The Ten Basic Steps: Lesson 2-The Central Person of the Bible
Objective: To recognize the entire Bible as God's revelation of Jesus Christ to us.
Read: Acts
17 & 18
Memorize: I
Corinthians 15:3-4
2. What the Apostles Said About Christ and the Old Testament
3. Old Testament Prophesies Concerning Christ Fulfilled in the New Testament
4. Christ, the Central Person of the New Testament
5. Life Application
Jesus is the most remarkable and fascinating person in history. He has inspired more hope, taught more compassion, and shown more love than any other man who has ever lived.
Jesus is the central figure of the Bible. His birth as the Jewish Messiah and Savior of the world was prophesied by Old Testament authors. Their writings contain more than three hundred separate references to the coming of Jesus, with many unique details. Christ fulfilled 100 percent of all the Old Testament predictions of the birth, life, death, and resurrection of the Messiah.
The
New Testament makes an even more revolutionary claim: that Jesus Christ
is the center of all biblical prophecy. The Scripture proclaims:
"Long ago God spoke in many different ways to our fathers through prophets [in visions, dreams, and even face to face], telling them little by little about his plans. But now in these days he has spoken to us through his Son to whom he has given everything, and through whom he made the world and everything there is." (Hebrews 1:1-2)
And the book of Ephesians declares:
"God has told us His secret reason for sending Christ, a plan He decided on in mercy long ago; and this was His purpose: that when the time is ripe He will gather us all together from wherever we are -- in Heaven or on Earth -- to be with Him in Christ, forever." (1:9-10)
The precise fulfillment of the immense body of biblical prophecy is found in one unique and revolutionary Man -- Jesus of Nazareth. Claiming that He was the predicted One of old, Jesus stepped into time. And the pieces of the prophetic puzzle slipped into place. We can clearly see that He was the center of God's revelation to man.
What Christ Said About Himself and the Old Testament
What did Christ
say of the Scriptures in John
5:39?
Read Luke
24:25-27, 44-48. What was Christ's claim concerning the Old Testament
teaching about Himself? What parts of the Old Testament did Christ say
referred to Him? (Verse 44)
What do you think
Christ wants you to understand about the Old Testament from verses 26,
46, and 47?
What the Apostles Said About Christ and the Old Testament
What did Peter
conclude in Acts
3:18?
Keeping in mind
that the New Testament had not yet been written, how did the Apostle
Paul use the Old Testament to show that it contained the "good
news" of Christ? (Acts
17:1-3)
What three things
occurred in Christ's life that Paul said were taught in the Old Testament?
(I
Corinthians 15:3-4)
What did Paul conclude
in Romans
15:8-9 about the ministry of Christ?
Old Testament Prophesies Concerning Christ Fulfilled in the New Testament
All of more than 300 Old Testament prophecies about the first coming of the Messiah were fulfilled in the life of Christ. Here are a few of them.
Compare these Scripture references and record the prophecies fulfilled.
What is your impression
after seeing these Old Testament prophecies and their New Testament
fulfillment?
Christ, the Central Person of the New Testament
The four Gospels
are the history books of Christ's ministry. (Read Matthew
1:1, Mark
1:1, Luke
1:1-4, John
20:30-31.) In what ways did the disciples know Jesus? (I
John 1:3)
Do the four Gospels
purport to record all that Jesus did? (John
20:30) Why were the historical facts and teachings of Jesus Christ
written? (John
20:31)
The Book of Acts
is a historical account of the acts of the Holy Spirit through the Apostles.
Who wrote it? (Luke
1:1-3, Acts
1:1) How do you think the passage in the book of Luke applies to
the Book of Acts?
The Epistles are
letters written to show the church the practical outworking of the life
of Christ in the lives of those who wrote them. By example, they teach
us regarding our membership in the body of Christ, and about our privileges,
responsibilities, and destiny. Read Colossians
2:6-8. What are Christians to do? How are we to do it? Of what are
we to beware? What would you say our greatest responsibility is?
The Book of is
the only New Testament book of prophecy. Read Revelation
1:1-3. This book is the revelation of whom? What is its purpose?
Who gave such knowledge? How was this knowledge given, and to whom?
How will studying Revelation affect your life and under what conditions?
Life Application
How will recognizing
Jesus as the central figure of the entire Bible affect your Old Testament
reading?
What do you see
as your individual responsibility in fulfilling the commands of this
person? (See John
15:16 and Matthew
28:19-20)
 |
 |