Bible Study Notes 11/21/2023

Word Alive! Bible Study ©2023

Fall /Early Winter Series:

God Never Gives Up On You!

Concord Baptist Church of Boston in Milton

Conley Hughes, Jr., Senior Pastor

Tues., 21 2023 Lesson 4, Part 1

Max Lucado, God Never Gives Up On You © 2023

Quiet Time: Max Lucado, God Never Gives Up, Pages 37-49

God Is Not Like Us – Although God loves us, He is not “like us.” One reason a person may be prone to think God has given up on them, is because we want God to meet our expectations at specific areas of our needs and wants, at all times. God, some feel, is great, until our specific prayers seem to go unanswered. We must realize that while God may not give us everything we ask for; He is far more familiar with what our needs are, than we ever could be. We may recall how the Apostle Paul pleaded incessantly for the cure of a protracted, nagging illness. Paul said God did not remove the cause nor the consequences of his infirmity; but sustained his health and well-being through His grace. God’s care of Paul gave him the strength and healing to continue in his ministry. (See 2 Corinthians 12:9, NIV). Paul became in ancient times, the world’s greatest missionary. God knows us; loves us; and is so familiar with us; but the Scriptures remind us, we are not equal to God. Although God has delegated to humans many abilities and stewardship of the environment; our humanness is pale in comparison to God’s majesty and divinity. (Read, Psalm 8:1-9, NIV). God’s rule and authority is in heaven and on earth (Read, Isaiah 6:9-10, NIV). This means, there are no boundaries affixed to God’s sovereignty. Although in our humanness, we may feel abandoned by God when things go wrong in our lives; we must always be aware that because God never gives up on us, our deepest needs will be met by His love and compassion. We are wired to look for an immediate solution to our problems, so when God doesn’t appear to move in our time, we become disillusioned and often angry. Jesus was keenly aware of these human needs, so He taught us to pray, recognizing at the outset God as a Heavenly Father, who is different than us, but whose greater purposes are for our well-bring. (Read, Matthew 6:9-10, NIV). Praying for the Kingdom “to come,” is asking God for His “imminent” presence, rule and protection in our lives. Jesus is assuring us that there is “nearness” of God’s presence; for He will “never leave you nor forsake you.” (See, Hebrews 13:5, NIV). The Scriptures provide us with confidence in trusting God for doing the thins He said He would do. Unanswered prayer is not abandonment. Often, a prayer that seems unanswered is God’s way of letting us know He has another plan; one, that inevitably will work for what is best for us. A prophet of old spoke concerning an aspect of God’s divine nature. God does not resort to human proclivities in dealing with us. God loves us, but he not like us; nor are we always like Him (Read, Numbers 23:19, NIV). When Jacob found himself challenging God, he based his loyalty to God on the condition that God would meet his expectations. This is not how our relationship with God should be. (Read, Gen. 28:20-21, NIV).

Key Idea:

What We Believe!

1. “God’s grace never quits.” – Max Lucado

Key Verses:

Psalm 8:1-9, NIV “Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory in the heavens. Through the praise of children and infants you have established a stronghold against your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger. When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them. You have made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor. You made them rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet: all flocks and herds, and the animals of the wild, the birds in the sky, and the fish in the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas. Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Isaiah 66:1a, NIV This is what the Lord says, “Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool.”

Matthew 6:9-10, NIV “This then is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

Numbers 23:19, NIV “God is not a man that He should lie, not a human being that he should change His mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?

Genesis 28:20-21, NIV

“Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely to my father’s household, then the lord will be my God…”