Rebuking Spirits and Fevers

This is the Bible study page for the Thursday Night Bible Study Group meeting September 3 to study Luke 4:31-44.  This is more an introduction into Jesus' activity rather than His teaching at this point.  It can be assumed that, like in Acts, even though Luke doesn't detail each occurrence, these sorts of exorcisms and healings take place along side the teaching.

Read through the passage a few times in several translations (www.blueletterbible.org has several).  Jot down notes and questions about differences and word choices.  Words like 'authority' and 'rebuke' words have a range of meaning, but you may find a lot of others that are different between translations.

After you have your own set of notes and questions, go through a commentary or two (or study Bible notes).  See if these answer your questions, bring up new ones, or modify your notes at all.  See what nuggets you glean from them, but feel free to disagree with their conclusions.  Good ones tell you when they're guessing, and commentaries do a lot of guessing.

After you've gone through your notes and a few commentaries, go back through the passage with the questions below:

• Jesus 'went down' to Capernaum and does these things, but from what we read previously, He'd already been doing them there.  Why do you think this sounds somewhat out of order?  Or does it sound out of order to you?
• What do you think the people heard in Jesus' teaching that had 'authority'?  How do you think it was different than what they heard the other rabbis teach?
• Consider what the 'spirit' says in a few different translations.  Why do you think the spirit addresses Jesus this way?  If it knows who Jesus is, why challenge Him?
• Why do you think that the spirit's knowledge of who Jesus is would be a 'threat' it might hold over Him?
• Look at the word for 'astonish' in verse 32, and compare it with 'amazement' in verse 36.  What differences do you see?  How is the response to Jesus' teaching different from their response to His casting out of a demon?
• The word for what Jesus does to the fever in Simon's mother-in-law was the same as what He did in the synagogue to the spirit, 'rebuke'.  Why do you think Jesus would rebuke a fever as if it could 'obey'?  How do you understand His approach and what it means for the 'cause' of the fever?
• The sun is going down and people are brining sick to Jesus, and He works through the night.  He tries to leave the next day, and they try to prevent Him.  What do you think about the people treating Jesus this way?  Why do you think they would be so insistent?
• What does this tell you about the extent of sickness and demon possession just in this region?  How different is that from our 'region' here?
• Jesus goes to towns in Judea.  That's a long way to walk from Galilee. Why do you think He would go there?

This should be plenty to keep us occupied for our time together.  This will be the last study page for  a while, as we go through AHA. 

Some Home Town Hero?

This is the Bible study page for the Thursday Night Bible Study Group meeting August 27 to study Luke 4:14-30.  This begins Jesus' ministry, and only Luke starts Jesus out in Nazareth.  There are some really peculiar elements and curious behaviors on both sides.

Read through the passage a few times, jot down notes and questions. After you have a few notes of your own, go through some commentaries looking for different perspectives.  Lastly go back through with the questions below:

• Jesus goes to Galilee in the power of the Holy Spirit. Why do you think it made sense to get some experience under Him before he went back home?
• Jesus returns to the place where He was raised.  He follows His custom of going to the synagogue.  How do you imagine the scene in the synagogue in Nazareth?  How does the scene progress?
• Readings are specific, and the passage Jesus chooses isn't on the list (so some say).  Why do you think Jesus would deviate from the prescribed readings?  What do you think the people in the synagogue thought about that?
• Jesus sits and declares that this prophecy is fulfilled in their hearing.  Why do you think the people respond as they do?  What is their point?
• How do you think their response affirms or denies Jesus' declaration that He fulfills the prophecy?  Or what do you think of their response?
• Jesus' response supposes their request that He do the things in Nazareth that He's done elsewhere.  Why do you think this is a criticism of the people of Nazareth?
• Jesus also supposes that He is not welcome there (v.24).  What do you think it was in what they said or how they responded to Him in the synagogue that gave Jesus that impression?
• He then sites examples from Elijah and Elisha.  In Sidon, Elijah was hiding from Ahab.  Why do you think this fits this situation?  With Elisha, Naaman goes to the king of Israel, not Elisha, so how does that fit this situation?  How sure can we be that neither prophet did anything in Israel for widows or lepers?
• Jesus' point obviously isn't in the details of the lives of these prophets.  So what do you think His point is?  Why do you think it was meaningful to site these particular two prophets?
• The people are full of wrath.  They take Jesus to the 'brow of the hill' except Nazareth doesn't seem to have a 'cliff' or some such.  So what do you think they meant? 
• Jesus simply passes through them and leaves.  How do you imagine that happening?

That should keep us busy for a while.  Remember to bring your questions and notes to the group.

If You Are...Tempted

This is the Bible study page for the Thursday Night Bible Study Group meeting August 20 to study Luke 4:1-13, the Temptation of Jesus.  It is a short passage, but I figured that there would be plenty to keep our attention for an hour or so just in 13 verses.

This passage follows immediately on the baptism of the last chapter.  There are plenty of questions to ponder especially when this account is considered along side Matthew's account.  Read through the passage several times, making notes and questions.  Look at the passage in as many diverse translations as you have.

Only after you have your questions and notes should you go to commentaries.  There are plenty of options, Blue Letter Bible has several resources.  If you have a tablet, I encourage you to get the Blue Letter Bible App, making it even more convenient.  There are commentaries, but also an encyclopedia, Strong's Concordance, and a couple of nice dictionaries.

After you have done your stuff, go back through with the questions below:

• Luke describes Jesus as "full of the Holy Spirit".  How do you think Jesus could be anything else?  Why do you think Luke is using that description here?
• Read Matthew 4:2, 3; and then Luke 4:2 again.  How long was Jesus being tempted?
• In both Matthew and Luke, Jesus fasts for 40 days.  Why do you think this detail is important?
• In both Matthew and Luke they include the detail that, after the 40 days, He was hungry.  Why do you think they worded it that way?  Wasn't He hungry before that?
• Consider the 'format' of the devil's temptation, 'If you are...' What do you think the devil is getting at with Jesus?  Why do you think he thought that was Jesus' weak-spot?
• The first temptation is the stone-to-bread suggestion.  Jesus performs lots of miracles, who cares since no one is around, why is this one wrong?
• Jesus' responses to the devil all come from Deuteronomy (or can be found there too).  What about His response about the 'stone-to-bread' suggestion transforms the issue?  What do you think is the issue for Jesus?
• The second and third temptations are swapped in Matthew and Luke.  It's hard to know who 'published' first, so why do you think the order is different here?  Which order do you think makes more sense?
• The devil shows Jesus all the nations or kingdoms of the inhabited earth in a moment.  In Matthew, the devil shows Jesus all the nations and their glory.  A little difference in emphasis here, so why do you think Luke ignores their glory and instead focuses on the fact that the devil did it in a moment?
• In Luke, the devil claims the kingdoms are his to give, and Jesus doesn't dispute this claim.  What do you think that means that the devil can claim that he has all the kingdoms of the world?
• The requirement the devil sets on his giving Jesus the kingdoms is that Jesus bow down and worship him.  We look at this and it sounds really stupid.  What do you think we know now that perhaps the devil didn't know then? Or why do you think the devil went right there?
• Jesus responds again from Deuteronomy.  The issue isn't the kingdoms, it's worship.  What sorts of things do we attempt to gain, but at the cost of worshipping Jesus?
• The final temptation listed in Luke is the bungee-jump from the pinnacle of the Temple.  What does the devil say Jesus would gain here?
• The devil quotes Psalm 91:11, 12.  Look at verse 13 though.  Look at the verses before and after.  Besides the irony that the serpent is quoting a passage referring to his defeat, what else is do you see interesting in the Psalm 91 passage?
• What does it mean to you that the devil used a passage of Scripture in his temptation?  What does that tell you about Scripture knowledge?
• Jesus replies that we are not to 'test' the Lord.  Yet in Malachi, God says to 'test Me in this...'  So, what do you think the issue with this temptation?
• Consider all three temptations together.  What do you think the common thread of each of these is? 
• What do you think makes up a temptation?
• What do you think is the difference between a temptation and a 'test'?
• Consider the possible consequences for Jesus acquiescing to any of these temptations.  What is it about each one that would make them 'sin'?
• How do you define 'sin'?

That should be plenty to keep us busy.  Remember to bring your own questions and observations to the group Thursday.

Blessings upon you until then!

Re-Focus on Jesus

This is the Bible study page for the Thursday Night Bible Study Group meeting August 13 to study Luke 3:15-38. This picks up from where we left off last week. We will then proceed through the end of the chapter.

The people's response to John and his response is interesting. Read through the passage several times, note interesting details, and jot down questions. You may find it useful to review genealogies in Genesis and Chronicles.

After going through on your own, review some commentaries or study Bible notes. Look online at Blue Letter Bible site, or other Bible site you like. Maybe some brief article on John the Baptist would help as well. Those can be found in a good Bible dictionary or encyclopedia.

• How does John depict Jesus' ministry and purpose?  Is that how you would characterize His ministry and purpose?
• Remember Herod was mentioned in the 'timing' in verse 1.  Where was Herod? And therefore, where along the Jordan was John?At what point in Jesus' baptism does the Holy Spirit appear?
• Read Matthew 3:13-17 and Mark 1:9-11. Now read John 1:32-34. Think through the slight differences in detail. Who heard and saw what?
• What do you think the relationship between Jesus and the Holy Spirit was before this?
• Why do you think Luke would add that Jesus was praying during the baptism? Or do you think that means it happened afterwards?  Or what do you think Luke is referring to?
• What difference does it make whether the voice speaks to Jesus or those around Him? ('You are' in Luke and Mark versus 'This is' as Matthew has it)
• Go to Matthew 1, and list just the names backwards from Jesus to Zerubbabel.  Then flip back to Luke 3, and list the names forward from Joseph to Zerubbabel.  Considering the numerous differences, just in this section, what do you think might be going on?
• There are fewer differences from Zerubbabel back to David, but still Matthew fairly closely follows the king list of Judah in the line of David.  Where do you think Luke is drawing his from?  If you find more than one commentary, what do they think?
• Considering both lists (Luke and Matthew), what do you think the point of each might be? 

That will probably be more than we can get through once again, but we'll give it a shot.  Who knew genealogies could be fraught with so much controversy?

John The Dipper

This is the Bible study page for the Thursday Night Bible Study Group meeting August 6 to study Luke 3:1-20. This is the ministry of John the Baptist (or Dipper). I didn't realize that Luke goes through the whole thing in 20 verses and then goes back a little for the baptism of Jesus. Why would Luke use the whole of John's ministry as his introduction into who he was?

Read through the verses a few times (yes, over and over) and jot down questions and insights. Use a few translations and note their differences, at least ones that seem to disagree on what something means. After that, use your commentaries or ones you find online, and see what questions are answered, and what additional questions you come up with.

After doing all that, go back through with the questions below:

• Verses 1 and 2 are about the timing.  Why do you think Luke spends so much time on timing here?
• Consider the list of people Luke chooses to place John's ministry in time.  Why do you think it made sense to use people like that?
• Luke quotes a prophecy of Isaiah (40:3-5a).  Read the rest of the prophecy (40:1-8 perhaps).  How does the coming of Jesus, announced by John fit the depiction in Isaiah?
• Why do you think John would refer to those coming out to him as 'children of vipers'?
• What constitutes repentance for John? Why would that be important?
• Why do you think John would undermine their reliance on Abraham?
• Consider the people's response to John as he lays into them.  Why do you think they would be so receptive to his critique?
• We're not soldiers extorting, or tax collectors, but how do you think we can apply John's word to them?
• How does John depict Jesus' ministry and purpose?  Is that how you would characterize His ministry and purpose?
• Remember Herod was mentioned in the 'timing' in verse 1.  Where was Herod? And therefore, where along the Jordan was John?

That should carry us through an hour anyway.  Blessings upon you all until we see each other Thursday!