Notes from November 5th, 2001.

The first subject discussed in class
was the promised return of Christ
and the day of judgment.
In several places in the New
Testament, Jesus or his disciples
intimate
that the second coming of Christ is close
at hand. Some of these bible
quotations were compiled by the
instructor and handed out at the
beginning of
class. The relevant passages are: Mark
8:38-9:1, James 5:7-9, John 21:20-21,
1 Thessalonians 4:15-17, 2
Thessalonians 1:5-7, Romans 13:10-13,
and
Revelations 1:3, 1:7, 3: 11, 22:7, 12, and
20.
Two explanations for why Jesus has
not returned were presented in 2
Peter.
1)The first explanation is that time is
not the same for God as it is for
us. In 2 Peter 3:8 Peter says: "But do not
ignore this one fact, beloved,
that with the Lord one day is like a
thousand years, and a thousand years
are
like one day.
2)The second explanation is that God
is allowing time for everyone to
repent and be included in the Kingdom of
God. In 2 Peter 3:9 Peter says: "The
Lord is not slow about his promise, as
some think of slowness, but is patient
with you, not wanting any to perish, but all
to come to repentance."
Over time, the emphasis of the
Christian religion shifted from the
immanent second coming of Christ to the
love of God and the salvation offered
through Jesus' death on the cross for our
sins.

Next we discussed the meaning of the
Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy
Ghost. The instructor posited that, while
there was no mention of the trinity
in the Old Testament, the foundations for
the trinity was there. In Hosea
11:1, it is written: "When Israel was a
child, then I loved him, and called
my son out of Egypt." This is purported to
be a prophesy of the coming of
Jesus who was hidden in Egypt from the
wrath of King Herod, as well as the
recounting of God saving Israel from
Egypt. There were a few other places in
the bible that this type of connection
appears, but we didn't go into depth
on this point.

The last topic of discussion concerned
what Christians must do to obtain
everlasting life and salvation. In John
11:25-26 Jesus said: "I am the
resurrection and the life. Those who
believe in me, even thought they die,
will live, and everyone who lives and
believes in me will never die." In John
14:6 "Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way,
and the truth, and the life. No one
comes to the Father except through me.'"
Therefore, salvation in the Christian
religion is a process by which
Jesus steps into the place of all true
believers on Judgment Day and allows
himself to be judged for their sins. The
only thing required of the
Christians, then, is to hear the Word and
believe that Jesus died for our
sins. Baptism is not required, though it is
the public ritual of rebirth in
the spirit of the Word of God.