Recommended Resource: CORE 52

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About the Book: Most of us want to know the Bible better, but few reach our goal, often because we’re too busy or we don’t know where to start. Core 52 removes both barriers, offering a common-sense solution that fits into our busy lives. 

Each week features a brief essay, memory verse, Bible story, trajectory verses, and practical ways to put what you’ve learned into practice. An optional “Overachiever Challenge” offers the chance to memorize the top 100 Bible verses by year’s end. 

Publisher: ‎WaterBrook & Multnomah

To learn more about this resource, please go to Core52.org.

Also available for purchase:

Credit: Amazon.com, Core 52, WaterBrook & Multnomah

The Sermon: An Exercise in Examining the Heart of a Disciple

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A Fictitious Truth Rendering

The Visitor had decided to come and now she sits. Waiting with longing, she anticipates what might be said to help her. Is there any peace, any rest, any word that can show her a better way?

Someone stands.

Another begins to sing.

Others join in, with a chorus of praise.

A prayer is offered.

An acknowledgement of visitors, family, and friends is uttered.

A messenger comes before The Congregation.

The Sermon begins. The Visitor listens carefully, not wanting to miss a word. She learns about a Savior who can help her, like no other.

She learns of a man named Jesus Christ…

This man, Jesus Christ the Son of God, was born.

This man, Jesus Christ the Messiah, lived, loved, served, and taught.

This man, Jesus Christ the Savior of the world, died for all.

This man, Jesus Christ the Lamb Who Was Slain, was raised from the dead on the third day.

This man, Jesus Christ the LORD, fulfilled the will of His heavenly Father.

This man, Jesus Christ the King, provided the Door, the Way, the Truth, the Light, and the Life that is necessary to live under the kingship rule and authority of God.

Could this Jesus Christ be the answer to all of her questions? Could He be the hope that she was looking for? Could He save her from herself?

The answer, her answer is YES!

Jesus is the Bread of Life; He could feed her.

Jesus is the Living Water; He could quench her thirst.

Jesus is the Light; He could bring her out of her darkness.

Jesus is the Way; He could give her direction.

Jesus is the Life; He could take all of her brokenness, all of her burdens, all of her ills and ailments, and all of her sins, cast them away, and give her a brand new identity.

With tears rolling down her cheeks, she heard the preacher say…

Do YOU want a new life?

Do YOU want to be saved?

Do YOU want to be forgiven of your sins?

Do YOU want to be made well?

Do YOU want to be transformed?

Do YOU want to be under the care of The Good Shepherd?

Do YOU want to be baptized?

She saw the tear-stained faces of people who were walking down the aisles. She noticed that they were going forward to stand near the minister – the man who had been asking such vital questions. This is how she replied…

Heart Check: As a disciple of Christ, if you observed a church visitor crying when the invitation is given, what would YOUR response to her be?

Pulse Point: The Book of Acts (also known as the book of conversions)

Stay connected to The Phone Tree Bible Study Group to find out what comes next in this ongoing story of fictitious truth. The next installment, The Water, is scheduled for 5/12/24. The final installment, The New Life is scheduled for 5/26/24.

The Exodus Entries: The Journey to Completion

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Over the past few weeks, an excavation map of sorts on the book of Exodus was compiled. It was an enriching experience that revealed so much about God.

As I mined chapters 16-40, the riches and the beauty were revealed.

Topics and themes from Exodus included (but were not limited to):

Complaining in the Desert and Bread from Heaven
Water from the Rock and Victory Over the Amalekites
Israel at Mount Sinai
The Ten Commandments and God’s Presence
Offerings for the Sanctuary, the Ark of Testimony, the Table for the Showbread, & the Gold Lampstand
The Tabernacle
The Altar of Burnt Offering, the Court of the Tabernacle, & the Care of the Lampstand
The Priests and Their Garments
Aaron & His Sons Consecrated and Daily Offerings
The Altar of Incense, Ransom Money, the Bronze Laver, the Anointing Oil, and Incense
The Artisans and the Sabbath
The Golden Calf
Moses and God
New Tablets, the Covenant Renewed, and the Shining Face of Moses
Garments of the Priesthood and Completion of the Work
The Tabernacle Erected, Arranged, & Blessed and The Cloud &                                                                                                            Glory of God

Here are some of the treasured riches about the GOD who revealed Himself to His chosen people.

  • God is the LORD your God.
  • God is Jehovah Nissi (The LORD is My Banner)
  • God is greater than all the gods; He is above them all.
  • God recognizes His own and declares that their identity is found in Him.
  • I AM is the LORD and no other gods are before Him.
  • God decrees His judgments.
  • God is gracious.
  • God is loyal and steadfast.
  • God’s glory is like a consuming fire.
  • God is precise.
  • God is eternal.
  • God is a God of compassion.
  • God is omnipresent and exists in a glorious state of being.
  • God is a jealous God.
  • God imparts wisdom.
  • God has all authority.
  • God is a God of action and direction.
  • God will not be stopped from what He wants to accomplish.

Challenge: Personalize what you have learned. Come to the place of a fresh encounter with a Holy God. When you do, you will walk away changed.

These are the beautiful concepts that God would have each of us to appreciate on our own journey to completion.

Reverence 
(Demonstrate a holy fear & respect toward)		Trust 
(Firmly believe in & on)		Acknowledge 
(Accept the existence of)		Sanctify
(Set apart as holy)		Obey
(Be faithful to adhering to; this is rooted in love)
Sacrifice
(Willingness to give up or offer up)		Serve
(Perform a duty or provide a service)		Declare
(Make a proclamation or formal announcement)		Understand
(Realize and fully comprehend)		Rest/Dwell/Abide
(sabat – to stop or cease [in order to participate in solemn worship])

YOUR Assignment: Read the remaining chapters of Exodus between now and the end of May. Create your own excavation map. Write down all the things you discover about YHWH.

Credit on Who Is God To You?: Stormie O’Martian, Jake More; Photo Credit on The Tabernacle: Kyle Pope

The Power of a Declaration

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A 5-7-5 Message

What of a question?

Is there anything too hard?

Only God can do.

Morning Study: Acts 7:1-60

Emphasis: Stephen’s Declaration

Questions to Consider:

  1. Who is asking the question?
  2. Who is giving a response?
  3. What is significant about the response?
  4. Who does the declaration point to, specifically?
  5. How has Acts 7 impacted you and your understanding of God?
  6. How can the lesson in this text be used to evangelize?
  7. What does this message reveal about courage and audacity?

Takeaway Seed: Moments in life are but opportunities for boldness and proclamation.

A 5-7-5 Message begins with a focused biblical study and includes a Haiku response. Questions are presented for further consideration. A takeaway seed is included for deeper meditation, spiritual mindfulness, and personal reflection.

The Pew: An Exercise in Examining the Heart of a Disciple

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A Fictitious Truth Rendering

An invitation to come forward is made to The Visitor. She will not have to walk alone, as she had presumed. She is now committed to her course, with one step further away from…

A past that haunts her.

A loneliness that isolates her.

A brokenness that weighs her down.

A weariness that suffocates her.

A shame that taunts her.

A sickness of heart that overwhelms her.

The hand that had clutched her own mere moments before is now warmly guiding her through The Congregation.

Suddenly, drowning in a sea of people, she is enveloped by a mass of unknowns. She feels like an alien without a home. A plethora of questions bombards her mental space, causing her to doubt her decision to even be there.

Where should I sit?

Why are people staring so boldly?

Why do others appear to turn away?

Will they judge me without knowing me?

Are they curious about what brought me to this place of lost and found souls?

What should I look for when deciding to either join or not join someone on their selected pew?

Foot after foot. Breath after breath. Pew after pew. The internal questions continue to plague her consciousness.

Should I sit on the pew with the gawkers, who look but do not show themselves as being friendly?

Should I sit on the pew with the judgmental, who size me up before they even know who I am?

Should I sit on the pew with the seasoned saints, who just might have a word of wisdom to offer?

Should I sit on the pew with the skeptics, who profess a faith but have none?

Should I sit on the pew with the empathetic sympathizers, who want to try and understand but cannot fully comprehend the struggle, yet are willing to do so?

Should I sit on the pew with the ill, who are in need of a healing from a great and mighty HEALER?

Heart Check: Which pew do YOU most commonly find yourself occupying when a visitor comes to worship, and how can YOU more effectively demonstrate love for that individual?

Pulse Point: John 13:34-35

Stay connected to The Phone Tree Bible Study Group to find out what comes next in this ongoing story of fictitious truth. The next installment, The Sermon, is scheduled for 4/28/24.

A Bible Study Recommendation – Esther by Kelly Minter

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Overview

A beautiful queen, her courageous cousin, a foreign land, and a murderous adversary—the book of Esther has all the elements of an epic drama. The story unfolds at a time when the people of God are split between nations with an uncertain future. While the name of God may not be mentioned in the book of Esther, its pages give us a picture of a God whose hand is at work in every scene and circumstance.

In this 7-session study, Kelly Minter invites you into the daring faith modeled by Esther and her cousin Mordecai—a faith rooted in the goodness of God, lived out through ordinary circumstances, and used to change the world. Although our time looks different from Esther’s, our God is just as active and faithful today, and He has called you for such a time as this.

Features: 

  • Verse-by-verse Bible study of the book of Esther
  • Content that explores the historical context of Esther’s day
  • 7 teaching videos from Kelly Minter, approximately 25-30 minutes each, available via redemption code printed in the Bible study book
  • 7 group sessions and 6 weeks of personal Bible study

Benefits: 

  • Discover how Esther’s story inspires us to live faithfully and courageously in our own time.
  • Understand how the book of Esther fits into God’s redemptive story.
  • Be reminded that God is always at work in every place and at all times.
  • See how God uses faithful men and women working together to accomplish His redemptive purposes in the world.

Projected Publication Date: November 2024

All content in this post is associated with Lifeway. Please visit Lifeway.com to learn more about this study and other resources listed in their Lifeway Women catalog.

In order to prepare for this rich study, you can begin reading through the book of Esther here.