OC Bereans

Gentlemen,

We are about to launch into an amazing series of events in the final three chapters of the book of Daniel.  Click here to download and print the Daniel 10 handout, then bring it with you Monday night.

The following questions will help prepare you for our discussion on this fascinating chapter:

• If Daniel’s aim had been to encourage and strengthen his people through his message, how had his life and habits also demonstrated God’s faithful sovereignty through the first nine chapters of this book?
• What do we discover Daniel doing again in 10:1-3?
• Who shows up in 10:5-6?
• What specific things do we learn about angels in the rest of chapter 10?
• How do you feel about the reality of spiritual warfare being waged around you between the power of God and the power of evil?
• In what ways is prayer a powerful weapon in that war?
• What do you consider to be your strongest weapon against Satan’s attacks?

Our study of chapter 10 begins at 7 pm … see you then!

~ tr

Gentlemen,

That affirmation … “God is absolutely trustworthy” … seems like a fitting conclusion to last night’s study of the angel Gabriel’s prophecy to Daniel.  Click here for the Daniel 9:20-27 Notes.

Be sure to look carefully at the cross references I provided to help unpack Daniel’s “70th Week” which is mentioned in v. 27.  We will pick up our discussion at this point next week, then move into a new discussion on chapter 10.  The handout for chapter 10 will be posted later in the week, along with additional study questions.

In the meantime … read, study and meditate on God’s Word every day! … plus, let’s continue to pray for each other.

Embrace God’s Grace!

~ tr

Gentlemen,

As we continue (and hopefully finish) our 5+ week discussion of Daniel chapter 9, here is how to prepare for Monday night’s study.

Download, print and bring with you the four charts embedded in the previous post … I cannot stress this enough.

Review the following questions prior to our time together:

• Who is the focus of the decree in 9:24?
• What six purposes will be fulfilled by God?  (v. 24)
• Who is “Messiah the Prince”?  (v. 25)
• Who is the “prince who is to come”  (v. 26)
• What happens between vv. 26 & 27?
• When will “week 70” occur?

In case we begin our discussion of chapter 10, here are a few bonus questions:

• What do we discover Daniel doing again in 10:1-3?
• Who shows up in 10:5-6?
• What specific things do we learn about angels in the rest of chapter 10?

Please come prepared for a lively, meaningful, significant and strategic discussion!  Rick H. is bringing the dessert, so arrive by 7 pm to enjoy that!

~ tr

Gentlemen,

Click here to download the study guide we used the past two weeks to unpack Daniel’s Prayer in 9:3-19.  It includes the “components of effective prayer” that we all extracted during our discussion.

Now, on to our study of Gabriel’s answer to Daniel’s prayer in 9:24-27!

Here are links to four charts depicting what is commonly called “Daniel’s 70 Weeks.”  Please download and print these charts, then bring them with you to Monday night’s study.  Having these in front of us will aid our discussion on this most significant prophetic passage.

• Ken Baugh  

• Clarence Larkin: 70 Weeks

• J. Vernon McGee: 70 Weeks

• Chuck Missler: 69 Weeks 

Our study starts at 7 pm with dessert … see you then!

~ tr

Gentlemen,

We all enjoyed a spirited Bible study this past Monday, working in pairs to make discoveries out of the text.  Click here for my Daniel 9:1-19 Notes.  We will pick up on this next Monday night right where we left off, toward the end of Daniel’s prayer.  Then begins a curious conversation with the angel Gabriel in Daniel 9:20-27 which serves as a major key in unlocking prophecies located in the N.T. book of Revelation.  Should be fun!

Yesterday, Ash Wednesday, began the 40-day period of time called Lent.  For those who missed the handout I distributed on Monday, click on the link to download your copy.  As I stated on Monday, I was raised as a Protestant – Evangelical – Fundamentalist … so anything about Lent was a little too Roman Catholic and therefore, off limits.  That was unfortunate … read the handout created for Pacific Pointe Church to find out why.

Finally, I added a link in the right-side tool bar (Worth Visiting) to a very informative video on the life of Charles Haddon Spurgeon, the “People’s Preacher” from England.  I recommend that you invest an hour to watch it.

Continue to lift up each other in prayer throughout the week.  See you next Monday at 7 pm.

Embrace God’s Grace!

~ tr

Gentlemen,

After concluding our cursory discussion of Daniel chapter 8 (see previous post for the notes), we introduced one of the most wonderful prayers in the entire Bible, found in Daniel chapter 9.  Click here for the Daniel 9:1-2 Notes.  Additional questions on chapter 9 will be posted prior to our next Bible study in two weeks.

That’s correct … we will NOT meet for the study next Monday, but will reconvene on Monday, February 13.

Why? … Debbi and I will be at Trinity Ranch in Montana next week.  I turn 60 (really?!) that Tuesday and want to invest several days in solitude, study and prayer, asking God what He wants to do with me for the next 30 years or so. The Lead Pastor at Pacific Pointe Church, where I am currently serving as a pastoral coach, has been asking the congregation these two key questions:

1. What does God want?
2. What would it look like if He got what He wanted?

If you think of us, please pray that we will keep our ears open, our minds alert, our hearts soft, and our hands and feet ready to respond to whatever God says.

Embrace God’s Grace!

~ tr

Gentlemen,

Click here for the Daniel 8 Notes from last Monday’s study.  Since we only finished part of this chapter, we will continue with our discussion of Daniel’s vision on the Ulai Canal in Susa.

If we have enough time, we will also begin our discussion of Daniel’s AMAZING prayer in chapter 9.  Click here for the Daniel 9 handout and bring it with you this coming Monday night.  Here are several questions to jump-start your study of this chapter:

1. In Daniel’s day, the hope of the Jews was returning to their homeland.  What is the hope of Christians today?
2. Right after the fall of Babylon to the Medes & Persians (9:1-2), what did Daniel do?  Where do you turn in the midst of crisis or transition?
3. How does v. 2 support the verbal inspiration of Scripture taught by the Apostle Paul in 2 Timothy 3:16?
4. Daniel prepared himself for prayer in v. 3.  How can we prepare ourselves for a more effective prayer life?
5. What constitutes “effective prayer”?  What clues can you identify in vv. 4-19?
6. A word that we have not yet seen in the book of Daniel appears 8 times in the first 20 verses … what is the word? … what is significant about this word?

Debbi promised to fix my favorite dessert … which will be served at 7 pm … see you then! … with the study starting shortly after that.

~ tr

Gentlemen,

Please read through this entire post … there’s lots of good stuff!

Click here for the Daniel 7:9-28 Notes from last Monday’s study.  We did not quite finish our discussion of chapter 7, so we will pick up with v. 16 this coming Monday.

The following picture, the “Mountain Peaks of Prophecy,” depicts how Old Testament prophets often “saw” and wrote about multiple time frames in the future.  We will discuss this in more detail Monday night.

Click here for the Daniel 8 handout and bring it with you to Monday night’s study.  In addition, here are several questions to aid your preparation for our discussion:

• List some traits in our current world climate that would enable a global leader like the Antichrist.
• In what ways will Christians recognize the Antichrist when he comes to power?
• How will American churches be affected when members begin to be persecuted (even martyred) for their belief in God?
• When God’s Kingdom is established, what are some of the things about our present world order that you most look forward to being changed?
• In 8:12, one of the horns of the male goat (Greece) “flings truth to the ground” … what do you think this means?  (cf., v. 25)
• Why did God speak so often in visions in Daniel’s time, but not so much today?
• Identify some people in our culture today who speak with the credibility and stature of Daniel.

Finally, I strongly encourage you to invest six minutes and watch a video about “The People’s Buddhism.”  Our daughter emailed this to us so that we would have a better understanding of what the religious/social culture is really like in Thailand, and so that we would know better how to pray for her.

Steve P. is bringing Monday night’s dessert … it will be served at 7 pm … the study starts shortly after that!

~ tr

Gentlemen,

To prepare for our ongoing study of Daniel 7:9-28 this coming Monday night, think through the following questions:

1. The scene shifts dramatically in v. 9 … what is happening now?
2. What might the “books” refer to in v. 10?
3. What happens to the “boastful horn” in v. 11?
4. What is meant by the “extension of life” granted to the other beasts for “an appointed period of time”?
5. Identify the “Son of Man” introduced in v. 13.
6. Identify the one “standing by” who interpreted the vision for Daniel. (v. 16)
7. Who will possess the eternal kingdom according to vv. 18, 22, 27?
8. What will happen before they possess the eternal kingdom?  (vv. 21, 25)
9. How long will this last? (v. 25)

Looking forward to seeing all of you Monday night!  Dessert will be served at 7 pm, with the study starting shortly after that.

If you have not yet posted a comment here, letting all of us know what Bible reading plan you have adopted for 2012, please do so!

~ tr

Gentlemen,

We were reminded tonight that biblical “apocalyptic” literature “reveals what has been hidden” and includes these five components:

1. A revelation given by God …
2. … through a mediator …
3. … to a seer …
4. … concerning the future …
5. … as a source of comfort and encouragement for God’s people.

Click here for the Daniel 7:1-8 Notes from tonight’s study which introduced Daniel’s apocalyptic vision.  Chapters 7-12 will include several keys that will help to unlock our future study of the New Testament book of Revelation.

Make it a weekly commitment to join the rest of the OC Bereans on Monday nights at 7 pm to keep pace with this strategic study of Daniel.  The weekly fellowship, interaction and discussion around the Scripture passage are much more valuable than merely reading the printed notes.  In fact, invite a friend to join us, too!

Finally, I exhort you to join me in reading through the Bible this year.  Check out the last blog post for suggestions, plus there are links at the top of the right-side toolbar that will take you to scores of optional plans for accomplishing this.

I invite each of you to register your commitment for reading through the Bible in 2012 by posting a comment here on the blog, telling us what plan you have adopted.  We will all then hold each other accountable throughout this year-long discipline.

Until we meet again next Monday, continue to pray for each other.

Abide in the Vine!

~ tr