Bible Study for January 14, 2024
Bible Study as Discipleship: Scripture calls us to grow in the knowledge of God/theology, and the pursuit of this knowledge, of theology, is an act of Christian obedience. It is part of Christian discipleship, a non-negotiable for the believer.
Opening Prayer:
Creator of all, we thank you for the opportunity to gather in study. Open our minds and hearts. By the power of the Holy Spirit, unite us in faith, hope, and love. Help us to be faithful to the gospel and to walk humbly with you. Grant us your peace as we grow in wisdom and understanding. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Matthew 2:1-12 The story of the magi often gets lost in the mix of the nativity story. What do you think of the story when we see God’s will throughout it in the background?
The story that we celebrate on this day of Epiphany presents a clear dichotomy between Herod the Great, false king, and Jesus, genuine royalty. Herod’s fright upon hearing from the Magi in verse 3 is the opposite of the joy that the magi have upon realizing that they will see Jesus soon in verse 10. Herod’s evil plan in verses 7-9 is frustrated by God in verse 12. Even in its structure, this story is meant to undercut Herod while “paying homage” to Jesus. This is clearly the story of the gentiles, the magi, coming for a connection with Judaism, for they specifically ask to see “the king of the Jews.” God uses a miracle to symbolize God’s son’s kingship and divinity. This miracle shows God’s will in bringing the gentiles into the unfolding salvation plan. The star hanging in the sky is God announcing to the world, “Arise, shine; for your light has come”!
Ephesians 3:1-12 Consider the person and work of the Holy Spirit. How have you received the Holy Spirit, and how do you live out that experience daily?
Paul, a member of the most conservative and traditional sects of Judaism (Pharisee), and trained in a Hellenistic (Greek) world, says that God called him to bring the faith to the gentiles. And after persecuting Jesus Followers, Paul now wants to bring the faith of the promised Messiah to the Jewish people and to those who know nothing of Judaism or the promised Messiah. Crazy! Yet, this is a message of hope that Paul brings to the believers in Ephesus, for he says that the promise of relationship and covenant that God has historically promised to the Jewish people since they first heard the story of their patriarch Abraham is now available to all peoples through Jesus Christ. This, plain and simple, is why we should all be excited about Epiphany. The vast majority of us, Christians that is, are not of Jewish heritage, and the reason we know Christ at all is because we were brought into the salvation story through Christ and told about it through his servant Paul. “Through faith” in God, we now have the “boundless riches of Christ” and the “wisdom of God.”
Closing Prayer
Radiant Morning Star, | Grace us with the hospitality |
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