Written by David Self Monday, 09 January :00 - Last Updated Wednesday, 28 December :52

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1 Explore the Bible Lesson Preview January 15, 2017 Value All Background: Proverbs 24, Mark 10 Lesson: Proverbs 24:10-12; Mark 10: Motivation: Once a year on Sanctity of Human Life Sunday, a special lesson is taught in all Southern Baptist Churches. From Senior Adults to Single Adults, all of us need to be reminded that the value of life is not primarily a political debate, but is rather a Biblical issue. Is a baby a gift from God or just a piece of tissue? Don t be faint hearted in your teaching because some people think the word abortion is best talked about in courts and Congress. Christians have a responsibility to understand the issue from the Bible s teaching. I. A Warning Against Inaction If you do nothing in a difficult time, your strength is limited If you say, But we didn t know about this, won t He who weighs hearts consider it? Won t He who protects your life know? Won t He repay a person according to his work? (Proverbs 24:10) John F. Kennedy while still a US Senator put it this way Dante once said that the hottest places in hell are reserved for those who in a period of moral crisis maintain their neutrality, While the quotation reflects Dante s views to some extent in the Inferno section of The Divine Comedy, it does not appear exactly as quoted. However, Proverbs 24:10, JFK and James seem to agree on the same principle So it is a sin for the person who knows to do what is good and doesn t do it. (James 4:17) your strength is limited may suggest loss of influence, diminished courage or an inability to appropriate Holy Spirit power due to disobedience. In any case, there are key moments when neutrality is not an option for a Christian. HCSB: p.1070: 1 / 6

2 24:10-12 To do nothing is literally to go slack. A difficult time is literally a time of restriction (Hb tsarah ). To be limited is literally to be restricted (Hb tsar ). So to avoid losing strength, act. Death could be physical or spiritual death or any other misfortune, whether they are being taken off by others or they are stumbling toward disaster on their own (Ps 82:4; Is 58:6-7). Those who are not on the way of wisdom are on a path to disaster and need to be saved) Pr 10:17; 12:28; 14:12; 15:24). To deny knowledge is futile because God weighs hearts (21:12; Ps 44:21). Inactivity is complicity (Ezk 3:17-18). God can withdraw His protection to repay a person for his sin. II. Call to Protect Life Rescue those being taken off to death, and save those stumbling toward slaughter. (P roverbs 24:11) Explore the Bible Commentary (Winter, 2004), p. 74: What the Hebrew midwives provide for us in the form of an example (Exodus 1:1-21), Proverbs 24:11 provides in the form of a command. Rescue those being taken off to death is an imperative, which is precisely what the Hebrew midwives did when they saved the male babies. Save those stumbling toward slaughter is even more graphic. Both of these commands assume the one being killed is innocent. The term translated slaughter comes from a word implying ruthless violence. Some people think of abortion as a benign, 2 / 6

3 minor surgical procedure that harms no one. It harms the baby. Even from the moment of conception, the baby is already a he or she and contains all the genetic information he or she will ever have or need. Hair color, gender, eye color, and so forth have already been determined. Those cells form a developing human being, and to dispose of that person is to do violence to one who is innocent. (Ps. 51:5; 2 Tim. 3:3) For Christians what settles this issue is not only science but Scripture. God told Jeremiah He called him to be a prophet while still in his mother s womb (Jer. 1:5). To God, Jeremiah was a person, not merely a mass of cells. David also affirmed the Lord knew him and had a plan for his life before his birth (Ps. 139:16; Eph. 1:5). Courts today, are still debating whether a child or a fetus is one in the same. III. An Example Set They came to Jericho. And as He was leaving Jericho with His disciples and a large crowd, Bartimaeus (the son of Timaeus), a blind begg ar, wa s sitting by the road. 47 When he heard that it was Jesus the Nazarene, he began to cry out, Son of David, Jesus, have mercy on me! 48 Many people told him to keep quiet, but he was crying out all the more, Have mercy on me, Son of David! 49 Jesus stopped and said, Call him. So they called the blind man and said to him, Have courage! Get up; He s calling for you. (Mark 10: 46-49). A. All are Valued a blind beggar 3 / 6

4 1. Physical judgment- In Ancient Jewish culture, physical impairment and disease were viewed as judgments from God. Blindness especially fit this worldview. Note the assumption by the disciples: As He was passing by, He saw a man blind from birth. 2 His disciples questioned Him: Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind? (John 9:1-2). Their seeming unanimous assumption was that God s judgment caused the blindness; if the sin was of the blind man, it would have had to occur in the womb because he was blind from birth. In a very real sense, this was adding insult to injury! 2. Social judgement- In contrast, material prosperity was seen as a mark of God s approval. Then, as now, begging was met with disapproval mixed with pity by society. Jewish law taught charity; but, monetary gifts were not matched with society s acceptance. 3. Jesus Acceptance- Son of David, Jesus, have mercy on me! This is the first recorded instance in which Jesus was addressed as the Messiah without rebuke. It s a vivid example of Jesus valuing life wherever he found that person. B. Popular Opinion doesn t determine Truth Many people told him to keep quiet Have courage! Get up; He s calling for you. (48a, 49b). As Pastor Gregg has often said, we have increasingly seen Biblical truth being debated in the political arena. Conventional wisdom holds that majority rules! However, public opinion is fickle. The same crowd who told Bartimaeus to sit down and shut up later told him to stand up and go to Jesus. However, this blind man didn t act because of opinion polls but was a person of conviction: 1. Could not see but he could pray 2. Could not see but he could hear 4 / 6

5 3. Could not see but he could speak Jesus kept on walking! He didn t dwell on what he couldn t do; nor on what others told him to do; only on what he should do. C. Valuing Life is Imitating Christ Go your way, Jesus told him, your faith has healed you. (52) Just as a diamond sparkles most against a black background, so Jesus love for life shines most brightly when he reaches out to the least and the lost. Notice that Bartimaeus did a lot of right things: 1. Cried out for the right thing that I may receive my sight. 2. Cried out for the right person son of David First time without rebuke. 3. Cried out at the right time Jesus never passed that way again. This healing miracle is a reminder that Jesus valued all life, He ministered to the lowest strata of first century society; lepers, beggars, the downcast and the outcast. If we are to imitate Christ, we must also minister to the outcasts and defend the defenseless. Application: 1. Pray: 1) For women considering abortions, 2) For women suffering from post-abortion trauma and 3) for the staff of pregnancy centers and right to life organizations. 2. Act: 1) Know the Bible, 2) Volunteer at a local pregnancy center, 3) Vote intelligently. 5 / 6

6 3. Love: Demonstrate God s love toward those in need whether physically challenged or spiritually destitute. Leader Pack: no items No Illustrator article Notes: **You may access David s Lesson Preview in MP3 format and notes at: lestudy.org Dates 2017: 1/1/17 NO LBS 10:00 am Service only; 1/2 - New Year s Holiday offices closed; 1/2-4 Passion in ATL; 1/ 18 Midlink Preview; 1/22 SPF Birthday Bash; 1/22 Parent Commitment; 1/25-4/26 Midlink on Wednesday s; 1/27 Midnight Madness; 1/28-29 F & R EXPO; 1/29 FBA 2/5 MIYCO; 2/10-11 Mingling of Souls; 2/12 SPF Birthday Bash; 2/17-18 HS Retreat/Family Hunt. 6 / 6