Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $9.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    God Is Not on Your Side: A Book Study
    God Is Not on Your Side: A Book Study
    God Is Not on Your Side: A Book Study
    Ebook130 pages1 hour

    God Is Not on Your Side: A Book Study

    By Joshua Opperman

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    God Is Not on Your Side, but that is good news! Understanding why and discovering what the application of this truth means for each of our lives is quite the adventure.

    This sixteen-week book study has been written for the purpose of encouraging the individual to explore the topics and themes of God Is Not on Your Side in a group setting. It is an excellent curriculum for group Bible study, written with a focus on those who have been actively involved in church for some time or maybe have recently stopped attending church after being involved for many years.

    God Is Not on Your Side begins with the author’s testimony as an individual who believed he was a follower of Jesus living a Christian life, but one day came to realize he was actually far from God. From this humble place, the reader is then invited on a journey of self-reflection and revelation; evaluating not only personal belief but external influences that have had a significant impact on the American Christian Church. What is discovered challenges one to compare commonly accepted cultural norms and the worldview of Christians in the American Christian Church against Biblical truth.

    The Christian life is not one of theory alone. The truths conveyed in God Is Not on Your Side are best learned and lived out in community. May you enjoy the journey.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherWestBow Press
    Release dateMay 5, 2021
    ISBN9781664222229
    God Is Not on Your Side: A Book Study
    Author

    Joshua Opperman

    Joshua Opperman is a physician assistant in community health practice. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Point Loma Nazarene University and a master’s degree from Western University of Health Sciences. He has served both locally and globally as a lay minister in various capacities including missions, worship, and teaching. Opperman and his wife, Marlene, have two children. He lives in California.

    Related to God Is Not on Your Side

    Related ebooks

    Christianity For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      From The EDITOR Let God’s Word Sustain And Direct You!

      Jul 21, 2023

      JOY! Magazine seeks to glorify God by educating and informing Christians of a biblical worldview and applying the Lordship of Jesus Christ to all areas of life. Strive for excellence and integrity in all things • Provide interesting, accurate, and

      1 min read

    • Article

      Letters To The EDITOR

      Mar 18, 2022

      Dear readers, we love to hear your thoughts on the stories that we publish, what is going on around the world, and what the Lord has placed on your heart! Email your letter through to [email protected] for a chance to be featured – please try to ke

      7 min read

    • Article

      Max Lucado

      Jan 26, 2023

      Max Lucado
      2 min read

    • Article

      God Wants To Use You Part Ll

      Jun 24, 2022

      God Wants To Use You Part Ll
      1 min read

    • Article

      Monday, April 20

      Feb 14, 2020

      I GREW UP IN THE country outside a small town in Tennessee. I never dreamed it was possible to pass someone face-to-face without making eye contact and offering at least a perfunctory greeting, which often led to a full-blown conversation. When I gre

      1 min read

    • Article

      ‘You Grow Through All Your Experiences’ Thoughts From Nicky:

      Oct 30, 2020

      • A burglary is frightening but it’s good to recognise that you grow and mature through all your experiences • If you’ve experienced a traumatic experience, have trauma counselling if you can • Look after yourself physically and spiritually. I exer

      1 min read

    • Article

      What YOU SEE Is What YOU GET

      May 20, 2019

      What YOU SEE Is What YOU GET
      2 min read

    • Article

      The Parables Of Jesus

      Jun 16, 2023

      The Parables Of Jesus
      4 min read

    • Article

      Famous Fathers In The Bible

      May 20, 2019

      Scripture is filled with people who we can learn much from. When it comes to the challenging vocation of fatherhood, several fathers in the Bible show what is wise to do—and what is not wise to do. Of course, the most important father figure in the B

      2 min read

    • Article

      (Extra)ordinary Women

      Jan 24, 2020

      (Extra)ordinary Women
      2 min read

    • Article

      Women Of Grace

      Nov 18, 2019

      God has an abundant life, and a great future planned for you. His plan is to take care of you, not to abandon you. God says in Revelation 22:13, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.” Nothing in your life s

      2 min read

    • Article

      Ask Val

      Jun 24, 2022

      Ask Val
      2 min read

    • Article

      Walk in His Great Light

      Jul 18, 2023

      GOD IS THE bright pathway to fulfilling your deepest longings and His Word will fill your heart with His light. Have faith that even when it feels like you are walking in the dark, prayer and Scripture will show you the way forward. In turn, your fai

      1 min read

    • Article

      Cleanse Your Spirit

      Nov 16, 2021

      Cleanse Your Spirit
      1 min read

    • Article

      The Great Upholder

      Mar 16, 2021

      The Great Upholder
      1 min read

    • Article

      Getting to Know God God’s Incomprehensibility

      Jun 15, 2020

      In last month’s issue of JOY! Magazine we considered Genesis chapter 1 and what the creation account tells us about God. Before that, we discussed the importance of revelation, the doctrine that states that in order for us to properly know God, He mu

      4 min read

    • Article

      A JUST & RIGHTEOUS GOD

      Apr 22, 2022

      A JUST & RIGHTEOUS GOD
      3 min read

    • Article

      Word Search

      Jul 22, 2022

      Word Search
      2 min read

    • Article

      Editor’s Note

      Nov 25, 2022

      Everyday miracles are out there. We just have to be open to recognizing them. One of those everyday miracles that I encounter most often in my own life is the miracle of divine timing. I’m a planner. I like to lay out my schedule weeks in advance. It

      1 min read

    • Article

      The Gift of Forgiveness

      Nov 16, 2021

      The Gift of Forgiveness
      1 min read

    • Article

      The Historical Event That Marks Our Faith

      Apr 13, 2020

      An amazing thing about the Christian faith is that it is rooted in the historical reality of a Man who lived, was crucified, and resurrected from the dead three days later. The Apostle Paul therefore insists in 1 Corinthians 15 that were the resurrec

      1 min read

    • Article

      Friday, April 8

      Feb 16, 2022

      ABOUT SIX MONTHS AGO, MY husband and I got an idea to bless men in their first weeks after being released from prison. I read a study that said if something doesn’t go right for returning citizens soon after their return to public life—the recidivism

      1 min read

    • Article

      Ask Val

      Jul 21, 2023

      Ask Val
      2 min read

    • Article

      How God Is Using A Devoted Pastor To Further His Kingdom In This World

      Aug 7, 2020

      As Christians, we are called to be salt and light in society. We are called to be history-makers and world changers. We are called to be fruitful in our lives, to achieve much for the Kingdom of God. Our mandate on this earth is to go out into all na

      4 min read

    • Article

      Pearls Of Kingship Part LV

      Oct 30, 2020

      Over the last few issues we have studied the first part of the verse above and have seen that we cannot compromise our covenant with Abba Father in order to reach out to others. We have to stay close to the heart of our King in order to be partakers

      3 min read

    • Article

      A New Day Of Pentecost Part VI

      May 19, 2023

      The scripture above records the final words of Jesus Christ to His disciples before He was taken up into a cloud. One of His last promises was that the Father would send the Holy Spirit, and the baptism of the Spirit would enable the disciples to acc

      2 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for God Is Not on Your Side

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      God Is Not on Your Side - Joshua Opperman

      Copyright © 2021 Joshua Opperman.

      All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

      This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

      WestBow Press

      A Division of Thomas Nelson & Zondervan

      1663 Liberty Drive

      Bloomington, IN 47403

      www.westbowpress.com

      844-714-3454

      Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

      Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

      Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

      Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org

      ISBN: 978-1-6642-2221-2 (sc)

      ISBN: 978-1-6642-2222-9 (e)

      WestBow Press rev. date: 5/4/2021

      Contents

      Introduction

      Study 1 Getting Started

      Study 2 My Peter Moment

      Study 3 Good or God?

      Study 4 God Is

      Study 5 Whose Side Is God On?

      Study 6 Character Studies, Part 1

      Study 7 Character Studies, Part 2

      Study 8 Living the Dream

      Study 9 Salvation

      Study 10 Fruit of the Spirit and Spiritual Fruit

      Study 11 Prayer and Fasting

      Study 12 Evangelism

      Study 13 Worship

      Study 14 Money

      Study 15 Living as Exiles

      Study 16 Final Thoughts

      Study Leader Notes

      Introduction

      I realize when you saw the title God Is Not on Your Side, it may have been a little jarring or off-putting. One of the best ways to process something that may initially strike you in such a way is simply to talk about it. God was gracious to me in that He showed me this truth in the process of writing God Is Not on Your Side. I knew that the Lord wanted me to write the book, but I also knew that the information contained within it would be a little difficult for people to work through as it challenges many norms within our current culture and the church.

      Once I had a general outline for the book, I approached my Bible study leaders at the time to see if maybe they would allow me to spend some time working through the chapters of God Is Not on Your Side in our Bible study group. Their response was gracious and affirming, and I want to say a special thank you to Chris and Sabra Hoyle and the Parsonage Study Group for giving me the opportunity to teach this study. Going through this study with the group taught me two things: It confirmed that God was calling me to write the God Is Not on Your Side book, and it showed me that the book should be published along with this book study to help facilitate processing of the information it contained. Many of the additional thoughts and comments contained in the Study Leader Notes section of this book were actually from the Parsonage Study Group, and I am eternally grateful for each and every person who contributed through that group.

      We are meant to be in community, and though the initial chapters of God Is Not on Your Side are about theology and personal belief, the bulk of the book is about how we are to live as individuals and in community. For this reason, I am so glad that you have decided to go through this book study. Every time I have gone through the material in this study with others it has challenged and blessed me, and my hope is that your experience will be the same.

      If you are leading a group study, I want to encourage you to review each week’s study in advance along with the Study Leader Notes that you will find at the back of the book. The Study Leader Notes are meant simply to be a supplement to help facilitate the study and group discussions. If you are interested in continuing to discuss and engage with others regarding the topics in this book, I encourage you to visit the God Is Not on Your Side blog, which can be found at www.GodIsNotOnYourSide.com. May God bless you richly!

      37843.png

      Study 1:

      GETTING STARTED

      Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

      —Matthew 28:19–20

      After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.

      —Revelation 7:9–10

      T here is a certain challenge trying to convey in written form the truths that God has been teaching me over the past few years. My spiritual journey with God has been a process of seeking Him and getting to know myself. Along this journey, He has revealed to me what is contained within this Bible study. I felt compelled to write this study as God revealed to me that the truths I am learning from Him also apply to many others, but I humbly submit that I alone am unable to convince anyone of the truth. As has been the case in my life, it is Almighty God who opens eyes to the truth and changes hearts and lives. So I pray that as you read and go through this Bible study, God will speak to your heart and bless your life as you grow in Him.

      This study has been written specifically to those within the Christian church in the United States and directly references the current culture in America. I mention this at the outset simply because if you are not familiar with American culture, some of what is contained within this text may be foreign to you. Nonetheless, the truth of God’s

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1