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Commentary on "The Fruit of the Spirit is Love"

RICHARD PEIFER

 

Day 1: Sabbath Afternoon, January 2, 2010

 

Overview

“The student will –

(From the Teacher’s Comments section.)

 

Observations

What a wonderful way to begin 2010! Nothing is more important to understand than God’s love for us and how that love can impact the world as it flows through us. Never in my lifetime has love been more important. Never has the difference between true love and the lack thereof been starker. Never have so many people, in their attempts to find love, broken themselves in such lust and thirst for power.

The church, the body of Christ on earth, could and should have much to say and demonstrate to these seekers. After all, God gave us Jesus and the Bible. It should be a rather straight forward exercise, right? No. Love is the single most difficult concept to grasp in the entire Bible.

This lesson misses the mark in one key area: The failure to understand the difference between the Old and New Covenants. As always for Seventh-day Adventist teaching, it tries to mix law and grace, turning the miracle of agape love into a to-do list.

These remarks are organized primarily around Sunday’s assertion of love’s multi-dimensional nature and the Monday/Tuesday explanation of 1 Corinthians 13. The meaning, motivation and accomplishment of Wednesday’s and Thursday’s applications changes substantially in light of a proper understanding of Sunday’s-Tuesday’s topics.

 

Summary

  1. There is no more important study than agape love.
  2. Mixing the Old (Law) and New (Grace) Covenants in an attempt to define and apply love results in an inadequate definition and complete failure to realize.

 

GO TO DAY 2

 

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The Sabbath School Bible Study Guide and the corresponding E.G. White Notes are published by Pacific Press Publishing Association, which is owned and operated by the Seventh-day Adventist church. The current quarter's editions are pictured above.

 

Official Adventist Resources

Standard Edition Study Guide Week 2

Teacher's Edition Study Guide Week 2

Easy Reading Edition Study Guide Week 2

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