Tag: John the Baptist

Living in the Image of God, The Gospel

Learning from John the Baptist Introduction of Jesus

Living in the Image of God M07S04

John the Baptist introduction of Jesus provides a biblical example for recognizing and promoting the value of others. He was charged with the responsibility of introducing Jesus to the human community starting with the Jews. His task in the introduction consists of a spiritual component and a socio-community component. This bible study focuses on the latter. He was to introduce Jesus as a person of high value to the community. He explained the value of Jesus using the spiritual basis to distinguish between Jesus and himself. By so doing, he provides a message of explaining the value of others by elevating what is known about them. If you are in position to introduce another person, provide a cheerful and enthusiastic presentation of his or her positive attributes to elevate their value. Provide only truthful information and do not exaggerate.

The introduction of Jesus by John the Baptist provides an example for recognizing and promoting the value of others to a community. His responsibility to introduce Jesus consists of a spiritual component and a socio-community component. Accounts of the introduction are provided in the Gospel versions by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The account in the Gospel according to John focuses on the spiritual component: “And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit. I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.’” [John 1:33–34].

This bible study focuses on the socio-community component of the introduction, whereby John the Baptist introduces Jesus as a person of high value to the community [John 1:26–27]: “‘I baptize with water,’ John replied, ‘but among you stands one you do not know. He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.’” A similar message occurs in Mark: “After me comes the one more powerful than I, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie” [1:7] (Also, see Matthew 3:11 and Luke 3:16).

To understand the introduction, understand that John the Baptist was highly respected in the community. People followed him to hear his message and be baptized: “The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering in their hearts if John might possibly be the Messiah” [Luke 3:15]. He used the people’s high expectation of him as a point of reference to create anticipation for the value of Jesus. The high expectation that John established through the introduction is right for Jesus but also points to the responsibility of a person that is called upon to introduce another person, whether ordinary or extraordinary.

Start by understanding the value of the person that you are called to introduce. Focus on his or her positive attributes, to identify the person’s potential value to the community. Determine an approach to elevate the values without exaggerating. Provide a cheerful and enthusiastic presentation to create a positive anticipation. Leave any negative attributes. Those could become important when assessing the person for a specific task. The responsibility of introducing a person to the community calls for creating a positive anticipation, similar to the introduction of Jesus by John the Baptist.

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Individual Responsibility, Living in the Image of God

Sharing Things

Living in the Image of God M05S21

The study discusses the message of sharing from Isaiah, John the Baptist, and Apostle Paul to understand that sharing involves sacrificing something to benefit others in need. Sharing means caring for self-interest and the interest of others simultaneously, by recognizing that two or more can benefit from a supply of goods or service, either owned individually or collectively. Consistent with Christ teaching on compassion, a person earns blessing by giving up something to provide for others in need; that is, blessing through sharing by accepting less to accommodate the interest of others. Thus, sharing breeds goodwill because God blesses those that sacrifice something to benefit others in need. Therefore, a person that provides something for people to share has provided them an opportunity to share goodwill. This philosophy of goodwill by sharing is captured by a saying among Ndigbo of Nigeria that he who brings kola brings life. Life comes from sharing kola because of goodwill that comes from each participant accepting less so that others may get a share.

Sharing Things 20:43

This study seeks better understanding that God associates sharing with sacrifice and compassion. Sharing means caring for self-interest and the interest of others simultaneously and often involves accepting less so that others may get a share, from a supply of goods or service owned collectively or individually.

We discuss God’s message regarding sharing from Isaiah, John the Baptist, and Apostle Paul: to understand that God blesses those that share what they have to benefit the interest of others. Sharing is equivalent to sacrificing something in order to provide for the need of others. Therefore, consistent with Christ teaching on compassion, God blesses those that share what they have to benefit others in need.

Sharing breeds goodwill, because people provide mutual opportunities to earn blessing when they share things. Thus, a person that provides something for people to share has provided them an opportunity to share goodwill. This philosophy of goodwill by sharing is captured by a saying among Ndigbo of Nigeria that he who brings kola brings life. Each participant in sharing kola often accepts less so that others may get a share, which means the participants make mutual sacrifice to extend the benefits to others. Life comes from sharing kola because of goodwill that comes from sharing.

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The Gospel

Living in the Image of God: The Beatitudes

Christ’s Teaching on Positive Human Interaction

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The Beatitudes. wikipedia.org
The Beatitudes. wikipedia.org

We begin our study of Christ’s direct teaching with a two-part discussion of the Sermon on the Mount: Christ’s elaborate sermon recorded in Matthew 5–7. The sermon was a teaching on living in the image of God, which we have also described as “positive human interaction:” i.e., living and interacting with people for the purpose of representing God in everything we do and accomplishing the objectives for which he created us. The sermon consists of two parts. In the first part, he provides the principles of living in the image of God. In this study, we identify the principles as eight steps, which are described in the bible as the Beatitudes. In the second part, he describes specific examples of application of the principles.

THE BEATITUDES Part 1 of our two-part discussion focuses on the Beatitudes: the first part of the Sermon on the Mount. The Beatitudes describe eight steps (or principles) for living in the image of God. The first three Beatitudes describe human relationship with God, the third through eighth describe human interactions, with an overlap in the third Beatitude because it applies to both human relationship with God and human interactions.

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The Gospel

John the Baptist Message of Positive Human Interaction

Repent and Turn to Living in the Image of God

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The Sermon of St John the Baptist. wikipedia.org
The Sermon of St John the Baptist. wikipedia.org

The angel that foretold the birth of John the Baptist said of him [Luke 1:16–17]: “He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” We examine the message of John the Baptist in this bible study, to understand his approach to his mission and how his teaching applies to present-day human interaction. The state of human interaction as he saw it was dominated by predator-versus-prey type relationships, whereby people sought to cheat others if they could. He preached a message of repentance [Matthew 3:2; Luke 3:3], that people had to repent from the life of preying on each other and turn to God’s ways in order to be acceptable into God’s kingdom. We examine other parts of the Scripture to understand that “God’s ways” refers to a state of human interaction characterized by mutual provider-receiver relationships, in which every person is a conveyor of the image of God and a channel for God’s compassion.

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The Gospel

Parent Child Relationships Based on Birth of Jesus

God’s Purpose for Parent Child Relationships

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BIBLE STUDY SERIES ON THE GOSPEL This is the first session in a Banking Blessings Ministry bible study series focused on the gospel. In the series, we study the life and teachings of Jesus as recorded in the gospel according to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The objective is to use information from his life and teaching to improve our understanding of God’s purpose for human interactions and relationships.

STUDY SESSION ON BIRTH OF JESUS In this session of the series, we examine God’s interactions with Mary and Joseph regarding the birth of Jesus to learn his purpose for parent-child relationships. Through the study, we learn that parenthood is an appointment from God. He may choose to convey the appointment through biological or non-biological means, but the choice does not affect the nature or significance of the parent-child relationships. For example, God assigned fatherhood of Jesus to Joseph, a descendant of Abraham through David, and through the appointment fulfilled his promise to Abraham that “all peoples on earth will be blessed through you” [Genesis 12:3]. Also, we learn that when God presents an opportunity, he allows the recipient freedom to accept or decline the opportunity.

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