Christianity Explained - Bible study course

[Deborah_]

I've been writing a short Bible study course aimed at new Christians and possibly unbelievers interested in the Christian faith. I have tried to assume very little pre-existing knowledge, and have tried to avoid using jargon and clichés as far as possible (in other words, 'traditional' language is reduced to a minimum). There are 30 sections (so it could be worked through in a month). Space is limited to a page a day, so the teaching has to be brief, and it hasn't been possible to cover absolutely everything - but hopefully anyone working through it will end up with a good understanding of the basics. Do let me know what you think.

 

[Deborah_]

1 Introduction: The Bible

Read Luke 1:1-4

The Shoah Foundation was founded in 1994 to collect, record and preserve the testimonies of those who survived the Holocaust. It was feared that otherwise, with the passing of time and the deaths of these witnesses, those terrible events would either be forgotten altogether or dismissed as “fiction” by future generations.

Something similar happened towards the end of the first century CE. As those who had witnessed the life and doings of Jesus of Nazareth grew old and died, some were moved to record their testimony in writing for posterity - “so you can be certain of the truth of everything you were taught.” (Luke 1:4). This eyewitness testimony is the basis of our four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John).

The Bible is a collection of 66 books and letters, written by more than 30 different authors over a period of about 1000 years. But Christians describe the Bible as “the word of God”, because he inspired all of it and speaks to us through it (2 Timothy 3:16,17).

The Bible contains several different forms of testimony: historical records, laws, stories, prophecies, poems, and letters. Some of the writers received direct revelations from God; others simply recorded their own experiences, or poured out their feelings in passionate poetry. The result is like a patchwork, or even a kaleidoscope. The overall picture may seem confusing at first, but there is a pattern to it - a pattern that becomes clearer the more you look at it.

“Open my eyes to see
the wonderful truths in your instructions.” (Psalm 119:18)

 

[Deborah_]

2 Let’s begin at the beginning…

Read Genesis 1:1-2:3

Is the universe just a bizarre accident? Or did Somebody make it?

It isn’t possible to prove that there is a God. However, we know that nothing in the universe happens without a cause, so it’s not unreasonable to believe that the universe itself also had a cause. And it also seems to have been “designed for life” - which is at the least strong evidence for a Designer.

The Bible says nothing about how God made the world. It simply states, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” (Genesis 1:1) So the universe didn’t come about by accident, and the existence of living things isn’t a billion-to-one chance; it was all planned. With great simplicity and artistry, this passage describes the majesty and comprehensive scope of God’s handiwork: day and night, earth and heaven, land and sea, and everything in them. And it’s all so effortless; everything was simply called into existence by God’s decree.
“For when he spoke, the world began!
It appeared at his command.” (Psalm 33:9)

Modern science was founded on the assumption that Nature is rational and orderly, because it’s the product of a rational Mind. By observation and experiment, we can discover the laws by which Nature operates. But God, who originally devised them, is able to overrule them if he wishes (which produces what we call ‘miracles’).

Since God made everything in the universe (including us), he is the rightful Owner of everything - including us (Psalm 24:1). Whether we realise it or not, we depend on him for everything, even life itself. “For in him we live and move and exist.” (Acts 17:28)

 

[Bob Estey]

I've been writing a short Bible study course aimed at new Christians and possibly unbelievers interested in the Christian faith. I have tried to assume very little pre-existing knowledge, and have tried to avoid using jargon and clichés as far as possible (in other words, 'traditional' language is reduced to a minimum). There are 30 sections (so it could be worked through in a month). Space is limited to a page a day, so the teaching has to be brief, and it hasn't been possible to cover absolutely everything - but hopefully anyone working through it will end up with a good understanding of the basics. Do let me know what you think.

February has 28 days.

 

[Pearl]

February has 28 days.

So it does - but the months on either side of it have 31. So borrow a day from January and one from March. Simples.

 

[Bob Estey]

So it does - but the months on either side of it have 31. So borrow a day from January and one from March. Simples.

I guess we can allow that.

 

[Deborah_]

3 God reveals himself

Read Exodus 3:1-15

God is the Maker of the universe, not part of it. We can’t see him or touch him. We can’t reach him by travelling (not even into space!), and we can’t discover him through scientific investigation. So it’s very easy to get the wrong ideas about God.

But he hasn’t left us in the dark. He reaches out to us, because he wants us to know him (Acts 17:17). He has revealed himself to the human race in various ways - sometimes through dreams and visions, but mainly through his words, through his deeds, and through the history of his chosen people (the Jews).

The God who meets Moses is a holy God (verse 5). He is so different from us, so pure, so perfect, that mere human beings have no right to approach him - and those who do meet him are usually terrified by the experience (Isaiah 6:1-5).

But the God who meets Moses is also a “hands-on” God. He sees what is happening in our world (verses 7,9), he hears our prayers (verses 7,9) - and he acts (verse 8). If at all possible, he prefers to work with and through human beings - which is why he wants Moses to be his representative on the rescue mission he has planned (verse 10).

Thanks to the Internet, long-distance relationships are not uncommon these days. But however well you think you know someone, nothing beats a face-to-face meeting. And so God hasn’t just revealed himself through visions and prophets. In Jesus Christ, he has actually come to visit us. “Long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets. And now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his Son.” (Hebrews 1:1,2)

 

[Ronald Nolette]

I've been writing a short Bible study course aimed at new Christians and possibly unbelievers interested in the Christian faith. I have tried to assume very little pre-existing knowledge, and have tried to avoid using jargon and clichés as far as possible (in other words, 'traditional' language is reduced to a minimum). There are 30 sections (so it could be worked through in a month). Space is limited to a page a day, so the teaching has to be brief, and it hasn't been possible to cover absolutely everything - but hopefully anyone working through it will end up with a good understanding of the basics. Do let me know what you think.

May God bless your labor as you reach out to the lost.

 

[Deborah_]

4 What is God really like?

Read Exodus 33:18-34:8

It’s very easy to get the wrong ideas about God. Some people think of him as being like an indulgent grandfather: old-fashioned and a bit out of touch with the modern world, but generous and kind to everybody. Others think of him as a sort of policeman in the sky: always on the lookout for someone breaking one of his many rules, so that he can punish them. But both these ‘images’ of God are distorted caricatures.

Another common myth is that the God of the Old Testament is angry and judgmental, while in the New Testament he suddenly becomes all loving and accepting. Again, this simply isn’t true; God’s ‘character’ hasn’t changed. He has always been “the God of compassion and mercy. I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness. I lavish unfailing love to a thousand generations. I forgive iniquity, rebellion and sin. But I do not excuse the guilty.” (Exodus 34:6,7)

“God is love” (1 John 4:8) - but he’s not a sugary sweet kind of love, and he’s never a pushover. He is also absolutely just, and never turns a blind eye to evil - but he would much rather forgive wrongdoers than punish them. “As surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, I take no pleasure in the death of wicked people. I only want them to turn from their wicked ways so they can live.” (Ezekiel 33:11) So he passes judgement reluctantly, and only as a last resort.

Most importantly, God is faithful. He is consistent, and can be trusted to keep his promises. And so the prophet Jonah knew, when he was sent to preach to the wicked people of Nineveh, that God would certainly forgive them if they repented (Jonah 3:1-4:2). And this is still true today.

 

[Behold]

4 What is God really like?

What is God "like"?

He's just like this..

Jesus said.."If you've seen ME.. you've seen the Father" = 'I and my Father, are ONE"..

 

[Deborah_]

What is God "like"?

He's just like this..

Jesus said.."If you've seen ME.. you've seen the Father" = 'I and my Father, are ONE"..

Good point. I must get that in somewhere.

 

[Deborah_]

5 God’s eternal plan

Read Genesis 12:1-5

What are we doing here?

God originally made the universe as a means of displaying his glory. Things haven’t gone smoothly (which is largely mankind’s fault); but God’s plans can never be frustrated (Isaiah 46:10). He is now working to bring peace and harmony back to the universe, by bringing everything under the rule of Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:9,10).

As always, God works with and through human beings. So the first step in his great plan was to choose someone to be the ancestor of a special people. That person was Abraham, and God promised him that “all the families on earth will be blessed through you.” (Genesis 12:3)

God’s “chosen people”, the Israelites, have had a very chequered history. When they obeyed God, they prospered; but eventually they were conquered and taken into exile. However, that wasn’t the end of the story. “I know the plans I have for you… plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

God promised to send his people a great King to rule not only them but the whole world (Zechariah 9:9,10). And Jesus was the fulfilment of that promise (Galatians 4:4,5). He has set up a new Kingdom, and invites everyone to enter it (Mark 1:15)!

So history isn’t circular or random; God is in charge of it, and it’s going in a particular direction. Those who become followers of Jesus get caught up in God’s great plan, and this gives our lives purpose and meaning. We also know that we’re heading for a happy ending (Revelation 21:1-7), whatever may happen before then (Romans 8:28)!

 

[Deborah_]

6 The first human beings

Read Genesis 1:26-28

God has always wanted co-workers. The world that he created was inherently good, but it still needed on-the-ground management to keep it on the right track and enable it to fulfil its potential.

Enter human beings. From a purely biological point of view, we’re a kind of ape - but there’s something about us that makes us unique, different from all other animals (even the most intelligent ones). We are capable of complex language and abstract thought. And whereas animals act by instinct, we have the ability (and the responsibility) to make moral choices. In a small and imperfect way, we are actually like God… As the writer of Genesis puts it, we are made “in the image of God” (Genesis 1:27).

So we are God’s representatives on earth. He has given us the power to control our environment and manipulate nature - but we can only do these things properly so long as we act under his authority.

This is an enormous privilege, and also an awesome responsibility. How have we discharged it? We have certainly achieved some momentous things. We have the technology to go anywhere we want to, even to the depths of the ocean or into space. We have made phenomenal advances in medicine - but we have also created weapons of mass destruction. At the same time we have plundered the earth’s natural resources and driven many species to extinction. We are now having to grapple with climate change caused by our own activities. We are the rulers of the world, but we rule selfishly and thoughtlessly; we have become tyrants rather than stewards.

What went so terribly wrong?

 

[Deborah_]

7 The Great Rebellion

Read Genesis 3

Human beings are not robots; we are free agents. We can therefore choose, either to obey God or to disobey him. As we go through life, we have to deal with a vast number of moral choices, big and small. But for the purposes of this story, all are fused into one single (and very simple) prohibition: not to eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:16,17). This one command wasn’t difficult to keep; there was no shortage of other sources of food in the garden of Eden. It was simply a boundary marker, a test. Would Adam trust and obey God, or would he not?

Unfortunately, the devil planted in Eve’s mind the idea that God could not be trusted (verses 4,5). And in the end, the temptation proved too strong to resist. Adam and Eve ate the fruit - but quickly discovered that if they didn’t trust God, then they could no longer trust each other (verse 7). And their wilful disobedience had fractured their close relationship with God beyond repair. To us, it seems a very minor offence - but if they couldn’t be trusted in this ‘little’ matter, what could they be trusted in? The possibilities of further wrongdoing were endless, and the prospect of eternal life under such circumstances unthinkable (verse 22). So they had to be sent into exile, away from God’s immediate presence.

Ever since then, the whole human race has been in rebellion against God’s authority (Psalm 2:1-3). We think that we know better than God does, and we want to run our own lives without his interference. So we do our best to find excuses to ignore God and exclude him. And although he still loves us, he doesn’t impose his will on us by force; he allows us to have our own way.

 

[Deborah_]

8 Sin

Read Mark 7:21-23

These days, most people believe that human beings are fundamentally good, and that if we do go wrong, it’s because of our parents, or bad childhood experiences, or something like that. But Jesus taught the exact opposite (Matthew 7:11)! We’re certainly capable of doing a lot of good things, but God sees into our hearts - and what he sees isn’t pretty. Some of us (thanks to a good upbringing or a natural talent for self-control) are better at suppressing our selfish impulses than others; we may be paragons of virtue until we find ourselves under stress, or drink too much alcohol - or think we can get away with it. But we shouldn’t blame these circumstances for our bad behaviour; they merely expose what’s already lurking deep inside us.

“Sin” is any act of rebellion against God’s will - and we’re all guilty in one way or another. Although we all think of ourselves as ‘good’ people, we all do things that we know we shouldn’t do, and don’t do things that we know we should do. We may be considered good by human standards, but nobody can pass God’s scrutiny. In his eyes, we are all defiled.
“Not a single person on earth
is always good and never sins.” (Ecclesiastes 7:20)

We can try our best to live a good life (and many people do), but even then our motives are often selfish: we want to feel good about ourselves, or get the approval of other people. And no amount of outward ‘cleanliness’ will make any difference to the dirt inside us. New Year resolutions do little more than scratch the surface (which is why they rarely last more than a few weeks); if we want to change our inner nature and be fit for God’s company, we need a much more radical solution.

 

[Deborah_]

9 What drives you?

Read Romans 1:20-23

About 37% of people in England and Wales claim to have “no religion” - but if the true God is pushed out of our lives, something else inevitably takes his place. You may not recognise or acknowledge it as a ‘god’, but in our personal scale of priorities, something must occupy the top slot - and it will be something that appeals to our natural (sinful) instincts. It may be a person; it may be money, sex or career; it may be a political cause or a philosophical system. And then there are other religions, each following a god shaped in some way by human imagination. Whatever it is, something will govern our thoughts and actions – and it will be something less worthy of our devotion than the living God. This is what the Bible calls idolatry.

Does this matter? Yes – because (as we know from social media algorithms) whatever we focus our minds on and devote our lives to will eventually come to dominate us. “He/she lived for football (or music, or their family, or whatever)” is a fairly sure indicator of an idolatrous life. A lot of these substitute ‘gods’ are actually good things; but if we idolise them, they distort our whole value system, and this has knock-on effects on our behaviour. This is particularly evident with the most popular idol in our society – Money. “People who long to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.” (1 Timothy 6:9,10).

The problem with idolatry is that idols can’t satisfy us. If we worship money and possessions, we will never have enough. If we worship health and beauty, we will never be content with our own bodies. Whatever the object of our worship is, we end up being enslaved by the pursuit of it.

 

[Deborah_]

10 Who’s in charge of your life?

Read Job 21:7-15

Cnut (Canute) was king of England for 20 years during the early 11th century. It is said that, egged on by his flattering courtiers, he once placed his throne on a beach and commanded the tide not to come in. Of course, the sea took no notice of him, and he got very wet!

Cnut knew that he was being foolish; but modern technology (sea walls and tidal energy plants) has brought control of the waves within our reach. We can do whatever we want, it seems. So what do we need God for?
“Who is the Almighty, and why should we obey him?
What good will it do us to pray?” (Job 21:15)

It’s a fundamental part of human nature to want to be the captain of our own ship, to control our own destiny - to be able to say, at the end of our lives, “I did it my way.” We want to live by our own rules, not anyone else’s (and especially not God’s!); and one reason is that we can then pick and choose which rules to include in our personal moral code. It’s not difficult to be a ‘good’ person if you have your own personal definition of ‘good’!

Pride whispers to us that we have the right to do anything we like; that we don’t need advice or help from anyone else (including God); that we are above criticism. And if we come to grief as a result, our pride won’t let us admit that we were in the wrong; we see ourselves as the victims of circumstances, or put the blame on other people.

Pride is deadly because it refuses to face reality. We make ourselves into our own little gods, and we expect everyone else to “affirm” us and be nice to us - even when they can see that we’re actually making fools of ourselves.

 

[Deborah_]

11 The consequences of sin

Read Ephesians 5:3-6

God’s original intention for the human race was that we should not die, but live in his presence and enjoy fellowship with him for ever. But when the first humans sinned, they lost their automatic right to immortality. And all their descendants are in the same boat: we all sin, without exception, and we all become subject to the consequences.

Why will there be a final judgement? The distinction between good and evil, right and wrong, must be upheld in the end – otherwise God would not be just. And a fair and impartial judgement means the condemnation of all sin. “He will judge everyone according to what they have done.” (Romans 2:6) He won’t ignore or overlook our sins, even the little ones; justice demands that they must all be punished. And that will happen after we die (Hebrews 9:27). Whether we are believers or unbelievers, “we must all stand before Christ to be judged.” (II Corinthians 5:10)

Most people imagine that God will have a giant pair of scales to weigh their good deeds against the bad ones, so all will depend on which side is heaviest. But what court of law operates on that basis? We face specific charges: rebellion (against our Creator and King), and blasphemy (setting ourselves up in his place) - and the evidence against us will be all the sins (whether big or small) that we have ever committed. So we know in advance that we’re all guilty, and deserve punishment. But God doesn’t want to condemn us, because he loves us.

So he offers us another option. “The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23)

 

[Deborah_]

12 Jesus’ teaching

Read Matthew 5:21-48

Jesus first came to public attention as a travelling preacher. But his approach was very different to the professional rabbis of the time. He put forward his own personal interpretation of the Jewish Law - and he demanded an extraordinarily high ethical standard from his followers. He expected them not just to refrain from committing murder, but to avoid even hating another person (verses 21,22). He forbade not just adultery but even lustful thoughts (verses 27,28). And they were not only to love their neighbours, but their enemies as well (verses 43-48)!

Jesus also talked a lot about the Kingdom of God.“The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the good news!” (Mark 1:15) This wasn’t what people had been expecting. For the Jews, the Kingdom of God was all about God’s triumph over his enemies at the end of the age; but Jesus spoke of it as something that exists here and now. Not only that, but it’s open to anyone and everyone who wants to join in (Matthew 8:11)!

To explain his teaching, Jesus used parables - short simple stories or illustrations from ordinary everyday life, but often with an unexpected twist. For example, in the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32), the father doesn’t reject the son who has offended the family's honour, but welcomes him home with open arms. God, says Jesus, is like that: he loves the people who have turned their backs on him, and wants to be reconciled with them, if only they will return to him.

Many people admire Jesus’ teaching - but he wants our obedience, not our approval. It’s potentially life-changing - but only those who put it into practice will benefit from it (Matthew 7:24-27).

 

[Deborah_]

13 Jesus’ miracles

Read Luke 7:18-23

Jesus soon acquired a mass following - not only because of his teaching, but also because he performed miracles. Most of these were miracles of healing. Many people claim to be “faith healers”, of course; but Jesus’ success rate was so phenomenal that he never needed to promote himself (Luke 5:14-16). In fact, he tried to minimise publicity as much as possible, but to no avail.

He also did more unusual miracles. At a wedding, he turned six large jars of water into best-quality wine (John 2:1-11). When a crowd of 5000 people had nothing to eat, he multiplied five loaves and two fish into a feast - and at the end there was more food left over than they had started with (John 6:1-13)! And he once calmed a storm on Lake Galilee with such effortless ease that his companions became more afraid of him than they had been of the storm (Mark 4:35-41)!

What was the point of doing these things? Not to attract attention, nor to force people to believe in him, but to give clues and pointers as to his identity. Isaiah had prophesied that when God came to save his people, the barren wilderness would spring to life and disabled people (blind, deaf and lame) would be healed (Isaiah 35:1-7). When people saw these healings taking place in great numbers, they should have realised that God himself was among them, and that the time of deliverance was near.

But even with all this evidence in front of their eyes, Jesus’ enemies refused to believe that he was the promised King (John 11:47,48). Miracles are not proof; they can always be “explained away” if you try hard enough.