Eternity in Our Hearts --Student s Guide--

Transcription

1 Eternity in Our Hearts --Student s Guide-- Dean C. Halverson International Students, Inc. dhalverson@isionline.org Phone: Colorado Springs, CO

2 Lesson 1: The Context of Our Lives After having read The Importance of Context, please answer this question: What is the ultimate context in which you live your life? Read Mark 4:35-41: 35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, "Let us go over to the other side." 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?" 39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. 40 He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?" 41 They were terrified and asked each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!" Have you ever had something happen to you that just didn t make sense? Tell me about it. How did the disciples react? They asked Jesus, Teacher, don t you care if we drown? (v. 38). Can you relate to their reaction? When something bad happens to you, what are your thoughts about God? Are they positive or negative? Do you blame God? Do you feel God is distant and doesn t care? Are they similar to the way in which the disciples spoke to Jesus? Why do you think Jesus was upset with or disappointed in them? We all face various storms in our lives. What are some storms you are facing right now? Jesus asked the disciples the following two questions: "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith? What do you think is the relationship between being afraid and having faith? Why did Jesus experience peace in the face of the storm when the disciples didn t? How can we apply the way in which Jesus faced the storm to our lives? Fearing God is a concept taught in the Bible. When I mention the idea of fearing God, what comes to your mind? What do you think of when you hear that phrase? Fearing God is a matter of trusting God, and being afraid of God is a matter of distrusting Him. When we are afraid of something, including God, we don t trust it because we are afraid it will harm us. Fearing God, though, means an intense form of faith or trust in God. It means we can have complete trust in the God who is sovereign over all things. The reason Jesus could experience such peace of mind in the midst of the storm was because He trusted in the God 1

3 who was above the storm. To experience such peace is the result of an extreme form of faith or trust. Such an extreme form of faith in God is what the Bible means by fearing God. Notice how the following verse takes an unexpected turn toward the end: Do not call conspiracy everything that these people call conspiracy; do not fear what they fear, and do not dread it. The Lord Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy, he is the one you are to fear, he is the one you are to dread, and he will be a sanctuary (Isaiah 8:12-14, NASB). What is a sanctuary? The very reasons we are to fear God that He has unlimited power, that He has existence within Himself, that He is sovereign over all are also the very same reasons we can find our ultimate safety and refuge in him. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 9:10). What does this verse indicate is the relationship between wisdom and the fear of the Lord? Since wisdom is a good thing and something to be desired, what does that say about the fear of the Lord? One way to define wisdom is as having a correct view of reality, which means understanding who God is in all his fullness and how He is related to the rest of reality. Jesus certainly had a correct view of God and of his relationship to the rest of reality. That s why he could experience such peace in the face of the storm. Perhaps this God who is to be feared would be worth getting to know. 2

4 Lesson 2: Our Longing for Eternity What is your deepest longing? What do you yearn for more than anything else? Consider this verse: [God] has set eternity in the hearts of men" (Ecclesiastes 3:11). What do you think that verse means? Do you yourself sense a desire for eternity in your heart? If so, tell me about it? If not, why not? The following quote comes from the novel Contact by astronomer Carl Sagan, who was an outspoken atheist. The words themselves were put in the mouth of Ellie, Sagan s main character, who, like Sagan, is portrayed as an astronomer and an atheist: The theologians seemed to have recognized a special non-rational I wouldn t call it irrational aspect of the feeling of sacred or holy. They call it numinous. The term was first used by let s see somebody named Rudolph Otto in a 1923 book, The Idea of the Holy. He believed that humans were predisposed to detect and revere the numinous. He called it misterium tremendum. In the presence of the misterium tremendum, people feel utterly insignificant but, if I read this right, not personally alienated. He thought of the numinous as a thing wholly other, and the human response to it as absolute astonishment. Now, if that s what religious people talk about when they used words like sacred or holy, I m with them. 1 Why would Ellie an atheist who had rejected God be attracted to an experience of the sacred and the holy that is wholly other and that evokes an experience of utter astonishment? Would you be attracted to an experience with that which is wholly other who evokes absolute astonishment? Why or why not? Consider the words of Dr. Corliss Lamont, Humanist of the Year in Here is a man who was a staunch atheist. Lamont firmly believed that, because we consist of matter alone, there s no question that, at death, we cease to exist as conscious human beings. Once we die, that s all there is; there s nothing more except the lifeless matter that made up our physical bodies. And yet Lamont wrote, Even I, disbeliever that I am, would frankly be more than glad to wake some day to a worthwhile eternal life. 2 But why? Where did Lamont s desire for a worthwhile eternal life come from? If we are indeed only matter and if we truly cease to exist after death, then what is the source of that desire? Some might say such a desire comes from our survival instinct. This longing for eternity was placed in our hearts by our need to survive. Do you agree or disagree? Why? 1 Carl Sagan, Contact (New York: Pocket Books, 1985), Corliss Lamont, The Philosophy of Humanism (New York: Continuum, 1988), 98. 3

5 Even though Lamont denied life after death, he could not fully suppress the desire for eternity. Theologian C. S. Lewis explains the existence of that desire in this way: Now, if we are made for heaven, the desire for our proper place will be already in us. 3 So, according to Lewis, where did that desire for a worthwhile eternal life come from? Now look at a biblical passage where Moses encounters the God who is truly wholly other : 18 Then Moses said, "Now show me your glory." 19 And the LORD said, "I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. 20 But," he said, "you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live." 21 Then the LORD said, "There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. 22 When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. 23 Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen (Exodus 33:18-23) In the next lesson we will briefly discuss verses where God makes himself known to Moses, but, for now, I want us to focus on these words: You cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live. What are your first thoughts about God s words? What does it mean to see God s face? Why are we not able to see God s face? One might think that getting to know such a dangerous God would lead to one s annihilation like a moth being attracted to a flame. What, though, does our attraction to God lead to? How can knowing such a dangerous God lead to our fulfillment? What do you think of this statement? For us to be fulfilled in an eternal, ultimate sense, we need a God who would be worthy of our exploring him, relating to Him, being filled with thoughts of Him, and being inspired by Him on every level of our being our intellect, our emotions, our creativity, and our will for all eternity. On an infinite, personal God could fulfill us in this way. Now, what do you think of these statements? We can never rise above our idea of that which is ultimate. When we make less of God or of ultimate reality, we make less of ourselves as well. Here s an example: Atheism says that 1. God does not exist. 2. Matter is all that exists. 3 C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1949), 3. 4

6 3. We as humans do not possess spirits 4. At death we cease to exist as persons While we are persons during our lifetimes, if ultimate reality is only matter and if we cease to exist as persons at death, then we as persons are not able to rise the view of ultimate reality that says only matter is real. Consider, again, the example of Corliss Lamont, who we looked at earlier. His atheistic worldview, which says that ultimate reality is nothing more than matter, does not allow him as a person to rise above that matter. When he dies, his worldview says that he ceases to exist as a person, even though he had a desire for eternity. If, on the other hand, ultimate reality is an infinite, eternal, personal God, then there can be no greater idea of ultimate reality. Living with the idea that God is infinite, eternal, and personal is completely fulfilling to us as persons. The Bible says, God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them (Genesis 1:27) What does it mean to be made in God s image? In what ways are we made in God s image? The idea that God is by nature personal is a profound thought. We take so many things for granted that are true only because God is personal and that would not be true if God were not personal. What things are true only if God is personal? If God is personal, and if we are made in his image as personal beings, then the longing for eternity that God has set in our hearts will be ultimately fulfilled through a relationship with him. Moreover, the desire for eternity in our hearts, would be fulfilled not only through a personal God but also through an eternal God. Why? Conclusion: If we settle for less than a God who is eternal and who is personal, then we are settling for less in ourselves as well. But there can be no greater concept of ultimate reality than an infinite, personal God, and we will be most affirmed and fulfilled being in relationship with such a God. 5

7 Lesson 3: God Longs to be in a Relationship with Us In the previous lesson we looked at one line in this passage: 18 Then Moses said, "Now show me your glory." 19 And the LORD said, "I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. 20 But," he said, "you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live." 21 Then the LORD said, "There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. 22 When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. 23 Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen (Exodus 33:18-23) In the next lesson we will briefly discuss verses where God makes himself known to Moses, but, for now, I want us to focus on these words: You cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live. What most fulfills you now in your life? What is the one thing that, if it were taken away, would leave life truly empty? How do you define eternal life? The Bible says, Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God (John 17:3). How does that verse define eternal life? We saw in the previous lesson that, even though God says, no one can see my face, for no one may see me and live, he still showed himself to Moses. What that means is that, even though God is wholly other, he still wants to make himself known to us and to be in a relationship of love with us. The extent to which God wants to be in a relationship with us is especially clear in the story of a son who rejected his father: 11 Jesus continued: "There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger one said to his father, 'Father, give me my share of the estate.' So he divided his property between them. 13 Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything. 6

8 17 When he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men.' 20 So he got up and went to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. 21 The son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.' 22 But the father said to his servants, 'Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let's have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' So they began to celebrate (Luke 15:11-24). The father in this story stands for God. One of the reasons Jesus told this story was to illustrate the desire God has to be in a relationship of love with us. Look at the passage again and list the ways in which the father demonstrated how he longed for the relationship with his son to be restored. Do you see God in this way? Do you believe God longs to be in a relationship with you, like the father in this story longed to be in a relationship with his son? The Bible says, God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them (Genesis 1:27) Why did God create us in his image? The Bible repeatedly declares God s love for us: 1. "I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness (Jeremiah 31:3). 2. "For God so loved the world." (John 3:16). 3. "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this." (Romans 5:8). 4. "God is love. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us. " (1 John 4:8,10). What does reading about God s love do in regard to your understanding of God? Would you like to know this God? 7

9 Lesson 4: The Dilemma In the previous lesson we looked at the heart-warming story of how a loving father longed for the relationship with his rebellious son to be restored. In our present lesson, though, we will focus on the son. The son rejected his father by asking for his inheritance early (inheritances are usually given when the father dies) and taking off for a distant land, thereby rejecting even the presence of the father. The son was, in essence, saying that he, not the father, knew best how to live his own life. After living it up for a while in that distant land, a famine hit, and the son found himself close to starvation, longing for the food he was feeding the pigs. Why did Jesus tell that story? How is Jesus story about the son relevant to us and our spiritual situation? Here s another verse that gives a picture of our spiritual situation:: We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way (Isaiah 53:6). What is the picture that verse is giving us? What is the inevitable result of the sheep who decides to leave the safety of the flock and the care of the shepherd and to instead go his own way? The Bible says, The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). What does wages mean in this verse? What does death mean in this verse? So, here s the situation: our sin causes us to be separated from God, but God wants to be in a relationship with us. God is faced with a dilemma. Let me present the issues of that dilemma through a series of propositions. THE DILEMMA Proposition 1: God is absolutely holy. There is nothing about God that is not holy. 1. "He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he (Deuteronomy 32:4) 2. "There is no one holy like the Lord" (1 Samuel 2:2; see also Job 34:10, 12) 3. This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5). Proposition 2: God s holiness will not allow sin into His presence. 1. "You are not a God who takes pleasure in evil; with you the wicked cannot dwell (Psalm 5:4). 2. "But your iniquities (sins) have separated you from your God (Isaiah 59:2). 3. "Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong (Habakkuk 1:12). 4. "Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior (Colossians 1:21). 8

10 Proposition 3: Part of what it means for God to be holy is that He is just, and His justice demands that our sin be punished. The punishment we deserve is death, which means being separated from God. 1. Whoever has sinned against me I will blot out of my book (Exodus 32:33). 2. The soul who sins is the one who will die (Ezekiel 18:4). 3. "For the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). 4. "You were dead in your transgressions and sins (Ephesians 2:1). Proposition 4: We have all sinned. 1. "We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way (Isaiah 53:6). 2. There is no one righteous, not even one (Romans 3:10). 3. [F]or all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). Proposition 5: But God loves us and wants to be in a relationship with us. 5. "I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness (Jeremiah 31:3). 6. "For God so loved the world." (John 3:16). 7. Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God (John 17:3). 8. "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this." (Romans 5:8). 9. "God is love. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us. " (1 John 4:8,10). Here s the dilemma: How can God s justice (which demands that our sin be punished and that we be separated from him) be reconciled (or brought together) with his great love for us (which means that he wants us to be close to him in a relationship of love)? Would you like to receive this gift of eternal life with God? 9