Basic Bible Christianity A Study in the Truths of the Christian Faith Jon D. Buchholz NORTHWESTERN PUBLISHING HOUSE Milwaukee, Wisconsin
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. All rights reserved. This publication may not be copied, photocopied, reproduced, translated, or converted to any electronic or machine-readable form in whole or in part, except for brief quotations, without prior written approval from the publisher. Northwestern Publishing House 1250 N. 113th St., Milwaukee, WI 53226-3284 www.nph.net 2010 by Northwestern Publishing House Published 2010 Printed in the United States of America ISBN 978-0-8100-2292-8
Contents Introduction -------------------------------------------------------- 11v 1. God s Plan of Salvation ------------------------------------------- 111 2. God Created a Beautiful Universe ------------------------------ 117 3. Why Is the World So Crazy? ------------------------------------- 113 4. How Did Jesus Save the World? -------------------------------- 118 5. The End Is Coming! ----------------------------------------------- 123 6. Why Do We Need the Bible? ------------------------------------- 128 7. God Works Through Holy Baptism ----------------------------- 135 8. God Works Through Holy Communion ------------------------ 142 9. God Gathers His Church----------------------------------------- 149 10. A Conversation With God ---------------------------------------- 155 11. Our Spiritual Heartbeat ------------------------------------------ 164 12. Love the Lord Your God ------------------------------------------ 170 13. Love Your Neighbor Part 1-------------------------------------- 177 14. Love Your Neighbor Part 2-------------------------------------- 184 15. Take Good Care---------------------------------------------------- 193 Appendix 1. Good Bible Reasons for Baptizing Infants --------------------- 197 Appendix 2. The Feast of Holy Communion ---------------------------------- 101 Appendix 3. False Teachings About Conversion ----------------------------- 107 Appendix 4. Understanding the Human Will --------------------------------- 109 Appendix 5. Bible Reading and Devotional Resources---------------------- 112 Appendix 6. Time to Talk With God-------------------------------------------- 114 Appendix 7. Identifying and Using Your Talents----------------------------- 117 Appendix 8. Managing God s Gift of Time ------------------------------------ 119 Appendix 9. Christian Giving --------------------------------------------------- 122 Appendix 10. Managing Your Finances ----------------------------------------- 124
Introduction Getting the most out of your study There is nothing more powerful in this world than the living and active Word of God. It has the power to change lives, to transform character, and most important, to rescue human beings from death and eternal destruction by giving the gift of forgiveness and free salvation through Jesus. You are about to participate in a lifechanging experience! As you participate in this Bible study, you are free to invest as much or as little time and effort as you desire. But since this is such a special opportunity to study God s Word, why not begin by asking the Lord to help you commit to faithful attendance, preparation, and study? The following suggestions can help you get the most out of your experience with God s Word: Be active in discussion and participation. Some people like to read every passage and answer every question and sometimes it seems they have an opinion on just about everything. Others are more reserved and thoughtful; they like to contemplate things and turn them over and over in their minds before they speak. One of the fascinating things about our human experience is that we are all different. We learn and approach things differently. We engage at different levels. Come to your study eager to learn. Be prepared to share your thoughts. Do you have a question that you ve always wondered about? Don t be afraid to ask! Listen patiently to others when they speak. This is an opportunity to learn and grow together as we are taught by God s Word. It s not a time for arguments. Get to know your Bible. As you go through the lessons, you ll be looking up passages in your Bible. The Holy Bible is divided into two sections: the Old Testament makes up about the first three-fourths of the Bible; the New Testament is the remaining one-fourth. The Bible is further divided into books (Genesis, Exodus, etc.), and the books are divided into chapters and verses. At first, looking up passages may seem intimidating. Don t worry, your group leader will help you find Bible references and before you know it, with practice you ll be paging your way around Scripture very quickly. = v =
Study and work at home. While your group discussions are valuable, there are several activities that you ll want to be sure to complete at home. At the conclusion of each lesson there is a series of exercises to finish. Make the commitment to complete your homework faithfully, because each portion of the homework has a specific purpose and brings a special benefit: = Search the Scriptures. You ll study a portion of Scripture on your own and answer questions directly from the Bible. You ll be able to answer some of the questions word-for-word from what you read. Other questions will require some thought. = Worksheet. The True or False section invites you to evaluate statements to determine whether they are correct or not. Be attentive, because some questions require some careful thought! The Questions for Discussion section asks you to evaluate questions pertaining to the lesson material. Spend some time with each question, considering different possible angles and using the Scripture references to develop a thoughtful answer. Be prepared to share your answers with the group at your next class. = Scripture memorization. Take God s Word with you in your heart wherever you are. The practice of committing God s Word to memory brings tremendous blessings as you meditate. The best way to memorize a passage is to begin by reading the passage out loud. Repeat it a few times. Use your fingers or a piece of paper to cover up portions of the passage, and repeat the passage without looking. When you can say the passage fluently from memory, make sure you also memorize the Scripture reference so that you know where to find it in the Bible. While you re at it, why not take a moment to look up the passage using the reference you ve memorized so that you can see the passage in its biblical context? = Books of the Bible memorization. Your group leader will go through the pronunciations of the Bible books with you before the end of each class. When you do your home study, work at memorizing the books in order. Start by saying them out loud. Take them in chunks of three or four books at a time. Say them back to yourself (out loud), and little by little you ll be able to put the chunks together and say them all in order. To wrap it all up, use your Bible and challenge yourself to find a passage in, say, Romans or Philippians. Jump around among the books you ve learned, and see how quickly you can find your way. Have fun learning! = Daily Bible reading. God s Word is like refreshing water or food for the soul. It s wonderful and edifying when we make a steady diet of Scripture part of our schedule. Included with your weekly homework is a list of several sections to read from the Bible during the week. Usually there is a list of three readings to be read on the first day after class (Day One), the third day after class (Day Three), and the fifth day (Day Five). Each reading is usually a few chapters. As you do the supplemental Bible reading, you might come upon passages that you find difficult to understand. Jot down your = vi =
questions, bring them to class, and the group leader will discuss them with you. If you come across Bible passages that you find especially interesting or instructive, take note of them and share your insights with your group at the next class. = vii =
Lesson One God s Plan of Salvation Welcome and introduction Please take a moment and introduce yourself to others in the group. Share your name and perhaps a word or two about yourself. Welcome to this Bible study! Our goals over the next several weeks are to become better acquainted with God s Word, the Bible, and to grow in our relationship with Jesus Christ. This is not intended to be an advanced study of Scripture. Instead, we ll be concentrating on the basics. After you complete this study, there will be other opportunities to continue learning about God and his Word. Are there any specific personal goals that you would like to achieve by participating in this study? any general questions you would like answered? any topics you would like to see covered? Please take a moment and write down your thoughts: Why study the Bible? What s the point? There are three questions that we human beings must grapple with in our lives: (1) Where did I come from? (2) Why am I here? (3) Where am I going? The Bible gives us the answers to these three questions. First the Bible exposes the problem we all have as human beings. Then it offers us the solution we need. Read Romans 5:12. What serious problem do we as human beings face? Read 2 Corinthians 5:10. What appointment awaits each of us? Discuss: What is the point of religion? = 1 =
God wants us to be victorious in life and death If you were to die tonight and tonight you were to stand before God in judgment, would God receive you into heaven? I Yes No hope so (Circle one) When God asks you, Why should I let you into heaven? what will you respond? What does God demand from us? Read Matthew 5:48. What does God demand from us? Read Hebrews 12:14. How does God require us to be? Read Luke 10:25-28. How must we love God and our neighbor? What does God see in us? God demands: + Perfection + Holiness + No sin (no imperfection) = Read Romans 3:10-12. What does God see instead of perfection? Read Revelation 21:8. What is the destiny of all who stand imperfect before God? Why can t we save ourselves? God sees: + No perfection + No holiness + Much sin (imperfection) = Human religions and philosophies have come up with all kinds of schemes that propose to fix the broken relationship with God and humankind. Perhaps you ve heard some of these schemes or perhaps you ve used some of them yourself. = 2 =
What man-made solutions do people offer to deal with the problems of their sin and pending judgment? God s solution to our problem God recognized that we human beings cannot make ourselves right with him, so he earned our salvation for us through Jesus, our substitute. Read Hebrews 4:15. This passage is talking about Jesus. What was he like? Read Galatians 4:4,5. Why did God send Jesus into the world? Read 2 Corinthians 5:21. Use the images below to depict God s great exchange: How does God s solution become ours? Read Mark 1:15. What does Jesus invite us to do? Read 1 Timothy 1:15. This was written by an apostle named Paul. How did he consider himself? Read Acts 16:30,31. What did the apostles tell the jailer? Read John 3:16-21. What change takes place in believers? In a believer God sees: + The perfection of Jesus + Sins that have been washed away = = 3 =
What blessings come from trusting Christ? Read Ephesians 1:7. In Christ we have. Read Galatians 5:22,23. God s Spirit produces in us. Has your answer changed from earlier? Are you certain that if you died tonight, you would go to heaven? I Yes No hope so How would you respond to God s question, Why should I let you into heaven? For study at home Find God s blessings by studying and growing throughout the week! 1. Complete the Search the Scriptures assignment. 2. Complete the Lesson One Worksheet, including the Questions for Discussion. 3. Memorizing portions of Scripture lets you take God s Word with you in your heart wherever you are and offers tremendous blessings as you meditate. Learn the following passages by heart: John 3:16 God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 1 Timothy 1:15 Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners of whom I am the worst. 4. Memorize the following books of the New Testament in order: Matthew Acts Galatians Mark Romans Ephesians Luke 1 & 2 Corinthians Philippians John Colossians 5. Read the following selections from Scripture, and be prepared to discuss them with the group. You may have questions you wish to ask, or you may wish to talk about points that you found interesting in the readings. Day One (the day after our class): Romans chapters 1 and 2 Day Three (the third day after our class): Romans chapters 3 and 4 Day Five: Romans chapters 5 and 6 = 4 =
Search the Scriptures Study Romans 3:19-26. 1. What is the world s relationship with God? (v. 19) 2. By the law is meant the commandments of God. How is it impossible to be declared righteous before God? (v. 20). 3. To be successful on judgment day we need righteousness, and we ve seen that righteousness cannot be achieved by the law. Where does the righteousness we need come from? (v. 22) 4. What is the common plight of all human beings? (v. 23) 5. How does God justify us (declare us not guilty )? (v. 24) 6. Who took our place under God s punishment? (v. 25) Consider: How did Jesus sacrifice on the cross satisfy the requirements of God s justice and illustrate his mercy? Lesson One Worksheet True or False Place a T or an F in front of each statement to indicate whether it is true or false. 1. God s justice requires that he punish sin otherwise, he would not be a just God. 2. God can forgive the sins of people who have never heard about Jesus, as long as they try to obey him. 3. Without faith, it is impossible to please God. 4. A believer despairs of his or her own righteousness and trusts only the righteousness of Jesus. 5. People who trust in Jesus are holy and perfect in God s sight. 6. A person who loves and trusts in Jesus wants to obey him. 7. God punished Jesus in our place, so we don t have to be punished for our sins. 8. Christians who live good lives are less sinful than criminals, prostitutes, drug dealers, and dictators. 9. The good news of the Bible is that Jesus came to be an example we can now follow to win eternal life. 10. God takes wicked people and declares them righteous in Christ. = 5 =
Questions for Discussion Write your thoughts about the following questions in the spaces provided. We will discuss your answers in class. Please note that the questions can be examined from a number of different angles, so think of possible answers and explore them thoroughly. Use the Scripture references provided. If I am saved by Jesus sacrifice on the cross and salvation is a free gift from God, then I can do anything I want, trusting that God will always forgive my sins for Jesus sake. (See Galatians 5:16-18; Romans 6:1-4; John 14:15.) If only repentance and faith in Jesus are required for eternal life, then even the worst sinners such as Joseph Stalin, Adolf Hitler, and Jeffrey Dahmer (serial killer and cannibal) can be saved simply by trusting in Jesus. (See 1 Timothy 1:15; Romans 3:23,24.) God demands that for us to enter heaven we must be entirely perfect, holy, and without sin yet we know that it is impossible for us to be perfect as God demands. Is God unfair in demanding the impossible of us? (See Psalm 5:4-6; Romans 3:21.) = 6 =