NEW TESTAMENT SUVRVEY 1

New Testament Survey : 1
[4th Edition, November 2007]
Page
Lesson 1 The New Testament is “Part 2” of the Bible 1
Lesson 2 The Inter-Testament Period, continued 8
Lesson 3 The World at the time of Jesus’ birth 16
Lesson 4 Matthew 23
Lesson 5 Mark 33
Lesson 6 Luke 40
Lesson 7 John 45
Author:
Eileen Crowhurst
Copyright © 1998 All Africa Bible College
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The New Testament is “part two” of the
Bible
Lesson 1
A. Introduction
The first part of the Bible, the Old Testament, records man’s fall from grace into sin, and
God’s wonderful promise of salvation through the Messiah, as well as the history of
God’s people from their beginning with Abraham to the nation of Israel.
It describes Israel’s captivity in Egypt, deliverance, journey to the Promised Land of
Canaan; as well as the nation’s backslidings, division, second captivity and the final
return to Jerusalem of a very small group, now known as “Jews”.
The New Testament is neither an interruption in God’s overall plan, nor is it an
alternative to God’s original intentions. The New Covenant is a continuation of God’s
plan for mankind, which began in Genesis.
Read Jeremiah 31:31-34
The New Covenant is the fulfilment of Jeremiah’s prophecy.
1. Our goals for this course.
To know the background, purpose, authorship and message of each book.
By the end of our study, you should know:
Who wrote each book?
Who did they write it to?
When did they write it?
What was the purpose in writing it?
What was the point (or points) the author was trying to make?
And finally – How it applies to our lives today.
The above information forms the foundation for a correct perspective of the
New Testament in order to become more settled in our faith, to form correct
doctrine, and to preach and teach the Word of God accurately.
2. The New Testament covers about one hundred years.
The Old Testament covers thousands of years of history.
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The events recorded in the New Testament cover a period of approximately 100
years, beginning shortly before the death of Herod the Great in 4 BC., and ending
with the writing of the book of Revelation about 95 or 96 AD.
This is the period of time that God's promise of a Messiah is fulfilled in Jesus, and
continues through the establishment of the early Christian Church.
3. The New Testament is a New and Better “Covenant”. (Hebrews 8:6)
The word “Testament” in fact means, “Covenant”. Therefore, the Bible consists
of the “Old Covenant”, and the “New Covenant”.
Atonement for sin in the Old Covenant called for the sacrifice of some living
animal. A life for a life!
The guilty person laid his hand on the head of the animal, identifying himself with
it. Then the animal was killed, symbolically taking the sinner’s place. (Leviticus
1:4; 3:2; and 4:4)
It is easy to see by this example that sin merits death, but that God had accepted a
“substitute sacrifice” – another life in place of the sinner’s.
All the Old Testament sacrifices are a picture of what became a reality in the death
of Jesus at Calvary and help us to understand the meaning of His death – Jesus died
as the Lamb of God, our substitute. On the basis of His shed blood, God offers full
and free forgiveness to all who accept Him by faith.
B. The New Testament fulfils the old
Read Hebrews 10:1-7
Read verse 1 again.
1. The Law was only a shadow of the good things to come.
A shadow looks a little like the real thing.
What if we put a chair in the sun so that it casts a shadow?
Would anyone like to sit on the shadow of the chair?
No, of course not! It is only a shadow; it cannot hold a person up.
In the same way, our salvation and relationship with God is not established by
careful keeping of the law’s detailed instructions, but by faith in the atoning death
of Jesus Christ. (Romans 3:20-24)
Faith, not law, was always the way to salvation. (Romans 4:18-21)
A personal relationship with God and reliance on the Holy Spirit, not a struggle to
keep the law, is the way to live a righteous life. (Hebrews 9:14-15)
2. The Law is a Shadow. The Reality is in Christ.
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The requirements of the Law should be seen in our lives – not because we are
trying to keep a lot of rules, but because the love of Jesus is working to transform
us from within, and the Holy Spirit is prompting us to acts of love that fulfil every
demand of the law.
C. We can illustrate the Old and New Testaments like this
OLD TESTAMENT IN CHRIST NEW TESTAMENT
Natural (Physical) Spiritual Fulfilment
Prophetic Reality
Historical Events Personal Experience
What God did What God did What God is doing,
or will do
With the people of the Old Testament With us – you and me
D. Between the Old and New Testaments
Please pay close attention to the information in this section. It is important for an accurate
understanding of the New Testament.
You will benefit by being familiar with the events and circumstances preceding Jesus’
birth.
1. A brief review.
Look carefully at the following summary of Old Testament events:
931 BC King Solomon died and his son, Rehoboam, came to the throne.
And the nation of Israel divided into two kingdoms:
The Northern Kingdom called Israel capital city – Samaria
The Southern Kingdom called Judah capital city – Jerusalem
721 BC The Northern Kingdom, Israel, was conquered by Assyria and scattered
throughout the Assyrian Empire.
606 BC The Southern Kingdom, Judah, was conquered by Babylon and exiled.
586 BC The beautiful Temple, built by Solomon, was completely destroyed.
539 BC Babylon was defeated by the Medes and Persians.
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536 BC King Cyrus of Persia allowed the first group of captives to return to
Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple.
515 BC The Temple was finished.
457 BC The second group of captives returned to Jerusalem.
444 BC The third group returned.
425 BC The walls of Jerusalem were rebuilt.
400 BC The end of the Old Testament writings.
2. The “inter-testament” period.
“Inter-Testament” – that is, the time between the Old and New Testaments.
a) Four Hundred years of silence.
From the return of Judah (now called “Jews”, a shorter word for Judah) to
Jerusalem until the beginning of New Testament times, 400 years passed by.
During this time no prophet spoke or wrote, which is the reason it is called
“The Period of Silence”.
As we come to the time that Jesus was born, it is important that we know
some of the events that happened during these 400, “inter-testament”
years.
b) Remember…
God’s people were defeated and taken captive.
i) The people of the northern kingdom were captured by Assyria.
ii) The southern kingdom was conquered by Babylon, the nation that
defeated Assyria. 136 Years after the northern kingdom was captured,
the southern kingdom went into exile in Babylon.
Later, Babylon was defeated by a nation called Persia.
Seventy years after they were taken captive the Persian King, Cyrus,
released any Jews who wanted to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the
temple and the city.
c) Greece defeated the Persians and many other nations, in 358 BC.
i) Alexander the Great.
Alexander was a young king of Greece, determined to conquer the
world.
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He destroyed the Persian Empire, swept through Syria, Palestine and
Egypt, marching his army as far as India before returning to Greece.
Alexander spread Greek culture, called Hellenism, and established the
Greek language as the common, everyday language of the world at that
time. This was called “koine Greek”.
He died at the age of 33, leaving no heirs. His empire was divided
amongst his four generals.
ii) The “Septuagint”.
In 285 BC the Old Testament was translated into koine Greek.
This version of the Scriptures is called, “The Septuagint”.
The Septuagint quickly became the “Scriptures” of the Jews. It later
became the Scriptures the early church used as well.
Can you see how God was preparing for the spread of the Gospel?
Everyone spoke one language and the Old Testament Scriptures were
available to everyone.
d) Jewish Persecution.
During the time of Alexander the Great, and after his death, Jews were
sometimes treated well, but most of the time they experienced cruelty and
persecution.
Alexander’s generals, who now controlled the Empire, continually fought
with one another. Palestine, sandwiched between two bitter rivals – one
controlling Egypt and the other based in Syria – became a victim of their
rivalry.
Hellenism (Greek culture) was powerful and invaded Jewish spiritual life.
Many Jews abandoned their faith in God entirely in favour of both the Greek
religion and Greek lifestyle.
Also, at this time, the office of High Priest was so corrupted that it was
common practice to sell it to the highest bidder.
Eventually the Syrian king, Antiochus Epiphanes, gained control of Palestine.
His soldiers plundered Jerusalem, tore down its houses and walls and burned
the city.
Jews were sold into slavery, the temple was desecrated (defiled), and
observance of the Law of Moses was forbidden under threat of death.
Jewish worship almost disappeared as people were forced to sacrifice to
idols, but some Jews resisted – this was known as The Maccabean Revolt
because it was led by a family called Maccabees.
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They succeeded in defeating the Syrians, rebuilt the damage done to
Jerusalem, and regained their religious freedom.
However, this newfound freedom did not last long before ambition for power
among the leaders caused internal strife and weakened the country once more.
Palestine was again conquered in 63 BC – this time by Rome.
e) The Roman Empire.
The people of Rome developed the last great empire of the ancient world.
Rome conquered most of the known world at that time, including Greece,
Spain, Italy, Asia Minor, as well as Egypt, Syria, North Africa and Palestine.
Wherever Roman rule went, it brought good roads and public works,
government officials and sometimes entire colonies of Roman citizens.
The Jews had to pay a yearly tax but had some political liberty.
When Rome conquered a nation their aim was to make them good subjects of
Rome.
Consequently, Rome granted the countries it had conquered as much self-rule
as it could safely allow without encouraging rebellion. (However, if rebellion
occurred, Rome responded quickly and ruthlessly.)
In Palestine, Rome nominated a man named Herod (later called “Herod the
Great”) to rule over the Jews. Because his ancestry was Idumean (Edomite),
the Jews resented him, but Rome conferred on him the title of “king”.
When he died, Palestine was divided amongst his three sons.
Therefore, it is important to realize that the name “Herod” is a surname, or
family name. There is more than one “Herod” in the New Testament, just as
there is more than one Mr. Ndlovu, or Mr. Jones, or Mr. Lunga.
f) Roman Citizenship.
i) Roman citizenship was highly prized.
A person holding Roman citizenship had ties to the ruling class, though
he might otherwise be an unimportant person.
ii) The benefit of Roman citizenship was Rome’s protection of the
individual.
· A Roman citizen could not be bound or imprisoned without a
trial.
· He could not be beaten.
· If he felt he was not receiving justice under local rule, he could
appeal to Rome.
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No wonder the Roman authorities in Philippi were so alarmed when
they realized that Paul and Silas, whom they had just beaten and thrown
into prison, were Romans citizens! (Acts 16:35-39)
Later in Paul’s life, he again made use of his Roman citizenship … but
we will learn more about that as we study Acts.
Memory Verse
Hebrews 7:18-19, “For, on the one hand, there is a setting aside of a former
commandment because of its weakness and uselessness (for the Law made nothing
perfect), and on the other hand there is a bringing in of a better hope, through which we
draw near to God”.
Teacher’s Notes
1. You may remember from the Old Testament Survey study, that when Assyria
conquered the northern kingdom of Israel, according to their usual policy regarding
conquered peoples, they removed Israel from the land and scattered the people
throughout the Assyrian empire. Then they imported people from other conquered
lands into Israel. Thus the millions of Israelites comprising the northern kingdom
were lost, and never returned.
The southern kingdom was captured some 136 years later, and the people were
taken to Babylon. Only the very poorest were left in Judea. Of the millions who
went into Babylonian captivity, only 52,000 returned to rebuild the Temple and
Jerusalem.
The others chose to remain in Babylon – partly because after 70 years of nonoppressive
captivity, they were content and comfortable and partly because
returning to Jerusalem meant working very hard in very dangerous conditions as the
city had been completely destroyed and people from surrounding nations had
moved in to occupy the land. By the time Jesus was born, about 700,000 Jews lived
in Palestine.
2. There are a group of books known as the Apocrypha, written during the intertestament
period (Esdras, Maccabees, etc.) which were not accepted by the early
church as having been inspired by the Holy Spirit.
Jesus did not quote from any Apocryphal books, nor did any of the early apostles or
disciples. The Jewish community that produced them rejected them, and the
historical accounts the books contain are flawed by numerous errors. There is
nothing of theological value in them that is not found in Scripture and, therefore,
most Bibles do not contain these books.
However, the Roman Catholic Church has included them in their own
denominational version of the Bible.
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Inter-Testament Period, continued
Lesson 2
A. Correct Communication means Correct Understanding
1. Look at the following illustration.
Message from the Speaker
Correct Message Incorrect Message
Understanding Gap
Cultural differences
Language
Personal values
Education
Lived at different times, etc.
☺ ☺ 
Person speaking Hearer Hearer
or writing or reader or reader
Can you see how communication can break down?
The message was exactly the same for both people. Why did one person
understand, and the other one did not understand?
There can be a difference between what a speaker or writer intended to say and
what the hearer understood, when there are differences in language, culture or when
they lived at different times, etc.
When we apply this to the Bible, we know that there are definite, major differences
between how we live today and how people lived in Bible times.
Let us be careful not to read our culture, language and attitudes into what God
intended to say through The New Testament writers.
2. A language barrier for the Jews. (a barrier is an obstacle or fence, blocking a
path)
The Jews who returned to Jerusalem had a problem: they now spoke Aramaic, the
common language of Babylon, but the Old Testament Scriptures were written in
Hebrew and Chaldee.
Therefore, beginning with Ezra (who was the first “scribe”), and the Levites who
returned from Babylon, the Scriptures were translated into Aramaic so that
everyone could understand.
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a) A Translation – OR – An Interpretation?
Translation means the literal change of words from one language to
another.
For example, the word for “table” in English is “la mesa” in Spanish.
(Now you can say that you speak a little Spanish!)
At first the scribes translated from Hebrew into Aramaic, but soon they
began to interpret, by adding their own understanding and explanation.
Which meant, if we use the example above, that “table” would not be
translated just “la mesa” anymore, but would perhaps be changed to – “a
piece of furniture used at meal times. Round flat plates to hold food are
placed on it, with a knife and fork at the side of each plate”.
Now, if we used that interpretation, we would never be able to use the table
for anything else except having our meals around it – children could not do
their homework at the table; mother could not use it to prepare the food, etc.
And what about using bowls instead of plates? Or spoons? Well, those also
would be incorrect according to the above definition of the word “table”.
Can you see how the accuracy of what God intended to say can be clouded
when personal opinions and rules are added? We will learn more about the
scribes’ rules later.
b) The danger.
Interpretations and explanations of the Jewish religious leaders and what they
said became more important than what God had said!
3. A cultural barrier. (or obstacle)
Since the New Testament is made up of writings and letters written to Jews,
Greeks, Romans, etc., it sometimes helps to understand the culture of that day.
However, there is not one Gospel for Jews, another for Greeks, and another for
Germans, etc. God’s Word is trans-cultural – that is, it is for every country; every
nation.
And the culture and traditions of every nation, including yours and mine, must
yield to the truth of God’s Word. That is, if the traditions or the culture of a
nation contradict what the Bible says, tradition and culture must be put aside.
4. Your personal “World View” and the Bible.
What is a “worldview”?
A “worldview” is a set of assumptions that we hold (that is, beliefs, things we
suppose to be true), about the basic makeup of the world, or just about life in
general.
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Note: Everyone has a “worldview”, whether they are conscious of it or not.
Our goal throughout this course is to become conscious of our
personal worldview… and then to change it where it is not rooted in
biblical truth.
5. Your “Worldview” causes you to reach certain conclusions.
Each of us has a worldview… and that view of the world has a great deal to do with
our “conduct and actions” and what we “see”.
Example: The Sadducees had a worldview in which there was no such thing as
the supernatural.
This belief blinded them to truth.
Read Mark 12:18-27
Read Acts 4:1-2 and Acts 23:8
6. “Worldview” and Culture.
Our personal “worldview” provides us with an explanation of how and why things
are as they are, and how and why they continue to change.
These explanations of “how and why” are passed on from generation to generation
sometimes through a nation’s history books, or through folklore (legends), myths
and stories.
They also give culture a subconscious legitimacy in the minds of the people of that
culture. That is, people in a certain culture believe the things that make up their
culture are valid and true … because everyone around them has the same beliefs,
the same opinions and the same customs.
7. A “Worldview” serves as a basis for values.
A worldview serves as the basis for values, judging and validating (confirming,
authenticating as true or good).
It is a yardstick, or measuring line, with which people measure events and
circumstances in their culture, providing criteria or standards for acceptability.
8. Coming to a Biblical “Worldview”.
Correcting our inherited worldview brings us to the purpose of the following
principles. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we will try to get into the Biblical
worldview, the true view of reality … and become as saturated as possible with its
language and thought.
Our purpose is to think the way people thought in Bible times, so that we may see
God’s world in God’s way through the “eyes” of revelation.
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B. The Jewish religious leaders
Various religious groups of Jews were formed during this inter-testament time.
1. The Scribes.
These were the men who made copies of the Scriptures, and who were the ultimate
authority on what Scripture said.
They were called “scribes”, “teachers” or “rabbi”.
And they were sometimes referred to as law-yers … that is, the official interpreters
or explainers of the Law. (Not like the “lawyers” of today, who work with legal
systems and courts.)
The scribes provided laws for every possible circumstance of daily life, down to the
smallest detail, and rigidly enforced them. These laws dominated the lives of
people, laying on them a yoke that was truly unbearable.
2. The Pharisees.
The term “Pharisee” means “separated one” – someone who had separated himself
from Greek culture (Hellenism), which was so common at that time.
The Pharisees worked closely with the scribes, and had the greatest influence upon
all acts of public worship, prayers and sacrifices that were performed according to
their oversight.
They avoided, as far as possible, social contact with anyone who was not a Pharisee
because they believed everyone else was unclean. (No wonder they hated Jesus for
His free association with “publicans and sinners”.)
The Talmud (a Jewish commentary on the Old Testament) tells (with a good
amount of humour) of 7 types of Pharisees:
(1) The Schechemite – who simply keeps the law for profit.
(2) The Tumbling Pharisee – who appears to be humble, always hanging his
head.
(3) The Bleeding Pharisee – who, in order not to see a woman, walked with his
eyes closed and so he often bumped into things.
(4) The Mortar Pharisee – who wore a mortar-shaped cap to cover his eyes in
order not to see any impurities or indecencies.
(5) The What-Am-I-Yet-To-Do Pharisee – who, not knowing much about the
law, as soon as he has done one thing, asks, “What shall I do now?”
(6) The Fearful Pharisee – who keeps the law because he is afraid of judgement.
(7) The Pharisee from Love – who loves God and believes this is the right thing
to do.
Regardless of what kind of Pharisee they were, they scrupulously observed every
law they could find, and invented new ones at every opportunity.
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For example, the Pharisees forbade spitting on the ground on the Sabbath, in case
the action disturbed the dirt, which would amount to ploughing, which is work.
A Pharisee might lawfully eat an egg on a weekday, however an egg laid on the
Sabbath was forbidden … although they did admit they were unsure whether the
hen actually knew it was the Sabbath!
In their opinion a man would be guilty of “breaking the Sabbath” if he carried a nail
or a piece of string in his pocket on the Sabbath – for those were tools of work.
By the time Jesus ministered, the Pharisees had added some 6,000 laws of their
own!
To justify these rules and traditions (which they gave as being equal in importance
to God’s Word) they claimed they were the “Oral or Spoken Law” – supposedly
things God had said to Moses on Mount Sinai, which Moses had not written down.
However, they also invented legal loopholes for their own convenience!
For example, one of their laws was that a person could not carry his clothes in his
arms out of his house on the Sabbath, even if the house was on fire. However, he
could put on several layers of clothes and bring them out by wearing them.
Jesus and the Pharisees clashed repeatedly over their nonsensical, artificial rules,
their overall attitude of legalism and their real motivation, which was not about
loving God, but which was to gain the attention and admiration of men.
Whereas Jesus had compassion on the friendless, the poor and helpless and loved
those who had minds open to the truth; the Pharisees regarded the lower classes of
people as those to turn away from, to shun as unclean, and spent their time making
disciples who held their own narrow views.
3. The Sadducees.
Although the Pharisees and Sadducees are often seen together in the New
Testament, it was only their rejection of Jesus as Messiah that they had in common.
The Sadducees were part of the Jewish aristocracy and the high priesthood.
They had made peace with their Roman conquerors and had attained positions of
wealth and influence.
Their chief interest was politics, not religion, and they were not really interested in
opposing Jesus until the end of His life when it appeared that there was the danger
that His ministry would cause conflict with Rome (bad politics)!
Their main area of responsibility was the Temple administration and rituals.
They were unpopular with the common people and held themselves apart from
them.
They rejected all Scripture except the Torah (as they called the first five books of
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the Bible) as well as any doctrine not found in them – such as resurrection.
4. The Herodians.
This group was made up of Jews of influence and social standing who accepted
Roman rule and who supported Herod. Some of these were called “publicans”, or
those who collected taxes.
One example was Matthew, one of the 12 disciples.
5. The Zealots.
These were super patriots who were determined to resist Rome at all costs. Their
fanaticism brought on a war in 70 AD, during which the army of the Roman
Emperor, Titus, destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem.
One example of a Zealot was Simon, one of the 12 disciples (not Simon Peter –
Luke 6:15).
(Can you see what potential there was for anger and arguments among the 12?)
6. The Sanhedrin.
This council was the ultimate authority regarding religious instruction.
It was composed of: The High Priest
Heads of the Priesthood
Scribes
And Elders
The Synagogues – or “meeting places” – only repeated what the Sanhedrin said.
Therefore, when the Sanhedrin rejected Jesus as the Messiah, every Synagogue
official also rejected Him.
C. The background of Jesus’ birth
Although the Jews were living as a conquered nation and forced to live under foreign
rule, God had prepared the way for the Messiah’s arrival.
There was a common language. Most people spoke “koine Greek”.
The written Law (the Septuagint) had been translated and made available.
Roman roads connected the whole of the empire. Travel was made easier.
The world was under one rule – again travel was made easy.
Can you see how God “worked all things together for good”? Through the most unusual
circumstances, everything was ready for a rapid spread of the Good News, The Gospel.
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The Timing of Jesus’ Birth.
“When the fullness of time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under
the law, that He might redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the
adoption of sons”. (Galatians 4:4-5)
1. “The fullness of time…”
In other words, God had an exact time for the Messiah to come.
2. “Born of a woman…”
According to the prophecy given in Isaiah 7:14 that “a virgin will be with child and will
give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel”, (which means “God with us”).
3. “… born under the Law”
Read Galatians 4:4-5 again
It is important to remember that Jesus lived as an Old Testament Jew. That is, He lived
under the Old Covenant, the Law.
Remember, the new covenant only began with His death. His blood is “the blood of the
New Covenant”. (Luke 22:20)
Jesus did not deny the Law (the books of Moses), but He certainly directly challenged the
religious leaders’ understanding of the Law. (Matthew 5:17)
He shifted their focus from outward behaviour regulated by law, to inner attitudes of the
heart, saying, “You have heard … but I say to you …” (Matthew 5:27-48)
His point is clear – Law looks on the outside, God looks at the heart and it is the
human heart that must be transformed.
a) Outward behaviour governed by Law.
i) Is really still governed by the old nature – self-centred – my wants, my…
ii) Thinks of the Bible as a book of rules.
iii) Sees sin as “breaking the rules”.
b) Outward behaviour governed by the Heart.
i) Is governed by the Holy Spirit.
ii) The Bible is God’s Word – and through it He speaks directly to them
personally.
iii) Their reaction to sin is, “This is wrong, and if I do it, I will disappoint God,
and I do not want to disappoint Him”.
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The Rabbi started with the Jesus starts with the inside
outside
The rabbi started with Jesus started with the inner life of
external observance, hopeful the heart as the way to outward
of getting to the inner life conduct – “making the tree good
of the spirit. (Matthew 23:25) that the fruit might be good”.
(Matthew 23:26)
Memory Verse
Galatians 4:4-5, “When the fullness of time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a
woman, born under the law, that He might redeem them that were under the law, that
we might receive the adoption of sons”.
Teacher’s notes
The New Covenant begins with Jesus’ death. This means that most of the events, which
occurred during the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, actually happened
during the Old Covenant. The New Covenant only began at the Cross.
Old Testament New Testament
Physical event Spiritual experience
Historical Personal
Example: Peter walks on water – God calls a New Testament
something which cannot Christian to do some things
hold him up… he will sink which may seem impossible
and probably drown! and could even result in the
person losing everything.
Peter did what Jesus asked of You and I need to do what
him, by faith. God asks us to do, by faith, too.
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The World at the time of Jesus’ birth
Lesson 3
A. The Roman World
Rome ruled the world.
2,000 of the upper-class citizens of Rome owned 1,300,000 (one million, three hundred
thousand) slaves, who were treated with great cruelty.
Marriage was almost non-existent. Sex outside of marriage was acceptable.
The Roman emperors were men of horrendous cruelty. Thousands of lives were taken in
the Roman arena (a stadium) to entertain the Emperor and the bloodthirsty Roman
people.
Children were considered a burden and many newborn infants were put outside the city to
die.
People were involved in idol worship and cults.
Crime flourished.
The Roman world was lost in degrading, perverse, immoral behaviour on a scale not seen
before in history.
B. The Jewish World
1. Israel’s History.
Israel had never been a powerful people; only for a brief period were they a great
nation – under King David and under his son Solomon.
After these two Kings died, the nation divided. The two divided kingdoms often
fought each other and then were conquered and held by stronger empires.
Yet these people had a glorious past and were destined for greatness.
This nation was meant to be the vehicle and master of God’s plan for mankind.
2. Israel’s Worship.
There were two parts to Israel’s worship: the one was prophetic, the other priestly.
The nation worshipped and spoke to God through its priests, and God spoke to the
nation by His prophets.
3. The last Prophet to speak to the Jews – Malachi.
By the time Malachi was written, a hundred years or so had passed since the Jews
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had returned to Jerusalem from Babylon.
Their first enthusiasm on returning from captivity had disappeared and the people
were now religiously cold and morally careless.
a) The Priests.
Read Malachi 1:6-8
They offered worthless animals in sacrifice to God.
They had completely lost sight of their high calling.
They refused to work except for money, and even took bribes.
Obedience to the priests only required following a system, or routine.
b) The Prophet Malachi.
The prophets were God’s voice, revealing His truths and enforcing His will.
Malachi rebuked the priests and people for their sin and neglect of Jehovah,
and encouraged them to return to God.
However, Israel was more ready to follow the priests than to obey the
prophet.
c) The People.
Read Malachi 3:5
There was careless, routine worship.
There was sorcery, adultery and perjury, making people work for no payment,
oppression of the poor, injustice and no fear of God.
In addition people robbed God of their tithes (Malachi 3:8-9).
In everything there was outward observance and obedience, but no
wholehearted love of God.
The true messianic kingdom as foretold by the prophets had
deteriorated into a materialistic and political concept
and
the nation’s relationship with God
had deteriorated into a system of rituals and traditions.
Please Note: In Lesson 1, we spoke about the 400-year period of time between the Old
and New Testaments, a time called “The Silent Years”. Do you remember?
We said these years were called “silent” because there was no prophetic
voice … do you understand why there was no prophetic voice? Why the
priesthood grew?
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Yes. Prophecy died out because the people did not want to listen to the
prophets. Rituals and ceremonies were easier than truly living as God
commanded. It was easier just to bring sacrifices to the Temple and then
to go home and live as they pleased.
4. Israel’s misconceptions.
POSITION The office of the High Priest became a POSITION, at one point
being sold to the one who offered the most money.
POLITICS Political and civil authority was included in the office of High
Priest.
PURPOSE The Jews lost all sense of God’s purpose for them as His people –
THAT THE WORLD WOULD COME TO KNOW WHO GOD
REALLY IS THROUGH HIS PEOPLE.
PATRIOTISM Love of country replaced love for God and Israel mistakenly
believed that all enemies of their land were enemies of God.
Many mistakenly believed the struggle to free their nation of
Roman oppression was their Godly purpose.
Patriotism (love of their country) narrowed God’s plan of
salvation for all mankind. Instead, Israel believed that salvation
was only for the Jews.
Their patriotism and political ideals prevented them from
fulfilling their true, spiritual mission.
C. Israel’s Messiah
They looked for a Messiah who would be a “Son of David” and restore the splendour of
the Jewish throne.
They believed all heathen kings and lords (which of course would include Rome) were to
sink into the dust before Him.
They believed He would be a human hero, who would lead them to victory. Very few
realized that He would be a heavenly King, a “suffering servant”, who would begin a
holy kingdom or that His true reign must be in the purified souls of men. Even fewer
realized that the true preparation for His coming was not pride, but humility and
repentance for sin.
D. The New Testament Books
Number of books 27
Number of authors 9
Time these books were written between 45 AD and 100 AD
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1. Books of History 4 Gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and Acts.
2. “Epistles” or Letters 13 written by Paul
3 by John
2 by Peter
1 by Jude
1 by James
1 – The author is not known
3. Prophetic Books Revelation
As in the Old Testament, the books of the New Testament do not record events in
the order in which they occurred. In other words, the books are not in chronological
order.
Furthermore, there may be a considerable difference between the date the book was
written and the period of time the writer is referring to.
Mark, for instance, writes about Jesus’ life, but he wrote his Gospel, which we call
“Mark”, sometime between 55 and 60 AD, many years after Jesus’ death.
In order to make our study easier, we will study the books of the New Testament in
chronological order, that is, according to the historical events they tell us of.
4. The Three Parts of the New Testament:
a) THE PERIOD OF INCEPTION, OR BEGINNING.
Which covers the lifetime of Jesus Christ, as described in the Four Gospels.
b) THE PERIOD OF EXPANSION.
The spread of the Gospel by the early church, as various people went around
the world evangelising and starting new churches in a number of important
centres.
c) THE PERIOD OF CONSOLIDATION.
The time when the church was rapidly growing into a recognized institution,
rather than consisting of isolated groups of believers.
A. The Period of Inception: The Gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and
John
Who the Gospels were written to:
Matthew – to Jews The Jews were immersed in the Old Testament – therefore, it was
very important that the Messiah fulfil all that the Law and
Prophets said of Him.
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Mark – to Romans The Romans were masters of the world at that time. They knew
nothing of Old Testament Scripture. They were not interested in
Jewish prophets. They were concerned with powerful leaders of
authority and wanted to know what Jesus had said and done.
Luke – to Greeks Luke was a Greek doctor. He wrote the Gospel of Luke to his
own people; lovers of poetry, beauty and culture. Greeks lived in
a world of ideas. Luke’s Gospel is full of poetry – song of Mary;
praise of Zacharias; the songs of the angels and shepherds at
Jesus’ birth.
John – to all who John writes so that “all might believe that Jesus is the Christ”.
believe His writings are full of events that tell of Jesus’ divine character.
This Gospel is for the “whosoever” who recognizes his need of
God.
PERIOD DATE EVENT HISTORY BOOKS WRITTEN
INCEPTION
4 BC – 30 AD
6 BC Birth of Jesus
4 BC Death of Herod
Matthew
Mark
Luke
John
27 AD Baptism of Jesus
30 AD Crucifixion
Although the Gospels
tell of events during
this time, none of
them were written yet.
All the Gospels were
written much later.
B. The “Synoptic Gospels” – Matthew, Mark and Luke
1. Definitions.
a) “Synoptic” Means “viewed together”. Therefore, these three Gospels –
Matthew, Mark and Luke – may be “viewed together”
because they all give a similar overview of Jesus’ life.
John’s Gospel, as we will see, presents a different picture of
Jesus to what these three books do.
b) “Gospel” Meaning “good news”. So we have the “good news of
Matthew”, the “good news of Mark”, etc.
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2. What is the “Good News”?
For Jews it is that He is here! The promised One of whom the prophets foretold,
Jesus the Christ – which is the Greek word for Messiah.
Read Isaiah 7:14 – His name, Immanuel – which means “God with us”.
However, for Gentiles, who have absolutely no knowledge of Old Testament
prophecy, to say “I have great news for you – The Messiah is here!” … would be
meaningless. They might ask you if you are going to play soccer with “Messiah”,
or if you are going to cook this Messiah for supper tonight!
The “Good News” for the world is that God has provided a way for the penalty of
sin to be paid in full; a way for all men to have a meaningful relationship with the
God who created them and loves them.
Please Note: We now begin the study of the books of the New Testament individually.
In considering the Gospels, we will spend more time on Matthew than
any other Gospel in order to lay a foundation for the life of Jesus, the
Kingdom of God and what “following Jesus” really means.
Memory Verse
Romans 12:9, “Let love be sincere (without hypocrisy). Hate what is evil; cling to what
is good”.
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Teacher’s Notes
1. It is always easier to follow a system than it is to walk by faith.
Following a system only requires a person to be obedient to a routine.
That is, to bring the correct animal for sacrifice, to go to temple (or church) when
required, to say and do whatever the system outlines.
However, Christianity is not a religion based on our obedience to a system!
Christianity is a RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD based on Jesus Christ.
Let me say that again – Christianity is not a religion; it is a relationship.
Out of our relationship with Him flows a life lived to please Him. Living like that,
with the aim of pleasing the One who gave everything for me, the One who loves
me, the One I love, requires an open, honest, personal, ongoing relationship, not a
mechanical adherence to a set of rules.
It means spending time with Him, talking to Him and hearing Him answer. It
means putting His desires above our own, giving rather than keeping, loving under
all circumstances, following Him even when that means trusting Him for the
impossible.
We need always to be aware of the danger of just how easy it is to get caught up in
“legalistic thinking”, looking to find the eternal in an outward compliance to rules.
It is so easy to get caught up in traditions and ceremonies and then to ignore really
and truly loving God from our hearts.
2. The Scribes and Pharisees made the outward appearance and the following of
their own rules more important than having an intimate relationship with God
based on His wonderful love for us.
Read John 5:39-40
Jesus told them that, although they studied the Scriptures and claimed to know
them so well as they looked for the way to eternal life, they refused to come to
Him, who was the way to eternal life.
Their Messiah was standing right in front of them, and they did not recognize Him
because they were so focused on the letter of the Law.
Jesus is the way to eternal life, but the letter of the Law does not bring life, the
letter of the Law kills! (Matthew 23:13-39; 2 Corinthians 3:6)
We must be careful not to do the same today, by focusing on rules and laws or our
own traditions – what we wear or what we eat or don’t eat, rather than on knowing
Jesus.
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Matthew – Written to Jews
Jesus is the Christ, the promised Messiah
Lesson 4
AUTHOR Matthew
A man who collected taxes for Rome – the hated foreign power that ruled
Palestine.
“Publicans”, as tax collectors were sometimes called, robbed the people of so
much money that tax gatherers were outcasts of society and thrown out of the
synagogue.
This tax collector, Matthew, was from the tribe of Levi, and both Mark and Luke
call him by that name in their Gospels.
DATE Probably between 55 and 68 AD
TIME No king from the “House of David” had been on the throne for over 600 years
1. Augustus was the Emperor of Rome (he was formerly called Octavian). He
became Rome’s first Emperor, or Caesar, in 30 BC by killing all his opponents.
However, despite the bloody start, he ruled the Roman Empire well and it
enjoyed a time of peace.
To consolidate the Empire, Augustus took a census of the population and all
property as a basis for recruiting an army and for taxation purposes. Luke dates
Jesus’ birth as occurring during this census.
2. Herod the Great (37 BC – 4 AD) (known as “Antipater”). He was Idumean by
nationality (i.e. an Edomite).
At first he was made Procurator (like a governor) of Judea, but later persuaded
the Roman Senate to make him a king.
The history of his kingdom is a drama of extraordinary political deception and
atrocious crimes of jealousy, even against his own family.
He had 9 or 10 wives; had his favourite wife killed because he suspected she
might have been unfaithful and put all her brothers to death as well. He executed
another of his wives and at least three of his own sons.
Augustus Caesar once said that it was better to be Herod’s pig than one of
Herod’s sons! The point being that Herod made an outward show of being
Jewish and would not eat pork; therefore pigs had a better chance of staying
alive.
On his death, his dominion was divided between Archelaus, who governed
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Judea; Herod Antipas, who governed Galilee and Perea; and Herod Philip who
governed the northern regions.
3. Herod Archaelaus – A single reference is made of Archaelaus in Matthew 2:22,
“But when he (Joseph) heard that Archaelaus was reigning over Judea in the
place of his father, Herod (the Great), he was afraid to go there and he turned
aside into Galilee”.
WRITTEN Matthew links us up with the Old Testament.
TO JEWS On every page he is trying to connect the Gospel with the prophets to show that
all of their teaching is being fulfilled in the person and kingdom of Jesus Christ.
It is difficult for us to appreciate how great the change was from the old to the
new. It seemed to the Jew that he must give up his religion and accept another.
Matthew (and later Paul) shows Jewish Christians that it is only like giving up
the shadow for the real thing.
Old Testament New Testament
THE “That it might be fulfilled as was spoken by the prophets …” Matthew says.
PURPOSE “The genealogy of Jesus (the) Christ, the son of David (a Messianic title), the
son of Abraham (fulfilling God’s promise)”.
1. Matthew wants to show that Jesus is The Son of David. Remember, God had
promised David a son whose throne would last forever.
Note: David’s son Solomon was a king, but not “the king of promise”, as his
throne had not lasted. There was another king to come.
2. He also wants to show that Jesus is The Son of Abraham – God said that
through his seed all the families of the earth will be blessed.
Note: Do not miss the “typology” here. Typology refers to events, people,
etc., in the Old Testament, which are intended to show New Testament
realities.
David – Israel’s greatest king; Abraham’s son – a willing sacrifice.
KEY Read 1:1
VERSES 16:15-19
28:18-20
As we study The New Testament, you will be given “key verses” for each book.
These verses sum up, in a general way, what each book is about.
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Underline these key verses in your Bible with a coloured pen. This way, you will
always have a summary of each book as a quick reminder.
KEY Chapter 12
CHAPTER The turning point in the book of Matthew comes when the Pharisees, acting as
the religious leadership of Israel, formally reject Jesus as the Messiah saying that
His power does not come from God but from Satan. (Matthew 12:22-37)
Jesus’ teaching immediately changes:
1. He begins new teachings in parables – designed to inform and to conceal.
2. He increases His attention to His disciples.
3. He repeatedly makes statements that His death is now near.
MATTHEW’S MESSAGE
1. Read Matthew 6:19-33.
The Kingdom of God is not a materialistic kingdom of possessions and wealth, nor is it
governed by worldly principles and order.
2. Read Matthew 22:17-22.
His Kingdom is not a nationalistic kingdom.
3. Read Matthew 23:1-12.
His Kingdom’s leadership is not based on position, but on serving.
Everything that happens in this Kingdom happens by voluntary submission to those
whom God gifts and puts in authority, neither from commands nor demands, but from a
heart responding to God.
EVENTS:
1. The Presentation of the King – Chapters 1 - 4.
a) Jesus’ birth – in the most unexpected place for the birth of a king.
It is not where He is born that is important, but who He is born of – a virgin (Isaiah
7:14) of the line of David.
And it is the same for us – not where, whether a palace or in the poorest home.
What is important is – are you born of God; born again?
Matthew tells us nothing more of Jesus’ life until at age 30 when Jesus is baptised
by John.
We know from reading Luke (Luke 2:41-42) that Jesus went with His family to
Jerusalem when He was 12 years old, but even Luke is silent regarding the next 18
years of Jesus’ life until His baptism at the age of 30.
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What did Jesus do in those years? He learned the skills of carpentry, for He was
known as a carpenter (Mark 6:3).
b) The Wise Men (Matthew 2:1-2). This account is only found in Matthew and it
emphasizes that Jesus is a King.
If you remember from our study of Old Testament Survey, the Jews were waiting
for their Messiah at this exact time, specifically prophesied by Daniel.
He is born in Bethlehem to fulfil Micah’s prophecy (Micah 5:2).
Herod felt threatened by the birth of the “King of the Jews”. Remember, Rome had
conferred his kingship. He was not king by birth, or by right.
Herod’s response is to slaughter every infant under the age of two years, thus
fulfilling Jeremiah’s prophecy (Jeremiah 31:15; Matthew 2:16-18).
c) Read Matthew 3:1-3. John the Baptist breaks 400 years of prophetic silence. He
is “the voice” in the wilderness, shouting out “prepare the way of the Lord”.
Read Luke 7:29-30
Note: The “Baptism of John” is a baptism of repentance. Only those who repent
will ever accept the rule of God in their lives or Jesus as King and Lord.
d) Jesus’ Temptation as Satan offers Him a way to obtain the Kingdom without the
Cross.
EVENTS IN ROME:
Caesar Augustus died in 14 AD, and Tiberius ruled as Caesar during Jesus’ years of
ministry. (Luke 3:1). Tiberius was a wise and capable Administrator and sought to
maintain peace. However, because of the corruption of Rome’s politics, with frequent
plots and assassinations, Tiberius distrusted everyone and his bad temper was well
known. This probably helps us to understand Pilate’s hesitation to let Jesus go, when the
crowd threatened him saying, “If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar’s”
(John 19:12).
2. The first teachings of Jesus – Chapters 5 - 7.
a) The Sermon on the Mount.
In which Jesus presents the real laws and standards for God’s people.
b) Notice Jesus’ authority as He deals with the Law of Moses.
14 times He says, “I say to you”. Mark them in your Bible. They show how Jesus
deals with the Law and how we must keep it – not outwardly … but from our
hearts first. From our true, inner attitude will flow our outward behaviour.
(Matthew 5:18, 20, 21, 22, 27, 32, 34, 39, 44; 6:2, 5, 16, 25, 29)
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Read Matthew 7:28-29 and notice the effect on the people.
3. The power of the King – Chapters 8 - 11.
a) Jesus gathers His team – Chapter 10.
Where does He find these people? Not among the priests, or in the universities,
not the mighty and noble … but the fishermen, the publicans.
b) Ten miracles are testimony to Jesus’ authority over every area of life: Disease,
demons, death and nature.
We see the response of the people in Matthew 12:23, “… after which all the people
said, Is this not the Son of David?”
4. The Kingdom of Heaven – Chapter 13 - 15.
Using “parables”, He describes what the Kingdom of God is like.
a) Parables.
i) Earthly examples, things understood, which teach spiritual truths.
ii) Easy to understand.
iii) Interesting, but having immediate impact on the listeners.
iv) Challenging to those who want to know and hidden from those who think they
do not need to know.
b) The Kingdom of Heaven is like:
A sower Leaven in dough
A field of wheat and tares A hidden treasure
A mustard seed A pearl of great price
c) Caring for People and His Disciples.
i) Feeding 5,000 plus women and children through a little boy who gave his
lunch.
ii) Jesus walks on the water, and so does Peter … for a short while.
5. The response to the cost of discipleship – Chapters 16 - 22.
a) Those who accepted Him.
i) Read Matthew 16:13-20.
“Who do you say that I am?” The question everyone must answer.
Peter’s reply – “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God”.
Jesus’ response – You are “petros” – masculine, a rock, and upon this
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“petra” – feminine, rock, “I will build My church”.
What rock? The revelation that Jesus is the Messiah.
In other words, the Church is founded on the revelation that Jesus is the Son
of God, the Messiah, the only One in whom there is salvation.
Read 1 Corinthians 3:11
Only in Matthew’s Gospel is the word “church” used.
ii) The attitude of a true disciple – Chapter 18.
(a) Humility – seen in the attitude towards children and other Christians,
especially new ones.
(b) A heart for the lost.
(c) Correct attitude and behaviour to sin.
(d) Forgiving.
iii) The cost of being a true disciple.
(a) Marital Faithfulness – Under Jewish law, even though a man took
another wife, his first wife was still bound to her husband until he
granted her a religious divorce, even though he had remarried.
(b) Putting Him first – the parable of the rich young ruler.
(c) The danger of personal ambition – the examples of the labourers; and
the disciples.
iv) The triumphant entry into Jerusalem.
The multitudes were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth in
Galilee”.
“The Prophet” – the one Moses had promised. Another prophetic name for
the Messiah.
b) Those who rejected Him.
i) Read John 1:11.
Read Matthew 21:42-45
The kingdom was first presented to the children of Israel. This does not mean
it was God’s intention that it would be exclusively theirs but that, as in the
Old Covenant, Israel would demonstrate God’s truth to the world. However,
they refused the offer, rejected their King and finally crucified Him.
ii) The Pharisees, Herodians, Sadducees, and Lawyers (scribes) try to trap
Jesus.
(Matthew 22:15, 16, 23, 34, 35, 41)
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6. Chapters 23 - 25.
a) The character of the Jewish Religious Leaders – Chapter 23.
Matthew 23:1-12
In these verses, Jesus says, “Woe to you”, and calls them:
_______________ verse 13
_______________ verse 14
_______________ verse 15
_______________ verse 16
_______________ verse 17
_______________ verse 19
_______________ verse 23
_______________ verse 24
_______________ verse 25
_______________ verse 26
_______________ verse 27
_______________ verse 28
_______________ verse 29
_______________ verse 33
Hypocrite: professing to be what one is not, playing a part as an actor,
putting on an outward show. He has two sides:
i) What he is really like – this one he keeps to himself.
ii) The person he puts on, like he puts on his clothes, to make his
appearance before men.
b) The future of the Kingdom.
i) The Destruction of Jerusalem Prophesied – Chapter 24.
There will be wars, famines, earthquakes, persecution, false prophets,
and false Christs, and a general breakdown of law and order.
Because of these things, people’s love for God will grow cold.
ii) His Second Coming.
The faithful servant: who is always ready for the return of his master.
The parable of the ten virgins: all of whom fell asleep, but only half
of them had enough oil for when the bridegroom (Jesus) returned.
The five foolish virgins were only concerned about the present time and
had made no provision for later when the groom would return. They
ended up missing the bridegroom when He came later than expected.
The parable of the talents: showing that whatever it is that God has
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given us, He has an expectation that we will use it for the glory of God
and the good of those around us.
The sheep and the goats: This summarizes the first three parables.
7. His Death and Resurrection.
a) Read Matthew 27:11 and Acts 2:30-36.
The Son of Abraham died that the nations of the earth might be blessed in
Him.
b) The Crucifixion.
The Romans never allowed one of their citizens to be crucified and Jewish
custom was death by stoning. Crucifixion was used for criminals and slaves.
(Jesus was sold for thirty pieces of silver, the price of a slave, and was
executed like a slave.)
Scourging, or whipping with leather strips to which pieces of nails or bone
etc., were attached, increasing the pain by tearing the flesh, usually preceded
a crucifixion.
The victim was usually stripped naked, his garments going to the
executioners by lot.
The upright and crossbeam were fixed securely together and then the victim
was laid down with arms extended on the crossbar. The arms were nailed to
the crossbar with large nails, or spikes, through the wrists, the feet were
crossed and nailed with a single iron spike, and the cross was elevated and
planted in the ground.
Besides the pain of crucifixion, those on the cross suffered even more by not
being able to breathe properly because their outstretched arms had to carry the
weight of their body.
i) Jesus Forgives.
Read Acts 2:36-38
ii) “Why have You forsaken Me?”
For the first time, because He took on the world’s sin, He was separated
from the Father – spiritual death.
His physical death soon followed, as He tasted death for every man.
(Hebrews 2:9)
iii) “It is finished!”
Note: Jesus did not say, “I am finished”, but “it” is finished.
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He used the Greek word, “tetelestai” which was used in commercial life
and means the full payment of a price, or complete payment for a debt.
Read Romans 3:25
c) Accompanying Signs.
i) The veil in the Temple is torn.
The inner curtain separating the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies,
tore “from top to bottom” (Matthew 27:51), signifying that Jesus had
made it possible for all believers to come boldly into the throne of
grace.
ii) An earthquake.
The earth, which had come under a curse as a result of Adam’s sin
(Genesis 3:17), is to be delivered from bondage (Romans 8:21).
It not only split rocks, but opened many graves. (Matthew 27:52)
iii) Many dead are resurrected.
These people appeared to many. (Matthew 27:53)
d) Burial and Resurrection.
Read Matthew 27:57-60
And Matthew 28:9-10
e) Read Matthew 28:18-20 – the “Great Commission” for all of us.
Memory Verse
Matthew 28:18-20, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have
commanded you. And surely I will be with you always, to the very end of the age”.
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Teacher’s Notes
1. Read Matthew 5:27-30. Jesus is speaking about things which may be in our lives
that could cause us to sin. Does He literally mean that we might have to cut off one
of our hands? Well, it could come to that, but we could probably find a more
common application in our daily lives if we consider what causes us to sin.
Let us look at this example:
A young man has a good job. Now what would happen if there is a young lady
working in the same place that this young man finds very attractive, and this young
lady is married. No matter how hard he tries, the young man finds he keeps
imagining things – he imagines her in his arms, and what it would be like to …,
what it would feel like to … What should he do? Gouge out his eyes? Well,
perhaps a better solution would be to leave his job and find another.
“But it is a very good job!” Is that what you are saying? Yes, but it would be better
not to have the job but continue to have a good relationship with God which will
end in eternal life.
“But he will never get another job that pays as well!” That could possibly happen
but it would be better to end up in heaven without some of the things money can
buy during your life on earth than to end up in hell.
If you cannot withstand the temptation, whatever it might be, then do not put
yourself in temptation’s way.
2. In Matthew 5:31, Jesus said that Moses allowed a “certificate of divorce”. What this
means is that according to Jewish Law, a woman was bound to her husband until he
died, even if he married another woman. He could “divorce” his first wife just by
saying, “I divorce you” three times. However, his wife could never re-marry until he
died. This meant incredible hardship for many women and so Moses ordered that if
any man should divorce his wife in this way, he had to give her a “certificate of
divorce”, which would allow her to re-marry.
Later, in Matthew 19:1-12, Jesus again speaks of divorce, pointing out that divorce
did not originate with God, but with Moses. Jesus refers to God’s original
instructions on marriage in Genesis 2:24, that the two become “one”.
The only exception was if one of the marriage partners had committed adultery.
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Mark – Written to Romans
Jesus Christ, the Servant of God
Lesson 5
AUTHOR Mark, also called “John Mark”. (Mark is a surname, or last name)
Unlike Matthew, he was not one of the 12 disciples.
He was the son of Mary (not Jesus’ mother), and a cousin of Barnabas
(Colossians 4:10).
He is referring to himself in his account of “a certain young man” in Mark
14:51-52, who ran from the Garden of Gethsemane. All the disciples had left
Jesus and fled (v.50) therefore this incident must have been a first-hand,
personal account.
Peter introduced Mark to Jesus and affectionately spoke of him as “my son” (1
Peter 5:13). (This does not mean Mark was Peter’s son, it was a term of
affection given to a younger man by his older friend and mentor.)
Mark’s mother had a large house that was used as a meeting place for believers
in Jerusalem, according to Acts 12:12.
Later Mark accompanied Paul and Barnabas to Antioch and caused problems
between them when he wanted to leave and return home. (Acts 12:25; 13:5, 13)
However, he must have matured, because he became a great help to Paul.
(Colossians 4:10-11; 2 Timothy 4:11)
DATE Exact date unknown, but certainly between 55 and 67 AD.
WRITTEN There is evidence that Mark himself was in Rome when he wrote his Gospel.
Romans knew nothing of the Old Testament and Jewish prophets, but were
concerned with powerful leaders of authority, and were more interested in
knowing what Jesus had done than in what He had said.
Because it is written to those in Rome, Mark explains Jewish customs.
Read Mark 7:2-4 and 15-42.
He translates Aramaic words – Mark 3:17; 5:41; 7:11, 34; 15:22.
He spends time explaining the cost of following Jesus in Mark 8:34-38; 13:9-13.
This may have a connection to the widespread persecutions of the early church
in Rome from 64 – 67 AD.
KEY Read Mark 10:43-45
VERSES Remember, Romans were practical people who valued strong common sense.
They would have had no interest in tracing the history of Jesus back into the Old
Testament. What appealed to them was what Jesus meant now, today.
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Read Mark 8:34-37
KEY WORD The Greek word “Eutheos”, which is translated as “immediately”, “straight
away” or “forthwith”. Mark shows how Jesus’ life was one of order and
determination, as well as a Servant’s response to His Master.
Mark these words in your Bible – they appear at least 40 times.
KEY CHAPTER – Chapter 8
As in Matthew, there is a chapter in Mark where we see a clear change in Jesus’
ministry. The event that starts it is Peter’s confession “You are the Christ, the
Son of the living God”.
After this, Jesus turns His focus onto the disciples, strengthening them for His
approaching death at the hands of the religious leaders.
EMPHASIS Mark is the shortest of the Gospels.
Miracles have the leading place, not parables. Remember, the emphasis is on
what Jesus did rather than on what He said.
Mark tells of 20 miracles – not parables, there are only 4 – whereby Mark lets
what Jesus did prove that He is the Son of God.
Mark does not mention:
1. Jesus’ genealogy.
2. Details of His birth.
3. The visit of the wise men.
4. The Sermon on the Mount.
5. Jesus at the temple when He was 12.
6. Prophetic quotes from the Old Testament, with the exception of Mark 1:2.
PURPOSE Mark shows Jesus as the Mighty Servant.
Isaiah 53 prophesies that the Son of God would be the Servant of God, in order
that He might die to redeem the world.
Mark records how Jesus’ sufferings in Gethsemane and on Calvary fulfilled
what Isaiah had spoken of.
OUTLINE:
1. The Servant’s Preparation – Mark 1:1-13.
a) By John – preparing the way by calling for repentance.
b) Baptism by John – in obedience.
c) Receiving the Holy Spirit – giving power and equipping.
d) Divine call.
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Read Acts 10:38
e) By testing.
Note: “The Spirit led Him into the wilderness …” Mark 1:12.
Sufferings and trials are as much a part of God preparing us as the good things that
happen. Jesus’ appointment with the devil was no accident.
God does not tempt us (James 1:12-13), but the path He leads us on often takes us
through temptation.
Read 1 Corinthians 10:13
2. The Servant at Work – Mark 1:14 - 8:30.
a) Jesus is introduced as “anointed with power” and doing His Father’s Work.
Mark moves quickly from one event to the next – You do not need to read each one
in the Bible, but look down the list and see how quickly Mark moves from one
miracle to the next.
Demons cast out 1:21-28
Fever cured 1:29-31
Many diseases healed 1:32-34
Lepers cleansed 1:40-45
Cripple walks 2:1-12
Withered hand healed 3:1-5
Multitudes healed 3:6-12
Storm at sea calmed 4:35-41
Maniac’s mind healed 5:1-15
Haemorrhage stopped 5:21-34
Child back to life 5:35-43
5,000 fed 6:32-44
Sea calmed 6:45-51
All made whole 6:53-56
Deaf and dumb healed 7:31-37
4,000 fed 8:1-9
Blind healed 8:22-26
b) Jesus is the Son of God.
This is Mark’s opening statement in Mark 1:1.
It is clear as we look at the foregoing list, that Mark’s goal is to let the wonderful,
miraculous works Jesus did testify that He really is the Son of God.
c) But, Jesus is also fully human (The Son of Man).
He was disappointed at times Mark 3:5
He was tired and weary 4:38
36
Was full of wonder 6:6
Sighed 7:34; 8:12
Was affectionate 10:21
3. The Servant is Rejected – Mark 8:31 - 15:47.
“The Son of Man must suffer”, Jesus said in Mark 8:31.
He was to be rejected by the rulers of Israel, killed and would rise again.
a) Read Zechariah 9:9 and then Mark 11:1-11.
Jesus claims the Kingdom by presenting Himself at Jerusalem as the Heir of David,
fulfilling Zechariah’s prophecy.
b) The people’s response.
At first the people welcomed Him because they hoped that He might deliver them
from the Romans and free them from the poverty they were living in.
c) The Religious Leaders’ response.
i) Read Mark 7:6 and note “the tradition of the elders”.
ii) Read Mark 7:13 and be very sure you understand what Jesus is saying.
iii) Read verses 6-8.
Read verse 13 again. The Word of God is “nullified”, “invalidated”, “made
of no effect!”
Those words are defined as “to abolish, cancel, bring to naught, neutralize,
revoked”!
In other words, what God really wants men to understand is hidden
underneath all the rules men make up.
iv) “Traditions of men” – It is very easy, even for us today, to add rules about
clothes, food, sports, prayers, etc. Rules the Bible says nothing about.
Have you ever stopped to think that worldly traditions can make the Word of
God ineffective?
d) Jesus pleads with “His Own”.
On one day, from morning to night, in a powerful effort to have the Jewish nation
acknowledge Him and thus become that glorious nation, blessing the world, for
which it had been set apart, Jesus presents the truth again, wanting the Jews to
receive Him as their Messiah. (Mark 11:20 – 12:44)
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e) The last conflict with the Jewish leaders.
At the Temple, which showed His mission to be a spiritual one, He was hated by
the religious leaders with a hatred that led them to plot His death. (Mark 14:1)
i) Chief priests, scribes and elders – 11:28.
“By what authority do you do these things?”
ii) Pharisees and Herodians – 12:14.
“Is it lawful to pay tax to Caesar?”
iii) The Sadducees – 12:23.
(Who do not believe in resurrection, remember?)
“In the resurrection … whose wife will she be?”
iv) The scribes – 12:28.
“Which is the most important commandment of all?”
After Jesus answered them all, no one dared to ask Him one more
question. 12:34
4. The Servant is Exalted – Mark 16:1-20.
a) Read Mark 16:15-18 & Matthew 28:10-20 and compare the two.
Mark writes the “Great Commission” but, unlike Matthew, he does not portray
Jesus as a King receiving all power and authority.
Mark tells us Jesus’ instructions to His disciples. They are to take His place. They
are to serve, and He will serve in and through them.
b) Read Mark 16:19-20.
He, who was the greatest Servant, is now highly exalted.
Read Philippians 2:5-16
FULFILMENT OF Read Colossians 2:16-17
THE LAW AND
PROPHETS Read Hebrews 8:4-5
Read Hebrews 10:1
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Old Testament Jesus New Testament
Feast of Passover Read 1 Corinthians 5:7-8
HOW JESUS FULFILLED THE FEAST OF PASSOVER
Passover was first celebrated in Egypt in preparation for the departure of God’s people from a
land of great bondage, where they had been slaves under the hand of a harsh ruler, Pharaoh.
(Exodus 12)
Passover was prophetic of Calvary and of redemption from the world, where the devil rules,
and from the slavery of sin, by the blood of Jesus.
God instructed His people in Egypt to choose a male lamb and bring it into the house for four
days to examine it in order to make sure this lamb had no blemish or fault – that was from the
10th to the 14th day of Nissan (the month of the year on the Jewish calendar – Exodus 12:6). In
the evening the lamb was slain.
Mark 11:1-11 Day 1 Jesus entered Jerusalem riding on a young donkey, and was hailed
by the people as the Son of David. He looked around the Temple,
(the “House of God”) and then left for Bethany.
Mark 11:12 Day 2 He saw the fig tree was not bearing fruit.
v.15 He entered Jerusalem and went to the Temple, overthrew the
tables of those selling doves and of the moneychangers.
v.18 The chief priests and scribes wanted to destroy Him.
v.19 He left the city.
Mark 11:20 Day 3 The fig tree withered.
v.27-28 He entered Jerusalem and once more went to the Temple, where
the chief priests, scribes and elders questioned Him
Mark 12:13-14 Pharisees and Herodians questioned Him
v.18 and Sadducees
v.28 and a Scribe
Mark 14:1-12 Day 4 Jesus went back to Bethany to the home of Simon the leper.
He was anointed with a vial of perfume.
He went into the city in the evening, ate with His Disciples,
giving new meaning to the Passover Meal because a New
Covenant was coming.
He went to Gethsemane and was betrayed.
v.55 He was taken to the High Priest, the chief priests, scribes and
elders – But they could not find anything wrong.
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Mark 15:1 Day 5 The next morning He was taken to Pilate for questioning.
v.14 Pilate found nothing wrong
(He was examined and found without blemish)
Jesus was scourged and beaten, dressed in robes, with a crown of
thorns placed on His head and hailed as king
v.24 And crucified.
DID JESUS FULFIL THE FEAST OF FIRST FRUITS?
Read 1 Corinthians15:20
When the resurrected Jesus entered the throne room of heaven, He was an example of the great
harvest to come, as God conforms us to “the image of His Son”. (Romans 8:29)
DID JESUS FULFIL PROPHECY?
There are over 300 prophecies in the Old Testament concerning the coming Messiah. All of
these were fulfilled in Jesus, and they form a solid confirmation that He is indeed the Christ.
Can you think of 8 Old Testament prophecies that Jesus fulfilled?
Write them in the blank spaces below.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
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Luke – Written to Greeks
Jesus, the Perfect Man
Lesson 6
AUTHOR Luke, a physician, and like Mark, not one of the 12 disciples.
He is a companion and loyal friend of Paul, who stayed with him even when
others had deserted him. (2 Timothy 4:11)
He is the only Gentile writer of the New Testament. (He was probably
Greek.) He also wrote the Book of Acts.
DATE 60 AD.
TIME From the birth of John the Baptist to the Ascension of Jesus Christ.
WRITTEN The Gospel of Luke, which is called “the first account”, (Acts 1:1-5), and the
TO Book of Acts were written to Theophilus, a man of high social standing, since
Luke refers to him as, “most excellent”, in chapter 1:3.
Greeks loved poetry, beauty and culture. Luke’s Gospel is full of poetry – the
song of Mary, the praise of Zacharias, the angels’ song at Jesus’ birth, the
shepherds’ song of praise.
Luke translates Aramaic terms into Greek and explains Jewish customs and
geography.
PURPOSE Read Luke 1:3-4
Luke wanted to create a clear, chronological, comprehensive account of the
life of Jesus, the Christ, to strengthen the Gentiles’ faith, and to encourage
unbelievers to accept Jesus as their Lord and Saviour.
KEY VERSES Read Luke 1:3-4
And Luke 19:10
KEY CHAPTER Chapter 10
1. Chapters 1 – 9 Hostile spiritual climate
2. Chapter 10 There is a change
3. Chapters 11 – 24 Favourable spiritual climate
MESSAGE Luke is the Gospel for every sinner, helping us to understand Christ’s
amazing, wonderful, compassionate love, by becoming a man to save man.
Read Luke 1:35
The Deity and, at the same time, humanity of Jesus is one of those
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“mysteries” that is very difficult for our human minds to comprehend. Yet we
know Jesus was both God and man. Read John 1:14; Philippians 2:6-7.
In His humanity He was just like you and I – susceptible to the same
temptations, experiencing the same emotions, etc. (Hebrews 4:15) and with
all the same limitations we have – He ate, got tired, wept, felt pain, was
tempted, etc.
However, He was “the seed of woman”, and therefore did not bear “Adam’s
image”. (Genesis 5:3; 1 Corinthians 15:21-22; Romans 5:12)
He used none of His Godly powers in order to avoid or overcome any
situation, although He never ceased being God. (Philippians 2:7)
OUTLINE OF EVENTS
1. An atmosphere of hostility – Chapters 1 - 9.
a) The birth of John the Baptist. Luke 1.
b) The birth of Jesus. Read Luke 1:26-38.
He was born of a virgin named Mary – a young teenager when Gabriel spoke to her.
She was of the tribe of Judah, and the line of David, and chosen specifically by God
to bear the Messiah. (Luke 1:28-30)
To give birth to a child meant Mary would be pregnant before she was married. Do
you remember what the Law said the punishment for fornication was? (sex before
marriage). Yes, death! This was a very courageous young lady.
Her reaction to Gabriel’s greeting (verse29) was one of humility and confusion,
which is understandable – how could she become the mother when she was a
virgin? However her response, in verse 38, is one of humility and faith.
Read verse 45 “Blessed is she who believed …”
c) Growing opposition – Chapters 3 - 9.
i) Read Luke 3:22.
The Voice of the Father spoke from heaven, identifying Jesus as His Son –
this was not because Jesus did not know; or that John the Baptist did not
know He was “the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world” (John
1:26), but this identified Jesus as the Messiah, “the sinless One”, to Satan and
the Kingdom of Darkness.
ii) Read Luke 4:1-2.
As soon as Jesus was identified, Satan attempted to make Him sin.
Read chapter 4, verse 13
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iii) Read Luke 4:16-22 and then read 28-29.
What changed that caused people to go from praise to rage?
His statement that healing and salvation was not exclusively for the Jews, but
for the Gentiles also!
iv) Growing belief and growing rejection – Chapters 4 - 9.
(a) Demons rebuked and people healed 4:33-35 & 41
Great multitudes came to Him 5:15
But the Pharisees opposed Him 5:21, 30; 6:2, 7, 11
(b) More multitudes came for healing 6:19
But His closest friends began to doubt 7:19
(c) The storm at sea – devil tried to drown Him 8:22-24
He rebuked the wind and waves (the same
language as used against demons)
(d) The disciples’ attitude.
Read 8:38-40 then read 19:10
Now read 9:1-2, 6, and verse 10. Note “all that they had done”.
Now read chapter 9:12… “send them away…”
Read verse 23 “It is good for us to be here, let us stay here”.
Read verse 35 but a voice came out of heaven saying, “This is My
Chosen One, listen to Him!”, and they stopped telling Jesus what they
thought would be a good idea.
Read verses 38-42 Jesus was annoyed and weary at the disciples’
attitude.
What was the disciples’ attitude? Read verses 44-46
They were more concerned with who among them might be the
greatest, than with people’s needs, or with Jesus Himself.
Read verse 51-56 again. Do you see the disciples’ attitude?
2. There is a change – Chapter 10.
a) Read Luke 10:1, then verses 3-9.
Jesus increased His team, sending 70 out “as lambs among wolves”, with these
instructions:
i) Bring peace – in other words, bless them, don’t curse them.
ii) Eat and drink with them (although they are sinners).
iii) Heal those who are sick.
iv) Tell them the Kingdom of God has come.
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Bless them, don’t curse them.
Heal them, don’t destroy them.
And after you have blessed them, fellowshipped with them, and healed
them, then you can preach to them about the Kingdom of God and they
will listen to you, for people are not afraid to repent if they receive
mercy and grace first.
b) Read verses 17-19. The 70 had a passion for the lost, their focus was the lost and
not themselves, and Satan lost his authority.
c) Jesus’ response – verse 21 – “He rejoiced greatly…”.
d) Read Luke 10:25-28 – Do you see the two parts?
i) Love God with all your heart, soul, strength and mind
and
ii) Your neighbour as yourself.
Do this and you will live. (We just want to do the first one!)
3. The spiritual atmosphere changed – Chapters 11 - 24.
a) Read Luke 11:14 – Now the demons were silent.
Read 13:11-13 – Jesus did not even speak to the demon and it left.
Read 14:3-4 and verse 6 – The Pharisees were silent.
Read 19:10, then 45-48 – The chief priests and scribes were silent, and all the
people were “hanging on His words”.
Read 20:8 – Jesus did not even bother to answer their questions anymore.
Read 20:20, verse 26, and then verse 40
b) Chapter 23, He was crucified – but not defeated!
i) One of the criminals was saved – 23:42-43.
ii) It seems that a Roman centurion realised who Jesus was – 23:47.
iii) The multitude went away, quiet and confused and beating their breasts, as if
to say, “We don’t understand what happened here today. We thought this was
right … but if it was right, why aren’t we cheering? Something is wrong”.
c) Resurrection! – Chapter 24.
Read Luke 24:44-53
Read 1 Corinthians 2:8 – Had the devil realised that crucifying Jesus
meant salvation for all mankind, he “would not have crucified the Lord of glory!”
Memory Verse
Luke 6:38, “Give and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken
together and running over will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you
use, it will be measured to you”.
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Teacher’s Notes
1. Luke’s genealogy of Jesus differs from Matthew’s. Matthew writes to Jews and therefore
it is important to take the lineage of Jesus back to Abraham and David; these being the
two God had made unconditional eternal covenants with, promising a Messiah from their
descendants.
Matthew outlines Joseph’s lineage and mentions Josiah as the son of Jechoniah
(sometimes called “Coniah”) who, in Jeremiah 22:24-30, God said would never have a
descendant sit on the throne of David or rule anywhere in Judah.
Matthew records Joseph to be the son of Jacob. Luke presents Jesus as the Son of Man,
tracing His ancestry back to Adam. He records that Joseph is the son of Heli, but there
was no separate word for “son-in-law,” which supports the view that this is the lineage of
Mary. That it is Mary’s line makes sense, since her line avoids Jeconiah by coming not
from Solomon, a son of David, but from Nathan, one of his other sons.
2. Although most drawings depict three wise men, Scripture however does not say how
many there were.
3. Here are just some of the prophecies about the Messiah:
Born of the seed of woman Would be a prophet
Born of a virgin A priest
In Bethlehem A judge
The Son of God A king
The seed of Abraham Anointed with the Holy Spirit
The Son of Isaac His zeal for God
The Son of Jacob Ministry began in Galilee
The tribe of Judah Ministry of miracles
The family of Jesse Teaching in parables
The house of David “Stone of stumbling” to Jews
Presented with gifts at birth “Light” to Gentiles
The children of Bethlehem killed Resurrection
His pre-existence from eternity Ascension
He is called Lord and Immanuel Seated at the right hand of God
His ministry preceded by a messenger Forsaken by the disciples
He would enter Jerusalem on a donkey Smitten and spat upon
Betrayed by a friend Fell under the cross
Sold for 30 pieces, not 20 or 50 of silver; Crucified with thieves
not gold, etc. Rejected by His own people
The money would be thrown in God’s house Friends stood far off
And the price would buy a potter’s field Stared at
Accused by false witnesses Suffer thirst
Would not speak before His accusers His bones not broken
Wounded and bruised His side pierced
Mocked Buried in a rich man’s tomb
Hands and feet would be pierced Darkness over the land
That He would be crucified Heart broken
Made intercession for His persecutors Committed Himself to God
Hated without cause Gall and vinegar offered to Him
People shook their heads Garments parted and lots cast
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John – Written to all nations, the whole
world
Jesus, the Son of God
Lesson 7
AUTHOR John, a fisherman, son of Zebedee and Salome, and brother of James.
One of the 12 disciples – “the disciple Jesus loved” (13:23; 19:26; 20:2; 21:7,
20) and part of the “inner circle” of disciples (Peter, James and John), who were
particularly close to Jesus.
He is also the author of 1, 2 and 3 John and the book of Revelation.
He was exiled by Rome to the island of Patmos. (Revelation 1:9)
DATE About 85 AD.
TIME John covers the 4 years from John the Baptist until just before Jesus’ ascension.
John wrote his Gospel long after the others had written theirs.
Paul and Peter had been killed and all the other disciples had died. John was the
last, and probably also one of the last remaining who had seen and known Jesus.
Rome had destroyed Jerusalem in 70 AD.
Already false teachers had arisen, denying that Jesus Christ was the Son of God
and that He had come in the flesh; a human.
WRITTEN TO All mankind, all who believe, wherever they are.
PURPOSE Read John 20:31 – John has the clearest statement of purpose in the Bible.
KEY VERSES Read John 1:11-13
And John 3:16-17
And John 20:30-31
KEY CHAPTER John 3
John 3:16 is without doubt the most quoted verse in the Bible.
Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus and the testimony of John the
Baptist, clearly point out that being born again is the only way to God.
MESSAGE 1. The only way to the Father is through the Son.
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2. There is no eternal life apart from the Son.
3. There is a new, wonderful, close relationship with the Father and Son
for all those who believe.
OUTLINE The Gospel of John is easily the simplest and yet the most profound of the
Gospels.
1. Introduction – John 1:1-18.
a) John’s Gospel begins almost in the same way the book of Genesis does, with “In
the beginning…”
“The Word was with God” – our Lord had no beginning. He is eternal.
“The Word was God” – He is a Person of the Godhead, the Trinity.
b) Read verses 1-18 – they summarize Jesus’ life and John’s Gospel.
2. Jesus’ ministry – John 1:19 – 12:50.
a) Seven miracles: 2:1-11 water to wine
4:46-54 healing of the nobleman’s son
5:1-16 healing of the paralytic
6:1-13 feeding the multitude
6:16-21 Jesus walks on water
9:1-7 sight to the blind
11:1-44 raising Lazarus from the dead
b) Seven witnesses that Jesus is the Son of God:
Read John 1:32-34 John the Baptist said …………………………
Read John 1:49 Nathanael said ………………………………..
Read John 6:69 Peter said ……………………………………..
Read John 11:27 Martha said …………………………………...
Read John 20:28 Thomas said ………………………………….
Read John 20:31 John said ……………………………………...
And Jesus said of Himself, in John 10:36, “I am the Son of God”.
c) The Seven “I AM’S”:
I AM the ……………………………………………… 6:35
I AM the ……………………………………………… 8:12
I AM before …………………………………………... 8:58
I AM the …………………………………………….… 10:11
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I AM the …………………and the …………………… 11:25
(These last two are I AM the ………., the ……………, and the …………. 14:6
from section 3)
I AM the ……………………………………………… 15:1
3. His private instruction – John 13 - 17.
a) Read John 13:1 and John 18:28 – The “Last Supper” of 13:1, was not the Passover
Meal.
b) Read John 13:11 and then verse 12.
Even though Jesus knew Judas was going to betray Him, He washed Judas’ feet
with the same love as He had shown towards the others. Is this not “loving an
enemy”, and “doing good to those who despitefully use you”?
c) In your Bible reading and prayer time tomorrow read John 13:31 to 16:33.
d) The following day read Jesus’ prayer in John 17.
4. His triumph over death – John 18 - 21.
a) Peter’s denial – Peter did not know that when he had said, “I will lay down my life
for You”, (13:37) that his statement would be tested by a young servant girl.
It is so often like this – We stand ready to defend our faith against a vicious attack,
but when the attack comes it is not from the direction we expect. It is like locking
and bolting the main door, but the thief breaks in through a tiny window we had
forgotten.
b) Jesus was brought to Annas and Caiphas, the High Priest. He was found guilty of
blasphemy, based on His statement that He is the Son of God.
c) Then He was taken to Pilate, the Roman governor, because the Jews did not have
the authority to execute anyone (John 18:28). Here they changed their charge of
blasphemy (which the Romans would not bother about) to Jesus’ claim to be a king
– John 19:12.
d) Jesus’ death and resurrection and the restoration of Peter – John 19 - 21.
TWO VERY SIGNIFICANT EVENTS:
It is important to understand the meaning of the following two events.
1. “If any man is thirsty, let him come to Me”.
Read John 7:37-39
Verse 37 – It was the last, great day of the Feast of Tabernacles
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THE FEAST OF TABERNACLES
Old Testament New Testament
Shadow Reality
Physical Event Spiritual Experience
The Feast of Tabernacles reminded Israel of their experiences in the desert while they
were strangers in foreign lands, on their way to the Promised Land. In that desert they had
often been thirsty, and God had miraculously provided water again and again.
Jesus had come to give them water spiritually.
a) Celebration of the Feast.
A large procession, with people waving palm branches, started at the Temple and to
the sound of music and followed a priest who carried a golden pitcher, or jug.
The procession went out of the city, through the valley of Kidron to the Pool of
Siloam, where the priest filled the pitcher with water. Then everyone went back to
the Temple, timing their arrival right at the very moment the priests were laying the
pieces of the morning sacrifice on the great Altar of Burnt Offerings, as part of the
daily morning sacrifice.
The priest and procession of people entered through the “water gate”, and passed
straight into the Court of the Priests, where another priest carrying a jug of wine
joined them.
The two priests went up to the altar, one to the left, the other to the right, and
poured both water and wine into funnels which led to the base of the altar.
Immediately after this the people sang these Psalms:
Read Psalms 113 and 118:22-29
Then, in the pause after this, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If any man
is thirsty let him come to Me and drink”.
b) The promise.
“Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will
flow from within him”.
c) The responses.
i) Read John 7:40 and Deuteronomy 18:15: Some said Jesus was “the
Prophet”.
ii) Read John 7:41: Others said “He is the Christ”.
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iii) Read verse 42: Some rejected Him because they believed He was from
Galilee and not from Bethlehem and also that He was not from the line of
David.
iv) Read verse 44: Some wanted to seize Him and hand Him over to the
authorities.
2. “I am the light of the world”.
Read John 8:12-20
It was still the Feast of Tabernacles and again Jesus went to the Temple, to the Court of
Women (a sort of “walk through” to the rest of the Temple).
Two huge golden candlesticks, each one 50 cubits high (which is about 20 metres!), were
close beside Him.
These candlesticks were used to represent the pillar of fire that led Israel through the
desert by night, and symbolized God’s guidance and protection.
Every night these candlesticks were lit to shed their light all over the city.
Yesterday He had said He was the water of life, satisfying the soul of everyone who came
to Him. Now He declares He is the light of the whole world.
THE MOST MEANINGFUL PARTS OF THE FEAST:
1. The lighting of these lamps signified Israel’s need for guidance from God, the only
source of true light.
2. The pouring out of water was symbolic of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The
Pharisees and Sadducees asked people to follow their traditions whereas Jesus invited the
thirsty to Himself.
3. The Feast looked back at God’s provision in the past, and also forward to the coming of
the Messiah.
4. Next Jesus repeats His claim, “I am the light of the world”, and demonstrates that He is
the Messiah by bringing light to a blind man.
5. Read John 9:1-7.
He “spat on the ground”; water from His own mouth, and told the man to wash.
Where was the blind man to wash? …………………………………………...
In His courage, confidence, and unswerving commitment to truth Jesus
demonstrated what it really meant to know God and follow His ways.
He lived truth in every-day, practical illustrations which were, and still
are, always to the point and often wonderfully humorous.
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Memory Verses
John 7:37-38, “If any man is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as
the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water’ ”.
John 8:12, “I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall not walk in the darkness, but
shall have the light of life”.
Teacher’s Notes
1. Jesus – His humanity and Deity.
Romans 5:14; 1 Corinthians 15:45-50
He is the “last Adam”, but is not an exact duplicate of the first Adam: the first Adam was
never God, was not born of a woman, but was formed by God from the dust of the earth
and, of course, the great difference between Christ and us is that while He was always
fully God, we will never be. We are sons of God; He is The Son of God.
2. As humans, we are born in “Adam’s image”, (an image that reflects Adam’s fall into sin),
and are therefore sinners right from birth – which is sometimes known as “the doctrine of
original sin”. However, this does not mean that when a baby dies it is judged guilty and
sent to hell. An infant is not responsible to keep the Law, nor can a baby make quality
decisions, or have faith in God.
Several passages refer to little children in a special way. In Matthew 19:13-15 Jesus said
“the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these”; Luke 18:17, to enter the Kingdom one
must be as a little child; the “greatest” is the little child, etc. Therefore it seems clear that
babies, and little children, have not reached an “age of accountability”.
3. The Herod referred to is Herod Antipas, younger brother of Herod Archelaus. Herod
Antipas, although already married to another, married Herodias, his half-brother Philip’s
wife. It was this relationship that John the Baptist denounced when he said to Antipas,
“It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife”. (Mark 6:18) Salome, Herodias’s
daughter, asked for John the Baptist’s head as a gift to her mother and to end John’s
disapproval.
Jesus was not afraid of the Pharisees’ threats. His answer was that they could tell Herod
exactly what His movements would be. His remark, “Go and tell that fox, behold I cast
out devils …” shows that He was fully aware of Antipas’ character, for foxes are cunning
and sly, and Antipas was a sly, ambitious man.
4. There are many interesting details of Christ’s life in John. Just one example is found in
John 18:5. When Judas led the detachment of soldiers and some officials from the chief
priests and Pharisees, Jesus went out and asked them who they were looking for and
when they said Jesus of Nazareth, He replied “I am He”, whereupon they all staggered
backwards and fell down! It must have been quite a sight – the Romans in their soldier’s
uniforms carrying weapons; the priests and Pharisees in their long robes …… all falling
down in a heap!