Nathan E. Lewis

Introduction:
The title, “The Minor Prophets,” has been used in the western Church since the days of Augustine. These prophets are “minor” in the sense that their writings are shorter compared to Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel. In the Hebrew Scriptures, all of the prophets are grouped in the 24 book section titled: “The Law and the Prophets.” The Minor Prophets cover a span of 300 years beginning in the 750’s B.C. through the mid-400 B.C.
This Hebraic grouping captures the covenantal structure of biblical texts. God gave the law to govern the covenant, that relational and central communion between God and his people. God attached blessing and curses to his law: blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience. The prophets, in one sense, are God’s prosecuting attorneys, delivering God’s case against a disobedient covenant people. To the extent that his covenant reaches the entire world, the prophets bring cases against all rebellious nations. One of God’s central covenant promises is that through Abraham, all the nations of the world shall be blessed.
Moses is the prophet of God who delivered the law of God to his people at Mt. Sinai and then, at the end of his life, delivered it again in the form preserved in Deuteronomy, “the second law.” For us to understand and apply The Minor Prophets, we must have a fair understanding of the Pentateuch, the five books of Moses.
As Christians, we also understand Jesus and the apostles as they interpret the law and the prophets. The bold claim of Jesus is that he did not come to abolish the law but to fulfill it. The apostles present Jesus as the great prophet, greater than Moses and the suffering servant, who represents the human party of the covenant, “he who knew no sin became sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God.” As John Calvin wrote in his introduction to Hosea, “As there is no hope of reconciliation with God except through a Mediator, they ever set forth the Messiah, whom the Lord had long before promised.” Continue reading »

Study of I Thessalonians
Prepared by Nathan E. Lewis for Surveyor
Winter 2010 Continue reading »

Monthly I mail out a one page Bible Study to encourage people in our congregations to be reading God’s Word. You can access my notes right here. Continue reading »

Read the Book of Ruth in one sitting, once weekly in preparation of hearing the Gospel preached from it. The following questions are designed to aid you in your personal and small group study. The book recommendations will help you in further study as you choose to pursue it. Pray to the Holy Spirit to enlighten you, to apply this beautiful story to your mind and heart, to your faith and to your obedience. Pastor Nathan Lewis is preaching six sermons from the Book of Ruth this October and November at Evergreen in Beaverton and Chehalem Valley in Newberg. You may read his sermon scripts at his blog. Using the study guide below, look for more questions, resources, and quotations as the weeks unfold. Interact with Nathan and let him know what you are learning from the Holy Scriptures. Continue reading »

Ascension Sermon Series
Discussion Group
April 13 – May 18, 2008 Continue reading »

Study 24: I Corinthians 15:12-34

AIM = To grasp the fact of Christ’s resurrection and its implications for Christian life and mission.

1. Why may the Corinthians have denied the resurrection?

2. What are the results of denying the reality of Jesus’ resurrection?

3. How does the resurrection of Jesus encourage you to suffer patiently and with confidence?

4. Are you often tempted to forget the importance of Jesus’ resurrection? Take some time now to thank God for it.

5. What is the essence of the contrast between Adam and Christ?

6. What are we still waiting for in the process of God’s plan, as described here?

7. How does the certain knowledge that death will be defeated give us strength to live Cross-centered lives?

8. What things do you do in your life that shows you are living for the future rather than the present?

Banner of Truth Trust has published a series, “Let’s Study the Bible,” edited by Sinclair Ferguson. To support my sermon series from I Corinthians, the Sermon Discussion Group at Evergreen Presbyterian Church has chosen the volume, “Let’s Study I Corinthians,” as its study guide. The author of it, including the questions listed below, is David Jackman, President of the Proclamation Trust and founder-director of the Cornhill Training Course in London. Continue reading »

The following questions and quotations are designed to help you study Paul’s Epistle to the Colossians as Nathan E. Lewis preaches his series, “The Supremacy and Sufficiency of Christ,” February 25 through July 29, 2007.
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Discussion Questions: Deuteronomy
Remembering the Covenant
Deuteronomy Sermon Series
by Nathan E. Lewis

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