Bread of Life Fellowship

At the end of chapter 2, three friends come to visit Job in his affliction. Although these men become miserable comforters, this gesture is an example for all of us to follow. Their sacrifice of love and entering into their friend's plight points us to our God, a necessary attribute to hold on to during times of suffering.

Job 2 gives us a glimpse of the battle between God and Satan. Sometimes, the world seems to be under Satan's control, but God is the one who is ultimately in charge.

In Chapter 3 we learn of the call of Samuel- he enters the chapter a boy and exits a prophet. The opening narration sets the stage for this activity by repeated images of the decreased light - the rarity of God speaking in those days, no frequent vision -v. 1-, Eli's diminution of eyesight, not being able to see -v. 2-. Verse 3 leaves us with a glimmer of light, telling us that the lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was.--Though this was a season in Israel where -the word of the Lord was rare,- God speaks when He chooses to. Israel needed the light of a prophet amid their darkness- so, three times God spoke from the blackness of night- and three times Samuel heard a voice while failing to discern its origin. When the Lord called Samuel a fourth time, he was prepared with an answer given to him by Eli the priest- -Speak, for your servant hears- -3-10-. God's call is effectual - His Word is always heard by His sheep -John 10-27-28- and acc

The story of the miraculous birth of Samuel appears as a ray of light during a very dark time in Israel's history. When we read about it in the first chapter and a half of 1 Samuel, we can come away with the idea that from this point on, things will get better as the boy is left to minister in the house of the Lord -1 Sam 2-11-. But the very next words in verse 12 remind us that we are still in a time of darkness- we are introduced to Samuel's counterparts, Hophni and Phinehas, and the narrator tells us of these young men, the sons of Eli were worthless men. They did not know the Lord -1 Sam 2-12-. From the beautiful story of a godly, humble woman's prayer for a son, we return to a gross description of the evil practices of Eli's sons and the consequence of their ungodly acts. Hophni and Phinehas committed both religious and moral abominations by appropriating the best portion of sacrifices for themselves and having sexual relations with servants right in the tabernacle of God. The opening narration of chapte

A brief introduction to the Book of Job, followed by the question, Why Worship God, especially when everything seems to go wrong--

Psalm 44 -like 42-43, written by the sons of Korah- begins almost as if the author had been reading the previous two Psalms. Psalm 44 begins with the community doing exactly what the repeated chorus of Psalms 42-43 prescribes- Trusting their downcast soul to God by rehearsing God's sovereign and saving grace in the events of Israel's history. In the Psalm's first eight verses, we are reminded of God's particular love for the nation in the past -vv. 1-3-, which is appropriated by His people in the present -vv. 4-8-. The mighty acts of God are communicated from one generation to the next so as not to be forgotten.--With verse 9 comes a radical shift in both tone and content. In verses 9-16 the Psalmist expresses his bewilderment over the present state of the nation. Notice the repetition of the word -You- in verses 9-14. His pointed language leaves us with no doubt as to the source of the nation's suffering - it is God. Consider how these emphatic statements demonstrate a high and strong view of God. The proble

Paul continues to lay out guidelines for Timothy and the church at Ephesus- in this text, he highlights the mutual care that the church should have for her elders.

The classic text in Ephesians 2 demonstrates what we were before Christ, what God did for us in Christ, and who we are now because of Christ-

Testimony and Baptism of two new members-

This is the final sermon in our Acts series, a summary of the major themes of the Book.