The Christian Message

  Jonah Runs and Is Found Out Lesson Text: Jonah 1:7-17  Related Scriptures: II Kings 5:15-19; Numbers 26:52-56; Acts 17:24-27  TIME: about 780 B.C.  PLACES: Joppa; Mediterranean Sea  GOLDEN TEXT—“Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights” (Jonah 1:17).  Introduction  Doing God’s will is a simple matter for His children, right? All we have to do is know His will and carry it out, right? That will always be the easiest way to happiness, right? With truths like this before us, we are always eager to know what God wants us to do, right? Unfortunately, it rarely seems to work quite that easily, as every believer knows. Sometimes it is difficult to do God’s will, either because of our own sinfulness or because of challenging circumstances.  Those of us who have sought to run from doing God’s will know that it is impossible to escape from His presence. When His will is ...

Jesus Points to Daniel Lesson Text: Mark 13:14-27 Related Scriptures: Daniel 12:5-13; Joel 2:1-17; Matthew 24:15-31; Luke 21:20-28 TIME: A.D. 30 PLACE: Jerusalem GOLDEN TEXT—“And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory” (Mark 13:26).  Introduction   It has been said that the theme of the Old Testament is that Christ is coming, the theme of the four Gospels is that Christ has come, and the theme of the rest of the New Testament is that Christ is coming again. There is some truth in this approach. Discussions concerning the Second Coming often provoke significant debate among those who believe the Bible to be God’s Word. Sadly, more fire than light is often generated! Those who accept the divine origin of the Scriptures do not always agree about the details of end-times events. Since these things have not yet occurred, we must be cautious about being too dogmatic concerning our preferred understanding of the last days. Two extremes must...