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JUNE 1: NOAH: A FAITH THAT PLEASES GOD

May 26, 2025

By Kevin Shrum
Pastor • Inglewood Baptist Church • Nashville

Sunday School Lesson Bible Studies For LifeThe taproot of righteous living for God is a righteous standing before God. Noah possessed both. He found favor with God that gave him a righteous standing before God that enabled him to live faithfully in ways that pleased God. Noah’s faith in God produced a very large boat on dry ground for the saving of his family and a new start for humanity. 

Genesis 6:5-9: A right relationship with God produces a living faith 

Genesis 6:5-9 compares the unrighteousness of the world and the fact that Noah found favor with God. Amid an unrighteous world, Noah trusted God and it was counted as righteousness. What kind of faith did Noah possess that found favor with God?  [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Bible Studies for Life, Sunday School Lessons

MAY 25: BE ENCOURAGED

May 19, 2025

By Troy Rust
Associational mission strategist • Holston Baptist Association

Focal Passage: II Peter 3:8-18 

Sunday School Lessons explore the bibleMy family has an elderly friend who will soon be with Jesus. One thing is for sure — there will be no deathbed confession. Why? Ms. Jean has been confessing her faith in Jesus for decades. Whether you were family, friend, home health nurse, or total stranger, she would tell you about her faith in Christ, and that she was ready to go home. 

Have you ever met someone who was banking on their deathbed confession? Several years ago, I witnessed to a young father and then asked him what he thought about the truths I had shared.  [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Explore the Bible, Sunday School Lessons

MAY 25: GOD’S HAND IN FACING OPPOSITION

May 19, 2025

By Mike Dawson
Retired Tennessee pastor

Focal Passage: II Kings 6:8-12, 15-24

Sunday School Lesson Bible Studies For LifeThis is the final lesson in the series Elisha: Seeing the Hand of God at Work. And what an exciting series it’s been! The prophet Elisha’s story often parallels our Lord Jesus Christ’s. Elisha and Jesus both did hard work in their early years. Both had similar forerunners — Elijah and John the Baptist were ‘men of the wild.’ The school of the prophets led by Elisha was somewhat like Christ’s chosen apostles. Both Elisha and the Lord Jesus dealt with kings; both performed many (some very similar) miracles; both helped women struggling with life issues. The words of both were prophetic and powerful. Both were mocked. And the graves of both the crucified Jesus and the dead Elisha included a restoration to life! (Read II Kings 13:20-21.)  [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Bible Studies for Life, Sunday School Lessons

SBC LEADERS CELEBRATE “100 YEARS OF COOPERATION”

May 13, 2025

By David Dawson
Managing editor, Baptist and Reflector

Randy C. Davis, president and executive director of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, signs the Declaration of Cooperation resolution.

MEMPHIS — Gathering just a few hundred yards from where it all began, a host of SBC leaders recognized and celebrated the 100th anniversary of the Cooperative Program on Tuesday afternoon.

The event, held at the Renasant Convention Center in Memphis, included praise music, an extended time of prayer and a message from Jeff Iorg, president and CEO of the SBC executive committee. The special service was highlighted by the signing of the Declaration of Cooperation resolution. (See below for full resolution).

Randy C. Davis, president and executive director of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, said it was a powerful day — not only for those who attended, but for all Southern Baptists.

“This exceeded expectations in every way,” said Davis. “I wish every Southern Baptist could have been here. They would have been very thankful for, and proud of, what the Cooperative Program has done in the past, and they would have heard a clear challenge about the future.”

[Read more…]

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Filed Under: Featured, News, SBC

MAY 18: GOD’S HAND IN RESTORING LIVES

May 12, 2025

By Mike Dawson
Retired Tennessee pastor

Focal Passage: II Kings 5:1-3; 10-19a 

Sunday School Lesson Bible Studies For LifeToday’s lesson, God’s Hand in Restoring Lives, could also be called The Gospel According to Elisha. Remember that the prophet Elisha is often referred to as a “type” of Christ: many events in Elisha’s life are similar to events in our Lord’s life. But none paint any clearer picture of the Gospel than our focal passage, 

II Kings 5:1-3; 10-19a. It’s from the story of Naaman the leper and his restorative encounter with Elisha. Three characters that are in nearly every Gospel encounter emerge in our text: the sinner, the soul-winner, and the Savior.  [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Bible Studies for Life, Sunday School Lessons

MAY 11: BE EQUIPPED

May 5, 2025

By Troy Rust
Associational mission strategist • Holston Baptist Association

Focal Passage: II Peter 1:3-8, 16-21 

Sunday School Lessons explore the bibleWhen you are sending your child away on a trip, you may ask, “Do you have everything you need?” What if the question was broadened to address your life as a whole? Typically, we would answer the question with several items from our wish list, which may include some critically important things. 

Yet when we consider the true definition of “need,” we realize that most if not all the items on our list technically qualify as wants. Even many of the things that are perceived as needs are actually created needs, like your cell phone. All but the last forty years of humanity survived without one!  [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Explore the Bible, Sunday School Lessons

MAY 18: BE ALERT

May 5, 2025

By Troy Rust
Associational mission strategist • Holston Baptist Association

Focal Passage: II Peter 2:1-3, 17-19; Jude 17-23 

Sunday School Lessons explore the bibleI am currently teaching Contemporary World Religions in Seminary Extension, because the nations are coming to our cities and we need to know what they believe. The course is mostly a study of spiritual darkness. It reveals the numerous pathways, both at home and abroad, that people are taking to avoid the cross of Christ and embrace intricately woven lies. Peter warned that false prophets would infiltrate the early church with heresies that deny Christ and bring spiritual destruction (II Peter 2:1), and the battle continues today. 

False teachers become a poison in local churches because people follow their “depraved ways,” and malign the truth (v. 2:2). Notice the exchange. In spite of what the kingdom of darkness wants people to believe, one cannot simply choose a contradictory set of beliefs and follow them.  [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Explore the Bible, Sunday School Lessons

MAY 11: GOD’S HAND IN MEETING OTHERS’ NEEDS

May 5, 2025

By Mike Dawson
Retired Tennessee pastor

Note: For most of our readers this lesson is for May 11, Mother’s Day. It’s appropriate to be focusing on the prophet Elisha’s encounters with one of the most courageous and faith-filled MOTHERS in the Bible. 

Focal Passage: II Kings 4:8-17, 32-37

Sunday School Lesson Bible Studies For LifeFrom the series Elisha: Seeing the Hand of God at Work, this week’s lesson is entitled “God’s Hand in Meeting Other’s Needs.” 

Our focal passage, 2 Kings 4:8-17; 32-37, reveals two ways God’s hand works in meeting other’s needs:  [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Bible Studies for Life, Sunday School Lessons

PASTOR, THIS IS WHAT YOUR CHURCH NEEDS!

May 5, 2025

By Jay Barbier
Harvest Field Three Team Leader • Tennessee Baptist Mission Board

Jay Barbier

Be kind! 

Be loving! 

Be focused! 

Be passionate! 

These key four steps can change the culture of your church. Too often, we let ‘busy-ness’ take over and we fall into the routine of so many tasks. 

But these four simple steps could help you to get back on track in terms of what the Lord has for you in your church and community: 

First, we must always try to be kind. People desire to be treated with kindness and feel respected. It’s easy for any of us in ministry to get frustrated and quickly lose sight of being kind.  [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Featured, Opinion Column

TBMB DIRECTORS APPROVE NEW COLLABORATIVE MINISTRY MODEL

April 30, 2025

By David Dawson
Managing editor, Baptist and Reflector

NASHVILLE — The Tennessee Baptist Mission Board directors approved a new collaborative ministry model, examined financial reports, and voted to maintain a two-day schedule for this year’s Summit during their spring meeting at Judson Baptist Church on April 29.

The board also celebrated several ministry milestones while addressing the implementation of organizational changes following a recent 13% staff reduction that has created financial flexibility for the new operational approach.

Randy C. Davis, president and executive director of the TBMB, explained how the staffing changes support the new ministry direction.

“This adjustment has allowed us margin in our budgeting to take better care of our current team and embrace a new paradigm,” Davis said. “We’re calling church practitioners and experts in the field to assist other churches in being better at what they do for the kingdom. This raises collaboration among churches, associations, and our entities like educational and benevolent ministries.” [Read more…]

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Filed Under: News, Tennessee

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