Bible Study for July 13, 2025

Hi everyone,

The well known parable of "the good Samaritan" for this Sunday gives us an opportunity to ask ourselves if we are the type of religious people who "pass by on the other side" to avoid the wounded in our world. 

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Pastor Tim

"God has led you to the desert, and spoken to your Heart."

Mount of Olives Lutheran Church

3546 E. Thomas Rd

Phoenix, AZ 85018

602-956-1620 office

Bible Study for July 13, 2025

Opening Prayer:

Creator of all, we thank you for the opportunity to gather in study. Open our minds and hearts. By the power of the Holy Spirit, unite us in faith, hope, and love. Help us to be faithful to the gospel and to walk humbly with you. Grant us your peace as we grow in wisdom and understanding. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Luke 10:25-37 The lawyer, employing a time-tested method of avoiding action, challenged Jesus to define “neighbor.” When have you preferred to discuss a problem rather than act on it?

This beloved and familiar story has an edge, a sharp or touchy dimension. Part of the edge comes from the setting given by Luke. The other aspect of its edge is seen in how Jesus twice undercut the expectations of his hearers. The confrontation is with a lawyer—a teacher of the law of Moses. In his time, rabbis commonly debated in public, exchanging questions and retorts. Though this lawyer asked Jesus a legitimate question about how to inherit eternal life, Luke disparaged the lawyer’s motives, saying he wanted to “test” Jesus and to “justify” himself. (The only others to “tempt” Jesus in Luke are the devil and the “evil” crowd.”) For Luke, the lawyer was more concerned with appearing religious and advancing himself than loving God. After the lawyer asked the question of Jesus, Jesus turned the question back twice, and the lawyer answered with two of the basic teachings of the Jewish faith, the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:5), which pious Jews recited daily, and a portion of the Holiness Code from Leviticus, which detailed the ritual and ethical requirements of holy living. Jesus told the parable, and then he brought the conversation back to the starting point: “What must I do?” His imperative has the force of “you, go, now.” 

Colossians 1:1-14 What spiritual beliefs and practices undergird faith in Christ?

Colossae was a small town near Laodicea in the Lycus Valley on the ancient road running east from Ephesus. Colossians was written to combat Gnostic (belief in salvation through special knowledge) teachers who advocated asceticism, special days and rituals, and worship of angels (2:16-23). They were advocating a syncretism (mixture of Christian and pagan ideals) that detracted from focus on Christ. These teachers claimed to have superior wisdom that gave them access to God. The author of Colossians counters that Christ alone makes possible a saving relationship with God. True spiritual wisdom consists of listening for God’s will and leading a life worthy of belief in Christ. The writer is grateful to God for how the gospel is “bearing fruit” in their lives, and prays that the recipients of the letter will live effective lives of faith, endure trials and controversies with consistency and dedication, giving thanks to God through it all. 

Closing Prayer

Almighty God, you give the holy law to your people so that it will always be near us and our children.

Through our Lord Jesus who has fulfilled the law in every way, grant that we may love you with heart, soul, strength, and mind, and our neighbor as ourselves. Amen.