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Study Notes

Jesus

• already existed in the beginning
• was with God and was God
• created everything that has been made
• gave life and light
• can never be extinguished by the darkness
• was proclaimed by John the Baptist
• came into the world He created, but was not recognized
• came to His own people, but was rejected
• gave the right to become children of God to all who believe
• gives new birth

Applying the Text

• Do you know God?
• Do you want to know Him?
• Do you want to know Him better?

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Study Notes

Biblical Claims

• Truthful human eyewitness and “earwitness” testimony
• Divine testimony
• Prophetic continuity and illumination
• Inner testimony
• Divine origin

Scripture…

• gives the wisdom to receive salvation
• is inspired by God
• teaches truth
• corrects error
• grows holy character
• equips people to do good work

Is the Bible Reliable?

• Textual Integrity
• Coherent Message
• Fulfilled Prophecy
• Archaeological Corroboration
• Changed Lives

Is the Bible Reliable?

The Bible can be accepted as reliable through the evidence of textual integrity, a coherent message, fulfilled prophecy, archaeological corroboration and countless changed lives.

Applying the Text

• Has the Bible changed your life?
• Is the Bible changing your life?

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Study Notes

What Saith the Scripture – Who is the Creator?

What Key Names did God reveal early on?

Did God have assistance from assistant?

What did the prophets predict about God?

Recap

What does the New Testament say about Jesus Christ?

Applying the text

The one thing Scripture declares about God which we must confess to be saved is that the Son is YHWH. Philippians 2:10-11 tells us that everyone will make that confession. Those who make it in this life will spend eternity with God. Those who wait will be eternally separated from God after their acknowledgement.

Passages cited:

-You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life. (John 5:39; ESV)

-In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. (Genesis 1:1; ESV)

-These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens. (Genesis 2:4; ESV)

-This is a history of the heavens and the earth in the time they were created, in the day that Jehovah God made earth and heaven. (Genesis 2:4 NWT)

-This is what Jehovah says, your Repurchaser,
Who formed you since you were in the womb:
“I am Jehovah, who made everything.
I stretched out the heavens by myself,l And I spread out the earth.
Who was with me? (Isaiah 44:24 NWT)

-When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God (Exodus 3:4-6 ESV)

-Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I am has sent me to you.’” (Exodus 3:13-14 ESV)

-Then God said once more to Moses:
 “This is what you are to say to the Israelites, ‘Jehovah the God of your forefathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and this is how I am to be remembered from generation to generation. (Exodus 3:15 NWT)

-“Hey there, Zion! Make your escape, you who are dwelling with the daughter of Babylon. For this is what Jehovah of armies has said, ‘following after [the] glory he has sent me to the nations that were despoiling YOU people; for he that is touching YOU is touching my eyeball. For I am waving my hand against them, and they will have to become to their slaves.’ And you will certainly know that Jehovah of armies himself has sent me. “Cry out loudly and rejoice, O daughter of Zion; for here I am coming, and I will reside in the midst of you,” is the utterance of Jehovah. And many nations will certainly become joined to Jehovah in that day and they will actually become my people; and I will reside in the midst you. And you will have to know that Jehovah of armies himself has sent me to you. And Jehovah will certainly take possession of Judah as his portion upon the holy ground, and he must yet choose Jerusalem. Keep silence, all flesh, before Jehovah, for he has aroused himself from his holy dwelling. (Zechariah 2:7-13; NWT)

-Then I said to them: “If it is good in YOUR eyes, give [me] my wages; but if not, refrain.” And they proceeded to pay my wages, thirty pieces of silver.  At that Jehovah said to me: “Throw it into the treasury—the majestic value with which I have been valued from their standpoint.” Accordingly, I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw it into the treasury at the house of Jehovah. (Zechariah 11:12-13; NWT)

-And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn. (Zechariah 12:10; ESV)

-And Jehovah will certainly go forth and war against those nations as in the day of warring, in the day of fight. And his feet will actually stand upon mountain of the olive trees, which is in front of Jerusalem, on the east; and the mountain of the olive trees must be split at its middle, from the rising to the west. (Zechariah 14:3-4)

-All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. (John 1:3 ESV)

-For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. (Colossians 1:16 ESV)

-This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God. (John 5:18 ESV)

-Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.” So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” (John 8:56-58 ESV)

-Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him. (Matthew 26:14-16; ESV)

-Then when Judas, his betrayer, saw that Jesus was condemned, he changed his mind and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders (Matthew 27:3; ESV)

-So the Jews said to him, “What sign do you show us for doing these things?” Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” The Jews then said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will you raise it up in three days?” But he was speaking about the temple of his body. When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the Scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken. (John 2:18-22; ESV)

-Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen. “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” (Revelation 1:7-8, ESV)

-…because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Romans 10:9-13; ESV)

-And everyone who calls on the name of Jehovah will be saved (Joel 2:32; NWT)

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Study Notes

Is Christianity Too Narrow?

• Philosophical Reflection
• Biblical Reflection
• Final Considerations

Philosophical Reflection

What is truth?

Truth is a thought, idea or statement that corresponds to reality… the way things really are regardless of anyone’s belief about it.

Truth is objective, not subjective.

People may, or may not know, the truth.

How do we know the truth?

Two criteria for determining truth are logical coherence and evidence… supporting facts

Contradictory truth claims cannot all be true.

Various world religions and worldviews teach contradictory truth claims.

Therefore, various world religions and worldviews are not all “saying the same thing” and they are not all different roads to the same place.

All world religions and worldviews, including Christianity, must be judged by criteria such as logical coherence and supporting evidence.

Our focus today is on the question of whether or not Christianity is too narrow….

Christianity is not the only world religion or worldview that makes exclusive truth claims…. all do.

So… what does Christianity claim?

• Who is Jesus?
• What did He say about His identity and purpose?
• Should we believe Him?

Biblical Reflection                                  John 14:1-6

• Jesus is the way, the truth and the life
• No one comes to the Father except through Him

Biblical Reflection                                  Acts 17:16-31

• God is the Creator of all things
• God alone gives life and satisfies every need
• God is sovereign over all the affairs of the world
• God is not far from any one of us
• God is our Creator and Sustainer
• God alone is worthy of our worship
• We all must repent and turn to Him
• Jesus will judge all the world
• The resurrection of Jesus is the proof He is the Judge

Final Considerations

• The Unique Identity of Jesus Christ
• The Unique Ministry of Jesus Christ
• The Unique Evidence of Jesus Christ

Is Christianity Too Narrow?

Because the deity of Jesus Christ and His resurrection from the dead are unique among all founders and preachers of religion, Christians are compelled to listen to Him and speak as He spoke as the only way to God.

Applying the Text

• Do you honestly live your life as though “all truth is relative”?
• Are you willing to seriously consider the claims of Jesus?
• If you are a follower of Jesus, present the truth of Jesus humbly, lovingly and confidently.

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Study Notes

The Problem of Evil

The existence of evil, pain and suffering in the world argue against the existence of a God who is all good, all knowing and all powerful.

Philosophical Reflection

• Free Will Defense
• Greater Good
• Soul-Making
• Best Possible World

Biblical Reflection

• The Comfort of the Gospel
• The Hope of the Gospel
• The Eternal Glory of the Gospel
• Patient and Confident Waiting

The Eternal Weight of Glory: Some “Sanctified Speculation”

Emotional Reflection

• The physical pain and suffering of Jesus
• The emotional pain and suffering of Jesus
• The spiritual pain and suffering of Jesus

Why Does God Allow Pain and Suffering?

Biblical reflection upon this very difficult question points us to a God who has an infinitely  superior wisdom and purpose, and who has personally entered into our pain and suffering to an extent we will never fully comprehend.

Applying the Text

• Serve the suffering with your prayers and your presence
• Rest in the comfort and hope of the gospel
• Do good and make a difference

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Study Notes

Evidence for God

• The Wonder of Creation

  • The Wonder of the Very Large
  • The Wonder of the Very Small
  • The Wonder of the In-Between

• Philosophical Reflection

Cosmological Argument
The universe must have been caused by some agent that was neither part of the universe nor itself was caused.

Design Argument
When we observe nature, whether on a tiny scale or on a grand scale, we can see evidence of precision and intentionality from which we can infer there must be an intelligence behind it all.

Moral Argument
The moral argument says that moral values must be objective and universal to make any sense, and if moral values are objective, the source must be a transcendent, personal being.

Which God exists?

God…

– exists
– is necessary
– is powerful
– is transcendent
– in non-contingent
– is intelligent
– is personal
– is moral
– is engaged
– is unique

-Pantheism
-Panentheism
-Finite Godism
-Polytheism
-Deism
-Monotheism

• Historical Reflection

  • The Uniqueness of the Bible
  • The Uniqueness of Jesus Christ
  • The Resurrection of Jesus Christ

The Limits of Evidence

• Complexity of Metaphysical Truth and Belief
• Darkened Minds
• Accountability

The Necessity of Faith

The Promise of God: God rewards those who sincerely seek Him.

Is There a God?

While evidence for God can be seen in the creation and through philosophical and historical reflection, ultimately God reveals Himself to those who seek Him in faith.

Applying the Text

• Wonder at the wonder!
• Seek God while He may be found
• Worship Him in spirit and truth

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Study Notes

EXPLORE GOD

We all have questions – important questions – about life.  Some of the biggest questions concern whether or not life has a purpose, and if God exists.  If God does exist, why does He allow pain and suffering?  Are Christians too narrow-minded when they say that Jesus is the only way? Is Jesus really God?  Can we trust the Bible?  Is it possible to know God personally?  The Explore God series will address these questions and seek to give answers and hope for all who are willing to explore with an open mind and open heart.

Does Life Have a Purpose?

Life is…

• meaningless without God
• meaningful with God
• all about God

Does Life Have a Purpose?

Without God, life is ultimately meaningless, but with God, everything – including your life – has meaning and purpose.

What is God’s Purpose for Your Life?

You were created…

• in the image of God
• to know and love God and others
• to live forever with God and others

Tough Questions…

“Practical Atheism”

Applying the Text

• Do you know God?
• Does your relationship with God come first?

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Study Notes

EXPLORE GOD

 We all have questions – important questions – about life.  Some of the biggest questions concern whether or not life has a purpose, and if God exists.  If God does exist, why does He allow pain and suffering?  Are Christians too narrow-minded when they say that Jesus is the only way? Is Jesus really God?  Can we trust the Bible?  Is it possible to know God personally?  The Explore God series will address these questions and seek to give answers and hope for all who are willing to explore with an open mind and open heart.

EXPLORE GOD: 7 BIG QUESTIONS

1. Does Life Have a Purpose?
2. Is There a God?
3. Why Does God Allow Pain and Suffering?
4. Is Christianity Too Narrow?
5. Is Jesus Really God?
6. Is the Bible Reliable?
7. Can I Know God Personally?

Some Context First…

Elements of a Good Witness

• a healthy, obedient church (3:8)
• blessing upon those who revile (3:9-12)
• zeal for good (3:13-14)
• submission to Christ (3:15a)
• holiness (3:15b)
• readiness to answer questions (3:15c)
• gentleness and respect (3:15d)
• a good conscience from good behavior (3:16-17)

Proclaim the Gospel…

• humbly
• lovingly
• competently

Applying the Text

• Love Jesus
• Love people
• Speak in the power of the Spirit