LESSON 1

GOD'S UNMEDIATED MEANS

Devotional Reading: Exo. 20:1-17
Topic For Adults: God Guides Rightly: Obey
Topic For Youths: Listen To God’s Message 
Topic For Intermediates: God Is Nearby Speaking To You
Lesson Scriptures: Gen. 2:15-25, 12:1-9, Heb. 1:1-4

Memory Verse

” And the LORD God commanded the man saying ‘of every tree of the Garden you may freely eat, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it, you shall surely die’ ” (Genesis 2:16-17) NKJV.

BACKGROUND

God is a social being characterized with love and affection. Right from creation, He speaks and fills us with love and affection. He fills us with the knowledge of His will. We were not left incommunicado. From the beginning, He told Adam His ‘dos‘ and ‘don’ts‘. He never puts us in darkness. He delights in relating with us till date. Since lack of communication is the root of many interpersonal relationship problems, God never ceased to communicate with us since creation. His direct means of relating with us is the topic of our discussion this week.

NOTES ON THE LESSON

PART 1: GOD: A SOCIAL BEING - GEN. 2:15-25

Communication makes people to socialize among themselves. Inability to communicate effectively leads to isolation, loneliness and distortion.
God, as a social being, made issues concerning His ‘dos‘ and ‘don’ts‘ known to Adam, Moses, Abraham, the prophets etc. His words are not ambiguous at all.
He did not leave Adam alone in the Garden of Eden. The Bible reveals various interactions between God and human beings since creation. The only way to find comfort and companion with God is to walk with Him and hear from Him always. The more we commune with and hear from Him, the more we become more Christlike. God is real. His presence can be felt. He reaches out to us through His word and the Holy Spirit.
Believers may not be able to see God physically but the Church, which is His tangible body, is the avenue for us to socialize and hear from Him regularly Also, individual believer should meditate regularly on His word to enhance interaction with Him.
God demonstrated His explicit and open transparency by declaring His way to us. He gave Adam (man) dominion over all creatures. He made us to understand that we are under His government because He is our creator.
He presented to Adam the terms and conditions which he should keep, first and foremost to test his loyalty and obedience. Man as a social being relating with a loving God shows that God delights in communicating with man, whom He made in His image.

PART 2: GOD REVEALED HIS DIVINE PLAN - GEN. 12:1-9

God, through His sovereign power called Abram from the land of his nativity (Ur of Chaldees) to the promised land. Abram means ‘father is exalted‘ while Abraham is ‘father of multitudes / nation‘ (Holman illustrated Bible Dictionary, IBD).
His call was meant to test his faith and obedience. It was also intended to set him apart for God’s special service and favour. God spoke to him in diverse ways. Initially, God appeared to him as the God of glory. His call to Abraham in Genesis 12:1-3 was definite and precise. He said to him: (1) leave your country, relatives and father’s house (2) go to the land that I will show you.
God’s command carried along His promise (1) I will make you a great nation (2) bless you (3) make your name great (4) you will be a blessing (5) bless those who bless you (6) curse those who curse you (7) all the people of the earth will be blessed through you.
The prompt response of Abraham (verse 4) is commendable though he made a great mistake by taking Lot with him. God’s call to Abram was used to test whether he loved his native land and relatives more than what God purposed for him. He was made to decide whether he could forsake all to follow God. He was also to show that he loved God by leaving his country to a place where God would lead him.
Believers must be ready to give away natural affections and embrace divine grace. Divine call is with unquantified blessings. God is still calling us. We need to answer His call to get His blessings. The blessings in stock in obeying God’s call far outweighs the sacrifice.
Let’s consider some of the blessings/ promises pronounced by God for those who diligently obey His voice in Deuteronomy 28:1-13. In view of the numerous blessings attached to obeying God’s word, it is expedient not to turn aside from the life God is calling us to live.

PART 3: GOD SPEAKS AT VARIOUS TIMES - HEB. 1:1-4

Though God spoke in the Old Testament through different ways, He delivered His messages by Himself and the prophets whom He chose. According to Moses, he positioned that the Ten Commandments contained the only revelation communicated by God directly to the people (Deut. 4:12-15, 5:22). It was put into writing on Tablets of stone by God’s own hand (Exo. 24:12,31:18,34:1,4:13, 5:22, 10:1-4). Other subsequent revelation at Sinai was released indirectly through Moses (IBD). He is therefore viewed as the covenant mediator. Thereafter, God continues till date to release His expectation to those He chose to be His Ambassadors.
The excellency of Jesus Christ in the New Testament over the precious vessels used by God is highlighted in the passage read. Jesus excels. All whom God had spoken through in different ways. In time past, before the advent of the gospel, God spoke to Moses that the Messiah would come from Judah. He informed Abraham that the Messiah would be from his loins. He intimated David that the Messiah would be of the tribe of Judah and to Micah that the Messiah would be born at Bethlehem (Mic. 5:2).
The gospel revelation is the last way God speaks to His people. The complete revelation of God’s will be made known through the gospel.

CONCLUSION

God has not put His people in darkness. He has not left us incommunicado. He is still communicating with us. The onus rests on us to align ourselves with the medium He has chosen and hearken to His voice. The word of God received by faith makes one active in receiving the best from Him.
Although, some think that God is far away and, in their opinion, they reason they cannot hear from Him, the good news is that God is very near to you (Acts 17:27). He sticks closer than a faithful brother (Prov. 14:28). He avails us with the Holy Spirit who leads us into God’s presence (Lk. 12:12; Jn. 14:16-17). God speaks, we must listen.

SENTENCE SERMON

God who spoke at sundry times in the time past through various means is