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Below are the memory verses for the coming month. Each lesson will be posted as it is completed.
Below are the memory verses for the coming month. Each lesson will be posted as it is completed.
February
🚗 Sabbath, February 1st - “. . .for God loves a cheerful giver.” 2 Corinthians 9:7 - Giving is Good
🚙 Sabbath, February 8th - Acts 17:28 - “For in him we live and move and have our being... We are his offspring. - The Golden Calf
🚗 Sabbath, February 15th - “Make this Tabernacle and all its furnishings exactly like the pattern I will show you.” Exodus 25:9
🚙 Sabbath, February 22nd - “Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.” 2 Corinthians 7:1
🚗 Sabbath, February 1st - “. . .for God loves a cheerful giver.” 2 Corinthians 9:7 - Giving is Good
🚙 Sabbath, February 8th - Acts 17:28 - “For in him we live and move and have our being... We are his offspring. - The Golden Calf
🚗 Sabbath, February 15th - “Make this Tabernacle and all its furnishings exactly like the pattern I will show you.” Exodus 25:9
🚙 Sabbath, February 22nd - “Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.” 2 Corinthians 7:1
Sabbath, February 1st
Giving is Good
" . . . for God loves a cheerful giver." 2 Corinthians 9:7
Why? Why does God love a cheerful giver? It shows an acute awareness that God is the One who blesses you with what you have; you are merely giving as an expression of gratitude.
Gratitude. This attitude is a natural remedy to coveting what others have. You are content with what you have. You focus on your blessings instead of focusing on what you think would make you happy.
Trusting. Additionally, it shows that you trust Him. Let’s say you have something that someone else needs. When you are willing to give to fulfill that need, you are trusting that God will provide for your future needs. This attitude reinforces your gratitude. You are thankful for what God has already done, for what He is doing, and for what He has promised in the future. It refocuses your eyes on His plan instead of yourself.
Attitude. A third reason that God loves a cheerful giver is the effect your attitude has on the people to whom you are giving. Being cheerful is a lot different than giving begrudgingly. The “I-don’t-really-want-to-give-it-but-I-know-I-have-to attitude is offensive to the One who has given you all things. And it’s felt by the recipient of your gift. It makes them feel bad. If you are cheerful in your giving, it builds bridges and strengthens your relationship.
When you have a positive perspective on giving (cheerful), you are more willing to give your best. You may have things that you want to get rid of. Someone else may really benefit from those things. Those things are easy to give. But it’s when you give something that you value, and you give it cheerfully, that’s when it is pleasing to God.
So what do you have that you value that you are cheerfully willing to give to others . . . out of gratitude to God . . . to show that you trust Him in all areas of your life? It doesn’t have to be a physical gift. It can be your time. It can be your prayers. It can be your friendship (because that takes time and effort).
One final thought: our God has given so much. If we want to be like Him, we need to develop a natural willingness to give in order to advance the kingdom and because it’s a good thing to do. I would hope that we would be like the Israelites when there was a need to build the tabernacle. They gave and gave until finally they had to be told to stop. It was enough. That’s the kind of giving attitude I would hope that we all have.
Sabbath, February 8th
The Golden Calf
Acts 17:28 - “For in him we live and move and have our being... We are his offspring.
Materials Needed: pie pan, water, salt, pepper, dish soap, towel, YEA lesson (YE3J.2)
Suppose I put some water into a pie pan and sprinkle some pepper on the surface. Would sprinkling some salt on it affect the pepper at all? What would happen if I put a drop of dish soap in the pan? The pepper moves all the way to the edge - immediately. That’s because pepper doesn’t like dish soap right? No. Pepper is not sentient. The pepper moves because the water’s surface tension was broken. But if you didn’t know anything about surface tension, you might attribute the phenomenon to pepper not liking dish soap.
Well, even if you were wrong about pepper and dish soap not getting along, it’s not the end of the world. But it is a much bigger deal when we’re talking about God. God is very particular about how He is treated. He is holy. And He deserves our reverence and humility before Him. Let me give you an example of what I’m talking about.
Can you imagine how insulting it was for the Israelites to so quickly do what God had just told them not to do: create an idol to worship?! And then, to make matters worse, Aaron told the people that this golden calf was the god who brought them out of Egypt. What in the world!?! This heap of molten metal that had recently been the earrings in their ears was the god who was responsible for all of the plagues and for parting the Red Sea and for delivering the Israelites from Pharaoh and Egypt?!? Had Aaron lost his mind?! This golden calf that could not move on its own, had no more intelligence than a box of rocks, and could not think - that was the god who delivered them from Egypt! In actuality, the Israelites were probably not so stupid as to think the golden calf was actually the god who saved them; they likely thought it was just a depiction of God. But again, this is in direct conflict with God’s commandment not to make an idol in the likeness of anything to worship - even if they were thinking it was a representation of Jehovah.
Our Great God was so angry that He was ready to wipe out all of the Israelites and start over with Moses. That’s how big a deal this was!
But, we don’t do that kind of thing today, do we? We don’t attribute actions to God that He didn’t really do. And we don’t take credit for the things that He really did do, do we?
Ecclesiastes 5:2 says that God is in heaven and we are here on earth, so I will let my words be few. He is God and He is great. And we should spend more time considering how we’re treating our Great God. For, as you learned in your memory verse, in Him we live and move and have our being. Even though this verse in Acts is Paul quoting a pagan philosopher, the fact remains that God is our Creator and Sustainer. And sometimes, maybe actually, most of the time, we don’t treat Him with the reverent fear that we should.
Giving is Good
" . . . for God loves a cheerful giver." 2 Corinthians 9:7
Why? Why does God love a cheerful giver? It shows an acute awareness that God is the One who blesses you with what you have; you are merely giving as an expression of gratitude.
Gratitude. This attitude is a natural remedy to coveting what others have. You are content with what you have. You focus on your blessings instead of focusing on what you think would make you happy.
Trusting. Additionally, it shows that you trust Him. Let’s say you have something that someone else needs. When you are willing to give to fulfill that need, you are trusting that God will provide for your future needs. This attitude reinforces your gratitude. You are thankful for what God has already done, for what He is doing, and for what He has promised in the future. It refocuses your eyes on His plan instead of yourself.
Attitude. A third reason that God loves a cheerful giver is the effect your attitude has on the people to whom you are giving. Being cheerful is a lot different than giving begrudgingly. The “I-don’t-really-want-to-give-it-but-I-know-I-have-to attitude is offensive to the One who has given you all things. And it’s felt by the recipient of your gift. It makes them feel bad. If you are cheerful in your giving, it builds bridges and strengthens your relationship.
When you have a positive perspective on giving (cheerful), you are more willing to give your best. You may have things that you want to get rid of. Someone else may really benefit from those things. Those things are easy to give. But it’s when you give something that you value, and you give it cheerfully, that’s when it is pleasing to God.
So what do you have that you value that you are cheerfully willing to give to others . . . out of gratitude to God . . . to show that you trust Him in all areas of your life? It doesn’t have to be a physical gift. It can be your time. It can be your prayers. It can be your friendship (because that takes time and effort).
One final thought: our God has given so much. If we want to be like Him, we need to develop a natural willingness to give in order to advance the kingdom and because it’s a good thing to do. I would hope that we would be like the Israelites when there was a need to build the tabernacle. They gave and gave until finally they had to be told to stop. It was enough. That’s the kind of giving attitude I would hope that we all have.
Sabbath, February 8th
The Golden Calf
Acts 17:28 - “For in him we live and move and have our being... We are his offspring.
Materials Needed: pie pan, water, salt, pepper, dish soap, towel, YEA lesson (YE3J.2)
Suppose I put some water into a pie pan and sprinkle some pepper on the surface. Would sprinkling some salt on it affect the pepper at all? What would happen if I put a drop of dish soap in the pan? The pepper moves all the way to the edge - immediately. That’s because pepper doesn’t like dish soap right? No. Pepper is not sentient. The pepper moves because the water’s surface tension was broken. But if you didn’t know anything about surface tension, you might attribute the phenomenon to pepper not liking dish soap.
Well, even if you were wrong about pepper and dish soap not getting along, it’s not the end of the world. But it is a much bigger deal when we’re talking about God. God is very particular about how He is treated. He is holy. And He deserves our reverence and humility before Him. Let me give you an example of what I’m talking about.
Can you imagine how insulting it was for the Israelites to so quickly do what God had just told them not to do: create an idol to worship?! And then, to make matters worse, Aaron told the people that this golden calf was the god who brought them out of Egypt. What in the world!?! This heap of molten metal that had recently been the earrings in their ears was the god who was responsible for all of the plagues and for parting the Red Sea and for delivering the Israelites from Pharaoh and Egypt?!? Had Aaron lost his mind?! This golden calf that could not move on its own, had no more intelligence than a box of rocks, and could not think - that was the god who delivered them from Egypt! In actuality, the Israelites were probably not so stupid as to think the golden calf was actually the god who saved them; they likely thought it was just a depiction of God. But again, this is in direct conflict with God’s commandment not to make an idol in the likeness of anything to worship - even if they were thinking it was a representation of Jehovah.
Our Great God was so angry that He was ready to wipe out all of the Israelites and start over with Moses. That’s how big a deal this was!
But, we don’t do that kind of thing today, do we? We don’t attribute actions to God that He didn’t really do. And we don’t take credit for the things that He really did do, do we?
Ecclesiastes 5:2 says that God is in heaven and we are here on earth, so I will let my words be few. He is God and He is great. And we should spend more time considering how we’re treating our Great God. For, as you learned in your memory verse, in Him we live and move and have our being. Even though this verse in Acts is Paul quoting a pagan philosopher, the fact remains that God is our Creator and Sustainer. And sometimes, maybe actually, most of the time, we don’t treat Him with the reverent fear that we should.