Know the God of the Bible - PDF Free Download

Know the God of the Bible Introduction Know the God of the Bible is a series of lessons designed to Acquaint and Recognize the connection of all the books of the Bible. Become acquainted with the organization and structure. Begin to recognize basic teachings and persons. Observe the promise of God to bless all people through Abraham in the Old Testament. Develop understanding of God s Promise to Abraham Fulfilled in Jesus, the Christ or Messiah, the Son of God. Experience the promise of God by believing and receiving Jesus, the Christ. Discover the Bible as the foundation of all matters of faith and teaching. Know the God of the Bible series in order to guide any interested person to know and experience the Promise of God

KNOW TO COMPARE But don t all religions lead to God is the title of a book on comparative study of religions by Michael Green. In our world of generic god, everyone needs to know the message of the Christian Bible to be able to compare with other religious teachings. The God of the Bible is a God of love who created human beings in His own image with the capacity to love.

The Revelation of God in the Bible The God of the Christian Bible is Spirit and as a result He must reveal Himself. God is not created by any human being but is designer and creator of all that exists. The Revelation of God is given in three ways. The first is the general revelation of God in the creation of the life, the earth and the universe. The Second is the special revelation of God in the written message of the Bible. God revealed Himself to select believers and they recorded His message. The third is the revelation of God in the person and work of Jesus, the Christ, or Messiah, the Son of God. In the Gospel of John 1:1-18, Jesus is the Word of all words who explains or makes God Known. In the message of the Bible, God delivers and saves human beings from their sin and separation from God. The message of the Bible gives us trust, hope and love in the midst of our sinfulness. The Bible is the only information needed to experience the forgiveness of our sins by believing and trusting Jesus Christ. ************************************************** Understanding or Illumination of the Bible God brings understanding or illumination to the reader of the Bible. The Holy Spirit speaks through the Bible, the Special Revelation of God, and brings understanding to the reader. The Holy Spirit illuminates the word of God, the message of the Bible.

Basic Biblical Information and Explanations God 1. Who is God? A Biblical Christian view, (John 4:24) God is Spirit. God is love. Jesus explains God. Jesus is God who put on human clothes. 2. What did God do? Demonstrated His love through Jesus dying on the cross without retaliating. Delivered us. (Luke 19:10) Jesus came to seek and to deliver anyone separated from God. God delivers us from the power and penalty of sin. 3. God is righteous and righteousness is essential for us to be in relationship to God. (Genesis 6:9 & 7:1) Righteousness is from a Holy God. When a person believes and receives Jesus, he or she receives the righteousness of God Christian Bible is: 1. Books revealing God s promise of pardon, presence and reconciliation. 2. God wanting everyone to choose Jesus as forgiver and leader. 3. Verified by archeology/science of ancient things. 4. Verified by history/testimony of the past. 5. Verified by the history of Jewish genealogies/testimony of past generations. Human 1. God created humans in His image -Image is spiritual so we could live forever in His presence. -God loves hence humans love, God gives hence humans give, God knows hence humans know, our right choices indicate the human image of God and human bad choices indicate a limited knowledge and power. 2. What are the basic Biblical characteristics of a human being? -Body, mind & spirit -Creatures of trust, hope & love. 3. Creatures of choice -God allows human beings to choose. -Choice is part of our image of God. -Wrong choices result in spiritual death. -Choosing Jesus as our Savior restores us to eternal life.

CONTENTS INTRODUCTION Know the God of the Bible Part II- NEW TESTAMENT The Promise of God Fulfilled Lesson #1 Lesson #2 Lesson #3 Lesson #4 Lesson #5 Lesson #6 The Promise of blessing fulfilled in Jesus the Messiah The Promise of God demonstrated The Promise of the Spirit of God The Language of Relationship to the God of Promise The Promise of the Future Summary of the fulfilled Promise

New Testament Part 2 Jesus Christ Fulfilled the Promise of God Although, the New Testament Books and letters were accepted as a collection around 397 A.D. all of these books and letters were written between 50-100 A.D. Prior to the writing of any books or letters, creeds or short statements of the Christian faith existed very soon after the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. One such early creed was based on Ichthus, the Greek word for fish and symbol of the fish. Each letter in the word for fish represented Jesus, Christ, God s Son and Savior. This creed was at the center of all creeds, oral tradition and writings of earliest Christians. These questions are written according to the inductive Bible Study procedure Lesson #1 & #2 What are some of the evidences for Jesus being the completed promise of God? Lesson #3 How did God give believers His promised presence? Lesson #4 What do words tell believers about their relationship to the God of promise. Lesson #5 What is the future God promised?

Lesson #1 The Promise of Blessing fulfilled in Jesus the Messiah-Matthew, Mark & Luke New Testament books and letters were accepted around 397 A.D. based on at least four criteria, Message, Apostolicity, Universality, and Inspiration of the Holy Spirit. The Message is Jesus the Christ who died and rose from the dead. Apostolicity-an apostle or an associate of the original twelve apostles wrote each book or letter. Universality-the books or letters were circulated and accepted in the churches of the first century. Holy Spirit-inspired like the Old Testament. 1. The genealogies of Matthew begin with which person? 1:2 2. Memorize Matthew 1:21b. 3. Be able to give the main idea of the beatitudes in Matt. 5:3-10. 4. How would you summarize the Lord s Prayer in Matthew 6:9-13? 5. Find the names of the twelve apostles in Matthew 10:2-4. 6. Who were the main characters in the story of Jesus transfiguration in Matthew 17:1-8.? 7. What are the heart conditions in the parable of the sower in Matthew 13:3-9, 18-23? 8. Read Matthew 24 and 25 related to Jesus return. 9. Who were some of the people involved in the account of Jesus betrayal, arrest, trial, crucifixion and resurrection in Matthew 26:1-28:20? 10. The Introduction of the Gospel of Mark includes 1:1-13. 11. In Mark 1:2-8, who preached a baptism of repentance before Jesus began His ministry?

12. In Mark 1:9-12, what two things happened to Jesus prior to beginning His ministry? 13. Jesus performed many miracles. Read about the miracles related to the physical body Mark 1:29-31, demons or evil spirits Mark 1:21-8 and nature Mark 6:45-52. 14. How did John the Baptist die? Mark 6:14-29 15. What did Jesus say would happen to Him? Mark 8:31, 9:31, 10:33-34. 16. Memorize Mark 10:45. 17. Read the Introduction to the Gospel of Luke 1:1-4:13. 18. Who was the angel who appeared to Mary? Luke 1:26 19. Who were John the Baptist s parents? Luke 1:5-25 20. What was the name of the city of David in Judea? Luke 2:4 21. Who was the husband of Mary, who accepted her when she became pregnant by the Holy Spirit? Luke 1:26-38 22. Read Luke 15:1-32 23. Read Luke 16:19-31. 24. Read Luke 21:1-38. 25. Compare the names of the twelve apostles in Luke 6:12-16 with Matthew 10:2-4 26. Memorize Luke 19:10. 27. What does Law, Prophets, and Psalms refer to? Luke 24:44

Lesson #1 The Promise of blessing fulfilled in Jesus the Messiah-Matthew, Mark, & Luke Review 1. Give the name of Jesus mother. Matthew 1:18-25 2. According to Matthew 1:21, what would Jesus do for His people? 3. In which city of Judea was Jesus born? Matthew 2:1-6 4. What is the first word of each beatitude? Matthew 5:3-11 5. What are some of the main words in the Lord s prayer? Matthew 6:9-13 6. List the names of the twelve apostles. Matt. 10:1-4, Mark 3:13-19 7. Which two Old Testament people appeared to Jesus on the Mountain of Transfiguration? 17:1-8 8. Identify a parable of Jesus in Matthew and give the scripture reference. 9. Who preached a baptism of repentance before Jesus began His ministry? Mark 1:4-8 10. How did John the Baptist die? Mark 1:9-13 11. What did Jesus say would happen to Him? Mark 8:31, 9:31, 10:33-34 12. Give the main idea of Mark 10:45. 13. What was the name of the angel who appeared to Mary? Luke 1:26-38

14. List the names of John the Baptist s parents. Luke 1:5-17 15. What was the name of the city of David in Judea? Luke 2:4-7 16. Who was Jesus stepfather? Luke 2:4-7 17. Who does Luke say made Jesus mother get pregnant? 1:26-38 18. Matthew s genealogies go back in history to. Matthew 1:1-17 19. Luke s genealogies go back in history to. Luke 3:23-37 20. List the names of the twelve apostles in the Gospel of Luke. Luke 6:12-16 21. Give the main idea of Luke 19:10. 22. What is Jesus teaching in Luke 21?

Lesson #2 The Promise of God Demonstrated Gospel of John Guidelines 1. Gospel of John outline. Introduction 1:1-34, Body 1:35-17:26, Conclusion 18:1-21:25 2. Who is the Word? 1:1-18 3. What was the purpose of the Word? 1:1-18 4. What did John the Baptist do for Jesus? 1:19-34 5. What did John the Baptist call Jesus? 1:29-32 6. Receive, believe and become. Memorize 1:12. 7. What was the purpose of the miracle stories? 20:30-31 8. What is the purpose of each of the seven miracles John selected? 2:1-11, 4:46-54, 5:1-9, 6:1-14, 6:15-31, 9:1-12, 11:38-44 9. What did Nicodemus need to do to see and enter the kingdom of God? 3:1-21 10. What did Jesus want all believers to do? 17:1-26 11. What are three events leading up to Jesus death? 18:1-19:42 12. What are three things happening after Jesus resurrection? 20:1-21:25

Lesson #2 The Promise of God Demonstrated Gospel of John Review 1. What is Jesus called in 1:1-18? 2. What did John the Baptist do for Jesus? 3. When John the Baptist saw Jesus coming to him, what did he call Jesus? 4. Give the main idea of 1:12. 5. Give the main idea of 3:16-17. 6. Give the main idea of 20:30-31. 7. Identify the seven miracles in the Gospel of John. 8. According to 20:30-31, what is the purpose of these miracles? 9. According to Jesus explanation to Nicodemus, what happens when we receive and believe Jesus forgives our sins? 10. Give some ideas from Jesus prayer in chapter 17. 11. List four events in the Conclusion of John s Gospel.

Lesson #3 The Promise of the Spirit of God Acts / Praxis Guidelines 1. Who does Luke address in his gospel and in the book of Acts? Luke 1:1-4, Acts 1:1-2 2. What does Acts 1:8 tell us about the spread of the Gospel? 3. Who took Judas Iscariots place as one of the twelve apostles? 1:15-26 4. What was the meaning of Pentecost to the Jews? Deuteronomy 16:9-12 5. Who preached a sermon on the day of Pentecost after being filled with the Holy Spirit? 2:1-15 6. What were the four basic emphasis of the early church? 2:42 7. Why were the seven deacons chosen? 6:1-7 8. Who was the first deacon killed? 7:1-60 9. Who was the first apostle to die by the sword? 12:1-4 10. What happened to Saul on the way to Damascus? 9:1-31, 13:9 11. Who was called the son of encouragement? 4:36-37

12. Name the leader of the church in chapters 1-12? 13. Who is the leader of the church in chapters 13-28? 14. Who went on the first missionary journey? 13:1-14:28 15. Why did the Jerusalem council meet? What was the conclusion? 15:1-35 16. Who went with Paul on his second missionary journey? 15:36-18:22 17. In which city did Paul preach and teach the gospel for over 2 years? 18:23-21:14 18. Why did Agrippa tell Festus, Paul had to go to Rome? 21:15-28:31 19. List the names of the cities or regions to which Paul wrote a letter?

Lesson #3 Promise of the Spirit of God Acts / Praxis Review 1. Who wrote the book of Acts? 2. Who does Luke address in Acts 1:1-4? 3. Quote Acts 1:8. 4. Quote Acts 2:42. 5. Who replaced Judas Iscariot? 6. Which one of the twelve apostles was called Thaddeus in the Gospels and another name in the book of Acts? Acts 1:13 7. On which Jewish religious festival did the Holy Spirit come on the early Christians? 8. Who preached a sermon after the Holy Spirit came on the early Christians? 9. Why were the seven deacons chosen? 10. Who was the first deacon to be killed? 11. Who was the first apostle martyred? 12. Who met Jesus on the way to Damascus?

13. Who was called the Son of Encouragement? 14. Who was the early Christian leader described in chapters 1-12? 15. Who was the early Christian leader described in chapters 13-28? 16. How many missionary journeys did Paul make? 17. List 7 cities or regions to whom Paul wrote a letter?

Lesson #4 The Language of Relationship to the God of Promise-Epistles or Letters Guidelines 1. List the seven Churches receiving letters from Paul. 2. Paul wrote epistles or letters to three people: Timothy, Titus and Philemon. Who received two epistles? 3. How many letters did Paul write? 4. How many general epistles were written by others? 5. How many epistles did John write? 6. What does God expect from anyone desiring to be in His presence? Romans 1:16-17, 3:21-26, 4:3-13, 5:17-21, 6:15-20, 14:16-18 7. Who recorded the information for Paul in the epistle to the Romans? 16:1-27 8. What is the purpose of spiritual gifts? I Corinthians 14:12 9. Which is the greatest of faith, hope and love? I Corinthians 13:1-13, 14:31 10. What is our hope because Jesus appeared? I Corinthians 15:1-58 11. What ministry did God give a believer? II Corinthians 5:18-20 12. What is the fruit of the Spirit? Galatians 5:1-26 13. What does God desire from every believer? Ephesians 4:11-13 14. What is expected of every believer? Ephesians 5:18-21 15. Which word in the Philippians letter expresses a happy life? 1:4, 18, 25, 2:2, 17, 4:4, 10

16. In the Colossian letter, what are believers to put on and put off or lay aside or take off? 3:1-17 17. What is the will of God for the believer? I Thessalonians 4:1-12, 5:12, 24 and II Thessalonians 3:6-15. 18. In I Timothy, what is expected of a servant or minister of the Lord? 4:6-16 19. In II Timothy, how does a believer keep from just having a form of godliness? 3:1-4:4 20. In Titus, what is the meaning of 3:4-7? 21. What is the purpose of the letter to Philemon? 10-16 22. What does Hebrews 7:1-10:25 say about Jesus and the tabernacle? 23. What does James explain concerning faith & works? 2:14-26 24. In I Peter, what does God expect from every believer? 1:13-16, 2:9-10 25. In II Peter 3:14-17, what is Paul s writings compared to? 26. What will God do if we confess our sins? I John 1:9 27. In II John, what is expected of all believers? 4-6 28. In III John, how are we to walk? 3-4 29. To which heavenly being does Jude mention?

Lesson #4 The Language of Relationship to the God of Promise-Epistles or Letters Review 1. List five of the seven regions or cities to whom Paul wrote epistles or letters. 2. List two of the three persons to whom Paul wrote epistles. 3. List one of the names given to the Jewish people other than Jew. 4. How many general epistles in the New Testament? 5. Which of the twelve apostles wrote three of the general epistles? 6. Who recorded the information for Paul in his letter to the Roman church? Romans 16:1-27 7. What word expresses the condition of a believer who desires to be in God s presence? 8. How does Paul illustrate the function of the spiritual gifts? 9. Which word summarizes the message in I Corinthians 13? 10. Which chapter in the I Corinthians letter primarily deals with the resurrection? 11. Because God reconciled us to Himself, what does God expect from a believer? II Corinthians 5:1-21 12. List five of the nine fruits of the Spirit. Galatians 5:1-26 13. Why are the believers to be equipped? Ephesians 4:1-32 14. Which words express the happy life of the Christian in the Philippian letter?

15. In the Colossian letter, what are believers to put on and put off or lay aside or take off? (3:1-17) 16. According to the Thessalonians letters, what is the will of God for every believer? I Thessalonians 4:1-18 17. Quote II Timothy 3:16. 18. According to Titus 3:4-7, what did the love of God do for us? 19. Give the name of Philemon s slave. 20. What are some new explanations of the tabernacle by the writer of Hebrews? 21. Explain faith and works according to James. 22. According to I Peter, what does God expect of every believer? 23. In II Peter, how does Peter refer to Paul s letters? 24. Quote I John 1:9. 25. In the letter of Jude, what is the name of the archangel?

Lesson #5 The Promise of the Future Revelation Guidelines 1. John, one of the twelve apostles, wrote the book of Revelation around 85-95 A.D. 2. The book of Revelation theme is prophecy of future things. 3. John describes the condition of seven churches. In which cities were they located? (2:1-3:22) 4. What do the seven seals imply? (5:1-8:5) 5. What are the golden bowls of incense? (5:8) 6. What is the new Jerusalem (21:1-27) and the second death? (20:1-22:9) 7. What is the difference between the books and the book? (20:11-15) 8. What happens in the thousand year reign? (20-1-15) 9. Memorize 3:20.

Lesson #5 The Promise of the Future Revelation Review 1. Who was the author of the book of Revelation? 2. When was the book of Revelation written? 3. List five of the seven churches. 4. What are the golden bowls of incense? 5. What happens in the thousand year reign of Christ? 6. What is the difference between book and books? 7. Quote 3:20.

Lesson #6 Summary of the fulfilled Promise Guidelines I. The Divisions of the 27 Books of the New Testament 1. Gospels- Matthew through John 2. History- Acts 3. Epistles/Paul- Romans through Philemon 4. Epistles/General- Hebrews through Jude 5. Revelation II. New Testament Book References 1. Gospel of Matthew: One of Jesus 12 apostles 2. Gospel of Mark: A disciple of Jesus and an associate of the 12 apostles 3. Gospel of Luke: A disciple of Jesus and an associate of the 12 apostles 4. Gospel of John: One of Jesus 12 apostles 5. Acts: The acts of the apostles and the acts of the Holy Spirit 6. Romans: A letter Paul had written to the church at Rome 7&8. I & II Corinthians: Letters Paul wrote to the church at Corinth 9. Galatians: A letter Paul wrote to the churches in Galatia 10. Ephesians: A letter Paul wrote to the church at Ephesus 11. Philippians: A letter Paul wrote to the church at Philippi 12. Colossians: A letter Paul wrote to the church at Colossae. 13-14. I & II Thessalonians: Letters Paul wrote to the church at Thessalonica 15-16. I & II Timothy: Letters Paul wrote to Timothy a disciple. 17. Titus: A letter Paul wrote to Titus, a disciple 18. Philemon: A letter Paul wrote to Philemon, a disciple 19. Hebrews: A letter written to the Hebrew Christians 20. James: A letter written by James a disciple. 21-22. I & II Peter: Letters written by Peter, one of the 12 apostles 23-25. I, II& III John: Letters written by John, one of the 12 apostles 26. Jude: A letter written by Jude, a disciple 27. Revelation: A book written by John, one of the 12 apostles, written about last things and final events.

III. Names of the Twelve Apostles Mark 3:16-19 1. Simon Peter 7. Matthew 2. James 8. Thomas 3. John 9. James son of Alphaeus 4. Andrew 10. Thaddaeus 5. Philip 11. Simon the Zealot 6. Bartholomew 12. Judas Iscariot IV. The Lord s Prayer Matthew 6:9-13 and Luke 11:2-4 V. Salvation Verses 1. Matthew 1:21b He will save his people from their sins 2. Mark 10:45 3. Luke 19:10 4. John 1:12, 3:16-17 5. I John 1:9 6. Acts 2:38 7. Romans 6:23 8. Romans 8:14

Lesson #6 Summary of the fulfilled Promise Review 1. List the Gospels. 2. Give the title to the book of History. 3. List Paul s 13 letters. 4. List the 8 general letters. 5. Give the name of the book dealing with last things and final events. 6. Jesus had chosen twelve apostles. List the names of the twelve

7. Give the main content of the Lord s Prayer. 8. Give the main idea of Matthew 1:21b. 9. Give the main idea of Mark 10:45. 10. Give the main idea of Luke 19:10. 11. Give the main idea of John 1:12. 12. Give the main idea of John 3:16-17. 13. Give the main idea of Acts 2:38. 14. Give the main idea of 1John 1:9..

Conclusion The Christian Bible is the story of God who reveals His love through the promise to bless all people, through Jesus Christ His only Son, and through the Holy Spirit guiding all who so desire to receive, believe and trust Him for eternal life. The final question for anyone reading or studying the Bible, Do all gods love human beings like the God of the Bible? The good news of God s love in Christ Jesus is to be shared. Find others and guide them through these lessons so they will be able to experience the love of God in Christ Jesus and compare the God of the Bible with other gods.

Appendix A: A Study to Understand The Bible in Ministry I Understand the introduction to these questions II Understand the process of God keeping His promise of blessing for all people. Questions: 1. What were some major problems of God making a promise to the human race? - Made in the image of God with ability to know, but unable to know everything. - The image of God included choice. - God, who is Spirit, had to reveal His message through believing individuals. 2. What did God do to keep people who would believe Him? - Performed miracles - Destroyed those who would keep Him from fulfilling His promise. - Forgave sinners who believed and received Him. -The Holy Spirit entered their life. III Understand Jesus, the Christ or the Messiah as the fulfilled promise. - Jesus is an explanation of the promise of God to bless all people. - God forgives every believer in Jesus name. - God s promise took away the agony of death by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the promised One. - God promised a place in heaven for everyone who believed and received Jesus, the Christ. IV Understand by experiencing the promise of God by faith. - Jesus gives us assurance of sins forgiven. - The Holy Spirit lives in us to keep us on the path of God s forgiving Grace. The believer must respond to the Holy Spirit. - The Holy Spirit lives in us to keep us on the path of God s righteousness. - God s presence gives us a desire to pray and worship. - The Holy Spirit gives us ability to minister the word of God. - History of the church connects us to the first century witness of Jesus, the Christ.

Appendix B: Description of the Tabernacle/Temple It is helpful to have knowledge of the tabernacle and temple in order to understand the way to approach God in the New Testament or covenant. In the Old Testament a believer came to God through the High Priest. In the New Testament a believer comes to God through the name of Jesus the High Priest. 1. Laver 2. Altar of incense 3. Veil 4. Ark of the Covenant 5. The Court 6. Holy Place 7. Golden Candlestick 8. The table of Showbread 9. Altar of Burnt Offering 10. Holy of Holies 10 3 6 7 4 2 8 5 1 9

NOTES