JoanG

The concept of predestination can be scary to some people because they feel that their life is already calculated and that they have no say in how things re to happen. They fell that they lose any and all free will. The comforting thoughts of this is that God already has a really good idea on how I can and will probably mess up. He has already forgiven me for these mistakes. And even if I take a step or go a mile off the path that God has put before me, He will add steps to get me back to Him along the way. The Ephesians had a strong scientific background and were scholars in many ways. This concept would be embraced by them. They would be able to see how this new religion could fit into their every day existance better.

For me, the concept of being "in Christ" is a very cherished idea in my heart. My life has been transformed by Christ. I have a very deep faith that allows me to look outside of myself and see a much bigger picture. I am able to walk a path that challenges me daily. I have a new purpose to my life. I hve faith that I will never really fail any more. I no longer see things as I once did. I no longer ask for things I want but only for what I really need. I see how God blesses my life every day. I no longer take those things for granted any more.

1) the tomb was found empty of the body of Jesus. 2) In all accounts they were told that Jesus is no longer dead that He is among the living. 3) The living Jesus appears to those who went to seek Him.

In Matthew 28, the scene is set up after an earthquake. The quards that were posted by the religious leaders were frozen in fear. There was an angel that spoke to the women. This account was not interested in the wrappings on the body. This one is very straight forward. This was written by a Jew for the Jews about a Jew. Mark 16 gives a bit more detail. But it looks at the resurrection from the view point of Peter who gave the testamony from his point of view and his actions and reactions at the time. He was not really concerned with the exact details of the women at that time. Luke 24 was written by a Gentile with added details from the other gospels to allow other Gentiles to understand Jewish laws and traditions better. John 20 these are the words of a man that was present during the events. These are his words and thoughts and reflections on what is written. As stated in the lesson, each person will see an event and they will view it differently. Their minds will work in different ways. Some people feel what they see. Others will be very visual and take in more details. Still others might just gloss over the events and be more concerned with the how and why. Each person will describe what is important to them at that moment.And no two people will ever see the same thing the same way. It is the same concept as the glass being half full or half empty.

Symptoms of a Christian who lost his "saltyness" a) stiffness in worship. resists change and a newness to the service itself. we never did that before attitude. we can not be expected to do that now. c) prayers are said, but nothing is felt in the heart. d) attend worship on a regular basis but are very self-centered all the time. e) worry more about money than about their own soul... they strive to keep up with the "Jones" f) lack any initiative to get involved with other people and their problems unless it affects them directly. Secular people would see a hypocrit. They would see someone who claims to be a Christian but their actions do not prove it. They are all talk but there is no meaning behind what they say. Other Christians would see a fake. They might see you as a stick in the mud. They would see a very domineering person. Maybe even a dictator personality. This person is the one that is always worried about the budget in the church. They tell everyone else what to do but do not do it themselves. I feel that if people would open up their hearts to worship again, they can bring a salty flavor back in their lives. They have to get renewal of spirti. They can not be content with the status quo anymore.

The preservative analogy of salt causes me to believe that we are called to save the meaning of both the Old Testament and especially New Testament teachings of God and Jesus. We are to cherish the meanings of the sacraments. We are to reinforce what the religious meanings of the teachings are all about. The seasoning analogy sparks a outgoingness in my soul. I want to let loose and let people see the best of Christ within me. I want to be loud and spicy and to cause a commotion. I want them to take notice of me and my life.

John was baptizing to help individuals cleanse their souls of sin. He was helping them to repent and go back to God. It was a purification of their hearts. It was giving them the ability to see and possibly understand what was to come. It was a preparation only. To the people that John baptized, it was a preparation for a new way of life. It gave them a chance to be right with God without having to feel empty and used in the temples. They were able to keep their dignity and self respect. They were able to approach God themselves.

John the Baptist challenged the religious leaders at that time. These men were scholars who study the Old Testament. They were well aware of the writtings that talked about the Messiah. They feared this coming. They feared that their positions would become unneccessary when the Messiah appeared. They did not want to lose the power that they enjoyed on a daily basis. John was to prepare the way for the Lord. He was to try and help the people to repent and prepare their hearts and souls. He would baptize people in the water of the Jordan as a way of cleansing their sins. In his time, I am positive that John was considered a radical person. His concepts and ideas went against the current teachings in the synagogs and temples. I feel that the people have had to struggle with what was comfortable verses what was being stirred in their souls. This would have caused inner personal conflict. And it would have caused conflict within the teachings because it would have caused the people to question the religious leaders like they never did before.

I believe that Jesus knew His mission from day 1. Even as a child, He spoke to the teachers of the synagog about the Torah. I feel that His repeating of the Old Testament when He taught was teaching the apostles who He really was. He was showing all that He did to come and save them. These ideas mean a lot to me because they hold the truth of His really being a supreme being. It holds the fact that He is the Son of God. He is the second part of the Trinity.

In Isaiah 52:15 it specifically states many nations and kings. So I feel that not only the Jewish nations are to be forgiven but for others as well. I feel that we are to believe that this is a prophecy of Christ. I feel that these words were to be a vison of what was to take place at the crucifiction of Christ. I feel that it states very plainly that all nations were to be saved by the sacrifice of one. In this age and time, I feel that there is more evil running wild then there are people who understand about the savation for our sin. I believe that the teachings of Christ are being forgotten by the masses. We are losing the battle of human rights in many ways. People are becoming much more self-centered and will not thing twice about the other guy. Life does not hold the same meaning as it once did. At one time life was considered a gift and today it is taken too easily.

The Passover Meal is a commemeratio of the story of Exodus. It tells of their liberation from Egyptian rule. It was to be repeated so that future generations would remember how God saved the Israelites. It signified how God passed over the houses of the Israelites who had put blood on their door posts the night of the last plague where the first born males were killed. I feel that the Jewish faith would not be so strong today had they forgotten how God saved them in the beginning. I feel that this is one of the stongest holidays for them. It gives them their identity as God's chosen people.

I feel in this time that the Lord's Supper and the act of communion has lost a lot of its meaning to a lot of people. But then I do not think that Jesus knew that there would be a lot of Sunday worshippers only. Or maybe He did. I think that He had hoped for more spirituality in people. I think that its repetition was to keep His ultimate sacrifice in the fore front of our lives. He might have known that we would actually need this visual act so that we would not forget Him completely. This act might be the only way some people feel any spirituality in a non- spiritual church.

I feel that God wanted to teach us how to be sorry for sin and how to try and repent for the things that we did wrong. I believe that we are to learn that sin is wrong in our hearts and souls. That to truly be forgiven we must sacrifice ourselves. We must try and stop making the same mistakes. We need to learn and grow from them. We can not make it a simple thing to sin and buy our forgiveness with the life of another. God is just as long as we have a strong heart and soul to give to Him. He is always there for us as long as we are willing to walk the walk and talk the talk.

God knew that men were always going to make mistakes. He knew that even when they wanted to be faithful, they were going to commit an error in judgement. So in His mercy, God created a way that men could repent to God. These sacrifices were not actually adequate for human sin. But I think that by having a repentant heart, the sacrifice was accepted. But once again, I feel that the person had to truly be sorry and really want forgiveness. Not just going through the motions.

When we are persecuted for righteousness, we are being recognized for the goodness that we are trying to spread. If men noticed this act, we can surely guarentee that God has noticed. We are not celebrating a sick masochism or anything like that. We are celebrating the fact that we are moving that much closer to God by our thoughts and actions. We have stood up to a challenge and have succeeded. I feel that once people reach this level of holiness, they are walking with Jesus and God everyday of their lives. They are already in that peaceful place.

God has always stayed close to those people that He graced with a pure heart. Our history in the Bible has many detailed events of God speaking personally to a mere human. But God will keep His distance from those that sin. There are plenty of examples of this in the Old Testament as well. He allowed invading Nations to take over and control the Israelites. To obtain a pure heart, we need the help of both God and Jesus. We as humans would need constant forgiveness for our sins. We would need supreme guidance to not slip back into any human thoughts and feelings. These could include ****, greed and jealously.

The world in general does not care about people or the planet. Those with the money make the rules to get themselves more money. They do not really care about "the little guys". However, once you start whistle blowing and condemning the way things are, you put yourself in front of the firing squad. Jesus was teaching that everyone is equal in the sight of God. He stressed the fact that no one was above someone else. Everyone has the exact same rights. All the rules were created for everyone equally and fairly. Jesus tells us that if we fight for this kind of justice in the world, we will have this kind of peace personally.

To me, I feel that Jesus is divine. He is most powerful except for God Himself. He is the great I AM. There is a distinction of the Father and Son. Yet there is an inclusiveness of them that can not be denied or truly explained. Jesus came from the Father but He is one with the Father. Each part of the Trinity is a separate entity and yet there is a connection between them that makes them one.

We need to believe that God knows exactly what we are going through on a daily basis. We want to know that someone else really understands how hard it is. We need an example to try and live up to. We need another human to compare ourselves to. It is easier for us to be able to follow another human. If Christ came to earth and pretended to go through everything, He would not have had any more stand than a pagan god. There would be no true trust or faith in Him. My whole world got turned upside down at times. But He was always there for me. I have been able to come back to Him on a number of occassions and feel His love around me. I have found a new peace in my world. I have grown so much in my personal relationship with Him. I now am able to walk my own path in life and not the ways of the world. My eyes and heart and soul have been opened up for me.

To receive Jesus means that we accept all that is written and known about Him. We do not have to really believe all of this. We recognise that He is greater than we are but we do not understand how or why. Our hearts are not really open to Him. To believe in Jesus, we acknowledge who He is and why He is. And we extend our trust in Him to supply us with what we need. God will send the Holy Spirit to us if we receive and believe in Him. We will receive God's grace. We will be able to communicate more with God this way. Our world would become different. We will rise about the pettyness of the world around us. I believe that those who do not accept and receive and believe that their world will be a constant chaos with there always being a longing that they cannot fill, a constant void in their hearts.

The power of God is inside of us. His spirit fills us with the power. It is not as evident as it once was because we have lost the ability to trust in God completely and fully as the 1st followers once did. We have to give up on all of our worldly ideas and ideals and get back to the basics of our true faith once again. To be able to use this power is a Glory to God because once again w are honoring God in the fullest. We have grasped into our inner powers to the Spirit and asked for help.

Ephesians 1:23 we as the body of Christ have complete heavenly power. We have the ability to do miracles if only we can tap into the power of the Spirit. We have to have the faith and closeness to Christ and in Christ to be able to do this. But we have lost this ability over the years because we have become very materialistic.

The enemies of Jesus were really afraid that He really was superior to them. They were really afraid that He might really be the Son of God or at least a prophet sent by God. If He did raise from the dead, everyone would turn their backs on them and follow Jesus and they would lose their position and power and would be left with nothing. I am not sure that the followers who were simple folk really understood what He had said about His death and resurrection. They were surprised when the tomb was empty and Thomas doubted it until he actually put his fingers into the wounds that were caused by the nails from the cross.

I really believe that Jesus is the one who can change people's hearts and souls. He was put on earth to bring "a new life" into the world. He brought about a meaning and purpose that was not there before. He brought forgiveness and love to the down trotten He gave them a new hope. He resurrected their hearts back to God. Jesus will judge the living and the dead. He will either give them everlasting life or not. Hr will not reward those that turned their backs on Him and denied Him.

Today people are taught that they need to be number one. they need to be the best to succeed. They need to have the best of everything. They need to be better than everyone else. They never seem to be satisfied with what they already have. However, Jesus taught that we need to trust in God to supply all of our needs not all of our wants. We need to care for our fellow man. To help others become the best that they can be. We need to put others before ourselves when they are in need. We need to trust in God when we are called to go out of our comfort zone and to serve others. We need to realize that all of our power comes from God not ourselves.