The studies in this quarter’s pamphlet encourage us to see God’s Love and Justice, just as we may sing in
Hymn 79 – O Love of God, How Strong and True! which is a beautiful theme hymn for our studies.

Rather than the fake gods that we read a lot about this week while studying, it is wonderful to be able worship our Creator God by singing 
Hymn 6 – O Worship The Lord and 
Hymn 83 – O Worship The King.

A part of a sentence in Sunday’s study caught my eye, “God works only by love”, and brings us several hymns that echo throughout the week:
Hymn 77 – O Love Of God Most Full,
Hymn 78 – For God So Loved The World,
Hymn 79 – O Love Of God, How Strong And True!,
Hymn 354 – Thy Love, O God, and
Hymn 641 – God In His Love For Us.

Later in the week, we are encouraged to look at just two of the many factors to open “up avenues for divine action that otherwise might not be (morally) available”:
Hymn 517 – My Faith Looks Up To Thee,
Hymn 523 – My Faith Has Found A Resting Place,
Hymn 533 – O For a Faith,
Hymn 602 – O Brother, Be Faithful, and
Hymn 608 – Faith Is The Victory.

Please continue to search the scriptures this week to be blessed, and to bless others.

To learn unknown hymns, you will find the accompaniment music for each one at: https://sdahymnals.com/Hymnal/

Another great resource is for when there is a hymn you wish to sing but can’t find it in your hymnal. Go to https://www.sdahymnal.org/Search and in the search bar type a special word in that is in the hymn. I am sure you will be amazed at the help you will be given.

2 Timothy 2:15 KJV – “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/10-rules-of-engagement-singing-with-inspiration/

Key Thought : Satan is limited hby God in his rulership. He is an illegitimate ruler, especially from the standpoint of his character..
March 8, 2025

1. Have a volunteer read Daniel 10:1-14.

1. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the most important point is in this passage.
2. What do these verses teach about the cosmic conflict?
3. Personal Application: Have you experienced trying to work through principles of love and not coercion? Share your thoughts.
4. Case Study: One of your relatives states, Why did the angel get withstood 21 days? Why didn’t God’s angel immediately get the king of Persia to begin the process of delivering God’s people? How would you respond to your relative?

2. Have a volunteer read Revelation 13:1-8.

1. Ask class members to share a thought on what the most important point in this text is.
2. What does this reveal about the extent of the dragon’s jurisdiction?
3. Personal Application: Why is it important that we never forget that good will triumph over evil in the end? Share your thoughts.
4. Case Study: One of your friends states, “If a person is Satan’s lawful captive, does that mean he can do whatever he wants with that person? Does he have complete control? If not, why not?” How would you respond to your friend?

3. Have a volunteer read Job 1:1-12. 2:1-7.

1. Ask class members to share a short thought on what the most important point in this text is.
2. What principles of the great controversy do we see here?
3. Personal Application: How does Jesus calling Satan the ruler of this world help us understand the evil that is in the world? Share your thoughts.
4. Case Study: One of your neighbors states: “Why was Satan included in this counsel meeting of the sons of God? Why did God ask Satan where he came from?” How would you respond to your neighbor?

4. Have a volunteer read Mark 6:5, 9:29.

1. Ask class members to share a thought on what the most important point in this text is.
2. How do these verses show even God’s action might be related to things like faith and prayer?
3. Personal Application: How do you respond to those who deny the existence of Satan as a real, personal being? 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).

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/10-rules-of-engagement-teaching-plan/

Daily Lesson for Sunday 2nd of March 2025

As we have seen, the false “gods” of the nations were demons in disguise. And elsewhere we see evidence that demonic celestial rulers are sometimes behind earthly rulers. Even angelic agents sent by God can be opposed by the forces of the enemy.

Image © Review & Herald Publishing at Goodsalt.com

How could it be that an angel sent by God could be “withstood” for three weeks? Being all-powerful, God possessed the power to respond to Daniel immediately—that is, had He chosen to. If He exercised His power to do so, He could make an angel appear to Daniel right away. Yet, the angel sent by God was “withstood” by the “prince of the kingdom of Persia” for three entire weeks. What is going on here?

“For three weeks Gabriel wrestled with the powers of darkness, seeking to counteract the influences at work on the mind of Cyrus. . . . All that heaven could do in behalf of the people of God was done. The victory was finally gained; the forces of the enemy were held in check all the days of Cyrus, and all the days of his son Cambyses.”—Ellen G. White, Prophets and Kings, p. 572.

In order for such a conflict to transpire, God must not be exercising all of His power. The enemy must be afforded some genuine freedom and power that is not removed capriciously but is restricted by some parameters known to both parties (the details of which are not revealed to us). It seems there must be parameters in the cosmic conflict that even God’s angels are operating within, which in the coming lessons will be referred to as the “rules of engagement.”

In a certain sense, understanding these limits might not be hard if we grasp the idea, already talked about, that God works only by love, and that love, not coercion, is the foundation of His government. This idea, that God works only through the principles emanating from love, can help us better understand the great controversy.

<–Sabbath Monday–>

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/25a-10-an-angel-delayed/

Daily Lesson for Sabbath 1st of March 2025

Image © Pacific Press

Read for This Week’s Study: Daniel 10:1-14, Revelation 13:1-8, Job 1:1-12, Job 2:1-7, John 12:31, John 14:30, Mark 6:5, Mark 9:29.

Memory Text:

“He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8, NKJV).

A powerful narrative that reveals the nature of the cosmic conflict can be found in 1 Kings 18:19-40, Elijah on Mount Carmel, where the Lord exposes the so-called “gods of the nations.” Yet, there is more behind the scenes about these “gods” than that they are mere figments of pagan imagination. Behind the “gods” that the nations surrounding Israel thought they were worshiping was, actually, something else.

“ ‘They sacrificed to demons, not to God, to gods they did not know, to new gods, new arrivals that your fathers did not fear’ ” (Deuteronomy 32:17, NKJV). Paul adds, “The things which the Gentiles sacrifice they sacrifice to demons and not to God, and I do not want you to have fellowship with demons” (1 Corinthians 10:20, NKJV).

Behind the false “gods” of the nations, then, were actually demons in disguise. This means, then, that all of the texts of Scripture dealing with idolatry and the foreign gods are “cosmic conflict” texts.

With this background, the cosmic conflict theme is better understood. And this truth has massive implications for understanding more about the nature of this conflict and how it sheds light on the problem of evil.

*Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, March 8.

Sunday–>

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/25a-10-rules-of-engagement/

Inside Story for Friday 28th of February 2025

By Andrew McChesney

The Zoom call just wouldn’t go through.

“It’s not working!” Matrona exclaimed.

Over her phone, Colette could hear Matrona typing and retyping the Zoom password on a facility computer.

Image © Pacific Press

It was a call that they had attempted many times that week. Matrona was among many Alaska Native children living in facilities and foster homes in Alaska, and she was eager to get acquainted with Colette.

She tried the password again. “It’s not working!” she cried.

“It’s OK,” Colette said.

“It’s not OK! I want to try again,” Matrona said.

When it still didn’t work, Colette suggested they talk on the phone instead.

Colette Reahl, a Seventh-day Adventist pediatrician in Anchorage, was eager to get acquainted with Matrona, too. An Alaska Native girl, Matrona was eligible for adoption at a facility in Fairbanks, located 360 miles away.

Matrona reluctantly agreed to talk by phone. The first question she asked was, “What are your house rules?”

“That is something we can talk about more when you get to the house,” Colette said. “But respect is pretty big in my house.”

Matrona quizzed Colette for the next 30 minutes. At the end of the conversation, she said, “You know, my foster mom is going to adopt me, right?”

Colette, a Florida native who had lived with her husband in Alaska for eight years, had not known that. She thought, Matrona is so interesting, and she has such a huge personality. This is going to be an adventure!

From her side, Matrona knew that Colette was looking to adopt, but she didn’t want to get hurt. So, she made it difficult for Colette to get close.

Colette asked how often she could call, and Matrona proposed once a week on Tuesdays. But when Colette called, Matrona wasn’t available or didn’t answer. They changed the time to Thursdays and then to Saturdays.

Colette sensed that Matrona was annoyed, but she couldn’t understand why. She decided to keep calling every week whether Matrona wanted to talk or not. As she kept calling with unconditional love, Matrona’s heart began to thaw.

This mission story offers an inside look at a previous Thirteenth Sabbath project. Pediatrician Colette Reahl is also coleader of Bethel (Alaska) Seventh-day Adventist Church, which received part of a 2024 Thirteenth Sabbath Offering. Thank you for helping spread the gospel with this quarter’s Thirteenth Sabbath Offering on March 29. Read more about Colette and Matrona next week.

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/25a-09-inside-story-the-persistent-caller-part-1/