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Summer 2024  Hope In The Lord   Unit 2: Expressing Hope

When we read the New Testament letters, we are reading someone else’s mail. Of the 27 books in our New Testament, 21 of them are messages between the author and a particular church or individual. In the Greco-Roman world, letters served a personal function and were considered a substitute for the writer’s physical presence. The letters were commonly read aloud by the deliverer to the community (Colossians 4:16; 1 Thessalonians 5:27).
The challenge for the modern reader is the attempt to interpret the texts and understand them in the same way as the first-century audience. The letters best serve us after we know the historical and literary world in which these letters originated.
One dictionary defines hope as “to want something to happen or be true” or “to desire with the expectation of obtainment or fulfillment.” In popular use, a hope is often closely associated with a wish; there is not necessarily an expectation that this “hope” will come true. But Christian hope is based on nothing less than God’s promises and the confidence we have based on his faithfulness to his promises. We do not wish God would honor his promises; we hope he will. This quarter of study traces hope through the generations.

Praise and Hope

Unit II, “Expressing Hope,” turns attention to the prayers of ancient Israel as a model for offering to God our praise and petitions. These Hebrew prayers are also expressions of Christian hope. The first lesson of the unit is from a song of lament in Lamentations 3. The author of Lamentations describes hope as fleeing from the people of Israel until the author remembers God’s faithfulness. This memory leads the author to worship God and proclaim, “great is [God’s] faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:23; lesson 6).
The remaining lessons of the unit are drawn from the Psalms. These ancient songs express hope in God’s intervention (lesson 7), graceful giving of the law (lesson 8), and forgiveness (lesson 9). These hopes find their fulfillment in Christ.

Lesson 6   Ceaseless Love   Lamentations 3:16–24
   The five poems of Lamentations are one person’s attempt to sort through his confusion and questions as well as to find a reason for hope. Though traditionally, this person has been identified with the prophet Jeremiah, the book of Lamentations is anonymous. We cannot know with certainty who expressed the community’s grief with such vivid images and powerful poetry. What is clear, however, is that the poet was a master of metaphors with an unusual awareness of his people’s pain. The poet’s experience is representative of the people as a whole. In fact, throughout Lamentations 3, the speaker presents himself as an authoritative figure with an official role as the people’s representative with a responsibility to lead them in expressing and processing their pain. This leads eventually to his leading them in a liturgy of repentance, appealing to divine mercy, and seeking restoration to divine favor (Lamentations 3:40–42).

   While the people of Judah certainly had to express their grief and wrestle with the difficult theological questions raised by their intense suffering, they also had to remember God’s character and his long track record of faithfulness and love if they were to avoid succumbing to despair. This latter task dominates the poet’s concerns in Lamentations 3:16–24. These verses are a climax for the collection of poems that make up the book of Lamentations.

Lesson 7   Continual Proclamation   Psalm 71:12–21
   Psalm 71 is part of a long string of prayers (going back at least to Psalm 50) that express the hope that God will help those who trust in him. This section of Psalms addresses the suffering of either individuals or Israel as a people in lament after lament. These psalms call God’s attention to the human need for a continuing relationship of rescue. And the psalms remind the people of Israel of their constant need for self-examination, repentance, and hopeful action. Psalm 71 is the last in this series of laments; Psalm 72 brings Book II of the Psalms (Psalms 42–72) to a hopeful conclusion.

   While this poem is a lament, we can also speak of it as a prayer. Psalm 71 interweaves requests for help with statements about the problems faced and expressions of trust in God. The psalmist expresses trust in God’s righteousness (v. 2) and reliability throughout life (vv. 5–6). Verses 10–11 (not in our printed text) describe the insults of the psalmist’s critics and enemies. They slandered not only the psalmist but also God, whom they accused of abandoning the faithful (compare Psalm 22:7–8). The psalmist’s real experiences are revealed in general terms, without naming names, so we are invited to consider our own experiences as we consider the psalmist’s troubles and how he responded in faith.

Lesson 8   Delightful Precepts   Psalm 119:73–80
   Psalm 119 takes up the art of living in an almost obsessive way, as it repeatedly turns to the same ideas and figures of speech. It emphasizes the Law of Moses (the Torah) as a guidebook to a life of dignity and moral integrity. It invites faithful people to delight in such a life, not merely endure it.  This section of Psalm 119 portrays God as the teacher and the human praying as the student in the school of life. The student learns the commandments, the Law of Moses, not merely as a set of arbitrary rules, but as a window into the meaning of life. By providing a clear structure to everyday life, the law invites a person to inner peace and openness to the work of the creator God. These commandments rest on God’s prior commitment to justice (often paired with or assumed to accompany righteousness). God’s deep desire for a fair and fertile world for human beings underlies everything in the revelation at Sinai (Exodus 20; etc.), and it can underlie everything in human life. So this psalm affirms.

Lesson 9   Expectant Watchfulness   Psalm 130
   Psalm 130 is part of a larger cluster, usually called the Psalms of Ascents or, less often, the Pilgrimage Psalter (Psalms 120–134). The psalms in the group may have originated at different times and places (as would be true of a modern hymnal) but functioned together as songs for the pilgrims entering the Jerusalem temple in the period following the Babylonian exile.
The group of psalms falls into three subgroups (Psalms 120–124; 125–129, and 130–134). Perhaps the pilgrims sang them at different stops on the road from the Mount of Olives, through the Kidron Valley, and into the precinct around the temple itself. Psalm 130, in particular, may have served as part of a night vigil as the pilgrims awaited the dawn, which in turn would symbolize the dawning of God’s light in their lives (see 130:6, below). Those hypotheses are reasonable but hard to prove. Yet they would explain the varying moods of these psalms and their progressive closeness to the temple itself.

   Psalm 130 seems like a very condensed lament that shades into something different altogether. Perhaps that difference from other psalms reflects this one’s placement in a larger group. It does not have to do all the work a “normal” lament does because it does not stand alone. Psalm 129 describes longstanding attacks on faithful Israelites and expects God’s deliverance, while Psalm 130 expresses contrition before God. Collectively, these psalms together position the one praying as someone in the correct spiritual position before God.

BIBLE STUDY

Youth Bible Study| Tuesdays at 6:00 p.m. on Zoom. Login information may be found here.

Adult Bible Study |  Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m. on Zoom. To join virtual Bible Study please visit Zoom.us and enter Meeting ID: 802 973 031  To join by phone, dial 312-626-6799 and enter Meeting ID: 802-973-031

July 10, 2024 – September 11, 2024

We all want a faith that won’t let us down in times of trouble or loss, uncertainty or fear. A faith that can pull us through the worst (and best) times in our lives. This is the kind of faith that James writes about. It is a faith that we must practice day by day.

This 9-week study on the teaching of James will help us grow a steadfast faith that can carry us through all the ups and downs of life.

  1. Dependable or Double-minded (James 1:1-18)         Lesson 1 Replay

  Vacation Bible School : July 17, 2024 (No Bible Study)

  2. Words, Words, Words (James 1:19-27)

  3. Who’s the Judge? (James 2:1-13)

  4. Just Works (James 2:14-26)

  5. On Preventing Forest Fires (James 3:1-12)

  6. Makers & Breakers of Peace (James 3:13 — 4:10)

  7. Getting Perspective (James 4:11-17)

  8. What Awaits (James 5:1-11)

  9. Becoming Whole (James 5:12-20)

  No Bible Study on September 18, 2024

April 3, 2024 – June 26, 2024

After you’ve met Jesus, you are never the same again. His teaching challenges your thinking. His compassion softens your heart. His love turns your life around.

This thirteen session study, from the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) will open your eyes anew — or for the first time — to Jesus Christ.

Lesson 1: The Real Jesus (Mark 1:9-45)        Lesson 1 Replay

Lesson 2: The Surprising Jesus (Luke 5:17-32)         Lesson 2 Replay

Lesson 3: Jesus the Storytelling Teacher (Mark 4:1-25)       Lesson 3 Replay

Lesson 4: Jesus the Master over Fear (Luke 8:22-39)           Lesson 4 Replay

Lesson 5: Jesus the Challenging Savior (Mark 8:22-38)     Lesson 5 Replay

Lesson 6: Jesus the Source of Power (Mark 9:2-32)          Lesson 6 Replay

Lesson 7: Jesus a Rich Man (Luke 18:15-30)          Lesson 7 Replay

Lesson 8: Jesus the Servant Leader (Mark 10:32-45)        Lesson 8 Replay

Lesson 9: Jesus the Puzzling King (Mark 11)         Lesson 9 Replay

Lesson 10: Jesus the Prophet (Matthew 24:1-31)          Lesson 10 Replay

Lesson 11: Jesus the Sacrifice (Matthew 26:1-30)       Lesson 11 Replay

Lesson 12: Jesus the Dying King (John 19:16-42)       Lesson 12 Replay

Lesson 13: Jesus the Risen Lord (John 20)         Lesson 13 Replay

NO BIBLE STUDY JULY 3, 2024