3 Lessons about Womanhood from Anna, a Prophetess Luke 2:36-38 (Short Bible Study)

 

Watch other Bible Study videos:

CHAPTER 1

Luke 1:1-4 https://youtu.be/PVorOCQqOVM   

Luke 1:5-25 https://youtu.be/F5Kp-JU-c90  

Luke 1:26-38 https://youtu.be/1h56S9IGvf0  

Luke 1:39-56 https://youtu.be/2fQYRCvIn5k  

Luke 1:57-66 https://youtu.be/4JsE7rFRCig  

Luke 1:67-80 https://youtu.be/Swmh_gjEBp0  

CHAPTER 2

Luke 2:1-7 https://youtu.be/A-lKr7906JI  

Luke 2:8-20 https://youtu.be/OmCUs95ozUQ  

Luke 2:21-24 https://youtu.be/MfVXnV3X-Og  

Luke 2:25-35 https://youtu.be/-hODLozQbmM  

Mother’s Day Special https://youtu.be/56a8cmkRpd8

Luke 2:36-38 https://youtu.be/56a8cmkRpd8

Luke 2:39-52 https://youtu.be/QaLBTLSkMls  

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THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

A Lesson from Impatient Wife, Soft Husband and Proud Servant (Genesis 16:1-6)

“Sarai, Abram’s wife, hadn’t yet produced a child. She had an Egyptian maid named Hagar. Sarai said to Abram, ‘God has not seen fit to let me have a child. Sleep with my maid. Maybe I can get a family from her.’ Abram agreed to do what Sarai said. So Sarai, Abram’s wife, took her Egyptian maid Hagar and gave her to her husband Abram as a wife. Abram had been living ten years in Canaan when this took place. He slept with Hagar and she got pregnant. When Hagar learned she was pregnant, she looked down on her mistress.

Sarai told Abram, ‘It’s all your fault that I’m suffering this abuse. I put my maid in bed with you and the minute she knows she’s pregnant, she treats me like I’m nothing. May God decide which of us is right.’ ‘You decide,’ said Abram. ‘Your maid is your business.’ Sarai was abusive to Hagar and Hagar ran away”

(Genesis 16:1-6, The Message)

This is both encouraging and troubling: Abram’s life of faith was up and down like roller coaster. Encouraging because mine is like that too; and troubling because his doubtful- attitude is like mine too. Huh. In Genesis 15 we saw Abram believing God’s big-scale promise to make him a great nation. But in the next chapter we see him taking matters into his hands again.

Knowing Sarai couldn’t possibly bear children at her old age, she invited Abram to sleep with her maid Hagar in hope that she would bear a child (on behalf of her since Hagar was her bondage-servant) who would be the beginning of Abram’s great nation. At least start with one child. The promise, after all, said that Abram would become the father of great nation – it didn’t specify that the children he fathered had to be legitimate. Hello!

So Abram slept with the servant woman – clearly put: having sex – and she got pregnant. Soon Sarai began to realize what a mistake she had made. Hagar the Egyptian “looked down on her mistress.” She became proud, and probably felt loved by Abraham because she bore his child. This is a better drama than TV3 Malay drama. So Sarai could no longer stand the sight of Hagar. In her eagerness to help God keep His promise and in her unwillingness to wait for God’s timing and somewhat became queen control, Sarah traded in her dignity, and Abram (sadly) had let her. It was a tragedy, disastrous. Abram became soft. Hagar became proud. Sarai became abusive.

Wait. That’s what I learned from this story. It’s hard, but wait for God is the best thing to do. On waiting Charles H. Spurgeon writes, “If the Lord Jehovah makes us wait, let us do so with our whole hearts; for blessed are all they that wait for Him. He is worth waiting for. The waiting itself is beneficial to us: it tries faith, exercises patience, trains submission, and endears the blessing when it comes. The Lord's people have always been a waiting people.”

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Jesus Answers Whatever We Ask For, So Come with Bold Confidence (1 John 3:21-22)

“Dear friends, if we don’t feel guilty, we can come to God with bold confidence. And we will received from him whatever we ask because we obey him and do the things that please him”

(1 John 3:21-22, NLT).

A person who has what we call a ‘troubled conscience’ is an unhappy person – feeling guilty about practically everything, rethinking and reliving situations, and hanging on to past hurts. Living the past today. When I was on campus, I know a person like that. No matter where he went, it was like a small cloud was over his head, and it rained only on him. For everyone else, the sky was shiny and bright. So sad.

One of the ways we can grow as Christians are to share these troubles with God – “Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you” (1 Peter 5:7). We can have great peace when our consciences do not continue to trouble us more than they should. As we learn to trust God and take Him at His Word, God’s love continues to change us.  A troubled conscience can become a means to remind us of our need to be close to God and others – and even to ourselves. “If we don’t feel guilty, we can come to God with bold confidence.” This is the confidence that not only can we approach God with our needs, but that He will answer our prayers.

Earlier, Jesus Christ had promised: “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who seeks finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. You parents – if your children ask for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead? Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Of course not! So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him” (Matthew 7:7-11). What a great promise! This is an unlimited answer to prayer. Does Jesus (and John) mean that whatever you ask for you will get? Wouldn’t some people take advantage of this? Personally, I can think of all kinds of things I like to ask for myself!

But let’s put these thoughts in its context. Jesus said elsewhere, “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted!” (John 15:7). In the fifth chapter of this letter, the Apostle John adds an important qualifying phrase: “If we ask anything according to His will, [that is, consistent with His plan and purpose] He hears us” (1 John 5:14, Amplified Bible). In other words, we are not to ask for just anything that appeals to us. We should remain and live in Christ and get to know His will well enough so that what we want becomes what God wants for us. And we know that God wants what is best for us and what makes us truly happy (Besides our needs, it is always God’s will and joy that we ask for justice, mercy, and humility. Pray for these!).

So, as we pray, God may answer “Yes”, “No” or “Wait.” That doesn’t mean that our prayers are not all answered but that God may answer them in His own special way and time. We may be surprised by how much better God’s options are for us than what we pray for at first. God knows best. Keep on praying, and trust Him. Pray like this: “Lord Jesus, help me to want what You want for me. Help me to find out Your will. Right now, it seems that <immediate need> is the best option, but You know what is best for me. Thank You for the promise that You hear and answer my prayers. You know me better than I know myself. Thanks for what has been, and for what is yet to be. Amen.”

Friends, first “obey him and do the things that please him,”

then "we will received from him whatever we ask.”

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Letters to Annie: Make the Decision to Abstain from Sex Before Married

Young girls, wait; Young boys, self-control.

Dear Annie,

            I miss you. And I love you even more today. It’s funny how I end up loving you with all my heart now. In my past relationships, I’ve been a jerk and made lots of mistakes that I will never ever repeat it again in the future. To tell you the truth, if the Holy Spirit doesn’t touched my heart and if my God-given conscience about sex outside marriage doesn’t stopped my youthful passion when I was young boy many years ago, I might cause a girl pregnant. Or two. I was that bad. Only God can save someone like me. God’s grace alone. I hope you still love me…

            The decision to have sex before I get married – or the decision to abstain from it – is a choice that will most certainly impact the rest of my life. To do or not to do. I know you knew about this too. That decision, Annie, will play an important role in the way we see ourselves, and the way we view relationships with each other. And if we not reminding ourselves and stand firm in God’s Word, our decision to have sex before married might result in an unexpected “surprise” pregnancy. Let’s not contribute to the statistics.

            Annie, as for me personally, I’ve face many temptations. The decision to consciously abstain from sex before married was a very important and hard decision for me. It was a great struggle for me as I’m not always ‘godly’ all the time. Even if I’m good with conducts, my thoughts were sinful. So I looked to God for help. Only He can gives me wisdom to make a decision that might just change the direction of my life. “Happy is the person who finds wisdom,” proclaimed the wise man, “the one who gets understanding” (Proverbs 3:13). As J.I. Packer writes, “The fruit of wisdom is Christlikeness, peace, humility, and love. And, the root of it is faith in Christ as the manifested wisdom of God.”

So I say, I will not have sex until I’m married! I must trust the inner voice of my conscience. I should be obedient to the teaching of God’s Word. I respect God, myself and you. You’re precious to me Annie. You’re my love one as much as you’re God’s special daughter. I write this to you because I want you to know my stand (and I trust we have the same conviction about no sex outside marriage) and because, if in the future I behave improper in regard to sexual boundaries, you may remind me of my commitment. And if necessary, slap my face hard, very hard so that I can be reminded of God’s wrath against those who disobey Him.

I love you…

I love you…

I love you…

I can wait…

                                                            May God’s strength empowered us,

Richard

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Jesus took a Common Name and Made It Holy

He lived among us. He donned the costliest of robes: a human body. He made a throne out of a manger and a royal court out of some cows. He took a common name – Jesus – and made it holy. He took common people and made them the same. He could have lived over us or away from us. But He didn’t. He lived among us.

He became a friend of the sinner and brother of the poor. He touched their sores and felt their tears, and paid for their mistakes. He entered a tomb and came out and pledged that we’d do the same. And to us all, and to all the frightened Freds of the world, He shared the same message. “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me… I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:1-3, NKJV).

And how do we respond?

Some pretend He doesn’t exist. They occupy themselves with a study of the piano and ask no questions about the Maestro.

Others hear Him, but don’t believe Him. It’s not easy to believe that God would go so far to take us home.

But then, a few decide to give it a try. They venture out of their corners and peek up through the opening. Each day they look toward the sky. They, like Simeon, “wait for” and “look forward to” the day Christ comes (2 Peter 3:11). They know there is more to life than the belly of a piano, and they want to be ready when Christ comes.

[from When Christ Comes by Max Lucado]

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

"Mukjizat itu Nyata?" atau "Mukjizat itu Nyata!"

“Berfirmanlah TUHAN kepada Musa: ‘Katakanlah kepada Harun: hulurkanlah tongkatmu dan pukulkanlah itu ke debu tanah, maka debu itu akan menjadi nyamuk di seluruh tanah Mesir.’ Lalu... Harun menghulurkan tangannya dengan tongkatnya dan memukulkannya ke debu tanah, maka nyamuk-nyamuk itu hinggap pada manusia dan pada binatang. Segala debu tanah menjadi nyamuk di seluruh tanah Mesir. Para ahli [sihir] itu pun membuat yang demikian juga dengan ilmu-ilmu manteranya untuk mengadakan nyamuk-nyamuk, tetapi mereka tidak dapat... lalu berkatalah para ahli itu kepada Firaun: ‘Inilah tangan Allah.” Tetapi hati Firaun berkeras, dan ia tidak mau mendengarkan mereka – seperti yang telah difirmankan TUHAN” (Keluaran 8:16-19, TB).

Musa dihadapan Firaun

Kita kadang-kadang menganggap bahawa mukjizat-mukjizat yang Tuhan Allah telah lakukan di dalam Alkitab adalah sebuah cerita dongeng semata-mata. Pandangan ini sangat mungkin jika kita juga menganggap bahawa Allah tidak pernah melakukan apa-apa mukjizat di dalam hidup kita sekarang. Sama seperti Firaun yang buta (secara rohani) apabila dia melihat sendiri mukjizat-mukjizat yang telah Allah lakukan melalui Musa, tidak percaya; kita juga kadang-kadang buta dengan apa yang Allah telah lakukan di dalam hidup kita dan di sekeliling kita. Kita sering beranggapan bahawa mukjizat dari Allah mestilah sesuatu perkara yang besar-besar seperti membangkitkan orang yang telah mati hidup semula atau menukarkan batu menjadi roti dan sebagainya, tetapi ia tidak semestinya seperti begitu. Kebenarannya ialah mukjizat (ada yang lebih hebat dari itu) sering berlaku setiap masa di sekeliling kita!

Mukjizat-mukjizat yang berlaku di sekeliling kita tidak semestinya sangat dramatik seperti bagaimana Tuhan membelah laut Teberau (atau Gelagah atau ‘Red Sea’) – ianya tidak kurang hebat kerana Allah yang sama yang berjalan bersama dengan Musa juga ada bersama dengan kita. Apabila mata hati kita telah dibuka oleh Allah untuk melihat dengan mata-Nya, kita akan mendapati dan menyedari bahawa mukjizat-mukjizat sedang berlaku di sekeliling kita seperti keindahan matahari timbul di pagi hari atau waktu ianya terbenam, cantiknya bulan menyinari malam, hubungan keluarga yang telah retak sudah dipulihkan, kelahiran bayi, kesembuhan dari penyakit, keselamatan yang diterima melalui iman dalam Kristus, pekerjaan kasih dan pengampunan dari Allah yang mengubah hidup seseorang, mendengar panggilan Allah dalam hidup kita – semua ini ialah sebahagian kecil daripada mukjizat-mukjizat yang berlaku di sekeliling kita.

Ingat kawan-kawanku: kita ada Allah yang boleh dan sering melakukan mukjizat di dalam hidup kita. Segalanya mungkin bagi-Nya. Dia akan melakukan apa yang kita anggap mustahil bagi kita untuk kemuliaan-Nya sendiri. Kita tahu bahawa dalam setiap perkara yang berlaku (ya, walaupun kejadian di Lahad Datu, Sabah sedang berlaku!), kita ada Allah yang hebat – Allah yang sering melakukan mukjizat! Berdoalah dalam setiap perkara dan jangan hilang harapan. Jika kamu menyangka bahawa mukjizat tidak akan terjadi selepas kamu berdoa... tunggu dan lihat.

“Marilah dan lihatlah apa yang telah dilakukan oleh Allah,
perbuatan-Nya yang ajaib antara manusia” (Mazmur 66:5, BM).

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Nota Ringkas tentang Cinta Romantik

“Segala sesuatu di dunia ini berlaku pada waktu yang ditentukan Allah... waktu untuk berasmara dan waktu untuk menahan diri” (Pengkhutbah 3:1, 5)

Cinta romantik. Cinta romantik ialah bahasa cinta yang membawa kepada keintiman antara satu dengan yang lain (jiwangnya aku ini). Alangkah indahnya perasaan itu apabila seseorang yang kita cintai menyatakan bahawa dia sayang kamu, dia menghargai masa bersama kamu dan dia betul-betul telah jatuh cinta kepada kamu. Kamu akan merasa yakin, dihargai dan dunia ini seakan-akan milik kamu... senyum, bersemangat, indah.

Pernah kamu merasa begini? Dulu? Sekarang? Belum lagi? Walau apa pun kita semua mengingini hubungan yang intim, cinta romantik. Jangan malu untuk mengakui keinginan kamu untuk memiliki cinta ini – Tuhan mencipta kita untuk mempunyai hubungan antara satu sama lain termasuk hubungan intim. Keinginan itu telah ditanam ke dalam hati setiap insan, dan ia hanya akan ‘menyinar’ dengan indah sekali apabila hubungan itu diikat melalui tali perkahwinan. Tuhan yang mencipta hubungan romantik, jadi ia bukanlah sesuatu yang tidak baik melainkan jika kita menyalahgunakannya.

Bagi kamu yang masih bujang lagi (seperti saya buat masa sekarang), saya ada soalan untuk kamu: Sejauh mana kamu mengingini hubungan romantik? Adakah kamu betul-betul mengingininya sehinggakan kamu sangguh bersama dengan sesiapa sahaja walaupun ia melanggar perintah Tuhan Allah dan bertentangan dengan ajaran Al-Kitab?

Begini, hubungan intim, cinta romantik dengan seseorang selalunya terjadi pada masa kamu tidak menyedarinya. Ia berlaku apabila kamu tidak terlampau memikirkannya. Ia selalunya berputik, bermula daripada persahabatan. Dan cinta bagi orang Kristian harus bertumbuh melalui perhubungan iman, berkongsi pengalaman hidup dan mempunyai matlamat sama iaitu untuk bertumbuh dalam kasih Yesus Kristus dan melayani Tuhan Allah seumurhidup bersama-sama.

Oleh itu, jalinlah hubungan persahabatan dengan penuh ikhlas, tidak kira samada dengan lelaki atau perempuan dan teruslah melayani Yesus dimana sahaja kamu berada (jangan terlalu fokus atau risau untuk mencari teman wanita atau teman lelaki). Ingat: walau apa pun kita ada Tuhan Yesus, teman sejati, yang selalu mencintai kita. Ingat juga bahawa “segala sesuatu di dunia ini berlaku pada waktu yang ditentukan Allah...” waktu untuk menunggu si dia dan waktu untuk cinta romantik.

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

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Nota: Namun begitu, mungkin ada diantara kamu telah dipanggil untuk melayani Tuhan Allah sepenuh masa dan kamu akan tetap membujang seumur hidup. Ini ada kebenaran bagi kamu; Yesus Kristus tidak pernah mempunyai hubungan romantik dan tidak berkahwin... namun Dia tetap Anak Manusia yang paling sempurna sekali. Rasul Paulus hidup membujang sampai mati... namun Tuhan Allah telah menggunakan hidupnya dengan luar biasa sekali. Kamu tetap sempurna dan lebih lagi boleh melayani Yesus dengan hebat sekali walaupun kamu tidak mempunyai teman hidup. Bersuka-citalah!

Aku akan terus menanti...

“Tetapi aku akan menantikan TUHAN; aku akan berharap kepada Allah yang menyelamatkan aku. Allahku akan mendengar doaku” (Mikha 7:7)

Tuhan selalu mahukan yang terbaik bagi kamu. Tetapi ada masanya apabila kamu meminta tolong kepada-Nya, pertolongan itu datang kemudian. Lewat. Bagi kamu, ini “lewat”; bagi Tuhan, ini adalah lebih baik bagi kamu. Dia tidak pernah lewat pada masa-Nya, Dia mahukan yang terbaik bagi kamu.

Selalunya kamu mahukan kemenangan dan kejayaan dengan cepat – kamu tidak suka menunggu. Allah mahu kamu menunggu. Allah selalunya mahu kamu mengalami penantian yang menuju ke penyelamatan secara berperingkat atau dengan perlahan-lahan tanpa terburu-buru kerana Dia mahu kamu bukan sahaja berjaya melaluinya, tetapi Dia mahu membentuk keperibadian rohani kamu dalam penantian itu. Apabila kamu berjaya melaluinya kelak, barulah kamu sedar bahawa Tuhanlah yang telah melindung kamu dan Dialah yang selalunya mencukupkan kamu.

Ingat: masa menantikan Tuhan bertindak tidak harus dilalui dengan kerisauan. Setiap masa menunggu boleh dijadikan masa kamu untuk bersama dengan Tuhan Allah. Ambil masa ini untuk membaca Firman-Nya supaya iman kamu dikuatkan lagi. Ambil masa ini untuk berdoa supaya hati dan fokus kamu sentiasa kepada Tuhan. Ambil masa ini untuk terus melakukan pekerjaan-Nya supaya dalam penantian itu; kamu tetap setia melakukan kehendak-Nya. Mazmur 37:7 mengatakan, “Nantikanlah TUHAN dengan hati yang tenang, tunggulah dengan sabar sampai Dia bertindak.”

Tuhan Yesus Kristus menyertai kamu. Amen.

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

God’s Timetable for Your Life

Jesus had been with His disciples about three years when He said, “There is so much more I want to tell you, but you can’t bear it now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future” (John 16:12-13NLT). He had more He needed to teach them, but they were not ready to receive it. Jesus knew, however, that the Holy Spirit would continue to guide these disciples into truth on God’s time table.

You may be saying, “God, hurry up and make me mature.” And God is saying, “I’m moving just as fast in your life as you will allow me. When you are ready for your next lesson, I will bring a new truth into your life.” Relax. Be faithful with what you’ve learned from Him. Obey His Word and come to know Him more as He reveals Himself to you day by day. Maturity in the truth comes with time, not overnight.  

Hendry T. Blackaby writes, “Grass that is here today gone tomorrow does not require much time to mature. A big oak tree that lasts for generations requires much more time to grow and mature. God is concerned about your life through eternity. Allow Him to take all the time He needs to shape you for His purposes.” Do you want to be like a grass or an oak tree? Allow God to take all the time He needs to make you mature. Meanwhile – be obedience and give time for the truth to grow into your life. The Holy Spirit will guide you into all truth.

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

When there’s Nothing you can Do… Wait

Picture taken from: http://loveandacupofcoffee.wordpress.com/

In a ‘Do-Do-Do-World’ today we all somehow have become merely a ‘Do’ing Person rather than a ‘Be’ing Person. Here is my thought for today: Taking actions is crucial whenever we face troubles, it is human to do so. But whenever you realize that there’s nothing you can do…

Wait.

Wait patiently.

Don’t keep going.

Restrain yourself from anything hasty. Whenever possible, put on the brakes! There is a red light in front of you. Slow down. Often, we seldom made wise decisions in a hurry. Wait. Don’t you agree that we’re seldom felt sorry for things we didn’t say or do? Abraham Lincoln, my friend says, “Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.” Wait.

My thought comes from David’s thought in God’s Word, Psalm 40:

"I waited patiently for the Lord to help me,

and he turned to me and heard my cry.

He lifted me out of the pit of despair,

    out of the mud and the mire.

He set my feet on solid ground

    and steadied me as I walked along." (40:1-2NLT)

As you read Psalm 40 carefully, you’ll realize that David’s situation didn’t changed. In fact, it was David changed. When you wait, your situation may not change, but you will. Wait, you may discover that the time of waiting is one of God’s ways to show you that He is God, and you’re not. Thus, surrender the situation to Him. So be cool, patiently wait. Ahhh… as I wait, most of the time I realized that I’m the one who need to change, not the situation.

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.