When it comes to giving, no one outdoes God. No one could give more than he did in his Son Jesus. What does this mean for our giving? Why do we give? How should we give? What does our giving accomplish, and what do we get out of it? Next time on The Bible Study Hour, Dr. James Boice looks at what Paul says about Christian giving.
Romans 15:15-28
Suppose you’re God, and you want to boil down the entire moral law for humanity into a single Top Ten list. Where do you start? How do you word it? What do you put in? What do you leave out? Next time we’ll study the Ten Commandments, exploring each one, and uncovering the real purpose behind history’s first Top Ten list.
What do you do when you’re in charge of two million people, and the day’s to short to get everything done? You do what Moses did, and get advice from a management consultant. In Moses’ case, that happened to be his father-in-law Jethro. Join us this week as Dr. Boice looks at Jethro’s advice and makes it relevant for the church today.
You’ve lived your whole life as Pharaoh’s slave. So have your parents and grandparents. But now the God of your fathers has delivered you by a string of miracles. Moses has led you out of Egypt. And after a month of freedom, you complain and say, “The water is bitter. The food is boring. I’d rather be in Egypt.”
For Pharaoh, the tenth plague was the clincher. In one night, in every Egyptian household, this plague killed every firstborn man and boy. Yet by some miracle it passed over every Hebrew household. And before dawn, Pharaoh gave up and released two million Hebrew slaves.
Put yourself in Pharaoh’s place. What would it take for you to give up two million Hebrew slaves? A plague on your river so you can’t drink the water? A plague on your land that ruins the crops? A plague on your sky that blots out the sun? Would nine plagues make you let the people go, or would it take ten?
Put yourself in Moses’ place. You’re obeying God. You’re face-to-face with Pharaoh. You speak the immortal words: “Let my people go!” And from that moment on: disaster. Everything goes wrong. Pharaoh piles on the work. Your friends turn against you. How can this be happening when you’re obeying God?
Imagine that God says nothing for 400 years … and one day he breaks his silence. What does he say? How does he speak? Who does he talk to? Next time Dr. James Boice examines what God did say, when he spoke through a dazzling light coming from a desert plant, to an 80-year-old shepherd named Moses.
It sounds like a fairy tale, but it’s true. A man and woman live in slavery to an evil king. They give up their baby to save his life. A princess finds the baby, takes him in, and hires a woman to nurse him. The woman is the baby’s mother. The baby grows up to deliver his people from slavery.
He was the first ruler in history to try exterminating the Jews. He was the king of Egypt, a world superpower. So why don’t we know his name? Why does the Bible tell us the names of two obscure Egyptian midwives but not the name of the king? Find out when Dr. James Boice continues his all-new series on the life of Moses.
Who’s the most impressive person in history apart from Jesus Christ? Dr. James Boice answers that question in the first message of an all-new series on Moses. During his life, Moses grew to be a man of faith, prayer, humility, and courage—qualities that mark him as a godly servant and leader.
What’s the last word in the book of Romans? What does it mean? Why does God say it at the beginning of a sentence while we say it at the end? What’s it doing at the end of a doxology? And what’s a doxology, anyway?
If you’re in the market for a religion, you’ve got lots of choices. Everybody has a “gospel” to sell you ... even the apostle Paul! “My gospel”—that’s what Paul called his message in his letter to the Romans. Dr. James Boice explores the power and mystery of this gospel of Paul’s, and why it deserves to be your gospel and everyone’s gospel.
What’s in a name—or rather, a list of names? You might be surprised. At the end of Romans, Paul sends greetings from some of his friends in Corinth. And from a handful of names like Gaius and Tertius, Dr. James Boice discovers a lot about everyday life in the early church: their relationships, their work, their mission, and more.
Grace: What’s so amazing about it? Every day bad things happen to good people—and where is God’s grace? Dr. James Boice turns that question around to ask: “Why do good things happen to bad people—and what does that have to do with God’s grace?”
Most people wouldn’t expect the God of peace to go around crushing things—especially heads. Yet Paul says that’s exactly what God plans to do: crush the head of Satan. And somehow, we’re involved. Dr. James Boice examines this intriguing teaching from Paul’s letter to the Romans.
We think of Easter as a happy time, a celebration of new life, a resurrection party! But Jesus also talked about his resurrection as a warning sign, the “sign of Jonah.” What was that about? Was Jesus trying to spoil his own party? Dr. James Boice explains the sign of Jonah and what it has to do with us.
The American church today is a bit like the Jewish community in Jesus’ day. Religiously, everything’s in our favor—yet we have a hard time really hearing Jesus. Next time on The Bible Study Hour, Dr. James Boice looks at how Jesus mourned over the chosen people of God who were rejecting him, and how he might mourn over us as well.
Certain people in the church like nothing better than splitting congregations apart. Others teach their own distorted gospel, and get rich and powerful doing it. Next time on The Bible Study Hour, Dr. James Boice looks at Paul’s warning about such people, who were alive and well in the first century just as they are in the twenty-first.
If you think of the apostle Paul as an intellectual and theologian, you’re right. But he was also a people person. He knew people, he remembered people, he loved people. Next time on The Bible Study Hour, Dr. James Boice looks at all the greetings in the letter to the Romans, and discovers the personal side of Paul.
The history of the world is a history of wars. The news of the day is about conflict and discontent. Everyone seems unhappy with their jobs, their relationships, their very lives. In all this, where do we find peace? Next time on The Bible Study Hour, Dr. James Boice talks about the God who brings peace—to us, to our relationships, and to our world.
As Christians we hear it all the time: “Pray for me!” It’s easy to say but hard to do. What should I pray for? How does prayer work? Does prayer make God change his mind? Next time on The Bible Study Hour, Dr. James Boice looks at Paul’s prayer request in Romans 15, and at the nature of prayer itself.
What does it mean to be blessed by God? What’s the difference between the way he blesses us, and the way he blesses the things we do? Next time on The Bible Study Hour, Dr. James Boice continues his studies in Romans to find out what Paul means by “the full measure of the blessing of Christ.”
When it comes to giving, no one outdoes God. No one could give more than he did in his Son Jesus. What does this mean for our giving? Why do we give? How should we give? What does our giving accomplish, and what do we get out of it? Next time on The Bible Study Hour, Dr. James Boice looks at what Paul says about Christian giving.
What’s the point of making plans, when God’s plans might be different from ours? Should we plan? Should we stick with plans that don’t seem to be working out? Next on The Bible Study Hour, Dr. James Boice looks at Paul’s plans for a mission trip to Spain that might never have happened. What are the implications for us?
Is it OK to feel good about what God does through us? Can we take pride in the work we do for the kingdom of God? Today on The Bible Study Hour, Dr. James Boice looks at what Paul has to say about his work and ministry. Who gets the glory for the good things? Who gets the credit for the accomplishments?
Was the apostle Paul a priest? Not in the way most people think of a priest. But he did say he had a priestly duty. Was it to wear a fancy ceremonial outfit, or say official prayers, or do baptisms and weddings and funerals? In Romans 15, Paul tells us what his real priestly duty was: to tell the good news about Jesus.
What makes a good church? The pastor? The music? The youth program? Paul gives us his own checklist in Romans, and it’s not what you might expect. Is your church full of goodness? Are the people filled with knowledge? Do they teach and learn from one another? Let’s take a look at what makes a good church according to Paul.
We’ve put our hope in politicians, in stocks and bonds, and in the justice system. And they’ve all failed us. But hope in God, is hope that never fails. It will fill your life and overflow into the lives of others. Let’s look in Paul’s letter to the Romans and learn about this hope that brings joy, peace, and power as we trust in God.
Access to God was granted to the Gentiles through the work of Jesus Christ. However, even before this there are hints sprinkled throughout the Old Testament indicating that they would some day be included in the promises of God. Let’s look together at these places that share the hope for the Gentiles.
Birth announcements are fairly common. You’ve received cute cards in the mail telling when and where a baby was born. But have you ever gotten an announcement years before the birth? With notes about what the child would do when it grew up? This is exactly what we find in the Old Testament.
Christmas is a time when we think about the miraculous. God himself became man. A virgin gave birth. But even more miraculous than either of these is that Mary had the faith that she would give birth to Jesus. This miracle of belief is one that God needs work in each of our hearts.
Unity in the church does not mean a bunch of Christian clones. Nor does it mean one big, united church. When Paul prays for unity, he’s thinking about relationships. So why can’t Christians get along with each other? Let’s look together at how the church should reflect the Trinity: diverse in gifts and functions, but united in purpose.
| 08/08/10 | Bricks without Straw |
| 08/01/10 | Who Is the Lord? |