Canon Tony Butterworth
The Vicarage,
Schofield
St.
Leigh, Lancs.
I
WN7 4HT
I
: 01942
673619
tony@christchurchpennington.com
I christchurchpennington.com
SESSION
ONE
Charity
No. 1130715
Thursday, 3 March 2016
JESUS
(For the purposes of tonight, we need to accept no more about the Bible than it was a
reasonably true historical record of events. This is accepted by even the most sceptical scholars.)
If you would like to take further the basic accuracy of the New Testament texts, then there
are various books, for example:
The New Testament Documents – Are they reliable
Prof. F.F. Bruce IVP
The Books and the Parchments
Prof F.F. Bruce Pickering & Inglis
Ring of Truth
J.B. Phillips Hodder
JESUS WAS THE SON OF GOD?!
Many people would say this, and it is true as far as it goes, but it is very unclear,
because it tells us very little about what we really mean. All it does is re-phrase the question
to - What do you mean by 'Son of God'?
1.
JESUS WAS A MAN
Jesus was truly human. He was everything that you and I are in our human nature.
(Bible verse)
He grew
Luke 2:52
He was hungry
Mtt. 4:2
He was ignorant (i.e. He did not know things!)
Mark 13:32
He showed emotion (e.g. He cried)
John 11:35
He was weary
John 4:6
He Sweat
Luke 22:44
He was angry?
Luke 19:45f
(NIV page)
(1029)
(967)
(1019)
(1078)
(1066)
(1058)
(1054)
All this showed him to be a REAL, TRUE AND TOTAL MAN.
He was no ghost or angel which is what most of the early heretical groups believed.
BUT THIS IS NOT ALL THERE IS MORE TO JESUS THAN HUMANITY, BUT NOT LESS!
(Bible verse)
2.
JESUS WAS ___________ ?
He forgave sin
(See Is. 43:25)
Luke 5:20
He had power in himself
Luke 5:13
He claimed to be:
Pre-existent
John 8:58
God (Son of God)
Luke 22:70
Equal with God
John 10:30
Mtt. 28:19
Friends saw him as God
John 20:28
Acts 3:6
(NIV page)
(1032)
(1032)
(1075)
(1059)
(1077)
(1001)
(1090)
(1095)
106746762
Associate Minister: Rev Eric White, 18 Clifton Rd, Leigh. WN7 3LS | 01942 678758 | ericandjackie.white@btinternet.com
Curate: Rev Lloyd Lee,
11 Ruby Grove, Leigh. WN7 4JW
|
01942 607695
|
lloyd_lee@yahoo.co.uk
Page 1 ( of 3)
John 1:1
(1063)
3.
JESUS WAS ONE COMPLETE PERSON.
As we read the gospels we are struck by the unity of the person of Jesus. There are not
two people acting within the one body of Jesus, so that he is a schizophrenic, acting like a
man at one moment and something other at the next moment.
No! He is seen throughout as one indivisible unity, functioning and acting as one
person.
4. WHO WAS JESUS?
a. He was a Good Man?
No! It is impossible from the evidence to call Jesus a 'good man'. What good man would
claim to be God, accept worship, forgive sin and so on! Good men are all to aware of their
frailty and inadequacy; in fact this is often a sign of their great goodness.!
b. He was a lunatic?
Maybe Jesus was actually a schizophrenic, at one moment being perfectly sane, and at
the next acting like a mad man.
However:
Do the gospels reveal this Jekyll and Hyde kind of personality?
Would hard bitten fishermen be willing to die for such a person?
c. He was a con man?
Perhaps Jesus was an evil man manipulating people for his own convenience. However:
Are con-artists willing to die that kind of death?
Would he have produced such deeply moral teaching from such a base?
d. He was telling the truth?
If Jesus was actually telling the truth, then it would make so much perfectly clear.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
It would say why he was able both to forgive sin (as God) and at the same time
appeared to be humble.
It would say why his teaching is the most godly in human history.
It would say why the fishermen were willing to die for him.
It would say why he appears to have a unity of person in the gospels.
It would say why he rose from the dead.
THERE ARE NO OTHER ALTERNATIVES THAN THESE .... which will you accept?
Canon Tony Butterworth
The Vicarage,
Schofield
St.
Leigh, Lancs.
I
WN7 4HT
I
: 01942
673619
The evidence shows....
HE WAS REAL, TRUE AND TOTAL GODtony@christchurchpennington.com I christchurchpennington.com
HOW DOES THE CHURCH SEE JESUS? Charity No. 1130715
Thursday, 3 March 2016
JESUS
MAN
GOD
ONE PERSON
This has been the response of the orthodox Christian church throughout the ages.
For example:
The Nicene Creed
Article 2 (The 39 Articles are the Basis of the C. of E. belief)
(Found at the back of the old prayer book)
Where is He now?
Mark 16:19
(1024)
Romans 8:34
(1135)
Act 1:11
1 Thess. 4:14-16
Phil. 1:23
Luke 23:45
2 Cor. 5:10
(1092)
(1188)
(1179)
(1061)
(1161)
What is He doing?
Will we ever see Him again?
Yes!
1. At His return.
or
2. At death for the Christian
or
3. At Judgement for all
NOTE:
1.
If Jesus is man then He understands how we feel.
2.
If Jesus is God then we can believe what He believed about the things of God.
NEXT WEEK WE WILL LOOK AT JESUS' VIEW OF THE BIBLE.
HOMEWORK:
Read Matthew Chapters 5, 6 and 7
and
1.
Make a list of verses where Jesus quotes the Old Testament.
(Hints: look at the bottom of the pages in the footnotes,
some versions have them in capital letters.)
2.
Think how Jesus uses the Old Testament and fits his own teaching in with it.
106746762
Associate Minister: Rev Eric White, 18 Clifton Rd, Leigh. WN7 3LS | 01942 678758 | ericandjackie.white@btinternet.com
Curate: Rev Lloyd Lee,
11 Ruby Grove, Leigh. WN7 4JW
|
01942 607695
|
lloyd_lee@yahoo.co.uk
Page 3 ( of 3)