Schooled: Revelation

Who is God? This is the most important question we could ever ask. How do we learn stuff about God? Is it passed down through oral tradition? Do we have to go to a Holy man or a spiritual guru for answers? Is God interested in us? Does He even care? Since God is a person and has personal attributes, He must personally reveal himself. God has a mind, will, emotions, and relational abilities. Therefore, He can be known personally. If we want to answer the personal questions about God, we need him to answer the questions himself.

The opening book of the Bible comes out swinging, "In the beginning GOD!" There is no pause for apologetics or a debate concerning the existence of a higher being, just God.

People often ask how they should convey truth to a group of postmodern students. Easy. People need revelation, not speculation. Let's break that down.

Speculation- Man looking up at the sky and guessing about God and His character. Out of this we create false religions, philosophies, and spirituality (which is actually demonology). We find people who seek to discover and claim to know who God is apart form God's own self-revelation.

Revelation- God speaks.

There are two types of revelation worth noting:

General Revelation- God has revealed himself as an artistic, good, and holy Creator through what has been made and what has been experienced and through the conscience.

General Revelation reveals the following about God: existence, power, creativity, and wisdom. The fact that we have and inward sense of right and wrong speaks to our being made in God's image. Psalm 19:1 tells us that everything about creation declares the glory of God. General Revelation is enough to reveal God's existence, but it is not enough to save. Every person on the planet is impacted by general revelation.

Specific Revelation- God has shown the way of salvation through sending Jesus and inspiring the Bible which explains Him.

The Bible is God's written revelation of who He is and what He has done.

Bible- More copies in print than any other book. It is also the most stolen book of all time (I personally don't mind if a sinner steals my bible). The Bible contains 66 books. It is a library of God's inspired word. It was written in 3 original languages: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. The opening verse of the Bible reveals its hero: God! The last book of the Bible, Revelations, reveals its hero: Jesus! The entire Bible is the redemptive narrative of God radiating His glory through the death, burial, and resurrection of His son, Jesus. Every verse in the Bible is about Jesus.

The Old Testament offers many prophetic promises of Jesus' coming. No other religion can match this claim. No other religion can produce specific prophecies of their messiah. Old Testament prophecies of Jesus' coming predate His birth by hundreds, even thousands of years. This includes the prediction of Jesus' death by crucifixion, before crucifixion had been invented.

The characters of the Old Testament foreshadow the coming of a greater messiah. For example:

Adam- Adam failed his garden test, thus causing the fall of all humanity. Jesus passed His garden test, thus redeeming humanity.

Moses- Moses served as the mediator between Israel and God. Jesus is our great mediator. Jesus is the better Moses.

Job- Job suffered and was tormented even though he was innocent. Jesus suffered and was tormented even though he was the only sinless man who ever lived. Jesus is the better Jonah.

David- David was the shepherd boy who could slay giants. He reigned as the king. Jesus still slays giants today. Jesus took on the greatest giants we could ever imagine. Jesus still reigns as King today. The eternal King, Jesus, never steps off his thrown.

Jonah- Jonah spent 3 days in the belly of the fish. Jesus spent 3 days in the tomb only rise.

Jesus is in every verse of your Bible.

What do we believe about the Bible?

Verbal Plenary Inerrancy- this simply means that one believes every word of scripture is inspired by God through the Holy Spirit. Essentially, God's Word is truth. It contains no errors. John 17:17 simply states, "Your word is truth."

Let's be honest, some parts of the Bible may be hard to understand. If a passage seems hard to understand, it isn't because the Bible isn't true. It's because sin has corrupted our ability to think logically and reason according to truth.

Is the Bible necessary?

General revelation is enough to reveal the existence of God and our need for God, but it is not enough to redeem us from sin. General revelation is enough to condemn but not enough to save. We need more than general to set us free. In Hebrews 10:13-17 we find the answer we're looking for. We need a specific revelation of the person and work of Jesus Christ in order to come to a saving faith. We find this in God's word. Let me remind you of Jesus and his recorded forty day fast. While in the desert kicking it old school with the Father, Jesus is approached by none other than Satan (Not the guy from Looney Toons with the horn, tail, or pitch fork; nor am I referring to the Mormon Satan, who they claim to be the biological brother of Jesus. I'm actually referring to the Satan mentioned in the Bible.) Satan knows Jesus has been fasting for forty days. So, he offers Jesus some food. (note-Satan will offer you whatever it is that you want if it will distract you from worshipping God.) Jesus then rocks Satan's face and we find His response in Matthew 4:4, "Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word of God." The Bible is absolutely necessary if we hope to have a deep relationship with God.

Are you reading the Bible?

The point of reading the Bible is not to know all the rules or to become a better person. The purpose of reading the Bible is to know Jesus. There is something seriously wrong when you have a greater desire to read the Twilight saga or play XBOX or _______________ (insert favorite hobby) more than you desire to read God's Word. A Christian has a real desire to know God on a much deeper level. If you don't have a desire to know God or read the Bible, you may not be a Christian. Examine your heart. What is your true desire?

Psalm 119:11-16

"I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. Blessed are you, O LORD; teach me your statutes! With my lips I declare all the rules of your mouth. In the way of your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches. I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word."

Psalm 119:105

"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."

-Daniel

DanceParty2011

DanceParty2011 is just around the corner! DP20ELEVEN is our summer retreat for students. This includes students exiting 6th grade and entering 7th grade. It also includes all graduating seniors. The camp will be held at Poplar Point Camp and Conference Center in Rockford, AL. We will depart on Monday, August 1st, and return on Friday, August 5th. This week long camp experience will include small groups, nightly worship rallies, morning bible studies, recreation, team building activities, and the chance to build relationships. The total cost for the camp will be $170. This cost will include lodging fees for the week, food for the week, small group materials, a t-shirt, and challenge course costs. Scholarships will be available. If you need help paying for this event, please let me know.

Serve Saturday

We will be hosting another service day on April 9, 2011. We will have teams doing projects at the church (cleaning, cutting grass, etc.) and teams sweeping the community raise awareness of our church in the community. We are hoping to gain some support and boost attendance during the weeks leading up to Easter. I hope everyone can make time to come be a part of this event as we seek to serve our church and community!

Remember, even Jesus came to serve, not be served, and give his life as a ransom for many! [Mark 10:45]

Monster Part 6: Doubt

In Matthew 14:31 we find the story of Jesus walking on the water and Peter's poor attempt to follow in his steps. We typically remember the part of the story when Peter begins to sink. Jesus simply responds, "Why do you doubt?" This remark is packed with meaning. Jesus is saying, "After all that you have witnessed, after spending so much time with me, after all that I have taught you, after all that you have experienced, Why do you doubt?"

In Matthew Chapter 28, we find Jesus as he is about to ascend into heaven. This is the resurrected, got-up-from-the-grave, the I-cheated-death Jesus. This should be a pretty good indicator that He is indeed God. But in Matthew 28:17 we find that a multitude is gathered around the resurrected Jesus and yet some doubt. These same people have heard of Jesus, they knew about His death, they knew about His burial, and now the scandal of His resurrection had rocked the region. They knew this Jesus and yet some doubted. This shows us that some people can see the truth, experience the truth, feel/touch the truth, and yet doubt.

The Story of Doubting Thomas

John 20:24-25- Please read

+Thomas has a reaction that would be similar to ours. If you tell me that a dead man has been raised to life, I'm going to ask for evidence.

The Confession of Thomas the Believer

John 20:26-28- Please read

+ Jesus offers a gentle command, "Stop doubting and believe."

+ Thomas offers the only confession worthy of this finding, "My Lord and My God."

+ "My" makes this an extremely personal confession. Thomas takes this to heart.

+ My Lord and My God- Have you made this confession? If you cannot make this confession with integrity, you have no part of Jesus of salvation.

It is ok to have questions. It's not ok to have questions and never seek the answers. Thomas shows us that we can ask questions. He shows us that we can be forgiven of doubt. And he shows us that when we find the truth, we should abandon our doubt and cling to the truth.

Can you make that confession with integrity? Is Jesus your Lord and your God? Do you have faith in Jesus? Faith is more than believing the truth. Faith is not blindly believing a myth or fairytale. Faith is placing your trust in something you have good reason to place your trust in. We have good reason to place our trust in the person and work of Jesus Christ.

Doubt - Monster Series from UGBC Media on Vimeo.

-Daniel