“If God really loved me, He would certainly do _______ ____________ for me!” I wonder how many times that thought has flickered through our minds. We look at our circumstances and then begin to wonder whether God really loves us, because if He really did, things would be different.

There are two rationales that often lead us to doubt God’s goodness. First, when we have a burning desire in our hearts and minds for something that we believe is good, the idea that God might want something different for us may seem ridiculous.

Image © Kevin Carden at Goodsalt.com

Second, we may doubt God’s goodness because our experience clashes with what we believe. If something looks good or feels good or sounds good or tastes good, then it must be good. And so we get angry with God when we can’t have it.

This is where faith comes into play. Faith comes into action precisely at those times we are tempted to doubt God and His goodness.

Romans 8:28-39 is a powerful passage that describes the goodness of God toward us. What can you find in the verses that helps to guard our minds against doubting God’s goodness?

In Romans 8:32, there is an important piece of logic that is extremely helpful in guarding us from becoming overwhelmed by our circumstances. “If God didn’t hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn’t gladly and freely do for us?” (Message). How could we possibly think that God would send Jesus to die for us and then turn mean and stingy?

This means that the truth of God’s generosity to us, seen in the death of Christ, must have a stronger impact in our thinking than all of the doubts that the crucible may generate inside us.

<–Sabbath Monday–>

Amen!(2)

The post Sunday: Our Father’s Extravagance appeared first on Sabbath School Net.

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/sunday-our-fathers-extravagance/

Image © Pacific Press

Sabbath Afternoon

Read for This Week’s Study: Romans 8:28-39, John 14:1-14, Ephesians 1:18-23, Isaiah 40:27-31.

Memory Text: “By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible” (Hebrews 11:27, NKJV).

The definition of faith in the book of Hebrews is always challenging. “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (Hebrews 11:1, NIV). How can we be sure about what we do not see? Yet, this is exactly what Moses illustrates in our memory verse: “He persevered because he saw him who is invisible” (Hebrews 11:27, NIV).

It is even more challenging to realize that we are called to see “him who is invisible” not simply when times are good, but especially when everything is going wrong. For this we need faith, a Christlike faith that must be shaped by the truth about God and God’s kingdom. The truth about our Father’s goodness, the power in the name of Jesus, the power of the Resurrection, and the compassion of God are essential truths that will enable us to stand strong when we are in the crucible and may be tempted to doubt everything.

The Week at a Glance: What truths about God can help sustain us through even the worst situations?

Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, August 20.

Sunday–>

Amen!(2)

The post Sabbath: Seeing the Invisible appeared first on Sabbath School Net.

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/sabbath-seeing-invisible/