Bible Information There are 66 books divided in two
major collections, The Old Covenant or Old Testament consists of 39 books
and the New Covenant or New Testament contain 27 books.
Discipleship
Ministries
DSMN 500 This paper will discuss the five stages and four spheres of discipleship, the stage
and level of discipleship of the author, what is needed to submit to the
centrality of Christ by Bonhoeffer’s call for the cross and what it means to
submit to Christ.
Spheres of Discipleship The four spheres of discipleship are: “relationship to
God, with God’s family and church, in the home life, and relationship to the
world.”[12]
The three spheres surround the foundation, which is the personal relationship
with Christ to “abide in Christ …to bear fruit” (Jn 15).[13]
Furthermore, to disciple someone it is all about connecting that person to
Jesus as head (what Jesus teaches), heart (change of) heart and hands (follow
and do Jesus work).[14]
Putman, Harrington, and Coleman said it
best about Paul in Ephesians 2: 8-10, “we are not accidents …planned …born
again spiritually …even though dead in our sins …we are saved by grace through
faith, to do good works that God predestined for us to do before time began.”[15]
Sphere two is relationships within the family of God. Every
disciple of God has a responsibility to be obedient in Christ, faithful to God,
and to other relationships. Jesus said the greatest commandment is to “Love the
Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your
mind” (Mt 22:37). However, the second sphere relates to second greatest commandment
is like unto it “…Love your neighbor as yourself” (Mt 22:39).
Sphere three is the relationships at home. The family at
home will have direction from the larger family at church. It is about love and
respect and honoring the God Most High. Training should begin in the family as
God is head of the whole family first. It states in the Bible to train up a child
(Pv 22:6), as Paul also talks about this in Ephesians five and six for a godly
home. It says in Ephesians 6: 4, “Fathers, do not exasperate your children;
instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.” So, it is
all about God and others; other relationships. However, each of these spheres
work together because as a Christian goes through his or her life they will
grow and mature in all the different areas to have a personal relationship with
Christ.
Identify Sphere, Submit to Cross and Submission to Christ The sphere I need to submit to the centrality of the
cross is my relationship to God, but it is a continuance of obedience to the
cross. It is stated in all four gospels that Jesus told His disciples “Whoever
wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow
me” (Mt 16: 24). I will forever submit to the cross daily. David Benner says,
“The key to spiritual transformation is meeting God ...in vulnerability …God
wants us to bring our whole self to the divine encounter.”[16]
I thought I was doing that because I was always a Christian knowing about
Christ. However, my Christian walk has changed many times in my life. Earley
and Dempsey say, “In every stage of your growth and development as a disciple,
God’s Will is that you would live your life in such a way that God would be
glorified.”[17] In
each stage of my life I did more and more for the kingdom, but I did not always
glorify God. I knew there still had to be more than what I was doing.
Bonhoeffer talks about suffering for Christ as he says, “It is suffering which
comes from the allegiance to Jesus Christ alone.”[18]. It is Jesus first. It is about dying to oneself.
Bonhoeffer says, “The first Christ-suffering that everyone has to experience is
the call which summons us away from our attachments to this world. It is the
death of the old self.”[19]
He continues to say, “Those who enter into discipleship enter into Jesus’
death. They turn their living into dying …Whenever Christ calls us; His call
leads us to death …with our wishes and desires.”[20]
I died to Christ that day, asking God to take my life instead of my son. I was
freed by anything that had a hold on me. Bonhoeffer continues to say,
“Discipleship is being bound to the suffering Christ. That is why Christian
suffering is not disconcerting. Instead, it is nothing but grace and joy.”[21]
Submission to Christ should be daily, not just when
tempted. It says in Philippians 1: 21-22, “For to me, to live is Christ and to
die is gain …If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor
for me ...” It shows in my fruit to follow Him when I submit to Christ by “including
all manner of attitudes, virtues, and behavior. Every aspect of Christian life
…is the work of the Spirit” and my fruit includes “experiences of joy and peace
within the believing community; attitudes such as gentleness, forbearance,
self-control; and behavior such as love, kindness, [and] goodness.”[22]
John Ortberg says, “Following Jesus simply means learning from Him how to
arrange my life around activities that enable me to live in the fruit of the
Spirit.”[23] Furthermore,
it is the Holy Spirit that directs me daily. Donald Whitney says, “the Holy
Spirit. He is the one who reveals God to us and makes Christ irresistible, who
teaches us the truth of Scripture, who makes alive hearts that were dead toward
God.”[24] Throughout my life I have helped so many
that was abused and molested who need closure. It is more than that; it is my
call to do whatever is God’s Will and to be obedient to that call of Christ. My
stage is stage five, but I am humbled that God called me and set me on my mission;
it is that I am on God’s mission.
Conclusion This paper discussed the five stages and four spheres of
Putman, Harrington, and Coleman’s book. It also talked about the level of
discipleship of the author needed to submit to the centrality of Christ, submit
to the Cross according to Bonhoeffer, and what it means to submit to Christ.
The practical point is one is to submit to Christ daily by “actual living in
the Word.” The Bible is a letter and instructions to people for Christian
living. It is food for one’s soul and without it one will parish. A person can
be a Christian that will just get by and do some of what is required by God.
However, if you believe the Bible is true, then we are commanded to live like
Jesus Christ; love God first, love others and do His Will. It also includes
doing this with a healthy attitude and behavior because it will show in our
fruits of the Spirit to others. I choose to live with my whole heart and soul
for God’s kingdom. I provide for my family’s needs and whatever is needed for
my church. I take time to refresh my relationship to Christ daily as he is my
driving force in love and commitment. I do not look back, only that I can see
where Jesus took me from. Is God in control? Do we have to ask God why things
happen? Yes, He is in control, but no, why question God if He is in
control? If you walk and live in the
Spirit He provides your every need. Jesus died so we can be free, why would
anyone want to be in bondage to the cares of this life? My goal is to bring the
whole world to Jesus. Jesus loves us so much He died for everyone to have an
abundant life in this life and the one to come. I choose to love God and others
with all my strength to do His Will now, tomorrow may be too late.
Bibliography
Benner,
David G. Surrender to Love: Discovering
the Heart of Christian Spirituality. Downers Grove: InterVarity Press,
2003.
Dempsey, Rod. “What is Discipleship”
(video)? Lecture, Liberty University,
Lynchburg, 2014. Accessed September 3, 2014, http://learn.Liberty.edu.
Earley,
Dave, and Rod Dempsey. Disciple Making Is.
Nashville: B & H Publishing Group, 2013.
Fee,
Gordon D. Paul the Spirit and the People
of God. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2011.
Ortberg, John. The Life You’ve Always Wanted: Spiritual Disciplines. Grand Rapids:
Zondervan, 2002..
Putman, Jim, Bobby Harrington, and
Robert E. Coleman. Disciple Shift.
Grand Rapids: Zondervan. 2013.
Whitney, Donald. Spiritual
Disciplines for the Christian Life. Colorado Springs: NavPress, 1991. Footnotes
1 Jim Putman, Bobby Harrington, and Robert E. Coleman, Disciple Shift (Grand Rapids: Zondervan,
2013), 60.
2 Ibid.
3 Ibid., 78.
4 Rod Dempsey, “What is Discipleship” (video)? Lecture, Liberty University, Lynchburg, 2014,
accessed, September 3, 2014, http://learn.Liberty.edu.
5 Unless otherwise
stated all Scripture is from the New
International Version: Archeological Study Bible, (Grand Rapids: Zondervan,
2005).
6 Putman, Harrington, and Coleman, Disciple Shift, 62.
7 Ibid., 64.
8 Putman,
Harrington, and Coleman, Disciple Shift,
60.
9 Ibid., 67.
10 Ibid., 69.
11 Putman,
Harrington, and Coleman, Disciple Shift,
69.
12 Putman,
Harrington, and Coleman, Disciple Shift,
78.
13 Ibid., 85.
14 Ibid.
15 Ibid.
16 David G. Benner, Surrender
to Love: Discovering the Heart of Christian Spirituality (Downers Grove:
InterVarity Press, 2003), 81.
17 Dave Earley
and Rod Dempsey, Disciple Making Is …:
How to Live the Great Commission with Passion and Confidence (Nashville: B
& H Publishing Group, 2013), 16.
18 Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Discipleship
(Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2003), 86.
19 Putman,
Harrington, and Coleman, Disciple Shift,
87.
20 Ibid.
21 Putman,
Harrington, and Coleman, Disciple Shift,
89.
22 Gordon
D. Fee, Paul the Spirit and the People of
God (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2011), 115.
23 John Ortberg, The
Life You’ve Always Wanted: Spiritual Disciplines (Grand Rapids: Zondervan,
2002), 44.
Theology of Missions GLST 500
God’s plan included every nation in the world to hear His Word from Genesis to
Revelation. It is important to know the theology of missions as it has a biblical
and theological foundation based in Christian Theology. This paper will establish
a biblical and theological foundation for global missions and reveal the Old
and New Testament missions, the nature of God and how it relates to missions,
how the theology relates to the trinity and ecclesiology, themes of mission
theology and how it relates to missionaries, church leaders and lay people not
in full-time ministry.
Introduction
The entire Bible is a work of missions. God planned through redemption
His world would be reestablished, as the Bible is about man, his sin and
salvation. It started back in time, as God’s mission in the beginning was that
He planned to reconcile, fallen, rebellious humanity to Himself and to
reestablish His reign over all His creation. In the Old Testament (because of
man’s sin) He sent His angels, prophets His emissaries, His messengers, and then,
God ultimately sent His Son as agents in the story of salvation. God’s plan
included every nation in the world to hear His Word from Genesis to Revelation.
It is important to know the theology of missions as it has a biblical and
theological foundation based in Christian Theology. This paper will establish a
biblical and theological foundation for global missions and reveal the Old and
New Testament missions, the nature of God and how it relates to missions, how
the theology relates to the trinity and ecclesiology, themes of mission
theology and how it relates to missionaries, church leaders and lay people not
in full-time ministry.
Old
Testament Mission
Someone said, “The Old Testament (O.T.) concealed is the
New Testament (N. T.) revealed,” in this format however, it is not the case for
missions. God’s mission in the beginning was to reconcile man to Himself and
reestablish, redeem, and reign over His creation. His reign begins in the Old
Testament in Genesis, throughout the Bible, and until the Book of Revelation
where he gives mankind a picture of His heavenly kingdom. The God of the Bible
who commands attention from the O. T. and the N. T., is a very “personal God
who is not silent, a God who acts, a God who sends …God has engaged human
history with a mission …missions is not about what we do but about who God is.”[1]
[2]
God is the ruler of His own creation as man and the world, so “this brings
together the message of the Old and New Testament because the kingdom of God is
one of the overarching themes of the Bible.”[3]
In the O. T., God makes a covenant with Abraham as it
states in Genesis 22: 17-18, “I will surely bless you and make your descendants
as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants
will take possession of the cities of their enemies” and continues to say, “and
through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have
obeyed me.”[4]
This passage “offspring all nations on earth will be blessed” is clear indication
that it refers to the promise of redemption. This promise in verse 18, points
to the “love of Christ …gave himself a sacrifice for our sins. Yet he lives
…calls to sinners to come to him, and partake of his blood-bought salvation. He
calls to his redeemed people to rejoice in him …glorify him.”[5]
This is also in correlation with Abraham and his son that he did not withhold
his son from being sacrificed to God and God the Father’s Son that was
sacrificed for all mankind’s sins of the world. Some clarity comes in Galatians
3:16, “The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. Scripture does not
say ‘and to seeds,’ meaning many people, but ‘and to your seed,’ meaning one
person, who is Christ.” This promise of blessing was not just for Abraham, but it
was to “his seed” and these are his descendants (numerous as stars and sand).
Furthermore, Christians by faith are his heir (Acts 3:25), as told in Romans
4:16, “Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and
may be guaranteed to all Abraham's offspring-not only to those who are of the
law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham.” The call of missions for
Abraham (God chose Abraham-Gn 18:19) that God said to leave his father’s home
and go (Gn 12:1-3) to the land God wanted him to go to. His country was the “Ur
of the Chaldees …thus his origin is divinely, historically, personally and
geographical orientated. It is neither myth nor legend but history.”[6]
There are many other people sent by God on a mission
such as Noah and his sons, but this paper will center on Jonah. He was
considered the “great missionary book of the Old Testament …Jonah is the single
instance where a prophet has been explicitly sent geography to a Gentile nation
as God’s messenger …to Nineveh …capital cities of the Assyrian Empire.”[7] In this example, Jonah delivered his message
from God; the people repented and asked God for mercy. This is stated in Jonah
3:10, “When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways; he
relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.” This
clearly shows God is a “God of compassion even to the most cruel of nation
(3:10). His covenantal love …extends
even to the Gentiles (4:2).”[8]
New
Testament Mission
The O.T is a clear picture of “God’s sovereignty over
the nations, His desire to bless the nations, and the ultimate inclusion of
them in the kingdom …the vision …is future,” but in the N. T. it is where the
“true servant, the promised Messiah would come as a Savior and a light to the
Gentiles. With Him the Abrahamic promise of blessing to all the families on the
earth comes to fulfillment (Gal 3:13-16).”[9]
First, there has to be a discussion about
redemption, the Holy Spirit and the church, as Ott, Strauss, and Tennent say, “Transformation
in mission occurs with the completion of Christ’s work of redemption, the
coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, and the birth of the church. This
transformation affects every aspect of the New Testament’s depiction of
mission.”[10]
Jesus is the greatest missionary and gives the Great
Commandment to all the disciples of their mission to “…go and make disciples of
all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the
Holy Spirit” (Mt 28:19). There are many
examples in the New Testament missions besides Jesus, such as all the apostles
and Paul. However, there is one that is over looked and that is Jesus and the
Samaritan woman at the well. She questions Jesus of where the people are to
worship and He answers her and says,
Woman, Jesus
replied, believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither
on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know;
we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming
and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit
and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks (Jn 4:21-24).
The words Jesus said to her meant there will come a time of not
worshiping in the temple. Ott, Strauss, and Tennent say that the apostle Paul “emphasizes
that in the age of the Spirit the temple of the Lord is his people … [no] geographical
location …gentiles included in the new people of God, but they themselves
become a living spiritual temple wherever they are.”[11]
In Ephesians 2: 19-22 means that the Jew and Gentile are reconciled through
Christ and the dwelling place is Christ inside our hearts “…And in him you too
are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.”
Because of what Christ did on the cross, Christians are His mission work and
“For we are co-workers in God's service; you are God's field, God's building”
(1 Cor 3:9). Jesus sends out His disciples and the church is now born. The
mission field has moved out from Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and
to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8).[12]
The ends of the earth are now the mission field being co-workers in God’s
service.
Nature
of God that Relates to Missions
God’s nature is all about love. It is the love of God
that He made us for a relationship with Him. It is the love of God that
reestablished a fallen and rebellious mankind to Himself. It is God that sent
His only Son to redeem the world back to Himself. It says in John 3:16, “For
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.” It is Christians that are known
for having God’s love. This love goes to the needs of people. It is the reason
why the missionaries go to the “ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). It states in John 13:35 that the ingredient
found in Christians will be love, as “everyone will know that you are my
disciples, if you love one another.”
George Peters says, “Missionary theology is more
interested in the qualitative aspects of the God of revelation as-God as Spirit
[Jn 4:24], God as light [1 Jn 1:5], and God as love [1 Jn 4:8, 16] (Old
Testament synonyms seem to be ‘the living God, the Holy One, the Lord of Hosts”
he goes on to say that “the ultimate ground of missions rests in the very being
of God.”[13]
Mission
Theology How it Relates to Trinity and Ecclesiology
The
word mission is now referred to what the church is doing as far as mission work.
Timothy Tennent say in Trinitarian theology there is a difference between
“economic trinity and immanent trinity…economic refers to the various ways the
triune God acts in history and interacts with humanity” but he continues to
say, “in human history it is Jesus who sends the church, but …a deeper
perspective of the inner nature of the triune God, it is God the Father who is
the source of all sending.”[14] Furthermore,
in immanent Trinity …refers to the inner life of the Trinity within God’s own
self -the ontology or aseity of God, apart from His actions in relation to
human history.” This is fulfilled in many Scriptures as God the Father who is
the sender of missions in Romans 8: 3 as “sending his own Son” (Gal 4:4;
1 Jn 4:9).[15]
It is God the Father who sends, not the church that sends missionaries. The
Trinity is the “seminal relationship that lies behind all human relationships.”
In ecclesiology, or the church has a mission, it is God
the Father’s mission. The church has its roots in the person and work of Jesus
Christ and it is Jesus Christ who commanded all Christians to go and make
disciples and take the gospel to the ends of the earth. The church began when
there was an assembly of believers with the “Holy Spirit on the day of
Pentecost God’s redemptive activity shifted.”[16] The transition came when this happened (shift
from a single person-Abraham) to many people, because “On that day a New
Testament expression of the people of God, the church, was formed and empowered
for its worldwide mission. This marks the resumption of universal history with
which the Bible begins (Gn 1:1-11).”[17] This beginning of the mandate for the church
to preach the “gospel of the kingdom” and take it to the “nations”[18]
or world is seen in Scripture in Matthew 24: 14, “And this gospel of the kingdom
will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the
end will come.”
Themes
of Mission Theology
There are many themes that run through the Bible. One is
the kingdom of God and other is nations, also one could add peace or shalom.
The themes of “God’s plan for the nation of humanity” and YHWH’s driving will to
be known as God by all nations to the ends of the earth … [and yet another]
God’s purpose for the world,”[19]
they are all seen throughout the Bible. The Trinity is a theme that runs
throughout the Bible, as it is God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit who
are all active in Christians taking God’s purpose for the world to the ends of
the earth. Without the king there would be no kingdom. Without God’s peace
there would be no rest. If YHWH did not want to be known by the nations there
would be no mission to go on to the ends of the earth. Without the message of
the gospel there will be no peace to the nations.
Mission
Theology Relates to Christians
How does mission theology relate to missionaries? A
missionary is an “instrument of the kingdom” to be sent and used by God to take
His message of the gospel to the nations, which the “ultimate goal is that the
earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of God (Is 11:9; Hb
2:14).”[20]
How does mission theology relate to church leaders? This
is where there are needs of the people such as the “ministry to those of
special need-the poor, the sick, the widow, the orphan, the prisoner, the
homeless, and the stranger within the gates” (Rm 12:7; Gal 6: 19) … [and] ministry
of evangelism and cross-cultural mission.”[21]
How does mission theology relate to lay people not in
full time ministry? According to Olson, all Christians are to “witness for
Christ, but not all Christians are called for fulltime, specially gifted
ministry of evangelism. All Christians are to be missionary-minded in obedience
to the Great Commission.”[22]
All people have gifts to give to the kingdom. It says in Ephesians, 4: 11-12,
“So Christ himself gave …the evangelists, the pastors and teachers …to equip
his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.”
Furthermore, God gives gifts to those to use as it says in Romans 12:6-8, “We
have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us.” The point
being every person can be sent or used by God to do His mission work.
Conclusion
The whole Bible is a missionary book. God planned
through redemption His world would be reestablished, as the Bible is about man,
his sin and salvation. God sent His angels, prophets and messengers, and
finally His Son to redeem His people back to Himself and now the body of Christ
to share the gospel. The practical application is to do the work of missions,
whatever the person’s calling. This paper explained the biblical and
theological foundation for global missions in the Old and New Testament, the nature
of God and how it related to missions, how mission theology related to the
trinity and ecclesiology, themes of mission theology and how it related to
missionaries, church leaders and lay people not in full-time ministry. The
theology of missions is the work of God, as God the Father is the source of all sending; however,
the body of Christ is his hands and feet to bring the gospel to the nations.
Bibliography
Glasser,
Arthur, Announcing the Kingdom: The Story
of God’s Mission
in the Bible. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2003.
Accessed September 4, 2014. http://books.google.com.
Olson,
C. Gordon. What in the World is God
doing?: The Essentials of Global Missions an Introductory Guide. Cedar
Knolls: Global Gospel Publishers, 2003.
Ott,
Craig, Stephen J. Strauss, Timothy Tennent. Encountering
Theology of Mission: Biblical Foundations, Historical Developments, and
Contemporary Issues. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2010. Accessed September 4, 2014. http://books.google.com.
Peters, George W., A
Biblical Theology of Missions, Chicago: Moody, 1972
Tennent,
Timothy, Invitation to World Missions: A
Trinitarian Missiology for the 21st Century. Grand Rapids, MI:
Kregel, 2010. Accessed September 4,
2014. http://books.google.com.
Wright,
Christopher, The Mission of God:
Unlocking the Bible’s Grand Narrative. Downers Grove, Ill: Intervarsity,
2006. Accessed September 4, 2014. http://books.google.com.
Footnotes
1. Craig Ott, Stephen J. Strauss, Timothy Tennent, Encountering Theology of Mission: Biblical
Foundations, Historical Developments, and Contemporary Issues. (Grand
Rapids: Baker Academic, 2010), 3. accessed September 5, 2014,
http://books.google.com.
2. Timothy Tennent, Invitation to World Missions: A Trinitarian Missiology for the 21st
Century (Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2010), 105, accessed September 4, 2014,
http://books.google.com.
3. Arthur Glasser, Announcing
the Kingdom: The Story of God’s Mission in the Bible (Grand Rapids: Baker,
2003), 20, accessed September 4, 2014, http://books.google.com.
4. Unless otherwise stated all
Scripture is from the New International
Version: Archeological Study Bible, (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2005).
5. “Matthew Henry Commentary.”
Biblos.com, accessed September 4, 2014, http://biblehub.com/genesis/22-18.htm
6. George W. Peters, A Biblical Theology of Missions (Chicago:
Moody, 1972), n.p, accessed September 4, 2014, http://books.google.com.
7. Ott, Strauss, and Tennent, Encountering Theology of Mission, 19.
8. Ibid.
9. Ibid., 25.
10. Ibid.
11. Ibid.
12. Ibid.
13. Peters, A Biblical
Theology of Missions, n.p.
14. Timothy Tennent, Invitation to World Missions: A Trinitarian Missiology for the 21st
Century Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2010), 76, accessed September 4, 2014,
http://books.google.com.
15. Ibid.
16. Glasser, Announcing the Kingdom, 259.
17. Ibid.
18. Ibid.
19. Christopher Wright, The Mission of God: Unlocking the Bible’s
Grand Narrative (Downers Grove: Intervarsity, 2006), 396, 122, accessed September
4, 2014, http://books.google.com.
20. Glasser, Announcing the Kingdom, 304.
21. Ibid., 309.
The title Genesis is English derived from the Greek translation of toldot, the key word of the book. The septuagint translation is,"this is the book of the genesos of heaven and earth". The Hebrew title of the book is bresit, translated "in the beginning". Past the outline we will give more info on the Hebrew title as most of the O.T. is in Hebrew and the N.T is in Greek.
Both scripture and tradition attribute the Pentateuch to Moses. The early church held to conviction that Moses wrote this book, as did the Jerusalem Talmud and the first century historian Josephus.
GENESIS OUTLINE
I. The Primeval Events (1:1-11:26)
A. The Creation (1:1-2:3)
B. The creation of the heavens and earth (2:4-4:26)
1. The creation of man and the woman (2:4-25)
2. The temptation and the fall (chap. 3)
3. The advance of sin in Cain’s murder of Abel (4:1-16)
4. The spread of godless civilization (4:17-26
C. Adam (5:1-6:8)
1. The genealogy from Adam to Noah (chap.5)
2. The corruption of the race (6:1-8)
D. Noah (6:9-9:29)
1. The judgment by the flood (6:9—8:22)
2. The covenant with Noah (9:1-7)
3. The curse of Canaan (9:18-29)
E. The sons of Noah (10:1—11:9)
1. The table of the nations (chap.10)
2. The dispersion at Babel (11:1-9)
F. The succession from Shem (11:10-26)
II. The Patriarchal Narratives (11:27-50:26)
A. From Terah (11:27-25:11)
1. The making of the covenant with Abram (11:27-15:21)
2. The provision of the promised seed for Abraham whose faith was developed by testing (16:1-22:19)
3. The transition of the promises to Isaac by faithful Abraham
(22:20- 25:11)
B. Ishmael (25:12-18)
C. Isaac (25:19-35:29)
1. The transfer of the promised blessing to Jacob instead of to Esau
(25:19-28:22
2. The blessing of Jacob in his sojourn (chaps. 29-32)
3. The return of Jacob and the danger of corruption in the land (chaps.33-35)
D. The succession from Esau (36:1-8)
E. The succession from Esau, father of the Edomites (36:9-37:1)
F. The succession from Jacob (37:2:-50:26)
1. The selling of Joseph into Egypt (37:2-36)
2. The corruption of Judah’s family and confirmation of God’s choice
(chap. 38)
3. The rise of Joseph to power in Egypt (chaps. 39-41)
4. The move to Egypt (42:1-47:27)
5. The provision for the continuation of the promised blessing (47:28- 50:26)
The Key word for Genesis is BEGINNINGS: the
beginning of almost everything, including the universe, earth, life,
humanity, sabbath, death, marriage, sin, redemption, family, literature,
cities, art, language and sacrifice.
Jewish Bible
The first book of the Torah is known by several different names. The Hebrew name of the first book follows the ancient Near East custom of naming a book by its opening word or words. The first word of the Torah is the Hebrew word Bereshit, which means “in the beginning,” Since this book opens with the creation narrative, it is also called Sefer B’ri’at Ha-Olam, which is “Book of the Creation of the Universe.” Other Hebrew names for this book are Sefer Ha-Yashar or Sefer Ha-Y’sharim, The Book of the Upright (ones),” referring to the lives of the patriarchs whose story is told in this book. This first book is also called Sefer Toldot, “the Book of Generations,” in reference to the ten times the phrase “These are the generations of….”is used. The English title “Genesis” is derived from the Greek and Latin titles found in the Septuagint and Vulgate, which may also be translated as “Orgins”.
It could be argued that the verses of this particular Torah portion are in reality the most important verses in the scriptures. It is in these opening verses of the Torah that we first encounter the Creator of the universe and discover His identity and character. All history has its origin in this opening narrative of creation. We also discover the reality that the universe is not a random or accident of nature, but the fruit of the expressed will of an infinitely intelligent designer. Through this revelation we come to understand that creation has been endowed with value meaning and purpose. It is in these opening verses of the Torah that the family tree of all humanity has its roots and origin.
Torah Portion: Bereshit ______ “In the Beginning”
In the beginning God created heaven and earth
Bereshit bara Elohim et hashamayim ve'et ha'arets
Paul the Apostle and Acts of the
Apostles
Chronology of Acts: There isn't enough data for exact Chronology, but
sufficient to approximate most of the dates. It is known that Herod's death,
(Acts 12:23), was in 44 A.D. Mention of Paul's arrival in Jerusalem about the
time that Herod had James killed (Acts 11:30-12:2); and Paul's departure
from Jerusalem right after the death of Herod, (Acts12:23,35), makes it look
like this was the visit referred to in Galatians 2:1, 14 years after Paul's
conversion. If so, considering Hebrew usage of counting parts of years at the
beginning and end of a period as years, the 14 years may actually have been 13
years, or even less; which would place Paul's conversion about 31 or 32 A.D. This,
with 30 A.D. as a starting point, and 60 A.D. as the known date of Festus'
appointment as governor at Caesarea, (Acts 24:27), the following dates may be
as probably approximately
correct.
Formation of church in Jerusalem, Acts 2.................................…..30
A.D.
Stoning of Stephen, Dispersion of the Church, Acts 7, 8...….........31or 32
A.D.
Conversion of Saul, Acts 9...................................................31
or 32 A.D.
Paul's First Visit to Jerusalem after Conversion.........................34 or
35
A.D.
Conversion of Cornelius, the Gentile........................between. 35 and 40
A.D.
Reception of Gentiles at Antioch, Acts 11....................…….....about...42
A.D.
Paul's Second Visit to Jerusalem, Acts 11: 27-30...............................44
A.D.
Paul's First Missionary Journey, Galatia, Acts 13,14.......................45-48
A.D.
Council at Jerusalem, Acts 15.....................................................….50
A.D.
Paul's Second Missionary Journey, Greece, Acts 16,17,18 ..............50-53
A.D.
Paul's Third Missionary Journey, Ephesus, Acts 19, 20.....................54-57
A.D.
Paul Reached Ephesus,
Acts19................................................…....54
A.D.
Paul Left Ephesus in June, 1 Cor. 16:8...............................................57
A.D.
Paul in Macedonia, Summer and Fall, 1 Cor.
16:5-8..............................57
A.D.
Paul in Corinth Three Months, Winter Acts 20:2-3.........................57-58
A.D.
Paul Left Philippi in April, Acts 20:6...............................…................58
A.D.
Paul Reached Jerusalem in June, Acts
20:16………....……….….…….58A.D.
Paul in Caesarea, Acts 24, 25,36..............Summer 58 A.D.to Fall 60
A.D.
Paul's Voyage to Rome, Acts 27-28..............…...................Winter 60-61
A.D.
Paul in Rome
2Years...........................….........…...................61-63 A.D.
About Paul of Tarsus
PAUL born in the chief city of the Roman province of
Cilicia, Tarsus, Acts 22:3; Acts 21:39, modern day Tersous in southeastern
Turkey in the early years of the first century A.D. Paul was from a Hellenistic
Jewish family who traced their roots to the ancient tribe of Benjamin, Philip.
3:5, and was also son of a Pharisee, Acts 23:6. Paul had a sister and a nephew,
Acts23:16 Paul named Saul at birth was a Jew; but unlike most Jews, he was also
born a Roman citizen Acts 22:27. A freeborn Roman, Acts 22:28 that is, born in
a free city that had all the political rights and privileges of the city of
Rome itself. Paul went to Jerusalem to school and was under the guidance of
Rabbi Gamaliel, Acts 22:3 a doctor of the law, a Pharisee, Acts 5:34. His use
of the Old Testament bears testimony to his rabbinic training. It is not clear
whether his family moved to Jerusalem while he was young or whether Saul was
sent there for his education. His letters attest to excellent Greek, while life
and studies in Palestine presuppose knowledge of Hebrew (spoke in Hebrew tongue
like in Acts 21:40) and Aramaic. Facility in Latin cannot be ruled out.
His writing show intimate knowledge of the Greek Old
Testament, the Septuagint (LXX) (a translation of the Old Testament into Greek
dates to about 200-300 B.C. and comes from the Egyptian city of Alexandria. Its
name and abbreviation (LXX) comes from the fact that a team of seventy-two
scholars did the translation work. The Septuagint provides an early testimony
to the Old Testament text. Sometimes scholars have been able to resolve
difficult readings in the Masoretic text by comparing it to the Septuagint.
Paul was a member of the Pharisees, a strict Jewish sect, and rose to a
position of some eminence. Paul even may have been a member of the Jewish
ruling body, the Sanhedrin. (This was the recognized headship of the Jewish
people originating about the 3rd century which was composed of 70 members,
mostly priests and Sadducean nobles), (Sadducees, a sect thought to have
originated about the same time as the Pharisees. Being guided by secular
considerations, they were in favor of adopting Greek customs. A priestly
clique, and were wealthy and influential. To a great extent they controlled the
Sanhedrin), some Pharisee, scribes, and elders (tribal or family heads), presided
over by the high priest. Paul must have
learned the Greek language at Tarsus in both speaking and writing. At Tarsus
also he learned the trade of tent making Acts 18:3 after which he occasionally
made with his own hands. At the time a goat's haircloth called cilicium was
manufactured in Cilicia, and was largely used for tents.
As a member of the Jewish elite, Paul became a persecutor of
Christians; Acts22:4-5.
His course was changed completely one day on the
road to Damascus Acts 22: 6-16 also Acts 9:1-16 where he meant to capture
Jewish Christians who had fled there seeking refuge. Paul met the risen Jesus
Christ on that day (about 37 A.D.) this is known as Paul's conversion. Some scholars
believe and insist that Paul had personal knowledge of Jesus during Jesus’
earthly ministry. Also believing very possible the young Saul even witnessed
Jesus' death. There is no actual evidence to support this. Paul thereafter
threw himself into missionary work throughout Asia Minor and Greece establishing
many churches and bringing the Gospel to the Gentiles (non-Jew) Acts 9:15. Paul taught on three levels, the Gentiles,
kings, and the children of Israel. Paul always spoke in terms that were
meaningful to a particular audience. This is best demonstrated during his
second missionary journey in the city of Athens when he gave his famous sermon
on Mars Hill. Facing an educated tribunal, he addressed his audience using
logic and Greek poetry.
Known by his Hebrew name Saul until Acts13:9, then is called
Paul (means little, small) from now on. Paul spent various lengths of time in
Arabia, Damascus, and Jerusalem eventually spending along their stint far to
the north in Syria and his native Cilicia (Gal 1:15-21).From there Barnabas
enlisted his services for teaching duties in the church at Syrian Antioch, Acts
11:25. Ironically, this multiracial
church had been founded by Christians driven out of Palestine by persecutions
instigated by (Paul) Saul of Tarsus (Acts 11:19-21). Paul's writings (letters)
arise from the missionary activity and the theological effort required to
educate and sustain those who found Christ through his preaching.
Galatians was probably written following Paul and Barnabas's
tour of the Roman province of Galatia (about 47-49 A.D.). This is the so-called
first missionary journey, Acts 13-14. The first church council meeting was held
at Jerusalem, Acts 15 to rule on the relationship of Gentile Christians to the
Old Testament laws. After the council, Paul and Silas preached in Antioch. Then
they left for Syria and Cilicia. On this second missionary journey, Acts15:36
to 18:22 began about 50 to 53 A.D., where they were to go again to visit their
brethren in every city where they preached the Word of God. They traveled
throughout Macedonia and Achaia, establishing churches in Philippi,
Thessalonica, Berea, Corinth, and Ephesus before returning to Antioch,Acts16:1 to 18:22. There was some contention between Barnabas and Paul because
of John Mark (surname Mark Acts 12:25- The Gospel of Mark) John Mark turned
back from Paul's first journey, Acts 13; 13. The Bible doesn't say why, but now
he wanted to go and Paul thought it not best because Mark departed from them
from Pamphylia and went not with them to work, Acts 15:38. Barnabas took Mark
and they went to Cyprus and Paul chose Silas, Acts 15:40 also called Sylvanus,
and went to Syria and Cilicia confirming the churches. They (Barnabas and Paul)
worked again 1 Cor 9:6 and Col 4:10. Some 12 years later, about 62 A.D. Mark
also appears in Rome with Paul Col 4;10, Marcus sister's son to Barnabas, Mark
was kin to Barnabas. Even 4 or 5years later, Paul just before martyrdom, is
asking for Mark to come to him, 11Tim 4:11. Thus it seems Mark became one of
Paul's beloved helpers. Then Paul finds Timothy in Acts 16, in Lystra and takes
him along. Timothy ever afterward was Paul's unfailing companion. Paul was
seldom without a fellow worker; his partners included Barnabas, Silas, Luke,
and others. He also endeavored to train young Christians, such as John Mark,
Timothy and Apollos, in the work of missions.
The Third Missionary Journey, Acts 18 1:21 was about 54 to
57 A.D. Paul traveled through Galatia, Phrygia, Macedonia, and Achaia
encouraging and teaching the believers, Acts 19:1-to-21: 9. During this time,
he felt compelled to go to Jerusalem; and although he was warned by Agabus and
others of impending imprisonment, Acts 21:10-12 he continued his journey in
that direction. While in Jerusalem, Paul was accosted in the temple by an angry
mob and taken into protective custody by the Roman commander, Acts 21:17-to-22:
29. Now we see Paul as a prisoner and on trial before the Jewish high council
(Acts 23:1-9), Governor Felix, Acts23:23--24:27, and Festus and Agrippa, Acts
25:1-to-26: 32. In any case, Paul gave a clear witness to the Lord. Because
Paul appealed to Caesar, however he was sent to Rome for the final hearing of
his case. But on the way,the ship was destroyed in the storm, and the sailors
and prisoners had to swim ashore. Even in this circumstance Paul shared his
faith, Acts 27:1-28:10. Eventually the journey continued and Paul arrived in
Rome, where he was under house arrest while awaiting trial, Acts 28:11-31. Luke
ends Acts abruptly with the word that Paul had freedom in his captivity as he
talked with visitors and guards, "proclaiming the Kingdom of God with all
boldness and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ. And no one tried to stop
him" (Acts 28:31).
There is no biblical record of Paul's death, but
tradition tells us he was martyred in Rome in the middle of the first century
(mid-to late A.D.60),possibly A.D.65 and was beheaded during the reign of Nero.
Paul is known with certainty to have been the author of Romans, the two
Epistles to the Thessalonians, the two Epistles to the Corinthians, and the
Epistles to the Galatians, Philippians, Philemon, Colossians, and Ephesians. In
addition, tradition credits him as the writer of the two Epistles of Timothy,
as well as Titus, also known as "The Pastoral Letters".
The book of Acts (the events recorded cover a period of 32
years) is the history of how Christianity was founded and organized and solved
its problems. Community of believers began by faith in the risen CHRIST and in
the power by God's Holy Spirit, who enabled them to witness to love, and to
serve. The disciples were empowered by God's Holy Spirit, the promised Counselor and Guide sent when
Jesus went to heaven. In the first century, Christianity spread from believing
Jews to non-Jews in 39 cities and 30 countries, islands, or provinces. The Holy
Spirit's work demonstrated that Christianity was supernatural. Thus, the church
became more Holy Spirit conscious than problem conscious. By faith, any
believer can claim the Holy Spirit's power to do CHRIST'S work. When the Holy
Spirit works, there is movement, energy, and ability to get the Gospel to the
whole world. How are you fitting into GOD'S plan for spreading Christianity?
What is your place in this movement?
*References* The Holy Bible: King James Version by Scofield,
D.D, The Holy Bible translated out of the Original Tongues 1872 KJV,
New International Version,
English Standard Version, and New American Standard Version
