TGOC Bible Quizzes
Now Online
THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST is pleased to announce the addition of Bible quizzes to our Website. We were tempted to call this new section of our site “Bible Trivia,” but we thought better of it, knowing that there is nothing trivial about God’s Word. Thus, we decided to simply call it “Bible Quizzes.”
We invite you to take some of the quizzes to test your Bible knowledge. Or, use the quizzes as valuable study tools. Be careful though, because you just might become addicted!
Quizzes are now available online for the Old Testament, the New Testament, and topics related to history and geography. We will, of course, be adding new topics in the future. We also will be adding questions that have various levels of difficulty, ranging from easy, to moderate, to challenging—with a few extreme questions to really test your Bible knowledge. Our plans are to add at least one new quiz per week. We will highlight the newest additions on our quiz page, as well as announcing them in our e-newsletter.
Come on—jump in. Get addicted to God’s Word. Visit us at: www.thegospelofchrist.com/quiz
TGOC ANNOUNCES
THE NEXT TWO LESSONS IN ITS
NEW EVANGELISM SERIES
In our previous e-newsletter, we announced the availability of the first two lessons ("The Authority and Application of the Bible" and "The Destructive Nature of Sin") in our new Evangelism Series of videos. In this edition of our newsletter, we are pleased to announce the next two lessons in that series:
"Jesus—The Way, the Truth, and the Life"
"Salvation as Seen in the Book of Acts"
In his lesson on "Jesus—The Way, the Truth, and the Life," Ben Bailey opens the discussion by observing that such things as world religions, the philosophies of men, advanced medical science, and impressive technological advancements cannot save us from the plague of sin. Rather, Jesus Christ is the only way that we can be saved from what Ben refers to as "our sin problem." Ben takes the text for his study from John 14:6, in which Jesus said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." It has been said that "Jesus is the Way; without Him there is no going. Jesus is the Truth; without Him there is no knowing. Jesus is the Life; without Him there is no living." In this lesson, Ben points out just how true such an assessment really is as he divides his lesson into three parts based on Jesus as: (1) the Way; (2) the Truth; and (3) the Life.
In his section on Jesus as the Way, Ben notes that Jesus is the
only avenue of salvation. Throughout human history, various groups of people have posited "some other way" to try to be saved. The Jews themselves, for example, thought that they would be saved merely because they could boast that Abraham was their father (Matthew 3:9). But as the Book of Acts notes, "Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved" (4:12). Jesus Himself said in Matthew 26:28, "This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins." Jesus came, lived a sinless life (Heb. 4:14-15), and gave Himself as an atoning sacrifice (Heb 2:9) to "taste of death for everyone" so that we could have the hope of eternal life. We know from such passages as 1 Timothy 2:4 that God wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. But the only way that is possible is if people are willing to obey Jesus, Who is the only way to salvation.
But, as Ben goes on to point out, not only is Jesus "the Way," but He also is depicted within Scripture as "the Truth." Jesus came to Earth as the embodiment of all religious truth. In fact, one of the purposes for which He came was to speak the truth to mankind. The apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 4:21, "You indeed have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus." In John 1:1, we are told, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." John 1:14 informs us that "the Word became flesh and dwelt among us." Who is that Word? It is Jesus—the very essence of truth. Scripture frequently reminds us just how important it is to know the truth. John 8:32, for example, tells us: "You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." The writer of Proverbs said, "Buy the truth, and sell it not" (Prov. 23:23). The only way that we can access Jesus as the Truth is to bring
His life into our lives and then to mold our lives in His image. The text of 1 Peter 2: 21 teaches us that we are to walk in the steps of Jesus. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 11:1, "Imitate me as I also imitate Christ." These two passages present the idea of incorporating Jesus, as "the Truth," into everything we do.
Jesus also is depicted within Scripture as "the Life." He is the only way that we can live the best life—both now and later with God in eternity. Jesus offers us "the abundant life" (Jn. 10:10). Ephesians 1:3 teaches us that we receive "all spiritual blessings" in Christ. It was promised in 2 Samuel 7:13-14 that someone would sit upon the throne of David, and that of His kingdom there "would be no end." Luke 1:32-33 provides the fulfillment of that. In speaking of Christ, Luke wrote, "He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end." That is one of the ways that Jesus offers us "true life"—by showing us how to be members of the kingdom (His church) of which "there will be no end." It is salvation through Christ which offers us that amazing free gift (Rom. 6:23).
Speaking of salvation, in his lesson on "Salvation as Seen in the Book of Acts," Ben concentrates at the outset of his discussion on how salvation through Christ was first offered on the Day of Pentecost following Jesus' crucifixion. In Acts 2:36, Peter presented what often is referred to as the first Gospel sermon. As he brought that sermon to a close, he said: "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ." Acts 2:37 records the reaction of the people to whom Peter spoke when it says, "Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, 'Men and brethren, what shall we do?'" These people had killed Christ. And they were convicted of their sins by the words that Peter spoke. As a result, they believed in Jesus as the One Who could give them salvation. Jesus said in John 8:24, "If you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." The people on the Day of Pentecost came to realize that. And they wanted to know what they needed to do to resolve their own "sin problem."
In his lesson, Ben examines other people within the Book of Acts who were saved. He discusses the case of the Ethiopian nobleman in Acts 8. He looks at the conversion of Saul of Tarsus in Acts 9 (and Acts 22). He considers the case of Lydia and her household in Acts 16. As each of these specific cases is inspected, a pattern develops concerning what these individuals had to do to appropriate the free gift of God's salvation. They had to hear (Rom. 10:17). They had to believe (Jn. 3:16). They had to repent of their past sins (Lk. 13:3). They had to confess Christ as their savior (Rom. 10:10). And they had to be baptized to receive forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38; 22:16; 1 Pet. 3:21). Once they had done all of those things, they then became Christians—nothing more, and nothing less. They were "in Christ" (Gal. 3:27) where "all spiritual blessings" are found (Eph. 1:3). They were saved.
The same pattern that is presented so clearly within the Book of Acts applies to each accountable person today. If we want to be saved from our sins and enjoy Heaven for eternity, then we must do exactly what those people did in the first century. And once we have done that, we then must be "faithful unto death" (Rev. 2:10) so that we may receive the crown of life.
We invite you to preview each of these new lessons in our new evangelism series." You will find them available on our Website in video, audio, and written transcript formats.
|
