Loisb
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Posts posted by Loisb
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Q5. (Luke 1:42-43) In what sense are the titles "Blessed Virgin Mary" and "Mother of God" appropriate for Mary? Why are we sometimes hesitant to exalt her as "blessed among women"?
1. These titles are appropriate for Mary because she had the honor of giving birth to Jesus without any hesitation.
2. Some people think that we are praying to Mary by going through her to reach Jesus, but they are just honoring her as Jesus mother.
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Q3. (Luke 1:35) What does the virgin conception teach us about Jesus' nature? How central is the doctrine of the virgin conception to the Christian message?
1. The virgin conception teaches me that Jesus is Holy and came about by a divine miracle. It also proves to me that there is nothing too hard for God. He can do the impossible.
2. This is the most important part of the Christian message, because the Bible message of a Savior has been fulfilled.
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Q2. (Luke 1:34) In what way does Mary's "How?" question (1:34) to the angel's declaration differ from Zechariah's "How?" question (1:18)? Why was Mary rewarded and Zechariah disciplined?
1. Mary's question was one of wonder and faith that this could only be through a miracle and Zechariah's question was of unbelief because of his age and the amount of time that had passed waiting for a child.
2. Mary had faith and not doubt. She showed that she trusted in God to bring this about. Zechariah showed his lack of faith by doubting God's power to do all things no matter how impossible.
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Q1. (Luke 1:31-34) What did the angel's announcement say about who Mary's Child was and who he was to become?
1. He will be a boy child and His name will be Jesus.
2. He will be the Son of the Most High and will reign over the house of Jacob forever.
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Dear Friend,
Welcome to the online Bible study forum for Christmas Incarnation.
It's exciting to meet other people who are involved in this Bible study. Why don't you check in and share a bit about yourself, and what state and country you are from. Please do NOT include your e-mail address. Be discrete about sharing private things about yourself.
Yours in Christ,
Pastor Ralph
Hello,
I am Lois from Northern Virginia and I have been married for 43 years and have 1 daughter and 1 grandchild. I have been studying with Pastor Ralph for about 6 months or more and have truly enjoyed each lesson. This is my first time being involved in an on-line Bible study and I have learned so much during this time. It is so good to be able to read the opinions of others. May God continue to bless you, Pastor Ralph, for your faithfulness.
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Q4. (Psalm 34:18-22) What encouragement does David give to the brokenhearted? What does it mean that God "redeems" you? How can we avoid condemnation according to Psalm 34:22?
1. David tells the brokenhearted that the Lord is always close if you have a crushed spirit. Previously, David tells you to try him and see for yourself how good God is. No matter what is going on in your life, if you call Him he will answer.
2. God redeemed us by sending His Son to pay the price by dying on the cross for all of us even though we had all sinned.
3. We can avoid condemnation by taking refuge in the Lord. Giving our life to Christ and living a righteous life will save us from condemnation.
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Q3. (Psalm 34:1-3) Why should we praise God continually? What are barriers to continual praise? What does continual praise do to our spirit? How are you training yourself to praise continually?
1. We should continually praise God because He deserves all of the praise for all that He has done for us. We shoud keep our mind renewed by continually praying.
2. Some of the barriers are our busy life styles that make us forget. It seems like we are always rushing to complete some kind of deadline and don't take out time to stop and pray or worship.
3. Continual praise keeps renewing our spirit. It keeps us in closer contact with God.
4. I take bathroom breaks to praise God during the workday and I try to thank Him for all things that I do.
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Q2. (Psalm 118) What does "the stone the builders rejected" (verses 22-23) have to do with the Messiah? What do verses 25-27 have to do with the Messiah?
1. This statement represents Jesus as the cornerstone being rejected by the priests, scribes and pharisees. The cornerstone is the most important stone.
2. Even thought the priests, scribes and pharisees rejected Jesus, the people still believed that this must be the Messiah.
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Q1. (Psalm 100) What is the predominant emotion in Psalm 100? How does this psalm make you feel emotionally about God? What are the reasons for praise given in verses 3 and 5? What are the commands in this psalm?
1. This Psalm is a Psalm of thanksgiving. This tells us that we should worship God with gladness because of what He has done for us and because He has created us.
2. We should praise God because He is our Lord and has created us and we belong to Him. God is good, He is faithful and He promises to love us forever.
3. We are commanded to enter his gates with thanksgiving by shouting for jor, with singing and worship.
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Q4. (Psalm 51:17) How does one achieve a "broken and contrite heart"? What are the earmarks of this condition? How does this differ from "being sorry" for a sin? How does humility relate to this condition?
1. A broken and contrite heart is achieved whenever you are physically and emotionally crushed because of your sin.
2. When in this condition, you would feel like God has left you. You are filled with guilt and it constantly on your mind.
3. Whenever you just say that you feel sorry for a sin, you might feel sad that you got caught, but do you mean it from your heart.
4. You should go to God humbly and with deep repentance, ask Him to forgive you.
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Q3. (Psalm 51:10-12) How is it possible to have a "pure heart" after great sin? What does a "pure heart" consist of? What is the relationship between a "pure heart" (Psalm 51:10) and a "united" or "undivided heart" (Psalm 86:11)? Who purifies the heart? What is the process?
1. Go to God with a sincere heart and ask for forgiveness, repent, and stop sinning.
2. After repenting, you must ask God to purify or renew your heart. You must be sincere and live a clean life.
3. A pure heart and a united heart would show that you have been forgiven and have been renewed. Your heart has been restored to righteousness.
4. God purifies the heart.
5. The blood of Jesus Christ must wash away our sins to make us pure and we can only obtain this from Him.
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Q1. (Psalm 32:2-5) How does self-deceit operate with sin to enslave us? How does confession enable us to get free from sin? Why do we sometimes resist the truth about ourselves? What does it take to get us to see truth sometimes?
1. Self-deceit keeps us burdened with a guilty conscience.
2. Confession and prayer frees our conscience from guilt.
3. Confession to a minister or someone else enables us to see our mistakes. Sometimes we can't see them ourselves.
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Q4. (Psalm 22) What similarities do you see between the words of Psalm 22 and the events of Jesus' crucifixion? Do you think Jesus understood Psalm 22 as referring to himself? Why do you think the Spirit inspired David to pen these words?
1. Even though they were written years apart, they are almost identical.
2. I think that Jesus know what His mission was. He knew that He had to be obedient to this prophacy.
3. David must have been inspired by these Words to foretell the future.
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Q3. (Psalm 22:1) Why do you think Jesus spoke the words of Psalm 22:1? What was he seeking to express? What was he feeling? How did God answer his plea?
1. Jesus took on the sins of the world and I can imagine that He was under such a heavy burden that he felt like even God had deserted Him.
2. He was tring to express how heavy the weight was on Him after being whipped, nailed to the cross for something that He didn't even do, but was fulfilling the scripture.
3. He felt like He was all alone, but He had no choice but to complete His mission.
4. God was silent. God knew that He could have no part in sin, which Jesus had obediently taken upon Himself.
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Q2. (Psalm 110) Why do you think that Jesus asked the Pharisees about verse 1, "If then David calls him 'Lord,' how can he be his son?" What point was Jesus making? How does Jesus combine the roles of Warrior-King and Priest in his ministry to us and to this world? How do you reconcile the violence suggested in verses 5-6 with Jesus as "Prince of Peace"?
1. Jesus asked this question as a test. He wanted them to know that there was someone greater than David who was the true Messiah.
2. Jesus was greater, even though he was a spirit.
3. The Warrior-King would lead his mighty army to conquer the world and the Priest would reign in peace forever.
4. Jesus would pursue his enemies and save his people who will live in peace forever.
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Q1. (Psalm 2) What does Psalm 2 teach us about Yahweh's "anointed" king? Why do you think the apostles saw this passage as referring to Jesus the Messiah? What does the passage teach about the importance of submission to Jesus the Christ before it is too late?
1. It teaches us that the Nations were against Yahweh and were plotting to get rid of him, but since He was anointed, they were doing things in vain. Apparently, they thought that they were plotting against an ordinary King that was not like most humans.
2. When the apostles realized that the prophecies that they had read about were coming to pass.
3. The passage warns us that we should serve the Lord with fear if we don't want to be destroyed. We will be blessed if we give our lives to him.
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Q3. (Psalm 117 and Lamentations 3:22-23). Why are love and trustworthiness so important as the bedrock of the Old Testament faith? What kinds of terms does the New Testament use to talk about these characteristics? Can you think of any New Testament verses that speak of these themes?
1. Love and trustworthiness are so important because God showed these traits from the very beginning of time and He commanded us to do the same. He said that these traits will forever and if you have faith in him, you will trust in his promises.
2. God is faithful, kind, merciful, trustworthy, and loving.
3. John 13:34--"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."
John 13:1--"It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love."
Luke 10:27-- " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'[a]; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself."
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Q2. (Psalm 145) Which aspects of God's character mentioned in Psalm 145 stand out to you in particular? Why is it important for "every creature," every human being, to praise him? What are you doing to help that happen?
1. His faithfulness to his promises. We need not worry whether He will keep His promises, because He always does in His own time.
2. Everyone creature should praise God because He is the one who created us and keeps us daily. He deserves all of the praise and worship.
3. I am trying to praise & worship Him more and more each day and telling others how they should do the same. He deserves all of the glory and the honor.
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Q1. (Psalm 103) Which one or two aspects of God's character mentioned in this Psalm stand out to you? Why do you think the Exodus was so foundational in Israel's understanding of God? According to Psalm 103:10-12, what are the limits to God's forgiveness?
1. Actually, all of them stand out to me, because these characteristics are far above man's characters; but the ones that really stand out are His mercy and his forgiveness. Man would never be able to live up to these aspects the way our God does. We would allbe dead if it wasn't for the Lord's mercy and forgiveness.
2. The Exodus laid the foundation of God from the beginning and will remain the same forever. He does not change.
3. God's forgiveness has no limits. He love for us is limitless and in His Word it was stated that he would forgive us 70 times 70.
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Q4. (Psalm 24) How do verses 1-2 establish the Lord's right as King? What do verses 3-6 tell us about the requirements of the King? What do verses 7-10 tell us about the glory of the King? How does this psalm speak to you in your situation?
1. He has all of the right, because he is the creator of all. No one else deserves this honor.
2. The requirements for King are someone who is ethical and morally pure, does not worship idols, is loyal, and doesn't swear by what is false.
3. Verses 7-10 lets us know that God is an Almighty God. He is one that should be glorified. He is magnificent. We should bow down and praise Him for He is the only one worthy of all the praise.
4. No matter what situation we are in, we should never forget to praise and trust in God. We owe Him our all.
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Q3. (Psalm 126). In this psalm, the nation is going through some kind of crisis. How does memory of God's deliverance in verses 1-3 prepare them for the prayer of verse 4? How do you understand the two metaphors of deliverance: (1) a wadi or dry gully and (2) sowing and reaping? How do these metaphors help you in your situation?
1. In verses 1-3, the people can't help but remember how the Lord brought them through their struggles. It was like a dream to them, but they still had hope that God would keep his promises. No matter what, they could sing and laugh because they still trusted Him.
2. A wadi was when they were struggling through and all seems dry and gloomy, but as long we are patient and wait, and we keep praying and praising God, He will bring us through.
3. It shows me that as long as I continue to trust in God no matter how long it takes or what I have to go through, He will be there to deliver me.
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Q2. (Psalm 96) What does it mean to "ascribe" to God attributes of glory and strength? What happens when we fail to ascribe such qualities to him? In what sense is praise to God "fitting" or "worthy"?
1.To give or credit to God with glory and strength for who he is and what he has done. The whold nation should praise him for he is more than worthy.
2. When we fail to do this, we are being disobedient for he deserves all of our honor and praise. We might as well say that we don't believe in God when we fail to worship and praise him and acknowledge him as Lord and Savior.
3. Praising God is fitting because he is our Lord, our only God and he is worthy of all the praise. There is no one else that deserves all of this honor or glory.
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Q1. (Psalm 57) Why is praise difficult in the midst of trying circumstances? How does praise affect our faith? Our attitude? Our motivation?
1. When we are in the midst of trying circumstances, we are thinking about ourselves and since we are human and our flesh is weak. We forget to leave all of our issues in God's hands, who has the power to handle them all.
2. Praise increases our faith. The more we praise God, the more we get our mind off of our problems and increase our confidence in God.
3. Praise changes our attitude from confusion and doubt to faith and belief that there is nothing too hard for God.
4. We are motivated to put all of our trust in God. It increases our dependency on God and allows us to be more thankful for all that he has done.
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Q5. After you've studied the psalms in this chapter, what do you think it means to "rest" in God? How do you seek God's peace when you have a dozen things coming against you?
1. "Rest" in God means to trust totally in Him. Learn to lean and depend on Him, because threre is nothing that He can't handle.
2. Whenever I have issues, I just pray for guidance and ask God to direct my footsteps, and He gives me peace to "rest" in Him. I live on His promises. He said He would never leave me or forsake me and I am assured of this.
Q1. Son of a Carpenter
in 2. Joseph, the Stand-In Father (Matthew 1:18-25)
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1. Jesus would have learned how to use all kinds of tools, how to build things out of wood, how to purchase supplies, how to sale and how to manage money.
2. These experiences would teach Jesus how to take care of his disciples as they traveled from place to place; how to manage money and how to deal with all kinds of people.