STUDY QUARTER: ENDURING BELIEFS OF THE CHRISTIAN FAITH (Dec 2025 - Feb 2026)
Unit III: The Church and Its Teachings
9. The Christian Church
Daily Bible Meditations by Steve Osborn
Sunday, January 25, 2026 — Psalm 22:22-28
This psalm begins as the lament of an innocent man, suffering at the hands of his oppressors. (We recognize these words as used by the Gospel writers to describe Jesus as the ultimate innocent sufferer.) By the time we get to the end of the psalm, we find the psalmist gathering with the assembly of his brothers to praise God and testify of His deliverance. We cannot underestimate the value of gathering with church family in both good times and bad. Sharing stories of God’s work in our lives and praising God together, we remind each other to keep trusting in His deliverance, especially in those dark times when we struggle to believe it is coming.
Monday, January 26, 2026 — Ephesians 1:15-23
An ember, removed from its fire, will slowly lose heat and die out. Similarly, we as Chris-tians, when we live in isolation from other believers, will struggle to keep hope burning. When faith wanes, the last thing we want is to gather with our church family. We think it will just make us feel guilty that we are struggling. But as Paul pointed out in his prayer for the Ephesians, we really need each other: together we learn and grow; together we help each other understand God’s power and the hope and inheritance we have in Christ; together we keep the fire of our faith burning brightly.
Tuesday, January 27, 2026 — Matthew 16:13-20
I have encountered people who resist the idea of submitting to a church covenant. “I don’t need the church judging my choices.” On one level this is true, but also, we have been given the church for our benefit. Obviously, churches make mistakes at times and there is nothing inherent in any person that we should submit to them. But the authority of the church has been delegated by God. We see that instituted by Jesus here as He passed on the “keys of the kingdom.” When we enter into covenant relationship with a group of believers, we commit to each other’s well-being. That requires submitting to each other as we together submit to God’s ultimate authority.
Wednesday, January 28, 2026 — Ecclesiastes 4:7-12
I am notoriously reluctant to ask for help — not my greatest quality. One time it resulted in me lying flat on my back behind our van with a giant television on top of me. No doubt there is a good deal of pride hiding behind “not wanting to be a bother” to someone else. Conversely, the author of Ecclesiastes urges us to lean in to needing other people, essentially pointing out that we are better together. In western cultures, we tend to struggle with “Lone Ranger Syndrome” (the tendency to think we can do everything on our own), especially when it comes to faith. However, God designed us to need each other — one of the great roles the church fills in our lives.
Thursday, January 29, 2026 — Psalm 150
Some of my favorite moments of praise are just between God and myself, on a secluded outcropping of rock overlooking God’s creation. And while those times are important, they are not sufficient. Scripture teaches the importance of praising God in a group — most especially with our church family. When we come together in group praise, as we see in Psalm 150, a few things happen: we inspire one another to greater praise; we build fellowship; we are reminded that we are not alone in serving and praising God; we serve as an example of praise to others. This Sabbath, thank God for the privilege of gathering in praise with like-minded believers.
Friday, January 30, 2026 — Mark 4:26-32
Often, we get frustrated when our churches are not growing the way we think they should. Do not misunderstand; we must do everything we can to preach the gospel and make disciples. But as these parables point out, the growth of God’s kingdom is beyond our control. Sometimes it is fast and dynamic (like at Pentecost), but more often it is gradual and subtle. The why is a mystery to us — it happens completely according to God’s plan and timing. Our focus should be to continue faithfully doing everything He has asked us to do. Keep planting those seeds. Trust God with the harvest.
Sabbath, January 31, 2026 — Ephesians 4:4-16
Years ago, Pastor Victor Skaggs told me about a favorite book, We Really Do Need Each Other, by Reuben Welch. It talks about the community of the church as taught in 1 John. This passage really captures the spirit of that book: The church should be marked by its oneness. Too often, churches are known more for division and bickering. But Paul taught that we are one body and all work together to accomplish “the work of ministry for the building up of the body of Christ” (v.12). As you gather today with your church family, are you more focused on the things that divide or the things that unite?
Scripture Passages:
Study: Mark 4:26-32; Ephesians 4:4-6, 11-18
Background: Mk 4; Rom 12:4-8; Eph 1:15-23; 2:13-22; 4:4-6, 11-16; 5:22-27
Devotional: Acts 2:42-47
Key Verse:
[S]peaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, that is, Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love (Ephesians 4:15-16).
Heart of the Lesson:
Unzählige Probleme bedrohen die Einheit von Familien, Gemeinschaften und Nationen. Wie können wir dem widerstehen, was uns zu spalten droht? Wenn wir die einzigartigen Gaben, die Christus der Gemeinde gegeben hat, nutzen, um einander zu dienen, können wir gemeinsam wachsen und geistliche Einheit erfahren.
Questions for Studying the Text:
- What are some of the key issues that threaten unity in your family, community, and nation? In what ways do you see the same issues threatening the unity of the church?
- In the parable of the seed (Mark 4:26-29), what do the sower, seed, and growth process each represent? What does this teach about God’s role vs. our role in spiritual growth and ministry?
- What might the growth of the mustard seed (v.30-32) say about the growth of God’s kingdom and the church’s influence in the world? How do these parables encourage patience and faithfulness, especially when results are not immediately visible?
- Why is the repetition of the word “one” important in Ephesians 4:4-6? How does the unity described there depend on spiritual truth rather than personal preference or cultural similarity?
- What roles in the church did Paul list (Ephesians 4:11-12) and how do they complement each other? How can “speaking the truth in love” (v.15) contribute to unity and maturity?
- What “seed” of ministry or gift has God planted in your life that He wants you to cultivate for the good of the church? How can you better depend on God for spiritual growth while still being diligent in using your gifts?
UNDERSTANDING AND LIVING by Norman Fearon
God Determines the Outcome
After being a Christian for approximately 35 years, I have been privileged to listen to many conversations and have also participated in several discussions related to the church. In many of these instances, the feeling was not as optimistic as it should have been. One of the reasons is that the conversations are often motivated by a negative ex-perience or the perceived lack of progress the church seems to be making.
Jesus presented us with the picture of a victorious church, “I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18, ESV); but we must admit that we do not always see that same image of victory when we look at the church today. On many occasions, when we encounter the various issues that seem to undermine the church, we are left wondering: Why are our efforts failing to produce the results that resemble a thriving church? I am sure that we could give several reasons; however, I would like to suggest that our failure is due to our natural inclination to rely on our own abilities and strategies rather than doing things God’s way.
The parable in Mark 4:26-32 indicates that as members of the Church, we all have a role to play, but the results are not dependent on some clever strategy; it is God who determines the outcome.
Playing Our Role
We often forget or are not fully aware that the presence of success does not occur be-cause God has given us certain roles to play; He can bring success whether we are involved or not, but He chooses to include us in His great work. Although the results or outcomes are dependent on God, we must still actively do our part to see the fruits. According to the parable, the farmer had only two tasks to perform: 1) to scatter or sow the seeds, and 2) at a later time, when the crop was ripe, to reap.
Our responsibility is similar to that of the farmer; therefore, we must be aware that reaping can only take place if we sow. God did not give us the role to produce increase because we cannot. Unfortunately, we often spend more time concerning ourselves with God’s role instead of our own. It is also clear that not only is the farmer unable to produce results, but he is also unable to determine what the result will look like. After sowing the seeds, all he can do is go to bed (v.27). That is an indication that he did his part and is awaiting the next stage. He takes a position of surrender because he understands that things are no longer in his control. If the church understands this parable and is willing to embrace its application, we will do our part and allow God to do His.
Tiny seeds were placed in the ground, but look at what they produce; something that is far greater than what was placed into the ground. This is the picture of the Kingdom of God and/or the Church that Jesus wants us to keep in front of us. God is supreme over everyone and everything. Therefore, He can bring about any result He wants. Our eyes may never see how He is working things out, but if we are willing to trust His direction, we will see the mighty works that He performs.
The Importance of Unity
As the church engages in carrying out the mission of inviting others to the Kingdom, we must also understand that our efforts will only be effective when we are united. One of the greatest obstacles to the Church’s mission today is a lack of unity. Sometimes it becomes more challenging because we do not always seem to be on the same page. There have also been occasions when people were calling for unity, but what they were really seeking was uniformity, which is an entirely different thing.
In Ephesians 4:4-6, Paul used the word “one” seven times to ensure that his readers fully understood his call for them to be united. The church has different members, similar to the human body, but this design was not intended for each member to function inde-pendently of the others; there must be a cohesiveness of all the members for effectiveness. It would seem like every call for unity must have a clear and meaningful objective. Paul’s call for unity was not vague or meaningless because that would have potentially left his readers confused or uncertain about his goal. Like Paul, we must continue to be intentional in calling the church into unity. If Jesus thought it was important enough to pray for the oneness of His disciples (John 17:11), we should also be filled with the de-sire to see it happen in His church.
The unity of the body rests on the shoulders of each member; however, it seems like those with certain leadership roles have a greater responsibility than the rest of the body. According to Paul, the five leadership roles (listed in verse 11 — some refer to them as the “five-fold ministry of the church”) have the responsibility “to equip the saints for the work of ministry” with the end goal of “building up the body of Christ” (Ephesians 4:12, ESV).
In the earlier part of this lesson, I mentioned that sometimes our results do not resemble those of a thriving church. This is due to our natural inclination toward self. This statement has proven true in all areas of the church. For example, there are times when people are not equipped because of an imaginary threat on the part of the equipper of losing their position if they train another individual. There is also the other scenario where people feel superior to the individual who should be doing the equipping; therefore, they are uninterested in being equipped.
The church has done some equipping, but there is still a lot to be done. The church must fully understand and intentionally engage in the equipping of the saints to bring the church “to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God” (Ephesians 4:13, ESV).
HINTS FOR TEACHING:
LESSON GOALS:
- Knowing: Compare Paul’s understanding of spiritual gifts as presented in his letters to various churches preserved for us in the New Testament.
- Loving: Accept the gift Christ gives.
- Serving: Seek reconciliation within the church and between the church and the surrounding community.
TEACHING ACTIVITY:
Give each participant a small seed and ask: What do you see? Show a picture of the mature tree or plant and discuss: How does this image mirror the growth of the church or how spiritual gifts develop? Read Mark 4:26-29 aloud and note that the farmer plants but God gives growth. What does this teach us about being faithful in small things? How can we trust God to bring fruit from our service? Challenge: Identify one small “seed” act of ministry you can start this week.
Looking Forward
Jesus’ parables and Paul’s teaching enlightened us to the importance of unity and relying on God. Next, we will consider the importance of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper to the life and mission of the Church.
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