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Old Testament Books

We are also pleased to announce that we now have lessons on all of the Books of the Old Testament completed. Although not exhaustive, these lessons examine the central ideas of each Old Testament Book with practical application to today.

Genesis: God's Book of Beginnings

The Gospel of Christ

The Bible says, "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth," Genesis 1:1. Welcome you to our study of Old Testament Books. In this series of lessons, we're going to be surveying the books of the Old Testament to help us gain a deeper knowledge into God and His will and His truths that we find in the Old Testament. Someone may initially think, "Why study the Old Testament?" Do you remember Romans 15:4? The Bible says, "The things that were written before time were written for our learning that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might find hope." The Old Testament tells us about God and His dealing with man and the early days of man and God's plan throughout the ages, and there's a lot of hope that we find in there from God. That's why we're going to focus on the Old Testament studies. Today, we're thinking about the very first book in the Old Testament. The beginning and the origin of everything is laid out in the book of Genesis. In fact, we might label the book of Genesis as "The Book of Beginnings". The keyword and the whole idea that it starts off with is the beginning and thus God will say in the very opening line, "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." The book of Genesis is a book of beginnings. It answers man's most fundamental questions: Where did we come from? How did we get here? What are we doing here? All the questions that so many times people struggle with are very clearly answered in the book of Genesis. (The full transcript is available in the "Download Document" button above.)

Exodus: "The Way Out"

The Gospel of Christ

In Exodus 1:8, we're told "There arose a new king or new Pharaoh over Egypt who did not know Joseph, and as a result, God's people are now going to suffer over that.” Welcome to our study of the Book of Exodus in our Old Testament Book Series. The Book of Exodus in the Old Testament, the second book in the Old Testament accounts, further accounts God's dealing with Israel working toward, ultimately, bringing Christ into the world. The word exodus literally means exodos: the way out or the road out. God's people based on the teaching of Exodus 1:8 are now, because the new Pharaoh arises who doesn't know or recognize Joseph and doesn't remember or care about how God's people saved the Egyptians a new Pharaoh is now going to arise. He's going to bring God's people into bondage and as a result, God is going to raise up a deliverer, and God is going to further separate His people as His own chosen people. That He will ultimately work through for our salvation. (The full transcript is available in the "Download Document" button above.)

Leviticus: Holiness to the Lord

The Gospel of Christ

In the book of Leviticus, God says, "You shall therefore consecrate yourself and be holy for I the Lord your God am holy." Leviticus 11-44. Welcome you to our study of the Old Testament books as we're thinking today about the wonderful book of Leviticus. As we mentioned our study in the Old Testament is designed to encourage us about God about the principles of God and His dealings with man and ultimately point us toward God's way of salvation that started even way back in the Old Testament and is fulfilled in Jesus Christ. We want to encourage you to have your Bible handy. (The full transcript is available in the "Download Document" button above.)

Numbers: The Wanderings of God's People

The Gospel of Christ

And the people of Israel brought back a bad report to Moses and they said this, "We were like grasshoppers our own sight and so we were in theirs also," Numbers 13:32-33. Welcome to our study of the Old Testament books. We're thinking about the lessons, practical lessons today, from the book of Numbers. We're thinking about the wonderful book of Numbers- the following of God's people's journey toward the Promised Land. It kind of hit a speed bump in the Book of Exodus with their complaining and murmuring, and now in the Book of Numbers, it's going to hit a very large speedbump along the way to the Promised Land. (The full transcript is available in the "Download Document" button above.)

Deuteronomy: Second Law

The Gospel of Christ

Moses said to that new generation, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your strength, Deuteronomy 6:5. Welcome you today to our study of the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy. That big word, Deuteronomy, breaks down into really two English words, which are pretty simple. It just means law again, or second law. To the new generation, separate from those whose bodies perished in the wilderness because of sin that new generation is now being raised up. Everyone 20 years old and above who survived, they need to hear God's law again, just like the prior generation did in Exodus 20 following and yet with the hope that they will give more heed to the Word of God. And so the Law of God, the Law of Moses is going to be given again to this new generation in the book of Deuteronomy and the hope is that they will listen and obey that law and that they will hear and listen to God's statutes . The book of Deuteronomy breaks down pretty easily into three categories throughout the book. In chapters one through four, we have, what we refer to as kind of a historical section. Tells everything of history-wise up to that point and recounts some of God's dealings with Israel. Then chapters five through 26 are the legal section or the legislative section of the book, where God is going to recount his laws to this new generation. Then chapters 27 through 34, we have where we might say a prophetic section. God is going to give certain blessings and cursings and tell certain things that are going to transpire, if the people will follow and adhere to God's Law. (The full transcript is available in the "Download Document" button above.)

Joshua: Courage Entering Canaan

The Gospel of Christ

In Joshua 1:7, the Bible says: 'Only be very strong and courageous, and observe to do all the law that I have commanded you.' Welcome to our study of the Book of Joshua. Joshua is such a wonderful book that tells us about the people of God, coming into the land of Canaan, receiving that Promised Land that God has blessed them with, and ultimately the great leadership of Joshua himself. In this lesson, we're thinking about one of the more powerful books in the Old Testament, and that is the book of Joshua. That great promise that God gave to Israel going back to Genesis chapter 12, where they would receive the Promised Land blessing as well as the blessing promise that would come through the seed, God is now fulfilling that promise to give them the Canaan land. When we think about the history of Israel, we've got this period of Joshua through Esther, which tells us the continued history of Israel. This section will cover nearly a thousand years in history, and really there are three types of government that we find. We have a theocracy, where God is ruling as king, everything is going well as long as they realize God is king. Then there is a monarchy, where God will allow them, they asked for a king and God gives them one, but it was never his will. And then of course there is captivity, in the books of Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, and some of the chronicles as well we learn about that. (The full transcript is available in the "Download Document" button above.)

The Cycle of Judges

The Gospel of Christ

Toward the end of the book of Judges, we're told a very important key about the problems that keep rising up. The Bible says in Judges 21:25, ‘In those days, there was no king in Israel. Every man did what was right in his own eyes.’ If you ever want to see anarchy at work, the book of Judges deals with that a great bit. In this lesson we're thinking about a very dark time, probably some of the darkest days in Israel's history are found in the book of Judges. There are some very important keys to help us understand what's going on in this book. As we mentioned, the key idea to the ultimate downfall in these dark days in Israel's history is found in Judges 17:6, and Judges 21:25. The Word of God records this for us. ‘In those days, in the days of the judges, there was no king in Israel. Every man did that which was right in his own eyes.’ It isn't just the fact that Israel was living in an anarchic society that is that everybody was their own law unto themselves, but did you hear that statement in the first of Judges 21:25? ‘In those days, there was no king in Israel.’ The problem is not that they didn't have a human king. The problem is Israel had tried to dethrone God. Not even God was their king anymore. They were living immorally, they were living like the heathen nations around them. Oftentimes they would get freedom from their oppressors, and their lives will begin to be blessed, and they'll forget about God, and they're living, they're living a life without God is the problem. God is not at the center anymore, and thus they're living for their own selfish desires. Keywords are anarchy and confusion. They are confused and often oppressed by their enemies because they're living a life of anarchy. (The full transcript is available in the "Download Document" button above.)

Ruth: The Power of Influence

The Gospel of Christ

Welcome to our study of the book of Ruth. Ruth is a really bright spot in the dark days of the judges of Israel. It is such a practical book that teaches us powerful lessons about influence, and great practical lessons we can apply to Christianity today. Ruth is a great, practical lesson about the power of influence. It is a lesson about overcoming the challenges and obstacles that may be out in front of you. It points us toward Christ in the scheme of redemption as well in the book of Ruth. (The full transcript is available in the "Download Document" button above.)

1 Samuel: Give Us a King!

The Gospel of Christ

And the people said, "Give us a king to judge us," 1 Samuel 8:5. Welcome to our study of the book of 1 Samuel. We encourage you to locate your Bible and have it handy because we're going to look to the word of God together in our study of 1 Samuel. The books of the Old Testament, 1 and 2 Samuel and 1 and 2 Kings are a lot about the history of Israel, but I don't want us to get lost in just that history. For the Bible says in Romans 15:4, "The things that were written before time for our learning that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might find hope." That passage teaches us that the Old Testament, and many of the great lessons like some of those we're going to be mentioning, are designed to help us learn lessons about God, about God's dealings with man, and about ourself and our relationship with almighty God. (The full transcript is available in the "Download Document" button above.)

2 Samuel: The Rule & Reign of King David

The Gospel of Christ

In Acts 13:22 the word of God describes David as a man after God's own heart. Welcome you today to our study of 2 Samuel. 2 Samuel is all about the rule and reign of one of God's greatest Kings, King David. Many people look up to David as a great hero of the Bible and we've all heard the great stories of King David. Have your Bible handy as we're going to look to the word of God in our study of 2 Samuel to learn practical lessons that we can apply to everyday Christianity. As we think today, about 2 Samuel, this is in many ways, an encouraging book as we're going to see some of the great things David does, who is, as we mentioned, described, as a man after God's own heart. We also realize in this book, that like us, David wasn't perfect. He made mistakes, but he came back from that sin to serve God faithfully and that serves as an encouragement to us as well. (The full transcript is available in the "Download Document" button above.)

1 Kings: The Kingdom of Solomon

The Gospel of Christ

When God said to Solomon, ‘Ask whatever you want and I'll give it to you.’ How wonderful it was to hear Solomon say, ‘Give your servant an understanding heart that I may know how to judge between this people,’ 1 Kings 3:9. Welcome to our study of the book of 1 Kings. As we look to the history of Israel today, I want to encourage you to get your Bible and have it ready as we're going to look to the word of God to learn some very practical lesson from this time in Israel's history known as 1 Kings. As we think today about the great book of 1 Kings, much of this is going to encompass the reign of Solomon, David's son. Solomon had so much good, so much potential, and started out with the right heart-but things got in Solomon's way and things tempted him to go the wrong way. In the book of 1 Kings, we're mainly dealing with what we refer to as the United Kingdom. Basically, in the book of 1 and 1 Samuel we've got Saul reigning for 40 years. Then along in 2 Samuel, you'll have David, who's going to reign for 40 years as well. Then as we turn to 1 Kings, you now have Solomon, who's also going to reign for about 40 years. (The full transcript is available in the "Download Document" button above.)

2 Kings: The Downfall of Israel

The Gospel of Christ

In Hosea 13:11, God said, "I gave them a King in my anger. I took him away in my wrath." As we study the book of 2 Kings, we're now going to see Israel's downfall through their Kings coming to fruition. It was never God's intent, although He could work through it, for Israel to dethrone him. They did that on their own. Now the kingdom of Israel and its downfall and captivity is going to be seen in the book of 2 Kings. We welcome you to our study today. We want to encourage you to locate your Bible and have it handy as we're going to look to the word of God in our study today. As we think today about 2 Kings, we're going to look at the purpose of 2 Kings, but just as well, we want to look at some of the practical lessons we can learn along the way. What is 2 Kings all about? 2 Kings as we have suggested, is about the downfall and ultimate captivity of Israel due to their following the King often and the nations around them and their unwillingness to follow God. (The full transcript is available in the "Download Document" button above.)

1 Chronicles: The Righteous Reign of David

April 20, 2022 • The Gospel of Christ

‘Give the Lord the glory due His name, worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness,’ 1 Chronicles 16:29. Welcome to our study of the wonderful book of 1 Chronicles. We're thinking about the wonderful book in the Old Testament of 1 Chronicles. 1 Chronicles is unique in that it spans a lot of history in the Old Testament. In Hebrew history, 1 Chronicles takes us from Adam all the way to Solomon. That's a lot of years that it covers there. And yet, really the main purpose of 1 Chronicles is to show us the righteous reign of good king David. Some of the keywords that we find in this book are the words, ‘worship’ or ‘praise’. David has a heart to serve God, to worship Him, and to praise Him. We see that probably in what is one of the key verses that indicate this. Notice with me 1 Chronicles 16:29. This is such a beautiful verse, where David is praising God and giving Him glory. David says, "Give to the Lord, the glory due His name. Bring an offering and come before Him. Oh, worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness." Give the Lord the glory. God is worthy of our praise and our worship. Look at all that God does for me and you in this life. He provides for our every need, helps us with our difficulties, and encourages us through His word. We have the promises and the hope of heaven and the family of God. (The full transcript is available in the "Download Document" button above.)

2 Chronicles: From Solomon to Captivity

April 20, 2022 • The Gospel of Christ

God said, "If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves, will pray and will seek me, I'll forgive their sin, I'll heal their land," 2 Chronicle 7:14. Welcome to our study of the beautiful book of 2 Chronicles, a great book of restoration and worship. The ideas that we find are the dramatic revival that's going to occur through some of the good kings that are found in 2 Chronicles. (Download the full transcript of this lesson below)

Ezra: Let the Restoration Begin

April 20, 2022 • The Gospel of Christ

"Ezra prepared his heart to seek the Law of the Lord, to do it and to teach its statutes and judgments in all Israel," Ezra 7:10. Welcome to our study of the book of Ezra. Ezra is one of those books where we see God, His people, and God working with them coming back together. They’re united with one heart to serve, praise, and put Him and His teachings first. (The full transcript is available in the "Download Document" button above.)