Herschel Hobbs Commentary: Bible Studies for Life, Fall 2017

This quarter’s Study Themes are: The Dark Side Satan employs two strategies. He wants us to either ignore him—even deny his existence—or he want us to be immobilized because we fear him. Satan is real and he is powerful. The presence of evil throughout our world attests to that. But we should not lose sight of an even greater truth: Jesus is greater—and He is victorious! As followers of Christ, it is essential that we know who battles against us, but we should also rest in the truth that Satan has been defeated by Christ. There is a dark side, but the light of Christ has overcome the darkness. This study will remind us that God’s Word is powerful and helps us stand against evil, temptation, and the attacks of the evil one. We’ll see that to overcome evil in our lives we must die to self and follow Christ completely. Moreover, we must trust Christ to work on our behalf, knowing that He empowers us to live boldly—even in the face of opposition. Since we need to know what we’re up against before we consider how we fight it, sessions 1-3 will focus on who and what comes against us. After three weeks of focusing on the enemy, we will explore the truth that we are victorious in Christ. Finally, sessions 5 and 6 will show us what we have in Christ to combat the enemy, followed by some strategies to employ in the battle. Second Nature: Choosing Christ-Centered Living in a Self-Centered World We pick up traits from our parents. We pick up habits and mannerisms from other people as well, both those we admire and those with whom we spend a large amount of time. We exhibit some of these traits and habits without even being aware of it. These habits have become second-nature. For the next seven weeks, we will spend time with different individuals in the Bible with the goal of picking up their habits. These men and women exhibited godly traits that had become second-nature for them—and they can be second-nature for us as we live Christ-centered lives. In these studies we’ll see that when we step out and follow God, we can trust Him to continually lead us the whole way. This is true even when the answers we seek from God seem hidden; we can still trust that He is at work on our behalf. At the same time, we’ll be reminded to seek Him, not simply because He does good things in our lives, but because He is God. Faith stands confidently in God no matter what. The Bible testifies again and again that He is faithful and is worthy of our trust. The Herschel Hobbs Commentary is designed for group leaders and group members who desire a more extensive exposition of the Bible passages in LifeWay’s Bible Studies for Life series. Based on the King James Version of the Bible, The Herschel Hobbs Commentary can be used with all major modern English translations.