12 Foundation Stones - Study Notes for Class 6A ------------------------- Bible Knowledge, Part 1 - Know the Book ------------------------- Target: Get to know the Bible! ------------------------- Key Verses ------------------------- 2 Timothy 2:15—Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 2 Timothy 3:16—All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is pro. table for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. Matthew 24:35—Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away. ------------------------- Suggested Bible Reading ------------------------- Acts chapters 6–13 Other Recommended Reading Discovering Truth: Bible Basics (Aurora book) -------------------------------------------------- Prayer and Praise: “Thank You for Holding on to Me!” -------------------------------------------------- Jesus, thank You for always holding on to me. All my life long, every day, You’ve been right there, holding my hand, and I love You for that. It’s such a secure feeling to know You’re there. Sometimes I know I’ve let go. I’ve walked away and I’ve walked alone, and I’m sorry for that. But I love how You come after me and You take my hand and You keep holding on. You never let go. You never leave me. And You not only hold my hand, but You speak to me and You love me and guide me. I love You for that. Thank You for sticking close, Jesus. Thank You for reminding me not to fear, because You are always right there beside me, watching out for me. I love You. Keep holding on to me, Jesus! -------------------------------------------------- Meditation: A Message from Jesus—“I’ll Never Run Out” -------------------------------------------------- Since the beginning of time, the sun has been rising and setting each and every day. Can you imagine how many different sunrises and sunsets I’ve painted since the beginning of time? And yet, there have never ever been two sunsets exactly alike in all the world—and there never will be. I’ll never run out of incredible color schemes and far-out patterns to use. And just as I’ll never run out of sunsets, neither will I ever run out of things to say to you either. As you learn to hear from Me, you’ll discover that I have an endless stock of word pictures and visions to choose from; and I’ll always have something left to show you. There’ll never be a time when I won’t have any new ideas to give you or interesting ways to explain things to you if you’ll just ask Me to. Bible Knowledge, Part 1 Because My Words are spirit and come from a world that has no end, they’re like Me—eter-nal—like rivers that never run dry! They’re magical, like sunsets. I’ll always have more to give you—more awesome answers, more simple solutions, and all the Heavenly help you’ll ever need. I’ll never run out of love for you either. In fact, nothing about Me is ever going to run out or come to an end! So as you grow closer to Me and let Me become a bigger part of your life, it’ll be like you’re getting .lled up with an ocean of love that’ll never run dry. Are you getting to know the Lord better by spending time each day reading His Word, listening to His voice, and praising Him? -------------------------------------------------- Getting to Know the Bible: The Book of Acts -------------------------------------------------- Luke, it is believed, wrote the book of the “Acts of the Apostles,” and in some sense it is a sequel to the Gospel of Luke. In this book we have a continuation of the history of the Church after Christ’s ascension. The record begins with Pentecost (A.D. 33) and ends with Paul’s . rst imprison­ment (A.D. 63 or 64). The author gives an account of the circumstances connected with the Ascen­sion, and then records the leading facts with reference to the spread and triumphs of the Gospel in the world during a period of about thirty years. The key to the contents of the book is in verse 1:8: “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me.” The contents of the book may be divided into three parts: 1. Chapters 1–12: Describes the .rst twelve years of the Christian Church. It contains the his­tory of the planting and extension of the Church among the Jews by the ministry of Peter. It also describes the conversion of Saul (Paul). 2. Chapters 13–21: Paul’s missionary journeys, giving the history of the extension and planting of the Church among the Gentiles. 3. Chapters 21–28: Paul at Rome, and the events which led to this. The book of Acts is important not only for historical purposes, but mostly because of the sample it sets for God’s true Church. It is a “blueprint for action” that we should follow: Dependence on the Holy Spirit, how to organize, how to spread out to preach the Gospel. Also included are living samples of how to react to persecution, the relationship we should have with civil authorities, and much more. Of course, today we live in a different age, and we have to ask the Lord exactly how to conduct ourselves in our particular time and circumstances. But the basic principles hold true and that’s why this is such an important book. ----------------------- Supplementary Reading ----------------------- ------------------------ Archeological Evidence ------------------------ ---------- King David King David is one of the key figures of the Old Testament. Known as perhaps the greatest king of Israel, a shade of mystery has covered his existence: Outside of the pages of the Bible, no reference had been found to King David or his ruling dynasty. This changed in the 1990s, when archaeologists made an interesting discovery in Tel Dan, Israel. They uncovered a rock fragment inscribed with an ancient text referring to "the House of David," a phrase used for the ruling dynasty founded by King David. The rock appears to be a victory monument erected by a Syrian king nearly 3,000 years ago, after a battle described in the book of First Kings. Yet again, archeology has confirmed the biblical record! ----------------------- Paul preached in Cyprus Italian archeologists said that they have found a marble inscription on the island that supports the Biblical assertion that St. Paul preached there. The researchers from Catania University said they had found fragments at a dig in the town of Paphos bearing the inscription "Apostolou Paulou." The fragments were found close to a temple dedicated to the Greek god Apollo, team director Professor Filippo Guidice told reporters. "This marble was made to commemorate the presence of the saint there," Giudice said. "There is another marble like this in the catacombs of the Vatican." Acts 13:4-6 relates how Paul and Barnabas visited Cyprus and journeyed as far as Paphos. For more information! See the Appendix in Understanding God's Word (Get Activated! booklet) for more historical information as well as details of over 60 fulfilled prophecies in the Bible. (END)