:3-6

• Lesson 9: Striving for Perfection
  • Matthew 5:48; Romans 2:12
  • Matthew 19:20-22 – This young man’s heart was in the wrong place.
  • Romans 12:1-2
  • Philippians 3:7-14
    • Philippians 3:9 – This righteousness that depends on faith is God’s forgiveness.
  • Colossians 3:12-14
  • Hebrews 7:11-12, 19 – Perfection before God was not achievable under the Old Law.
  • James 1:2-6