Sunday
April 3
1. COMMUNICATION THROUGH CHRIST (EXAMPLES)
a. How did Christ preach to “spirits in prison,” who were “dead” in sin (Isaiah 42:7; Ephesians 2:1)? 1 Peter 3:18–20; 4:6.
b. Who was the Messenger that spoke with Abraham after the other two heavenly messengers departed for Sodom? Genesis 18:2, 13, 17, 32, 33.
“Two of the heavenly messengers departed, leaving Abraham alone with Him whom he now knew to be the Son of God.”—Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 139.
c. Who was the Lord with whom Jacob wrestled until he received the needed blessing in assurance of sins forgiven? Genesis 32:24–30.
“The struggle continued until near the break of day, when the stranger placed his finger upon Jacob’s thigh, and he was crippled instantly. The patriarch now discerned the character of his antagonist. He knew that he had been in conflict with a heavenly messenger, and this was why his almost superhuman effort had not gained the victory. It was Christ, ‘the Angel of the covenant,’ who had revealed Himself to Jacob.”—Ibid., p. 197.
Monday
April 4
2. COMMUNICATION THROUGH CHRIST (MORE EXAMPLES)
a. How did Christ reveal Himself to Moses? Exodus 3:1–6; Hebrews 11:24–27.
“Moses was full of confidence in God because he had appropriating faith. . . . He saw and acknowledged God in every detail of his life and felt that he was under the eye of the All-seeing One.”—Testimonies, vol. 5, pp. 651, 652.
b. How did Christ reveal Himself to Joshua and Gideon? Joshua 5:13–15; Judges 6:22–24.
c. How did Christ reveal Himself to Saul, later called Paul? Acts 9:1–6.
“In the glorious Being who stood before him [Saul] saw the Crucified One.”—The Acts of the Apostles, p. 115.
d. How is Christ revealed to us today? John 5:39; 17:17.
“Jesus has enjoined upon all to search the Scriptures. Let the ingenious inquirer, and the one who would know for himself what is truth, exert his mental powers to search out the truth as it is in Jesus. Any neglect here is at the peril of the soul. We must know individually the prescribed conditions of entering into eternal life. We must know what is the voice of God, that we may live by every word that proceeds out of His mouth. We cannot allow these questions to be settled for us by another’s mind, or another’s judgment. We must search the Scriptures carefully with a heart open to the reception of light and the evidences of truth. We cannot trust the salvation of our souls to ministers, to idle traditions, to human authorities, or to pretensions. We must know for ourselves what God has said. We are laborers together with God, and we want to know, and must know, what conditions are resting upon those who are to be heirs of salvation, or we shall die in our sins. It is not to be our study as to what may be the opinion of men, or of popular faith, or what the Fathers have said. We cannot trust to the voice of the multitude, but we want to know what is the voice of God, what is His revealed will. He has left us His own statements, and we must search for the truth as for hidden treasures.”—The Review and Herald, March 8, 1887.
Tuesday
April 5
3. COMMUNICATION THROUGH THE HOLY SPIRIT
a. What evidence shows that God has communicated with His servants through the Holy Spirit? Acts 13:2; 15:28; 16:7; 21:4.
“By the plan of redemption, however, a way has been opened whereby the inhabitants of the earth may still have connection with heaven. God has communicated with men by His Spirit, and divine light has been imparted to the world by revelations to His chosen servants.”—The Great Controversy, p. v.
b. Narrate the vision in which the apostle Peter saw a sheet filled with four-footed beasts. Who spoke to him on that occasion? Acts 10:11–15, 19, 28; 11:7–12.
“[Peter] recounted his vision, in which God had presented before him a sheet filled with all manner of four-footed beasts.”—The Acts of the Apostles, p. 193.
c. Through whom has God given revelations to His servants, the prophets? Hebrews 1:1; 2 Peter 1:21.
d. What is essential in order to have an effective understanding of the Word of God? 1 Corinthians 14:15; Proverbs 1:23.
“God’s Spirit has illuminated every page of Holy Writ. . . . The Holy Spirit, shining upon the sacred page, will open our understanding, that we may know what is truth.”—Testimonies to Ministers, p. 112.
“We receive Christ through His word, and the Holy Spirit is given to open the word of God to our understanding, and bring home its truths to our hearts. We are to pray day by day that as we read His word, God will send His Spirit to reveal to us the truth that will strengthen our souls for the day’s need.”—Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing, pp. 112, 113.
“The words of inspiration, pondered in the heart, will be as streams flowing from the river of the water of life. Our Saviour prayed that the minds of the disciples might be opened to understand the Scriptures. And whenever we study the Bible with a prayerful heart, the Holy Spirit is near to open to us the meaning of the words we read.”—Our High Calling, p. 205.
Wednesday
April 6
4. COMMUNICATION THROUGH ANGELS
a. Give examples of heavenly angels communicating with human beings.
• From the Old Testament: Genesis 16:7–11; 19:1; 1 Kings 19:5–7.
• From the New Testament: Luke 1:11–13, 28–30; Matthew 28:5; Acts 12:7–11.
“Angels are sent on missions of mercy to the children of God. . . . Holy angels have, in all ages, ministered to God’s people.”—The Great Controversy, p. 512.
“Not until the providences of God are seen in the light of eternity shall we understand what we owe to the care and interposition of His angels. Celestial beings have taken an active part in the affairs of men. They have appeared in garments that shone as the lightning; they have come as men, in the garb of wayfarers. They have accepted the hospitalities of human homes; they have acted as guides to benighted travelers. They have thwarted the spoiler’s purpose and turned aside the stroke of the destroyer.
“Though the rulers of this world know it not, yet often in their councils angels have been spokesmen. Human eyes have looked upon them. Human ears have listened to their appeals. In the council hall and the court of justice, heavenly messengers have pleaded the cause of the persecuted and oppressed. They have defeated purposes and arrested evils that would have brought wrong and suffering to God’s children.”—Education, pp. 304, 305.
b. What are we told about the ministry of God’s angels? Hebrews 1:13, 14; 13:2.
“[In the school of the hereafter] every redeemed one will understand the ministry of angels in his own life. The angel who was his guardian from his earliest moment; the angel who watched his steps, and covered his head in the day of peril; the angel who was with him in the valley of the shadow of death, who marked his resting place, who was the first to greet him in the resurrection morning—what will it be to hold converse with him, and to learn the history of divine interposition in the individual life, of heavenly cooperation in every work for humanity!”—Ibid., p. 305.
Thursday
April 7
5. COMMUNICATION THROUGH THE SANCTUARY
a. How did God often make known His will through the Urim (meaning “lights”) and Thummim (meaning “perfection” or “completeness”)? Exodus 28:30; Deuteronomy 33:8.
“At the right and left of the breastplate were two large stones of great brilliancy. These were known as the Urim and Thummim. By them the will of God was made known through the high priest. When questions were brought for decision before the Lord, a halo of light encircling the precious stone at the right was a token of the divine consent or approval, while a cloud shadowing the stone at the left was an evidence of denial or disapprobation.”—Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 351.
b. Where, how, and when was the voice of God often heard speaking to the high priest? Exodus 25:22; 29:42, 43; Leviticus 1:1; Numbers 12:5.
“When the high priest entered within the most holy, once a year, and ministered before the ark in the awful presence of God, he inquired, and God often answered him with an audible voice. When the Lord did not answer by a voice, He let the sacred beams of light and glory rest upon the cherubim upon the right of the ark, in approbation, or favor. If their requests were refused, a cloud rested upon the cherubim at the left.”—The Story of Redemption, p. 184.
Friday
April 8
PERSONAL REVIEW QUESTIONS
a. Give examples of how God spoke with the patriarchs.
b. Give examples of how God spoke with the prophets.
c. What is a more common way to “hear” God?
d. What role have the angels had in God’s communication with us?
e. How did God communicate anciently with His people through the sanctuary?