Key Thought: Jesus has shown a liberal, tender, and hospitable spirit toward the poor. He still calls His people to exercise their sympathy, tenderness, and benevolence.

July 13, 2019

1. Have a volunteer read Exodus 3:16,17.

1. Ask class members to share a thought on what the most important point in this text is.
2. Why was it important to begin outlining His plan for Israel by describing the end result first?
3. Personal Application: How important is it to you that God is a God who sees the suffering and hears their cries for help? Share your thoughts.
4. Case Study: One of your relatives states: “Why does God wait so long to relieve suffering and oppression? It sounds like it takes forever and He doesn’t do enough to help the needy.” How would you respond to your relative?

2. Have a volunteer read Exodus 22:21-23.

1. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the most important point is in this passage.
2. Why did the Israelites get reminded of their own slavery in instructions on how they should treat the less fortunate in their new society?
3. Personal Application: What memory in your experience makes you more compassionate about the suffering of injustice to others? Share your thoughts.
4. Case Study: One of your friends states, “Too many people are crying about injustice and suffering when much of what they are going through is the result of their own bad choices and lifestyle. How can we help them without enabling them in their poor lifestyle choices and lack of initiative and motivation?” How would you respond to your friend?

3. Have a volunteer read Deuteronomy 14:22-29.

1. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the main idea of this text is.
2. What is the primary purpose of tithing?
3. Personal Application: How do you feel about giving extra over the tithe in order to help the poor or those in need? Share your thoughts.
4. Case Study: One of your neighbors states, “What do we need to do to make sure we have a reliable and accurate understanding of the needs and desperate situations around us? How does having this knowledge help us be more efficient and effective in serving others?” How would you reply to your neighbor?

4. Have a volunteer read Leviticus 25:8-23..

1. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the main idea of this text is.
2. How do we keep from oppressing one another?
3. Personal Application: Have you ever been oppressed? In what way? What solutions do you see to address this? Share your thoughts.
4. Case Study: Think of one person who needs to hear a message from this week’s lesson. Tell the class what you plan to do this week to share with them.

(Truth that is not lived, that is not imparted, loses its life-giving power, its healing virtue. Its blessings can be retained only as it is shared.”Ministry of Healing, p. 148).

Amen!(3)

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Read Matthew 22:37-40, then Exodus 20:1-17. How does Jesus’ summary of the commandments help your understanding as you read each of the Ten Commandments?

The Ten Commandments read like a constitution. After a brief preamble that sets out the basis on which these statements are made—in this case, the fact of God’s deliverance of His people—the document lists the core principles on which the nation is founded.

The Ten Commandments

In this case, there were specific commands about how human beings could best live out their love for God and love for each other. It is little wonder that many nations with a Christian heritage have drawn the basis of their laws from these guiding principles.

While many of these statements are brief, we should not underestimate the breadth of their impact and the comprehensiveness of the Ten Commandments as the law of life. For example, the sixth commandment—”You shall not murder” (Exod. 20:13, NIV)—summarizes and includes “all acts of injustice that tend to shorten life” as well as “a selfish neglect of caring for the needy or suffering”. – Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 308. Similarly, the prohibition against stealing (see Exod. 20:15) condemns “slave dealing, and forbids wars of conquest”. It “requires the payment of just debts or wages”, as well as prohibiting “every attempt to advantage oneself by the ignorance, weakness, or misfortune of another”. – Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 309.

We can easily tell ourselves that we are not bad people. For example, if we are not directly involved in murder or obvious stealing, it might seem we are doing OK. But when Jesus talked about the commandments, He made it clear that the commandments are not fulfilled simply by not doing a few specific acts. Rather, our thoughts, motivations, and even failure to do things we know we should can break the law of God (see Matt. 5:21-30).

So, imagine a society in which each of the Ten Commandments were taken seriously and lived out fully. It would be an active, vibrant society in which everyone enthusiastically acted on their love for God by loving and caring for each other.

Amen!(0)

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