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Dear OBC Family,At the end of the nineteenth century, Abraham Kuyper, the Dutch polymath who was at various times a pastor, theologian, editor, educator, and Prime Minister of the Netherlands, wrote a volume addressing common grace. Common grace is the doctrine that says God shows varying degrees of kindness to all creation, not just those who trust in Christ.And importantly, Kuyper shows how common grace is related to Noah and the covenant that God makes with him and through him to all creation. Indeed, as we will see over the next few weeks, this a covenant that continues today, as the rainbow bears witness to God's promise to never destroy the earth again with water.Yet, I wonder: when we see a rainbow do we remember Genesis 9 and the grace of God? Or do we think first and foremost about how the sun shown through a water droplet to create the array of colors? Or maybe we think of some legend related to leprechauns and gold? Whatever we think about, Kuyper is right to call our attention back to God and his Word. Many people, including pious children of God, behold and admire the rainbow without being aware of the underlying covenant that is so powerfully addressing them. For that reason, we must begin with placing the lofty significance of that Noahic covenant in more radiant light once again. It must come alive for us once again, address us once again, and become for us once again an essential component of the grace of God that sustains us. Indeed, we need to recover the rainbow, which today has undergone a transformation that this nineteenth century Christian could never have imagined. But more than restoring a proper understanding of the rainbow, we need know what the story of Noah tells us about God, his preservation of the world, and his plan of salvation. Beginning this Sunday, we will begin to see what the story of Noah is about and how the ark, the flood, the animals, and the rainbow, tell us something about salvation, baptism, creation, and covenant—to name only a few. Indeed, Genesis 1–11 gives us an inspired interpretation of the patterns that God used in the Bible and even today to bring his purposes to effect. And lest we misunderstand the Bible and our own time, we need to see carefully what Scripture says to us about Noah and his ark.To that end, I would encourage you to read Genesis 6–9 before Sunday and also to read a short article on typology. Typology is something we discussed in Sunday School a few weeks ago and it something that will repeat in the rest of Genesis. By definition, biblical types are historical persons, events, or institutions that are assigned by God to foreshadow later and greater realities that relate to the person and work of Jesus Christ. For us, it is impossible to read about Noah without seeing him as a type of Christ. And so, rehearsing what a type is will be helpful for you as you prepare for Sunday.In all, pray for God to open our eyes to see his plans of grace in the historical events of Noah. On Sunday we will begin looking at Genesis 6–9. And we will continue to fix our gaze on Christ through him for the next few weeks. As the Lord allows, I look forward to sharing insights with you from Genesis 6–9. May the Lord be glorified by our time together!For His Glory and your joy in Christ,Pastor David------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Discussion & Response Questions (Genesis 6:9 – 7:10)Compare and contrast the description of Noah and the description of the earth (Gen 6:9-12, 2 Pet 2:5).What does it mean to walk with God? How does Scripture describe this?What does it look like for God's people to walk with Him? Consider what this looked like (1) before the Flood, (2) in the nation of Israel before Christ, and (3) today.How does Jesus describe the days of Noah (Matt 24:36-44)?What should we learn from God pronouncing his judgment (6:13), and providing instructions for the ark (6:41-21)?What characterizes Noah's obedience (6:22-7:5)?What is righteousness? How is Noah righteous? (See Gen 7:1; Heb 11:7).What does this narrative teach us about the justice and mercy of God? Do we live with a sense of the coming judgment of God? Why or why not?How should we respond to this text?As a reminder, if you'd like to know more about the biblical idea of giants, you can pick up a copy of Giants: The Sons of the Gods on the bookshelf. 

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Series: A living Hope in a dying worldTitle: How Christians find encouragement in the midst of sufferingScripture: 1 Peter 3:18-22; Romans 8:28 NIVBottom line: SERMON OUTLINENOTESDISCUSSION QUESTIONSOUTLINESMAIN REFERENCES USEDSERMON OUTLINEIntroduction“The Battle of Waterloo is one of the most famous battles in history. It occurred on the mainland of Europe on June 18, 1815. It pitted the French army, commanded by Napoleon, against the Anglo-German-Dutch forces led by the Duke of Wellington and the Prussian forces commanded by General Gebhard Blucher.There is an interesting story about how the news about Waterloo reached England. News was carried first by a ship that sailed from Europe across the English Channel to England's southern coast. The news was then relayed from the coast by signal flags to London. When the report was received in London at Winchester Cathedral, the flags atop the cathedral began to spell out Wellington's defeat of Napoleon to the entire city:"Wellington defeated." However, before the message could be com-pleted, a good old-fashioned London fog moved in, and the rest of the message was hidden.Based on incomplete information, the citizens of London thought Napoleon had won. That would have been a devastating defeat for England. Gloom filled the nation as the bad news quickly spread every-where. But when the mist began to lift, the flags high up on Winchester Cathedral completed the news. The flags spelled out this triumphant message: "Wellington defeated the enemy!" The English fears had been unfounded. Joy immediately replaced the gloom. All over England people danced in the streets, rejoicing at this great victory over one of the most dangerous enemies the nation had ever faced. In like manner, the resurrection and ascension of Christ gives us a certain hope that our own victory has been secured.” -David Helms“If you should suffer .. he writes. The imperial persecutions that would sweep across the Roman world had not yet come. Christians were not yet being compelled to affirm the deity of Caesar. No doubt there were already those who had given their witness as martyrs (see 4:6), but much more was to come. Yet it was already time to prepare. Churches today that experience little persecution need Peter's instruction; in a future nearer than they suppose they may find themselves suffering with the rest of Christ's afflicted church in the world.Peter would prepare the church not simply to endure persecution, but to find in persecution an opportunity for witness. Both the boldness and the humility needed for witness come about through a fundamental exchange. Christians must exchange the fear of others for the fear of the Lord. Peter gives the secret of boldness as one who had found it after failure. Waiting in the courtyard of the high priest's house while Christ was being examined, Peter had failed miserably. Rembrandt's painting captures the scene: Peter has just denied Christ for the third time, swearing with fearful oaths that he was no disciple of Christ, was not with him, did not know him.! In the background shadow stands Jesus. He has just turned to look at Peter.“-Edmund Clowney, pastor, author, professor, and mentor to Tim KellerOpening illustration is Napoleaonic war mistaken messaging storyIn 1807, John Newton, best known as composer of the hymn ‘Amazing Grace', encapsulated the amazing grace of God in some of his last words as he lay dying. He declared: ‘I am a great sinner but Christ is a great Saviour.'Think like a detective. Even though there are some very hard to understand verses in this passage, we can still come away answering the main theme questions from these verses and be encouraged in the midst of suffering.Relying on David Helms' commentary for this outline and looking back to our previous passage:Structure in the passage brings us 2 key ideas:I. A particular word: Submission/Subject2:11-12: Exhortation to honorable conduct and good deeds2:13, 18; 3:1: Three examples on submission: what good deeds look likeRulersMasters/bossesWivesII. A special relationship: Jesus3:8-17, 18-22: Two messages of encouragement, One from the victory of DavidPs 34:12-161 Peter 3:10-12One from the vindication of Jesus In other words, “They inform us that 3:18-22 are not concerned with the arduous task of submission, suffering and death…”“…Rather, this passage is about final victory gained through them…”“…Therefore, we can say that Peter wants to encourage us by lifting our hearts and minds to Heaven where Christ is already seated. In other words, ‘Take heart, you too shall one day win!'”ConclusionBottom Line: Q. What do I want them to know?A. That we win because Christ won.Q. Why do I want them to know it?A. Because this changes our outlook in the midst of suffering.Q. What do I want them to do about it?A. Suffer knowing that it's temporary and like in the flood and on the cross.Q. Why do I want them to do it?A. Because God will vindicate you and bring people to God in the process.Q. How can they begin to do this?A. Move from complaining to thanking God for Romans 8:28PrayNOTESSeems to be Peter is encouraging believers in the midst of their sufferings that though they are a small remnant (like in the days of Noah), God is faithful and will save them and bring them through it.Question: Why is it better (to suffer for doing good than evil)? In other words, v. 17–why?3 possible answers:Because sometimes it's God's will to suffer for doing good. Or at least he allows it to accomplish his purposes. Ex. Someone runs into a building to save a person and ends up getting burned in the process.Because if you're going to suffer regardless it seems that for good is always better than for evil. Good > evil. It's taking what someone meant for evil and redeeming it for good. Because this is what Christ, our Lord and example, did TO BRING US TO GOD.What did Jesus do as described in 3:18-20?3 possible answers:In time between death and rez, Jesus took gospel to the now dead who had rejected Noah's message.That pre-incarnate Christ was proclaiming gospel through Noah and that's why they're imprisoned. (Rejected Christ's msg through Noah)That then imprisoned spirits were actually fallen angels who'd tried to corrupt humans in Noah's day. (See Gen 6:1-7) Peter sees in the flood a picture of baptism or salvation by the power of Holy Spirit through the cross and rez of Jesus Christ. Water baptism and the flood (water) are both outward symbols of cleansing and deliverance. ApplicationsBe encouraged by embracing the cross & trials of life.Be encouraged by Christ's victory of sin & death in the resurrection.Christ won and, therefore, we win. We see it in historyFlood/ArkCross/RezWe see it in futureChrist as KingRevelation and New heaven/earthWe are encouraged in the midst of suffering when we reflect on the history (past) and conclusion (future) of His Story (History) played out in and through Jesus Christ and his people.DISCUSSION QUESTIONSDiscovery Bible Study process:Retell the story in your own words.Discovery the storyWhat does this story tell me about God?What does this story tell me about people?If this is really God's word, what changes would I have to make in my life?Who am I going to tell about this?Final Questions (optional or in place of above)What is God saying to you right now? What are you going to do about it?Find our sermons, podcasts, discussion questions and notes at https://www.gracetoday.net/podcastOUTLINESII. THE CHRIST OF BELIEVERS (3:18-22): Peter describes a fourfold ministry accomplished by the Savior.A. His death (3:18)1. The permanence (3:18a): He died for our sins once and for all.2. The purpose (3:18b): He died to reconcile sinners to God.B. His journey to the spirit world (3:19-20)1. The transgression (3:19): Jesus preached against the sins of these evil spirits.2. The time (3:20): They committed their wickedness in the days of Noah.C. His resurrection (3:21)1. The salvation (3:21 a): Jesus' resurrection guarantees our redemption.2. The symbol (3:21b): Water baptism.D. His ascension and exaltation (3:22)Clowney's Outline7. The blessing of living with Christian suffering (1 Peter 3:8-22)Response to suffering in a life of blessing (3:8-12)Called to a life of blessingCalled to bless in response to cursingCalled to bless as heirs of blessingThe blessed witness of suffering for righteousness (3:13-22)The opportunity for witness in word (3:13-15)The opportunity for witness in life (3:16-17)The victory of Christ's suffering (3:18-22)Helms' OutlineEncouragement to ContinueI. The Need for Encouragement (1 Peter 3:8-17)A. The Encouraging Phrase: Called to be a blessingB. The Ideal Biblical Reference: Psalm 34C. The Precise Words: Fear and BlessingFearBlessingII. Encouragement in Christ's Victory (1 Peter 3:18-22)A. Detectives in search of meaningB. More clues from the surrounding contextA particular word: SubjectA special relationship: JesusAn encouraging conclusion to our pursuitMAIN REFERENCES USED“1 - 2 Peter and Jude,” by David Helm, Preaching the Word Commentary, Edited by Kent Hughes“1 & 2 Peter ” by RC Sproul“1 & 2 Peter and Jude” by Thomas Schreiner“The Message of 1 Peter” by Edmund Clowney“Look at the Book” by John Piper (LATB)“The Visual Word,” Patrick Schreiner (VW)“1 Peter: A living hope in Christ”, Jen Wilkin Bible study“The Bible Knowledge Commentary” by Walvoord, Zuck (BKC)“The Bible Exposition Commentary” by Warren Wiersbe (BEC)Outline Bible, D Willmington (OB)Willmington's Bible Handbook, D Willmington (WBH)NIV Study Bible (NIVSB) https://www.biblica.com/resources/scholar-notes/niv-study-bible/ESV Study Bible (ESVSB) https://www.esv.org“The Bible in One Year 2023 with Nicky Gumbel” bible reading plan on YouVersion app (BIOY)ChatGPT https://openai.com/blog/chatgptAnswerThePublic.comWikipedia.com

Listen to this episode on Spotify or Apple Podcasts Let's face it the New Testament probably calls Jesus God (or god) a couple of times and so do early Christian authors in the second century. However, no one offers much of an explanation for what they mean by the title. Did early Christians think Jesus was God because he represented Yahweh? Did they think he was God because he shared the same eternal being as the Father? Did they think he was a god because that's just what they would call any immortalized human who lived in heaven? In this presentation I focus on the question from the perspective of Greco-Roman theology. Drawing on the work of David Litwa, Andrew Perriman, Barry Blackburn, and tons of ancient sources I seek to show how Mediterranean converts to Christianity would have perceived Jesus based on their cultural and religious assumptions. This presentation is from the 3rd Unitarian Christian Alliance Conference on October 20, 2023 in Springfield, OH. Here is the original pdf of this paper. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5Z3QbQ7dHc —— Links —— See more scholarly articles by Sean Finnegan Get the transcript of this episode Support Restitutio by donating here Join our Restitutio Facebook Group and follow Sean Finnegan on Twitter @RestitutioSF Leave a voice message via SpeakPipe with questions or comments and we may play them out on the air Intro music: Good Vibes by MBB Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0) Free Download / Stream: Music promoted by Audio Library. Who is Sean Finnegan?  Read his bio here Introduction When early Christian authors called Jesus “god” (or “God”) what did they mean?[1] Modern apologists routinely point to pre-Nicene quotations in order to prove that early Christians always believed in the deity of Christ, by which they mean that he is of the same substance (homoousios) as the Father. However, most historians agree that Christians before the fourth century simply didn't have the cognitive categories available yet to think of Christ in Nicene or Chalcedonian ways. If this consensus is correct, it behooves us to consider other options for defining what early Christian authors meant. The obvious place to go to get an answer to our initial question is the New Testament. However, as is well known, the handful of instances in which authors unambiguously applied god (θεός) to Christ are fraught with textual uncertainty, grammatical ambiguity, and hermeneutical elasticity.[2]  What's more, granting that these contested texts[3] all call Jesus “god” provides little insight into what they might mean by that phrase. Turning to the second century, the earliest handful of texts that say Jesus is god are likewise textually uncertain or terse.[4] We must wait until the second half of the second century and beyond to have more helpful material to examine. We know that in the meanwhile some Christians were saying Jesus was god. What did they mean? One promising approach is to analyze biblical texts that call others gods. We find helpful parallels with the word god (אֱלֹהִים) applied to Moses (Exod 7.1; 4.16), judges (Exod 21.6; 22.8-9), kings (Is 9.6; Ps 45.6), the divine council (Ps 82.1, 6), and angels (Ps 8.6). These are texts in which God imbues his agents with his authority to represent him in some way. This rare though significant way of calling a representative “god,” continues in the NT with Jesus' clever defense to his accusers in John 10.34-36. Lexicons[5] have long recognized this “Hebraistic” usage and recent study tools such as the New English Translation (NET)[6] and the Zondervan Illustrated Bible Background Commentary[7] also note this phenomenon. But, even if this agency perspective is the most natural reading of texts like Heb 1.8, later Christians, apart from one or two exceptions appear to be ignorant of this usage.[8] This interpretation was likely a casualty of the so-called parting of the ways whereby Christianity transitioned from a second-temple-Jewish movement to a Gentile-majority religion. As such, to grasp what early postapostolic Christians believed, we must turn our attention elsewhere. Michael Bird is right when he says, “Christian discourses about deity belong incontrovertibly in the Greco-Roman context because it provided the cultural encyclopedia that, in diverse ways, shaped the early church's Christological conceptuality and vocabulary.”[9] Learning Greco-Roman theology is not only important because that was the context in which early Christians wrote, but also because from the late first century onward, most of our Christian authors converted from that worldview. Rather than talking about the Hellenization of Christianity, we should begin by asking how Hellenists experienced Christianization. In other words, Greco-Roman beliefs about the gods were the default lens through which converts first saw Christ. In order to explore how Greco-Roman theology shaped what people believed about Jesus as god, we do well to begin by asking how they defined a god. Andrew Perriman offers a helpful starting point. “The gods,” he writes, “are mostly understood as corporeal beings, blessed with immortality, larger, more beautiful, and more powerful than their mortal analogues.”[10] Furthermore, there were lots of them! The sublunar realm was, in the words of Paula Fredriksen, “a god-congested place.”[11] What's more, “[S]harp lines and clearly demarcated boundaries between divinity and humanity were lacking."[12] Gods could appear as people and people could ascend to become gods. Comprehending what Greco-Roman people believed about gods coming down and humans going up will occupy the first part of this paper. Only once we've adjusted our thinking to their culture, will we walk through key moments in the life of Jesus of Nazareth to hear the story with ancient Mediterranean ears. Lastly, we'll consider the evidence from sources that think of Jesus in Greco-Roman categories. Bringing this all together we'll enumerate the primary ways to interpret the phrase “Jesus is god” available to Christians in the pre-Nicene period. Gods Coming Down and Humans Going Up The idea that a god would visit someone is not as unusual as it first sounds. We find plenty of examples of Yahweh himself or non-human representatives visiting people in the Hebrew Bible.[13] One psalmist even referred to angels or “heavenly beings” (ESV) as אֱלֹהִים (gods).[14] The Greco-Roman world too told stories about divine entities coming down to interact with people. Euripides tells about the time Zeus forced the god Apollo to become a human servant in the house of Admetus, performing menial labor as punishment for killing the Cyclopes (Alcestis 1). Baucis and Philemon offered hospitality to Jupiter and Mercury when they appeared in human form (Ovid, Metamorphoses 8.26-34). In Homer's Odyssey onlookers warn Antinous for flinging a stool against a stranger since “the gods do take on the look of strangers dropping in from abroad”[15] (17.534-9). Because they believed the boundary between the divine realm and the Earth was so permeable, Mediterranean people were always on guard for an encounter with a god in disguise. In addition to gods coming down, in special circumstances, humans could ascend and become gods too. Diodorus of Sicily demarcated two types of gods: those who are “eternal and imperishable, such as the sun and the moon” and “the other gods…terrestrial beings who attained to immortal honour”[16] (The Historical Library of Diodorus the Sicilian 6.1). By some accounts, even the Olympian gods, including Kronos and Uranus were once mortal men.[17] Among humans who could become divine, we find several distinguishable categories, including heroes, miracle workers, and rulers. We'll look at each briefly before considering how the story of Jesus would resonate with those holding a Greco-Roman worldview. Deified Heroes Cornutus the Stoic said, “[T]he ancients called heroes those who were so strong in body and soul that they seemed to be part of a divine race.” (Greek Theology 31)[18] At first this statement appears to be a mere simile, but he goes on to say of Heracles (Hercules), the Greek hero par excellence, “his services had earned him apotheosis” (ibid.). Apotheosis (or deification) is the process by which a human ascends into the divine realm. Beyond Heracles and his feats of strength, other exceptional individuals became deified for various reasons. Amphiarus was a seer who died in the battle at Thebes. After opening a chasm in the earth to swallow him in battle, “Zeus made him immortal”[19] (Apollodorus, Library of Greek Mythology 3.6). Pausanias says the custom of the inhabitants of Oropos was to drop coins into Amphiarus' spring “because this is where they say Amphiarus rose up as a god”[20] (Guide to Greece 1.34). Likewise, Strabo speaks about a shrine for Calchas, a deceased diviner from the Trojan war (Homer, Illiad 1.79-84), “where those consulting the oracle sacrifice a black ram to the dead and sleep in its hide”[21] (Strabo, Geography 6.3.9). Though the great majority of the dead were locked away in the lower world of Hades, leading a shadowy pitiful existence, the exceptional few could visit or speak from beyond the grave. Lastly, there was Zoroaster the Persian prophet who, according to Dio Chrysostom, was enveloped by fire while he meditated upon a mountain. He was unharmed and gave advice on how to properly make offerings to the gods (Dio Chrysostom, Discourses 36.40). The Psuedo-Clementine Homilies include a story about a lightning bolt striking and killing Zoroaster. After his devotees buried his body, they built a temple on the site, thinking that “his soul had been sent for by lightning” and they “worshipped him as a god”[22] (Homily 9.5.2). Thus, a hero could have extraordinary strength, foresight, or closeness to the gods resulting in apotheosis and ongoing worship and communication. Deified Miracle Workers Beyond heroes, Greco-Roman people loved to tell stories about deified miracle workers. Twice Orpheus rescued a ship from a storm by praying to the gods (Diodorus of Sicily 4.43.1f; 48.5f). After his death, surviving inscriptions indicate that he both received worship and was regarded as a god in several cities.[23] Epimenides “fell asleep in a cave for fifty-seven years”[24] (Diogenes Laertius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers 1.109). He also predicted a ten-year period of reprieve from Persian attack in Athens (Plato Laws 1.642D-E). Plato called him a divine man (θεῖος ἀνήρ) (ibid.) and Diogenes talked of Cretans sacrificing to him as a god (Diogenes, Lives 1.114). Iamblichus said Pythagoras was the son of Apollo and a mortal woman (Life of Pythagoras 2). Nonetheless, the soul of Pythagoras enjoyed multiple lives, having originally been “sent to mankind from the empire of Apollo”[25] (Life 2). Diogenes and Lucian enumerate the lives the pre-existent Pythagoras led, including Aethalides, Euphorbus, Hermotimus, and Pyrrhus (Diogenes, Life of Pythagoras 4; Lucian, The Cock 16-20). Hermes had granted Pythagoras the gift of “perpetual transmigration of his soul”[26] so he could remember his lives while living or dead (Diogenes, Life 4). Ancient sources are replete with Pythagorean miracle stories.[27] Porphyry mentions several, including taming a bear, persuading an ox to stop eating beans, and accurately predicting a catch of fish (Life of Pythagoras 23-25). Porphyry said Pythagoras accurately predicted earthquakes and “chased away a pestilence, suppressed violent winds and hail, [and] calmed storms on rivers and on seas” (Life 29).[28] Such miracles, argued the Pythagoreans made Pythagoras “a being superior to man, and not to a mere man” (Iamblichus, Life 28).[29] Iamblichus lays out the views of Pythagoras' followers, including that he was a god, a philanthropic daemon, the Pythian, the Hyperborean Apollo, a Paeon, a daemon inhabiting the moon, or an Olympian god (Life 6). Another pre-Socratic philosopher was Empedocles who studied under Pythagoras. To him sources attribute several miracles, including stopping a damaging wind, restoring the wind, bringing dry weather, causing it to rain, and even bringing someone back from Hades (Diogenes, Lives 8.59).[30] Diogenes records an incident in which Empedocles put a woman into a trance for thirty days before sending her away alive (8.61). He also includes a poem in which Empedocles says, “I am a deathless god, no longer mortal, I go among you honored by all, as is right”[31] (8.62). Asclepius was a son of the god Apollo and a human woman (Cornutus, Greek Theology 33). He was known for healing people from diseases and injuries (Pindar, Pythian 3.47-50). “[H]e invented any medicine he wished for the sick, and raised up the dead”[32] (Pausanias, Guide to Greece 2.26.4). However, as Diodorus relates, Hades complained to Zeus on account of Asclepius' diminishing his realm, which resulted in Zeus zapping Asclepius with a thunderbolt, killing him (4.71.2-3). Nevertheless, Asclepius later ascended into heaven to become a god (Hyginus, Fables 224; Cicero, Nature of the Gods 2.62).[33] Apollonius of Tyana was a famous first century miracle worker. According to Philostratus' account, the locals of Tyana regard Apollonius to be the son of Zeus (Life 1.6). Apollonius predicted many events, interpreted dreams, and knew private facts about people. He rebuked and ridiculed a demon, causing it to flee, shrieking as it went (Life 2.4).[34] He even once stopped a funeral procession and raised the deceased to life (Life 4.45). What's more he knew every human language (Life 1.19) and could understand what sparrows chirped to each other (Life 4.3). Once he instantaneously transported himself from Smyrna to Ephesus (Life 4.10). He claimed knowledge of his previous incarnation as the captain of an Egyptian ship (Life 3.23) and, in the end, Apollonius entered the temple of Athena and vanished, ascending from earth into heaven to the sound of a choir singing (Life 8.30). We have plenty of literary evidence that contemporaries and those who lived later regarded him as a divine man (Letters 48.3)[35] or godlike (ἰσόθεος) (Letters 44.1) or even just a god (θεός) (Life 5.24). Deified Rulers Our last category of deified humans to consider before seeing how this all relates to Jesus is rulers. Egyptians, as indicated from the hieroglyphs left in the pyramids, believed their deceased kings to enjoy afterlives as gods. They could become star gods or even hunt and consume other gods to absorb their powers.[36] The famous Macedonian conqueror, Alexander the Great, carried himself as a god towards the Persians though Plutarch opines, “[he] was not at all vain or deluded but rather used belief in his divinity to enslave others”[37] (Life of Alexander 28). This worship continued after his death, especially in Alexandria where Ptolemy built a tomb and established a priesthood to conduct religious honors to the deified ruler. Even the emperor Trajan offered a sacrifice to the spirit of Alexander (Cassius Dio, Roman History 68.30). Another interesting example is Antiochus I of Comagene who called himself “Antiochus the just [and] manifest god, friend of the Romans [and] friend of the Greeks.”[38] His tomb boasted four colossal figures seated on thrones: Zeus, Heracles, Apollo, and himself. The message was clear: Antiochus I wanted his subjects to recognize his place among the gods after death. Of course, the most relevant rulers for the Christian era were the Roman emperors. The first official Roman emperor Augustus deified his predecessor, Julius Caesar, celebrating his apotheosis with games (Suetonius, Life of Julius Caesar 88). Only five years after Augustus died, eastern inhabitants of the Roman Empire at Priene happily declared “the birthday of the god Augustus” (ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τοῦ θεοῦ)[39] to be the start of their provincial year. By the time of Tacitus, a century after Augustus died, the wealthy in Rome had statues of the first emperor in their gardens for worship (Annals 1.73). The Roman historian Appian explained that the Romans regularly deify emperors at death “provided he has not been a despot or a disgrace”[40] (The Civil Wars 2.148).  In other words, deification was the default setting for deceased emperors. Pliny the Younger lays it on pretty thick when he describes the process. He says Nero deified Claudius to expose him; Titus deified Vespasian and Domitian so he could be the son and brother of gods. However, Trajan deified Nerva because he genuinely believed him to be more than a human (Panegyric 11). In our little survey, we've seen three main categories of deified humans: heroes, miracle workers, and good rulers. These “conceptions of deity,” writes David Litwa, “were part of the “preunderstanding” of Hellenistic culture.”[41] He continues: If actual cases of deification were rare, traditions of deification were not. They were the stuff of heroic epic, lyric song, ancient mythology, cultic hymns, Hellenistic novels, and popular plays all over the first-century Mediterranean world. Such discourses were part of mainstream, urban culture to which most early Christians belonged. If Christians were socialized in predominantly Greco-Roman environments, it is no surprise that they employed and adapted common traits of deities and deified men to exalt their lord to divine status.[42] Now that we've attuned our thinking to Mediterranean sensibilities about gods coming down in the shape of humans and humans experiencing apotheosis to permanently dwell as gods in the divine realm, our ears are attuned to hear the story of Jesus with Greco-Roman ears. Hearing the Story of Jesus with Greco-Roman Ears How would second or third century inhabitants of the Roman empire have categorized Jesus? Taking my cue from Litwa's treatment in Iesus Deus, I'll briefly work through Jesus' conception, transfiguration, miracles, resurrection, and ascension. Miraculous Conception Although set within the context of Jewish messianism, Christ's miraculous birth would have resonated differently with Greco-Roman people. Stories of gods coming down and having intercourse with women are common in classical literature. That these stories made sense of why certain individuals were so exceptional is obvious. For example, Origen related a story about Apollo impregnating Amphictione who then gave birth to Plato (Against Celsus 1.37). Though Mary's conception did not come about through intercourse with a divine visitor, the fact that Jesus had no human father would call to mind divine sonship like Pythagoras or Asclepius. Celsus pointed out that the ancients “attributed a divine origin to Perseus, and Amphion, and Aeacus, and Minos” (Origen, Against Celsus 1.67). Philostratus records a story of the Egyptian god Proteus saying to Apollonius' mother that she would give birth to himself (Life of Apollonius of Tyana 1.4). Since people were primed to connect miraculous origins with divinity, typical hearers of the birth narratives of Matthew or Luke would likely think that this baby might be either be a descended god or a man destined to ascend to become a god. Miracles and Healing As we've seen, Jesus' miracles would not have sounded unbelievable or even unprecedent to Mediterranean people. Like Jesus, Orpheus and Empedocles calmed storms, rescuing ships. Though Jesus provided miraculous guidance on how to catch fish, Pythagoras foretold the number of fish in a great catch. After the fishermen painstakingly counted them all, they were astounded that when they threw them back in, they were still alive (Porphyry, Life 23-25). Jesus' ability to foretell the future, know people's thoughts, and cast out demons all find parallels in Apollonius of Tyana. As for resurrecting the dead, we have the stories of Empedocles, Asclepius, and Apollonius. The last of which even stopped a funeral procession to raise the dead, calling to mind Jesus' deeds in Luke 7.11-17. When Lycaonians witnessed Paul's healing of a man crippled from birth, they cried out, “The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men” (Acts 14.11). Another time when no harm befell Paul after a poisonous snake bit him on Malta, Gentile onlookers concluded “he was a god” (Acts 28.6). Barry Blackburn makes the following observation: [I]n view of the tendency, most clearly seen in the Epimenidean, Pythagorean, and Apollonian traditions, to correlate impressive miracle-working with divine status, one may justifiably conclude that the evangelical miracle traditions would have helped numerous gentile Christians to arrive at and maintain belief in Jesus' divine status.[43] Transfiguration Ancient Mediterranean inhabitants believed that the gods occasionally came down disguised as people. Only when gods revealed their inner brilliant natures could people know that they weren't mere humans. After his ship grounded on the sands of Krisa, Apollo leaped from the ship emitting flashes of fire “like a star in the middle of day…his radiance shot to heaven”[44] (Homeric Hymns, Hymn to Apollo 440). Likewise, Aphrodite appeared in shining garments, brighter than a fire and shimmering like the moon (Hymn to Aphrodite 85-89). When Demeter appeared to Metaneira, she initially looked like an old woman, but she transformed herself before her. “Casting old age away…a delightful perfume spread…a radiance shone out far from the goddess' immortal flesh…and the solid-made house was filled with a light like the lightning-flash”[45] (Hymn to Demeter 275-280). Homer wrote about Odysseus' transformation at the golden wand of Athena in which his clothes became clean, he became taller, and his skin looked younger. His son, Telemachus cried out, “Surely you are some god who rules the vaulting skies”[46] (Odyssey 16.206). Each time the observers conclude the transfigured person is a god. Resurrection & Ascension In defending the resurrection of Jesus, Theophilus of Antioch said, “[Y]ou believe that Hercules, who burned himself, lives; and that Aesculapius [Asclepius], who was struck with lightning, was raised”[47] (Autolycus 1.13). Although Hercules' physical body burnt, his transformed pneumatic body continued on as the poet Callimachus said, “under a Phrygian oak his limbs had been deified”[48] (Callimachus, Hymn to Artemis 159). Others thought Hercules ascended to heaven in his burnt body, which Asclepius subsequently healed (Lucian, Dialogue of the Gods 13). After his ascent, Diodorus relates how the people first sacrificed to him “as to a hero” then in Athens they began to honor him “with sacrifices like as to a god”[49] (The Historical Library 4.39). As for Asclepius, his ascension resulted in his deification as Cyprian said, “Aesculapius is struck by lightning, that he may rise into a god”[50] (On the Vanity of Idols 2). Romulus too “was torn to pieces by the hands of a hundred senators”[51] and after death ascended into heaven and received worship (Arnobius, Against the Heathen 1.41). Livy tells of how Romulus was “carried up on high by a whirlwind” and that immediately afterward “every man present hailed him as a god and son of a god”[52] (The Early History of Rome 1.16). As we can see from these three cases—Hercules, Asclepius, and Romulus—ascent into heaven was a common way of talking about deification. For Cicero, this was an obvious fact. People “who conferred outstanding benefits were translated to heaven through their fame and our gratitude”[53] (Nature 2.62). Consequently, Jesus' own resurrection and ascension would have triggered Gentiles to intuit his divinity. Commenting on the appearance of the immortalized Christ to the eleven in Galilee, Wendy Cotter said, “It is fair to say that the scene found in [Mat] 28:16-20 would be understood by a Greco-Roman audience, Jew or Gentile, as an apotheosis of Jesus.”[54] Although I beg to differ with Cotter's whole cloth inclusion of Jews here, it's hard to see how else non-Jews would have regarded the risen Christ. Litwa adds Rev 1.13-16 “[W]here he [Jesus] appears with all the accoutrements of the divine: a shining face, an overwhelming voice, luminescent clothing, and so on.”[55] In this brief survey we've seen that several key events in the story of Jesus told in the Gospels would have caused Greco-Roman hearers to intuit deity, including his divine conception, miracles, healing ministry, transfiguration, resurrection, and ascension. In their original context of second temple Judaism, these very same incidents would have resonated quite differently. His divine conception authenticated Jesus as the second Adam (Luke 3.38; Rom 5.14; 1 Cor 15.45) and God's Davidic son (2 Sam 7.14; Ps 2.7; Lk 1.32, 35). If Matthew or Luke wanted readers to understand that Jesus was divine based on his conception and birth, they failed to make such intentions explicit in the text. Rather, the birth narratives appear to have a much more modest aim—to persuade readers that Jesus had a credible claim to be Israel's messiah. His miracles show that “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power…for God was with him” (Acts 10.38; cf. Jn 3.2; 10.32, 38). Rather than concluding Jesus to be a god, Jewish witnesses to his healing of a paralyzed man “glorified God, who had given such authority to men” (Mat 9.8). Over and over, especially in the Gospel of John, Jesus directs people's attention to his Father who was doing the works in and through him (Jn 5.19, 30; 8.28; 12.49; 14.10). Seeing Jesus raise someone from the dead suggested to his original Jewish audience that “a great prophet has arisen among us” (Lk 7.16). The transfiguration, in its original setting, is an eschatological vision not a divine epiphany. Placement in the synoptic Gospels just after Jesus' promise that some there would not die before seeing the kingdom come sets the hermeneutical frame. “The transfiguration,” says William Lane, “was a momentary, but real (and witnessed) manifestation of Jesus' sovereign power which pointed beyond itself to the Parousia, when he will come ‘with power and glory.'”[56] If eschatology is the foreground, the background for the transfiguration was Moses' ascent of Sinai when he also encountered God and became radiant.[57] Viewed from the lenses of Moses' ascent and the eschaton, the transfiguration of Jesus is about his identity as God's definitive chosen ruler, not about any kind of innate divinity. Lastly, the resurrection and ascension validated Jesus' messianic claims to be the ruler of the age to come (Acts 17.31; Rom 1.4). Rather than concluding Jesus was deity, early Jewish Christians concluded these events showed that “God has made him both Lord and Christ” (Acts 2.36). The interpretative backgrounds for Jesus' ascension were not stories about Heracles, Asclepius, or Romulus. No, the key oracle that framed the Israelite understanding was the messianic psalm in which Yahweh told David's Lord to “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool” (Psalm 110.1). The idea is of a temporary sojourn in heaven until exercising the authority of his scepter to rule over earth from Zion. Once again, the biblical texts remain completely silent about deification. But even if the original meanings of Jesus' birth, ministry, transfiguration, resurrection, and ascension have messianic overtones when interpreted within the Jewish milieu, these same stories began to communicate various ideas of deity to Gentile converts in the generations that followed. We find little snippets from historical sources beginning in the second century and growing with time. Evidence of Belief in Jesus' as a Greco-Roman Deity To begin with, we have two non-Christian instances where Romans regarded Jesus as a deity within typical Greco-Roman categories. The first comes to us from Tertullian and Eusebius who mention an intriguing story about Tiberius' request to the Roman senate to deify Christ. Convinced by “intelligence from Palestine of events which had clearly shown the truth of Christ's divinity”[58] Tiberius proposed the matter to the senate (Apology 5). Eusebius adds that Tiberius learned that “many believed him to be a god in rising from the dead”[59] (Church History 2.2). As expected, the senate rejected the proposal. I mention this story, not because I can establish its historicity, but because it portrays how Tiberius would have thought about Jesus if he had heard about his miracles and resurrection. Another important incident is from one of the governor Pliny the Younger's letters to the emperor Trajan. Having investigated some people accused of Christianity, he found “they had met regularly before dawn on a fixed day to chant verses alternately amongst themselves in honour of Christ as if to a god”[60] (Letter 96). To an outside imperial observer like Pliny, the Christians believed in a man who had performed miracles, defeated death, and now lived in heaven. Calling him a god was just the natural way of talking about such a person. Pliny would not have thought Jesus was superior to the deified Roman emperors much less Zeus or the Olympic gods. If he believed in Jesus at all, he would have regarded him as another Mediterranean prophet who escaped Hades to enjoy apotheosis. Another interesting text to consider is the Infancy Gospel of Thomas. This apocryphal text tells the story of Jesus' childhood between the ages of five and twelve. Jesus is impetuous, powerful, and brilliant. Unsure to conclude that Jesus was “either god or angel,”[61] his teacher remands him to Joseph's custody (7). Later, a crowd of onlookers ponders whether the child is a god or a heavenly messenger after he raises an infant from the dead (17). A year later Jesus raised a construction man who had fallen to his death back to life (18). Once again, the crowd asked if the child was from heaven. Although some historians are quick to assume the lofty conceptions of Justin and his successors about the logos were commonplace in the early Christianity, Litwa points out, “The spell of the Logos could only bewitch a very small circle of Christian elites… In IGT, we find a Jesus who is divine according to different canons, the canons of popular Mediterranean theology.”[62] Another important though often overlooked scholarly group of Christians in the second century was led by a certain Theodotus of Byzantium.[63] Typically referred to by their heresiological label “Theodotians,” these dynamic monarchians lived in Rome and claimed that they held to the original Christology before it had been corrupted under Bishop Zephyrinus (Eusebius, Church History 5.28). Theodotus believed in the virgin birth, but not in his pre-existence or that he was god/God (Pseudo-Hippolytus, Refutation of All Heresies 7.35.1-2; 10.23.1-2). He thought that Jesus was not able to perform any miracles until his baptism when he received the Christ/Spirit. Pseudo-Hippolytus goes on to say, “But they do not want him to have become a god when the Spirit descended. Others say that he became a god after he rose from the dead.”[64] This last tantalizing remark implies that the Theodotians could affirm Jesus as a god after his resurrection though they denied his pre-existence. Although strict unitarians, they could regard Jesus as a god in that he was an ascended immortalized being who lived in heaven—not equal to the Father, but far superior to all humans on earth. Justin Martyr presents another interesting case to consider. Thoroughly acquainted with Greco-Roman literature and especially the philosophy of Plato, Justin sees Christ as a god whom the Father begot before all other creatures. He calls him “son, or wisdom, or angel, or god, or lord, or word”[65] (Dialogue with Trypho 61).  For Justin Christ is “at the same time angel and god and lord and man”[66] (59). Jesus was “of old the Word, appearing at one time in the form of fire, at another under the guise of incorporeal beings, but now, at the will of God, after becoming man for mankind”[67] (First Apology 63). In fact, Justin is quite comfortable to compare Christ to deified heroes and emperors. He says, “[W]e propose nothing new or different from that which you say about the so-called sons of Jupiter [Zeus] by your respected writers… And what about the emperors who die among you, whom you think worthy to be deified?”[68] (21). He readily accepts the parallels with Mercury, Perseus, Asclepius, Bacchus, and Hercules, but argues that Jesus is superior to them (22).[69] Nevertheless, he considered Jesus to be in “a place second to the unchanging and eternal God”[70] (13). The Father is “the Most True God” whereas the Son is he “who came forth from Him”[71] (6). Even as lates as Origen, Greco-Roman concepts of deity persist. In responding to Celsus' claim that no god or son of God has ever come down, Origen responds by stating such a statement would overthrow the stories of Pythian Apollo, Asclepius, and the other gods who descended (Against Celsus 5.2). My point here is not to say Origen believed in all the old myths, but to show how Origen reached for these stories as analogies to explain the incarnation of the logos. When Celsus argued that he would rather believe in the deity of Asclepius, Dionysus, and Hercules than Christ, Origen responded with a moral rather than ontological argument (3.42). He asks how these gods have improved the characters of anyone. Origen admits Celsus' argument “which places the forenamed individuals upon an equality with Jesus” might have force, however in light of the disreputable behavior of these gods, “how could you any longer say, with any show of reason, that these men, on putting aside their mortal body, became gods rather than Jesus?”[72] (3.42). Origen's Christology is far too broad and complicated to cover here. Undoubtedly, his work on eternal generation laid the foundation on which fourth century Christians could build homoousion Christology. Nevertheless, he retained some of the earlier subordinationist impulses of his forebearers. In his book On Prayer, he rebukes praying to Jesus as a crude error, instead advocating prayer to God alone (10). In his Commentary on John he repeatedly asserts that the Father is greater than his logos (1.40; 2.6; 6.23). Thus, Origen is a theologian on the seam of the times. He's both a subordinationist and a believer in the Son's eternal and divine ontology. Now, I want to be careful here. I'm not saying that all early Christians believed Jesus was a deified man like Asclepius or a descended god like Apollo or a reincarnated soul like Pythagoras. More often than not, thinking Christians whose works survive until today tended to eschew the parallels, simultaneously elevating Christ as high as possible while demoting the gods to mere demons. Still, Litwa is inciteful when he writes: It seems likely that early Christians shared the widespread cultural assumption that a resurrected, immortalized being was worthy of worship and thus divine. …Nonetheless there is a difference…Jesus, it appears, was never honored as an independent deity. Rather, he was always worshiped as Yahweh's subordinate. Naturally Heracles and Asclepius were Zeus' subordinates, but they were also members of a larger divine family. Jesus does not enter a pantheon but assumes a distinctive status as God's chief agent and plenipotentiary. It is this status that, to Christian insiders, placed Jesus in a category far above the likes of Heracles, Romulus, and Asclepius who were in turn demoted to the rank of δαίμονες [daimons].[73] Conclusion I began by asking the question, "What did early Christians mean by saying Jesus is god?" We noted that the ancient idea of agency (Jesus is God/god because he represents Yahweh), though present in Hebrew and Christian scripture, didn't play much of a role in how Gentile Christians thought about Jesus. Or if it did, those texts did not survive. By the time we enter the postapostolic era, a majority of Christianity was Gentile and little communication occurred with the Jewish Christians that survived in the East. As such, we turned our attention to Greco-Roman theology to tune our ears to hear the story of Jesus the way they would have. We learned about their multifaceted array of divinities. We saw that gods can come down and take the form of humans and humans can go up and take the form of gods. We found evidence for this kind of thinking in both non-Christian and Christian sources in the second and third centuries. Now it is time to return to the question I began with: “When early Christian authors called Jesus “god” what did they mean?” We saw that the idea of a deified man was present in the non-Christian witnesses of Tiberius and Pliny but made scant appearance in our Christian literature except for the Theodotians. As for the idea that a god came down to become a man, we found evidence in The Infancy Gospel of Thomas, Justin, and Origen.[74] Of course, we find a spectrum within this view, from Justin's designation of Jesus as a second god to Origen's more philosophically nuanced understanding. Still, it's worth noting as R. P. C. Hanson observed that, “With the exception of Athanasius virtually every theologian, East and West, accepted some form of subordinationism at least up to the year 355.”[75] Whether any Christians before Alexander and Athanasius of Alexandria held to the sophisticated idea of consubstantiality depends on showing evidence of the belief that the Son was coequal, coeternal, and coessential with the Father prior to Nicea. (Readers interested in the case for this view should consult Michael Bird's Jesus among the Gods in which he attempted the extraordinary feat of finding proto-Nicene Christology in the first two centuries, a task typically associated with maverick apologists not peer-reviewed historians.) In conclusion, the answer to our driving question about the meaning of “Jesus as god” is that the answer depends on whom we ask. If we ask the Theodotians, Jesus is a god because that's just what one calls an immortalized man who lives in heaven.[76] If we ask those holding a docetic Christology, the answer is that a god came down in appearance as a man. If we ask a logos subordinationist, they'll tell us that Jesus existed as the god through whom the supreme God created the universe before he became a human being. If we ask Tertullian, Jesus is god because he derives his substance from the Father, though he has a lesser portion of divinity.[77] If we ask Athanasius, he'll wax eloquent about how Jesus is of the same substance as the Father equal in status and eternality. The bottom line is that there was not one answer to this question prior to the fourth century. Answers depend on whom we ask and when they lived. Still, we can't help but wonder about the more tantalizing question of development. Which Christology was first and which ones evolved under social, intellectual, and political pressures? In the quest to specify the various stages of development in the Christologies of the ante-Nicene period, this Greco-Roman perspective may just provide the missing link between the reserved and limited way that the NT applies theos to Jesus in the first century and the homoousian view that eventually garnered imperial support in the fourth century. How easy would it have been for fresh converts from the Greco-Roman world to unintentionally mishear the story of Jesus? How easy would it have been for them to fit Jesus into their own categories of descended gods and ascended humans? With the unmooring of Gentile Christianity from its Jewish heritage, is it any wonder that Christologies began to drift out to sea? Now I'm not suggesting that all Christians went through a steady development from a human Jesus to a pre-existent Christ, to an eternal God the Son, to the Chalcedonian hypostatic union. As I mentioned above, plenty of other options were around and every church had its conservatives in addition to its innovators. The story is messy and uneven with competing views spread across huge geographic distances. Furthermore, many Christians probably were content to leave such theological nuances fuzzy, rather than seeking doctrinal precision on Christ's relation to his God and Father. Whatever the case may be, we dare not ignore the influence of Greco-Roman theology in our accounts of Christological development in the Mediterranean world of the first three centuries.    Bibliography The Homeric Hymns. Translated by Michael Crudden. New York, NY: Oxford, 2008. Antioch, Theophilus of. To Autolycus. Translated by Marcus Dods. Vol. 2. Ante-Nicene Fathers. Edited by Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2001. Aphrahat. The Demonstrations. Translated by Ellen Muehlberger. Vol. 3. The Cambridge Edition of Early Christian Writings. 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End Notes [1] For the remainder of this paper, I will use the lower case “god” for all references to deity outside of Yahweh, the Father of Christ. I do this because all our ancient texts lack capitalization and our modern capitalization rules imply a theology that is anachronistic and unhelpful for the present inquiry. [2] Christopher Kaiser wrote, “Explicit references to Jesus as ‘God' in the New Testament are very few, and even those few are generally plagued with uncertainties of either text or interpretation.” Christopher B. Kaiser, The Doctrine of God: A Historical Survey (London: Marshall Morgan & Scott, 1982), 29. Other scholars such as Raymond Brown (Jesus: God and Man), Jason David BeDuhn (Truth in Translation), and Brian Wright (“Jesus as θεός: A Textual Examination” in Revisiting the Corruption of the New Testament) have expressed similar sentiments. [3] John 20.28; Hebrews 1.8; Titus 2.13; 2 Peter 1.1; Romans 9.5; and 1 John 5.20. [4] See Polycarp's Epistle to the Philippians 12.2 where a manuscript difference determines whether or not Polycarp called Jesus god or lord. Textual corruption is most acute in Igantius' corpus. Although it's been common to dismiss the long recension as an “Arian” corruption, claiming the middle recension to be as pure and uncontaminated as freshly fallen snow upon which a foot has never trodden, such an uncritical view is beginning to give way to more honest analysis. See Paul Gilliam III's Ignatius of Antioch and the Arian Controversy (Leiden: Brill, 2017) for a recent treatment of Christological corruption in the middle recension. [5] See the entries for  אֱלֹהִיםand θεός in the Hebrew Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (HALOT), the Brown Driver Briggs Lexicon (BDB), Eerdmans Dictionary, Kohlenberger/Mounce Concise Hebrew-Aramaic Dictionary of the Old Testament, the Bauer Danker Arndt Gingrich Lexicon (BDAG), Friberg Greek Lexicon, and Thayer's Greek Lexicon. [6] See notes on Is 9.6 and Ps 45.6. [7] ZIBBC: “In what sense can the king be called “god”? By virtue of his divine appointment, the king in the ancient Near East stood before his subjects as a representative of the divine realm. …In fact, the term “gods“ (ʾelōhı̂m) is used of priests who functioned as judges in the Israelite temple judicial system (Ex. 21:6; 22:8-9; see comments on 58:1; 82:6-7).” John W. Hilber, “Psalms,” in The Minor Prophets, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, vol. 5 of Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary: Old Testament. ed. John H. Walton (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2009), 358. [8] Around a.d. 340, Aphrahat of Persia advised his fellow Christians to reply to Jewish critics who questioned why “You call a human being ‘God'” (Demonstrations 17.1). He said, “For the honored name of the divinity is granted event ot rightoues human beings, when they are worthy of being called by it…[W]hen he chose Moses, his friend and his beloved…he called him “god.” …We call him God, just as he named Moses with his own name…The name of the divinity was granted for great honor in the world. To whom he wishes, God appoints it” (17.3, 4, 5). Aphrahat, The Demonstrations, trans., Ellen Muehlberger, vol. 3, The Cambridge Edition of Early Christian Writings (Cambridge, UK: Cambridge, 2022), 213-15. In the Clementine Recognitions we find a brief mention of the concept:  “Therefore the name God is applied in three ways: either because he to whom it is given is truly God, or because he is the servant of him who is truly; and for the honour of the sender, that his authority may be full, he that is sent is called by the name of him who sends, as is often done in respect of angels: for when they appear to a man, if he is a wise and intelligent man, he asks the name of him who appears to him, that he may acknowledge at once the honour of the sent, and the authority of the sender” (2.42). Pseudo-Clement, Recognitions, trans., Thomas Smith, vol. 8, Ante Nicene Fathers (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 2003). [9] Michael F. Bird, Jesus among the Gods (Waco, TX: Baylor, 2022), 13. [10] Andrew Perriman, In the Form of a God, Studies in Early Christology, ed. David Capes Michael Bird, and Scott Harrower (Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2022), 130. [11] Paula Fredriksen, "How High Can Early High Christology Be?," in Monotheism and Christology in Greco-Roman Antiquity, ed. Matthew V. Novenson, vol. 180 (Leiden: Brill, 2020), 296, 99. [12] ibid. [13] See Gen 18.1; Ex 3.2; 24.11; Is 6.1; Ezk 1.28. [14] Compare the Masoretic Text of Psalm 8.6 to the Septuagint and Hebrews 2.7. [15] Homer, The Odyssey, trans., Robert Fagles (New York, NY: Penguin, 1997), 370. [16] Diodorus Siculus, The Historical Library, trans., Charles Henry Oldfather, vol. 1 (Sophron Editor, 2017), 340. [17] Uranus met death at the brutal hands of his own son, Kronos who emasculated him and let bleed out, resulting in his deification (Eusebius, Preparation for the Gospel 1.10). Later on, after suffering a fatal disease, Kronos himself experienced deification, becoming the planet Saturn (ibid.). Zeus married Hera and they produced Osiris (Dionysus), Isis (Demeter), Typhon, Apollo, and Aphrodite (ibid. 2.1). [18] Lucius Annaeus Cornutus, Greek Theology, trans., George Boys-Stones, Greek Theology, Fragments, and Testimonia (Atlanta, GA: SBL, 2018), 123. [19] Apollodorus, The Library of Greek Mythology, trans., Robin Hard (Oxford, UK: Oxford, 1998), 111. [20] Pausanias, Guide to Greece, trans., Peter Levi (London, UK: Penguin, 1979), 98. [21] Strabo, The Geography, trans., Duane W. Roller (Cambridge, UK: Cambridge, 2020), 281. [22] Psuedo-Clement, Homilies, trans., Peter Peterson, vol. 8, Ante-Nicene Fathers (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1897). Greek: “αὐτὸν δὲ ὡς θεὸν ἐθρήσκευσαν” from Jacques Paul Migne, Patrologia Graeca, taken from Accordance (PSCLEMH-T), OakTree Software, Inc., 2018, Version 1.1. [23] See Barry Blackburn, Theios Aner and the Markan Miracle Traditions (Tübingen, Germany: J. C. B. Mohr, 1991), 32. [24] Diogenes Laertius, Lives of the Eminent Philosophers, trans., Pamela Mensch (New York, NY: Oxford, 2020), 39. [25] Iamblichus, Life of Pythagoras, trans., Thomas Taylor, Iamblichus' Life of Pythagoras (Delhi, IN: Zinc Read, 2023), 2. [26] Diogenes Laertius, Life of Pythagoras, trans., Kenneth Sylvan Guthrie, The Pythagorean Sourcebook and Library (Grand Rapids, MI: Phanes Press, 1988), 142. [27] See the list in Blackburn, 39. He corroborates miracle stories from Diogenus Laertius, Iamblichus, Apollonius, Nicomachus, and Philostratus. [28] Porphyry, Life of Pythagoras, trans., Kenneth Sylvan Guthrie, The Pythagorean Sourcebook and Library (Grand Rapids, MI: Phanes Press, 1988), 128-9. [29] Iamblichus,  68. [30] What I call “resurrection” refers to the phrase, “Thou shalt bring back from Hades a dead man's strength.” Diogenes Laertius 8.2.59, trans. R. D. Hicks. [31] Laertius, "Lives of the Eminent Philosophers," 306. Two stories of his deification survive: in one Empedocles disappears in the middle of the night after hearing an extremely loud voice calling his name. After this the people concluded that they should sacrifice to him since he had become a god (8.68). In the other account, Empedocles climbs Etna and leaps into the fiery volcanic crater “to strengthen the rumor that he had become a god” (8.69). [32] Pausanias,  192. Sextus Empiricus says Asclepius raised up people who had died at Thebes as well as raising up the dead body of Tyndaros (Against the Professors 1.261). [33] Cicero adds that the Arcadians worship Asclepius (Nature 3.57). [34] In another instance, he confronted and cast out a demon from a licentious young man (Life 4.20). [35] The phrase is “περὶ ἐμοῦ καὶ θεοῖς εἴρηται ὡς περὶ θείου ἀνδρὸς.” Philostratus, Letters of Apollonius, vol. 458, Loeb Classical Library (Cambridge, MA: Harvard, 2006). [36] See George Hart, The Routledge Dictionary of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses, 2nd ed. (Oxford, UK: Routledge, 2005), 3. [37] Plutarch, Life of Alexander, trans., Ian Scott-Kilvert and Timothy E. Duff, The Age of Alexander (London, UK: Penguin, 2011), 311. Arrian includes a story about Anaxarchus advocating paying divine honors to Alexander through prostration. The Macedonians refused but the Persian members of his entourage “rose from their seats and one by one grovelled on the floor before the King.” Arrian, The Campaigns of Alexander, trans., Aubrey De Sélincourt (London, UK: Penguin, 1971), 222. [38] Translation my own from “Ἀντίοχος ὁ Θεὸς Δίκαιος Ἐπιφανὴς Φιλορωμαῖος Φιλέλλην.” Inscription at Nemrut Dağ, accessible at https://www.tertullian.org/rpearse/mithras/display.php?page=cimrm32. See also https://zeugma.packhum.org/pdfs/v1ch09.pdf. [39] Greek taken from W. Dittenberger, Orientis Graecae Inscriptiones Selectae, vol. 2 (Hildesheim: Olms, 1960), 48-60. Of particular note is the definite article before θεός. They didn't celebrate the birthday of a god, but the birthday of the god. [40] Appian, The Civil Wars, trans., John Carter (London, UK: Penguin, 1996), 149. [41] M. David Litwa, Iesus Deus (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014), 20. [42] ibid. [43] Blackburn, 92-3. [44] The Homeric Hymns, trans., Michael Crudden (New York, NY: Oxford, 2008), 38. [45] "The Homeric Hymns," 14. [46] Homer,  344. [47] Theophilus of Antioch, To Autolycus, trans., Marcus Dods, vol. 2, Ante-Nicene Fathers (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2001). [48] Callimachus, Hymn to Artemis, trans., Susan A. Stephens, Callimachus: The Hymns (New York, NY: Oxford, 2015), 119. [49] Siculus,  234. [50] Cyprian, Treatise 6: On the Vanity of Idols, trans., Ernest Wallis, vol. 5, Ante-Nicene Fathers (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1995). [51] Arnobius, Against the Heathen, trans., Hamilton Bryce and Hugh Campbell, vol. 6, Ante-Nicene Fathers (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1995). [52] Livy, The Early History of Rome, trans., Aubrey De Sélincourt (London, UK: Penguin, 2002), 49. [53] Cicero, The Nature of the Gods, trans., Patrick Gerard Walsh (Oxford, UK: Oxford, 2008), 69. [54] Wendy Cotter, "Greco-Roman Apotheosis Traditions and the Resurrection Appearances in Matthew," in The Gospel of Matthew in Current Study, ed. David E. Aune (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2001), 149. [55] Litwa, 170. [56] William L. Lane, The Gospel of Mark, Nicnt, ed. F. F. Bruce Ned B. Stonehouse, and Gordon D. Fee (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1974). [57] “Recent commentators have stressed that the best background for understanding the Markan transfiguration is the story of Moses' ascent up Mount Sinai (Exod. 24 and 34).” Litwa, 123. [58] Tertullian, Apology, trans. S. Thelwall, vol. 3, Ante-Nicene Fathers, ed. Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 2003). [59] Eusebius, The Church History, trans. Paul L. Maier (Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2007), 54. [60] Pliny the Younger, The Letters of the Younger Pliny, trans., Betty Radice (London: Penguin, 1969), 294. [61] Pseudo-Thomas, Infancy Gospel of Thomas, trans., James Orr (Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Co., 1903), 25. [62] Litwa, 83. [63] For sources on Theodotus, see Pseduo-Hippolytus, Refutation of All Heresies 7.35.1-2; 10.23.1-2; Pseudo-Tertullian, Against All Heresies 8.2; Eusebius, Church History 5.28. [64] Pseudo-Hippolytus, Refutation of All Heresies, trans., David Litwa (Atlanta, GA: SBL, 2016), 571. [65] I took the liberty to decapitalize these appellatives. Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho, trans. Thomas B. Falls (Washington, DC: Catholic University of America Press, 2003), 244. [66] Justin Martyr, 241. (Altered, see previous footnote.) [67] Justin Martyr, 102. [68] Justin Martyr, 56-7. [69] Arnobius makes a similar argument in Against the Heathen 1.38-39 “Is he not worthy to be called a god by us and felt to be a god on account of the favor or such great benefits? For if you have enrolled Liber among the gods because he discovered the use of wine, and Ceres the use of bread, Aesculapius the use of medicines, Minerva the use of oil, Triptolemus plowing, and Hercules because he conquered and restrained beasts, thieves, and the many-headed hydra…So then, ought we not to consider Christ a god, and to bestow upon him all the worship due to his divinity?” Translation from Litwa, 105. [70] Justin Martyr, 46. [71] Justin Martyr, 39. [72] Origen, Against Celsus, trans. Frederick Crombie, vol. 4, The Ante-Nicene Fathers (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 2003). [73] Litwa, 173. [74] I could easily multiply examples of this by looking at Irenaeus, Tertullian, Hippolytus, and many others. [75] The obvious exception to Hanson's statement were thinkers like Sabellius and Praxeas who believed that the Father himself came down as a human being. R. P. C. Hanson, Search for a Christian Doctrine of God (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2007), xix. [76] Interestingly, even some of the biblical unitarians of the period were comfortable with calling Jesus god, though they limited his divinity to his post-resurrection life. [77] Tertullian writes, “[T]he Father is not the same as the Son, since they differ one from the other in the mode of their being. For the Father is the entire substance, but the Son is a derivation and portion of the whole, as He Himself acknowledges: “My Father is greater than I.” In the Psalm His inferiority is described as being “a little lower than the angels.” Thus the Father is distinct from the Son, being greater than the Son” (Against Praxeas 9). Tertullian, Against Praxeas, trans., Holmes, vol. 3, Ante Nice Fathers (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 2003).

Ephesians 4:7-12 Sermon Notes:1) Every Christian receives a gracious gift | 72) Christ is the Champion and Giver of our Gifts | 8-103) The Word of God is the clarifying foundation for every gift | 114) Building up other Christians is the Purpose of Every Christian Gift | 12Reflection questions:1) How do our God-given gifts show us how God bestows value on His people? (See Gen 1:26-28; Eph 2:1-9) How does the purpose of our gifts keep us from becoming prideful and arrogant? See v.12.2) What gift have all God's people received? (see Ephesians 2:1-9) Do we also receive unique gifts? See v.7. Are those unique gifts meant to highlight our uniqueness, or do they have another purpose? See vv. 1-7, 12.3) Who is our Great High Priest as Christians? Is there also a sense where every believer is a priest or minister or servant of God?

DEATH TO LIFE Paul and Barnabas continue on their journey without John Mark, and they travelled down to Iconium and preached in the synagogue there, and many of the Jews and the Greeks believed. ACTS 14:1. At Iconium, Paul and Barnabas went together to the synagogue and preached with such power that many—both Jews and Gentiles—believed. We will read a little further on (vs 21 below) that when Paul returns to Iconium on a later journey he finds that Timothy was one of the first fruits of that original ministry in Iconium, where Timothy lived with his mother Eunice and his grandmother Lois. (Acts 16:2, 2Tim 3:10) 4. But the Jews who spurned God's message stirred up distrust among the Gentiles against Paul and Barnabas, saying all sorts of evil things about them, but the Lord proved their message was from him by giving them power to do great miracles. But the people were divided. And when Paul and Barnabas learned of a plot to incite a mob of Gentiles, Jews, and Jewish leaders to attack and stone them, they fled for their lives, going to the cities of Lycaonia, Lystra, Derbe, and the surrounding area, and preaching the Good News there. There did not seem to be a definite strategy of the spreading of the word of God. It was what it was, so they were led by The Holy Spirit to the surrounding regions in Lystra and Derbe. God was not going to allow severe persecution to stop his purpose and power from happening no matter what appeared to be happening to them - as we shall shortly see in a most dramatic and compelling way.  In the meantime… 8. At Lystra they came upon a man with crippled feet who had been that way from birth. He was listening as Paul preached, and Paul looked intensely at  him and perceived  he had faith to be healed. So Paul called to him, “Stand up!” and the man leaped to his feet and started walking! The witness of faith – This is an example of how faith meets faith. Paul firstly had faith that the power of God was present and active. While he was looking at that crippled man with eyes of faith, that man was looking to God with eyes of faith. Their faith met and God knew the man's prayer and Paul spoke God's answer - and the man stood up and walked. The same thing happened to Jesus when a woman was looking to Jesus in her need believing she could be healed and reached out and touched his garment, and faith met faith. Jesus felt the healing power flow from him to the woman – faith can perceive faith. When the listening crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted (in their local Hittite dialect), “These men are gods in human bodies!” They decided that Barnabas was the Greek god Jupiter, and that Paul, because he was the chief speaker, was Mercury! The local priest of the Temple of Jupiter brought them cartloads of flowers and prepared to sacrifice oxen to them at the city gates before the crowds. 14. But when Barnabas and Paul saw what was happening, they ripped at their clothing in dismay and ran out among the people, shouting, “Men! What are you doing? We also are men with the same nature as you, and preach to you that you should turn from these useless things to the living God, who made the heaven, the earth, the sea, and all things that are in them,  16 who in bygone generations allowed all nations to walk in their own way. Nevertheless He did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good, gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.” So Paul and Barnabas could scarcely restrain the people from sacrificing to them! The myths and legends of the Greek gods were all about strange ‘beings of renown' who assumed human form whenever they wished and visited the earth. This was also a belief amongst the Egyptians and also the Hindus. (See Gen 6:4) Paul was preaching here to people of an ancient culture, so they spoke about the God of Creation who controlled all the elements of the earth and worked them together according to his design and purpose. This was different to preaching to Jews, where he would speak about the Jewish patriarchs like Abraham and Moses and David, reminding them of their covenant as a Nation with God. His emphasis here to these pagans of Lystra was similar to how he preached to the Greeks in Athens on the Hill of Mars. (Acts 17) where he spoke about the God of creation who determined the boundaries and bloodlines and appointed times and purposes of all the nations of the earth. 19. Yet only a few days later, some Jews arrived from Antioch and Iconium (where they had fled from) and incited a mob of people to stone Paul to death. They then dragged Paul out of the city deeming him to be dead (nomizo – to deem something to be what it appears to be - the rule of action prescribed by reason - it is what it is). 20However, when the disciples gathered around him, he rose up (anistemi - to raise up from the dead – as it was said of Lazarus and Jesus ) and went into the city. And the next day he departed with Barnabas to Derbe. 21. After preaching the Good News there and making many disciples, they returned again to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, where they helped the believers to grow in love for God and each other. They encouraged them to continue in the faith in spite of all the persecution, reminding them that they must enter into the Kingdom of God through many tribulations.  Paul and Barnabas also appointed elders in every church and prayed for them with fasting, turning them over to the care of the Lord in whom they trusted. 24. Then they travelled back through Pisidia to Pamphylia, preached again in Perga, and went on to Attalia. Finally they returned by ship to Antioch, where their journey had begun and where they had been committed to God for the work which was now completed. Upon arrival they called together the believers and reported on their trip, telling how God had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles too. And they stayed there with the believers at Antioch for a long while. Looking at that stoning to death event again… nomizo and anistemi in verse 19. This could have been the time that Paul left his body, as he recounts later in a letter to the Corinthians. ‘This boasting is all so foolish but let me go on. Let me tell about the visions I've had, and revelations from the Lord. Fourteen years ago… (This event in the Book of acts was around the time between 39 and 44 AD and when he wrote the second letter to the Corinthians it was around 56 to 58 AD –so there's fourteen years in there somewhere)  … I was taken up to heaven for a visit. Don't ask me whether my body was there or just my spirit, for I don't know; only God can answer that. But anyway, there I was in paradise, and heard things so astounding that they are beyond a man's power to describe or put in words (and I am not allowed to tell them to others).  On behalf of this man I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except of my weaknesses— though if I should wish to boast, I would not be a fool, for I would be speaking the truth; but I refrain from it, so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me in my life and my message. I will say this: because these experiences and revelations were so tremendous, God was afraid I might be puffed up in pride by them; so I was sent a messenger from Satan as a thorn in my flesh, to hurt and bother me and pierce my pride' (2 Cor 12:1-7). So for Paul he would have understood that the power of Jesus was not only about resurrection – it was about death and resurrection. Just because someone believes in the doctrine of resurrection it does not necessarily mean that the power of resurrection is flowing in that person's life. That power is expressed in us when we are challenged to die to something that we realise is working death in us. We can choose to die to what that is in our body and soul and rise up in the life of Jesus working in us. When Jesus died on the cross he knew that he would be resurrected and he told people. Jesus did not and could not fight for his life on the cross. He had always surrendered control over his own life overcoming the struggle of the soul and the spirit and we see his willing surrender in the garden of Gesthemane, and he stayed alive until the life of his spirit left his dead body. He committed his spirit into his Father's hands and when he had done that he was resurrected. His body was raised up (anistemi)on the third day but he was given resurrection life in his spirit when he committed his spirit into the Father's hands. 'into Your hands I commit My spirit (paratithemi – to place alongside). His life was not lost but placed alongside Father's life. The spirit life of humanity was joined to the resurrection life of God through Jesus. Colossians 3:3 you are dead and your life is hidden with Christ in God.  How can Paul say ‘you are dead'? – How can he say ‘dead to sin and alive to God' (Romans 6:11) It is because Jesus became our death and our resurrection – all we do is receive repentance to life and have faith in his life working within us. It is called the simplicity of Christ – so simple yet such a hidden mystery! ‘hidden with Christ in God' but waiting to be found …whoever loses his life for me and because of me will find it. (Matthew 16:25)  That is something that has already happened and yet it is waiting to happen. That is a mystery of something hidden waiting to be revealed.  It means that what is waiting for us is to place our spirit in faith alongside the Spirit of God (paratithemi) and our spirit comes alive and out into the open. Our death is dying to the life of our soul being in control and our spirit is set free into resurrection life. The hidden life can be found and our faith releases it.  

Psalm 91 is about the “secret place” of fellowship, worship and communion with the LORD. Interestingly, it is written by an anonymous writer. Remember when Jesus was teaching His disciples to pray that He told them in Matthew 6:6 “But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.”   The most important part of a believer's life is the part that only God sees. The "hidden life" of communion and worship is symbolized in the Old Testament by the Holy of Holies in the Jewish sanctuary (Ex. 25:18-22; Heb. 10:19-25). Only the High Priest was allowed to go into this “Most Holy Place” once a year with the blood of the proper sacrifice to make atonement for the sins of the people. In the Holy of Holies was the ark of the covenant that was covered by the Mercy Seat. Over the Mercy Seat were two cherubim angels facing each other with their wings almost touching in the middle. This was the dwelling place of the God in the midst of His people.   Over and over again, Scripture reminds us that God is our refuge and strength (Psalm 46:1). He hides us that He might help us and then send us back to serve Him in the struggles of life. (See Psalms 27:5; 31:19-20; 32:7; 73:27-28; 94:22; 142:5; Deut. 32:37.) The author of this Psalm made sure that his dwelling place was his Lord (vv. 1, 9, 10). The safest place in the world is a shadow, if it is the shadow of the Almighty.   Through Jesus Christ we find safety and satisfaction under the wings of the cherubim in the Holy of Holies (Psalms 36:7-8; 57:1; 61:4; 63:2, 6-7). Jesus pictured salvation by describing chicks hiding under the wings of the mother hen (Matt. 23:37; Luke 13:34), and the psalmist pictured communion as believers resting under the wings of the cherubim in the tabernacle.   Four different names of God are used in the first two verses that encourage us to trust Him. He is the Most High God (Elyon; vv. 1, 9), a name found first in Genesis 14:18-20. He is higher than the kings of the earth and the false gods of the nations. He is also the Almighty (Shaddai), the all-sufficient God who is adequate for every situation (Gen. 17:1; 28:3; 35:11). He is LORD (vv. 2, 9, 14), Jehovah, the Great I AM, the personal and the covenant-making God who is faithful to His promises. He is God (Elohim, v. 2), the powerful creator God whose greatness and glory surpass anything we can imagine.   Remember Psalm 9:10, “And those who know Your name will put their trust in You; For You, LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.”  God's many names reflect His character and His attributes and when you intimately acquainted with them you will have no problem with putting your trust in Him.   This is the God who invites us to fellowship with Him in the Holy of Holies! This hidden life of worship and communion makes possible the public life of obedience and service. This God shelters us beneath the wings of the cherubim, but He also gives us the spiritual armor we need (v. 4; Eph. 6:10-18). His truth and faithfulness protect us as we claim His promises and obey Him.   In verse 4, “His truth is our shield and buckler”. The shield is the large shield that covers the whole person. (See Gen. 15:1; Deut. 33:29; 2 Sam. 22:3.) Some translations give "bulwark" or "rampart" instead of "buckler." The Hebrew word means "to go around" and would describe a mound of earth around a fortress. But the message is clear: those who abide in the Lord are safe when they are doing His will. God's servants are immortal until their work is done (Romans 8:28-39).   My friend, do you have a “secret place” where you worship, commune, and fellowship with your LORD in His Word and prayer?   God bless!

Main Point: Responding to adversity with trust and integrity honors God.Questions:What impacted you from the message this weekend? What challenged you or encouraged you? What did you learn about God's character through the study of Joseph's life.Read Genesis 37. What do you notice about Israel's family dynamics in this chapter? What did Joseph dream about? Why did his family resent his dreams? What did his brothers do to him? What do you think Joseph might be feeling during this time?Read Genesis 39-41. Why did Potiphar put Joseph in charge of his household? What temptation did he face? What did he say when he was tempted? (See Gen 39:8-10)How did Joseph display integrity in the face of adversity in chapter 39?What happened to Joseph in prison? How does his ability to interpret dreams get him out of prison? How old was Joseph when he was put in charge of Egypt? How did he respond to the impending drought?Read Genesis 42-47. How did Joseph get his brothers to bring whole family down to Egypt? Why was it so hard to get all of his brothers and father to come?What happened when Joseph reveals his true identity to his brothers. How did they respond? How did Joseph respond? (See Gen 45:1-15)Read Genesis 50:15-21. After Israel died, why were Joseph's brothers afraid of him? What did Joseph say to reassure them? What do Joseph's words reveal about his understanding of God's sovereignty even in difficulty?What is one thing you can do this week to put into practice what you learned in this message? 

Verses: Genesis 37:1-36, Genesis 39:1-47:31, 50:15-21 Main Point: Responding to adversity with trust and integrity honors God. Questions: What impacted you from the message this weekend? What challenged you or encouraged you? What did you learn about God's character through the study of Joseph's life. Read Genesis 37. What do you notice about Israel's family dynamics in this chapter? What did Joseph dream about? Why did his family resent his dreams?  What did his brothers do to him? What do you think Joseph might be feeling during this time? Read Genesis 39-41. Why did Potiphar put Joseph in charge of his household? What temptation did he face? What did he say when he was tempted? (See Gen 39:8-10) How did Joseph display integrity in the face of adversity in chapter 39? What happened to Joseph in prison? How does his ability to interpret dreams get him out of prison? How old was Joseph when he was put in charge of Egypt? How did he respond to the impending drought? Read Genesis 42-47. How did Joseph get his brothers to bring whole family down to Egypt? Why was it so hard to get all of his brothers and father to come? What happened when Joseph reveals his true identity to his brothers. How did they respond? How did Joseph respond? (See Gen 45:1-15) Read Genesis 50:15-21. After Israel died, why were Joseph's brothers afraid of him? What did Joseph say to reassure them? What do Joseph's words reveal about his understanding of God's sovereignty even in difficulty? What is one thing you can do this week to put into practice what you learned in this message? 

You visit the earth and water it, You greatly enrich it; The river of God is full of water; You provide their grain, For so You have prepared it. I don't know about you, but I need a Psalm of praise every now and then, especially in a time when the world and our country are in so much chaos and confusion. There is strife and division on every hand and there appears to be no hope that it will change for the better. It is very bad and only appears to be getting worse every day with more divisiveness taking place in politics, in culture, in education, in our homes, in our neighborhoods, and generally everywhere! Psalm 65 is an oasis in the midst of the desert to refresh us with the wonderful goodness of God and His bountiful provisions for us. The Psalm opened in the tiny land of Israel, giving us a picture of God's grace in providing salvation and an atonement for our own sinful hearts and lives. Our God is a “God Who hears prayer” and everyone and anyone is invited to come to Him (v. 2). This is because through “Zion”, the nation of Israel, God has provided a Savior, Jesus Christ, and also given us His Word, the Bible! In Psalm 65:5-8, the psalmist moves from Israel to the nations of the earth where we see God's government. He is the “confidence of all the ends of the earth, and of the far-off seas” (v. 5). God has revealed his power and His strength in “awesome deeds of righteousness” and in His “signs” (v. 8). The whole world experiences Him in every sunrise and sunset with “rejoicing” (v. 8). Only God can “still the noise of the seas and their waves and also the tumult of the peoples” (v. 7). We can always put our trust in Him!  Now in verses 9-13, the entire universe comes into the picture, for the Creator of the universe provides the sunshine and rain in their times and seasons so that people can plow the earth, plant seeds, and eventually harvest food. (See Gen. 1, 8:20-9:17.) The emphasis is on God's goodness and generosity to His people. The rains come in abundance; the rivers and streams overflow; the harvest is plenteous; the grain wagons are full; and the grain spills into the wagon ruts. Why? Because God covenanted to care for the land of Israel and visit it with His blessing, if His people honored and obeyed Him (Deut. 11:8-15; Lev. 26:3-5). This blessing was promised all during the year and year after year, even during the Sabbatical years when the people didn't cultivate the land (Lev. 25:1-22). According to verses 12-13, the "pastures of the wilderness”, the uncultivated land, would produce vegetation and the hills would be clothed with beauty. The meadows would feed the flocks and herds, and the valleys would produce the grain. All of them would unite as one voiceless choir shouting for joy to the God of the universe, the Creator of every good and perfect gift. God's River (v. 9) never runs dry and is always full of water! We can live without food for weeks at a time, but we only survive without water for a few days. Every city of the world is built near a water source! Water is the great necessity of life in so many ways. This is a reminder that God is the source of all life. We are promised in prophecy that God's River will flow in His millennium reign (Zechariah 14:8-9), and in His eternal city (Revelation 22:1-2). By the way, God's River is found in the Person of Jesus Christ! He is the “Living Water of Life” (John 4:10-14). We can't read these verses without expressing appreciation and adoration to our God for His goodness and vowing not to waste food (John 6:12), or waste the precious land and resources He has given us. One day God will destroy them that destroy the earth (Rev. 11:18), those who fail to see that we are stewards of His precious gifts.  Today, praise His wonderful Name for all His provisions! God bless!

Exodus 13:17-22 NIVCrossing the Sea17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” 18 So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea.[a] The Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle.19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him because Joseph had made the Israelites swear an oath. He had said, “God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up with you from this place.”[b]20 After leaving Sukkoth they camped at Etham on the edge of the desert. 21 By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. 22 Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.Footnotes[a] Exodus 13:18 Or the Sea of Reeds[b] Exodus 13:19 See Gen. 50:25

Exodus 13:17-22 NIVCrossing the Sea17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” 18 So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea.[a] The Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle.19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him because Joseph had made the Israelites swear an oath. He had said, “God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up with you from this place.”[b]20 After leaving Sukkoth they camped at Etham on the edge of the desert. 21 By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. 22 Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.Footnotes[a] Exodus 13:18 Or the Sea of Reeds[b] Exodus 13:19 See Gen. 50:25

Exodus 13:17-22 NIVCrossing the Sea17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” 18 So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea.[a] The Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle.19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him because Joseph had made the Israelites swear an oath. He had said, “God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up with you from this place.”[b]20 After leaving Sukkoth they camped at Etham on the edge of the desert. 21 By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. 22 Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.Footnotes[a] Exodus 13:18 Or the Sea of Reeds[b] Exodus 13:19 See Gen. 50:25

Exodus 13:17-22 NIVCrossing the Sea17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” 18 So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea.[a] The Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle.19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him because Joseph had made the Israelites swear an oath. He had said, “God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up with you from this place.”[b]20 After leaving Sukkoth they camped at Etham on the edge of the desert. 21 By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. 22 Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.Footnotes[a] Exodus 13:18 Or the Sea of Reeds[b] Exodus 13:19 See Gen. 50:25

What does the Bible say about the deity of Christ? For centuries, as affirmed at the Council of Nicea, Christians have used a wonderful list of verses to demonstrate from God's Word the deity of Jesus Christ. Here is another very different approach to show the same truth. (This is similar to the "Big Picture" approach used in the overview of the Bible called The Plot.) Thus Saith the Lord: If we count how many times the Old Testament prophets said, "Thus says the Lord" we find them using that phrase, in the New King James Version of the Bible, about 420 times. The New Testament on the other hand, never once records that phrase. Jesus Christ, with all the red ink devoted to recording His words, never once used that ubiquitous phrase, "Thus saith the Lord." Rather, Jesus proclaims, "I say to you," in the Gospels! Not a single "Thus says the Lord," but rather, "I say to you," 135 times. The following chart demonstrates biblically that these two phrases, Thus saith the Lord, and I say unto you, indicate the same thing, that God is speaking. For Jesus Christ made it clear that He Himself was at the heart of His message. Unlike the righteous priests and kings, prophets and the apostles, the Lord came to teach us about Himself: Christ's Self-focus: "Follow Me" 19x Mt. 4:19; 8:22; 10:38; 16:24; 19:21; Mk. 1:17; 2:14; 8:34; 10:21; Lk. 5:27; 9:59; 18:22; Jn. 1:43; 8:12; 10:27; 12:26; 13:36; 21:19, 22 Pray and act "in My name" 18x Mt. 7:22; 18:5; 18:20; [24:5]; Mk. 9:37, 39, 41; [13:6]; Lk. 9:48; [21:8]; 24:47; Jn. 14:13-14; 15:16; 16:23-24, 26; Acts 9:15 "the Holy Spirit" comes "in My name" Jn. 14:26 "for My name's sake" leave family and property Mt. 19:29; or even be killed 5x Mt. 24:9; [Lk. 21:12, 17;] Jn. 15:21; Acts 9:16 Believe in the "name of the… Son" and "in the Son" 3x Jn.  3:18, 36; 9:35 and "in Him [Jesus]" 4x Jn. 3:18; 6:29, 40; 8:31 "believe in Me" 14x Mt. 18:6; Mk. 9:42; Jn. 3:15-16, 18; 6:35, 47; 7:38; 11:25, 26; 12:44, 46; 14:1, 12; 16:8; 17:20 You "are sanctified by faith in Me" Acts 26:18 Live "in Me" Jn. 11:26 "come after Me" Mk. 8:34; Lk. 14:27 Abide "in Me" Jn. 15:2, 4:5, 7 "abide in Me" or else Jn. 15:6 "abide in My love" Jn. 15:9-10 "where two or three are gathered" Jesus is "there in the midst of them" Mt. 18:20 So too: "I [Jesus, will abide] in you" Jn. 15:4-5 "know that I am He" Jn. 8:28 or "if you do not believe that I am He you will die in your sins" Jn. 8:24 Do things "for My sake" Mt. 10:22, 39; even lose your life "for My sake" 4x Mt. 16:25; Mk. 8:35; 10:29; Lk. 6:22 "I never knew you, depart from Me" Mt. 7:23 "I am willing; be cleansed" Mt. 8:3; Mk.. 1:41 "confess Me" Mt. 10:32; Lk. 12:8 Do not deny "Me" 7x Mt. 10:33; 26:34; Mk. 14:30, 72; Lk. 12:9; 22:34; Jn. 13:38 Do not be "ashamed of Me" Mk. 8:38; Lk. 9:26 nor "My words" "love Me" 5x Jn. 14:15, 21, 23-24, 28 Do not reject "Me" Lk. 10:16; Jn. 12:48 "He who is not with Me is against Me" Lk. 11:23 Love Me "more than" your family members Mt. 10:37; [Lk. 14:26] Bob Enyart presents this material on a BEL radio program, in a secretly recorded meeting with Jehovah's Witnesses, and in his Gospel of John Bible Study which is downloadable or available on MP3 CD. "I… have loved you" Jn. 15:9, 12 Be "worthy of Me" Mt. 10:37-38 "Come to Me" 5x Mt. 11:28; Lk. 6:47; Jn. 5:40; 6:35; 7:37 "I will give you rest" Mt. 11:28 "For My yoke is easy and My burden is light" Mt. 11:30 I am "greater than the temple" "than Jonah" "than Solomon" Mt. 12:6, 41-42 I am "Lord even of the Sabbath" Mt. 12:8; Mk. 2:28; Lk. 6:5 [Lord of God's Ten Commandments] Thus He says keep "My commandments" 4x Jn. 14:15, 21; 15:10, 12 "You are My friends if you do whatever I command you" Jn. 15:14 "keep My word" Jn. 14:23-24 "He who is not with Me is against Me" Mt. 12:30 The angels are "His angels" Mt. 13:41; 16:27 and He commands "His angels" Mt. 24:31; Mk. 13:27 The kingdom is "His kingdom" Mt. 13:41 and He calls it "My kingdom" Lk. 22:30 Jesus called it "My church" Mt. 16:18 and believers are "My sheep" Jn. 10:14, 27 and they are "His elect" Mt. 24:31; Mk. 13:27 Paul is a "vessel of Mine to bear My name" Acts 9:15 "all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine" Jn. 17:10 "My peace I give" Jn. 14:27 "in Me you may have peace" Jn. 16:33 "My joy" should fill you Jn. 15:11 "Who do men say that I am?" Mt. 16:13; Mk. 8:27 "who do you say that I am?" Mt. 16:15 Receive "Me" Mt. 18:5; Mk. 9:37; Lk. 9:48 Heaven and earth will pass away but "My words" will never Mt. [5:18] 24:35; Mk. 13:31; Lk. 21:33 Tell others about Jesus Mk. 5:19 "you belong to Christ" Mk. 9:41 Hear "My sayings" and do them Lk. 6:47 Jesus has "His own glory" Lk. 9:26; [Jn. 2:11; 16:14] The Son is "glorified" 8x Jn. 11:4; 12:23; 13:31-32; [17:1, 5, 10 24] "He who hears you hears Me" Lk. 10:16 Jesus expects praise, from stones if necessary Lk. 19:37-40 Return "to Me" Lk. 22:32 Be "My disciple" Lk. 14:27; Jn. 8:31; 15:8 Forsake all to "be My disciple" Lk. 14:33 "you are My disciples" Jn. 13:35 "I shall send… the [Holy] Spirit" Jn. 15:26; 16:7 The Holy Spirit "will testify of Me" Jn. 15:26 We read in John 5 and Luke 24 that "the Scriptures… testify of Me" Jn. 5:39; [Lk. 24:44] "You [Apostles] also will bear witness [of Me] because you have been with Me" Jn. 15:27 Paul gives "testimony concerning Me" Acts 22:18; 23:11 "the Son gives life to whom He will" Jn. 5:21 "seek Me" Jn. 6:26 Serve "Me" Jn. 12:26 "all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father" Jn. 5:23 "I am the bread of life," "of heaven," "of God" Jn. 6: 32-33, 35, 41, [48,] 51 Just seeing Christ is reason enough to believe in Him Jn. 6:36 [56] Drink "My blood" and eat "My flesh" Jn. 6:53-54, 56 "I will raise him up at the last day" Jn. 6:40 for He is the resurrection "The world… hates Me" Jn. 7:7 "I am the light of the world" Jn. 8:12; 9:5; 12:46 "I bear witness of Myself" Jn. 8:13-14, 18 "know… Jesus Christ" for "eternal life" Jn. 17:3; [8:19; 10:10, 14] "the Son makes you free" Jn. 8:36 "Abraham rejoiced to see My day" Jn. 8:56; "Before Abraham was, I AM" Jn. 8:58 Of believers, Christ said, "I know them" Jn. 10:27 "I give them eternal life" Jn. 10:28 "I am the resurrection and the life" Jn. 11:25 I "will draw all peoples to Myself" Jn. 12:32 "I will… receive you to Myself" Jn. 14:3 Be "Mine" Jn. 14:24 "I am the vine" Jn. 15:5 "without Me you can do nothing" Jn. 15:5 "Because I live, you will live also." Jn. 14:19 "You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you" Jn. 15:16 Those who oppress Christians are "persecuting Me" Acts 9:4-5; 22:7-8; 26:14-15 "because they have not known… Me" Jn. 16:3 The Spirit "will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it" Jn. 16:14 "All things that the Father has are Mine" Jn. 16:15 "Whatever He [the Father] does, the Son does" Jn. 5:19 "the Father… loves you, because you have loved Me" Jn. 16:27 "If I will that he remain" Jn. 21:22 "I have overcome the world" Jn. 16:33 "I am the way" Jn. 14:6 "I am… the truth" Jn. 14:6 "I am… the life" Jn. 14:6 "I will… manifest Myself" Jn. 14:21 Scores of times Jesus uses the personal pronoun My with words like commandments, sake, words, lambs, sheep, peace, love, joy, voice, name, sayings, kingdom, angels, and church. Three examples powerfully illustrate the point. First, "Abraham rejoiced to see My day..." Secondly, "I know My sheep, and am known by My own." And thirdly, "Assuredly, I say to you... Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away." The prophets and John were the messengers; Jesus is the Message, the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and put Himself at the center of His message, because He is God. Hear all this on a BEL program, in a secretly recorded meeting with Jehovah's Witnesses, and in Bob Enyart's Gospel of John Bible Study which is downloadable or available on MP3 CD. The Forest for the Trees: A simple overview of Christ's message shows overwhelmingly that He is the Message. To paraphrase Greg Koukl from The John 10:10 Project, "You can take Buddha out and still have Buddhism, or take the prophet out and still have Allah, but if you take Jesus out you don't have Christianity any more." Jesus is either a blasphemer or God Himself. The above list comes from His words. We could make a similar list of Christ as the message using the remainder of the New Testament. And additionally, strong individual verses also show the Deity of Christ. The powerful and traditional proof texts show His deity even more effectively when presented alongside the big picture above of the ministry and message of Jesus Christ. The Traditional Passages Showing Christ's Deity: Most of the primary verses with a sampling of the many others showing that, like the Father, Jesus is... - Called God: John 1:1 with v. 14; 20:28; Rom. 9:5; Titus 2:13; Heb. 1:8; 2 Pet. 1:1; Luke 1:16-17 - From Everlasting: Ps. 90:2 with Micah 5:2 - Receiving worship: Mat. 2:11; 14:33; 28:9; John 9:38; Heb. 1:6 (etc., 10x) with Ex. 34:14; Acts 10:25-26 & Rev. 19:10 - Forgiving/Delegating Power to Forgive: Mat. 6:9, 12 with Jn. 20:23; Luke 5:20; Mark 2:5-11 & 1 Jn. 1:7-9 - Omniscient: John 10:15; 2:24-25 21:17 - Omnipresent: Ps. 139:7-10 with Mat. 18:20 & 28:20 - Omnipotent: Rev. 1:8 with 11-13, 17; 2:8; 5:11-6:1, 21:22-23; & 22:13 - Immutable: Mal. 3:6 with Hebrews 13:8 - The exact equivalent     in nature: Heb. 1:3; Phil 2:6 doesn't rob the Father to see Christ as His equal     in fullness: Col. 2:9 (in Christ "dwells all the fullness of the Godhead")     in glory: Isa. 45:25 with Gal. 6:14 and John 1:14; etc.     to whom every knee shalll bow: Isa. 45:23 with Phil. 2:10     to whom every tongue shall confess: Isa. 45:23 with Phil. 2:11 and Rom. 14:10-11     as the Almighty: Rev. 1:8 with 11-13, 17; 2:8; 5:11-6:1, 21:22-23; & 22:13     as Creator: Isa. 45:5-7, 18 with John 1:3 and Col. 1:16-17     as Savior: Isa. 45:21 and Luke 1:47 with Titus 3:6; 2:13; 2 Pet. 1:11; 1 John 4:14     as searcher of hearts: Ps. 139:23-24 with John 2:24-25 & Rev. 2:18-19, 23     as possessor of the everlasting kingdom: Dan. 7:13-14     as King of Kings: Rev. 19:16 with Dan. 2:47 and Isa. 33:22     as Lawgiver: James 4:12     as Judge: Ps. 9:7-8; 50:6 & 75:7; Isa. 33:22; 66:16; Heb. 12:23 with John 5:22; Acts 10:42; 17:31; Rom. 2:16; 2 Cor. 5:10; 2 Tim. 4:1, 8     as Jehovah: Isa. 40:3 with Mat. 3:3; and Isa. 8:13-14 with 1 Pet. 2:7-8; Mat. 21:42; Mk. 12:10. The Deity of Christ and Eternal Separation: Two doctrines, the afterlife of eternal separation from God in hell, and that of the deity of Christ, are inextricably linked. Therefore many of those who deny the deity of Christ, including Jehovah's Witnesses, Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church, Ronald Hubbard's Scientology, and Christian Science, also deny an afterlife of eternal separation from God. Why? God put eternity in our hearts (Eccl. 3:11; Ps. 148:5-6) and so only a payment of infinite worth, something greater than the eternal futures of billions of human beings, could suffice to pay the price for our combined sin. When false teachers dismiss eternal punishment in Hades, they then fail to see the necessity of a Sacrifice of infinite worth. Jesus Is God: The dramatic contrast in the above chart shows Christ's self-presentation compared to the angels and prophets who present God to the world. These other messengers elevated not themselves, but God. They focused attention not on themselves but on Him. Godly priests, kings, and apostles presented God as their motivating message, of course, and not themselves. Jesus, on the other hand, came speaking about Himself. His most oft used, favorite title for Himself, undoubtedly selected also to communicate His mission, is not the "Son of God", but the "Son of Man". For, eternally He was the Son of God, but being the Son of Man was new to Him and uniquely cherished. God the Son submits Himself to the Father, willingly, not as a sign of a lesser God, but of His greatness. For as He lowers Himself, He is exalted to the central truth of Creation! (See the above chart.) Thus His "I say unto you" is the Scripture's "Thus Saith the Lord"! Three in the Bible: God exists as three persons in one Godhead, whom we refer to as the Trinity. Thus human beings made in His image also have a triune nature, and the cosmos itself is understood in threes, in the most fantastic ways. Before considering this, first see the Bible's extraordinary use of this number. Christ was three days in the tomb, which Jonah's three days foreshadowed, as did Abraham's three days of thinking that he would sacrifice his son Isaac on that same hill called Golgotha and Mt. Moriah (Gen. 22:14; 2 Chron. 3:1). Israel's three patriarchs are Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The priestly tribe of Levi is from Jacob's third child (Gen. 29:34), as Leviticus is the third book of the Bible. And the day the law was given, the sons of Levi killed "about three thousand men" (Ex. 32:28), whereas the day the Spirit was given, "that day about three thousand souls were [saved]" (Acts 2:41; and see 2 Cor. 3:6). The Hebrew Scriptures comprise three sections, the Law, the Prophets, and the Writings (Luke 24:44), and God created three archangels. The most noteworthy women are Eve, Sarah, and Mary. The magi brought gold, frankincense and myrrh. Three persons (one being the Son) started their public service at thirty years of age: Joseph (Gen. 41:46), a deliverer of his people; David (2 Sam. 5:4) seated on the messianic throne (2 Sam. 7:12-13); and "Jesus Himself began His ministry at about thirty years of age" (Luke 3:23). God could have led Esther to fast for two days, or four; and He could have kept Jonah in the whale for one day, or a week, but three days and three nights prefigures God's plan of salvation for Christ's time in the grave. For Jesus "rose again the third day according to the Scriptures" (1 Cor. 15:4). And thus, the triune Christian God, the mystery of the Trinity, Three Persons in One God, is the one God whose testimony we can trust (answering both the philosophical problem of the origin of the one and the many, and Euthyphro's Dilemma by Socrates), having imprinted our world and even ourselves with His triune nature. Threes Everywhere: The number three manifested in Scripture turns the Christian's attention outward to see space existing in three dimensions, height, width, and length, as does time in past, present and future. The electromagnetic force operates in positive, negative, and neutral, and in pigment the three primary colors are red, yellow, and blue whereas in light they are red, green, and blue which three blend into the hues of the rainbow. We human beings on this third planet from the Sun experience matter primarily in three states, solid, liquid, and gas. The strongest shape for building is the triangle. Writers often give three examples and artists group in threes as in interior design, sculpting, and even movie directors, as they have the word trilogy (1, 2, 3) but no word for any other number of films. Photographers use the rule of thirds and the language of DNA uses only three-letter words. Everything reinforces the triune aspect of all of existence, a reflection of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. See more at kgov.com/3. Tripartite Man: And so we humans are body, soul, and spirit (1 Thes. 5:23). For God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness…" (Gen. 1:26). So mankind is made in God's image and likeness, image referring to our form, and likeness to our essence as sentient, morally-responsible persons. And unlike animals which look to the ground, men and women stand upright with a heavenly gaze. God's Image: God created a form, that is, an image, for the eternal Son to indwell. The verses Jehovah's Witnesses assume undermine Christ's deity are actually verses describing this aspect of Him at the creation. For the very first thing that God created was this form for His Son to indwell! (See Gen. 1:26 along with Col. 1:15; Rev. 3:14: Heb. 1:3; 5:5; 10:5; 2 Cor. 4:4; John 1:14; Phil. 2:5-6; 1 Tim. 2:5; and Rev. 1:13-18. When a son is "born" isn't the beginning of his existence anymore than when by taking up an image the Son became the "firstborn" of creation, was the beginning of His existence.) And in that image, "He made man" (Gen. 9:6), and not in the image of apes. "So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them (Gen. 1:27). The Plurality in God: The very first verse of Genesis presents the plurality of God, with Genesis 1:1 using a plural subject and a singular verb, that is, In the beginning gods He created the heavens and the earth. Elohim is the plural of the typical Hebrew word for God, which is El (cherub and seraph for example become plural as cherubim and seraphim, with Elah likely being the dual form, and Elohim being a plurality, in this case, three for the triune God). So, did Moses make a grammatical error in the first sentence of the first book of Scripture, in what has become not only the world's best-selling book, but in the most well-known sentence in the history of the world by using a singular verb with a plural subject? Of course not. For this was intentional. The Hebrew Scriptures in the most solemn texts presents God as a unified plurality. What grammarians refer to as the "royal we" comes from God's references to Himself using the plural: "Let Us make man in Our image," (Gen. 1:26). The solemn Hebrew prayer, called the Shema Yisroel, to the "one God" uses another plurality. For "The Lord our God, the Lord is One (of plurality)" at Deuteronomy 6:4 uses neither of the expected terms, yachad or even bad, words meaning a singularity, but God's Word uses the word echad, which is one in plurality as used by God at the Tower of Babel, "the people are one," and by Joseph "the dreams of Pharaoh are one," and by Moses, "the people answered with one voice," and back again to the beginning of Genesis at the institution of marriage when God says, "and they shall become one flesh." So this foundation prayer to God does not the use the Hebrew words for one, which mean a singularity (which words are never used in the Bible referring to God), but God describes Himself in the Bible using the One of plurality. So the Shema says: the Jehovah (who is the one God) our Elohim (plural) Jehovah is a Plural Unity! And Deuteronomy 6:4 is the central passage to all theology of God. Then the Scriptures go on to teach that the three Persons of the Trinity are God the Father (Isa. 63:16; Mal. 2:10), God the Son (Ps. 2:12; Zech. 12:10 and as in the chart above), and God the Spirit (Gen. 1:2; Isa. 48:16; Isa. 6:3; Rom. 5:5). See also Mat. 28:19; Acts 5:3-4, 9; 2 Cor. 13:14, and Psalm 110:1 with Matthew 22:41-46, and verses that show the personhood of the Spirit including Heb. 10:15-17. The Mystery in the Godhead: How can one God exist in three persons? Christian theologians have long described this as a mystery, but it is an expected mystery. Virtually everything, deep down, is a mystery. What is light (with its wave-particle duality)? What is life (with modern biology unable to agree on a definition)? What is matter (that it leaves modern physics bewildered)? What is space? What is energy? What is time? What is movement? (Is it a series of discrete stationary states?) How can the Creator bring the universe into existence from nothing? How can your non-physical spirit be attached to your physical body? How can God exist from the beginningless past? How can creatures procreate and bring everlasting beings into existence? In humility we acknowledge that virtually everything in the creation is a deep, almost unfathomable mystery. How much more mysterious would be the God who made us? If Christianity taught that there are three Gods in One God, that would be a contradiction, and by the laws of logic, therefore false. For 1 + 1 + 1 = 3 and each 1 would be 1/3rd of the whole, which is anathema to trinitarian theology. But by analogizing God with math we see that the number line lacks sufficient multidimensionality and points us to the 3-dimensionality of space and an appropriate anaology wherein 1 x 1 x 1 = 1. And likewise, if Christianity taught that there are three Persons in One Person, that also would be false. But Christianity teaches that there are three Persons in One God, and while being a deep mystery (what isn't?), that is no contradiction. And finally, denial of Christ's deity is a central teaching of many of today's cults, including for example the Jehovah's Witnesses. This denial goes hand-in-glove with the rejection of eternality of hell. Also, not understanding the plurality of the Godhead creates philosophical dilemmas such as the problem of the one and the many. And Socrates' pre-Christian argument against God called Euthyphro's Dilemma is resolved by none of the world's religions except for the Christian Answer to Euthyphro in the eternal corroborating testimony of the three Witnesses of the Trinity. -Bob Enyart, KGOV.com Pastor, Denver Bible Church Bible Resources: If you enjoyed the above study and you would like to learn more from the wealth of biblical resources available from Bob Enyart Live, then please consider getting our series on the Gospel of John, or at least starting with Volume I, titled, Is this Man God? And for more fun and to enrich yourself spiritually, consider reading The Plot, an overview of the Bible which is Pastor Bob's life's work. Also, we invite you to browse the Bible Study Department at our KGOV store. And you can call us at 1-800-8Enyart (836-9278) to tell Bob or a BEL staffer which topics of study you are most interested in, and we'll figure out which of our resources, if any, address your area of concern. Postscript -- Is the Father-Son Relationship Eternal? The Scriptures help us see the errors in two claims about the Son that are held by a minority of believers, many of whom, thankfully, do assent to the Trinity and the deity of Jesus Christ. One false teaching is against the eternality of the Trinity (immediately below, The Claim: No Past Trinity) and the other acknowledges the eternal Trinity but denies that ithe Second Person was always the "Son" (below, The Claim: No Past Son). The Claim: No Past Trinity: The first claim, that no triunity existed in God until He decided to express Himself in that way, is offered to defend monotheism, that there is only one God. Christianity teaches that there is one God in three persons.  can be falsified in three ways. 1) Because the "Father" is eternal His "Son" must also have been eternal. For by positing "no Trinity" through an eternity prior to the manifestation of such, a Christian is claiming the existence of a non-relational "Being". Theoretically, if such a Being could exist, it could not be a "Father" and may be non-binary. We estimate however that more than a thousand Bible verses present God as relational. Thus we teach that the five primary biblical attributes of our eternal God are that, "He is living, personal, relational, good, and loving." Not being "relational" has serious consequences including Euthyphro's, as linked to just below. And for those who may claim that "Father" could have been merely an eternal figure of speech, please see below on metaphor. 2) The Scripture asserts the existence of "the eternal Spirit" (Heb. 9:14). The Holy Spirit did not come to exist. If a defense of monotheism requires that mankind needs to know that God in the past was a unitarian Being who only later manifest Himself into three persons, it is surprising that the Bible would not teach this. Further, if there were a logical contradiction in three persons being One God, positing that One God manifest Himself into three persons does not make that apparent contradiction go away. That is not the answer to such a challenge. Rather, as shown above in The Mystery in the Godhead section, one God existing in three persons is not and never has been a contradiction. But like mostly everything else, it is a deep mystery. (Some claim that John 15:26 teaches an origin for the Holy Spirit, who "proceeds from the Father". However, context is king. If that was the Lord's teaching, it would have been quite a jump out of His context. You can wreak havoc anywhere and especially in John 15 by ignoring the contextual. Jesus there assures His disciples that "the world hates you... because you are not of the world." The disciples were not extraterrestrials and were not eternal aliens at that, even though Jesus said, "you have been with Me from the beginning." And about unbelievers, the Lord said, "If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin". By taking that out of context one would assume unbelievers were sinless until just three years earlier. And "when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me." Context is king. Jesus did not bounce out of His context to drop a theological bomb. Rather, He was assuring them that although in "a little while" He will be with them no longer, He is sending the Holy Spirit who comes not from this world, but from the Father in heaven.) 3) Above, this article mentions our Christian Answer to Euthyphro's Dilemma. That writing makes a defense of the eternal corroborating testimony of the Trinity's three Witnesses. This also rebuts the first claim here that no Trinity existed in eternity past. The Claim: No Past Son: The second related erroneous claim, as written about by Zeller and Showers, admits that the Persons of the Trinity have existed eternally, but that the Second Person did not become the "Son" until the Incarnation. This teaching at least has a proof text, which however appears to have been misapplied. One form of this second error is that through eternity past the second Person of the Trinity was the "Word" but not the "Son". This position claims that it was not until the Incarnation, or thereabouts, when the Father's prophecy was fulfilled, "This day have I begotten Thee", that the Word became the Son. The claim here is that the First Person of the Trinity sent the Second Person, the Word, to the world, who thereby became the Son. Let's look at four rebuttals to this claim. First, the Bible never says that God sent the Word to the Earth who then became the Son. Among His many titles (the Christ, the Alpha and Omega, the Lamb of God, the Prince of Peace, the Son of Man, the Bridegroom, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, etc.), the Second Person of the Trinity is also referred to as the Word (John 1:1, 14) and He was of course sent to the Earth. However, when the Bible addresses the topic of WHO was sent to Earth, WHO came, WHO was given to the world, we don't read that the Word was sent and He became the Son, but rather, each time we read that: - "He loved us and sent His Son" (1 John 4:10) - "the Son of God has come" (1 John 5:20) - "God gave His only begotten Son" (John 3:16; and 3:17) - "Unto us a Son is given" (Isaiah 9:6) - "God sent forth His Son, born of a woman" (Gal. 4:4) - "the Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world" (1 John 4:14) - "In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world" (1 John 4:9). Again, God did not send the Word into the world who became the Son through the Incarnation when He got here. Rather, God sent His "Son into the world". Even in the parable, "Then last of all he sent his son to them, saying, 'They will respect my son'" (Mat. 21:37), "having one son, his beloved, he also sent him" (Mark 12:6). A second way of recognizing from Scripture that the Son is eternal is that the "Father" is eternal. Without a Son, the First Person of the Trinity would not have been the Father. Further, with all the Old Testament passages referring to God as Father notwithstanding, He would not have become the Father until about 2,000 years ago with the Incarnation. However, while the famous messianic prophecy of Isaiah 9 raises the deep mystery of the separateness within, yet also the oneness of, God, its description of Him as "Everlasting Father" has long been held by Christians to teach that throughout eternity past, the Father has been the Father. As the Apostle Paul wrote, "there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things" (1 Cor. 8:6), such that everything that has flowed from Him has flowed from Him as "the Father". Likewise, to the Ephesians, the Hebrew poetry places in proximity the "one Spirit" with the "Father of all", reinforcing that as the Holy Spirit has been eternally the Spirit, so too with the Father, as likewise when Luke recorded, "Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said, 'I thank You, Father'" (Luke 10:21) and Matthew, "in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" (Mat. 28:19). Of course also, in the Hebrew Scriptures, prior to the Incarnation, God was referred to as Father. "Have we not all one Father? Has not God created us?" (Mal. 2:10; see also Deut. 32:6; Ps. 68:5; Isa. 63:16; 64:8; [43:10]; John 8:41; 5:21 [evidently referring to the three Old Testament resurrections]). Yes, of course, "Father" could be used as a metaphor, like the Father of our Country or the Father of Creation. However, that metaphor does not hang on nothing. It is "Our Father who art in heaven" that gives rise to the use of the Father metaphor. Also, the parallel passages to those above, regarding that the "Son" was sent, are those that teach us that the "Father" is the one who sent Him, such as Jesus' own frequently repeated statements about "the Father who sent Me" (John 5:30, 36-37; 6:39, 44, 57; 8:16, 18, 29, 42; 12:49; 14:24) and "I have come in My Father's name" (John 5:43). That is, the First Person who sent the Second Person to Earth, at the time of the sending, was already the Father. So to be the everlasting Father, of necessity, eternally, He has had a Son. Thirdly, the burden of proof for such a new doctrine is on the person claiming that the Godhead's relationships were different prior to the creation, or prior to the Incarnation, than they are today. However, with its one proof text, the scriptural evidence will fail to make the case if that passage is not making a claim about the past relationship of the First and Second persons, but rather, is referencing the future Incarnation when God the Son will be begotten to become the Son of Man. For Psalm 2:7 is a messianic Incarnation prophecy. "You are My Son, today I have begotten You." The immediate context, and the three times that this passage is quoted, shows that this relates to the messianic plan for the Second Person rather than to the First Person's past relationship with the Second Person. In context, this is about Jesus as God's "King on My holy hill of Zion" [i.e., Jerusalem] (Ps. 2:6). That description applies because of and sometime after the Holy Spirit overshadows Mary, for "that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit" (Mat. 1:20). So too, each of the three quotes of Psalm 2:7 refer explicitly to its fulfillment in the First Advent of Jesus Christ (Acts 13:33; Heb. 1:5; 5:5). "And we declare to you glad tidings—that promise which was made to the fathers. God has fulfilled this for us their children, in that He has raised up Jesus. As it is also written in the second Psalm..." (Acts 13:32-33). Thus while some see Psalm 2 as claiming no past Father-Son relationship, the alternative traditional understanding is that it is referring to when God the Son becomes the Son of Man taking upon Himself the messianic role, with the Godhead as the Progenitor, so to speak, begetting Jesus' earthly existence. The writer of Hebrews quotes Psalm 2 and then explicitly connects it to a prophecy of the Incarnation, for Mary, Jesus' true earthly mother, descended from the line of David. "I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom... I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his Father, and he shall be My son" (1 Sam. 7:12-14). This messianic Incarnation prophecy is then quoted in Hebrews 1:5, again reinforcing that Psalm 2:7 refers to the Incarnation. Likewise, when quoted in Hebrews 5, the passage is associated with the prophecy that Christ would "become High Priest", another reference to His role through the Incarnation. Thus, the New Testament interprets Psalm 2:7 not as referring to some past spiritual begetting of the Son by the Father, but to God's begetting of His eternal Son through the virgin Mary whereby He became "the Son of Man", His favorite title for Himself. Finally, Scripture teaches about the Second Person of the Trinity that, "All things were created through Him" (Col. 1:16) and "without Him nothing was made that was made" (John 1:3). If these are literal and comprehensive, that means that the Second Person of the Trinity is the one who actually created everything. The things created explicitly include all the created positions of authority, "whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers" (Col. 1:16). That leaves this false teaching in the awkward position of claiming that while the Second Person was eternally existing, the "Sonship" was a created position. Yet, if it were, one would expect that the Son Himself would have created that position, which seems untenable. The Son wouldn't create His own "Sonship". Yet He indeed created every position of authority. That again suggests, as with the above three extensive observations and natural readings from Scripture, that the Father-Son relationship was not brought into existence but that it eternally emanated from the Godhead and that therefore God the Son is eternally the only begotten Son of the Father.

A Sermon for The Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany, Jan. 29, 2023The Epistle, Romans 13:1-7 - The Gospel, St. Matthew 8:1-13The Rev'd Stephen C. ScarlettThe authority of JesusThe events of today's gospel take place just after Jesus finished the famous discourse called The Sermon on the Mount. St. Matthew tells us that “the people were astonished at Jesus' teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.” (Matt. 7:28-29).The gospel healings develop this theme. The two people who ask Jesus for healing express their faith in Jesus' authority. The leper said, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” The centurion illustrated Jesus' authority with a military analogy. He commanded soldiers and they had to obey. Similarly, Jesus had authority over disease. He could tell it to go away and it would go.The epistle also talks about authority. St. Paul says, “Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities.” This is connected to the authority of Jesus as Lord. As St. Paul explains, “There is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves” (Rom. 13:1-2).Exercising the faith our lesson prescribe is often more challenging in real life than it sounds in principle. The leper said, “If you are willing, you can make me clean”—and Jesus was immediately willing. Sometimes we come to Jesus believing he is able to heal us or help us, but Jesus is not immediately willing. Similarly, what do we do with the command to obey the government when the government is really bad, or when we, personally, are the victims of governmental injustice?An eternal vs temporal frameThese are not new challenges. The Acts of the Apostles record many miracles and healings in the mission of the early church. However, the later New Testament writings, especially the letters to the churches, call believers to patience and faith when the answer doesn't come immediately. Jesus himself exhorted us to persistent prayer using the example of a widow who wore out the judge with her complaints until he finally gave in (Luke 18:1-8). He ended that parable with a rhetorical question. “When the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?" (Lk. 18:8).St. Paul healed people and performed exorcisms. Yet, in 2 Corinthians 12, a later stage in his ministry, we are told that he prayed three times to be healed of an affliction he called, “a thorn in the flesh.” God told him, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." (2 Cor. 12:9). Jesus was able to heal him but was not willing at that moment in that circumstance.If we persevere in following Jesus in the life of prayer, we will experience both the miracle of answered prayer and the challenge of prayer not yet answered. This tension reflects the nature of the Christian life in this world. The primary goal of God's work in our lives is to recreate us in the image of Christ. We are being prepared for our ultimate destiny in the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God is with us now through the Holy Spirit. Sometimes it is revealed to us now in miracles of healing and visibly answered prayer. But the kingdom is not yet fully here. Consequently, every healing in this world is temporary, and not everything is healed. This tension is the root of the foundational Christian prayer, “Come, Lord Jesus.” When Jesus comes everything will be healed.JusticeThis same tension exists around the desire for justice. It is hard to overstate how important justice is to the biblical narrative. The Ten Commandments are about justice. Biblical justice is rooted in two simple principles. First, God created us and God redeemed us. Thus, justice means giving God the worship and honor he is due as Creator and Redeemer. Second, since God made us in his image, justice means honoring other people as God's image bearers. As Jesus said, “Inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren you did it to me” (Matt. 25:40).Popular discussions about justice omit the primary biblical duty of justice to honor and worship God. This renders the second duty of justice impossible. We cannot honor the image of God if we do not honor God himself. This is the reason that from the beginning the church made one great exception to the command to obey the governing authority. The church met for the Eucharist on Sunday even when Caesar legally prohibited it. Caesar has a God-given vocation to punish wickedness and vice, but Caesar has no right to deny God the justice he is due.Now, justice is a big and thorny topic in the church. It surfaced during the pandemic and the riots. It continues wherever people are treated unjustly. It raises questions. How much protest is justified? How much is required? How activist should the church be in protesting injustice?The church has never been afraid to confront injustice in rulers. The great church father St. John Chrysostom, at the Sunday Eucharist, called out the emperor for unjust brutality in a war—while the emperor was sitting in the balcony. Not surprisingly, John Chrysostom spent some time in exile. The most profound prophetic confrontation I have witnessed was by Mother Theresa of Calcutta. During a trip to America she was invited to address a joint session of congress. She told that joint session that she wasn't sure how long God would allow a nation to exist that killed its own children. A joint session of congress has never been that quiet since that moment.The command to obey the government and the command to exercise a prophetic voice remain the church's dual vocation. This tension is governed by the biblical truth that this world is not perfectible apart from the coming of Jesus and the completion of the New Creation. We are witnesses for God's justice, but we must never mistake the world for the kingdom. We are called to remain blameless in the face of the world's injustice while we wait for the world's true Lord to render his righteous judgements.Nonetheless, the desire for universal justice is the essence of the prayer, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” In the western world, the desire for the kingdom is often associated with personal fulfillment and comfort. However, in the Bible personal fulfillment and comfort is inextricably connected to communal justice. Only when Jesus judges the world in righteousness, only when every creature made in his image and redeemed by him is treated justly, will everyone be made whole. We must never allow our faith in Jesus to shrink into a desire for mere personal happiness. A desire for true justice in all the world is the main motive for the prayer, “Come Lord Jesus.”Faith and justiceThe irony of calls for justice in the world is that they are frequently made by those who deny God the justice he is due. This makes true justice impossible. The human problem of injustice is rooted in our rebellion against God. It is because Cain would not give God his due that he ended up killing his brother (See Gen. 4:3-8).This is why the Book of Common Prayer teaches us that it is our bounden duty “to worship God every Sunday in his church” (BCP 291). Our worship of God is not a Sunday only thing, but the way we order our time reflects the priority of our commitments. Worship is a matter of justice, not merely personal fulfillment.After we fulfil the first duty of justice on the Lord's Day, we leave the altar of God to be witnesses for God's justice in the world. We administer justice by the way we treat each person we encounter each day, by the way we side with those who are being treated unjustly, and by our willingness to stand for uncomfortable truth, as we pray and wait for Jesus to come and bring complete justice and complete healing.

Psalm 18 is a wonderful Psalm of David. In verses 1-3, David begins this Psalm with an expression of his devotion and love for Jehovah! In verse 1, David expressed his love “I will love you…”. In verse 2, he expressed his faith, “in whom I will trust”. And in verse 3, he expressed his hope, “so shall I be saved…”. After expressing his devotion, David described his distress (vv. 4-6). He pictured himself as a man who had been hemmed in on every side, caught in a trap, bound with cords, and thrown into the water to drown. (See Psalms 88:16-18; 69:2, 15; 124:4; Job 22:11.) So what did David do, and how did he respond to his distress? He said, “In my distress, I called upon the LORD, and cried out to my God.” David turned to Jehovah, his great and awesome God to help him in his distress! Do you feel like you are about to drown, and you are going under for the last time? David said that when he cried, that the “Lord heard his voice from his temple in heaven and his cry came before Him, even to His ears.” David wrote about this again in Psalm 65:2, “O You who hear prayer, To You all flesh will come.” My friend, please believe that the Lord will hear your cry and plea for help today because He will!!!! In verses 7-19, David describes how the Lord answered and his great God began to act on his behalf. The great deliverance (vv. 7-19) God sent is depicted as a storm. The Lord had been longsuffering with King Saul, but now His anger arose and began to shake things, like an earthquake and an erupting volcano (vv. 7-8; Ex. 15:8; Deut. 32:22). God came down in a storm, like a warrior in a chariot, carried along swiftly by a cherub. (See Gen. 3:24; Ex. 25:18; 2 Kings 19:15; Ezek. 1, 10). He was accompanied by darkness, rain, wind, hail (a rare thing in the Holy Land), thunder, and lightning (His arrows, v. 14; see 77:17, 144:6). All because David called on the Lord! (v. 6). At just the right time, God reached down and delivered David (vv. 16-19). Like Moses, he was drawn out of the water (Ex. 2:10). The enemy fell in defeat, but David stood firm, supported by the Lord (23:4). He was now king of Israel. Ten years of exile were ended, his life had been spared, and his ministry lay before him. Read these verses of God's deliverance and be encouraged today: Psalm 18:7-19 – “Then the earth shook and trembled; The foundations of the hills also quaked and were shaken, Because He was angry. Smoke went up from His nostrils, And devouring fire from His mouth; Coals were kindled by it. He bowed the heavens also, and came down With darkness under His feet. And He rode upon a cherub, and flew; He flew upon the wings of the wind. He made darkness His secret place; His canopy around Him was dark waters And thick clouds of the skies. From the brightness before Him, His thick clouds passed with hailstones and coals of fire. The LORD thundered from heaven, And the Most High uttered His voice, Hailstones and coals of fire. He sent out His arrows and scattered the foe, Lightnings in abundance, and He vanquished them. Then the channels of the sea were seen, The foundations of the world were uncovered At Your rebuke, O LORD, At the blast of the breath of Your nostrils. He sent from above, He took me; He drew me out of many waters. He delivered me from my strong enemy, From those who hated me, For they were too strong for me. They confronted me in the day of my calamity, But the LORD was my support. He also brought me out into a broad place; He delivered me because He delighted in me.” My friend, God delights in you and is waiting for you to call upon Him for help! God bless!

Joshua was getting along in years, so he gathered the people at the place where God had made a promise to Abraham. (See Gen. 12:6-7.) Joshua wanted the people to remember and to live based on what they knew to be true about God: God can be trusted. He is good, and He is faithful. ... The post Weekly Leader Training for Preschool & Kids: Unit 8, Session 3—Joshua Challenged the People appeared first on The Gospel Project.

Note: The time signatures [00:00] below indicate the start of a question if you'd like to skip to a particular one of interest in the audio file.[02:45] - Q: What does scripture say about one world currency?A: See Revelation 13:16-17 - Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name.[6:18] - Q: If you could experience any moment in The Bible as an observer what event would you witness?A: Lazarus being raised from the dead by Jesus. No wrong answers here.[09:12] - Q: How do you break generational curses?A: See Exodus 34:6-7 - The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation.”See Ezekiel 18:20-23 and 1 Corinthians 15:33[15:31] - Q: How long after the birth of Jesus did the 3 wise men appear? Most nativity scenes have them there along with the shepherds. Matthew 2 says they arrived about the same time as his birth. Some have told me they arrived more than 1 year after his birth which would beg the question, what did they do in Bethlehem all that time.A: See Matthew 2:11 - And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. Matthew 2:16 - Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men. See Matthew 2:2[21:26] - Q: Romans 13:3a → “For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong.” This is backwards these days. 12:21 says not to be overcome by evil, but to overcome evil with good. So, we are to fight. Why don't we? Or are we to passively accept evil rulers?A: It is God who puts up and takes down kingdoms. We war by praying.[28:58] - Q: Are there any verses in the Bible that speak against a multiverse theory (as an explanation for why our universe is so finely tuned)?A: The only reality that we are aware of is the one that God created.[32:07] - Q: Is there an “Age of Accountability”?A: See Numbers 32:11, Psalm 51:5, Jonah 4:11There is an age, but it differs on a person by person basis. There has to be a point in your life where it's possible that you can understand and make a decision whether you are going to follow and accept or reject Christ in your life.[36:55] - Q: If we are called to forgive everyone, should we forgive the devil? Is that our place to do that?A: Forgiveness is about the healing of a relationship. God doesn't forgive everyone because not everyone wants to fall into a right relationship with God.[40:51] - Q: Why should we bring children / babies into the world? Especially if we are in the end times.A: See Gen 1:28, Gen 9 - We are commanded to be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth.[42:35] - Q: If it took the Council of Trent to determine the Old Testament, how can we as Christians be assured there are not some books missing from the Old Testament and/or the Bible as a whole?A: See Luke 11:51 - from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary.Any question that was missed due to time constraints during the service Pastor Jeff will address the answer on the blog. Small Group Questions (Whole Group):Review the questions submitted above. Discuss any of these that stuck out to you, or that maybe your group finds particularly interesting.Breakout Questions:Pray for one another!

So many times, you hear people speaking about the Lord with this wish or worldly hope [not Bible hope]: " I am waiting on God". All through the Word - the Bible IS clearly the other way around. The Lord is simply that the Lord of the NOW, but we are hung up in the past or waiting on the future! We are to have “NOW” since it's from a “NOW” God! I encourage you today to start seeing God as the God of the Now, and expecting Him to become an active part of your daily life! There is no better time than “NOW”!Text: *Gen. 2:1-5 & 7 & John 19:28-30 – “NOW” because of the finished work of the Cross the Old Covenant has been finished and “NOW” we are living in and from the New! Just as in Genesis 1 even in the midst of darkness the Lord by His Spirit was moving! Stop letting the devil rob your time on the earth He does this by making us think we got to twist God's arm to get Him to do something! God is ready to reveal to us what He has already completed (yes in us) if we will get in agreement and alignment!   #1 MOVE    *Read Gen. 12:1-4 - Do you think that just one day the Lord decided oh I almost forgot, I need to tell Abram to move? Read Genesis chapter 11! Abram was NOT waiting on God rather God was waiting on Abram.                      See Gen. 26:22 – “NOW moving to Isaac we see the same misunderstanding God made room and blessed 120 years earlier with Abram!”#2 LIBERTY                    *Read *2 Cor. 3:17 – “LIBERTY” = “FREEDOM – to live as a citizen” See John 14:16-17 – NOW you have liberty by the Word and not a failing feeling! Start taking the Lord at His Word and as you agree and align with the revelation of what the Lord has for you in His covenant will become yours!  #3 NOT in VAIN                       Read 2 Cor. 6:1-2 – “VAIN” (ken-os') = EMPTY. “NOW” is the favorable KAIROS moment of SOTERIA = rescue, safety & health!                   See “IMMEDIATELY” – Matt. 8:3, Matt.14:31, Matthew 20:34, Mark 1:31, Mark 2:12, Luke 8:44 & 13:13.Illustration: #1. In each day there are 24 hours, 1,440 minutes, and 86,400 seconds-and every one of them is a precious gift from God. Time is something we feel we never have enough of, yet we give it away so easily. Someone once said, “Time is free, but it's priceless. You can't own it, but you can use it. You can't keep it, but you can spend it. Once you've lost it you can never get it back.” Someone once observed that a wasted life is really nothing more than a collection of wasted days. As God gives us life, each one of us starts the new year with the same number of opportunities—365—that we can choose to either use and invest in eternal things or allow to drift by without taking advantage of the gift we have been given. The difference between those who succeed and those who fail is not found primarily in talent but in diligence and effort.

Series: Revelation: The Best is Yet to ComeTitle: “How does the Bible end? With an invitation.”Scripture: Revelation 22:10-21; Genesis 3:1-19; John 7:37; 20:31; Isaiah 55:1; 2 Peter 3:1-13(Commentary helps listed at the end)Need:Bottom line: Revelation and the Bible ends with an invitation to come to Him: To watch, wait and witness (despite the suffering) until he returns to take us home to the New heaven and earth.INTRODUCTIONOpening story:God is always working for his people. (Rom 8:28) He's not waiting on us to ask. Ask, yes! But God's working whether we ask or not. God initiates mercy and grace. See Gen 3:1-19.Seminary student Christmas shopping spree. They gave us play money and then let us go in and “buy” gifts for our children. (Isaiah 55:1)Read Genesis 3:1-19; Revelation 22:1-9CONTEXTWe have seen:Jesus and his churches (1-3)The throne and judgments of God (6-16)The whore, the King, and his bride (17-22)It's also noteworthy that these last 2 chapters of Revelation and of the Bible occur when sin has been abolished from the universe. No more sin, shame, guilt, death—it's all history.Bottom line: Revelation and the Bible ends with an invitation to come to Him. (Several, actually) To watch, wait and witness (despite the suffering) until he returns to take us home to the New heaven and earth.OUTLINELAST WEEK invitation 1-2:Two invitations from God to us as we anticipate the New Eden and the reverse of the curse: (6-9)A. Obey God. (6-7)B. Worship God! (8-9)Five more invitations for a total of 7Obey the word. (22:6-7)Worship God! (8-9)Proclaim the truth of God. (10-11)Unlike Daniel, reveal, don't seal his word from the world. Why?Because “the time is near”For each of us it's only a heartbeat away.For all of us, it's never been closer. We're another day closer today.A day is coming when change will no longer be possible. (11) What some say…others say we can still change…“Imagine being at the Grand Canyon and having a tour guide take you to some massive precipice. You look over the edge and realize that the drop is so deep it makes you dizzy. Then the tour guide says, ‘Let the self-assertive fool who wants to destroy himself disregard caution, ignore my instructions, and go over the edge.' Is that what the tour guide wants you to do? P. 4143 things we know in our gut:We all know that we do what we want to do.We all know that we are responsible for what we do.We all know that God will hold us accountable for what we do.“How we respond tot he truth of God's word in this life will confirm our character and determine our destiny forever.” -D AkinPursue the will of God. (12-15)He's coming soon. He will…judge or reward after he…Examines our mindTests our heartGives us according to our waysAs judge, Jesus is fully qualified as he is the omniscient OneAlpha and omegaFirst and lastBeginning and endBe washed in the blood of the lambFor justificationFor sanctificationWashing = “persevering in faithfulness to Christ and refusing to compromise with the world” -D AkinGives us access to Tree of lifeRiver of lifeCity of life…forever!In contrast to those who did/do not. They are left outside the city in the lake of fire (“dogs”)Dogs in that dayStink and are dirtyRoll in their own stinkCannot wash themselvesRespond to the invitation of God. (16-17) Jesus authenticates the message of Revelation in v. 16.Root = source (before David, as God)Offspring = descendant (coming from David, as man)He's the God-man who's the bright morning star (Num 24:17)This passage is Christological. Colossians will expand on this (we'll start that series next week)The “Great Invitation” is a 4-fold invitation (17):The Holy Spirit says come!The bride, the Church of Jesus, says come!The one who hears is invitated.The one who thirsts for abundant, eternal life is invited. (Cf. Isaiah 55:1; John 7:37)Spurgeon says with respect to content and location of these verses:It's placed at the end of the Bible because it's the aim of the Bible.It's like the point of the arrow with the rest of the Bible being the shaft and the feathers.John wrote in his gospel these tings are written so that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the son of the living God, and that by believing you might have life in his name. (John 20:31)As far as you're concerned, this book has missed it's target unless you've accepted his invitation. All the books in the Bible cry to sinners, come to Jesus! Take the water that quenches your thirst!Heed the warning of God. (18-19)Severe warning (adding/subtracting)EveryoneComprehensiveLiterally Revelation (but by implication, all of scripture)Believers love, obey and receive the word.Unbelievers hate, disobey and reject the word.Pray for the coming of God (Return of the King). (20-21)“Yes” - answer the question “I am” - remember who he is“Coming” - second coming/return of the king“Soon” - one heart beat away; 1 day is like 1,000 years to the Lord (2 Peter 3)There is a God.You're not him.Are you ready to meet him?In sum, Revelation ends with a 3-fold posture to assume: watch, wait, and witness.Watch - Keep your eyes on the clouds…He's coming again! He's coming soon! Are you ready?Wait - Persevere. No doubt, suffering will accompany us as we wait. Do not grow weary in doing good in the meantime. Lean into your witness.Witness - This is the great work he's left us to join him in. Exalt the King. Expand the kingdom. As we keep our eyes on the clouds, we also keep our eyes on the crowds (Greg Stier). This is how we're to continue to do good. Our witness will result in invitations being accepted. It may also result in the ultimate witness of martyrdom. If so, so be it. To live is Christ, to die is gain and more of Christ.Ever since Genesis 3, the Garden and the Fall, God has been pursuing us with an invitation to repent and return to him. To repent and believe the truth that sets us free. So it's entirely appropriate that God would end Revelation and the Bible with these grand invitations.CONCLUSIONBottom line: Revelation and the Bible ends with an invitation to come to Him. (Several, actually) To watch, wait and witness (despite the suffering) until he returns to take us home to the New heaven and earth.Closing story:Jim Hamilton's notes“The resurrection guarantees the return.” -JHMines of Moria scene in the Fellowship of the Ring where Gandalf the Grey gives his life to save the Fellowship.Gandalf the Grey is resurrected and then returns as Gandalf the White. He comes back to them to help them finish what they started—to save the world from darkness. P. 411Jesus is coming back and he's inviting you to join him. Of all the ways he could end the Revelation, he chooses to end the letter with an invitation to come to him now.The question is, will you accept his invitation?PrayLord's Supper, 1 Corinthians 11:17-32OTHER NOTES:“The whole point of the book of Revelation is to engender an encounter with Him. An encourager that then empowers us to follow him and his paradoxal way.” - Darryl JohnsonRevelation = Apocalypse = unveiling = breaking through2-fold purpose:Seeks to set the present moment (in all it's brokenness) in light of the unseen realities of the future. Jesus is coming, and bringing with him a whole new creation!Seeks to set the present moment in light of the unseen realities of the present. A fundamental conviction of apocalyptic literature is that “things are not as they seem.”One of the unseen realities of the present is that the time is near. Nothing around us in history or nature tells us the time in near without help from scripture)The great purpose-the pastoral purpose-of Revelation is to open up that more and see Jesus in the midst of it all.Mark 1:15 “The time is fulfilled, the kingdom of God has come near.” Jesus had to tell us this.Matt 24-25: Thrust is the time is near. Believe me. “Be alert” And yet, there's a process that takes time at hand. See kingdom parables too.Jesus talks about the future as imminent AND lots has to happen over time. Wars, rumors of wars, famines, false messiahs, gospel to the whole world…This tension is real.Doesn't every generation feel Ike they're the last one? Makes sense in light of Matt 24-25.Beginning = arche = source and pattern of the series; not just the beginning of the seriesEnd = telos = destiny/purpose of the seriesEx. Acorn's telos is an oak tree and groveThe telos of humanity is to become like Christ.After darkness is complete…Before the faintest sign of dawn…Tiny star seems barely able…but is a reminder that the night will end…will be defeated.The star pulls the morning sun behind it……just as Jesus pulls the kingdom behind him.Maybe your life feels like the darkest part of the night right now. Look to the Bright morning star and remember what he is pulling behind him.Need: To believe Jesus' words, ways and works with respect to the time is near and his handling of our rescue and evil's demise. (My take)OTHER ILLUSTRATIONS:No, God wants you to repent. To change your course heart, mind, soul and strength and follow his ways, words and works.MAIN COMMENTARY HELP:Exalting Jesus in Revelation by Daniel AkinRevelation by Jim HamiltonRevelation by Paige Patterson, New American Commentary seriesBreaking the Code by Bruce Metzger2020 Sermons by Matt ChandlerESV Global Study BibleBible in One Year by Nicky GumbelBible Knowledge CommentaryThe Outline Bible, WilmingtonDiscipleship on the Edge, Darrell W. JohnsonReplyForward

Whatever circumstances that we face in life as a Christian, we can be confident because “we know” that all thingswork together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose (See Rom.8:28). Today we briefly considered the life of Joseph and how although his own brothers plotted evil against him, God was at the same time meaning or planning it for good (See Gen.50:20). Later we saw that the events that unfolded in the Life and Death and Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ were what He had foretold, and were also fulfilling ‘the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God‘ (See Acts 2:22-24), which was ‘what God's hand and purpose determined before to be done‘ (See Acts 4:23-31). This was no accident. Joseph's life was no accident. You're life as a believer is no accident. God is Sovereignly in control of every circumstance. As the great theologian R.C. Sproul would often say, “There is not a single maverick molecule in the universe that outside of God's Sovereign control!” Therefore we can have confidence in prayer and be believing that God is working all things out in order to fulfil His purpose. We need to fit into God's purpose in order to find our purpose. To watch this sermon in its video format, click on this link to Youtube! The post All Things Working Together For God's Purposes! appeared first on Living Rock Church.

Lesson six: Old Testament examples of God's grace Intro: The O.T. is the Christian's text book for learning. Rom. 15:4 This is especially true on the subject of Grace. Today we will see the three greatest O.T. examples of grace, in my opinion. 1. Adam and Eve. See Gen. 3:1-7 • They chose the devil over God but God still chose them. Gen 3:9= that's grace! • Their lives were spared due to future grace. Gen 3:15 = the proto-evangelium • They were “redeemed” by the death of another. Gen. 3:21; Cor.5:21; Eph. 1:7 2. King David. Psalm 51:1-5 • David, the man after God's heart broke God's heart. 1 Sam. 13:14 •David knew the God of grace so he knew the grace of God. Psalm51:1 • David acknowledged his sin and God's holiness. Psalm 51:3-4 • David realized he wasn't all that. Psalm 51:5 • David plead for God's grace. Psalm 51:10-12 • David received God's grace. Isa. 9:7; 37:35; Rom. 4:6 3. The nation of Israel Jer. 29:10-14 = that's grace! • God gave grace to Israel more times than can be counted. Rom.5:20 • They provoked God with their wickedness. Deut. 32:16; Judges 2:11; Psalm 106:43; Isa. 1:3, 18 = That's grace. • God delivered them but they doubted God. Ex. 12:27; 16:3 • God provided their needs but they complained. Num. 11:1 • They called on God in their trouble and He gave them grace. Ps 81:7; Isa. 26:16; • God gave them grace for His name's sake. 1 Sam. 12:22; Ps. 106:8; Isa. 48:9; Ezek. 36:22 • God gave them grace for the world's sake. Lk. 3:34,38; John 1:29-30

For additional notes and resources check out Douglas' website.Spiritual BeingsCherubim – guardians; winged, composite beings. See Gen 3:24; Exod 25:18; Ezek 9:3 (cp. Ezek 1)Seraphim – worshippers, winged; “burning ones” Only in Isa 6.Angels = messengers (ángelos, Gk; mal'akh, Heb.)Human: 1 Kgs 19:2; Hg 1:13; Mal 2:7, 3:1; Lk 7:24; Acts 12:15 (?); possibly the “messengers” of the 7 churches (Rev 2-3).Supernatural: more common use of the word.Note: We do not become angels when we die (Matt 22).Presented as genderless (or male).Some are named: Gabriel, Michael; also Raphael, Uriel, Jeremiel (OT Apocrypha)Can be good or evil (Matt 22:30, 25:41)Archangels (1 Thess 4:16, Jude 9) = chief angels. 7 in number, though not total agreement.Their mediating work is done, though they will accompany Christ at his returnMere servants (Heb 1:14)!Beware sensationalism.We mustn't worship them (Col 2:18, Rev 19:10).One day we will even judge them (1 Cor 6:3)!Powers, principalities (rulers), celestial beings (dignities, KJV)Eph 6:12 & Col 2:15. Through Christ God is showing his wisdom to the powers (Eph 3:10).Elaborate angelic hierarchies (choirs) in Middle Ages:First sphere:SeraphimCherubimThrones or OphanimSecond sphere:DominionsVirtuesPowers or AuthoritiesThird sphere:Principalities or RulersArchangelAngelsCould they be human beings who are political powers?Perhaps, but then why are they described as being in the heavenly realms (Eph 6:12)?Some reason that they are the interior spirits of earthly human authorities, like Walter Wink. This is a clever though (for me) not entirely convincing explanation.In the final analysis, the Bible does not tell us enough about the "powers" to answer our every question to our satisfaction.Demons (daimónion, 63x; daímon, only in Matt 8)One theory holds that these are fallen angels. That is, they were created as neutrally moral beings, but chose to rebel.Another theory hold that they are the offspring of humans and angels (Gen 6). See Jubilees 4:15-22; 1 Enoch 69:4, 106:13-17; 2 Baruch 56:12; CD 2:18.Some early Christians equated demons with the false gods  of idolatry. (See 1 Cor 10.) LXX sometimes translates “idols” as “demons.”Two are possibly alluded to in the O.T.: Lilith (“night hag,” Isa 34:14), and Azazel (Lev 16).Fall of demons thought to have happened before creation (1 Enoch 69:1-15).In Jubilees 10, Noah prays and God imprisons 9/10 of the demons plaguing mankind, but allows 1/10 to continue their evil work under their leader Satan (or Mastema).If evil powers are referred to in Gal 4 and Col 2, Christians should be totally free from their influence. The more we focus on them, the more we “give them power.” We are sternly warned to keep away from the occult (Gal 5:20, Acts 19:19, Exod 22:18, Rev 21:8).Superstition often ascribed disease to demons (as in the apocryphal book of Tobit). In N.T., only Luke 13:10-17 seems to make this association. Demon possession and disease, e.g. epilepsy, are distinguished (Matt 4:24).“Belief in demons and their effect upon mankind increased in Judaism from A.D. 150 to 450.” (ISBE I: 922).Satan = accuser (Hebrew); diabolos – slanderer, accuser (Greek NT and OT LXX)Concept vague in O.T., develops in Intertestamental times, developed in N.T. times.Satan is portrayed as an over-zealous figure, eager to uphold righteousness but excessive in his accusations. He does not appear especially wicked.In the N.T., however, we learn his true identity. He is the father of lies (John 8:44), and the "ancient serpent" (Rev 12).Most likely a fallen angel. Some earthly rulers' demises allude to fall of Satan (Isa 14, Ezek 28).Satan, as C. S. Lewis points out, is really not the opposite of God, but of the (good) archangel Michael.Mentioned only 3x in the OT (Job, Zechariah, and 1 Chronicles).Miscellaneous questionsSpiritual warfare? (Eph 6)Angelic / demonic territories? (Dan 10). The Bible never instructs us to delve into this realm.Prayer cover? (Idea advanced in Peretti's books.) Not substantiated.Are demons associated with specific sins in the N.T.?Undoubtedly Satan works through his minions, since he is never said to be omnipresent (or omniscient). James 1:13-15 allows the connection of the demonic with sin. However...There is no “demon of laziness," "demon of lust," "demon  of anger," etc.Such personifications are imaginative, and lack solid biblical foundation.This view also minimizes our personal responsibility for sin.Do we meet angels (Heb 13)? If we do, we (probably) wouldn't know we were meeting them, so we should be cautious about accepting claims of angelic encountersFurther studyFor a political interpretation of the “powers,” read Walter Wink's interesting series.Billy Graham's book Angels: God's Secret Agents is quite well done.Hear also the podcast on Demon Possession. Click here.For more detailed articles, check out the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia 

Covenant Sign“ ‘ “The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath, celebrating itfor the generations to come as a lasting covenant. It will be a signbetween me and the Israelites forever, for in six days the L ord madethe heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he rested and wasrefreshed” ’ ” (Exod. 31:16, 17, NIV).Four times in Scripture the Sabbath is designated as a “sign” (Exod.31:13, 17; Ezek. 20:12, 20). A “sign” is not a “symbol” in the senseof a thing that naturally typifies, represents, or recalls somethingelse, because both share similar qualities (for example, a symbol of afist often denotes “might” or “power”). In the Bible, the Sabbath as a“sign” functioned as an outward mark or object or condition intendedto convey a distinctive message. Nothing in the sign itself particularlylinked it to the covenant. The Sabbath was a covenant sign “ ‘ “betweenme and you throughout your generations” ’ ” (Exod. 31:13, RSV) onlybecause God said it was.Why would the Lord use the Sabbath as a covenant sign? What is itabout the Sabbath that would make it so appropriate as a symbolof the saving relationship with God? As we remember that a crucialaspect of the covenant is that we are saved by grace and that workscannot save us, what is it about the Sabbath itself that makes it sucha good symbol of that relationship? (See Gen. 2:3, Heb. 4:1–4.)__________________________________________________________________________________________________________What is fascinating about the Sabbath as a sign of the covenant ofgrace is that for centuries the Jews have understood the Sabbath to bethe sign of Messianic redemption. They saw in the Sabbath a foretasteof salvation in the Messiah. Because we understand redemption as com-ing only from grace, and because we understand the covenant to be acovenant of grace, the link between the Sabbath, redemption, and thecovenant is made clear (see Deut. 5:13–15). Thus, contrary to commonopinion, the Sabbath is a sign of God’s saving grace; it’s not a sign ofsalvation by works.How do you understand what it means to “rest” on the Sabbath?How do you rest on the Sabbath? What do you do differently onthat day that makes it a “sign”? Could someone who knows youlook at your life and see that the Sabbath really is a special dayfor you?

Covenant Sign“ ‘ “The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath, celebrating itfor the generations to come as a lasting covenant. It will be a signbetween me and the Israelites forever, for in six days the L ord madethe heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he rested and wasrefreshed” ’ ” (Exod. 31:16, 17, NIV).Four times in Scripture the Sabbath is designated as a “sign” (Exod.31:13, 17; Ezek. 20:12, 20). A “sign” is not a “symbol” in the senseof a thing that naturally typifies, represents, or recalls somethingelse, because both share similar qualities (for example, a symbol of afist often denotes “might” or “power”). In the Bible, the Sabbath as a“sign” functioned as an outward mark or object or condition intendedto convey a distinctive message. Nothing in the sign itself particularlylinked it to the covenant. The Sabbath was a covenant sign “ ‘ “betweenme and you throughout your generations” ’ ” (Exod. 31:13, RSV) onlybecause God said it was.Why would the Lord use the Sabbath as a covenant sign? What is itabout the Sabbath that would make it so appropriate as a symbolof the saving relationship with God? As we remember that a crucialaspect of the covenant is that we are saved by grace and that workscannot save us, what is it about the Sabbath itself that makes it sucha good symbol of that relationship? (See Gen. 2:3, Heb. 4:1–4.)__________________________________________________________________________________________________________What is fascinating about the Sabbath as a sign of the covenant ofgrace is that for centuries the Jews have understood the Sabbath to bethe sign of Messianic redemption. They saw in the Sabbath a foretasteof salvation in the Messiah. Because we understand redemption as com-ing only from grace, and because we understand the covenant to be acovenant of grace, the link between the Sabbath, redemption, and thecovenant is made clear (see Deut. 5:13–15). Thus, contrary to commonopinion, the Sabbath is a sign of God’s saving grace; it’s not a sign ofsalvation by works.How do you understand what it means to “rest” on the Sabbath?How do you rest on the Sabbath? What do you do differently onthat day that makes it a “sign”? Could someone who knows youlook at your life and see that the Sabbath really is a special dayfor you?

    ADAM AND EVE:The Garden, Chapter 2 of Holy Priesthood Volume 4 http://ogdenkraut.com/?page_id=126  Pages 10 to 13   The marriage system among the nations should be determined according to the laws of God, not by men in government. Since the days of the Garden of Eden, man was given the power and responsibility to govern his household. His home is his castle, and he is king. From Mother Eve to the modern-day career girl, woman has been instructed that she is not to act in a governing role in the marriage relationship. A properly organized family cannot have two heads.   When the devil tempted Eve, he did it with many truths. He said that if she would partake of the tree of knowledge, several good things would result:   She would not die.Her eyes would be opened.She would be as the gods.She would know good and evil.The tree was good for food.It was pleasant to the eyes.It would make her wise. (See Gen. 3:4-6.) find more at http://ogdenkraut.com/?page_id=30

Breaking the RelationshipWe tend to believe people we know and instinctively distrust thosewhom we do not. Eve naturally would have distrusted Satan.Furthermore, any direct attack against God would have made herdefensive. What steps, then, did Satan take to bypass Eve’s naturaldefenses? (Gen. 3:1–6)._____________________________________________________“Deplorable as was Eve’s transgression and fraught as it was withpotential woe for the human family, her choice did not necessarilyinvolve the race in the penalty for her transgression. It was the deliber-ate choice of Adam, in the full understanding of an express commandof God—rather than hers—that made sin and death the inevitablelot of mankind. Eve was deceived; Adam was not.”—The SDA BibleCommentary, vol. 1, p. 231.As a result of this blatant transgression and disregard of God’s com-mand, the relationship between God and humankind is now broken. Itchanged from open fellowship with God to fleeing in fear from Hispresence (Gen. 3:8–10). Alienation and separation replace fellowshipand communion. Sin appeared, and all its ugly results followed. Unlesssomething was done, humanity was heading for eternal ruin.In the midst of this tragedy, what words of hope and promise did Godspeak? (See Gen. 3:15.)_____________________________________________________God’s surprising word of prophetic hope speaks of a divinely ordainedhostility between the serpent and the woman, between her Offspring andhis offspring. This climaxes in the victorious appearance of a representa-tive Offspring of the woman’s seed who delivers a deadly blow to thehead of Satan, while he would be able only to bruise the Messiah’s heel.In their utter helplessness, Adam and Eve were to gain hope fromthis Messianic promise, hope that would transform their existence,because this hope was God-given and God-supported. This promise ofthe Messiah and of final victory, however vaguely stated at that time,lifted the gloom into which sinning had placed them.Read Genesis 3:9, where God says to Adam and Eve, “ ‘Whereare you?’ ” (NKJV). God, of course, knew where they were. Hiswords, instead of being filled with condemnation, were to drawguilt-ridden humankind back to Him. In short, God’s first wordsto fallen humanity came with the hope of His grace and mercy.Even now, in what ways do we find God seeking to call us to Hismercy and grace?

In the Image of the Maker (Gen. 1:27)The Bible states that God created humankind—male and female—“inHis own image” (Gen. 1:27, NKJV). Use this idea to answer the fol-lowing questions:1. What does it mean that God created us in His own image? Inwhat ways are we “in His own image” (NKJV)?_____________________________________________________2. According to the Genesis account, did the Lord make anythingelse “in His own image” (NKJV) other than humankind? If not,what does that tell us about our unique status, in contrast to therest of the earthly creation? What lessons can we draw from thiscontrast?_____________________________________________________3. What else can be found in the account of the creation of human-kind that sets the race apart from anything else the Lord had cre-ated? (See Gen. 2:7, 18–25.)_____________________________________________________Although we must speak of God in human terminology, we must notforget that He is a spiritual Being (John 4:24), possessing divine character-istics. All we can say is that in our physical, mental, and spiritual natures,we reflect in some way our divine Creator, however much there remainsabout Him that, at least for us, is still shrouded in mystery. The Bibleemphasizes, however, the spiritual and mental aspects of our mind. Theseaspects we can develop and improve. It is the uniqueness of the humanmind that makes possible a nourishing relationship with God, somethingthe rest of God’s earthly creation seems unable to do.Notice, too, the unique account of how God made woman. Both menand women share the incredible privilege of being made in the image ofGod. In their creation, there is no hint of inferiority of one to the other.God Himself made them both from the same material. God made bothequal from the start and placed them together in a special relationshipwith Him. Both had the same opportunity to develop their God-givencharacters in a way that would bring glory to Him.“God Himself gave Adam a companion. He provided ‘an help meetfor him’—a helper corresponding to him—one who was fitted to behis companion, and who could be one with him in love and sympathy.Eve was created from a rib taken from the side of Adam, signifying thatshe was not to control him as the head, nor to be trampled under hisfeet as an inferior, but to stand by his side as an equal, to be loved andprotected by him.”—Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 46.

SERIES: FOUNDATIONS: THE TEN COMMANDMENTSMESSAGE: Foundation of Living a Life of Honesty & IntegrityTEXT: Deuteronomy 5:19–21MESSAGE BY: Pastor Tim Lewis 1. Do not steal. - What is stealing? - Property theft. (Ex. 22:1, 7; Dt. 19:14) - Kidnapping/slavery. (Dt. 24:7) (See also Gen. 37:22–28) - Deception and dishonesty. (Prov. 11:1) - Defrauding employees. (James 5:4) - Refusing to pay your debts. (Rom. 13:6–8) - Refusing to work. (Eph. 4:28) - Refusing to tithe. (Mal. 3:8, 10) - How should I live? - Work and provide for yourself. - Give generously. (Eph. 4:28) - Trust in the Lord. (Matt. 7:7–12)2. Do not lie. - The source of false witnessing. (John 8:44) - What is lying? - Slander. (See Gen. 3:4–5) - Perjury. (Ex. 23:1–2) - Spreading rumors. - Flattery. (Prov. 26:28; Ps. 55:21) - Pretending to live obediently. - Refusing to tell the Gospel. (1 John 2:22–23) - How should I live? - Speak the truth. (Eph. 4:25) - Live the truth. (Eph. 4:21–32) - Teach the truth. (Eph. 4:29) - Live with integrity. (Matt. 5:33–37)3. Do not covet. (Eph. 5:5–7; Luke 12:15) - What is covetousness? - Desire your neighbor’s property or possessions. - Desire your neighbor’s family. - Desire your neighbor’s life. - How should I live? - Be content. (Phil. 4:11–12; 1 Tim. 6:6–10) - Be trusting. (Heb. 13:5–6) (See also Matt. 6:25–34)

John 1:10 does not say that Jesus created planet earth. This episode is part 2 of our commentary on John 1:9-13. For a full written text of this episode, click here. https://landandbible.blogspot.com/2020/11/jesus-did-not-create-planet-earth.html - The word translated "world" in John 1:9-10, the Greek word kosmos, does not mean planet earth. - We can understand better what the author meant by kosmos, world, in John 1:10 by seeing the parallels in the next verse. Kosmos of verse 10 is parallel to “his own” in John 1:11, meaning the Jewish people and perhaps even specifically Jews who lived in the geographical region of Judea. The “kosmos that knew him not” in verse 10 is parallel to “his own people who received him not” in verse 11. - The word “create” is nowhere in John’s Prologue. The kosmos was not created by Jesus, but rather it came to be through the man Jesus. The kosmos that came to be through Jesus is the new people of God, specifically those who are born of God and are the children of God as described in verses 12-13. - The deity of Christ interpretation of John 1, and specifically of John 1:3 and 1:10, which claims that Jesus was the creator of all things and of the earth, is a direct contradiction to many other Scriptures that state clearly that the Creator of all things is the one God, Yahweh the God of Israel. See Gen. 1:1, Isaiah 37:16, 40:28, 42:5, 45:12, 45:18; Jer. 10:12, 27:5, Mal. 2:10; Psa. 8:3, 100:3, 102:25; Neh. 9:6; Matt. 19:4; Mark 10:6; Acts 17:24; Rev. 4:11, 10:6. - The interpretation offered in this podcast episode is in complete agreement with other biblical revelation, that the One God, Yahweh, the God of Israel, the Father, is the Creator, and that as He, He alone, created the heavens and the earth and brought about human civilization through one individual human being (Adam, Noah, Abraham). Likewise, He, Yahweh, brings about the community known as the “children of God” which comes to be in the next age through the one man Jesus the Messiah. 1 Cor. 8:6: “yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all and through whom we exist. - We can refer to the body of the Gospel of John to understand what the author means in the Prologue. The Prologue uses much metaphorical language, and the exact same metaphors, themes and language the author introduces in the Prologue he reiterates again in the Gospel, associating the language and themes of the Prologue to the man Jesus and his ministry. These parallels are evidence that John’s Prologue is not a commentary on the Genesis creation, but rather is an introduction to the new beginning in the man Jesus of Nazareth. It does the author of John’s Gospel great injustice to claim that his Prologue is not an introduction to the man Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah. - For a full written text of this episode, click here. https://landandbible.blogspot.com/2020/11/jesus-did-not-create-planet-earth.html

Earth’s International Research Society welcomes our newest member Michael Tellinger. Michael is a musician, author, scientist, and an explorer from Mpumalanga, South Africa. Michael 10/6/2012 research of ancient stone structure, has been making groundbreaking discoveries about a vanished ancient civilization at the southern tip of Africa. His continued efforts and analytical scientific approach have produced stunning new evidence that will force us to rethink our origins and rewrite our history books. Scholars have told us that the first civilization on Earth emerged in a land called Sumer some 6000 years ago. New archaeological and scientific discoveries made by Michael Tellinger, Johan Heine and a team of leading scientists, show that to be not the case as Michael reveals and researches the mysterious ancient stone structures that occupy a vast area of ground at the southern tip of Africa. Adam’s Calendar, now referred to as ENKI’s CALENDAR, is the flagship among millions of circular stone ruins, ancient roads, agricultural terraces and thousands of ancient mines, left behind by a vanished civilization which we now call the FIRST PEOPLE. These settlements cover most of southern Africa, an area about twice the size of Texas. They carved detailed images into the hardest rock, worshiped the sun, and were the first to carve an image of the Egyptian Ankh – key of life and universal knowledge thousands upon thousands of years before the Egyptians ever came to light. Below is a well written and thought-provoking article Michael wrote based on his researches in Africa. I found it most interesting./ See Gen. Rev. ch 8

From Everlasting to Everlasting A sPrayer of Moses, the tman of God. 90 Lord, you have been our udwelling place1 in all generations. 2  vBefore the wmountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, xfrom everlasting to everlasting you are God. 3  You return man to dust and say, y“Return, zO children of man!”2 4  For aa thousand years in your sight are but as byesterday when it is past, or as ca watch in the night. 5  You dsweep them away as with a flood; they are like ea dream, like fgrass that is renewed in the morning: 6  in ithe morning it flourishes and is renewed; in the evening it jfades and kwithers. 7  For we are brought to an end by your anger; by your wrath we are dismayed. 8  You have lset our iniquities before you, our msecret sins in the light of your presence. 9  For all our days pass away under your wrath; we bring our years to an end like a sigh. 10  The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty; yet their span3 is but toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away. 11  Who considers the power of your anger, and your wrath according to the fear of you? 12  nSo teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom. 13  oReturn, O LORD! pHow long? Have qpity on your servants! 14  Satisfy us in the smorning with your steadfast love, that we may trejoice and be glad all our days. 15  Make us glad for as many days as you have uafflicted us, and for as many years as we have seen evil. 16  Let your vwork be shown to your servants, and your glorious power to their children. 17  Let the xfavor4 of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish ythe work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands!

“The law of Thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver” (v.72). Can we honestly say that we would rather have God’s Word then money? Many people in the Bible had that testimony. For example, Abraham led his army to a great victory. He brought back all of the captives and all the spoil. The king of Sodom showed up and said, “Abraham, you can have all this spoil. Just give me the people.” But Abraham said, “Before this battle started, I lifted my hand to the Lord and said, ‘When I win this battle, I am not taking one thing from these people.’ I would rather have the Word of God then have thousands of shackles of gold and silver” (See Gen.14). Abraham kept his testimony clean. But I also think of Achan in Joshua 7. God had commanded that No spoil be taken from Jericho. But Achan stole some silver and gold, and buried them under his tent. Achan wanted riches rather than God. Judas made the same mistake. He sold Jesus Christ, the greatest Treasure in the universe, for 30 pieces of silver. If we love the Word of God, we will read it, meditate on it and seek to obey it. If the Bible does not change our values, it will not change our lives. Jesus was the poorest of the poor. He made Himself poor to make us rich. We, in turn, should make ourselves poor to make other people which, for we have the riches of the Word of God. *******^******* You have a choice to make today: you can seek the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, or you can bow down to the kingdom of man and seek riches.

In Podcast Episode 63, “Manipulating the Riddler,” Kim discusses how Samson, the Riddler, was manipulated into giving up the answer to his riddle. We each need to be on guard against this powerful and destructive tool.   The primary scripture text for this episode is Judges 14:5-19, with the focal scriptures of 16-17:   16 So Samson's wife came to him in tears and said, “You don't love me; you hate me! You have given my people a riddle, but you haven't told me the answer.” “I haven't even given the answer to my father or mother,” he replied. “Why should I tell you?” 17 So she cried whenever she was with him and kept it up for the rest of the celebration. At last, on the seventh day he told her the answer because she was tormenting him with her nagging. Then she explained the riddle to the young men. Examples of Manipulation Tactics: Taking advantage of someone's fears “If you love me,  you would…” Working the system (See Gen. 25:27-27:40)Find his weakness and aim for it (see Matthew 4:1-3); Lies, half-truths, lies of omission, slight of hand; It's how you say it; Partners in crime.   Sources and Resources: Boundaries: When to Say Yes, How to Say No to Take Control of Your Life by Henry Cloud and John Townsend Red Flags: Are You Being Emotionally Manipulated? by Zawn Villines at Good Therapy How to Deal with Manipulators by Les Carter, Ph. D.   "Encouraging Others in Loving Jesus" Facebook Group:   Our NEW Facebook Group is devoted to providing a place for us to encourage each other through all the seasons of life. Follow the provided link to request admittance into “Encouraging Others in Loving Jesus”—https://www.facebook.com/groups/encouragingothersinlovingjesus/ Feel free to invite others who will be good encouragers and/or need encouragement to follow Jesus. Online Bible Study Courses:   Would you like to take a deeper dive into the book of Joshua and learn more about the Israelite story, join Kim as she teaches “Finding Courage for Life's Battles: Life Lessons from the Book of Joshua.”   To take her FREE 3-Day Online Bible Study entitled “Let  God Transform U through His Word: Why Is Personal Bible Study So Important to Your Christian Life?”.   Check out Kim's website at https://gettinghealthyall4hisglory.com for blog posts and her PDF Printable collection.   Remember, “It's Always a Trust & Obey Kinda Day!”   If you have questions or comments or would like to learn more about how to follow Jesus, please email Kim at gettinghealthyall4hisglory@gmail.com.   National Suicide Prevention Lifeline   1-800-273-8255   https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/

Walk It Out Bible Study workout.

Proverbs of Solomon 10 The proverbs of Solomon: A wise son brings joy to his father, but a foolish son brings grief to his mother. 2 Ill-gotten treasures have no lasting value, but righteousness delivers from death. 3 The Lord does not let the righteous go hungry, but he thwarts the craving of the wicked. 4 Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth. 5 He who gathers crops in summer is a prudent son, but he who sleeps during harvest is a disgraceful son. 6 Blessings crown the head of the righteous, but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked.[a] 7 The name of the righteous is used in blessings,[b] but the name of the wicked will rot. 8 The wise in heart accept commands, but a chattering fool comes to ruin. 9 Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but whoever takes crooked paths will be found out. 10 Whoever winks maliciously causes grief, and a chattering fool comes to ruin. 11 The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence. 12 Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers over all wrongs. 13 Wisdom is found on the lips of the discerning, but a rod is for the back of one who has no sense. 14 The wise store up knowledge, but the mouth of a fool invites ruin. 15 The wealth of the rich is their fortified city, but poverty is the ruin of the poor. 16 The wages of the righteous is life, but the earnings of the wicked are sin and death. 17 Whoever heeds discipline shows the way to life, but whoever ignores correction leads others astray. 18 Whoever conceals hatred with lying lips and spreads slander is a fool. 19 Sin is not ended by multiplying words, but the prudent hold their tongues. 20 The tongue of the righteous is choice silver, but the heart of the wicked is of little value. 21 The lips of the righteous nourish many, but fools die for lack of sense. 22 The blessing of the Lord brings wealth, without painful toil for it. 23 A fool finds pleasure in wicked schemes, but a person of understanding delights in wisdom. 24 What the wicked dread will overtake them; what the righteous desire will be granted. 25 When the storm has swept by, the wicked are gone, but the righteous stand firm forever. 26 As vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, so are sluggards to those who send them. 27 The fear of the Lord adds length to life, but the years of the wicked are cut short. 28 The prospect of the righteous is joy, but the hopes of the wicked come to nothing. 29 The way of the Lord is a refuge for the blameless, but it is the ruin of those who do evil. 30 The righteous will never be uprooted, but the wicked will not remain in the land. 31 From the mouth of the righteous comes the fruit of wisdom, but a perverse tongue will be silenced. 32 The lips of the righteous know what finds favor, but the mouth of the wicked only what is perverse. Footnotes: Proverbs 10:6 Or righteous, / but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence Proverbs 10:7 See Gen. 48:20. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/chanceandsamanthagonnam/support

Sermon Notes1. Favor and Riches, vv. 1-22. Pleading and Respect, vv. 3-63. Conundrums and Riddles, vv. 7-104. Defense and Repayment, vv. 9-145. Gladness and Rejoicing, vv. 15-17Reflection Questions1. Are God’s people special? Special because of who we naturally are, or special because of something God has done? (See Dt. 7:7-8) Why has God chosen us, blessed us, or made us special? (See Gen 12:3; I Peter 2:9 – Focus on the word “that” which reveals the purpose behind God’s actions.)2. Read the Parable of the Persistent Widow (Luke 18:1-8). Compare and contrast this woman to Esther’s actions in Esther 8. What lesson is Luke 18 trying to teach us about our prayer life (see vv. 1, 5, 8) and about God’s disposition towards us (see v.8)?3. Despite Mordecai’s confidence that God would deliver (Esther 4:14), God does not tell his people how he will deliver them until Esther 8:11. Even then, God does not tell them directly; they only find out from the king’s 2nd edict. Read Deuteronomy 29:29; do we know everything there is to know about God? (cf. Rom. 11:33-36) Can we trust God even if we don’t know everything there is to know about God?

(14) The slaughter of all the Midianite women that had prostituted themselves to the lewd Israelites, and the preservation of those that had not been guilty therein; the last of which were no fewer than thirty-two thousand, both here and Num_31:15-17, Num_31:35, Num_31:40, Num_31:46, and both by the particular command of God; are highly remarkable, and show that, even in nations otherwise for their wickedness doomed to destruction, the innocent were sometimes particularly and providentially taken care of, and delivered from that destruction; which directly implies, that it was the wickedness of the nations of Canaan, and nothing else, that occasioned their excision. See Gen_15:16; 1Sa_15:18, 1Sa_15:33; Apost. Constit. B. VIII. ch. 12. p. 402. In the first of which places, the reason of the delay of the punishment of the Amorites is given, because "their iniquity was not yet full." In the secured, Saul is ordered to go and "destroy the sinners, the Amalekites;" plainly implying that they were therefore to be destroyed, because they were sinners, and not otherwise. In the third, the reason is given why king Agag was not to be spared, viz. because of his former cruelty: "As thy sword hath made the (Hebrew) women childless, so shall thy mother be made childless among women by the Hebrews." In the last place, the apostles, or their amanuensis Clement, gave this reason for the necessity of the coming of Christ, that "men had formerly perverted both the positive law, and that of nature; and had cast out of their mind the memory of the Flood, the burning of Sodom, the plagues of the Egyptians, and the slaughter of the inhabitants of Palestine," as signs of the most amazing impenitence and insensibility, under the punishments of horrid wickedness.

Jesus the Angel of the Lord The New Testament refers to angels as from God; however it makes no reference to the Angel of the Lord while Jesus was alive for the obvious reason that beginning with the Son's incarnation and until His ascent into heaven, God was dwelling among men a fashion as a man, (Jn. 1:14 Phil. 2:6-89). The Angel of the Lord is not a created being but the Creator Himself.  The Bible speaks of a particular angel who surpasses all angelic beings in kind and degree the angel of the Lord.  His appearances in human form are known as  theophany's, from a Greek noun meaning God Manifested, (See Gen. 12:7). He is the second Person of the Godhead. Angel of the Lord Appearances in Human Form. “As the angel of the Lord, the Son of God, was higher than the angels but in His humanity He was made lower than then angels for a little time,” (Psa.8: 5- 6; Heb. 2: 7- 8). 

http://www.miracleinternetchurch.com/ FLY TO FREEDOM DELIVERANCE CONFERENCE Nov. 9, 10, 11, 2012... Friday, Saturday and Sunday Morning Reservation: http://www.patholliday.com Signs and Wonders; Deliverance, Miracles and Healings Dr. Pat Holliday/Pastor Dennis Williams/Dr. Sabrina/Bill Pringle Reservations: Best Western Hotel, Sallisbury & Butler Blvd., Jacksonville, Fl. 904 281 0900 BestWestern will give you room discounts when come to our conferences! Call for reservations! CONFERENCE FREE! DEMONIC SPIRITS   The devil or Satan is presented to us as a Supernatural being that fights God and His work. (See Gen. 3:1; Rom. 15:22.)  He is the “god of this world,” who blinds the minds of the people to the truths of God's Word (2Tim. 4:4; Eph. 2:2). Having rebelled against God, he was cast out of heaven; then he caused man's fall in paradise. Jesus calls him often as an “angel of light” (2Tim. 11:14), seeking the ruin triumphed over him at the Cross of Calvary (1 Jn. 3:8) and in His resurrection, and he will finally be condemned and destroyed (Rev. 20).  There are many orders of demons and they strike people in diverse ways (see Matt. 12:22, 17:15-18; Lk. 12:16).  Also, they bring false doctrine (I Tim. 4:1-4), trying to seduce the elect (Matt. 24:24), oppressing (Acts 10:38), obsessing, and possessing people.  They know Jesus, and acknowledge His power and tremble (Matt. 8:29). For them, hell is the final destination, as it is for Satan. Get Free Now!