Christianity Explained - Bible study course

[Deborah_]

14 Jesus is God

Read John 14:1-11

One objection to the Christian faith is that “Jesus himself never claimed to be God” - implying that this was an idea dreamed up by his followers many hundreds of years later.

And yet many of Jesus’ statements about himself are startlingly egocentric. It’s true that he made no explicit claims to divinity – but he made many statements that, to Jewish ears, amounted to the same thing. He claimed that he himself (not his teaching) was the light of the world (John 8:12), the source of all life (John 11:25), and the embodiment of truth (John 14:6). He claimed abilities and roles that, according to the Jewish Scriptures, belonged to God alone: to be the true Shepherd of his people (John 10:11,14), to forgive sins (Mark 2:1-12), and to be the final Judge of the human race (Matthew 25:31-46). He claimed authority over God-given laws and institutions like the Sabbath (Luke 6:5). And he taught that our eternal destiny depends on knowing, following and obeying him (Matthew 7:21-23).

Then there were the miracles. These were demonstrations of his complete authority over the natural world - an authority that belongs only to the One who originally created it. The disciples needed time to work out the implications of all this, but the conclusion they came to was that “in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body.” (Colossians 2:9)

So Jesus is more than just a holy man, a teacher, or even a prophet; he is God himself in human form. This is important, because it means that we can see exactly what God is like by looking at the life and character of Jesus. “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father!” (John 14:9)

 

[Deborah_]

15 Jesus’ mission

Read Luke 4:16-21, 18:31-33

Why did Jesus come? His own understanding of his mission is partly laid out in the sermon he preached in his home town of Nazareth. He was the King promised by the prophet Isaiah, and he had come for the marginalised, the ‘nobodies’ of the world: the poor, the disabled, and the oppressed. He had come, in the power of God’s Spirit, to tell them of God’s love, to release them from guilt and despair, and to bring light into their darkness. Through him, God would give them the opportunity for a new start - a ‘jubilee year’ of reconciliation and liberation.

All this is clearly fulfilled in his teaching and in his healing miracles. But to his own followers he spoke over and over again of a darker side to his mission, which would involve his own death at the hands of the Jewish authorities and the Roman occupiers. For reconciliation and liberation would come at a cost - and he would be paying it. This was why he had been given the name Jesus (which means “The Lord saves”): “for he will save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:21)

So Jesus didn’t come just to teach us about God and to do good. He came “to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45) His death was neither an accident nor a mistake, but an essential part of God’s eternal plan (Acts 4:27,28). Jesus had known all his life that this was his destiny, because it was foretold in the Scriptures. “The Son of Man must suffer many terrible things.” (Luke 9:22) But his followers (who were expecting their King to be a conquering hero) found it very difficult to accept. And so, when it did all happen as Jesus had predicted, they were devastated (Luke 24:17-21).

 

[Deborah_]

16 Jesus’ death

Read Isaiah 53

Jesus was betrayed by one of his closest friends, condemned to death on false charges by the Sanhedrin (the Jewish Council) and executed by the Romans. The Gospels give us the facts of the story in great detail, and are especially concerned to point out that Jesus didn’t deserve to die - he was declared innocent of any crime by Pilate, yet ended up being put to death anyway. Why?

There are two places in the Old Testament (Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53) where various details of Jesus’ crucifixion are depicted (centuries beforehand!) in very vivid poetry. Isaiah explains what is really going on: a sacrifice is being made for the sins of the world (verses 4-6,10-12). The victim is innocent; he doesn’t suffer for his own sins, but for the sins of others. “The LORD laid on him the sins of us all.” (verse 6) Throughout his ordeal, he behaves like a sacrificial animal, accepting his fate in dignified silence (verse 7). This is because he is not a prisoner of circumstances beyond his control, but a willing participant following a script. He chooses to be counted amongst the guilty, dying not only with them (John 19:18) but also for them. And at the end, he can say with satisfaction that his work is accomplished (John 19:30).

This is how God solves the problem of human sin. Jesus, like Adam, is not just an ordinary individual; as the King, he represents all his subjects. Unlike Adam, Jesus’ obedience is perfect; so when he pays the price (the death penalty) for our disobedience, God’s justice is satisfied and all those who follow Jesus are able to receive eternal life.

 

[Deborah_]

17 Jesus’ resurrection

Read John 20

Jesus’ body was prepared for burial in the traditional Jewish manner: wrapped tightly in strips of cloth, laden with valuable spices. It was then put in an otherwise empty rock tomb, with a heavy stone rolled over the entrance to keep out grave-robbers.

That was on Friday night, at sunset. The Saturday was a Sabbath, and the tomb was left alone. But at dawn on Sunday morning a group of women came to attend to Jesus’ body - and found, to their shock and horror, that the tomb had been opened and the body was gone.

And this was the weirdest thing about it: the body was gone, but the graveclothes were still there, undisturbed (verses 6,7)! It made no sense; grave-robbers would have taken the spices and left the body. And if anyone had had reason to take the body away, they wouldn’t have taken it out of its wrappings first.

Then, within a few hours, people started to report physical encounters with Jesus - sometimes on their own, sometimes in groups (1 Corinthians 15:5-7). Often it took them a while to recognise him. These weren’t visions or hallucinations, because Jesus could be touched. He was even seen to eat food! Thomas was one who was initially sceptical; he thought that the other disciples had seen a vision or a ghost. But his doubts vanished when he met the risen Jesus for himself (John 20:24-29).

Thus all the evidence points to Jesus having actually risen from the dead to a new kind of life - as he had said he would be (Matthew 17:23).

 

[Deborah_]

18 Jesus’ ascension

Read Acts 1:1-11

Since a victim of crucifixion fell under the curse of being “hung on a tree” (Deuteronomy 21:22,23), this manner of death should have disqualified Jesus of Nazareth from any claim to be the long-awaited “King of the Jews”. But God had the last word, and Jesus was not only restored to life but also exalted to the place of greatest honour in the universe, second only to the Father (Psalm 110:1).

For about six weeks after his resurrection, Jesus made frequent appearances to his disciples. But then he said goodbye to them for the last time, and returned permanently to the presence of his Father in heaven. From then on, they would no longer see him in this world - but he would still be close to them through the Holy Spirit. Because he is now in heaven, he is no longer confined to one location on earth but can be with all believers, everywhere, all the time.

What else does Jesus’ ascension mean? It means that he is now Lord of heaven and earth (Ephesians 1:20-23)! It means that his claims take precedence over those of all other rulers and authorities. It means that he is worthy of our worship and devotion (Philippians 2:9-11). And it means that we can pray to him, confident that he can hear us and that he has the power to act on our behalf.

There have been many great political and spiritual leaders in human history who have left behind words of wisdom, or examples of good conduct to follow. But Jesus is different. Although invisible to us for the time being, he is alive now - and he rules now. Christians don’t just revere his memory and follow his teachings; we are able to know him personally!

 

[PGS11]

Let me do it in a couple of lines. It begins with the fall of mankind by Satan - Jesus comes to restore humanity from what the devil did by his sacrifice raising us to new life for all who believe. Everyone else will be raised up for the white thrown Judgment and will be judged in the second Judgment by their deeds as the bible says. You cannot earn salvation buy salvation or raise yourself up it is a 100 percent free gift that you did nothing for.That is the main thing YOU DID NOT EARN IT.

 

[Deborah_]

You can indeed condense it all into a single paragraph - but that only gives the bare facts, no explanation.

 

[Deborah_]

19 Repentance

Read Romans 10:9,10

Repentance is more than just feeling and saying sorry for the wrong things that I’ve done. It’s a turning around - a complete change of attitude towards God, towards myself, and towards other people. And having turned around, I start looking and moving in the opposite direction. Instead of having my back to God, I'm facing him; and instead of seeing things from my point of view, I see them from his point of view.

Repentance means giving up my idols (whatever they are) and discovering that doing God’s will is more important than anything else on this earth. “You turned away from idols to serve the living and true God.” (1 Thessalonians 1:9) Repentance means surrendering control of my life and handing it over to Jesus Christ; this is what saying “Jesus is Lord” means. He’s much more than just a new friend to make my life happier, or someone I can call on for help in an emergency; from this point on, he must be the one in charge.

Repentance therefore has consequences. If Jesus really is my Lord, then he is to be obeyed! “Why do you keep calling me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don’t do what I say?” (Luke 6:46) And so if my repentance is genuine, my life will change.

However, repentance isn’t a once-in-a lifetime act. I’m not going to recognise all my sins straight away. But once I’ve given my life over to Jesus, I start to become aware of all the things in my life that displease and offend him… and so I repent of them, one by one. In this way, every area of my life is gradually brought under Jesus’ authority.

 

[Deborah_]

20 Faith

Read Galatians 2:15,16

Popular religion thinks that you have to be a ‘good’ person in order to receive God’s favour. So people assume that Christianity is mainly about living a good life (by keeping the Ten Commandments, or obeying the Sermon on the Mount) in order to please God. They couldn’t be more wrong…

The fact is that we can’t earn our way into God’s favour by doing good deeds. It’s absolutely impossible - because, however good we are, none of us can ever be good enough. “No-one will ever be made right with God by obeying the law.” (Galatians 2:16) But God in his love has provided another way: “People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood.” (Romans 3:25) So we’re not saved from judgement by our own efforts; we are saved by what Jesus has done, and we obtain this salvation simply by having faith in him.

Now having faith in God doesn’t mean “believing that God exists” but trusting in him. It isn’t signing up to a set of facts but following a Person - Jesus - and putting our lives completely in his hands.

So the really good news of the Gospel is this: we can’t do anything to restore ourselves to God’s favour, but we don’t need to. “God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.” (Ephesians 2:8) All we have to do is to commit ourselves wholeheartedly to Jesus and thankfully accept what he has done on our behalf. If we rely on our own good deeds, we’re heading for disaster; but if we rely on Jesus, he will be our Saviour.

 

[ElieG12]

If someone does not respect God by doing things that displease Him, then they do not deserve the goodness of God that facilitates the death of Christ.

That person is trampling on Jesus, despising his sacrifice. Jesus' sacrifice was given for an opportunity. Opportunities are accepted by assuming the responsibilities that come with them.

 

[GRACE ambassador]

Precious friends, God Has Made A Distinction Between:

1) His Relationship With us ( Grace Through faith, trust belief Only! )

Rightly Divided (2 Timothy 2:15 AV) From “Things That Differ!” (online):

2) our fellowship With [ following ] Him - ie:

For your Prayerful And Careful consideration:​

"But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not​

trust in ourselves, but in God Which raiseth the dead: Who Delivered​

us from so great a death, and Doth Deliver: in Whom we trust that He​

Will Yet Deliver us;" (2 Corinthians 1:9-10 AV!) =​

The Three Tenses Of God's Eternal Salvation:

Is not the Solution to Confusion recognizing God's Differences Be-
tween "His Relationship With us," And "our fellowship with Him!"?

God's Will, Today, Under His Pure Grace? Very Simply:

► faith ◄
1) Past Tense = "...God Delivered us from so great a death...":

God Establishes His Eternal Relationship With those who
humbly repent ( change mind that "sin is Wrong!" ) and:

believe, 100% trust, place Total faith, In The Lord Jesus Christ,
His Death ( Precious BLOOD ), Burial, And HIS Resurrection,
According To The Scriptures!
(1 Corinthians 15:3-4; cp Ephesians 2:8-9; Romans 3-5 AV!)

"Grace Through faith" In The Merits Of His ALL-Sufficient BLOOD Results:

All sins Forgiven, His Eternal Life, And, Peace With God!
(Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 2:13; Romans 6:23; Romans 5:1)

This Is Eternal Deliverance From the Penalty of sin,
The So Great A [ Second ] Death! (Revelation 21:8) =
Justification and Spiritual Sanctification
(2 Corinthians 1:10a cp Romans 3:24)

(More Biblical Confirmation is here: God's Eternal Assurance! And:
God's Operation On All His New-born babes In Christ!)

1) ► faith ◄ God's Eternal Justification/Relationship Is First, And, Then:

►► love ◄◄
(2) Present Tense = "...God Doth Deliver us...":

All believers Should do "good works ( faith which worketh by love! )"
{ Which will Never Equal Christ's Payment For the above Penalty of sin! },
for Which we Are Created In Christ Jesus, to perform for Him, having
"been Called into fellowship With Him!" (Ephesians 2:10; 1 Corinthians 1:9)
Amen?:

We "work out our own salvation" (Philippians 2:12). This
Should Be a lifetime of Daily submission, and renewing,
being "not conformed to this world" (Romans 12:1-2),
for Grace Deliverance From the Power of sin!}
(2 Corinthians 1:10b) = personal sanctification:

(2a) Christ Living In us, To Fulfil:

All Of His Law, In One Word: ►► love ◄◄ thy neighbor​

as thyself!" (Galatians 5:14; Romans 13:8-10)​

(2b) His Spirit Guiding and Teaching us, How To:

​

"Study to shew thyself Approved Unto God, a​

workman that needeth not to be ashamed, Rightly​

Dividing The Word Of Truth!" (2 Timothy 2:15 AV)​

Eternal Results: reward [ or loss * ] (1 Corinthians 3:8-15),
ruling and reigning [ or not * ] With Christ, Which Will Finally Be
At The Judgment Day!

* More helpful study: Finishing The Race
►► love, our 'fellowship' With Him ◄◄ and, Finally:

►►► Blessed Hope ◄◄◄
(3) Future Tense = "...God Will Yet Deliver us":

Christ's Glorification of All "members" Of His Body!!
{This Is Eternal Deliverance From the Presence of sin!}
(1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Corinthians 15:51-57;
2 Corinthians 1:10c).

Hallelujah! Eternal Glorification With Him!!! Praise His Excellent Name!!
----------------------------------
Conclusion:

Big Differences Between the Three tenses Of God's Eternal Salvation,
And Between God's Relationship And our fellowship! Correct?
--------------------------------------------------------------
Please Be Very Richly Encouraged, Enlightened, Exhorted, And Edified In
The Lord Jesus Christ, And In His Word Of Truth, Rightly Divided!

Grace And Peace! The apostle of Grace (2 Min With The Bible)



FULL study:

Paul, The apostle Of Grace (Part I)
Paul, The apostle Of Grace (Part II)

 

[Deborah_]

21 Forgiveness

Read 1 John 1:5-10

Christianity is the only religion that offers complete forgiveness of all our sins - past, present and future. God can’t condone sin without contradicting His justice; and he can’t simply ignore our sins because they offend him so deeply. But if we belong to Jesus, then he has dealt with our sin by dying on the cross. “God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them.” (2 Corinthians 5:19) He absorbed all the pain and hurt caused by our rebellion, and deflected the punishment away from us and onto himself. All that we have to do is admit that we are sinners and ask for forgiveness, on the basis of what Christ has done (1 John 1:7). Then we no longer have to worry about punishment, because God accepts us and forgives us without reservation.

But we can’t forget about sin altogether. Although God will never reject us because of the wrong things that we do, sin can still sour our relationship with him. After becoming Christians, our consciences become more sensitive, and we become more and more aware of how far we fall short of God’s standards (as taught by Jesus). “If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth.” (1 John 1:8)

However, we don’t need to go through life feeling guilty all the time. The right way to deal with sin is to confess it to God, in the absolute confidence that He will always forgive us and cleanse us. Even if we mess things up again and again, He will forgive us again and again and again…

“I - yes, I alone - will blot out your sins for my own sake
and will never think of them again.” (Isaiah 43:25)

 

[Deborah_]

22 Counting the cost

Read Luke 14:25-33

Following Jesus has never been an easy option. In the first century, the only people who carried crosses (verse 27) were condemned criminals going out to their execution. And in some countries today, being a Christian can put your life in danger. In Afghanistan, a man noticed that his son was no longer attending the mosque or saying his prayers. When he realised that this was because the young man had become a Christian, he murdered him. (source: Open Doors)

Even in Europe and the USA, genuine Christianity is counter-cultural. Being open and honest about our beliefs may provoke scorn or ridicule. And there may be other costs: following Jesus means that we can’t ignore the needs of others, and this will make demands on our time and money. So we’d better count the cost before we start - or we may find ourselves in the embarrassing position of having to give up halfway! (verses 28-30)

But what’s the alternative? We’re rebellious sinners facing the inevitable judgement of God, and our only hope of survival is to lay down our arms and surrender before that judgement falls (verses 31,32). God is offering us generous terms of peace, so we would be fools not to accept. But let’s be under no illusions: surrender means total surrender.

“Entrance to the Kingdom of God is free – but the annual subscription is everything you have.” (Paul White, author)

However, “he is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, in order to gain that which he cannot lose.” (Jim Elliot, martyred missionary)

 

[Deborah_]

23 Baptism

Read Acts 2:37-41

In New Testament times, everyone who became a Christian was immediately baptised by being immersed in water. This was in obedience to Jesus’ instruction after his resurrection (Matthew 28:18-20). Baptism is an act of submission and obedience (because Jesus has commanded us to do it); it shows that I really do believe that Jesus is Lord, because I’m putting it into action. It’s also a public act of commitment, by which I declare to other people that I’m a follower of Christ and a member of the community of God’s people.

Baptism is also deeply symbolic. Washing with water makes us clean, and so baptism is a visual representation of the cleansing from sin that I have received from Jesus Christ. It also marks a cut-off point - a clean break between my old life (when I went my own way) and my new life (as a follower of Jesus).

In submitting to baptism, I actually identify myself with Jesus Christ, and specifically with his death, burial and resurrection. Going under the water is like death and burial; coming back up is like coming back to life. “For you were buried with Christ when you were baptised. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead.” (Colossians 2:12)

Baptism, then, is a sort of funeral. It closes the door on my old life: it may not be impossible to go back, but it should be unthinkable. If I can’t go back, then I must go forward - into my new resurrection life, empowered by the Holy Spirit…

 

[Deborah_]

24 The Holy Spirit

Read Ezekiel 36:25-27

As we have seen, Christianity isn’t about believing the right things and keeping certain rules. When we put our trust in Jesus, he gives us his Holy Spirit to live in us (Ephesians 1:13) - and the Holy Spirit does stuff!

“I assure you, no-one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit.” (John 3:6) It’s the Holy Spirit who gives us new life and makes us into new people - children of God. This is what the Bible describes as being “born again” (John 3:3). People have all kinds of different experiences when they become Christians. But in one way or another, we are changed - and you can tell the difference! This helps to assure us that our faith is real (I John 4:13).

And this is just the beginning. “The Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22,23) Fruit takes time to grow and mature; but gradually the Holy Spirit will make us more and more like Jesus.

What else does the Holy Spirit do? The apostle Paul sums it up when he writes: “the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness.” (Romans 8:26) What does the Holy Spirit not do for us? In our own strength, we can’t live the kind of life that glorifies God; but the Holy Spirit gives us both the desire to please God and the power to resist the pull of our sinful nature (Romans 8:5-9). He teaches us (John 14:26), bringing God’s word to our minds and applying it to our own lives. He guides us (e.g. Acts 8:29; Acts 16:6,7), prompting us to act or to speak when the time is just right. He even prays with us, enabling us to pray in accordance with God’s will (Romans 8:26). In fact, it’s impossible to live a Christian life without him!

 

[Deborah_]

25 A new lifestyle

Read Colossians 3:5-10

Even after becoming a Christian and receiving the Holy Spirit, I still have a natural tendency towards sin. The Spirit sets to work to ‘restore’ the image of God in me, like an art restorer working slowly and carefully on a damaged painting. But he won’t do all the work for me; I have to co-operate with him!

So I need to change my way of thinking. I have an ‘old self’ that is arrogant, selfish and self-indulgent; but now I also have a ‘new self’ that is dedicated to living for Jesus and pleasing him (Colossians 3:9,10). What I need to do is discard my old self (by mentally putting it in the rubbish bin) and ‘put on’ my new self (like a newly recruited soldier putting on their new uniform).

What does this mean in practice? The Old Testament law (in Exodus, Leviticus and Deuteronomy) was full of detailed rules covering every aspect of life, all of which had to be obeyed. But Christianity is not like this. Christian living isn’t so much about keeping rules as about attitude - because if my inward attitude is right, then my outward behaviour will follow automatically. For example: as a member of God’s family, I will put him first (rather than my own profit or convenience). And as a follower of Christ, I will copy him in the way I relate to other people.

“Just as the body is dead without breath, so also faith is dead without good works.” (James 2:26) It’s important to remember that my good deeds don’t earn me salvation on Judgement Day; rather, they are the evidence of my salvation. For if knowing Jesus doesn’t make a difference to the way I live, then I don’t really know him at all.

 

[Grailhunter]

25 A new lifestyle

Read Colossians 3:5-10

Even after becoming a Christian and receiving the Holy Spirit, I still have a natural tendency towards sin. The Spirit sets to work to ‘restore’ the image of God in me, like an art restorer working slowly and carefully on a damaged painting. But he won’t do all the work for me; I have to co-operate with him!

So I need to change my way of thinking. I have an ‘old self’ that is arrogant, selfish and self-indulgent; but now I also have a ‘new self’ that is dedicated to living for Jesus and pleasing him (Colossians 3:9,10). What I need to do is discard my old self (by mentally putting it in the rubbish bin) and ‘put on’ my new self (like a newly recruited soldier putting on their new uniform).

What does this mean in practice? The Old Testament law (in Exodus, Leviticus and Deuteronomy) was full of detailed rules covering every aspect of life, all of which had to be obeyed. But Christianity is not like this. Christian living isn’t so much about keeping rules as about attitude - because if my inward attitude is right, then my outward behaviour will follow automatically. For example: as a member of God’s family, I will put him first (rather than my own profit or convenience). And as a follower of Christ, I will copy him in the way I relate to other people.

“Just as the body is dead without breath, so also faith is dead without good works.” (James 2:26) It’s important to remember that my good deeds don’t earn me salvation on Judgement Day; rather, they are the evidence of my salvation. For if knowing Jesus doesn’t make a difference to the way I live, then I don’t really know him at all.

God bless you Deborah.
God job.

 

[amadeus]

God bless you Deborah.
God job.

Agreed!
@Deborah_

 

[Deborah_]

Thank you both

 

[Deborah_]

26 Prayer

Read Matthew 6:5-15

When we put our trust in Jesus, his Father (God) becomes our Father God as well. The mighty and awesome God actually adopts us as his children! (Romans 8:14,15) And this means that, when we pray, we can address him as ‘Father’. He is the perfect Father: always available to listen to us and help us, always patient, and always loving and forgiving. And he cares about us more than we can imagine.

Because God is a good and loving Father, he won’t give us anything that would harm us (Matthew 7:9-11). In our ignorance, we often ask for bad things; but he will only give us what is for our ultimate good.

Jesus gave us the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13) as an example of what Christian prayer should be like. It’s short and simple; we don’t need to go through any elaborate rituals to approach our Father God, but can simply talk to him whenever we want to.

Why do we need to pray? God is well aware of everything that we have said and done (Psalm 139:1-4); and He already knows what we need (Matthew 6:8). So why pray?

We don’t talk to God in order to give him information (because He already knows everything), but to cultivate our relationship with him. It’s good to begin our prayers with praise, to remind ourselves of the nature of the God we’re praying to. It's vital to acknowledge our weaknesses and our failures, so that we can ask for (and receive) his forgiveness. We should then pray for God to be glorified in the world, and also for our own needs (and the needs of other people). And it’s important to remember to give thanks when our prayers are answered (Luke 17:17,18)!