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.

Image © Review & Herald Publishing at Goodsalt.com

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.

<–Tuesday Thursday–>

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/26b-02-god-in-creation/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=26b-02-god-in-creation

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.

Image © Jim Howard at Goodsalt.com

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).

<–Monday Wednesday–>

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/26b-02-god-is-love/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=26b-02-god-is-love

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.

Image © Lifeway Collection at Goodsalt.com

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).

<–Sunday Tuesday–>

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/26b-02-god-is-holy/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=26b-02-god-is-holy

Prepared by William Earnhardt for Sabbath School class on April 11, 2026.

Photograph by William Earnhardt

Central Theme: God is Love. The more we know and experience God, the more we know and experience Love.

Read in Class: Genesis 3:1-5. Ask the class to name the key thought in this passage.

Study: What was Satan’s goal in his conversation with Eve? What lies did he tell Eve about God’s character?

Apply: How is God’s character misrepresented in our world? More importantly, how might the church, at times, have misrepresented His character to others? If you have, what can you do to change with the Holy Spirit’s help? How can you show God’s love to the people around you?

Share: Your friend asks, “Why would Jesus always tell the demons to be quiet when they would say He was the Son of God? He was the Son of God after all.” What do you tell your friend? See, should Hide who we are?

Read in Class: Leviticus 11:45 and 1 John 4:17-19. Ask the class if there is a common thread among these passages.

Study: What do these passages tell us about who God is, and what love and holiness are?

Apply: 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?

Share: Since God is love. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 describes God as well as love. Let’s share an experiment together. Let’s read 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, and replace the word with our own names, and see how it reads.

Read in Class: Genesis 1:1 and Genesis 2:7. Ask the class to identify the common thread in these passages.

Study: Compare the descriptions of God in these passages. What do you notice?

Apply: Read as Elihu describes some of God’s attributes in Job 36:24-33. Then read God’s declaration of His omnipotence in Job 38:1-11. What do these passages reveal to us about God?

Share: Your friend asks, “Out of all the different attributes you have learned about God, which ones have had the greatest impact on your understanding of His character?” What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: John 14:9, Matthew 1:23, and Matthew 28:20.

Study: How would these passages help you explain what God is like to a non-Christian?

Apply: Many people have a distorted picture of God, which Jesus came to correct. What can you do to share a clear, accurate picture of God’s character to those in your sphere of influence?

Share: Your friend asks, “When Jesus said, ‘ If you have seen me, you have seen the Father, did He mean that He is the Father?” What do you tell your friend?

Mission: With a family member or friend, read or listen to Steps to Christ, chapter 1, and discuss it together. What new insights about God’s character and Jesus has this chapter made you think about?

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/2-to-know-god-sabbath-school-lesson-teaching-plan/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=2-to-know-god-sabbath-school-lesson-teaching-plan

Growing in a Relationship With God has many wonderful steps in it. There are several beautiful hymns from which to choose as a theme due to all the changes that come along when we grow in our relationship with God. On page 31 we see that “the most powerful weapon is prayer” to help us through our growing times. Therefore, we will wish to sing 
Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus – Hymn 290 to keep learning every minute of the day in our journey. To help with this journey, Lord, 
Give Me The Bible – Hymn 272 to instruct even more with the Holy Spirit encouraging along the way: 
Hover O’er Me, Holy Spirit – Hymn 260.

I Know Whom I Have Believed – Hymn 511 comes out of our Memory Text for this week.

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.”

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/2-to-know-god-singing-with-inspiration/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=2-to-know-god-singing-with-inspiration