Lenox Federated Church - Firm Foundations, Creation to Christ

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Firm Foundations

Creation to Christ

Lesson 50 - Jesus was Raised from the Dead, Appeared to

His Disciples, Returned to Heaven and Promised to Come Again

Questions for the LFC Firm Foundations Coordinator may be emailed to firmfoundations@lenoxchurch.org

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REVIEW QUESTIONS:

1. Why can the Old Testament be likened to a signpost? Because a great many of the historical incidents recorded in the Old Testament pointed forward to the birth, death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus.

2. Do you remember what Adam and Eve did when they sinned and realized they were naked? They made themselves coverings of leaves. Read Genesis 3:7.

3. What did God do when He saw the clothing Adam and Eve had made? He refused to accept what they had made, and He Himself killed animals, made clothes from their skins, and put them on Adam and Eve.

4. How does this incident remind you of what God has done for us? Just as God provided clothes for Adam and Eve, so He sent His Son, the Lord Jesus, to die for us so we could be made acceptable to God in the righteousness of the Lord Jesus.

5. How then can you be made acceptable to God?

a. Admit that I am a helpless sinner and refuse to trust any longer in what I can do to make myself good enough for God.

b. Put my faith in the Lord Jesus and His blood which He gave as the full payment to God for my sins.

6. Why did God reject Cain and the things he brought? Because he came to God in his own way, according to his own ideas, and not in the way God had commanded.

7. What did John the Baptist say about the Lord when He saw Him walking towards him on the banks of the Jordan river? Read John 1:29.

8. How many doors did God tell Noah to make in the ark? Read Genesis 6:16.

9. How does the one door into the ark point forward to the Lord Jesus? Just as the one door into the ark was the only way to escape death, so the Lord Jesus is the only door to everlasting life.

10. What sort of lamb did God command the Israelites to choose so their firstborn child would be saved from death? A lamb that was in perfect physical condition.

11. How does the perfect lamb remind us of the Lord Jesus? He was born without any sin and lived a sinless life, so He could be accepted by God as the payment for our sin.

12. Could the firstborn children of the Israelites have been saved if the lambs were not killed? No.

13. Was there any way we could have been saved from God’s punishment for our sins if Jesus had not died for us? No. It was necessary for the Lord Jesus to give His blood as the payment for our sins.

14. After an Israelite had killed a perfect lamb and caught its blood in a basin, was there anything else he had to do to ensure that his firstborn child would not die? Yes. He had to wipe the blood on the top and sides of the door frames of his house.

15. What does this remind us that we, too, must do if we are to be saved from the punishment we deserve for our sins? We must believe that what the Lord Jesus did on the Cross was for us individually, and we must trust only in Him for the forgiveness of our sins.

16. Did the angel of death kill any firstborn child that stayed inside a house where the blood had been applied? No.

17. Why is it now totally unnecessary to offer any sacrifice for sin? Because Jesus paid the full price for sin.

When we began to study the Bible, we talked about the fact that the Bible is a true history. Of all history, Jesus Christ is the central figure. His story is true. We are not studying about another religious leader; we are studying the true story of God the Son, the Almighty God who came to earth to be our Savior.

Jesus was dead and buried in the tomb for three days and three nights. At the end of this time, on the morning of the first day of the week, some of the women who had believed in Jesus, and had been present when Jesus was buried, returned to the burial cave.

It was the custom of the Jews to put fragrant spices on the bodies of the dead before they were buried. But Jesus had been hurriedly buried.

- The Jewish people were in the midst of their Passover commemoration.

- They hadn’t had time to put the ointments on His body.

- The next day was their Sabbath when they weren’t allowed to do any work.

- So they waited until the first day of the week to come and anoint His body with the spices.

These women came early on Sunday morning to anoint the body of Jesus. They expected to find His body still in the tomb.

But what a shock they received!

The women didn’t know that God had sent His angel to roll the heavy stone away from the entrance to the grave where the body of Jesus had been buried.

- Archeological Note:

Still visible today in the area of Jerusalem are tombs which date back to the time of Jesus. Some of these tombs, cut into caves in the rock, have a great circular rock door, set in a groove so the rock can be rolled across the entrance, just as described in this passage of the Bible.

The body of Jesus was not in the tomb! And, to add to their shock, they were greeted by two angels! Read what the angels told them.

Jesus had risen from the dead, just as He said He would! Jesus is God.

- He came down to earth and became a man to deliver us from Satan, sin, and death.

- Jesus knew before He left Heaven that He must give His life for our deliverance.

- He also knew that He would rise again and that never again would He die.

Psalm 16:10 is the record of the prophecy that Jesus would rise again. “For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.” Luke 24:6 is the record of the fulfillment of that prophecy. “He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee,”

PROPHECY CHART:

WHAT GOD SAID WOULD HAPPEN TO THE DELIVERER:

Old Testament                                                                                    Prophecy Fulfilled

Prophecy                                                                                             in New Testament

Isaiah 9:7 David's descendant Matthew 1:1

Isaiah 7:14 Born of a virgin Matthew 1:18-25

Micah 5:2 Born in Bethlehem Matthew 2:1

Hosea 11:1 Flee into Egypt Matthew 2:14

Isaiah 11:2 Some of His characteristics Luke 2:52

Isaiah 53:4,5 Suffer for others John 10:11

Psalm 41:9 Betrayed by a friend Mark 14:10-11

Zec. 11:12,13 Sold for 30 pieces of silver Matthew 26:14-15

Psalm 27:12 Accused by false witnesses Mark 15:56-57

Isaiah 50:6 Smitten and spat upon Mark 14:65

Isaiah 53:7 Silent when accused Mark 15:3-5

Isaiah 53:3 Rejected by Jews Mark 15:9-14

Psalm 69:4 Hated without a cause Mark 15:10

Psalm 34:20; Zec 12:10 Not one bone broken; look on Him whom they pierce John 19:34-37

Psalm 22:18 His clothing gambled for Mark 15:24

Isaiah 53:12 Die with the wicked Mark 15:27

Psalm 22:6-8 Mocked and insulted Mark 15:29-32

Isaiah 53:9 Buried with the rich Mark 15:43-46

Psalm 16:10 Rise again Luke 24:6

All of His followers should have been waiting for Him and expecting Him to rise from the dead because He had told them many times before He died that He would rise on the third day.

- Either they didn’t understand or remember what He had said, or else they just didn’t believe that it was possible that He would come out of the grave alive.

- But regardless of how impossible it may seem, God always does what He promises.

We are sure that Jesus is the Son of God and the promised Deliverer because God raised Jesus from the dead.

- The Jewish leaders crucified Jesus because He claimed to be the Son of God and the Deliverer.

- But God raised Jesus from the dead so that everyone would know that Jesus was who He claimed to be.

We know that God was fully satisfied with the payment which Jesus made for our sins.

- Recall:

Do you remember that just before Jesus died, He called out, “It is finished?” God then ripped the curtain in the temple from the top to the bottom. God did this to show that the way back to Him was now open, for the complete payment for sin had been made by Jesus’ blood.

There is something else that assures us that God was completely satisfied with the payment for our sins which Jesus made with His blood.

- God raised Jesus up from the dead.

- God would not have raised Jesus if God had not been fully satisfied with the payment which Jesus had made.

- Consider:

If a man is put into prison by a judge, he must stay there until he is released. If he breaks out of prison, then the police will recapture him and put him back. But if the man stays in prison and finishes the time to which he was sentenced by the judge, he has no need to be afraid when he is released. The police may see him after he has been released, but they will not arrest him and put him back in prison. He has been released because he has taken the full punishment for his crime. Jesus didn’t have any sin of His own, but He accepted the responsibility of paying the complete price for our sins. The complete price for our sins had to be paid if we were to be accepted by God. Jesus took our place before God, the Judge, and God punished Jesus instead of us.

Now, how do we know that Jesus paid the full price for our sins and that God the Judge is completely satisfied?

- God showed us that there is no more to pay by releasing Jesus from death and raising Him back to life.

- If God, the Judge, had not been satisfied, He would not have released Jesus from death.

So how can you be delivered from Satan, sin, and everlasting separation from God?

You must put your complete trust in the Lord Jesus, believing that He gave His blood as the full payment for your sins and rose again from the dead to give you eternal life.

Even though Jesus was there with them, they did not recognize Him. The Bible does not tell us why they didn’t; we could only guess. Then Jesus taught them, just as we have been doing, referring to the Old Testament prophecies about Himself.

Even after that, they still didn’t realize that it was Jesus talking to them.

Many times before they had sat together and watched their Teacher and Lord break the bread! Now, as He again broke the bread, they suddenly realized that it was Jesus! Later, when the disciples were gathered together, He appeared to them again.

This was Jesus’ command, not only to His original disciples, but also to all those who believe in Him and accept His payment for them.

- Jesus died for all people, so God wants everyone to know that they can be delivered from Satan, sin, and death.

- God doesn’t want anyone to suffer everlasting punishment.

This is why we have studied the Bible together—so we can hear and understand and believe this wonderful Good News and be able to share it with others.

- This is God’s message for you and for me.

- He wants us to believe what He has done for us in Jesus Christ so we will be accepted by Him and be able to live with Him forever.

- Testimony:

I have not seen Jesus with my eyes, but I believe that Jesus came into the world and that He died for our sins and rose again on the third day. I know this and believe it because God has written it in the Bible. I have agreed with God that I am a helpless sinner, and I have trusted in Jesus. His payment for me by His death is the only thing that I trust in for my acceptance before God.

It is important that you believe this message which God has written in His Word.

- Recall:

Do you remember that, before Jesus died, He told about a rich man and a poor man called Lazarus? Jesus said that both of these men died. Lazarus was accepted by God, but God sent the rich man into everlasting punishment. Jesus said that the rich man was in terrible suffering and that he asked Abraham to send Lazarus back to earth to warn his brothers so that they would not go to everlasting punishment. But Abraham told the rich man that his brothers had the writings of God’s prophets and that they are responsible to believe them.

- Consider:

That is also what God expects of us. Although we haven’t seen Jesus with our eyes, we have the message of the Bible.

God says that we must believe this Good News that Jesus is the Deliverer who died for our sins, was buried, and rose again from the dead.

- By believing, we, too, can know that our sins are forgiven by God and that God will accept us.

- If you agree with what God has written in His Word and trust only in Jesus and His payment for your sins, then God forgives all of your sin, and He accepts you and gives you the gift of everlasting life.

After Jesus commanded His disciples to take this Good News to every person, He left them and returned to His Father in Heaven.

Psalm 68:18 is a record of the prophecy that Jesus would go back to heaven. “You have ascended on high, You have led captivity captive; You have received gifts among men, even from the rebellious, that the LORD might dwell there.” Acts 1:9 is a record of the fulfillment of this prophecy. “Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.”

This completes the Prophecy Chart that was introduced in Lesson 31, as follows:

PROPHECY CHART:

WHAT GOD SAID WOULD HAPPEN TO THE DELIVERER:

Old Testament                                                                                    Prophecy Fulfilled

Prophecy                                                                                             in New Testament

Isaiah 9:7 David's descendant Matthew 1:1

Isaiah 7:14 Born of a virgin Matthew 1:18-25

Micah 5:2 Born in Bethlehem Matthew 2:1

Hosea 11:1 Flee into Egypt Matthew 2:14

Isaiah 11:2 Some of His characteristics Luke 2:52

Isaiah 53:4,5 Suffer for others John 10:11

Psalm 41:9 Betrayed by a friend Mark 14:10-11

Zec. 11:12,13 Sold for 30 pieces of silver Matthew 26:14-15

Psalm 27:12 Accused by false witnesses Mark 15:56-57

Isaiah 50:6 Smitten and spat upon Mark 14:65

Isaiah 53:7 Silent when accused Mark 15:3-5

Isaiah 53:3 Rejected by Jews Mark 15:9-14

Psalm 69:4 Hated without a cause Mark 15:10

Psalm 34:20; Zec 12:10 Not one bone broken; look on Him whom they pierce John 19:34-37

Psalm 22:18 His clothing gambled for Mark 15:24

Isaiah 53:12 Die with the wicked Mark 15:27

Psalm 22:6-8 Mocked and insulted Mark 15:29-32

Isaiah 53:9 Buried with the rich Mark 15:43-46

Psalm 16:10 Rise again Luke 24:6

Psalm 68:18 Go back to Heaven Acts 1:9

These were two of God’s angels.

Jesus is coming back to this earth again, but when He comes, it will not be to deliver sinners from Satan, sin, and death—Jesus has completed that work.

God now commands everyone to repent, that is, agree with God that they are helpless sinners deserving His punishment, and to trust only in the payment which Jesus has made for them. The next time Jesus comes, it will be as the great almighty judge of the whole earth. This is what He told the leaders of the Jews before they had Him crucified.

When Jesus comes again as the almighty judge, all those who have not repented and trusted in Jesus and His payment for them will be thrown, along with Satan and all his angels, into the everlasting fire.

God’s message to us is very clear. All of Jesus’ disciples (with the exception of Judas, who betrayed Him for thirty pieces of silver) believed in Jesus. They knew He was the one whom God had promised to send. They saw His miracles; they saw Him die; they saw Him alive again; they saw Him go up into the clouds.

The disciples went out and told others about Jesus, and many thousands believed their message. But others opposed them just as Jesus had been opposed. Historians have recorded that all of Jesus’ disciples died after being punished by men for their faith in Christ. Some of the disciples were tortured; some were crucified; one died in prison.

Would these men have given their lives for a lie? No.

They died for what they had seen to be true.

We can rest our faith firmly in God’s Word, because it is true.

QUESTIONS:

1. What did the women find on the morning of the first day of the week when they went to the cave where Jesus was buried?

2. What had happened prior to the arrival of the women at the tomb?

3. What did the women see when they entered the tomb?

a.

b.

4. What does the resurrection of Jesus show us? T

5. How can we be forgiven by God and receive the gift of everlasting life which Jesus bought for us with His blood?

6. What did Mary Magdalene and other believers tell the disciples? T

7. Did the disciples believe Mary Magdalene and the other believers who had seen Jesus?

8. Should they have been surprised to hear that Jesus had risen from the dead?

9. Why did Jesus tell His disciples to go into all the world?

10. Will Jesus ever return to this earth?

11. When Jesus comes back to this world again, what will He do?

Suggested Daily Bible Readings:

Day 246: Nehemiah, Chapters 9 and 10

Day 247: Nehemiah, Chapters 11, 12 and 13

Day 248: Psalms, Chapters 22 and 23

Day 249: Psalms, Chapters 32 and 34

Day 250: Psalms, Chapters 51 and 52

Click here for Answers to Lesson 50 Questions