{"id":1098,"date":"2014-08-30T16:03:40","date_gmt":"2014-08-30T23:03:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/?p=1098"},"modified":"2014-08-30T16:04:23","modified_gmt":"2014-08-30T23:04:23","slug":"week-four-book-notes-beholding-the-god-in-the-face-of-jesus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/?p=1098","title":{"rendered":"Week Four \u2013 Book Notes \u2013 Beholding God in the Face of Jesus"},"content":{"rendered":"

Week Four \u2013 Book Notes \u2013 Beholding God in the Face of Jesus<\/strong><\/p>\n

Introduction: Isaiah 40:5 He wrote a message that God gave him about something in the future, something that would happen after the Babylonian exile.\u00a0 He wrote about the great hope of mankind when he wrote:\u00a0 Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed, And all flesh will see it together; For the mouth of the Lord has spoken<\/strong>.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Jesus is the glory of the Lord revealed to all mankind.\u00a0 The NT bears witness to His divinity and His character.\u00a0 The objective this week to seek to grasp a little more than you previously had about the glory of our Lord, Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n

The video lesson focused on the wonderful fact that God\u2019s people have throughout history been captivated with God\u2019s Son.\u00a0 The adoration of Christ has been the mark of the true Christian for the past two thousand years.\u00a0 One of the reasons we might have become bored with Jesus is might be because we haven\u2019t gotten a proper, biblical view of Jesus.\u00a0 Seeing Jesus clearly is part of the path to a biblical view of God as He is revealed in His Son.<\/p>\n

Charles Spurgeon:\u00a0 My soul, never be satisfied with a shadowy Christ.\u00a0 I cannot know Christ through another person\u2019s brains.\u00a0\u00a0 I cannot love him with another man\u2019s heart and I cannot see him with another man\u2019s eyes.\u00a0 I am so afraid of living in a second-hand religion.\u00a0 Lord save us from having borrowed communion. No, I must know him myself.\u00a0 O God, let me not be deceived in this. .\u00a0 I must know him on my own account<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Day One<\/strong>:\u00a0 The Invisible God made Visible to Us Where does a person see God\u2019s character most clearly displayed?\u00a0 \u00a0Is it in His creation?\u00a0 Is it when we experience a personal rescue?\u00a0 Is it in His judgments? \u00a0No, according to the Bible, in Hebrews, God has made the invisible (Himself) visible to us through Christ.<\/p>\n

John 1:14 – And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. . . . <\/strong><\/p>\n

Col 1:15 – He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation<\/strong>.\u00a0 When the writer of Colossians uses the word image, Paul uses a word that was commonly used for the image stamped upon a coin.\u00a0 Jesus is the real and visible expression of the invisible God.\u00a0 Distinct and yet so like Him, Jesus made God in all His glorious fullness apparent to us<\/em>.<\/p>\n

John 1:18 – No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him<\/strong>. The word for \u201cdeclared\u201d had different uses.\u00a0 What is the common thread among these usages?<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. A person drawing water out of a well.<\/li>\n
  2. A poet interpreting a difficult passage of his poem.<\/li>\n
  3. A lawyer explaining the law.<\/li>\n
  4. A person revealing a thing once hidden (as an artist unveiling a painting)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    I see the thread as revealing or bringing forth something that was either hidden of difficult to reach. \u00a0To better understand this, the book uses Hebrews Chapter one. Written in late 63 AD or early 64 AD, the attention of the church had drifted in the 30 years of growth and then persecution. \u00a0The temple had not yet been destroyed, and God\u2019s prescription for a drifting church is to highlight (1) The superiority of Christ and (2) to provide a warning to those tempted to drift away from keeping their eyes on Jesus.<\/p>\n

      \n
    • Calls Him Son – Hebrews 1:5 \u2013 For to which of the angels did He ever say, \u201cYou are My Son, Today I have begotten You\u201d? And again, \u201cI will be a Father to Him And He shall be a Son to Me\u201d?<\/strong><\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

       <\/p>\n

        \n
      • Calls Him God – Hebrews 1:8 \u2013 But of the Son He says, \u201cYour throne, O God, is forever and ever, And the righteous scepter is the scepter of His kingdom<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
      • Calls Him Creator – Hebrews 1:10 \u2013 And, \u201cYou, Lord, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the works of Your hands<\/strong>;<\/li>\n
      • Calls Him Eternal – Hebrews 1:12 \u2013 And like a mantle You will roll them up; Like a garment they will also be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will not come to an end<\/strong>.\u201d<\/li>\n
      • Calls Him Victor – Hebrews 1:13 – But to which of the angels has He ever said, \u201cSit at My right hand, Until I make Your enemies A footstool for Your feet\u201d<\/strong>?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        By acknowledging all these traits in Jesus, God the Father also confirmed that they were part of His character. \u00a0When we look at Jesus, the Father is revealed to us.\u00a0 You are seeing God most clearly when you see Him reflected in the life of Jesus.\u00a0 This should impact the way we study our Bibles.\u00a0 It requires a serious approach to the Scriptures on the part of every believer.<\/p>\n

         <\/p>\n

        Day Two<\/strong> \u2013 Silhouettes and OT Songs of Hope \u00a0Remember the years when you did your silhouettes in grade school? \u00a0We have some of those at home and if I didn\u2019t know my grandchildren, having watched them grow up, I might not be able to identify which one was which because a silhouette is just the shadow of the person. \u00a0The details are not there and perhaps that is what is so enduring about them. \u00a0In the OT, there are many descriptions of Jesus that are merely the shape or shadow of Who He is.\u00a0 Because we NT believers know Him, we can recognize some of the silhouettes because we known the full version.\u00a0 But for those who do not know Him, it is not as clear.\u00a0 And those who refuse to see Jesus as God will not be able to see Jesus in the OT.\u00a0 It is said that Isaiah sings of God\u2019s glory with the clearest of voices in some of his \u201cServant Song\u201d chapters.\u00a0 (Chapters 42, 49, 50 and 53)<\/p>\n

        In Isaiah 42 \u2013 Christ is introduced as a Servant. \u00a0Read Vs. 2, 3, and 4 and describe what you read. \u00a0Verse 8 is one of the key verses to explain the deity of the trinity.\u00a0 Why would a person use this verse to define the godhead?<\/p>\n

        In Isaiah 53 \u2013 this is the final chapter in which the Servant accomplishes all that God has given Him to do by dying at the hands of His own people. \u00a0\u00a0What does this reflect about the character of God?<\/p>\n

         <\/p>\n

        Day Three<\/strong> \u2013 God is seen by Man Since the OT provides a shadowy silhouette of Jesus; the four Gospels are the coming of this great Person into man\u2019s world, that man might clearly see God through the Son.\u00a0 There are enemies of this truth and the problem with these enemies (viruses) is that their favorite host is found in the life of a religious person\u2019s life.<\/p>\n

          \n
        1. The first enemy is a casual familiarity with the biblical description of Jesus. \u00a0\u00a0This is easy to imagine.\u00a0 What are some things in our lives where a casual familiarity with it, deadens us to the beauty of the object? \u00a0(Our family, our jobs, our spouse, our health, our blessings etc.) We forget to be amazed with the common place.\u00a0 There is a song \u2013 can\u2019t remember who sings it \u2013 \u201cDon\u2019t let me lose my Wonder\u201d. \u00a0This is the heart of the person who refuses to permit God or Jesus to become ordinary or common place.<\/li>\n
        2. The second enemy is a tendency to read every passage about Jesus as if it is primarily about us.\u00a0 The reason this is hard is because we know we have been rescued but although Jesus came to seek and to save that which is lost, if you asked Jesus He would tell you His primary goal was to glorify the Father. \u00a0You and I are the fortunate recipients of the work the Son did while living to please the Father. Because Christ\u2019s aim was to glorify and obey God the Father, we are the recipients of redemption.\u00a0 We so often look into the Bible to find what is there for us \u2013 we should be asking what each passage reveals to us about the Father.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          John 2:13-22 \u2013 Jesus cleanses the Temple.\u00a0 Can we see the characteristics of God in this act? \u00a0(Holiness \u2013 Psalms 5:4; Sovereignty \u2013 Psalm 103:19; Zeal for His Reputation \/ Name \u2013 Isaiah 48:11)<\/p>\n

          John 4:7-39 \u2013 Jesus and the Woman at the Well. \u00a0Can we see the God\u2019s quality in this act? \u00a0(Fullness \u2013 John 1:14, 16; Mercy \u2013 Micah 7:18)<\/p>\n

           <\/p>\n

          Day Four<\/strong> \u2013 The Glory of Jesus fills a Prison Cell The NT contains all that the believer needs to understand what he has been seeing of Christ in the OT shadows and the Gospel accounts. \u00a0Colossians is particularly powerful in this regard. The church there was tempted to think they need to add to Jesus by using clever philosophies, Jewish ceremonies, strict rules and worldly self-indulgence. \u00a0Paul brings them to a laser focus on the person of Christ and that in Him is the fullness of God. \u00a0(Col. 2:9-10)<\/p>\n

          Colossians 1:15-19 gives us nine different descriptions of Christ.\u00a0 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities\u2014all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. For it was the Father\u2019s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him<\/strong>,<\/p>\n

           <\/p>\n

           <\/p>\n

          Note the verse where the truth is found.<\/p>\n

          v. 16_ He is the purpose for which all things exist. _____ He is the first-fruit of the resurrection. _____ He is the creator. _____ He is the visible expression of the invisible God. _____ He is the living and governmental head of His Church. _____ His humanity is the dwelling place of the fullness of God. _____ He is preeminent, holding the highest place of honor. _____ He is heir (possessing all the rights of the firstborn). _____ He is eternal, existing before creation.<\/p>\n

           <\/p>\n

          Using the example from the video \u2013 apply these principles about Christ to your own life:<\/p>\n

            \n
          1. What is this passage telling me about Jesus?<\/li>\n
          2. What do I see here that is worthy of my adoration?<\/li>\n
          3. What do I see in Jesus that is worthy of my trust?<\/li>\n
          4. How do the things I see to be true of Jesus affect the way I call upon Him in prayer?<\/li>\n
          5. Even if there are no commands in the passage, what have I learned that affects the way I submit to Him?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

             <\/p>\n

            Day Five<\/strong> \u2013 Blinded Eyes Much of what we see today in the religious world in not characterized by a preoccupation with Jesus. \u00a0And if we are honest in our reflection, we might even find we are not enamored with a love and interest in Jesus. \u00a0He points out that a person doesn\u2019t have to alive spiritually to:<\/p>\n

              \n
            • Be active in the local church.<\/li>\n
            • Be emotional moved by sermons, songs or testimonies.<\/li>\n
            • Be loyal to the right beliefs about the Bible.<\/li>\n
            • Be sacrificial in service.<\/li>\n
            • Be faithful in daily Bible reading.<\/li>\n
            • Be zealous in evangelism and missionary efforts.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

              No one is immune to such attacks. \u00a0The question to ask ourselves:\u00a0 Is Christ Himself the attraction in Christianity for you?<\/p>\n

               <\/p>\n

               <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
              \u00a0<\/strong><\/td>\nPeople who Love Christ<\/strong><\/td>\nPeople who love Religion<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
              1<\/td>\nWant to hear sermons about Jesus<\/td>\nWant to hear sermons about how they can fix their problems<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
              2<\/td>\nCount all things loss that they may know Him<\/td>\nWant Jesus Plus something<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
              3<\/td>\nLook forward to quiet times<\/td>\nFeel quiet times are a bore<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
              4<\/td>\nCome to church to focus on Christ<\/td>\nCome to church to be entertained, to feel they have a purpose<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
              5<\/td>\nBelieve that Jesus\u2019 obedience and death are the only things that can make them acceptable to God<\/td>\nHope in something they have done or sacrificed or will yet do<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
              6<\/td>\nAre merciful<\/td>\nAre critical<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
              7<\/td>\nAre interested in Jesus because of Who He is<\/td>\nAre interested in Jesus because He is useful<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
              8<\/td>\nLove to exalt Christ<\/td>\nLove to be recognized and praised<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
              9<\/td>\nAre not easily offended<\/td>\nAre often offended<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
              10<\/td>\nOften lay down their rights<\/td>\nOften demand their rights<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

               <\/p>\n

              If you don\u2019t find beauty in Christ it should alarm you but not paralyze you. \u00a0There is a silver lining to this cloud.\u00a0 The solution is found in rediscovering the beauty in the Savior. Knowing Him must be our goal.\u00a0 The remarkable effects of loving Him are secondary. \u00a0Knowing Jesus is life<\/strong>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

              Week Four \u2013 Book Notes \u2013 Beholding God in the Face of Jesus Introduction: Isaiah 40:5 He wrote a message that God gave him about something in the future, something that would happen after the Babylonian exile.\u00a0 He wrote about …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":770,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[53],"tags":[59,58],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1098"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1098"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1098\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1144,"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1098\/revisions\/1144"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/770"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1098"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1098"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hobart-community-church.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1098"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}