[Draw near to God and He will draw near to you, resist the devil and he will flee from you.]

The problem I have with the Lord leaving and satan staying is this.  The scriptures tell us how to deal with him very clearly:

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you, resist the devil and he will flee from you.

Draw near, not I'm leaving, you deal with him on your own.

In love,

Rhonda

[What’s in a Name?]

DISCOVERING JESUS COURSE


What’s in a Name?



Everybody has a name. That name is part of one’s identity.


It is what distinguishes a person from the masses and underscores his or her individuality.


But of all the names in the world, there is one name that consistently stands out, without peer or comparison. It is the name of Jesus.



Is there any other name as hallowed or as blasphemed? Josh McDowell asks:


“Why is it that you can talk about God and nobody gets upset, but as soon as you mention Jesus, people often want to stop the conversation? Why have men and women down through the ages been divided over the question, Who is Jesus?”



There is no other name that evokes such intense emotions, whether positive or negative, whether love or hatred.



On some lips, the name of Jesus is spoken with great reverence; on other lips, it is used as a swear word and an object of profanity.



Why does the name of Jesus produce such passionate reactions?



Quite simply, the name of Jesus represents everything that Jesus is – his nature, his purpose and the challenge he brings to people’s lives.



What we need to remember is that the name of Jesus was not given by Christ’s parents.



Normally, a father and mother decide on the name of the child. In fact, the very naming of that child is an attribute of the God-given authority that the parents have over
the child.



But in Jesus’ case, neither Joseph (his foster father) nor Mary (his biological mother) had any say in the naming of their child. For Jesus was named by his true Father, God himself.  


This is underscored in Hebrews 1:4, which states:

“So [Jesus] became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.”



How is the name that Jesus inherited superior to every other name, whether angelic or human? After all, Jesus was an extremely common name in first-century Israel.



Why would Paul later declare, in Philippians 2:9-10, that “God exalted [Christ] to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth”?  



In Matthew 1:21, the angel Gabriel explains the significance of the name Jesus:

“[Mary] will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”



In English, of course, we do not see the immediate connection between the name Jesus and the fact that “he will save his people from their sins,” but in the original
Hebrew the connection is clear.



For Jesus is the Greek form of the Aramaic Yeshu, which is a contraction of the Hebrew name Yeshua, itself a late form of the name
Yehoshua (or Joshua), which means, literally, “the Lord saves.”



Salvation is the central meaning of the name Jesus, but it is not just any kind of salvation.



In first century Israel, the word “salvation” was understood by the masses to mean salvation from Roman imperialism.


But when the angel announced the connection between Jesus and salvation, he was very specific about what kind
of salvation would come through Jesus.


It is salvation from sin.



This definition of salvation is clearly reflected in Peter’s declaration in Acts 4:12:

“Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”


In Acts 10:43, Peter leaves no doubt as to what he means by salvation being found by no other name but the name of Jesus:


“All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”


This redemptive dimension to the name of Jesus is found repeatedly throughout the New Testament.


In 1 John 2:12, we are told that “[our] sins have been forgiven on account of his name.”


Likewise, in Acts 22:16, Ananias brought this challenge to the newly-converted Saul:


“And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on his name.”


The name of Jesus brings conviction of sin because it is connected with salvation from sin.


This explains the sometimes violent reaction that the name of Jesus evokes, even today, twenty centuries later. For the same spiritual contempt that crucified Jesus twenty centuries ago continues to scorn and blaspheme him today.


But today, as in the first century, John 1:12-13 still applies:

“Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God...”






WHAT'S IN A NAME - TEST 5



Question 1:  What does the name Jesus mean?  


1.   The Lord anoints.  
 
2.   The Lord helps.  
 
3.   The Lord saves.  
 
4.   The Lord reigns.    
 




Question 2:  What is the significance of the fact that God named Jesus and not his parents?  


1.   Because it showed that God was Jesus' true Father.  
 
2.   Because God wanted to make sure that his Son's name was connected clearly with salvation from sin.  
 
3.   Because Hebrews 1:4 tells us that Jesus inherited a name superior to every other name, whether human or angelic.  
 
4.   All of the above.  
 




Question 3:  What is the original Hebrew name from which the name Jesus is derived?  


1.   Yeshus  
 
2.   Yesus  
 
3.   Yesu  
 
4.   Yeshua    






Question 4:  The name "Jesus" derives from "Yeshu." How is this related to the original Hebrew name "Yeshua" or "Yehoshua"?  


1.   It is the Latin form of Yeshua.  
 
2.   It is the Greek form of Yeshua.  
 
3.   It is the Arabic form of Yeshua.  
 
4.   It is the Aramaic form of Yeshua.  
 



Question 5:  Why do people blaspheme the name of Jesus?  


1.   Because they are convicted of sin.  
 
2.   Because they have a hidden respect for Jesus.  
 
3.   Because they believe the name of Jesus has a magical power.  
 
4.   Because the same spiritual contempt that crucified Jesus twenty centuries ago continues to scorn and blaspheme him today.  
 




{SCROLL TO BOTTOM FOR ANSWERS}













WHAT'S IN A NAME - ANSWERS



The correct answer to #1 is number 3.  

The correct answer to #2 is number 4.  

The correct answer to #3 is number 4.  

The correct answer to #4 is number 2.  
 
The correct answer to #5 is number 4.  

[Jesus Before His Birth]

DISCOVERING JESUS COURSE



Jesus Before His Birth


In the last lesson, we saw that the life of Jesus has been in three distinct phases:


The pre-existent Christ
The incarnate Christ
The ascendant Christ


Christ’s pre-existence is an important component of his identity, so before we can explore what Jesus said and did during his earthly existence, we must first understand
the eternal backdrop against which his life played out.


Jesus appeared to be very conscious of his own pre-existence. As we have seen, in John 8:58
he declared:

“...before Abraham was born, I am.”  



Not surprisingly, Christ’s audience got his message loud and clear.


They knew exactly what he was meaning.


For by referring to his participation in history using the ever-present, timeless “I am,” he was claiming not just pre-existence, but eternal co-existence with God. For the term “I am” was more than just a bold statement of pre-existence; it was actually one of the names of God himself.



In Exodus 3:14, after Moses asked God for his name, the Lord replied: “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”And so, by using the changeless state “I am” to refer to his pre-existence, he was linking himself to the redemptive story of the Old Testament.


“As you read the saga of human history unfold within Scripture,” says Jesus, “you will find me there, each step of the way, as the ever-present ‘I am.’”


Read John 1:18

This verse makes a startling declaration about God’s involvement in human affairs. For here we are told that “no one has ever seen God, but God the One and
Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known.”  



Read John 5:37

Again Jesus speaks of God the Father, and says:
“You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form” (NKJV).


So, Jesus is explaining, not only has no one ever seen God; neither has anyone ever heard his voice!



Read John 6:46

Once again, Jesus declares that no person has ever seen the Father – not even once. But wait a minute! The Old Testament is clear that there were times when people did see God.


So who was it that they saw?


Christ was not a silent bystander but an active participant in Old Testament history.


In fact, there is a strong case that each time God physically appeared before a human being, this was the pre-incarnate Christ.


Remember that prior to his birth, Jesus was called “the Word” (John 1:1).


This is a description of how he interacted with mankind.


Whenever God spoke to man, this was the second person
of the Godhead fulfilling his role as the Word of God.


So where do we see the pre-existent Christ emerging in his role as the Word of God during biblical history?


Here are just a few examples from the Old Testament,
and as you read these verses, remember that Jesus said that no one has “heard [the Father’s] voice at any time, nor seen His form” (see also Exodus 33:20).



Genesis 17:1; 18:1-33 – the appearances of God to Abraham

Exodus 33:11 – the appearance of God to Moses

Isaiah 6:1-5 – the appearance of God to Isaiah



Throughout the Old Testament, you will also find recurring appearances by the “Angel of the Lord,” a figure generally identified with the pre-incarnate Christ.


(This doesn’t mean, of course, that Christ was an angel, for this so-called “angel,” a term which simply means  
“messenger,” is repeatedly accorded divine status).


If this Angel of the Lord is indeed the pre-incarnate Christ, then it was Christ who called out to Abraham to stay his hand on Mount Moriah (Genesis 22:9-12),


who appeared to Moses in the burning bush (Exodus 3:1-6)


and who led the people of Israel through the wilderness in a pillar of cloud and fire (Exodus 13:21-22;


Numbers 14 :14 compare 1 Corinthians 10:9 (NKJV) with Numbers 21:5-6).


It was Christ who appeared to Gideon (Judges 6:11-23) and to Samson’s parents (Judges 13:2-23), who wrestled with Jacob until dawn (Genesis 32:24-30), and who appeared to Joshua before the battle of Jericho (Joshua 5:13-6:2).



This makes Paul’s statement in Philippians 2:6-8 all the more remarkable:

“[Jesus] being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross!”  





JESUS BEFORE HIS BIRTH - TEST 4,




Question 1:  What does John 1:18 tell us?  

1.   "I tell you the truth...before Abraham was born, I am!"  
 
2.   "You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form."  
 
3.   "No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known."  
 
4.   "No one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only he has seen the Father."  
   




Question 2:  According to Jesus' own testimony, which of the following statements is true?  

1.   God the Father was seen regularly by the people of the Old Testament.  
 

2.   Jesus was a silent bystander in human history prior to his birth.  

 
3.   Jesus was the Word of God, through whom the Father communicated to the people of the Old Testament.  

 
4.   Jesus became the Word of God only after his incarnation.  
 
 

 

Question 3:  What did Jesus mean when he said, "Before Abraham was born, I am"?  

1.   That he was the reincarnation of Abraham's father.  
 
2.   He was born before Abraham was born.  
 
3.   He is the ever-present, self-existing co-equal with the Father.  
 
4.   Nothing. He was just speaking metaphorically.  
   





Question 4:  Which of the following verses relates Christ's appearance to Moses in the burning bush?  


1.   Numbers 14:14  
 
2.   Joshua 5:13  
 
3.   Genesis 22:9-12  
 
4.   Exodus 3:1-6  
 
 



Question 5:  What did Jesus do when he came to the earth?  


1.   He made himself nothing, humbled himself and became obedient to death.  
 
2.   He exalted himself and demanded that people worship him.  
 
3.   He lived in a palace, as any king should.  
 
4.   He manifested himself to the people in a pillar of cloud and fire.  
   
 

{SCROLL TO BOTTOM FOR ANSWERS}








JESUS BEFORE HIS BIRTH - ANSWERS


The correct answer to #1 is number 3.  

The correct answer to #2 is number 3.  

The correct answer to #3 is number 3.  

The correct answer to #4 is number 4.
 
The correct answer to #5 is number 1.

[The Eternal Jesus]

DISCOVERING JESUS COURSE



The Eternal Jesus



Throughout the lessons of the Discovering Jesus Course, we will be exploring the earthly life of Jesus. We will examine both the historical and the biblical evidence to uncover the reasons why he said what he said and did what he did.


But before we can properly study the life of Jesus, we must see that life in its proper context.


Read Hebrews 13:8

This statement is one of many indirect references to the divinity of Jesus.


Only God is eternally unchangable, as noted in Psalm 102:25-27:


“In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment. Like clothing you will change them and they will be discarded."


 "But you remain the same, and your years will never end.”  


Read Hebrews 1:8-12 and Hebrews 1:10-12 declares that Psalm 102:25-27   "is about the Son” (see Hebrews 1:.


Jesus is the one who “laid the foundations of the earth” (note John 1:3; Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 1:2) and he is the one who “remain the same” and whose “years will never end.”


In order to have a rounded and biblical view of Jesus, we must understand him in the three phases of his existence, as described by Scripture.


The Pre-Existent Christ


Hebrews 1:10 tells us that “[in] the beginning, [Jesus] laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of [his] hands.”


This verse is an echo of Genesis 1:1, which states: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the
earth.”


John 1:1-2, which calls Jesus “the Word” (something we will explore later in the course), repeats this same theme:


“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.”


As the second Person of the three-in-one God, Christ existed before the creation of the world.


Jesus himself referred to his pre-existence when he stated in John 8:58: “...before Abraham was born, I am.”


Read Colossians 1:16-17



The Incarnate Christ


There came a moment in time when God sent his Son into the world, conceived and born as a human baby.


As John 1:14 describes it in this way:

“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.”


Throughout the lessons of this course, we will be exploring mainly this second phase of Jesus’ existence – his earthly incarnation as a human being.


But in order to properly comprehend what the Gospel records of his earthly existence, we must see it in the context of his eternal existence. For as you can see, the short 33 years
or so of his earthly life is sandwiched between an eternity of glory on either side.



The Ascendant Christ


After ascending to his Father, Jesus returned to his pre-existent glory.


Even during his earthly life, Christ longed to return to his former glory. Read John 17:5


This is the “your years will never end” part of Hebrews 1:10-12. And in Revelation 1:12-16, we catch but the briefest glimpse of the eternal glory that Jesus had experienced before his incarnation, and that he re-entered after his ascension to the Father:


“I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw...someone ‘like a son of man,’ dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest.


His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters...His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance.”



Philippians 2:6-11 beautifully captures the three phases of Jesus’ eternal existence:



(Phase One), “[Jesus], being in very nature God  did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing"  



(Phase Two), "taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place"  



(Phase Three) "and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”





THE ETERNAL JESUS   (Test 3)



Question 1:  What does Hebrews 13:8 say?
 
1.   "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."
 
 
2.   "...while we wait for the blessed hope - the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ."  

 
3.   "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever."  

 
4.   "The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word."  
 


Question 2:  According to Hebrews 1:10-12, who specifically is the one Psalm 102:25-27 is referring to when it says "you laid the foundations of the earth" and "you remain the same"?  


1.   God the Father  
 
2.   God the Son  
 
3.   God the Holy Spirit  
 
4.   The angels  
 
 


Question 3:  What is the phrase repeated in Genesis 1:1, John 1:1 and Hebrews 1:10?  


1.   The Alpha and Omega  
 
2.   In the beginning  
 
3.   In the fullness of time  
 
4.   According to Scripture    
 




Question 4:  What does Jesus ask the Father to do for him in John 17:5?  


1.   To vindicate Christ before his enemies.  
 
2.   To save him from death.  
 
3.   To reveal his glory to his disciples.  
 
4.   To glorify him with the glory he had before the creation of the world.  
 
 


Question 5:  What scriptural passage includes all three phases of Jesus' existence?  


1.   Revelation 1:12-16  
 
2.   John 1:1-14  
 
3.   Philippians 2:6-11  
 
4.   Hebrews 1:1-3    
 
 

{SCROLL TO BOTTOM FOR ANSWERS}







THE ETERNAL JESUS  - ANSWERS


The correct answer to #1 is number 3.  

The correct answer to #2 is number 2.
 
The correct answer to #3 is number 2.  

The correct answer to #4 is number 4.
 
The correct answer to #5 is number 3.

THE 2,000 YEAR LOVE AFFAIR




Question 1:  What is one of the most remarkable things about Jesus?  


1.   That he lived such a short life.  
 
2.   That he didn't speak in English.  
 
3.   That he never ate pork.  
 
4.   That he has captured the minds and hearts of billions.  
 
 
 




Question 2:  Which of the following statements is true?  


1.   Jesus responded in love to the love we first showed him.  
 
2.   Jesus loved us first, long before we loved him.  
 
3.   Jesus demands that we become good before he loves us.  
 
4.   Jesus is waiting for us to love him before he loves us.  
 
 
 






Question 3:  Complete this sentence: Greater love has no one than this...  


1.   ...that he give all his money to the poor.  
 
2.   ...that he become a missionary.  
 
3.   ...that he live a life of service.  
 
4.   ...that he lay down his life for his friends.  
 
 

 




Question 4:  What does Romans 8:38-39 say?  


1.   "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."  


 
2.   "For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died."  


 
3.   "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself."

 
 
4.   "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."  
 
 





Question 5:  What should be our response to the love of Christ?  


1.   We should study more about Jesus.  
 

2.   We should become more religious, and try to be a better person.  
 

3.   We should pray more and read our Bible more.  
 

4.   We should be compelled to live no longer for ourselves, but for him who died for us and was raised again.  
 


{SCROLL TO BOTTOM FOR ANSWERS}






















ANSWERS



The correct answer to #1 is number 4.

The correct answer to #2 is number 2.

The correct answer to #3 is number 4.  

The correct answer to #4 is number 1.  

The correct answer to #5 is number 4.

DISCOVERING JESUS COURSE



The 2,000 Year Love Affair



One of the most remarkable things about Jesus is how he has captured the minds and hearts of billions. How could an itinerant Jewish rabbi have shaped Western civilization? And even more importantly, how is it possible for people today to
have an on-going love affair with a man born twenty centuries ago?



No other historic figure can claim such devotion.



Many political figures of the distant past, such as Julius Caesar, Socrates and Alexander the Great, continue to
attract the admiration of millions, but how many people
are in love with them?



Some religious figures, such as Mohammed and Guatama Buddha command the spiritual allegiance of whole nations, but how many people regard a personal relationship
with these men as the central priority of their lives?



Jesus has been at the heart of a love affair that has lasted for 2000 years.



And as with any love affair, this romance has two sides:

Jesus, who loved us The initiating party in this love affair was God himself. 1 John 4:19 tells us:

“We love because he first loved us.”



This statement turns upside-down the religious mentality of man. Buried deep within the human psyche is the compulsion that I, somehow, must gain God’s acceptance through my religious activities and good works.



Yet Jesus overturned this concept by coming to earth to search us out. And his motivation wasn’t religious.  His motivation was love, pure and simple.


As Romans 5:7-8 explains it:

“Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”



The quality of this love is so high that it acts as the benchmark against which all human love is now measured.


In John 15:13, Jesus himself said:

“Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”


John takes this up in 1 John 3:16-17 and explains how this divine benchmark motivates true love in the practical world
of everyday human relationships:



“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.”


In fact, so great is this love, Paul uses it as a model for the love between a husband and wife.


In Ephesians 5:25-28, he writes:

“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her...In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies.”



And so we see that this is not a love affair in name only.



There is no human romance that can match that between God and man, as expressed in the sending of Jesus to die.   But because it is a genuine love affair, there is also a second side to this romance.



We, who love Jesus:



The love of Jesus demands either rejection or reciprocation.



You cannot just shrug it off.



As Paul points out in 2 Corinthians 5:14-15:

“For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.”



For those of us who are indeed compelled by the love of Christ into an intimate romance with him, the words of the famous chorus by Lela Long take on new meaning:


Jesus is the sweetest name I know
And He’s just the same as His lovely name
And that’s the reason why I love Him so
For Jesus is the sweetest name I know



As you can see, it is impossible to study the life of Jesus impartially. Everytime we look at a new facet of Jesus’ life, his love demands a reponse from us. We are indeed called into a love affair with him.



Everything in our life is now defined by the passion of our relationship with the one “who loved me and gave himself for
me” (Galatians 2:20).



Read Romans 8:38-39

As we study how this all-conquering love was enacted through Jesus in the coming lessons, what will be your response?


Will you graduate from being one who simply studies God’s love to one who embraces it?



Will you experience “the power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge” (Ephesians 3:18-19)?



Only then will we understand Paul’s closing remarks in Ephesians 6:24:

“Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love.”

JESUS AND YOU - Test 1



Question 1:  Who is the most famous person in the world?

1.   Michael Jackson

2.   Mel Gibson

3.   Julius Caesar

4.   Jesus Christ






Question 2:  According to Winifred Kirkland, what is the single greatest deterrent to knowledge of Jesus?

1.   Ignorance of Jesus

2.   Familiarity with Jesus

3.   Opposition from other religions

4.   Teaching from the cults





Question 3:  What does Acts 4:12 tell us?

1.   Salvation is a matter of finding our own path.

2.   Salvation is a matter of being good enough.

3.   Salvation is found in Jesus alone.

4.   Salvation is found in going to church every Sunday.






Question 4:  What does 1 John 5:12 say?

1.   "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."


2.   "He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son does not have life."



3.   "And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he
commanded us."


4.   "Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well."






Question 5:  According to the Bible, which of the following statements is true?


1.   It doesn't matter what you believe about Jesus. What counts is trying to live a good life like he taught.


2.   Jesus is just one of many prophets and religious teachers.


3.   Understanding Jesus comes as a result of diligent academic study.


4.   Understanding who Jesus really is comes as a revelation from the Father.


{SCROLL TO BOTTOM FOR ANSWERS}








ANSWERS TO TEST # 1



The correct answer to #1 is number 4.

The correct answer to #2 is number 2.

The correct answer to #3 is number 3.

The correct answer to #4 is number 2.

The correct answer to #5 is number 4.

DISCOVERING JESUS COURSE


Jesus and You


Jesus is the best known name in the world.



Of all the names of political leaders, religious icons, sporting heroes or movie stars, none has been polled as more famous
than Jesus.


In the minds of billions of people, both Christian and non-Christian, Jesus, quite simply, tops the charts.


But familiarity in itself does not guarantee a whole-hearted acceptance of Christ’s claims.


In fact, as Winifred Kirkland pointed out:

“Today the greatest single deterrent to knowledge of Jesus is his familiarity.

Because we think we know him, we pass him by.”


More study has been conducted on the life of Jesus than on the life of any other human being. The Gospel evidence has been placed under countless academic microscopes, as scholars have sought to dissect the received record in order to determine, in their minds, who Jesus really was.


As Grant Jeffrey points out:

“While there are voluminous articles in the Encyclopedia Britannica about Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Napoleon, Aristotle, and Plato, the amount of historical material and analysis about the teachings of Jesus far exceeds the attention given to any other individual in the history of man."



The question “Who is Jesus?” is not, however, purely an academic one. For if the New Testament description of
Jesus is correct, then each person’s eternal destiny
hangs on how he or she answers this question.



Read Acts 4:12

In this declaration, made by one of Jesus’ own disciples, we discover a challenge that is ignored at one’s own peril.



Peter proclaims:

“Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”



The New Testament epistles (which are the record of the teachings of Jesus’ disciples), reverberate with the recurring theme of salvation through Jesus alone.


For example, 1 John 5:12 declares:

“He who has [Jesus] has life; he who does not have [Jesus] does not have life.”


You cannot get any more black-and-white than that. And if this statement really is true, then it is important for every person to understand and know exactly who Jesus is and why our acceptance or rejection of him has eternal consequences.




Read Matthew 16:13-17

At this point in Jesus’ ministry, he was already well known. In fact, his name was on the lips of almost everyone in Judea and Galilee.


The crowds constantly followed him, so much so that he could rarely find time alone with his disiciples.

But it was during one of those rare moments of solitude that Jesus asked his disciples an important question:


“Who do people say the Son of Man is?”


Their answers reflected the controversy and indecision at
the time. Most people recognized that Jesus was a prophet
of some kind, possibly even an ancient prophet returned to life:

Elijah or Jeremiah or (more recently) John the Baptist.


They knew that Jesus was unmistakably special; they just didn’t know in what way.


Even today, if Jesus asked us the same question –

“Who do people say that I am?” –


the answers would be just as various. Some might say:

A good teacher
A moral example
A rejected prophet
A misunderstood martyr


But after asking the question – “Who do people say that I am?” – Jesus would undoubtedly follow it up with a second and more important question:

“But what about you?...Who do you say I am?”



In Matthew 16:16, Peter answered without hesitation.

Could you do the same? And to your answer, would Jesus then reply:


“Blessed are you...for this was not revealed to you by man [or by scholarly study], but by my Father in heaven.”


No amount of academic study will answer the fundamental question, “Who is Jesus?”


But as we read what the Gospel record has to say about Jesus, God’s Spirit can indeed reveal what cannot be revealed by human intellectual endeavor.


Our prayer is that, as you study this course, you will indeed discover for yourself who Jesus really is and what he means for your life.

Hello,

My name is Rhonda. I've been a member of an online bible study college for several years now.

I'd like to post about 10 lessons - each lesson is only 2 pages long and the tests are only 5 questions.  The answers will be at the very bottom of the page on the test. You don't send your test in to anyone. It's all on you and at your own pace.


I'm looking for some Christians who are interested in reading them and then deciding if they would like the whole course to share with others. Family, friends, co-workers, the unsaved.

This study on Jesus is really INCREDIBLE!

It takes you back to the time period of the 1st century when Christ walked the earth. What it was like during that time. What they have found through archaology.  

It just really brings the Lord alive like I've never known before!

I'll post this then the first lesson. At the end of the tenth lesson feel free to email me and I'll send you more of the lessons as you're ready or if you don't want anymore that's ok too.