1. powerpoint presentation designed by claro ruiz vicente http://clarovicente.weebly.com Adult Bible Study Guide Jan Feb Mar 2009 Adult Bible Study Guide Jan Feb Mar 2009

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3. Contributor Gerhard Pfandl Principal Contributor

4. The Prophetic Gift General Introduction {4} Issues regarding the nature of the prophetic gift and inspiration have been especially important to Seventh-day Adventists. In the book of Revelation, God promised that there will be a special manifestation of the prophetic gift at the end of time (Rev 12:17; 19:10; 22:8, 9).

5. The Prophetic Gift General Introduction {4, 5} Seventh-day Adventists believe that the gift of prophecy has been manifested in the ministry of Mrs Ellen G White (1827-1915). For seven decades she gave messages of counsel and warning to our church; and though she died in 1915, her books have been a source of tremendous blessing to countless millions.

6. The Prophetic Gift General Introduction {5} Yet, questions remain. What is the role of the prophetic gift? If we claim the Bible as our final authority, what authority (if any) should the Spirit of Prophecy have? How should these writings be interpreted? Though this gift has been a blessing, in what ways has it been misused?

7. The Prophetic Gift Contents 1. Heaven’s Means of COMMUNICATION 2. The Prophetic GIFT 3. SPIRITUAL Gifts and Prophecy 4. The Gift of Prophecy and God’s REMNANT Church 5. The INSPIRATION of the Prophets 6. TESTING the Prophets 7. The WORK of the Prophets 8. The AUTHORITY of the Prophets 9. The INTEGRITY of the Prophets 10. The MESSAGE of the Prophets 11. INTERPRETING the Prophetic Writings 12. The BLESSINGS of the Prophetic Gift 13. CONFIDENCE in the Prophetic Gift

8. The Prophetic Gift Our Goal {5} The real focus is on the Gift-Giver. We’ll learn about the Lord who loves this world so much He gave Himself, in the person of Jesus, as the sacrifice for our sins. That’s the God we serve, and that’s the God we seek to reveal in this quarter’s lessons.

9. The Prophetic Gift Lesson 1, January 3 The Prophetic Gift Lesson 1, January 3

10. Heaven’s Gift of Communication Key Text Hebrews 1:1, 2 NKJV “God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds.”

11. Heaven’s Gift of Communication Initial Words {7} There are two basic ways in which God revealed Himself to humanity: general and special revelation. General revelation is through nature and conscience (see Ps 19:1, Rom 1:20). God’s revelation through the prophets as recorded in Scripture, especially through Jesus Christ is special revelation.

12. Heaven’s Gift of Communication Quick Look 1. Revelation: Nature and Conscience (Psalm 19:1-4) 2. Revelation: Spoken and Written (2 Peter 1:21; 2 Timothy 3:16) 3. Revelation: the Word in Flesh (John 1:1-14)

13. Heaven’s Gift of Communication 1. Revelation: Nature and Conscience Psalm 19:1-4 NKJV The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork. Day unto day utters speech. And night unto night reveals knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard. Their line has gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.

14. 1. Revelation: Nature and Conscience The Need {8} In the Garden of Eden God spoke with Adam and Eve face-to-face. When they blatantly disobeyed their Lord, they no longer were allowed to enjoy His presence, and their face-to-face communion with Him ended.

15. 1. Revelation: Nature and Conscience In Nature {10} Bible writers refer to the phenomenon of nature as a revelation of God’s majesty and greatness (Psalm 8 and 104). Consider the universe! Our Milky Way galaxy has about two hundred billion stars—and that’s only one galaxy among several hundred billion galaxies that we now can see.

16. 1. Revelation: Nature and Conscience In Nature {10} Yet, nature alone isn’t enough to reveal the fullness of God’s character (Rom 1:23). While we can see God’s power and majesty in creation, nature does not tell us always that God is “merciful and gracious, longsuffering and abounding in goodness and truth” (Exodus 34:6 NKJV).

17. Heaven’s Gift of Communication 2. Revelation: Spoken and Written 2 Peter 1:21 NKJV Prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.

18. 2. Revelation: Spoken and Written Through Prophets {12} Prophet (Hebrew, nabi´) means “one called [by God]” or “one who has a vocation [from God].” One who proclaims divine messages. The English word prophet comes from the Greek prophetes, a combination of the preposition pro, “for” or “on behalf of,” with the verb phemi, “to speak.” Thus the idea being “to speak for.”

19. 2. Revelation: Spoken and Written Through Prophets {12, 14} The prophet may speak to humankind on behalf of God or vice versa. The primary task of a biblical prophet was not to predict the future but to declare the divine will. During the few millennia of humankind’s existence, God revealed Himself through dreams, visions, or epiphanies (appearances).

20. 2. Revelation: Spoken and Written Through Prophets {12, 14} From the time of Moses (fifteenth century B.C.) and onward, many of these revelations were written down. As a result, we have today 66 books in the Bible, containing all the knowledge for salvation.

21. Heaven’s Gift of Communication 3. Revelation: the Word Made Flesh John 1:1-14 NKJV In the beginning was the Word… In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. … That was the true Light which gives light to every man who comes into the world. … And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us….

22. 3. Revelation: the Word Made Flesh Through Christ {16} The center and substance of God’s revelation is the person of Christ. God in human flesh. No written record can equal the personal presence of the Son of God. The Bible has no lasting value if we regard it only as an interesting history book.

23. 3. Revelation: the Word Made Flesh Through Christ {16} Unless it leads us to the One it reveals, our study of the Bible will be of little benefit. The Bible was written, above all, to give to us the revelation of God presented to the world through the life and death of His Son, Jesus.

24. 3. Revelation: the Word Made Flesh Testimonies 8:265, 266 {18} “Christ came to teach human beings what God desires them to know. … God saw that a closer revelation than nature was needed to portray both His personality and His character. He sent His Son into the world to reveal, so far as could be endured by human sight, the nature and the attributes of the invisible God.”

25. Heaven’s Gift of Communication Final Words {9} Scripture records God’s unceasing effort to reveal Himself to a race separated from Him by sin. Through Jesus, God not only saves us from that sin but reveals Himself, thus enabling us to have a relationship with Him.