For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls. 1 Peter 2:25 KJV

The Bishop, or as some translations put it, “guardian” of our souls is Christ Himself. When I was a very young Bible worker, I worked in a three church district in Texas. The senior pastor and I rotated preaching at two churches one week and then the other one the next. I was wherever the senior pastor was not. One day I shared with a retired pastor that because of this I felt like I did not have a pastor. The retired pastor shared with me that Psalm 23:1 says,

The Lord is my shepherd

He explained to me that Christ was my pastor. I found later that in Spanish it reads,

Jehová es mi pastor…Salmo de David 23:1 Reina-Valera 1960 (RVR1960)

Image © Providence Collection from GoodSalt.com

Making it even more clear and literal that God is my pastor. Since that time I have learned to depend more on God and less on human pastors. When my sister and father and I met at my mother’s bed the night she died, we did not feel the need to call for a pastor to join us, for hope and comfort. God was with us that night. God was our pastor. He gave us all the hope and comfort we needed. 

I have found it interesting over the years, how certain churches react to not having a pastor for a while. Some churches are afraid to make any kind of a move without a pastor. Several months ago I was called to do Bible studies for baptism in a church that had no senior pastor. I performed the baptisms because the associate pastors of that church did not want to study or baptize anyone without a senior pastor. When I heard this I could not help remembering Ellen White’s response, when members wanted to delay a general conference meeting until the GC president could arrive. She said, 

God’s work waits for no man.- Ellen White, GCDB March 7, 1899 Page 161. 

I have seen another church holding Revelation Seminars and evangelistic meetings without a human pastor, as it continued to grow and flourish. As a matter of fact another church plant sprouted from these meetings, and the local elder of the church became the pastor of the church plant. Remember while the world wanders after the beast, God’s people are not following humans, they are following the Lamb wherever He goes. See Revelation 14:4. 

Jesus says, 

I am the vine, ye are the branches: John 15:5 KJV

The branches do not rely on the other branches for their nourishment. They rely on the vine. Likewise, when I was a new Bible Worker in that three church district, I had to rely on the Vine, which is Christ Himself, instead of relying on a human pastor, another branch for my spiritual nutrition. I had to let Christ be my pastor. Of course I still have pastor friends to counsel with. Proverbs 24:6 says there is safety in many counselors. Still, Isaiah 9:6 teaches me that  ultimately Christ is my Counselor. Psalm 23:1 tells me Christ is my pastor. Christ can be your pastor too. 

Amen!(0)

The post The Lord Is My Pastor appeared first on Sabbath School Net.

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/the-lord-is-my-pastor/

You can view an in-depth discussion of The Shepherd’s Crucible; in the Hope Sabbath School class led by Pastor Derek Morris. Click on the image to view: With thanks to Hope Channel – Television that will change your life.

Amen!(0)

The post 1: The Shepherd’s Crucible – HopeSS Video Discussion appeared first on Sabbath School Net.

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/1-the-shepherds-crucible-hopess-video-discussion/

Part 1: Possessed at 11

By Andrew McChesney

Sweat poured down 11-year-old Eduardo’s face as he raced his skateboard back and forth on the street outside his house on a hot summer morning.

“Eduardo Ferreira dos Santos!” Mother called. “Come in and take a shower before lunch.”

Perspiring and panting, Eduardo headed straight for the kitchen, forgetting the shower and thinking only about lunch. Eduardo ignored a stranger seated in the living room, waiting for her nails to be painted. Mother ran her own home business, a beauty salon offering manicures and haircuts.

Before Eduardo reached the kitchen, he was stopped by his 12-year-old sister. “Sit down and catch your breath,” she said.

Eduardo obediently plopped down onto a hallway chair. Immediately, an unholy shriek escaped his lips. His young body began to convulse. Mother rushed to the boy. A low, distorted voice spoke from Eduardo’s mouth, telling Mother to hand over her son or watch him die.

Mother began to cry. The stranger in the living room came up behind Mother. “Don’t worry,” she said. “Your son has been chosen to be part of our group. I am a Candomblé leader.”

Mother had heard about Candomblé, a religion that arrived in Brazil on slave ships from Africa in the early 19th century. Candomblé teaches that people can be possessed by the spirits of gods. The spirits, however, aren’t gods but fallen angels. Eduardo had been possessed by one of them, an evil spirit from a legion that surrounded the stranger.

After some time, the evil spirit left, and Eduardo returned to normal. He didn’t remember the incident, but Mother couldn’t forget, and she took him to the Candomblé temple. The temple priests welcomed Eduardo like a king.

“What an honor,” one said. “You have been handpicked,” said another.

Only 11, Eduardo was introduced to spiritism and devil worship. Over the next seven years, he spent much time at the temple, learning to be a priest. Evil spirits spoke to him and through him. The most important lesson, they said, was never to leave a job undone. If he started a task, he had to finish it.

As an adult, Eduardo became high priest of a temple. He earned money from people who wanted him to curse their enemies. But he couldn’t curse everyone. The evil spirits forbade him from placing curses on Seventh-day Adventists and other Protestant Christians. They are protected, the spirits said, adding that any attempt to curse them would cause Eduardo to lose his powers. The spirits also banned Eduardo from communicating with Adventists and other Protestants.

Eduardo found a common-law wife, Sidilene Silva de Oliveira, and they had a son, Eduardo Junior. Life was peaceful until the day Junior said he wanted to join the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Your Thirteenth Sabbath Offering will help open eight churches in the South American Division, including four in Brazil, where Eduardo Ferreira dos Santos and his family live.

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission. Find more mission stories at adventistmission[dot]org

Amen!(0)

The post Inside Story: South American Division ~ Part 1, Possessed at 11 appeared first on Sabbath School Net.

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/inside-story-south-american-division-part-1-possessed-at-11/

Further Thought:

Read Ellen G. White, “Missionaries in the Home,” p. 143, in Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4; “The Divine Shepherd,” Pages 476-484, in The Desire of Ages.

Image © Stan Myers from GoodSalt.com

“Those who are finally victorious will have seasons of terrible perplexity and trial in their religious life; but they must not cast away their confidence, for this is a part of their discipline in the school of Christ, and it is essential in order that all dross may be purged away. The servant of God must endure with fortitude the attacks of the enemy, his grievous taunts, and must overcome the obstacles which Satan will place in his way …

But if you keep looking up, not down at your difficulties, you will not faint in the way, you will soon see Jesus reaching His hand to help you, and you will only have to give Him your hand in simple confidence, and let Him lead you. As you become trustful, you will become hopeful … .

You will find help in Christ to form a strong, symmetrical, beautiful character. Satan cannot make of none effect the light shining forth from such a character … . God has given us His best gift, even His only-begotten Son, to uplift, ennoble, and fit us, by putting on us His own perfection of character, for a home in His kingdom.” — Ellen G. White, Messages to Young People, Pages 63, 64.

Discussion Questions:

<–Thursday

Amen!(1)

The post Friday: Further Thought ~ The Shepherd’s Crucible appeared first on Sabbath School Net.

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/friday-further-thought-shepherds-crucible/

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever” (Psalm 23:6, NKJV).

When we are in the valley or surrounded by enemies, it is sometimes tempting to believe that we have been left alone. It does not always feel as though God has been doing much; we reason that if He had been helping, we wouldn’t be in this situation to begin with. But David obviously does not see it like this.

In spite of his trials, what two things does David say in Psalm 23:6 that he is certain of? (See also Ephesians 1:4; 2 Peter 1:10; Hebrews 11:13-15.)

Image © Review & Herald Publishing at Goodsalt.com

Some translations say that goodness and unfailing love (God’s covenantal commitment) will “follow” me all the days of my life. However, the original verb is much stronger, and the verse should read that goodness and unfailing love will “pursue” me all the days of my life. (In fact, it’s the same Hebrew verb used in such verses as Genesis 14:14, Joshua 10:19, and 1 Samuel 25:29, where the idea of “pursuit” is very clear.)

What picture do you get in your mind if you imagine goodness and unfailing love “pursuing” you? What do you think David meant to tell us about God by describing His care for us this way?

No matter how deep the valley or how persistent the enemies, the certainty of God’s goodness and unfailing love and the certainty of His guidance to the very end of our journey is unquestionable. If these thoughts could sustain Jesus through Calvary, we should take heart, as well.

There are times, however, when those we care for are full of questions. Like David, the best way to address these concerns is often not with a theological description of what God can do. Rather, as David shows us in Psalm 23:6, it is through an affirmation, the sharing of a personal conviction, of the truth about our God.

<–Wednesday Friday–>

Amen!(0)

The post Thursday: A Certain Promise for the Journey appeared first on Sabbath School Net.

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/thursday-certain-promise-for-journey/