Sunday the 4th and prayer

From: reggiebreshears@lawyer.com [mailto:reggiebreshears@lawyer.com] 

Sent: Tuesday, June 29, 2010 11:25 PM

Subject: Sunday the 4th and prayer

Hello class,

No Sunday School this Sunday, and the service will only be held at

9:30. So that gives you two weeks to read Exodus Chapter 7 and lesson 4

in the study guide. No excuses! (And happy 4th.)

Exodus 2

Last week we completed Exodus 1 (which was MOST of the first lesson in our study guide - available at the Second Baptist bookstore now for less than $6). This Sunday, we will work to get through the second chapter of Exodus. Chapter gave us a feel for the context of the coming Exodus. The oppression and enslavement of the Israelites. The providential protection offered by God. The fulfillment of God's promises to Abram from early in Genesis.

It is in that setting that we begin following the life of Moses in Exodus 2. We will begin with the arrival of the child who one day would be God's chosen leader to deliver His people from bondage.As we follow Moses as an adult, we learn that God will use three unlikely methods to prepare Moses for the divine assignment that awaits him. God will utilize:

• A formal education from the most advanced civilization of the day;
• Moses' own personal failures; and
• An extended period of solitude and humble service.

To preview this week's lesson notes, click here to download. Looking forward to exploring God's word with you Sunday and learning what He has shown you in it.

God Bless,

Matt

Lesson 1: Exodus 1:1 - 2:10

I'm excited to be back at it in Old Testament, verse-by-verse study. Our study of Exodus begins Sunday, using Woodrow Kroll's Exodus: God's Plan, God's People.  The study guide is now available for purchase in the Second Baptist Church bookstore, so most of us will pick up our copies this Sunday morning when we are there. Crossway.org was kind enough to make a pdf excert of the study available that gives us the first lesson of the book for easy download, by clicking here. That should be a decent bridge to when we all have our own study guides.

Here also, are my lesson notes for the first lesson in the book. My plan is to take this study at a deliberate pace, though. We don't have a hard and fast date by which we need to be finished, so some of these lessons may be completed in a week or two. Other chapters in the study guide may require several weeks to fully explore. That sounds like fun to me, and I hope it does to you, too.

God bless you and I look forward to studying God's Word with you tomorrow.

Matt

1 John 1:1 - 2:2

And away we go! Starting our study of 1 John this week and I'm really enjoying getting back into a good, old-fashioned expository (verse-by-verse) study. This is going to be fun. This week, we will start by studying 1 John 1:1 - 2:2 (click here to download my lesson notes for this Sunday, January 10). The handout I shared in last week's overview ("Are You a born-again Christian?") is one I will be referencing periodically throughout our study of 1 John. This week our passage of scripture includes the first test of salvation ("A true Christian cannot ignore sin"), along with many other treasures in God's Word.

I'm really sorry about the confusion of the availability of our study guide in the Second Baptist bookstore last week (the shipment apparently had not yet arrived). I'm very hopeful it will be there this week. I'm more excited about the study guide we will use for this study than about any guide we've used so far since I've been teaching. I think it will be a great asset to you as together we dig deeper into God's Word. It is John MacArthur's Bible Study Series on 1st, 2nd, and 3rd John and Jude. It should be available for purchase at the Second Baptist Church bookstore Sunday morning for a very attractive, below-retail, sales tax-free price, or can also be ordered online. The guide is great, but the Word is perfect, so let's not let the guide's availability (or lack thereof) prevent us from experiencing God's blessing from carefully studying His Word.

Just a reminder that I will be travelling next week and won't be with you on Sunday, January 17. Kevin McCall will lead us that week. I'm so grateful that our class is filled with Godly and gracious servants of Christ who are so willing to put their gifts to work for His glory. Thanks again Kevin!

God Bless You.

Matt