The Mid-Week Update!!!

Lesson Preview

     There are some things in our society everyone has an opinion about.  A short list includes: music, politics, sports, and worship.  Worship.  That's a lot like saying love.  Is it a verb or noun?  Is it something one experiences (passive) or does (active)?
     Why do you worship?  What are your personal views regarding worship?  Now, what is God's view regarding worship?  You might imagine worship is the topic for this week's Bible study.  The background reading is quite lengthy but interesting.  It is Exodus 25:1-31:18.  Our study will come from chapters 25:8-9, 17-22: & 29:38-46. 
     Between now and Sunday morning, consider discussing the following with yor teen(s): 
What aspect of worhsip means most to you?
If you could help plan worship what idea would you suggest?
What do you do to prepare yourself for worship?

Hope to see you Sunday,
Don

Lesson Recap

EXODUS -19:1-24-18

Defining the Relationship 20:1-17 

The week before last we observed God displaying his divine power in order to build a relationship with Israel.  He wanted to prove to them He cared for their well being. When they had no food He provided for their need with the one time event of quail, and then manna on a daily basis.  God knew if he could bring them to understand He cared for them then they would likely have confidence in Him.  When we have confidence in a person it is much more likely we will trust them.

    Last week we saw God setting the boundaries for the relationship. He does it by providing a binding document.  We call it the 10 Commandments.  Here is how it came about.  Two months after leaving Egypt, the Israelites arrived  at Mt. Sinai.  God spoke to Moses, telling him that if the Israelites would remember what He had done and would obey Him, they would show they were his treasured possession.  When Moses reported God's words to the elders and the people, they agreed to obey.  God instructed Moses to prepare the people to receive His commands.  On the third day, smoke enveloped Mt. Sinai, and God spoke in thunder.  See 19:9 and 16-19.

See if you can, without aid of a Bible, to list the 10 commandments.

They are:

1. No Gods but me
2. No idols
3. Do not misuse God's name
4. Keep the Sabbath Holy
5. Honor Dad and Mom
6. Do not murder
7. Stay true to your spouse
8. Do not steal
9. Do not lie
10. Do not covet.

We will see that the first four commands deal with man's relationship with God.  The last six deal with man's relationship with man.

Consider the tool known as a level.  It is used to make sure that everything is straight and aligned.  Spiritual implications can be drawn from the level.  It can measure straightness either vertically or horizontally. Vertical straightness represents our relationship with God.  Relationships with our fellow man are measured horizontally.

Worship the Lord Only 1-6
The people were to show  their allegiance to God in the first two commands; exclusive worship and no idols.  Also note here that God's jealousy is different than that of man.  His jealousy is rooted in His holiness.  Ours is based on selfishness and pride.   As God, He is worthy of worship and will not surrender that to another person or object.

Show Respect For the Lord 7-11
We are  instructed to respect Go in commands 3 & 4; His name and His day.  What does it mean to misuse Go's name?  See Exodus 3:13-15.  His name not only revealed His character, but also His personal relationship with His people.  In ancient times, dissing a persons name was the same as dissing the person.  We also see what God traced the need for a Sabbath back to.  While God did not need a day of rest to recuperate from His work, He did it to reflect on His creation.  We are called to do the same-take a break to focus on who God is and what He has done.

Treat Others Right 12-17
The 5th command is to honor your parents. This command serves as a bridge between honoring God and honoring others.  A person cannot truly submit to God's authority, and respect others , until he is able to respect and submit to parental authority.  God promises long lif in this command.  This can work in two ways:

1. those who honor parents might be less likely to find themselves in dangerous situations.
2. the command includes the responsibility of caring for parents when they are older and unable to care for themselves.  By helping to extend the quality and quantity of life for parents, we are setting an example that our children can follow when we are older.   

The 6th command deals with murder.  God was the only one who determined when killing was appropriate-and He still is.  This is the basis for all decisions in taking of life.  In the 7th command, purity in marriage is essential because it represents the foundation of society.  The relationship in marriage between husband and wife is so important that Paul in the New Testament illustrates the relationship between husband and wife with that of God and His believers.  In the 8th command we see that stealing represents the honesty in our actions, where in the 9th command we see how we must have honest in our words.  The last commandment is different from the others  as it is rooted in the heart, not our actions.  Failure to keep this command can lead to violation of one of the previous commands.

Conclusion:  Experienced and inexperienced cooks use recipes. The purpose of a recipe is to insure the dish comes out right.  A recipe is a rigid set of rules..  It is important to adhere to the recipe to insure the proper outcome every time.  Many see the Ten Commandments as a rigid set of rules.  But really, the Commandments make up God's recipe for relationships with Him and others.  It is important that both experienced and inexperienced stick to the recipe.

Class Picnic

..has been dubbed the Spooknik, and it occurs this Sunday after class at Fenton City Park Shelter #2.  (Time subject to change if this is the day for the parade for the Saint Louis Cardinals World Series win!) As noted before the cost is $5 per person, with a max of $10 per family, to cover the cost of shelter and meat...then just bring a side dish to share and whatever you want to drink!  If you haven't made reservations yet, it is requested that you do so by Friday night.  You can do that with an email to thespotspot@charter.net. Come join us for fun, food and fellowship!  The forecast calls for sunny and a high around 61.  Perfect!

Upcoming Events

Zenobia has graciously offered her home up for the class Christmas party on December 10th (full details as the date gets closer!).  We are still looking for someone to host a board game night (maybe in January.) and the annual Super Bowl party in February.

Snacks

• 10/30 LaRowe
• 11/6 Grable
• 11/13 Phillips

Prayer Requests

•  Ongoing prayer for the new music/fine arts ministry and the new youth program. 
• Continued prayer for safe travels of kid coming home from college over break.