Sunday, January 30, 2011

Bible Studies I Would Kill to Have Been At

Working backwards, and assuming (fairly, I should think) where it does not mention the word "scripture" that given the time spent, scripture was the major content of their teaching...

Paul:
"When they had appointed a day for him, they came to him at his lodging in greater numbers. From morning till evening he expounded to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets."
Acts 28:23

And he entered the synagogue and for three months spoke boldly, reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God.
Acts 19:8

And Paul went in [Thessalonica], as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ...
... Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.
Acts 17:2-3, 11
Interesting that the Bereans, whom we use as a model of diligent students, actually were eager to study in a very specific way - as Jews, they were checking scriptures to see if the Christ that Paul preached from the Old Testament was really there!

Jesus:
Then he opened their [the disciples] minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
Luke 24:45-47

He presented himself alive to them [the disciples] after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.
Acts 1:3

And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them [the two men on the road to Emmaus] in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.
Luke 24:27

and, of course
"You [Pharisees] search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me..."
John 5:39
The kingdom of God. The person, work and purpose of Christ. Jesus is the Christ. Is it reasonable to say that if they saw the OT this way, so should we. Isn't it also reasonable to say that to the extent we don't use all scripture this way, we're deviating from norm?

And oh, I wouldn't actually kill anyone. Maybe a rabbit.

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