God's Word provides the light we need (Psalm 119:105). Our free downloadable online Bible study videos are written by pastors and other professionals. Each study has a discussion guide expanding the video footage with supporting Scripture, commentary, questions, and other features to maximize the topic.
Important Update : In an effort to better track which resources are used the most, we are now requiring a FREE user account to download our materials. This helps us determine what resources interest you!
James 1:1-4 This letter is from James, a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ. I am writing to the “twelve tribes”—Jewish believers scattered abroad. Dear brothers and sisters. Online Lutheran Bible Study This is an in-depth study of the book of Luke based on the Concordia Commentary. This version includes a study guide with questions and answers. There is another version of this study guide that includes questions and no answers.
If you already have a download account with one of LHM's programs (MissionU, Men's NetWork, GodConnects, etc.), you can now use your existing e-mail address and password to login to any section on www.lhm.org. For security reasons, our online store will still require a separate account.
Questions? Please contact us!
Page: 1 |2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | view all 51 items
Nurturing Your Faith: Forgiveness - Session 3: Possibilities of Forgiveness
By: Rev. Dr. Chad Lakies
Session three notes that while God's pardon is unconditional, ours is often loaded with stipulations or given sparingly. Forgiveness is considered in respect to the treachery of Joseph's brothers, the sins of the prodigal son, and those who mistreated Paul.
Nurturing Your Faith: Forgiveness - Session 2: Conditions of Forgiveness
By: Rev. Dr. Chad Lakies
This second session looks at the tie between our sins and God's mercy. We'll consider the effect of David's sin on his life and faith, what Jesus says about forgiving others, and how God's forgiveness transformed the lives of Peter and Paul.
Nurturing Your Faith: Forgiveness - Session 1: Practicing Forgiveness
By: Rev. Dr. Chad Lakies
This first study on forgiveness begins with man's sin dilemma, its dire consequences, and God's merciful solution to our problem. As we have been forgiven through Jesus, so are we to forgive others.
Utilizing Barna Group data, Lutheran Hour Ministries has produced Households of Faith, a four-session video study to help households apply three core habits that foster a spiritually vibrant household. These are 1) applying spiritual disciplines; 2) extending hospitality; and 3) engaging in spiritual conversations.
Called - A Nurturing Your Faith Study (Complete with all 4 sessions)
By: Rev. Dr. Michael Zeigler
(Includes subtitles in English)Nurturing Your Faith: Called is a four-session Bible study based on Ephesians. Individual sessions look at how we are called by God, called to faith, called to service, and called to share. Lutheran Hour Speaker Rev. Dr. Mike Zeigler gives a video introduction to all four sessions. Reflection questions are included.
The Eager Conversationalist/Spiritual Conversation Curve Workshops
By: Jason Broge and Don Everts
Drawing on Barna Group data contained in the 2018 monograph Spiritual Conversations in the Digital Age, Lutheran Hour Ministries is offering two workshops: the first, Eager Conversationalists, examines spiritual conversations. It offers insights to help us become more intentional-more eager-to engage in spiritual conversations with others. The second, The Spiritual Conversation Curve, offers help in getting past conversational hurdles. This is possible when we focus on someone's 'spiritual posture,' so as not to impose a conversation that's forced or ill-timed.
Prayer - A Nurturing Your Faith Study
By: Don Everts
(Includes subtitles in English) The Bible study Nurturing Your Faith: Prayer is a four-session series exploring the role of different types of prayer in the believer's life. Prayers of intercession, gratitude, confession, and praise are considered in various scriptural settings by highlighting a particular prayer's context, who offered it, and why. An opening video featuring Rev. Don Everts prefaces each session and gives context to what follows.
(Includes subtitles in English) From Luther's 95 Theses in 1517 to the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, God was at work in the Reformation. Fierce debates over Scripture, church doctrine, and late medieval church practice led to theological positions articulating salvation as God's grace in action, with man being left to add nothing to his own salvation. In A Man Named Martin - Part 3: The Movement, viewers will see how the Reformation transformed European society and, eventually, left a profound impression around the globe.
Due to the nature of the program and its future broadcast use, we are not able to allow free downloads for 'This is the Life' like we do for our other products.
Here's TV from television's 'Golden Age.' Check out these nine episodes of This is the Life. Watch stars like Jack Nicholson, Leonard Nimoy, Angie Dickinson, and Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs cut their teeth on their craft-long before they hit the 'big time.'
(Includes subtitles in English)A Man Named Martin-Part 2: The Moment examines the errant teachings and wayward traditions of the Late Medieval Church that eventually sparked the Protestant Reformation, a theological overhaul set in motion most notably by Martin Luther's nailing of the 95 Theses to the church door at Wittenberg.
Page: 1 |2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | view all 51 items
Bible Study: Introduction to the Book of James28/7/2015 James 1:1-4 This letter is from James, a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ. I am writing to the “twelve tribes”—Jewish believers scattered abroad. Greetings! Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. God's ultimate goal for each of us is that we'll become more like Jesus day by day. God isn't content with just saving us; He has some pretty incredible restoration plans for you and me (see 2 Cor. 3:18; Rom 8:29. God's restoration plans for all of creation; see Acts 3:21). As this happens, we begin to think, see and love people like Jesus does. We take on God's values, attitudes and character. God's goal for us is being brought about through His work of 'Sanctification' or better 'Christ-formation'. The central theme for the book of James is Spiritual Maturity. God wants us to grow up in our faith, become 'perfect' (mature) in our faith. It's the Father's delight to guide us in the process of becoming spiritually mature. Rick Warren has said it well when he writes: 'God’s ultimate goal for your life on earth is not comfort, but character development. He wants you to grow up spiritually and become like Christ. Becoming like Christ does not mean losing your personality or becoming a mindless clone. God created your uniqueness, so he certainly doesn’t want to destroy it!' The book of James belongs to the wisdom literature of the Bible... (to read on click 'read more' below) There is lots of this in the OT, but James is the only book of this kind in the New Testament. Wisdom literature gives us insight and instructions on how to live to please God and how to live successfully. For this very reason, James is one intensely practical book. You will also notice the many imperatives (commands) that James speaks forth with the authority of the Holy Spirit! James rebukes any surface level Christianity by cutting through sham and hypocrisy. James insists that we must walk the talk. Who was James? James is the half-brother of Jesus. The fact that James only uses his first name is kind of a rock star status thing. He knew that his readers would know which James he was - James the head of the Jerusalem church 48 - 62AD. The Apostle Paul speaks highly of this James; he calls him an apostle in Gal 1:19 (even though he wasn't one of the original 12). Paul called him one of the pillars of the church! James didn't only have a 'rock-star' status among the early christians, like the Apostle Paul, James too was a rock of the church. James must have been a deeply spiritual man to gain the leadership of the Jerusalem Christian church. Also, take note that despite growing up with Jesus, James never used that as a status badge. The only claim James makes is that in Chapter 1:1 of his letter, that he was 'a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ'. God has complete ownership of him. God owed him nothing, he owed God everything because of Jesus Christ and his completed work on the cross. Further evidence of James' deep spirituality was the fact that tradition said of him, 'he prayed so much that his knees were hard as a camels'. His deep commitment to Christ was so fierce that the Pharisees hated him...so much so that they had him pushed off the temple and beat him to death. To whom did James write? James writes to 'to the “twelve tribes”—Jewish believers scattered abroad' (1:1). At the time of his writing, some estimate that up to 4 million Jews were scattered over the Roman Empire. In the original language of the New Testament, the word 'scattered' had to do with the idea of 'scattering seed'. So God scattered the seed of his people around the Empire, and then used the Christian Jews to scatter the Gospel seeds into hearts and minds. Why did James write? James writes to Jewish Christians who were experiencing problems in their personal lives and in the life of the new Christian communities of faith. Imagine being a Jewish Christian living in foreign lands. The Gentiles would have caused them grief, and their own country people (Jews) would have rejected them for their following this supposed 'messiah' Jesus Christ. Here's a little rundown on some of their problems:
These are the type of common problems that the local church in any community around our nation experiences from week to week. And rather than being a collection of problems to deal with, James knew that all these problems had a common root: spiritual immaturity. The good news is that God our Father wants to grow us in our maturity. He wants us to grow up to be men and women who scatter the seed of the gospel. God will use our faithful work to reap a bountiful harvest. Questions to ponder: 1. Who was James, and to whom did he write? 2. Why was the early church considered the 'scattered seed?' 3. What is God's goal for us as Christians? 4. What were some of the main problems of James' readers? What was the common cause of all these problems? What does it mean? 5. It can be easy for Christians to gather together in holy huddles in safe places? Was this God's plan for those early believers? How did God use the persecution they experienced? 6. Maybe as you've worked through this study you've remembered the spiritual immaturity of other believers. It's easy to do this, but it's better for us to focus on our own heart and journey! Think of times when you have acted in a spiritual immature way. Take time to repent, confess behaviour, receive God's forgiveness, and change your mindset/choose God's way in future. How would you act if you could have your time or that situation again? 7. What are some troubles that you have experienced lately or are looming on the horizon? Share with others, remembering the special bond of trust and confidentiality shared amongst your fellow believers. 8. Why can dedicated Christians have joy in the midst of trials? What does the testing the of faith achieve in the life of a believer? 9. Take time to bring your troubles to God in prayer. Ask him to reveal to you how he is using them to grow and mature your faith. Give thanks to God that he is never anxious to answer prayer, but anxious to help and answer your prayer in his perfect way. One more thing! Remember that we build our spiritual maturity (together with the Holy Spirit) on the perfect salvation that Christ has won for us. Without the perfect work of Christ there could be no perfecting of the believers. |