Good day dear friends. It's great to be among the living again! Last week I was sick and home in bed and another place with details I need not trouble you with! Thank God for answered prayer and modern medicine. Saturday I finally felt better and I was able to preach yesterday. The week before we were in Puebla and there may be a connection between the two, we'll never know.
We started a new ten-sermon series called "Ten Myths About Christianity." This is really a "busting" the 10 myths series. Sermon One was yesterday and it was entitled, "Jesus Was Only A Great Moral Teacher." We studied claims Jesus made about Himself that take us way beyond any claims made by any moral teacher, good or otherwise.
Here is today's study guide:
Monday: Read the Ten Commandments as found in Exodus 20. If you did not know about these being from God, one could say that he who wrote them was a great moral teacher, for in these ten, we found great moral lessons for a person to live a “good” life. Compare that thinking with what we learned yesterday about Jesus and His claims.
Here are the Commandments:(Ex. 20:1-17):2 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; 3 you shall have no other gods before me. 4 You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents, to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me, 6 but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments. 7 You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name. 8 Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work. 10 But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work—you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it. 12 Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you. 13 You shall not murder. 14 You shall not commit adultery. 15 You shall not steal. 16 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. 17 You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
If you know the Commandments you know they teach about a better way to live. The main difference is the respect and honor due God. A good or great moral teacher might say, "Get in touch with a higher power and respect it. And do take time to rest and reflect, don't waste your time and energy on false things, look to the positive, get in touch with those and center on those!" And s/he might also say, "And the ones dealing with interpersonal relationships are great: Honoring your parents goes a long way! Respecting life is great, don't hurt anyone! And respect established relationships! Always seek to be all about the truth. Be content with what you have!" That sums up, in my opinion, the teachings of a great moral teacher regarding the Ten Commandments.
Jesus, we stressed yesterday said, "I forgive your sins." This gets to the heart of all relationships, especially the one between us and God. Jesus also accepted people's worship. In Matthew 8:2-3, the leper seeking healing calls Jesus, "Lord," in a worship sense. Moral teachers do not. Jesus said He was the way to God, the truth of God, and the life of God. What a claim! A moral teacher would not make the same claim. Jesus said He came to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10). Jesus promised that He would rise from the dead (Matt. 20:19; 27:63). Jesus claimed that humanity would ultimately be accountable to Him (Matt. 7:21-23; 25:31-46) Jesus claimed to be God and allowed others to call Him God (Matt 16:15-16; 26:63-64; John 8:58) Again, who in their right mind would say such a thing? Only One who could back these claims up and make them real, say, the true Son of God?
Now is as good a time as any other to strengthen our faith. Now is the time to boldly proclaim we are Christians. Ours is a faith of life and hope and promise. Ours is a faith that will never die. And ours is a faith, that the more we know about it, the easier it becomes to share it with others.
PRAYER: Come, living God to our lives. Make strong in us the faith we need. Let us share the Hope of the world with others. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.
Have a great and blessed day!
e.v.
