Session Two
Welcome to Session Two
Complete this week's Pre-Work Reading
“The Bible does not argue for the existence of God, it simply assumes it throughout.”
Read through the following scriptures
Godhead in the Old Testament - Genesis 1:2; 3:8; 16:7-13; Exodus 3:1-6
Godhead in the New Testament - Acts 16:6-7; Galatians 4:6; 1 Peter 1:11; 2 Corinthians 3:17-18
Jesus, Living Word - John 1:1- 14; Revelation 19:13
Jesus, God’s Chief Appointed Foundation - 1 Corinthians 3:11; 1 Peter 2:6
Jesus, Incarnate - Genesis 1:1; John 1:1; Matthew 1:18-25; Philippians 2:6-8; Hebrews 4:14-16
Jesus' Life & Ministry - Isaiah 53:2-5; Matthew 9:35; Mark 1:14-20; Acts 10:36-39;
Jesus, the Way to the Father - John 14:1-11; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 John 5:11-12; Ephesians 1:6
Jesus' Death & Burial - Matthew 27:45-61; Mark 15:33-47; Luke 23:44-56; John 19:40-42
Jesus' Resurrection & Ascension - Acts 2:31-36; 1 Corinthians 15;3-8
Understanding General Revelation
We cannot know God unless He shows Himself to us first. God initiates this relationship; He wants you to know Him. Because of His desire, He reveals Himself to us. We can only know and meet Him through His revelation. Truly knowing God leads to a personal relationship with Him.
Through Creation. Creation is God’s handiwork through which we are exposed to His existence and His character is revealed. This also means that all people can witness God’s glory through his creation. Psalms 19 v 1 -5
Through our Conscience. God has placed in all of us the notion of right and wrong. However, the ability to want to please God only comes as we are saved. Romans 2 v 15
Through the Bible. God’s word is perfect and has the power to revive us, giving us wisdom, his law leads us to truth and keeps us from wicked ways. When we follow His ways, it will give us wisdom, and his teachings bring us joy. When we prize God’s Word, our souls find sweetness as they are his living words, and the power of God and His Word help us to desire to please and trust Him. Psalms 119 v 7 - 13
Made in the Image of God. Although the fall affected every part of humanity's nature, it didn't erase the sense in people that they can be more than they are. Genesis 1:27
Understanding Specific Revelation Jesus
Jesus fully reveals the nature and essence of God to humanity. He is truly like a perfect reflection of God, embodying all of His qualities. Additionally, He is referred to as the Living Word (logos), which signifies that He conveys God's message about Himself in a profound and personal way.
Jesus is God's complete self-revelation. You could say that Jesus is the exact mirror image of God. He is also described as the Living Word (Logos = God’s self-revelation of his mind through His word).
Jesus is the Living Word. The Amplified Bible in John 1 v 1 says “In the beginning [before all time] was the Word (Christ), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself”. It also says Jesus was originally present with God. In Revelation 19 v 13, Jesus is called the Word of God. The purpose of Jesus is that we come to know God through revelation from His Word, to develop a faith relationship with Him.
The Importance of Jesus
Jesus is more than just his death on the Cross. People needed new hearts and God's presence to believe. That's why Jesus is the answer to our problems. He is the only one who could take our place legally.
Jesus met our Most Urgent Need
Humanity needed to be saved from death. It helps if you relate to Jesus as a human (Son of Man) before you relate to him as God (Son of God) because Jesus experienced life as a human - joy, pain suffering and betrayal - just like you and me. He understands and fully empathises with our human frailty.
Jesus, Our Chief Cornerstone
The Bible uses the metaphor that we are God’s building. We are implored that “each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ”. Simply put Jesus Christ is ‘The Chief Cornerstone’. The whole ‘building’ (God’s family & members of His household) is joined by Him. We all become a holy temple in Christ Jesus Himself.
Pre-Incarnation
The Bible tells us that Jesus was always present and had always been the Son of God. In other words, Jesus is eternal, known as his pre-incarnation. It is also believed in the history of Israel that the Bible describes the pre-incarnated Christ as primarily the ‘The Angel of Yahweh’ as seen in Exodus 3 v 2.
Incarnation
This term means God coming “in the flesh”. Jesus would be the only human that Father God could rely on to fulfil all the covenants. He was conceived by Holy Spirit yet born of a virgin woman, which makes Him the convergence of God and Humankind. Jesus is 100% God and yet 100% human. This is a mystery! Because God became human, he could die, which is because death can only be defeated by resurrection. Because of Jesus' resurrection, our distance from God was finally bridged.
His Life & Ministry
Everywhere Jesus went, He announced the Kingdom of God. He defeated evil by proclaiming and demonstrating God’s Kingdom. He forgave sins, sought justice, and healed sickness and diseases. His purpose was to reveal God as the ‘Father’ and give us a picture of a relational, intimate God. His life modelled how to follow Him, live a Spirit-empowered lifestyle, overcome evil, etc. When He ascended to Heaven, he took His place at the right hand of the Father, as King of all Kings - enthroned - which was a declaration of war on evil.
Notes on Discipleship
What does it mean to Follow Jesus?
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Discipleship is how we show our love for Jesus. However, as discussed, even though salvation is a gift, discipleship comes with a cost because sometimes following Jesus isn't easy. It requires making choices; some of those choices are not the easiest. There are things you will need to stop doing and other things you need to begin doing. Jesus lived a certain way because He loved God and trusted His plan and power. We need to do the same.
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While fellowship means caring for each other, strengthening relationships and having fun together, there is more to it. Another aspect is “becoming one mind” around Jesus — to have His mind. As a biblical community, we are called to pursue the same goal — To be like Jesus!
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Everyone will fail and make mistakes. God knows this and isn’t scared of our human frailty. He loved us “while we were yet sinners” before we were in His family. God isn’t hung up about it as much as we think He is. All He wants is for us to continue trusting Him and following Jesus. Jesus never told us to do something He never did. Jesus showed us how to do it and we are called to follow His example.
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Sin always leads to Destruction. Sin harms us and those around us. When we follow Jesus in our day-to-day lives, it does the opposite of sin, not only blesses us but those around us. Jesus lived to serve others; your life matters when you help those around you. Living a godly life is a witness to the gospel.
How we live can make the gospel believable or not. If our lives are a contradiction to the gospel, then the world, rightly so, will call us hypocrites, calling the gospel into question.