WEDNESDAY BIBLE STUDY
SERIES
THEME: REVELATION OF HOPE
MESSAGE I: The Comfort of the Scriptures
By Sister Nimota Kelani
Text: Romans
15:4 “For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our
learning, that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have
hope.” KJV.
Romans 15:4 “For everything that was written in the
past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement
of the Scriptures we might have hope.” NIV.
The above scripture talked about the
“comfort of the scriptures” that would lead to hope. For me personally there are many scriptures
in the bible that gives me hope but one particular scriptures stands out. Revelation
13:10 “He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that
killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and
the faith of the saints.” This verse
ministered to me a lot when I was going through the crucibles of life. It was a scripture that has comforted me many
times.
The bible speaks about the condition of
humanity, that we are all sinners, Romans
3:10 “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:” and that the
wages of sin is death Romans 6:23 (a).
The struggle for humanity’s salvation is
expressed by Paul when he said, “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me
from this body of death? Romans 7:24. The only one that can rescue is Jesus Christ;
as confirmed in the bible Romans 6:23(b)
“the gift of God is eternal
life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Because of His unconditional love for
humanity, Christ was willing to come to this world, live as a human being, and
die the death that we should die. The scripture
points us to the hope of salvation that we can have in Jesus because of His
sacrifice in our behalf.
Let Us Look At Some Scriptures To See
What Hope Is Presented In Them:
1. Romans
3:26 “To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness:
that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” The hope in this verse is that He justified
us as soon as we believed in Him.
2. I
Peter 3:18 “For Christ also hath
once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God,
being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:”
The
hope that: He died to
make atonement for the sins of the whole world.
3. John
16:13 “Howbeit when
he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he
shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show
you things to come.”
The
hope that: The spirit of
truth will guide us into truth.
4. 2
Timothy 3:16 “All Scripture is
given by inspiration of God, and is
profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction for instruction in
righteousness:”
The
hope that: the
scriptures will be our guide, the promise of righteousness through instruction
for correction.
5. Luke
18:29-30 “And he said unto them,
Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God's sake,
18:30 Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting.”
6. I John
5:13 “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of
the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may
believe on the name of the Son of God.”
There is the promise of eternal life for all those
who believe in Christ and carry their cross to follow him.
At the cross,
Jesus, the one through whom all things were made (Colossians 1:16 “For by him
all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible,
whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by
him and for him.”), bore in himself the penalty for our sins. Jesus died in our place, suffered in our
stead. Why Would Christ Have Gone
through So Much, for us if there wasn’t something incredibly worthwhile at the
end of it for us? What is at the end,
and what hope does it offer to us?
Let me close by
sharing this story that I read with you.
Four World War II fliers, was shot down, floated for 21 days on a small
life raft in the middle of the Pacific.
They had no water or food.
However, when their thirst got so bad, it rained, and they caught the
rain and drank it; when their hunger became unbearable, seagulls landed on the
rafts, and they caught the bird and ate them.
When finally
rescued, they were interviewed, separately; each was asked the same question: “To
whom do you attribute your survival?” All the men gave basically the same
answer; there was a New Testament in the raft, which they read everyday. And the book gave them hope to press on, even
when things looked hopeless.
Brethren, what
you are going through now is nothing compared to the hope that is available for
you in Christ Jesus. You must cast all
your cares and burdens unto him the author and the finisher of your faith. You must make the bible your food and eat it
daily because there is life in the word.
Let us rise
up for prayer:
1. My Father, who
reign upon the heavens of my life, arise, let the darkness in my
heavens, die, in the
name of Jesus.
2. Oh God! Arise and
place me in my right location, in the name of Jesus.
3. My Father, if I have
been diverted from my land of promises, relocate me by fire, in
the name of Jesus.
4. Everything done
against me to spoil my joy in this year, be destroyed, in the name
of Jesus.
5. I receive the goodness
of the Lord in the land of the living, in the name of Jesus.
6. O Lord, as Abraham
received favour in your hands, let me receive your favour so
that I can excel, in
the name of Jesus.
7. Lord Jesus, deal
bountifully with me this year, in the name of Jesus.
8. It does not matter
whether I deserve it or not, I receive unquantifiable favour from
the Lord, in the name
of Jesus.
9.
Every blessing God has distributed to me in the year will not pass me
by, in the
name of Jesus.
10. Father Lord, disgrace
every power that are out to steal your programmed for my
life, in the name of
Jesus.
11. Every step that I take
this year shall lead to outstanding success, in the name of
Jesus.
12. I shall prevail with
man and with God, in the name of Jesus.