Seashore Bible Sessions
Fort Wilderness Marine Biology Adventure
April 11 – 22, 2017
By Michael Lane
1
Friday Sand
Do you ever feel lonely or deserted?
Does God really hear you when you talk to Him?
Does God know who you are?
Pick up a handful of sand. Look at the sand in your hand. Do you know about each grain of sand?
God referred to His chosen people as sand on the sea shore.
Hosea 1:10 (ESV) Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered.
God knows all of us. Look at what He told a boy named Jeremiah…
Jer 1:5 (ESV) “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you… 2
God even knows how many hairs you have on your head right now.
Matt 10:30 (ESV) But even the hairs of your head are all numbered.
But God just doesn't just know about the hairs on your head, He cares about you!
1 Peter 5:7 (ESV) Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
Big news for you. In His 66 love letters to you He wrote:
Deut. 23:5b (NET) The LORD your God loves you.
Eph. 2:4 (ESV) But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us…
I John 4:19 (KJV) We love him, because he first loved us.
But sometimes I know you can feel really down. It is in those lonely hours that you need to read His love letters again. And when you do you will see these love notes from Him.
Deut 31:8 (ESV) It is the LORD who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”
Heb 13:5 (ESV) For he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
God Himself has sworn these things to you. And God, who is immutable or not capable of change, is bound by His own oath upon Himself to fulfill His promises.
3
The next time Satan lashes out at you with loneliness, despair, illness, depression, feeling like you are unlovable, open up your love letters from God and read them.
Take a vial of sand with you tonight. This sand that represents you.
Take this vial and look at it when you are down and feeling unlovable. And when you do, remember what God has promised you.
1. He knows you by ______. 2. He knows all about you and your ______. 3. He ______deeply about you. 4. He loves you so much that words cannot express how deep that love is. 5. He will never desert or ______you.
Power of Your Love Hold me close Let Your love surround me Bring me near Draw me to Your side And as I wait I'll rise up like the eagle And I will soar with You Your Spirit leads me on By the power of Your love. By Darlene Zschech
Discussion Questions: 1. When do you tend to feel all alone? 2. How will you respond the next time you are depressed and feeling alone?
4
Saturday The Lighthouse
The lighthouse at Sombrero Reef was constructed in 1858 and was the tallest metal structure in the World until the Eiffel Tower was built in 1889. The Sombrero Lighthouse is 142 feet high. It was built by Lt. George Meade, who would later go on and defeat Gen. Robert E. Lee at Gettysburg in the Civil War.
Jesus spoke of His followers as being a light. One of the most insightful parables He spoke on deals with light.
Matt 5:14-16 (ESV) “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
A light has a primary purpose – to ______.
And what does that shining light do? It gives ______.
Jesus is saying that we, His followers, are to be the light of the world. We are to bring direction and discovery to this world.
He also says that a city set on a hill cannot be hidden. He is telling us here that we will be ______to the world.
5
This phrase tells us to live ______lives that stand out in the darkness of the world and not hypocritical lives.
1 Peter 2:9 (ESV) But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
I Peter 2:9 (NET) But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own, so that you may proclaim the virtues of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
By the way, in Church history, a synonym for the ______is “A City on a Hill.”
Matt 5:15 (ESV) Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.
God is telling us to be useful and our actions should stand out like a city on a hill. What is standing out? Our ______of God’s Truth and our ______.
Matt 5:16 (ESV) In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
Jesus is telling us that our lives should be lived every moment as a living ______to Him.
Our good works ______God.
Ephesians 2:10 (ESV) For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
6
What kind of light are you for God? What hinders you from being all God intended you to be?
Make Me A Blessing Out in the highways and byways of life, many are weary and sad; are weary and sad Carry the sunshine where darkness is rife making the sorrowing glad.
Refrain: Make me a blessing, Make me a blessing, Out of my life May Jesus shine; Make me a blessing, O Savior, I pray, Make me a blessing to someone today.
2 Tell the sweet story of Christ and His love; Tell of His pow'r to forgive; Others will trust Him if only you prove true ev'ry moment you live. Refrain:
3 Give as 'twas given to you in your need; Love as the Master loved you; Be to the helpless a helper indeed; Unto your mission be true. Refrain by Ira Wilson and George Schuler
Discussion Questions: 1. What is a dangerous “reef” that Satan tries to steer you onto to wreck you? 2. What kind of lighthouse can you use to help guide you through treacherous waters? 3. How can you be a blessing to someone in your everyday life?
7
Easter Sunday The Hope of Treasure
“You can’t take it with you.”
What do you put your hope and trust in?
1 Corinthians 15:1-26 (ESV) Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, 2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you— unless you believed in vain.
Paul is telling us the ______and that we should hold fast to it.
Hold fast, that is the same structure an alga uses to anchor itself. We are to anchor ourselves to the gospel.
8
3For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,
Now Paul tells what the gospel is.
5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles.
After rising again from the dead, Jesus appeared to hundreds of people.
In Bible times, for an event to be legal and true, it needed to be witnessed by at least _____ individuals.
Skip down to verse 20.
20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
There is life for us after death! We have hope in the resurrection.
21 For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.
What happened in Genesis was a ______event, not some allegory or fable.
Sin entered the world through the sins of one man and condemned us as a sinful race.
9
23 But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.
This verse tells us that Christ was the first to be resurrected into life and those who trust that Jesus took our sins on the cross and died for us, will then follow Him in a resurrection.
24 Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. 25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
Christ will conquer all.
Death itself will be destroyed meaning that we will live forever and ever with God.
But just knowing these things is not enough. In John 3:16 Jesus said that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.
That word ______is the Greek word πιστεύω pisteuō, which means to trust in and to ______oneself to.
Do you believe what Paul wrote to us is true?
Do you believe that Jesus died to take away your sins?
Do you now hope and trust that Jesus can save you?
Are you committed to Him? In short, is Jesus your Lord?
When you physically die, you must leave behind any gold, silver, gems, and wealth you call your own. If that is what you are putting your trust in, your eternity looks gloomy and terrible – separated from God and not being counted as part of God’s family.
What have you put your trust and hope in?
10
The Solid Rock My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness; I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus' name. Refrain: On Christ, the solid rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand, all other ground is sinking sand.
When darkness veils his lovely face, I rest on his unchanging grace; in every high and stormy gale, my anchor holds within the veil. [Refrain]
His oath, his covenant, his blood support me in the whelming flood; when all around my soul gives way, he then is all my hope and stay. [Refrain]
When he shall come with trumpet sound, O may I then in him be found, dressed in his righteousness alone, faultless to stand before the throne. [Refrain] by Edward Mote
Discussion Questions: 1. Why are some people more concerned about this short, material life more than eternity? 2. What is the difference between a head-knowledge of Jesus and a commitment to Jesus?
11
Monday Coral
The Coral Restoration Foundation began in Key Largo with the main purpose of growing healthy corals in ocean farms and then replanting young corals on reefs where illness and stress destroyed the reef.
The CRF actually grows corals on farms scattered along the Keys. When it is large enough, it is anchored to a substrate on a reef and it is checked frequently to monitor its growth and health.
Coral cannot grow on a sandy patch; it needs to be anchored to the ______. Sandy patches are prone to constant changings of the current, resulting in a shifting substrate.
Coral needs a firm ______to grow upon and live its life on.
In a way, we are all like corals. We are anchored to a foundation to grow and build upon.
Some people are grounded and fixed upon science as their foundation.
The problem with that foundation is that science is just like the ______of the seas.
12
Why do you think that many schools change their science textbooks so often? It is because science is constantly making claims as truth that are soon discovered as being false. For example:
✓ Science used to say that ______and not DNA were the heredity molecules. ✓ Science used to say that ______DNA were evolutionary leftovers and not important, only to discover that this is totally false. ✓ Science used to say that the universe did not have a ______point, but now it is known to have one. ✓ Science used to say that there was a set number of ______and that they could be counted. ✓ Science used to say that if someone is sick, bleed them of ______to make them well.
Science is as shifting as the sands are at the seashore. They make a stand and then a new wave comes along and changes their position.
What foundation are you anchored to?
The Bible is the one foundation that does not change. It is firm and a good foundation to build your life on. God even tells us this in Ephesians 2:19-22.
Eph 2:19 (ESV) So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.
Like a coral, the same type of polyp is made and grows next to the existing polyp. The new polyp is not a stranger or an alien, but a ______member.
God refers to us, as…members of the household of God. We are members of God’s household. Members of God’s ______.
20built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone…
Like a coral built upon a firm foundation, we Christians are built upon a firm foundation too. What is that foundation? It is the foundation of the teachings of the ______and what the ______wrote…that is the ______.
13
21in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord.
Like a coral that is composed of similar polyps, we are joined together into a holy temple.
We no longer must meet with God at a ______, for we, the body of believers are the temple of God now. We commonly call it the ______.
22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.
Like a coral polyp that thrives because it has a power source living inside it called zooxanthellae algae that fuels it and strengthens it, we Christians have the Spirit of the ______living inside of us, fueling us, guiding us, and strengthening us.
In the very next chapter of Ephesians, we are told more about the Living God in us.
Eph 3:14-16 (ESV) For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being…
Paul wrote of this also to the Christians in the city of Corinth.
1 Cor 6:19-20 (ESV) Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
14
We Have An Anchor Will your anchor hold in the storms of life, When the clouds unfold their wings of strife? When the strong tides lift, and the cables strain, Will your anchor drift or firm remain? [Refrain]
We have an anchor that keeps the soul Steadfast and sure while the billows roll, Fastened to the Rock which cannot move, Grounded firm and deep in the Savior’s love.
It is safely moored, ’twill the storm withstand, For ’tis well secured by the Savior’s hand; And the cables passed from His heart to mine, Can defy the blast, through strength divine. [Refrain]
It will firmly hold in the straits of fear, When the breakers have told the reef is near; Though the tempest rave and the wild winds blow, Not an angry wave shall our bark o’erflow. [Refrain]
It will surely hold in the floods of death, When the waters cold chill our latest breath; On the rising tide it can never fail, While our hopes abide within the veil. [Refrain] by Priscilla J. Owens
Discussion Questions: 1. Science constantly changes, but what about God? Read Malachi 3:6 and see what that says. 2. A coral can handle storms and waves that strike it, yet it remains firmly attached to the substrate. What substrate are you truly attached to? Will it hold during storms of life? Why or why not? 3. Read Matthew 7:24-27. What did each man build? What do they have in common? What was the difference?
15
Tuesday You are the Salt of the Earth
The ocean is full of salt and is harvested in many places. On Inagua in the southern Bahamas, Morton Salt Company runs a solar site factory.
Salt has been linked in history since ancient times. 1. It has been used since ancient times to improve the flavor of ______. 2. It has been worshipped as a ______. 3. It has been used as ______. 4. It has been used as a preservative for food. 5. You could use it to buy slaves in ancient Rome. 6. Ancient Ethiopians used salt disks as a form of currency. 7. The English increased their use of salt during Queen Elizabeth's reign when she required her subjects to eat fish on Wednesday and Friday. 8. The French Revolution was sparked, in part, by a ______. 9. Many of Napoleon's troops died during retreat from Moscow due to a lack of salt. 10. In Slavic countries, salt is given to a bride and groom to symbolize health and happiness. 11. In the U.S., the Erie Canal was built primarily to transport ______. 12. It has been used to make mortar for buildings. 13. It is used to melt snow and ice on roadways. 14. It is used in water-softeners.
16
Salt is mentioned ____ times in the Bible; 32 times in the Old Testament and 14 in the New Testament. Throughout history, salt has been a very valuable commodity. At some times, it was more valuable than even ______.
Jesus used salt as an illustration in a very well-known parable.
Matt 5:13 (ESV) You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.
Four interpretations of this parable and our reference to being the salt of the earth.
1. Salt is a purifying agent and so we Christians need to be pure in ______. 2. We Christians need to add ______to the world we live in. 3. As salt is used in medicine and if added to a cut makes it sting, we Christians need to bring “______” to the world and make the world uncomfortable. 4. Eating salt makes us thirsty. So, we Christians are supposed to cause a ______for God in the world today.
There is something more here.
This parable occurs during Jesus’ famous Sermon on the Mount. He calls His followers the salt of the earth. The term earth means ______.
People have degenerated into an unethical and depraved society instead of improving the moral and spiritual quality of life. When Jesus mentions the word earth here, this is what he is talking about.
Jesus’ use of “the salt of” noun is a reference to His followers and our responsibility to the world now.
Just as salt has been used in preservation of food, we are to stand apart of this corrupt world. We are called to be a ______to the world.
Salt works as a preservative in jerky by retarding the growth of fungi, bacteria and decay. We Christians are to help ______the moral and spiritual decay of the world around us. 17
Jesus continues, but if salt has lost its taste. Can salt really lose it taste?
So, what is Jesus meaning here? Salt doesn’t become unsalty, but it can easily become ______with other elements, which can overpower its natural taste. When this happens, the salt is useless.
Jesus is telling us here that just as salt can become contaminated with other minerals and become tasteless and useless, Christians too can become ______.
Christians become contaminated by the immoral and corrupt ______they live in.
When a Christian gets involved in the worldliness of sin, they are contaminated and can no longer be valuable and effective in the Kingdom of God.
We don’t lose our salvation, but we do become unable to be ______. We lose our purity and become ______for service to our Lord. As Jesus said, we are no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.
We are to live in this corrupt and contaminated world in a ______way.
1 Peter 1:14-16 (ESV) As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15 but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
Jesus wants us to influence the world by our ______.
He wants us to ______a thirst for righteousness to the lost.
He wants us to have a preserving ______on this world.
But this requires us to live set ______from this corruption.
To be a good salt, we must remain pure and ______.
18
I’ll Go Where You Want Me To go It may not be on the mountain height Or over the stormy sea, It may not be at the battle's front My Lord will have need of me. But if, by a still, small voice he calls To paths that I do not know, I'll answer, dear Lord, with my hand in thine: I'll go where you want me to go. [Chorus]
I'll go where you want me to go, dear Lord, Over mountain or plain or sea; I'll say what you want me to say, dear Lord; I'll be what you want me to be.
Perhaps today there are loving words Which Jesus would have me speak; There may be now in the paths of sin Some wand'rer whom I should seek. Savior, if thou wilt be my guide, Tho dark and rugged the way, My voice shall echo the message sweet: I'll say what you want me to say. [Chorus]
There's surely somewhere a lowly place In earth's harvest fields so wide Where I may labor through life's short day For Jesus, the Crucified. So trusting my all to thy tender care, And knowing thou lovest me, I'll do thy will with a heart sincere: I'll be what you want me to be. [Chorus] by Mary Brown
Discussion Questions: 1. How can God use you as “salt” where you live? 2. Do you feel God leading you to be “salt” somewhere? 3. Can you recognize already ways that Satan tries to “add contaminates” to you to make you less effective for God’s work? How can you combat these?
19
Thursday The Oyster
Two oysters. One makes a pearl and the other doesn’t. Which one is blessed?
In the beginning, God worked. In fact, He called it work. Then He rested from the work.
Gen 2:2-3 (ESV) And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.
Now if God worked, how can that be a bad thing?
And if we are truly made in His image, we too are to ______.
Work is not a bad thing and it certainly is ______a result of having sinned against God, because God told man to work in the Garden ______he sinned.
Gen 2:15 (ESV) The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.
20
God obviously wanted us to ______things.
So why do a lot of people think it is a bad thing to work?
Why do some people associate working with a curse?
What did God curse when man sinned?
Gen 3:17-18 (ESV) And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; 18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field.
God is a Creator God. God is ELOHIM, which means the ______God. And being made in His image, means that like God, we too are to ______things.
We should not look at work as being a curse, but as an opportunity to be more like ______– creative in nature.
“If you can find the thing that God has gifted you in that you love to do, choose that as a career and you will never have to go to work.”
And what God has given you to work with? You are His agent or ______of it.
He owns everything, so anything He gives you to create with, including your creativity, belongs to ______.
Most of you will at some point in your lives be working for someone else. God addresses that also in His Word.
21
Ephesians 6:5-7 (WEB) Servants, be obedient to those who according to the flesh are your masters, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as to Christ; 6not in the way of service only when eyes are on you, as men pleasers; but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; 7with good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men.
As Christians and as followers of Jesus Christ, we are ______to be able to work. And we are to treat our masters or bosses as if we are working for ______.
In another book God tells us this:
Colossians 3:17, 22-23 (WEB) 17Whatever you do, in word or in deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father, through him… 22Servants, obey in all things those who are your masters according to the flesh, not just when they are looking, as men pleasers, but in singleness of heart, fearing God. 23And whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord, and not for men…
Johann Sebastian Bach wrote thousands of musical pieces. But if one examines any of his works, one will find the letters SDG (Soli Deo Gloria, "To God alone be glory") written at the end of each piece. Bach took what God said and dedicated his work to Him.
As an oyster seems cursed when it gets an unremovable grain of sand into its soft body, it works to produce something that is not a curse, but a ______.
I wish more people saw work in the same light God sees work. It is not a curse, but a special ______from Him.
22
Day By Day Day by day, and with each passing moment, Strength I find to meet my trials here; Trusting in my Father’s wise bestowment, I’ve no cause for worry or for fear. He, whose heart is kind beyond all measure, Gives unto each day what He deems best, Lovingly its part of pain and pleasure, Mingling toil with peace and rest.
Every day the Lord Himself is near me, With a special mercy for each hour; All my cares He fain would bear and cheer me, He whose name is Counsellor and Pow’r. The protection of His child and treasure Is a charge that on Himself He laid; “As thy days, thy strength shall be in measure,” This the pledge to me He made.
Help me then, in every tribulation, So to trust Thy promises, O Lord, That I lose not faith’s sweet consolation, Offered me within Thy holy Word. Help me, Lord, when toil and trouble meeting, E’er to take, as from a father’s hand, One by one, the days, the moments fleeting, Till I reach the Promised Land. By Lina Sandell
Discussion Questions: 1. Why don’t Christians view working as a blessing and instead look at it as a curse? 2. What do you think we will be doing in Heaven? 3. How can you take Bach’s example and apply it to your life today?
23