Dr. McKellar’s Lesson for January 5, 2020
Endings Are for Beginnings
Numbers 27:12-23
-list of tribal family heads for selective service and land apportionment (Numbers 26)
-Moses: the mediator/leader who does not enter
1. The LORD Addresses Moses (12-14)
• story told four times
• sees land but will die
• rebellion against the word of the LORD (20:1-13)
• lessons of justice, sanctification and pastoral care (1 Cor. 10:1-5)
2. Moses Speaks to the LORD (15-17)
• no excuses
• appoint a shepherd
• foreshadowing of Christ (Matt. 9:35-38)
3. The LORD Responds to the Request of Moses (18-21)
• publicly commission Joshua
• invest Joshua with authority
• contrast between Moses and Joshua
4. Moses Obeys the LORD’S Command (22-23)
• as the LORD directed
• connection to Christ: Matt. 26:31-32, John 10:11 and Hebrews 13:20
• imperfect and perfect mediator (Heb. 3:1-6)
5. So What?
• Because the LORD is holy, follow His instructions and rely on His provision.
• Accentuate the LORD’S holiness in the eyes of His people!
• “Unbelief makes the past look brighter and the future look bleaker.” (B. Dempsey)
• Remember that without grace you are undone.
• “All the way my Savior leads me, cheers each winding path I tread, gives me grace for every trial, feeds me with the living bread, though my weary steps may falter and my soul athirst may be, gushing from the rock before me, lo, a spring of joy I see…” (Crosby)
Dr. McKellar’s Lesson for December 29, 2019
Year-End Lessons from a Talking Donkey
Numbers 22:22-35
1. Balak Summons Balaam (1-21)
• his dread of Israel
• his desire to curse
• God’s double-prohibition
• Balaam’s response
• a second summons
2. An Armed Angel and a Talking Donkey (22-41)
• God’s kindled anger
• the donkey’s perception
• dialogue with a donkey
• God’s opposition and Balaam’s response
• Balaam and Balak meet
3. Blessings from the Mouth of Balaam
• 23:1-12 and 23:13-30
• 24:1-14 and 24:15-25
4. Idolatry and Immorality in Israel
• 25:1-3
• Balaam’s death 31:8
• Balaam’s deception 31:16
5. Letting Scripture Interpret Scripture
• Deut. 23:4-5 and Josh. 24:9-10
• Jude 11, 1 Peter 2:15-16 and Rev. 2:14
6. So What?
• Knowing that your heart is diseased with self-deception, resolve to live in the protective realm of God’s revelation.
• Magnify the mercy of God 23:21
• “Holy words long preserved for our walk in this world, They resound with God’s own heart, O let the ancient words impart…” (DeShazo)
Dr. McKellar’s Lesson for December 22, 2019
Christmas Series
The Ultimate Rescue Mission
Matthew 1:18-25
-The Genius of the Genealogy (1:1-17)
1. Mary’s Condition (18)
• found to be with child from the Holy Spirit
• when she had been betrothed to Joseph
• before they came together
2. Joseph’s Resolution (19)
• resolved to divorce her quietly
• being a just man
• and unwilling to put her to shame
3. The Angel’s Revelation (20-21)
• as he considered these things
• behold
• saying…
♦ son of David
♦ do not fear…
♦ she will bear a son
♦ call Him Jesus
♦ He will save…
4. Prophetic Confirmation (22-23)
• Isaiah 7:14: virgin birth
• Immanuel: God with us
5. Joseph’s Submission (24-25)
• took his wife
• knew her not…
• called His name Jesus
6. So What?
• Because Scripture verifies the birth of Jesus Christ as a rescue mission, feast on the truth of Immanuel.
Dr. McKellar’s Lesson for December 15, 2019
Christmas Series
From Gloom to Glory
Isaiah 9:1-7
Connection of This Text to Christmas
-Advent, leading up to Christmas, the birth of Christ
-For unto us a child is born… (Isa. 9:6, Luke 2:10-11)
-700 years before events fulfilled
1. Consideration of the Original Context (1-2)
• 8:22 and 9:1: hope after judgment
• former time: gloom (2 Kings 15:29)
• latter time: glory (Matt. 2:22-23)
• darkness/light contrast
• fulfillment in Christ (Matt. 4:12-17)
2. Consideration of the Overwhelming Conquest (3-5)
• multiplied the nation (Gen. 17:5, John 10:16)
• increased its joy: plenty and victory
• grounds for joy: liberation and appropriation (Judges 7:12, 20-23 and Rom. 8:35-37)
3. Consideration of Christ’s Everlasting Agency (6-7)
• child born and son given
• administrative authority
• incomparable description
• supported by sovereign zeal (Isa. 40:5)
4. So What?
• Because of God’s gift of His Son, celebrate the removal of anguishing gloom and the arrival of inextinguishable light this Christmas.
• Ponder Isaiah’s astonishing insight. (Isa. 53)
• securing peace through the blood of the cross (Col. 1:20)
• “No Christmas story will ever surpass the original.” (Bob Kauflin)
• “Tears are falling, hearts are breaking, How we need to hear from God, You’ve been promised, We’ve been waiting, Welcome Holy Child. Bring your peace into our violence, Bid our hungry souls be filled, Word now breaking heaven’s silence, Welcome to our world.” (Chris Rice)
Dr. McKellar’s Lesson for December 8, 2019
Rebellion or Reliance?
Numbers 14:5-19
Overview
-rebellion at Kadesh (13:25-14:4)
-a whole lot of grumbling going on…
-rejection of the word, goodness, power/glory of the LORD
1. The Leaders Respond (5-9)
• fell on their faces
• tore their clothes
• expressed utter confidence in the LORD
• two appeals: don’t rebel and don’t fear
2. The Congregation Responds (10)
• stone them with stones
• progression: murmur, mutiny, murder
3. The LORD Intervenes (11-12)
• glory of the LORD
• two piercing questions
• intent to destroy, disown and start over
4. Moses Intercedes (13-19)
• appeal based on the word, goodness, power/glory of the LORD
• an alien, God-centered perspective
• plea for pardon (Ex. 34:6-7)
• breaking the cycle of rebellion
5. So What?
• Knowing that rebellion against the LORD invites ruin, pray for a tender heart that trusts Him and values His glory.
• connection to Christ: Hebrews 3:1-6, 7:25 and 1 John 2:1-2
• “Other refuge have I none, Hangs my helpless soul on Thee; Leave, ah! Leave me not alone, Still support and comfort me. All my trust on Thee is stayed, All my help from Thee I bring; Cover my defenseless head, With the shadow of Thy wing.” (Jesus, Lover of My Soul- C. Wesley)
Dr. McKellar’s Lesson for December 1, 2019
From Here to Dependence
Numbers 9:15-23
Background/Overview of Numbers 1-8
* conclusion of one-year encampment at Sinai
*about to embark on journey through wilderness to promised land
*first and second Passover observances (Ex. 12 and Numbers 9:1)
*new beginnings: Law, priesthood/sacrificial system, tabernacle
1. Foundational Presence of God
• tabernacle: God’s presence with and among His people-constantly
• pillar of cloud by day
• pillar of fire by night
2. Functional Procedure of God’s People
• cloud moves/people move
• cloud stops/people camp
3. Fundamental Principle Communicated
• constant uncertainty of departure, duration and immediate destination
• the principle of dependence
• keeping the charge: adherence to divine command
4. So What?
• Because the Lord demonstrates the historical pattern of going before His people, depend on Him to go before you.
• how this text both encourages and exposes
• “Israel in the wilderness had nothing which we do not possess.” (Maclaren)
• “There is no time lost, while we are waiting on God’s time.” (Henry)
• connection to Christ: Heb. 11:39-40 and John 1:14
• “…by waters still, o’er troubled sea, still ‘tis His hand that leadeth me…” (Bradbury)
Dr. McKellar’s Lesson for November 24, 2019
Thanksgiving Message
A Psalm for Thanksgiving 2019: A Table in the Wilderness
Psalms 78:4-19
1. Setting/Background
• a statement of the Lord’s purpose in giving revelation to His people and a history of deliverance
• intention: “…that all future generations might remember what He had done and be encouraged by the remembrance to hope in Him for the future; and by both memory and hope be impelled in the charge of present duty.” (Maclaren)
• the passage of time which bears all of us onward steadily and silently
• tell the coming generation: deeds, might and wonders (4)
• establishment of testimony and appointment of law (7)
• purpose: set hope, not forget, keep commandments, not be like fathers (8)
• catalog of the history of the Lord with His people:
faithful/faithless contrast (8b-19)
• the question of a thankless and forgetful people
2. Remember the Lord with gratitude
• educating your memory for spiritual purposes
• a biblical perspective on your past
• cultivating the memory of His hand
3. Face the future with hope
• the connection between memory and hope
• looking forward to a fixed future
4. Consecrate the present with consistent obedience
• fitting us for work in the “flying” moment
• grains of sand in an hour glass
5. So What?
• Because the Lord can set a table in the wilderness, remember Him with a thankfulness that fuels future hope and present obedience.
• “…A home within the wilderness, A rest upon the way…” (E. Clephane)
• Christ: the living water and nourishing bread (John 6:35 and 7:38)
Dr. McKellar’s Lesson for November 17, 2019
Final Words: The Armor of God
Ephesians 6:10-24
-Because you are in a war, equip yourself with God’s armor.
I. Introduction/Overview
• reminder of constant opposition and its source
• existence of Satan assumed (Isa. 14:12-17; Ezek. 28:1-10)
• not for satisfaction of curiosity but for mobilization of soldiers
II. The Enemy We Face (10-12)
• needed: thorough knowledge and healthy respect
• not human but demonic: powerful, wicked, cunning
• needed: the power of God
♦ Be empowered…
♦ Put on…
• our objective: to stand
III. The Equipment We Appropriate (13-20)
• Take up…
• Stand…
• six key elements
♦ belt of truth
♦ breastplate of righteousness
♦ footwear of the gospel of peace
♦ shield of faith
♦ helmet of salvation
♦ sword of the Spirit (only offensive weapon)
• “…each piece put on with prayer.”
• Paul’s specific prayer request
IV. The Encouragement We Need (21-24)
• role of Tychicus
• encouragement
• peace, love, faith, grace
V. So What?
• Remember that you can’t wield what you don’t wear.
• Dare to cultivate a “wartime mentality.”
• “Equipping yourself with God’s armor is not a mechanical operation; it is itself an expression of our dependence.” (Stott)
Dr. McKellar’s Lesson for November 10, 2019
Transformed Relationships
Ephesians 6:1-9
-When you submit to the authority of Jesus, you serve others with a view to pleasing Him.
I. Children (1-3)
• obedience
• three grounds for obedience
♦ nature-right-dikaios
♦ law-commandment-Exodus 20:12
♦ gospel-in the Lord
II. Parents (4)
• parental authority presupposed
• focus on restraint in the exercise of authority
• negatively: don’t provoke
• positively: discipline and instruction
• analyze and intercede
III. Slaves (5-8)
• obedience
• Christ-centered instruction and motivation
IV. Masters (9)
• do the same
• avoid threats
• remember your Master
V. Abolition of Slavery
• NT neither condemns nor condones
• slavery in the first century
• internal revolution
VI. So What?
• Concentrate more on your responsibilities than your rights.
• Shared knowledge of Jesus as Lord and Judge is a leveling reality.
• “Our great need is the clear-sightedness to see Jesus Christ and to set Him before us.” (Stott)
Dr. McKellar’s Lesson for November 3, 2019
The Window of Your Marriage
Ephesians 5:22-33
I. Introduction
• from new standards to new relationships
• priority of the home
• transitional verse: 5:21-“submitting”
• Because God designs marriage to reflect the relationship between Christ and the Church, fulfill your assigned role by the power of the Holy Spirit.
II. Wives (22-24)
• submission does not imply inferiority
• basis of authority
• differing God-appointed roles
• submission: the humble recognition of the divine ordering of society
• two reasons for submission: creation and redemption (1 Tim. 2:11-15; 1 Cor. 11:8)
• creation and redemption-not culture
III. Husbands (25-33)
• authority does not mean tyranny
• scope of authority
• love your wives (agapao)
• two analogies
♦ as Christ loves the church
♦ as husbands love their own bodies (1Pet. 3:7)
• Christ’s bride and body (Gen. 2:24)
• five verbs showing Christ’s care: loved, gave, sanctify, cleansed, present
• biblical marriage: a “window” through which the world may look to observe the way Christ loves the church and the way the church submits to Christ.
• the profound mystery: Christ/church and husband/wife connection
IV. So What?
• “How many of us have realized that we are always to think of the married state in terms of the atonement? Is that our customary way of thinking about marriage? Where do we find what the books have to say about marriage? Under which section? Under ethics. But it does not belong there. We must consider marriage in terms of the doctrine of atonement.” (Jones, Life in the Spirit, p. 148.)
• Am I prepared…?
• Do I love…?
