Lesson #13

Lesson #13

Making Study a Spiritual Exercise

We read and study the Bible primarily for our spiritual lives.
A good prayer before reading the Bible is:

Lord Jesus Christ,

May I love you more dearly,

Follow you more nearly,

See you more clearly,

Day by day. Amen.

Making Comparisons

See how many links you can make between Isaiah 53 and what you know about Jesus’ death.

Making a Spiritual Response

To prevent Bible study from being little more than an intellectual exercise, remember this, as you think about Jesus’ death: “All this you have done for me, what will I do for you?”

Something to Do

• Memorize Isaiah 53 .

• Try learning one verse a day, or one a week. Repeat it to yourself during the day, and before you go to sleep.

Isaiah 53 reads:

Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?

He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground.

He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.

He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering.

Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted.

But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.

We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed and afflicted yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.

By oppression and judgment he was taken away.

And who can speak of his descendants?

For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken.

He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth.

Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.

After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.

Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors.

For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

Isaiah 53

Three Men with a Common Desire – A Death Wish

Elijah, Jonah and Job all expressed the desire to die before their lives naturally ended. They are among some of God’s greatest, strongest, and most faithful followers who at times felt like committing suicide.

Elijah the Discouraged Prophet

Elijah’s Death-Wish

“Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, while he himself went a day’s journey into the desert. He came to a broom tree, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. ‘I have had enough, Lord,’ he said. ‘Take my life; I am no better than my anscestors.’ ” 1 Kings 19:3 –4

Read 1 Kings 19:5 –9 to see how God comforted Elijah.

A Bird’s-Eye View of Elijah’s Life

• He predicts famine in Israel. 1 Kings 17:1

• He is fed by ravens. 1 Kings 17:2 –6

• He defeats the prophets of Baal. 1 Kings 18:16 –46

• He is taken to heaven in a whirlwind. 2 Kings 2:11 –12

Jonah – The Man Who Wanted to Avoid Doing God’s Will

Jonah’s Death-Wish

“When the sun rose, God provided a scorching east wind, and the sun blazed on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint. He wanted to die, and said, ‘It would be better for me to die than to live.’ ” Jonah 4:8

• Read Jonah 4:9 –11 to see how God helped Jonah.

A Bird’s-Eye View of Jonah’s Life

• He tries to run away from God. Jonah 1

• He prays inside a fish. Jonah 2

• He preaches to Nineveh. Jonah 3

• He is rebuked by God. Jonah 4

Job – The Man Who Suffered

Job’s Death-Wish

“After this, Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth. He said: ‘Why did I not perish at birth, and die as I came from the womb?’ ” Job 3:1 –2, 11

• Read Job 40:1 –42:3 to see how God brought Job to worship him.

A Bird’s-Eye View of Job’s Life

• His righteousness is tested by disaster. Job 1

• He keeps on saying that he is innocent. Job 3 –41

• He worships God and is restored. Job 42

To Ponder

• “Carry each other’s burdens.” Galatians 6:2

What’s So Fishy About Jonah?

Opening Observations

People who describe the fish as a whale are incorrect. The correct translation is “great fish” or “large fish” (Jonah 1:17). Jesus calls it a “huge fish” (Matthew 12:40). The biological identification of the fish is not the important point of the story.

Read Through the Four Chapters of Jonah

As you do this, bear in mind that the whole story hinges on Jonah’s refusal to obey God, and his reluctant decision to go to the wicked town of Nineveh and speak out against it.

• Chapter 1. As You Read Chapter One, Reflect on How the Lord Saves Pagan Sailors from Drowning at Sea.

• Chapter 2. As you read chapter two, reflect on how the Lord also saves Jonah from drowning.

• Chapter 3. As you read chapter three, reflect on how the Lord saves the people of Nineveh from judgment.

• Chapter 4. As you read chapter four, reflect on how the Lord saves Jonah from his wrong ideas.

Questions to Ask

What Do We Learn About Jonah?

• He runs away from God – at least he does his level best to! Jonah 1:3, 10 . (Tarshish was in the opposite direction to Nineveh. Imagine Jonah was in London, and God told him to travel to New York, but he boarded the plane for Beijing, China.)

• When God is merciful, Jonah is angry. Jonah 4:1 –3, 9. (Jonah was more concerned about a plant than about the people. Read Jonah 4:10 –11.)

• Jonah prays to God. Jonah 1:9; 2:1 –9

What Do We Learn About God?

• Throughout the Book of Jonah, it is assumed that God is fair and just and that he will punish wrong. Jonah 1:2; 3:2, 9 –10

• God is in control of his world, which includes the weather, animals and plants. The great fish was God’s way of rescuing Jonah. Jonah 1:4, 9, 17; 2:10; 4:6 –8

• God shows how merciful and kind he is – to animals as well as to humans. Jonah 2:8 –9; 3:9–10; 4:2, 10–11

Concluding Thought

• What spiritual lesson did Jesus draw from Jonah? Read Matthew 12:38 –41; 16:4. (Jonah, God’s servant, was miraculously rescued by God. In the same way, Jesus’ claims will be seen to be true through his resurrection. Read Romans 1:3 –4.)

                        Source: Water, M. (1998). Bible Study made easy. The Made Easy Series (30). Alresford, Hampshire: John Hunt Publishers Ltd.