View an in-depth discussion of To Know God in the Hope Sabbath School class led by Pastor Derek Morris.
Click on the image below to view the video:
With thanks to Hope Channel – Television that will change your life.
Closer To Heaven
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By admin
View an in-depth discussion of To Know God in the Hope Sabbath School class led by Pastor Derek Morris.
Click on the image below to view the video:
With thanks to Hope Channel – Television that will change your life.
By admin
Photo by Emmanuel Phaeton on Unsplash
Several months ago, I had a “God moment,” which sent tingles down my spine. I was driving while my Pandora was playing Cece Winans’ “The Goodness of God.” In the middle of the song, a friend called, pausing it. He was talking about his work situation, which we had been praying over, and how God had miraculously taken care of it, leaving him in a wonderful place. We rejoiced together and then prayed again, thanking God for His goodness as I continued driving with my eyes open. We both hung up, and the song “The Goodness of God” continued as our praises still echoed in my heart. That phone call could not have been more perfectly timed, right in the middle of the song.
In the last days, God is seeking to get people’s attention. How does He do this?
But afterward the people will return and devote themselves to the Lord their God and to David’s descendant, their king. In the last days, they will tremble in awe of the Lord and of his goodness. Hosea 3:5 NLT
God does not seek to make men tremble in awe of fire and brimstone preaching, but rather at His goodness. As God’s last-day people, we need to make note of this, especially as we prepare people for the soon-coming of Jesus.
The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent. 2 Peter 3:9 NLT
So how do we lead people to repent in preparation for Jesus’ soon coming?
Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin? Romans 2:4 NLT
Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? Romans 2:4 MKJV
It is the kindness and goodness of God that will lead people to repentance and preparation for the second coming in the last days.
No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us.1 John 4:12 NLT
It is up to God’s people to express to the world the true character of God, which is why all of our Bible teachings are rooted in the light of the cross.
The sacrifice of Christ as an atonement for sin is the great truth around which all other truths cluster. In order to be rightly understood and appreciated, every truth in the word of God, from Genesis to Revelation, must be studied in the light that streams from the cross of Calvary. I present before you the great, grand monument of mercy and regeneration, salvation and redemption,—the Son of God uplifted on the cross. This is to be the foundation of every discourse given by our ministers.-Ellen White, Gospel Workers, Page 315.
The goodness of God and the light of the cross must be seen in God’s people, not only while giving a formal discourse or sermon, but in all of our dealings with others.
It is the darkness of misapprehension of God that is enshrouding the world. Men are losing their knowledge of His character. It has been misunderstood and misinterpreted. At this time a message from God is to be proclaimed, a message illuminating in its influence and saving in its power. His character is to be made known. Into the darkness of the world is to be shed the light of His glory, the light of His goodness, mercy, and truth…;
The last rays of merciful light, the last message of mercy to be given to the world, is a revelation of His character of love. –Ellen White, Chirst Object Lessons, Page 415.
As God’s last day people, it is our sacred duty and honor to make sure that in every sermon we preach, in every errand we run for our neighbor, in each and every task we complete, the world will see the goodness of God that will lead them to repentance and preparation for Jesus’ soon coming.
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Daily Lesson for Wednesday 8th of April 2026
You probably know from memory the first words in the Bible: “In the beginning God.” In Hebrew, the word for God here is Elohim. Although this word can be used when talking about false “gods,” when it refers to the one true God, it describes an almighty, all-powerful Creator in connection with the whole of creation; the transcendent God who is beyond our understanding but in control of everything. He is so powerful that when He speaks, something is created just from His voice.
But in the next chapter, Genesis 2:1-25, there appears a different name for God: Yahweh. This name connects to Elohim (Yahweh Elohim), the same all-powerful, almighty God; but the name Yahweh is the more personal name of the one true God, often used to emphasize that God is the covenant God, in loving relation with His created people.
In Genesis 2:7, we can imagine God kneeling to form the first human being out of the ground with His own hands. “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.” This is a God who gets close—so close that He breathes into Adam’s nostrils the breath of life. This name, Yahweh, presents a more intimate picture of God, but Moses uses both names in the first two chapters of the Bible to describe these two characteristics of God to us.
How astonishing! We see here God’s transcendence to us as Elohim, and His immanence, His closeness to us, as Yahweh. How good for us to think of both of these aspects of God’s character: His overall control of everything and His nearness to us. As Paul said to the Athenians on Mars Hill: “ ‘He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and have our being’ ” (Acts 17:27-28, NKJV).
It’s important that we continue to seek a clear, balanced picture of God based on what the Bible tells us about God’s character in order to grow in a relationship with Him. This is why it’s important to read all parts of the Bible rather than focusing on only one portion. Truly, the more we learn about the character of God, the more we will learn to love Him.
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Read as Elihu describes some of God’s attributes in Job 36:24-33 and Job 37:1-24. Then read God’s declaration of His omnipotence in Job 38:1-41 and 39. What do these passages reveal to us about God? |
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Daily Lesson for Tuesday 7th of April 2026
Love is perhaps the most common word used by Christians to describe God’s character. This could be because of the identity statement about God in 1 John 4:8, which says, “God is love.” John doesn’t say, “God is loving,” but rather, “God is love.” Love is His character, the very essence of who He is.
For many people, their picture of God emerges from their human definition of love, which is always distorted and imperfect. Instead, our very definition of love should be shaped by who God is and what He reveals about Himself in His inspired Word.
What does 1 John 4:7-19 explain to us about love?
God’s love is perfect, free, and deeply relational, as revealed in the repeated invitation to “abide” in Him in 1 John, because “we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him” (1 John 4:16, NKJV). God is love, and He created us in His image (Genesis 1:27) to love and to desire love. In Hebrew, one major word for love is ḥ__esed. This describes God’s covenant love for humanity, which encompasses traits of loyalty, protectiveness, steadfastness, and tenderness.
The ancient languages of Hebrew and Greek use many different names to refer to God, names whose meanings capture and shed light on different aspects of God’s beautiful character. Here are just two examples:
• Adonai: The Lord of all, who reigns forever, in reference to the covenant (Genesis 15:2, Judges 6:15, Malachi 1:6, Psalms 97:5).
• Yahweh-Yireh: The-Lord-Will-Provide (Genesis 22:13-14, NKJV).
Ultimately, the greatest expression of God’s love is revealed through the gift of His Son to this earth (John 3:16) who died for sinners (Romans 5:8). God could have withheld this from humanity, yet because of His magnanimous, radical, supremely altruistic love, God sent Jesus to earth so that we might freely choose to respond to His love, revealed in His substitutionary death on our behalf. Not only did Jesus bridge the separation that sin has brought between us and God (Isaiah 59:1-2), He lived to show us God’s perfect character of love (John 14:9, Hebrews 1:3) and to draw all people to Himself (John 12:32).
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Many of God’s names capture His holiness and love at their core. Read 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 _(NKJV)_, and in every case, replace the word “love” with “God.” How does this expand your understanding of God’s character? If you were to place your name where it says “love,” how well would that fit you? |
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Daily Lesson for Monday 6th of April 2026
Holiness is not a word that most people use very often in their everyday language, perhaps because there are so few holy things around us and about us. The Sabbath is a holy day in time, and God is, of course, holy. Apart from God, our everyday lives lack holiness.
If you do a study into the attributes most often associated with God’s character, you’ll discover that holiness is at the center of who God is. But what does that mean?
When the Bible describes God as the epitome of holiness, it means that He is completely void of and completely separated from evil and sin. God is 100 percent good from beginning to end. In this sense, God’s holiness is central to all His other attributes.
For example, God’s love is a pure, holy love—a love that is completely free from all selfishness and egotistic motives. His omniscience (all-knowing) is holy omniscience, meaning it is free from evil intentions. Would we trust an omniscient God if He weren’t holy? Of course not! We would be afraid of Him, and rightly so.
God’s omnipotence (being all-powerful) is holy omnipotence. Imagine a God who is omnipotent but not holy. He could be a powerful, evil tyrant. Only God’s holiness allows and enables us to really love Him, because He is good from beginning to end. This is why holiness is perhaps the most important characteristic to understand about God’s character. Yet, perhaps, it is one of the most misunderstood, as well.
Think about Bible characters such as Moses, Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, and John who came into God’s presence. What was their first response? They removed their shoes, hid their faces, or fell down as though dead. As human beings, we are sinful and so unholy that we can’t bear to stand in God’s presence. Any human who looks at God’s face will not live. Similarly, when Ellen G. White went into vision, she often cried “Glory . . . glory . . . glory” because it was the one word that seemed to most capture what she saw. And, of course, the four living creatures do not rest day or night without saying, “ ‘Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!’ ” (Revelation 4:8, NKJV).
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Truly, God is pure holiness, and when we come to Him, we must see Him as such. How does knowing this inspire you? In what ways does this challenge you regarding your own character? |
