Jackson Street Baptist Church / The Berean Class
Hello, my name is steve Lampman, current facilitator of one of the adult Sunday School classes here Jackson Street Baptist Church. Weeks ago, we class members chose to adopt the class name “The Berean Class”. There were two principal reasons for this. First, we thought it best to identify ourselves otherwise than by the name of the facilitator, whoever that might be, for humility’s sake. Secondly, we thought it best to identify ourselves in a way that reflected our type of study. Did we want the class to have a social nature, did we want the class to have a topical bent, or did we want to engage ourselves in a verse-by-verse exposition of Scripture? It was decided to adopt the latter. Having made that decision we considered a name that would best describe that type of study. Looking for supportive Scripture in making a decision we turned to Acts 17 and read of Paul and Silas’ journey to Berea. Consider:
1 Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. 2 Then Paul, as his custom was, went in to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3 explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus whom I preach to you is the Christ.” 4 And some of them were persuaded; and a great multitude of the devout Greeks, and not a few of the leading women, joined Paul and Silas.
5 But the Jews who were not persuaded, becoming envious, took some of the evil men from the marketplace, and gathering a mob, set all the city in an uproar and attacked the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people. 6 But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, “These who have turned the world upside down have come here too. 7 Jason has harbored them, and these are all acting contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying there is another king–Jesus.” 8 And they troubled the crowd and the rulers of the city when they heard these things. 9 So when they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.
10 Then the brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea. When they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. 11 These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so. 12 Therefore many of them believed, and also not a few of the Greeks, prominent women as well as men.
Having left Thessalonica Paul and Silas ventured to Berea, a city in Macedonia and upon arrival they went into the Jewish Synagogue where they found Jews who were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica. These Jews were studying the Jewish Scriptures diligently and when Paul and Silas introduced the gospel to them, they received their testimony (the Word) with open minds. These were more receptive than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.
Like the Bereans of Acts 17 we study the Word diligently, seeking to understand its message to us.
All of this is to introduce our class to you. For the health of the class we believe we should put into practice those things that we learn from our study(s) and the things that our Lord lays upon our hearts. We have considered that we should extend ourselves beyond our in-house study and become an encouragement to others. Hence this little note to you. We considered how we might best encourage others and thought that we might begin by reaching out to those others with a weekly mailing of various encouragements. We would like to include you in these mailings.
Thanks for taking time in the reading of this. and blessings to you.
Steve