JESUS CHRIST

JESUS CHRIST, THE FOCUS OF CHRISTIANITY
Essentials of Christianity Discipleship Class- Session 1

This online session of the Essentials of Christianity class will provide a study of Jesus Christ and what he accomplished for us through his life a death. This session was covered in class on Sunday October 17. Read through the material and answer the 14 questions shown by filling in the blank boxes. Since this is a learning exercise, the answers are listed at the end of this lesson. After you have finished this session, click on the "Submit" button at the end of the lesson. Submitting the form will email it to Pastor Bill Payne at Washington Cathedral and give you credit for this session.

(You can use the TAB key on your keyboard to move to each section of scriptures and questions.)

Jesus Christ lived on the earth during the period of 4 B.C. (“before Christ”) to 30 A.D. (Anno Domini: “in the year of our Lord”). There are not many surviving external references to Jesus in secular writing contemporary to the writings of the New Testament. This fact may seem to be a problem, until one considers that there are also very few contemporary historical documents that survived from that time.

Jesus lived His public life in Palestine under the Roman rule of Tiberius (A.D. 14-37). There are only four existing secular Roman historical sources for his reign: Tacitus (55-117), Suetonius (70-160), Velleius Paterculus (a contemporary), and Dio Cassius (3rd century). There are two Jewish historical resources that describe events of this period: Josephus (37-100?), in Greek, and the Rabbinical Writings (written in Hebrew sometime after 200).

Vellius did not live in the area where the events in the Gospels were described, so we wouldn't expect to find evidence in those writings. Likewise, Dio Cassius writes outside of the contemporary time, so may not have been knowledgeable (or concerned) about the stories of Jesus

Thallus (Samaritan historian, (writing about 52 A.D. ) He wrote (in a lost work, referred to by Julius Africanus in Chronography, XVIII from the third century) attempting to give a natural explanation for the darkness which occurred at the crucifixion of Jesus:

"On the whole world there pressed a most fearful darkness; and the rocks were rent by an earthquake, and many places in Judea and other districts were thrown down. This darkness appears to me without reason, an eclipse of the sun."

An important note here is that Thallus evidently did not deny the existence of Jesus, but merely tried to explain away the strange circumstances (cf. Mark 15:33) surrounding His death.

Cornelius Tacitus (Roman Historian, lived approx. 55-117-A.D.). He writes of "Christus" in his ANNALS Book XV, Chapter 44:

"Nero looked around for a scapegoat, and inflicted the most fiendish tortures on a group of persons already hated by the people for their crimes. This was the sect known as Christians. Their founder, one Christus, had been put to death by the procurator Pontius Pilate in the reign of Tiberius."

Seutonius (court official and annalist under Hadrian around 120 A.D)., He wrote: "As the Jews were making constant disturbance at the instigation of Chrestus, he (Roman Emperor Claudius, AD 41-54) expelled them from Rome." Life of Claudius, 25.4 (Luke makes reference to this same expulsion in Acts 18:1-2).

Josephus Flavius (Jewish general turned Roman historian, born in 37 A.D.). Much knowledge about the culture and background of New Testament times can be gleaned from his writings.

One important point to make is that Josephus was not likely to be sympathetic to Christianity, and perhaps risk Roman ire. However, he makes several references to Jesus in his History Of The Jews, such as in Antiquities XVIII, 3:3:

"At that time lived Jesus, a wise man, if he may be called a man; for he performed many wonderful works. He was a teacher of such men as received the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him many Jews and Gentiles. This was the Christ. And when Pilate, at the instigation of the chief men among us, had condemned him to the cross, they who before had conceived an affection for him did not cease to adhere to him. For on the third day he appeared to them alive again, the divine prophets having foretold these and many other wonderful things concerning him. And the sect of Christians, so called from him, subsists to this time." (Lardner s translation)

(Read the scriptures in each section and use the questions to determine the spiritual principles.)

The biblical record provides Jesus’ true identity and the purpose of his earthly life before he was crucified. Read the scriptures listed and use the questions to determine the spiritual principles described.

John 1:18 (written by the apostle John approx. 85-90 A.D.)

No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only(or the Only Begotten One who is Jesus), who is at the Father's side, has made him known.

John 14:8-9

Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us."Jesus answered: "Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'?

Colossians 1`:15 (written by the apostle Paul approx. 61 A.D.)

He (Jesus Christ) is the image of the invisible God.

Question 1. Who did Jesus come to reveal?

Question 2. Who is Jesus Christ?

The Bible describes the condition of humanity after the time of Adam and Eve, who were the first created human beings according to Genesis 2. Theologian use the term “federal head” of the human race to describe the role of Adam and Eve. Even as a nation must often suffer the consequences of its leaders’ choices, so the whole human race inherited a certain type of human nature based on the choice of Adam, accompanied by his wife Eve. Read the scriptures and use the questions to determine the spiritual principles.

I Corinthians 15:21-22 (written by the apostle Paul approx. 56 A.D.)

Death came through one man…..in Adam all die.

Romans 5:12 (written by the apostle Paul approx. 58 A.D.)

Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned.

Romans 5:16b

The judgment followed the one sin and brought condemnation

Question 3: Below list 3 words that indicate the consequences produced in the human race as the result of Adam’s choices.

Romans 7:18

I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.

Romans 8:8

Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.

Ephesians 2:3 (written by the apostle Paul approx. 61 A.D.)

Like the rest (of humanity), we were by nature objects of (God’s) wrath. But because of his great love for us…God made us alive with Christ, even when we were dead in transgressions.

Question 4: What does Paul say every person now has inherited as the result of Adam’s choices?

Question 5: As you think about it, did you have any choice about the kind of nature you inherited from Adam and Eve?

Question 6: What is impossible for people to do in their inherited nature?

The Work of Jesus Christ in Salvation
According to the Bible, every member of the human race is born with a sinful nature. God came to this earth by becoming the man we know as Jesus Christ and through death by crucifixion, provided the means for transforming people. A relationship with Jesus Christ allows a person to no longer be controlled by the sinful nature, but rather, to be controlled by a new nature energized by God the Holy Spirit. Read the scriptures about how God accomplished this transformation in the human race and answer the questions.

II Corinthians 5:20-21 (written by the apostle Paul approx 57 AD)

We implore you on Christ’s behalf: be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Question 7. What did God cause Jesus Christ to become to allow us to be reconciled to God?

Romans 3:22-25

This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement (one who turns aside wrath and removes sin), through faith in his blood.

Romans 5:1-2

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.

Romans 5:8-9

God demonstrated his love for us in that while we were still sinners (had a sinful nature), Christ died for us… we have now been justified by his blood.

Question 8. Below list some words Paul uses to describe someone related to Jesus Christ?

Question. 9. What word describes the attitude needed to receive what Jesus Christ has done?

Romans 6:6

For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin because anyone who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.

Question 10. What does Paul call the sinful nature in this scripture?

Question 11. How is a person related to sin before coming to Christ?

Question 12. What does the Bible say happens to the sinful nature through a relationship with Jesus Christ?

Romans 6:11

Consider yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Do not let sin reign in your mortal body, so that you obey its evil desires.

Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wicked ness, but rather, offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from the dead to life; offer the parts of your body to God as instruments of righteousness? (also see Galatians 5:16-18 for further insight)

Paul says our sinful nature was "crucified" in Christ, but he then goes on to suggest that nature can still affect us if we let it. Before we were Christians, each of us had no choice but to obey our sinful nature. Because Christ has given each of us a new nature, we now have a choice whether we give in to sin or not.

Question 13. What are some ways we can keep the sinful nature inoperative in our lives?

Romans 8:1

There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus..

Romans 8:-8-10

Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God..You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.

Question 14. Who lives in the Christian to provide power to live a new life?

Provide your name and email to receive proper credit for completing this online class.

After you have answered the questions, click on the "Submit" button to send this form to Pastor Bill Payne at Washington Cathedral. By submitting the form you will have completed the requirement for this session of the Essentials of Christianity Discipleship Class.