God is our Shield

Saturday, November 29, 2014
Genesis 15:1-6 KJV 

1 After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I [am] thy shield, [and] thy exceeding great reward. 2 And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house [is] this Eliezer of Damascus? 3 And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir. 4 And, behold, the word of the LORD [came] unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. 5 And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. 6 And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) Why did the Lord tell Abram in a vision? (v.1)
2) What was Abram's response? (v.2-3)
3) What did the Lord promise Abram? (v.4-5)
4) How did Abram respond to the Lord's promises? (v.6)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
5) What troubles are you facing, at this present time?
6) What promises has the Lord made to you concerning that trouble?
7) What will you do while you are waiting on the Lord's promises to come to pass?

LIFE LESSONS
8) God wants us to believe His promises to us.
9) God's promises often manifest in unexpected ways.
10) God's promises to us are always on time: His time.

The God of our Salvation

Friday, November 28, 2014
Psalm 85:1-7 KJV 

1 [[To the chief Musician, A Psalm for the sons of Korah.]] LORD, thou hast been favourable unto thy land: thou hast brought back the captivity of Jacob. 2 Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people, thou hast covered all their sin. Selah. 3 Thou hast taken away all thy wrath: thou hast turned [thyself] from the fierceness of thine anger. 4 Turn us, O God of our salvation, and cause thine anger toward us to cease. 5 Wilt thou be angry with us for ever? wilt thou draw out thine anger to all generations? 6 Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee? 7 Shew us thy mercy, O LORD, and grant us thy salvation.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) What have you read and learned about the sons of Korah?
2) Why do you think that this psalm was written for them?
3) What six things does the psalmist remember about the Lord? (v.1-3)
4) What four things does the psalmist implore the Lord to do? (v.4,7)
5) What three things does the psalmist ask of the Lord? Why? (v.5-6)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
6) What do you learn of the Lord from this passage of Scripture?
7) Have you, your family, or your church, ever experienced the chastening of the Lord? If so, what happened?
8) If you answered affirmatively to the previous question, what did the subject(s) of God's displeasure do to restore right relationship with Him?

LIFE LESSONS
9) Sin not only affects the individual(s) who committed the transgression(s), but may affect those associated with them.
10) The Lord's anger toward His people may last for many generations, when not repented of.
11) Individual, corporate, and/or national repentence always leads to revival. 

Hope Set on the Living God

Thursday, November 27, 2014
1 Timothy 4:4-11 KJV

4 For every creature of God [is] good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving: 5 For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer. 6 If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained. 7 But refuse profane and old wives' fables, and exercise thyself [rather] unto godliness. 8 For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come. 9 This [is] a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation. 10 For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe. 11 These things command and teach.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) The Apostle Paul is writing concerning the great apostasy; specifically, the command to abstain from certain foods. What material (external or natural) things are believers, who have been freed to live Holy Spirit led lives, to refuse (or abstain from)? Why, or why not? (v.4-5)
2) What are good ministers of Jesus Christ, to do for their brothers and sisters in the Lord? Why? (v.6)
3) What else are believers to refuse? Why? (v.7a)
4) What are believers to exercise? (v.7b)
5) Why is godliness profitable? (v.8)
6) Why did the Apostle Paul suffer reproach? (v.9-10)
7) In light of this Scripture, what are ministers of faith expected to do? (v.11)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
8) How do you know whether a doctrine (teaching or belief) is of man, or the Holy Spirit of God?
9) How do you teach those you shepherd, or teach, to live godly lives in this present age?
10) Are you prepared to suffer reproach for how you live and/or what you teach?

LIFE LESSONS
11) Jesus set us free to live Holy Spirit led lives, rather than fleshly (or carnal) lives.
12) God's ministers have been raised up to share the Word of faith and sound doctrine with fellow believers. 
13) Believers have been freed to live godly, rather than carnal, lives.
14) Christ's ministers are to teach the doctrines that lead to godliness (righteousness or holiness).

O Lord, We Hope in You

Wednesday, November 26, 2014
Psalm 33:10-22 KJV 

10 The LORD bringeth the counsel of the heathen to nought: he maketh the devices of the people of none effect. 11 The counsel of the LORD standeth for ever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations. 12 Blessed [is] the nation whose God [is] the LORD; [and] the people [whom] he hath chosen for his own inheritance. 13 The LORD looketh from heaven; he beholdeth all the sons of men. 14 From the place of his habitation he looketh upon all the inhabitants of the earth. 15 He fashioneth their hearts alike; he considereth all their works. 16 There is no king saved by the multitude of an host: a mighty man is not delivered by much strength. 17 An horse [is] a vain thing for safety: neither shall he deliver [any] by his great strength. 18 Behold, the eye of the LORD [is] upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy; 19 To deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine. 20 Our soul waiteth for the LORD: he [is] our help and our shield. 21 For our heart shall rejoice in him, because we have trusted in his holy name. 22 Let thy mercy, O LORD, be upon us, according as we hope in thee.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) What two things does the Lord do to the unbeliever (or, heathen)? (v.10)
2) What lasts forever and to all generations? (v.11)
3) Who is blessed? (v.12)
4) What does God do from heaven? (v. 13-15)
5) What three things are useless to the powerful or mighty? (v.16-17)
6) Who does the Lord watch over? Why? (v.18-19)
7) In Whom does the righteous wait upon? Why? (v.20-21)
8) What happens as we hope in God? (v.22)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
9) What troubles are you facing this day?
10) In whom, or what, have you placed your hope?
11) In whom, or what, has your family trusted in?

LIFE LESSONS
12) The Lord brings the plans of the wicked to nothing.
13) Only the plans of the Lord will prevail.
14) The Lord weighs the heart of all people to know who, or what, they trust in.
15) The Heart of the righteous, wait upon the Lord, to deliver them.

Fear, Awe, and Praise

Tuesday, November 25, 2014
Psalm 33:1-9 KJV

1 Rejoice in the LORD, O ye righteous: [for] praise is comely for the upright. 2 Praise the LORD with harp: sing unto him with the psaltery [and] an instrument of ten strings. 3 Sing unto him a new song; play skilfully with a loud noise. 4 For the word of the LORD [is] right; and all his works [are done] in truth. 5 He loveth righteousness and judgment: the earth is full of the goodness of the LORD. 6 By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. 7 He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap: he layeth up the depth in storehouses. 8 Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him. 9 For he spake, and it was [done]; he commanded, and it stood fast.

OBSERVATION QUESTION
1) What are the righteous to do? (v.1a-3)
2) Why are the righteous to do these things? (v.1b, 4-5)
3) How does the psalmist describe the Lord? (v.6-7)
4) Who, and/or what, should stand in awe of God? Why? (v.8-9)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
5) When do you, typically, praise the Lord?
6) Why do you praise God?
7) How often do you praise Him? Why?

LIFE LESSONS
8) In every situation, good or bad, the Lord deserves our praise!
9) God Almighty created the heavens and the earth, He is worthy of our praise!
10) God is sovereignly in control of every thing, He is praise worthy!
11) God alone is to be feared (revered), praise Him!

Hope in God!

Monday, November 24, 2014
Psalm 42:5-11 KJV 

5 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and [why] art thou disquieted in me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him [for] the help of his countenance. 6 O my God, my soul is cast down within me: therefore will I remember thee from the land of Jordan, and of the Hermonites, from the hill Mizar. 7 Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts: all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me. 8 [Yet] the LORD will command his lovingkindness in the daytime, and in the night his song [shall be] with me, [and] my prayer unto the God of my life. 9 I will say unto God my rock, Why hast thou forgotten me? why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy? 10 [As] with a sword in my bones, mine enemies reproach me; while they say daily unto me, Where [is] thy God? 11 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, [who is] the health of my countenance, and my God.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) What does the psalmist ask himself? (v.5a,11a-b)
2) How does the psalmist encourage himself? (v.5b,11c)
3) What does the psalmist purpose to do, though his heart is heavy? (v.6)
4) In Who, or what, does the psalmist hope when distressed? (v.7-8) 
5) What are the psalmist's petitions to the Lord when in deepest sorrow?(v.9)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
6) What has filled your heart with deep sorrow, recently?
7) When your heart is overwhelmed to whom does your heart cry out?
8) In whom, or what, do you place your hope when your situation seems hopeless?

PRINCIPLES
9) Praising God, in times of distress and adversity, lifts our spirit.
10) We can encourage ourselves by remembering what the Lord has done for us in the past.
11) In deep sorrow, or distress, we can always share our hearts cry with the Lord.
12) When our hearts are overwhelmed, God commands His lovingkindness to wash over us.

All Who Believed Were Together

Saturday, November 22, 2014
Act 2:37-47 KJV 

37 Now when they heard [this], they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men [and] brethren, what shall we do? 38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. 39 For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, [even] as many as the Lord our God shall call. 40 And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation. 41 Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added [unto them] about three thousand souls. 42 And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. 43 And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles. 44 And all that believed were together, and had all things common; 45 And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all [men], as every man had need. 46 And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, 47 Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) The Apostle Peter had just delivered his first sermon after being filled with the Holy Spirit. How did those who heard it feel and respond? (v.37)
2) What was Peter's answer to the crowd? (v.38-39)
3) What else did Peter tell the crowd (v.40)
4) What did those who received Peter's word do in response? (v.41-47)


APPLICATION QUESTIONS
5) Have you ever preached a sermon or witnessed to a non-believer? If so, what was the response following one such instance.
6) Have you been water and/or fire baptized since you first believed?
7) How have you continued to fellowship with your brothers and sisters in Christ since your conversion?


LIFE LESSONS
8) The message of the Gospel is foolishness to the world, but it has the power to save the heart that wants peace with God.
9) We are saved after we change our hearts about sin (repent), confess our sins to God, and receive forgiveness for our sins.
10) Baptism through immersion in water symbolizes our death to sin, burial and resurrection to new life in Christ.
11) When believers are initally filled with the Holy Spirit of God, they are empowered, by the Spirit,  to become Christ's witnesses.
12) Worship, communion and fellowship with other believers unifies and further empowers Christ's body.

A New Birth, A Living Hope

Friday, November 21, 2014
1 Peter 1:1-7 KJV

1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied. 3 Blessed [be] the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, 5 Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: 7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) Who was the Apostle Peter writing this epistle to? (v.1)
2) What made them the "elect" and how did that effect them spiritually? (v.2)
3) What has the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ done for all who have been born again? Why? (v.3-4)
4) What are we kept by and through? (v.5a)
5) What does our faith lead to? (v.5b)
6) What should be our response to so great a salvation? (v.6a)
7) What may happen instead, as a result of our faith? (v.6b)
8) Why are our trials so precious? (v.7)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
9) What is your typical reaction to the trials that you face in life?
10) Has your faith in God ever faltered, since you believed? If so, what happened?
11) To whom, or what, do you attribute your faith in God today?

PRINCIPLES
12) We are saved by grace, through faith, in the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.
13) We were chosen by God for sanctification that leads to soul salvation.
14) All who belong to the Lord have an eternal inheritance that is reserved for us in heaven.
15) Trials are used by God to test our faith and to bring glory to our Lord.

New Mercies Every Morning

Thursday, November 20, 2014
Lamentations 3:19-26 KJV

19 Remembering mine affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall. 20 My soul hath [them] still in remembrance, and is humbled in me. 21 This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. 22 [It is of] the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. 23 [They are] new every morning: great [is] thy faithfulness. 24 The LORD [is] my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him. 25 The LORD [is] good unto them that wait for him, to the soul [that] seeketh him. 26 [It is] good that [a man] should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) What does the prophet remember and what effect does it have on him? (v.19-21)
2) What does Jeremiah recall about the Lord? (v.22a)
3) Why are the Lord's people not consumed? What is new every morning? (v22b-23)
4) Why does Jeremiah place his hope in God? (v.24)
5) Who (or what) is the Lord good to? (v.25)
6) What should we hope and wait quietly for? (v.26)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
7) Who, or what, do you remember when you are distressed?
8) What do you typically do during times of trouble?
9) How do you wait upon God?

PRINCIPLES
10) The Lord allows trouble in our lives to humble us
11) The faithful mercies of God give us reason to hope
12) The Lord is good to all who place their trust in Him
13) The Lord is compassionate toward those who seek Him
14) It is always good to hope in, and wait quietly on, the Lord

A New and Right Spirit

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Psalm 51:1-13 KJV

1 [[To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet came unto him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.]] Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. 2 Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. 3 For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin [is] ever before me. 4 Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done [this] evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, [and] be clear when thou judgest. 5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. 6 Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden [part] thou shalt make me to know wisdom. 7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. 8 Make me to hear joy and gladness; [that] the bones [which] thou hast broken may rejoice. 9 Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. 10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. 11 Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. 12 Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me [with thy] free spirit. 13 [Then] will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) What inspired the writing of this psalm by King David? (v.1a)
2) What  fourteen  things did the psalmist ask the Lord to do for him? (v.1b-2,7-12)
3) Why did David expect the Lord to do this for him? (v.1b,3)
4) Why did King David write that the Lord would be justified and clear? (v.4)
5) What two things did the psalmist attribute his behavior to? (v.5)
6) What did the Lord desire of the man? (v.6a)
7) Through what would David receive wisdom? (v.6b)
8) What did the king promise the Lord that He would do after the Lord granted his petitions? (v.13)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
9) Have you ever committed a sin that you did not immediately confess to the Lord? If so, what happened as a result?
10) If you answered affirmatively to the previous question, who or what convicted you of your sin?
11) What does it feel like to know that your sins are forgiven?

PRINCIPLES
12) Because the human heart is deceitful, there are times when we fail to immediately confess our sins to God.
13) Confession is the only means by which we may be cleansed of our sins.
14) There is always an expiration date for sin.

God Declares New Things

Monday, November 17, 2014
Isaiah 42:5-9 KJV 

5 Thus saith God the LORD, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out; he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein: 6 I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles; 7 To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, [and] them that sit in darkness out of the prison house. 8 I [am] the LORD: that [is] my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images. 9 Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) What does the prophet declare about the Lord? (v.5)
2) How and why has the Lord called His Servant? (v.6-7)
3) What does the Lord declare about Himself? (v.8-9)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
4) How would you describe your relationship with the Lord Jesus?
5) From what has the Lord delivered you?
6) What "new things" has the Lord done in your life recently?

PRINCIPLES
The Lord is not only Savior, but the Creator of the heavens and the earth
Our Lord Jesus' ministry was not only to Jewish people, but to the Gentiles
Jesus' ministry was (is) to  emancipate all those who were (are) spiritually bound

A New Song, A New Way

Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Isaiah 42:10-16 KJV 

10 Sing unto the LORD a new song, [and] his praise from the end of the earth, ye that go down to the sea, and all that is therein; the isles, and the inhabitants thereof. 11 Let the wilderness and the cities thereof lift up [their voice], the villages [that] Kedar doth inhabit: let the inhabitants of the rock sing, let them shout from the top of the mountains. 12 Let them give glory unto the LORD, and declare his praise in the islands. 13 The LORD shall go forth as a mighty man, he shall stir up jealousy like a man of war: he shall cry, yea, roar; he shall prevail against his enemies. 14 I have long time holden my peace; I have been still, [and] refrained myself: [now] will I cry like a travailing woman; I will destroy and devour at once. 15 I will make waste mountains and hills, and dry up all their herbs; and I will make the rivers islands, and I will dry up the pools. 16 And I will bring the blind by a way [that] they knew not; I will lead them in paths [that] they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) What are the inhabitants of the earth to do for the Lord? (v.10-12)
2) What will the Lord do in response? (v.13)
3) What does the Lord declare that He will do? (v.14-16)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
4) How do you glorify the Lord?
5) Why do you give glory to Him?
6) How has the Lord responded to your praise in recent months? 

PRINCIPLES
7) Praise, in the midst of adversity, is our greatest weapon against the enemies of God.
8) Though He is longsuffering, the Lord will be merciless toward the wicked.
9) The Lord will never forsake those who put their trust in Him.

Planted by Streams of Water

Saturday, November 15, 2014
Psalm 1 KJV 

1 Blessed [is] the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. 2 But his delight [is] in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. 3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. 4 The ungodly [are] not so: but [are] like the chaff which the wind driveth away. 5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. 6 For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) What three things does the godly man refrain from doing? (v.1)
2) What two things does the godly man do? (v.2)
3) What does the psalmist compare the godly man to? (v.3)
4) What are the ungodly like? What will become of the ungodly? (v.4-5)
5) What will become of the ways of the godly and the ungodly? (v.6)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
6) Who do you identify with, the blessed man or the ungodly man? Why?
7) How important is the study of God's Word to you?
8) How often do you meditate upon Scripture?

PRINCIPLES
9) The Word of God instructs believers in righteous living.
10) The Lord blesses those who delight in Him and in His Word.
11) Our love for the Lord is proven by how we spend our time.

Give me this Water

Friday, November 14, 2014
John 4:7-15 KJV 

7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. 8 (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) 9 Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. 10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. 11 The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? 12 Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle? 13 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: 14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. 15 The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) Who did Jesus ask for water from? (v.7)
2) What were his discipes doing? (v.8)
3) What did the woman ask our Lord? Why? (v.9, 11-12, 15)
4) What was Jesus' response to the woman? (v.10, 13-14)

APLICATION QUESTIONS
5) How do you typically react to people of different ethnicities when they join your home church?
6) How do you know that you need revival (spiritual refreshing from the Lord)?
7) How does the Lord revive your spirit?

PRINCIPLES
8) Eleven O'Clock on Sunday morning is still the most segregated hour in America?
9) Revival begins when we recognize our need for the Savior.
10) Salvation is available to all who believe that Jesus saves us.

Guided to the Water of Life

Thursday, November 13, 2014
Rev 7:13-17 KJV 

13 And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? 14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15 Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. 16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. 17 For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) What did one of the elders ask the Apostle John? (v.13)
2) What was John's response? (v14-15)
3) What did the apostle reveal about those served before God's throne? (v.16)
4) What would the Lamb and God the Father do for their servants? (v.17)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
5) Will believers go through the great tribulation? Why, or why not?
6) How can believers escape the tribulation, if they are in it?
7) Why do you think that God will wipe the tears of those who go through the tribulation?

PRINCIPLES
8) Those who come out of the great tribulation will be arrayed in white robes.
9) Their garments will be cleansed by the blood of the Lamb.
10) The Tribulation saints will serve God day and night, in His temple.

Let the Thirsty Come to Me

Wednesday, November 12, 2014
John 7:37-44 KJV

37 In the last day, that great [day] of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. 38 He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. 39 (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet [given]; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.) 40 Many of the people therefore, when they heard this saying, said, Of a truth this is the Prophet. 41 Others said, This is the Christ. But some said, Shall Christ come out of Galilee? 42 Hath not the scripture said, That Christ cometh of the seed of David, and out of the town of Bethlehem, where David was? 43 So there was a division among the people because of him. 44 And some of them would have taken him; but no man laid hands on him.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) What did Jesus cry during the last day of the feast? (v.37)
2) What did Jesus promise those who believe on Him? (v.38)
3) What do living waters represent? (v.39)
4) What did people say or ask about our Lord? (v.40-42)
5) What was the result of all of the conversation about Jesus? (v.43)
6) What was the intent of some? Did their plans come to pass, at that time? (v.44)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
7) Have you received the infilling of the Holy Spirit since you believed?
8) If so, how do you know?
9) What is your understanding about the Person of the Holy Spirit?

PRINCIPLES
10) The Lord infills every born again believer with His Spirit.
11) The manifestation of the initial infilling of the Holy Spirit is often sudden, but can also be gradual.
12) Believers who have a genuine thirst for righteousness will be filled with the Holy Spirit.

Living Water Shall Flow from Jerusalem

Tuesday, November 11, 2014
Zechariah 14:1-8 KJV 

1 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. 2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. 3 Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. 4 And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which [is] before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, [and there shall be] a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. 5 And ye shall flee [to] the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, [and] all the saints with thee. 6 And it shall come to pass in that day, [that] the light shall not be clear, [nor] dark: 7 But it shall be one day which shall be known to the LORD, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, [that] at evening time it shall be light. 8 And it shall be in that day, [that] living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) What is coming and what will happen as a result? (v.1)
2) What will the Lord do and what will happen to His people? (v.2)
3) What will the Lord do following Jerusalem's captivity? (v.3-4)
4) What will His people do and what will happen in that day? (v.5-6)
5) What else will happen in the day of the Lord? (v.7-8)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
6) Are you looking forward to the day of the Lord? Why, or why not?
7) What signs have you observed that may be signs of the Lord's return?
8) What are you doing to prepare for His return?

PRINCIPLES
9) No one knows the day of our Lord's return, except God the Father.
10) The Lord's return is imminent and will be sudden.
11) Those who belong to Him must prepare for the Lord's return.

Forsaking the Living Water

Monday, November 10, 2014
Jeremiah 2:5-13 KJV

5 Thus saith the LORD, What iniquity have your fathers found in me, that they are gone far from me, and have walked after vanity, and are become vain? 6 Neither said they, Where [is] the LORD that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, that led us through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and of pits, through a land of drought, and of the shadow of death, through a land that no man passed through, and where no man dwelt? 7 And I brought you into a plentiful country, to eat the fruit thereof and the goodness thereof; but when ye entered, ye defiled my land, and made mine heritage an abomination. 8 The priests said not, Where [is] the LORD? and they that handle the law knew me not: the pastors also transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after [things that] do not profit. 9 Wherefore I will yet plead with you, saith the LORD, and with your children's children will I plead. 10 For pass over the isles of Chittim, and see; and send unto Kedar, and consider diligently, and see if there be such a thing. 11 Hath a nation changed [their] gods, which [are] yet no gods? but my people have changed their glory for [that which] doth not profit. 12 Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the LORD. 13 For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, [and] hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) What did the Lord ask His people? (v.5a)
2) What had the people of God done? (v.5b-c)
3) What else did the people neglected to ask of the Lord? (v.6)
4) What had the Lord done for His people and how did they respond? (v.7)
5) What had the nation's leaders done against God? (v.8)
6) What had the nation done against the Lord? (v.9-11)
7) What did the Lord declare to the heavens and why? (v.12-13)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
8) After all that the Lord has done for you, have you ever forgotten about Him? If so, briefly describe one such time.
9) Do you know of a leader that forsook the Lord to pursue his or her own way? If so, what happened?
10) Do you believe that this nation may have forsaken the Lord because of ungodly leaders? Please explain.

PRINCIPLES
11) As people of God, we are hopellessly lost with the Good Shepherd's leading.
12) When our leaders abandon the word and will of God, it is just a matter of time before their followers will do the same.
13) We do not have to be deceived, the Lord has infilled every born again believer with the Spirit of Truth.

I will Accept you

Saturday, November 8, 2014
Ezekial 43:22-27 KJV 

22 And on the second day thou shalt offer a kid of the goats without blemish for a sin offering; and they shall cleanse the altar, as they did cleanse [it] with the bullock. 23 When thou hast made an end of cleansing [it], thou shalt offer a young bullock without blemish, and a ram out of the flock without blemish. 24 And thou shalt offer them before the LORD, and the priests shall cast salt upon them, and they shall offer them up [for] a burnt offering unto the LORD. 25 Seven days shalt thou prepare every day a goat [for] a sin offering: they shall also prepare a young bullock, and a ram out of the flock, without blemish. 26 Seven days shall they purge the altar and purify it; and they shall consecrate themselves. 27 And when these days are expired, it shall be, [that] upon the eighth day, and [so] forward, the priests shall make your burnt offerings upon the altar, and your peace offerings; and I will accept you, saith the Lord GOD.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) What were the people of God to do on the second day? (v.22)
2) What were God's people to offer after cleansing the altar? (v.23)
3) Who were the offerings to be made to and for what specific purpose?(v.24)
4) What were the people to do for seven days? (v.25-26)
5) When would the Lord accept His people? (v.27)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
6) What do you use as an altar in your home?
7) What do you do to purge your soul of sin?
8) How do you know that you are accepted by God?

PRINCIPLES
9) Faith in God is the only acceptable offering to the Lord.
10) Our souls are cleansed through confession of sin.
11) The only altar that a believer needs is his or her heart.

Hope in the Lord Forevermore

Friday, November 7, 2014
Psalm 130:1-8 KJV

1 [[A Song of degrees.]] Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O LORD. 2 Lord, hear my voice: let thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications. 3 If thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? 4 But [there is] forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared. 5 I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope. 6 My soul [waiteth] for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: [I say, more than] they that watch for the morning. 7 Let Israel hope in the LORD: for with the LORD [there is] mercy, and with him [is] plenteous redemption. 8 And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities. 

[Psa 131:1-3 KJV] 

1 [[A Song of degrees of David.]] LORD, my heart is not haughty, nor mine eyes lofty: neither do I exercise myself in great matters, or in things too high for me. 2 Surely I have behaved and quieted myself, as a child that is weaned of his mother: my soul [is] even as a weaned child. 3 Let Israel hope in the LORD from henceforth and for ever.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) From where did the psalmist cry to the Lord? (v.1)
2) What did the psalmist ask the Lord? (v.2)
3) Of what two things did the psalmist remind the Lord? (v.3-4)
4) What did the psalmist purpose to do? (v.5-6)
5) Of what did the psalmist remind God's people? (v.7-8)

6) How did the psalmist describe himself to the Lord? (v.1-2)
7) What was the psalmists hope for Israel? (v.3) 

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
8) How do you relate to the Lord after committing a sin? Why?
9) What are your reasons for waiting on the Lord?
10) What is your hope for the people of God in your home church?

11) What is your heart attitude toward the Lord, as you wait on Him?

PRINCIPLES
12) Regardless of how deeply we've fallen into sin, God's mercy is greater still.
13) The Lord never gives us what our sins deserve, because He is merciful.
14) Waiting on the Lord is a demonstration of our dependence upon the Lord.

15) Contentment in every situation leads to a victroious life in Christ.

You, O Lord, are my Hope

Thursday, November 6, 2014
Psalm 71:1-8 KJV 

1 In thee, O LORD, do I put my trust: let me never be put to confusion. 2 Deliver me in thy righteousness, and cause me to escape: incline thine ear unto me, and save me. 3 Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort: thou hast given commandment to save me; for thou [art] my rock and my fortress. 4 Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man. 5 For thou [art] my hope, O Lord GOD: [thou art] my trust from my youth. 6 By thee have I been holden up from the womb: thou art he that took me out of my mother's bowels: my praise [shall be] continually of thee. 7 I am as a wonder unto many; but thou [art] my strong refuge. 8 Let my mouth be filled [with] thy praise [and with] thy honour all the day.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) In whom did the psalmist place his trust and for what reason? (v.1)
2) What six requests did the psalmist make of the Lord? Why? (v.2-4)
3) Who is the Lord to the psalmist and how will he respond to Him? (v.5-6)
4) Who was the psalmist to his enemies? (v.7)
5) What is the psalmist's final request of the Lord in this psalm? (v.8)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
6) What do you typically do when facing trouble?
7) Who, or what, do you trust in for deliverance from your troubles?
8) How have your unsaved loved ones and friends treat you when they learn of your trust in Jesus?

PRINCIPLES
9) Our trust in the Lord is never misplaced.
10) The Lord alone is able to deliver us from trouble, or through it.
11) The Lord knows all our ways, therefore He is the only Person worthy of our trust.

A Costly Altar and Sacrifice

Wednesday, November 5, 2014
2 Samuel 24:17-25 KJV

17 And David spake unto the LORD when he saw the angel that smote the people, and said, Lo, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly: but these sheep, what have they done? let thine hand, I pray thee, be against me, and against my father's house. 18 And Gad came that day to David, and said unto him, Go up, rear an altar unto the LORD in the threshingfloor of Araunah the Jebusite. 19 And David, according to the saying of Gad, went up as the LORD commanded. 20 And Araunah looked, and saw the king and his servants coming on toward him: and Araunah went out, and bowed himself before the king on his face upon the ground. 21 And Araunah said, Wherefore is my lord the king come to his servant? And David said, To buy the threshingfloor of thee, to build an altar unto the LORD, that the plague may be stayed from the people. 22 And Araunah said unto David, Let my lord the king take and offer up what [seemeth] good unto him: behold, [here be] oxen for burnt sacrifice, and threshing instruments and [other] instruments of the oxen for wood. 23 All these [things] did Araunah, [as] a king, give unto the king. And Araunah said unto the king, The LORD thy God accept thee. 24 And the king said unto Araunah, Nay; but I will surely buy [it] of thee at a price: neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the LORD my God of that which doth cost me nothing. So David bought the threshingfloor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. 25 And David built there an altar unto the LORD, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the LORD was intreated for the land, and the plague was stayed from Israel.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) King David had sinned by taking a census of his warriors in Israel and Judah. What did David ask of the Lord when he realized that he had sinned? (v.17)
2) What suggestion did Gad make to King David? How did David respond? (v.18-19)
3) What was Araunah's response to David's arrival and offer? (v.20-23)
4) Why did David refuse Araunah's offer? (v.24)
5) How did the Lord respond to King David's offerings? 

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
6) Who else in your life has suffered as a result of your sin? Briefly explain one such incident.
7) Who do you turn to when seeking godly counsel?
8) When making an offering at your local church, do you typically give the most you have, or the least?

PRINCIPLES
9) The chastening of the Lord not only affects us, but often affects those closest to us.
10) Our gifts to the Lord include our time, our talent, and our treasure.
11) God so loves us that He gives us His best.
12) As children of God, we owe Him our lives.

Pulling Down False Altars

Tuesday, November 3, 2014
Judges 6:24-32 KJV

24 Then Gideon built an altar there unto the LORD, and called it Jehovahshalom: unto this day it [is] yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites. 25 And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto him, Take thy father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath, and cut down the grove that [is] by it: 26 And build an altar unto the LORD thy God upon the top of this rock, in the ordered place, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which thou shalt cut down. 27 Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had said unto him: and [so] it was, because he feared his father's household, and the men of the city, that he could not do [it] by day, that he did [it] by night. 28 And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down, and the grove was cut down that [was] by it, and the second bullock was offered upon the altar [that was] built. 29 And they said one to another, Who hath done this thing? And when they enquired and asked, they said, Gideon the son of Joash hath done this thing. 30 Then the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring out thy son, that he may die: because he hath cast down the altar of Baal, and because he hath cut down the grove that [was] by it. 31 And Joash said unto all that stood against him, Will ye plead for Baal? will ye save him? he that will plead for him, let him be put to death whilst [it is yet] morning: if he [be] a god, let him plead for himself, because [one] hath cast down his altar. 32 Therefore on that day he called him Jerubbaal, saying, Let Baal plead against him, because he hath thrown down his altar.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) What did Gideon build and what did he name it? (v.24)
2) What did the Lord tell Gideon to do? (v.25-26)
3) Who helped Gideon? When? (v.27)
4) What did the men of the city discover upon waking? (v.28)
5) What did the men of the city do following their discovery? (v.29)
6) What did the men ask of Gideon's father? Why? (v.30)
7) How did Gideon's father respond? (v.31)
8) What was Gideon's name following Joash's altercation with the Baal worshippers? Why? (v.32)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
9) What is your reaction when you see the images of other gods that are worshipped by non-believers?
10) Have you had the opportunity to talk with a person of a different religion than Christianity? If so, briefly describe what happened during one such time.
11) How do you explain your religious beliefs and values to a non-Christian?

PRINCIPLES
12) The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is the only True and Living God.
13) The worship of anything, or anyone, other than the Lord is sin.
14) Only the True and Living God can change hearts and minds.
15) Our God alone is worthy of worship and praise.

Quest for a True Altar

Monday, November 3, 2014
Joshua 22:21-34 KJV

21 Then the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh answered, and said unto the heads of the thousands of Israel, 22 The LORD God of gods, the LORD God of gods, he knoweth, and Israel he shall know; if [it be] in rebellion, or if in transgression against the LORD, (save us not this day,) 23 That we have built us an altar to turn from following the LORD, or if to offer thereon burnt offering or meat offering, or if to offer peace offerings thereon, let the LORD himself require [it]; 24 And if we have not [rather] done it for fear of [this] thing, saying, In time to come your children might speak unto our children, saying, What have ye to do with the LORD God of Israel? 25 For the LORD hath made Jordan a border between us and you, ye children of Reuben and children of Gad; ye have no part in the LORD: so shall your children make our children cease from fearing the LORD. 26 Therefore we said, Let us now prepare to build us an altar, not for burnt offering, nor for sacrifice: 27 But [that] it [may be] a witness between us, and you, and our generations after us, that we might do the service of the LORD before him with our burnt offerings, and with our sacrifices, and with our peace offerings; that your children may not say to our children in time to come, Ye have no part in the LORD. 28 Therefore said we, that it shall be, when they should [so] say to us or to our generations in time to come, that we may say [again], Behold the pattern of the altar of the LORD, which our fathers made, not for burnt offerings, nor for sacrifices; but it [is] a witness between us and you. 29 God forbid that we should rebel against the LORD, and turn this day from following the LORD, to build an altar for burnt offerings, for meat offerings, or for sacrifices, beside the altar of the LORD our God that [is] before his tabernacle. 30 And when Phinehas the priest, and the princes of the congregation and heads of the thousands of Israel which [were] with him, heard the words that the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the children of Manasseh spake, it pleased them. 31 And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest said unto the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the children of Manasseh, This day we perceive that the LORD [is] among us, because ye have not committed this trespass against the LORD: now ye have delivered the children of Israel out of the hand of the LORD. 32 And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, and the princes, returned from the children of Reuben, and from the children of Gad, out of the land of Gilead, unto the land of Canaan, to the children of Israel, and brought them word again. 33 And the thing pleased the children of Israel; and the children of Israel blessed God, and did not intend to go up against them in battle, to destroy the land wherein the children of Reuben and Gad dwelt. 34 And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad called the altar [Ed]: for it [shall be] a witness between us that the LORD [is] God.

OBSERVATION QUESTIONS
1) Reuben, Gad and the half tribe of Manassseh were returning to their allotted land on the other side of the Jordan. What had they done upon taking posession of the land? Why? (v.24-28)
2) What did the Israelites assume when the three tribes did what they did? (v.29)
3) What did the Israelites conclude about the actions of the three tribes? (v.30-33)
4) What did the three tribes call their altar and declare that it was for? (v.34)

APPLICATION QUESTIONS
5) Have you ever done something in a church service that was misunderstood by other congregants? If so, briefly describe what it was and what provoked the misunderstanding.
6) What did you do to be reconciled to your brothers and/or sisters?
7) Have you ever heard of, or been a part of, a church split? If so, briefly describe what happened.

PRINCIPLES
8) It is the Lord's desire that His children dwell together in unity.
9) As children of God, we are to seek peace and pursue it, at all costs.
10) Judging the actions/behaviors of our brothers and/or sisters, without talking with them first, is not conducive to maintaining harmonious relations with each other.