Debra M.

What were Mary's options being pregnant and carrying a baby not her husband's? Most likely, the only option open to her was to remain with her own family and raise the child in her immediate family setting. But, of course, God's grace intervened. What kind of character did Joseph exhibit by deciding to divorce Mary quietly and leniently? That he was a man of honor and integrity and an unselfish man. And he was thinking more about Mary and her dilemma than he was his own dilemma.

What would Jesus have learned as the son of a carpenter? He would have learned a trade or a skill, and the value of being an honest and trustworthy worker. He would learn the importance of trust and honor and integrity. What experiences would this have exposed him to? How to deal effectively with people. How to serve and please and do it with a sense of craftmanship.

In what sense are the titles "Blessed Virgin Mary" and "Mother of God" appropriate for Mary? Mary was, at one time in history, a virgin and gave birth to Jesus Christ. What an honor! God chose her and that was a blessing for her and everyone that knows Jesus Christ. However, I cannot wrap my heart around the 'Mother of God' title. She was mother to the human part of Jesus, as well as the mother of other children that her and Joseph parented, as husband and wife. Why are we sometimes hesitant to exalt her as "blessed among women"? I think it wise to NOT exalt her. Only Jesus Christ is exalted. It is unwise to exalt any human being. However, she is to be honored as the woman that bore our Savior, and we should all follow her example of allowing God's plan for our lives to take precedence over our own plans.

What is the essence of Mary's positive response to the angel? To let the reader know that submission to God and His Word, will result in lasting, outstanding and miraculous adventures. What can we learn from her response for our own lives? That if we allow God to be in control over our life, we can expect great things to happen in our lives and His Will to be fulfilled on this earth through us. In what sense was Mary's response an "informed consent"? Mary understood what God was asking of her. The angel Gabriel gave her a detailed explanation of what to expect before, after and during conception. When we respond to God, what do we consent to? We are consenting to our very purpose in life. We are allowing God to come into our lives and take over and do what we were destined (since the beginning) to do. A fulfilled destiny is a joyous and adventurous destiny.

What does the virgin conception teach us about Jesus' nature? That the seed planted within her would be of incorruption and clear a path for all mankind to follow. (The path of rebirth and regeneration and justification and sanctification.) That Jesus Christ was and is pure and sinless and this is the nature of God Himself. How central is the doctrine of the virgin conception to the Christian message? It gives us knowledge into the very nature of Jesus and the very love of God, toward mankind. That God would give His very best to a sinful and corrupt world, to offer eternity in Him and with Him

In what way does Mary's "How?" question (1:34) to the angel's declaration differ from Zechariah's "How?" question (1:18)? Zechariah was asking in unbelief. Zechariah was questioning the ability of God. Mary was asking with a genuine curiosity as to how God could bring to pass, something that seemed impossible, and she was not asking in unbelief. Why was Mary rewarded and Zechariah disciplined? Because Mary believed and was asking God a question. And Zechariah did not believe and was questioning God's ability.

What did the angel's announcement say about who Mary's Child was and who he was to become? That her son would be a male and that she was to name him Jesus. Also, that he would be considered 'great' and the Son of God and that he would take over the throne in the fashion of King David, who knew of the coming of Jesus Christ, by revelation knowledge. The angel made it clear that Jesus was to rule over the house of Jacob throughout the years to come and that His rulership would never end.

What kind of fear should we have towards God? A reverential fear. The kind of fear that knows He says what He means and He means what He says. The kind of fear that takes God seriously and at His Word. What kind of fear is extinquished by His love perfected in us? The fear that brings dread. The fear that brings punishment. The fear that intimidates. The fear that immobilizes. The fear that torments. The fear that belongs to this world. What kind of attitude should we have towards future judgement? An attitude of boldness and assuredness. An attitude that KNOWS that we belong to God and God is love. An attitude of unyielding steadfastness in the goodness and of God.

Why is the statement, "God is love" so important? Because it causes us to think differently about the meaning of the word love. The world has their idea of love and knowing that God is love, will not allow us to think of worldly love the same as Godly love. What does it say about God's nature? It is a way that we can recognize when something is of God. This says that God is goodness. I find love and benefit to be interchangeable. How does love being the essence of God's nature affect us? It affects us with belief, hope, trust, faith, etc. It allows us a deeper understanding of who God is and who God is not. If we were created in God's image of love, but fell, what does this say about the road to healing in our lives? The road to healing is about our minds and our souls. This helps us to understand how powerfully affected by the fall that the mind and soul of man, became. The very seat of our emotions and will and decisions became twisted and perverted with wickedness and evil. Our spirits do not require healing as they are reborn. The spirit will require growth and development. But, our minds and our souls will require healing. Why does love demand a willingness to forgive? Because unforgiveness belongs to the curse. Forgiveness belongs to the blessing.

What in us is greater than false prophets and even Satan? The love of God .. Jesus Christ. This knowledge that God gave us His Son to live in us and bring us into the truth, should eventually expose all the deception that the enemy strives to impart into our life. In what sense have we overcome them? We have the truth. This truth is like a light that shines on the deception that the darkness holds. The world is a dark place where one cannot find their way until they have accepted Jesus Christ into their lives. This light (truth) overcomes and exposes the darkness. In what way will we overcome them in the future? When we remain actively pursuing the things of God, we will remain in the truth. We cannot be deceived, as long as we know the truth. How should this truth affect fear in our lives? Faith and fear are opposing forces. Faith is believing what God says and acting on His Word. Fear does not believe God. When faith is present fear must flee.

Why is believing that Jesus was God in the flesh so important? We would still be looking out for a coming Messiah. To bring Jesus down to the level of man and deny His divinity, is to lose all hope in salvation and redemption. The soul has no worth without this belief. Denying His divinity, puts us in a 'dangerous and defeated' position. The truth that He was a man, gives us comfort and a relative common denomination. The truth that He is God, gives us a clear sense of victory and finality to our sinfulness and an eternity of joy and life to look forward to. Why doesn't Satan want us to believe that? The prize is won or lost in the thinking process. The battleground is truly in the mind. Thinking the wrong thing, will defeat a person before they can get started. Thinking the right thing gives them motivation and eventual victory. What are the implications of the fact that Jesus could live out his divine life in a human body like ours? The impiclations would be that sin can be overcome right here on earth. He was tempted in all ways as we are tempted, but He overcame. Now, the resurrected life of Jesus Christ lives within us and overcoming should not be out of reach for the Christian. What significance does it bring to the crucifixion and to the resurrection? Our past cannot determine our future, because our old self died with Him on the cross. Now, we are able to live a victorious and abundant lifestyle because the resurrection promises us a new life in Him. What is the significance for your Christian life? Our Christian life should not be such a grieving struggle. But, a belief and a hope and a faith that we do not have to give in to defeat or live a depraved life on this earth.

We know that God doesn't "owe" us anything. So what is the relationship between obedience and answered prayer? Knowing what He has done for us so that we are able to obey and have our prayers answered. Knowing and understanding (having a deeper knowledge than head knowledge) that He has made available to us the ability to overcome and conquer. Knowing that obedience is simply believing and acting on the Word of God (the Bible). Do we "earn" God's favor through obedience? No. God's favor cannot be earned. God decides to whom He will favor and His Word says that He will favor those that are obedient. So, it is His word that makes this decision, not us. But, we can believe that we have favor because He SAYS we have favor. And this favor will bring us into desire to be more and more obedient.

What does it mean to "lay down your life for your brothers"? We can do this by putting our brothers and sisters first, before our own needs or wants. When we lay down our lives, we are laying aside all that is considered significant to us so that we are able to get beyond ourselves and shift our attention and care to others. It does not mean becoming a doormat for others, but keeping a proper balance in our treatment and attentiveness to others and their needs. Forcing ourselves to become interested in our fellow parishioners. What are some concrete examples of this kind of love in action within the Christian community? Devoting time and energy and even money to help establish the church you are attending as a member. Giving up your front row seat to a visitor. Treating your brothers and sisters with a kind word and a smile and even a kind touch. Giving to a brother or sister that you know is in need. Striving to have a relationship (and not just an acquaintance) with other church members and church visitors. If you are in a large congregation, how can you get to know other members so you'll be able to lay down your life for them -- and they for you? The church I attend is still relatively small. About 70-80 members. But, we have close to 15-20 life groups. These groups vary in interests and they get together once a week or every two weeks or once a month to engage in a common interest. They are Bible-studies with personal interests interacted. They range in interests for either men or women and then both men and women. Within these groups we get better acquainted with each other. These life groups continue to grow as our church grows and is a wonderful way to stay united and related to others within our church arena.

How can anger turn into hatred in our hearts? Left unchecked, unrighteous anger is the door that opens up and allows hate to enter into our hearts. Anyone can understand that to replay over and over in our minds, or to focus on when we feel wronged, can result in our anger growing and intensifying, so much so, that the only thing that becomes evident to us is what we are feeling. And these feelings will eventually produce hatred, which usually takes action. John is not speaking of the feeling of love or hate, but the actual action that love or hate induces. (And recognizing this feeling BEFORE it can take action, is the key to control.) In what way do anger and hatred relate to murder? Murder is the result of a controlling and active force that can be instigated or perpetutated by anger and hatred. How can we get rid of stored-up anger in our hearts so that we may love those that have offended us? Keep our focus and attention off of the offense and onto the Words of God. Giving His Word priority and first place in our lives. Practicing random acts of kindness and love towards others. Speaking an edifying comment to another (even when we feel like screaming insults). Confessing God's Word over our life (e.g. Greater is He that is in me than he in the world .. I can do all things through Christ .. and so forth) Meditating on God's love for us, until we begin to FEEL His love.

Why did Cain resent Abel? Because God chose the sacrifices of Abel and not the sacrifices of him. Being born with a sin nature in a cursed world, we are inclined to quickly become offended when we are denied or rejected in anyway, especially when we feel we are giving up something of ourselves. Why did Cain kill Abel? Cain must have seen Abel as a threat to his own relationship with God and therefore, he removed the threat. Cain allowed the spirit of jealousy to get a grip on him. This jealousy opened the door to hatred. This hatred lead him to take action and this action was murder. (This is why we cannot mess around with sin, it opens too many doors to the devil.) How does the story of Cain and Abel illustrate Jesus' explanation of why the world hates us? The world hates the Christian because the Christian (being light) exposes their darkness. The world does not fully understand the consequences of sin, therefore they enjoy sin and even welcome sin into their lives. Abel and Cain were like lightness and darkness. We are all human beings, but some of us live in the light and others prefer the dark. Some are of God and others of the devil. The dark hates the light because the light exposes the dark.

How does John's teaching on sin and righteousness in this passage relate to combating the false teachers? Knowing we have a Savior that overcame the flesh and lives inside of us, gives us reason to believe that we have what we need in us to overcome the flesh. Understanding that the Father sees us clothed in righteousness (regardless of our works or lack thereof), should give us incentive to wear this righteousness with a sense of honor and gratefulness. We know that we do not have to rely on the dictates of our flesh, because our Savior is greater than our flesh and has imputed this righteousness onto us, allowing us to see ourselves in a victorious and overcoming manner. What we see in ourselves will be what we practice in our daily lives. Where our attention is, there will our lives become directed towards. What did they seem to be teaching about sin and righteous living? The false teachers believed in dualism which claims that escaping sin is impossible and practiced sinful living is inevitable since the flesh cannot be conquered in any way shape or form. These teachers taught that the spirit of a man/woman is the only good part of them and since they were still in the flesh, they were to be slaves to the flesh until death (which would be departure from the flesh). These false teachers taught that righteousness was unattainable as long as the spirit of man was guided by and subject to the flesh.

How does the presence of God's seed in us keep us from habitual lawlessness and sin? God's Seed cannot thrive in a sinful atmosphere. God's Seed will repel and progressedly clean up lawlessness and hinder sin. Sin and His Seed are opposing forces that are mentioned in the beginning of the Bible. Gen. 3:15 How does the Holy Spirit sanctify us and make us like Jesus? Once salvation has been established, the Holy Spirit begins to shed light on the dark places in our hearts and minds. He exposes our lawlessness and the motivation of our hearts. This begins a process of sanctification, which separates us from the world and the world's kingdom and guides us into God's ways and God's Kingdom (repentance). During our lifetime, we are in a constant process of change, which gradually molds us and shapes us into the image of Jesus Christ.

How does lawlessness show up in a person's attitude and actions? Lawlessness can be a result of not understanding who we are in Christ. 1 John 3:3 says that those that have the hope (expected good) of His salvation will have the desire to become a better person. There are many reasons why a person continues to remain in their practices of sin. When we call on Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, He cleans up our act so that we can begin to live and maintain a righteous lifestyle. Without understanding or accepting or believing our salvation, we will continue our old lifelstyle because our mindsets are not changed and this leads to attitudes and actions of lawlessness. Change is a constant and progressive lifestyle for the Christian. Though salvation is instant, sanctification is not. It is a work in progress. In what sense is an attitude of lawlessness the cause of sin in our lives? Lawlessness does not take the Word of God seriously. Lawlessness is a mindset that abuses our salvation. Lawlessness is the result of an unchanged and unrenewed mind. Change and renewal require prayer and time spent in the Word of God, seeking to understand the salvation process. Sin begins with a thought and lawlessness is an undisciplined and unregenerate thought. Lawlessness is thinking like the world thinks.

In what way does our expectation of Christ's Second Coming motivate us to purify ourselves from sin? When we believe that we will soon be in the presence of Jesus, then we will get ourselves ready or prepared for this encounter. (Much like cleaning a home when we know that we will have company coming over.) But, the Bible advises us to keep ourselves in the mindset and attitude of love, continually. We do not walk in love to become Christians, however, walking in love is the Christianly thing to do and a command from Jesus. (We want to keep our homes clean just in case someone drops by, unannounced.) How does purifying ourselves from sin relate to God's grace? Maintaining a love walk, will keep us in the grace of God. Matthew 22:40 says if we keep the law of love, then we will be keeping all laws and prophecies alive and functioning in our lives. There can be no purification apart from the practice of loving the Lord and our brothers and sisters in Christ.

In what sense are we "children of God"? Because our spirits have been given life. Therefore, we experience rebirth in a spiritual sense. Our spirits (before coming to salvation) were lifeless and without meaning, but once we become saved our spirits are made alive and meaningful and we become spirit beings that have a soul and body. What does the Holy Spirit have to do with this "new birth"? The Holy Spirit moves on the inside of us and sparks the life into our own spirit. He is that which brings life to our spirit. We are born into this earth with body and soul. However, we are reborn into this earth with spirit. The Holy Spirit becomes a witness (the evidence) with our own spirit, reconciling us to God the Father. What does the Holy Spirit have to do with this "new birth"? Our lives are governed by or controlled by our souls, before our spirit is given life. Once our spirit is given life, there is now another governing system within us that directs us in life. This new governing system (with the proper information) will begin to change the way we think and behave and is opposed to the old system.

If we have the Holy Spirit, why do we need teachers in the church? It is like we are traveling down a road and this road has ditches on both sides. The ditches represent false teachings, lies, deception, and a lead to greater false teachings, lies and deception. The Holy Spirit keeps us on the road and out of the ditches. The teachers keep us moving forward and traveling along the road. How does the role of the anointing differ from the Holy Spirit's spiritual gift of teaching? The spiritual gift of teaching can be without the anointing. The anointing is the persuasion that keeps the spiritual gift of teaching charismatic. Others will see the gift and recognize the gift within those that possess the gift when the gift is anointed.

What does it mean to abide/remain/continue in Jesus? It means that our lives will be changed on a continual basis and we will be gradually and progressively transformed into His image over our lifetime. It means that we will be listening out for instruction from the Holy Spirit and striving to be pleasing to the Father. Give an example of what a Christian might be doing who is "abiding" in Jesus. A Christian who abides in Jesus will be quick to repent of sin. He/she will strive to walk in love and learn His ways and His commandments. There will be manifested change within the individual that abides in Jesus. Time and money will be spent to get to know Him on a more intimate level. Many will see the abiding Christian as a fanatic. What are symptoms in a Christian who is not "abiding" in Jesus? There will be no manifested changes within this individual. They may claim to know Him or believe in Him, but their actions will speak differently than their claims. I have found many times, that they are usually guilty of the very things that they accuse the 'Christian fanatic' of doing or saying. Their words and their actions will usually line up with the cares and desires of the world and/or the flesh. Lots of talk and no action in these individuals.

In what ways is the Holy Spirit an internal Guide for us? The Holy Spirit will shine His light on the darkness in our hearts and minds. He will expose lies and deception and even incorrect thinking in our own minds. He leads into all truth and light. He will not allow us to stay deceived by others and with ourselves. In what ways does he teach us? He teaches us with witnessing within our own spirits and with conviction. He drives out false ideas in our thinking as well as directs our spirits toward truth and light. He anoints us with the power of truth. In what ways does he point us to Jesus' teaching? Our spirit will bear witness with Him. In other words, we will be in agreement with His leading (past experience in the Holy Spirit) and anointing so that we will continue to seek Him and follow His direction. His direction can only lead to Jesus Christ and what He teaches.

What is the "anointing" that John is talking about? This anointing allows us to know the truth. Those of us that receive this anointing will be able to recognize false teaching. In what way is anointing connected to the Holy Spirit in the Bible? The Holy Spirit uses anointing to bring about truth and holiness to people of the earth. This anointing also works to empower people to get the job done on earth, for God. It is through this anointing, this empowerment to prosper, that allows a manifestation of the truth of God's Word in this earth. Without the Holy Spirit, the anointing is not available to people. Has every Christian received this anointing? What do you think? When one receives the Holy Spirit, they receive the anointing. Not all Christians have received the Holy Spirit. A person may become born again and be saved, and never come to the knowledge and understanding of the Holy Spirit and His gifts and anointing. There are numerous churches operating today, without the Holy Spirit being manifested or involved in their activities.

What is this antichrist that John expects to come? It is the spirit that denies Jesus Christ as the messiah and Lord and Savior. This spirit denies the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It is the spirit that will draw people to him, because of rejection of the teachings of Jesus Christ (the gospel). What is the difference between the antichrist and antichrists in the church John is writing to? The antichrists are those that pave the way for the antichrist. Similar to Jesus being the Christ and then those of us that are Christians and paving the way for others to come to Christ. Jesus came first and then came the Christian. But with the antichrist, the antichrists come first and then the antichrist. Opposing in nature. In what ways do we see the spirit of antichrist at work in our day? There are umpteen religions that either deny Jesus as the Christ or deny His divinity. These religions teach about a god(s), but none are offered salvation and eternal life by their gods. These religions falsely teach that there is no need for a Savior. This is in complete opposition to what the Bible teaches.