Proverbs 24:6

Surely you need guidance to wage war, and victory is won through many advisers.

From Background Notes [BN] for May 31st & June 1st written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Like the prospective kings of Israel, not all words they (our graduates) hear will help them. Part of their education has been the formation of critical judgment and wise assessment. Some things they learn will guard the truth, while other things will inform their footsteps.

1 Samuel 16:7

But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart"

From Background Notes [BN] for May 31st & June 1st written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Johnson notes that the qualities of David’s heart, though not spelled out in detail, would seem to be exemplary to Yahweh because David’s heart is like Yahweh’s.

1 Samuel 1:27

I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of him.

From Background Notes [BN] for May 31st & June 1st written by Pastor Bob Brown:

What shapes the story of the whole collection is the man Samuel: how he was born, where he was raised, and to what important purpose God destined him.

Proverbs 22:6

Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.

From Background Notes [BN] for May 31st & June 1st written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Christian graduates face an increasingly complex world which challenges their ability to adapt to change, while staying grounded in deep spiritual rootage. Few students who cross the academic finish line can imagine what the world they are entering will eventually look like.

1 Corinthians 15:50

I declare to you, brothers and sisters, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.

From Background Notes [BN] for May 24th & 25th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

The only way to secure such rule is to have a king who lives forever, and that king is Jesus. The only way to assure that the king lives forever is to endow him with an eternal human form, something that Jesus received, when God through the Spirit raised him from the dead.

1 Corinthians 15:40

There are also heavenly bodies and there are earthly bodies; but the splendor of the heavenly bodies is one kind, and the splendor of the earthly bodies is another.

From Background Notes [BN] for May 24th & 25th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Again, we know that the philosopher Anaxagoras (480-430 BCE) believed that a large number of seeds make up the properties of materials, that heavenly bodies are made up of the same materials as Earth, and that the sun is a large, hot, glowing rock. He also...

1 Corinthians 15:24

Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power.

From Background Notes [BN] for May 24th & 25th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

His public ministry was the sign of his continuing mission, and by paying attention to what he said and did — his words and deeds — the followers of Jesus learn what he intends to say and do in the future.

1 Corinthians 15:20

But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.

From Background Notes [BN] for May 24th & 25th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

At this writing (2014), a prominent movie currently on the big screen is Heaven is for Real. Todd and Sonja Burpo are a real-life couple whose son Colton claims to have visited Heaven during a near death experience. Colton recounts the details of his amazing journey with childlike innocence and speaks matter-of-factly about things that happened before his birth: things he couldn't possibly know.

1 Corinthians 15:25

For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.

From Background Notes [BN] for May 17th & 18th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Because the present time is characterized by this “until,” there is a struggle, a fight, a conflict going on, and Jesus is leading the charge from heaven at the right hand of the Father; and we are engaged in the fight on earth through the aggressive message of salvation by grace through faith.

1 Corinthians 15:58

Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

From Background Notes [BN] for May 17th & 18th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Is it not remarkable that Paul offers this instruction at the end of a long chapter in defense of our future resurrection!

1 Corinthians 15:32

If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus with no more than human hopes, what have I gained? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”

From Background Notes [BN] for May 17th & 18th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Their critics conclude: “Pleasure drives the victim into a sort of sty and pens him up; henceforth the victim goes on living as a pig or wolf.”

2 Corinthians 10:3

For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does.

From Background Notes [BN] for May 17th & 18th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

What we discover is that battle lines are drawn on two fronts, as is often the case in important wars. Rarely is there the luxury of simply choosing the geometry of the enemy who rallies its armies to have maximum defeating potential. In this case, the lines are on the battle within and in the battle without.

1 Timothy 1:15

Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.

From Background Notes [BN] for May 10th & 11th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

But Paul sees the silver lining in his situation, for God reached down and showed Paul “mercy” (1:16) as a powerful example of His grace for the whole world. He writes, “… so that in me, the worst of sinners, Messiah Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life.”

1 Timothy 1:13

Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief.

From Background Notes [BN] for May 10th & 11th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Or, better, he acknowledged that through Jesus the risen one, God had audited his books and decided that his spiritual finances were in pretty bad shape! The risen Jesus told Paul that there was a better way to manage the affairs of his life.

1 Timothy 1:12

I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me trustworthy, appointing me to his service.

From Background Notes [BN] for May 10th & 11th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

We cannot fairly generalize grace or place grace into a theological box. Grace is always “to me” or “to you.” Read in this way, grace is a powerful agent that makes possible the hard work of the Gospel.

Ephesians 2:8

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God

From Background Notes [BN] for May 10th & 11th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Taken from a collection of his letters these comments from Abbé de Tourville, a 19th century spiritual director (1842-1903), challenge us as we think about grace in our study this week. Clearly, grace is not about “playing safe” or “straining our abilities” or pretending to be “more … than we really are.”

John 21:1a NRSV

Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias

From Background Notes [BN] for May 3rd & 4th written by Pastor Bob Brown:

Notice the specific reference to location (“by the Sea of Tiberias”)... with the result that his words and deeds were “convincing” to those who saw Jesus. Words like “afterward” and “after” reveal the connection within time through an understanding of sequence.