Introduction and Overview to the Person of Jesus Breakout Group

There are handouts—you’re going to need these. We’re handing these out, and you’ll take them to your discussion groups. You’ll be opening the Bible together and going through what we’re going to learn about today.

Today’s lesson is all about the person of Jesus Christ. If you’re doing Fundamentals of the Faith with your family, we’re in chapter 4, which is about the person of Christ. In your groups, you’ll see that Jesus Christ is 100% man—He’s truly human—and He is truly God. Then we’ll see some of the reasons why God would become man. I want you, with your Bibles open, to go through those together in your discussion groups.

But think back to our last two lessons. Two lessons ago, a few weeks ago, we talked about Isaiah 6. Who remembers what happened in Isaiah 6? There were seraphim, six-winged creatures. Does anyone remember anything about that scene? Isaiah, a sinner, saw God and knew that he was ruined. What happens when sinners come into contact with a holy God without being cleansed the way that God provides? We are destroyed. We are undone, like Isaiah cried out. Do you remember what the seraphim called out in that throne room? They said it over and over: “Holy, holy, holy.”

Then last week, we saw Nadab and Abihu, right? God demanded that those who approach Him must recognize His holiness. In John, it’s made clear—John 12:41—that the same throne room where we see the seraphim crying out, “Holy, holy, holy,” is the same as we see in Revelation 4. John says it was Jesus in His glory that Isaiah saw.

So you’ll open your Bible and read things like Jesus got hungry, Jesus got tired, Jesus was born, and Jesus died. I want you to know that the same holy, holy, holy God we worship—that’s God the Father, the Holy Spirit, and God the Son—is holy. Remember, we’re talking about that same amazing, holy God. Why would He humble Himself to take on flesh, the One who created everything? You’ll read about that and see who Jesus is.

Some of you might already know the answers, but don’t approach this the way you might do schoolwork, just trying to get the answer. As you learn about who God is and understand Jesus better, actually believe it—put your trust in Jesus and obey His words. Enter with that kind of heart.

Announcements

Before we break, I have a few announcements. It’s October 26th, which means October 31st is coming up. Everybody knows what October 31st is, right? What is it? Reformation Day. We remember Martin Luther going to the church doors of Wittenberg and nailing the thesis to the door. In celebration, we dress up in costumes, walk around neighborhoods, and ask people for candy. Others call it Halloween, but call it whatever you want. Everyone who wants to, we’re going to go to the Yates’s house. Write that down. Remind your parents. I’ll send out an email, but we’ll all be at the Yates’s house as early as 5 p.m. As it gets dark, we’ll head out, walk around the neighborhood, and ask for candy. You’re free to hang out in their driveway. So Yates’s house, the 31st from 5 to 9—tell your parents, put it on your calendar, wear an awesome costume or just come. You don’t need a costume to come. Any questions?

Yes, you should bring a snack and drinks to share, and bring candy to hand out. Tell your parents all that. We’ll put it in an email.

Then, we have another better holiday coming up, where we actually celebrate what we’re talking about—God the Son took on flesh and was born: Christmas. We’ll be doing that on December 20th as Student Ministries. Our last gathering will be at the end of November. We’ll take the early part of December off, and then we’ll meet December 20th. Any questions?

Josh, what are walking tacos? It’s like nachos in a chip bag. So it’ll be great, because we won’t have seen each other for like three weeks and we’ll be going through Student Ministries withdrawals. We’ll go to Josh’s house, so put it on the calendar. It’s super important that you start thinking now about what ugly sweater you’ll wear, because there’ll be a contest and it will be epic. We need to step up the ugly sweater game.

You’ll also want to coordinate with Josh and Bethany about bringing desserts. Just like you’ll bring candy and drinks on the 31st, coordinate about desserts for December 20th.

Ask Pastor Jake: Do Modern-Day Miracles Still Occur?

Now I had to get to some Ask Pastor Jake questions, because I got several on the same topic. The first question, which came up in a few different ways, is: Do modern-day miracles still occur, such as healing and casting out demons? When we read the New Testament in the Gospels and Acts, it seems like it was normal to cast out demons and heal. We don’t tend to see that today. What’s going on? And how can we discern what’s true or false? Some people claim authority because they do things like that.

So first, do modern-day miracles still occur? What’s a miracle? A miracle is any time God acts outside the way He normally runs the universe. Have you ever thought about what the laws of nature are? The earth spins round and round, the sun comes up at a certain time, chemical reactions happen the way they naturally do, and we expect things to continue the way they always have. When someone gets sick, either the immune system heals it or you die. That’s just how sickness goes.

Can God deviate from the natural way He ordered the universe? God is not subject to the laws of nature. The laws of nature are not above God—He’s not subject to Newton’s laws. They just give us an expectation of how God normally acts. God can do anything. God can make a day longer. God can make the sun go backwards and everyone doesn’t spin out into space. God has done this before; He can do it now.

So can God do miracles? Yes. But I think this question is asking specifically about healing and casting out demons. There was a specific time in the New Testament where that was sort of normal—those are sign gifts. They were signs the apostles showed. Jesus gave them power to do these things to demonstrate that they were who they claimed to be, to help show that they were apostles in the early church. Healing on command, casting out demons, speaking in tongues—these were signs Jesus, the Son of God, did as an expression of His power. Those sign gifts ceased when the foundation of the church was laid. There’s no more need for further revelation. We heard Smed talk about this this morning—we don’t add to God’s words. Since there’s no more new revelation, there are no sign gifts to go along with that.

God can certainly do miracles—He does! But the gifts of new birth and faith are miracles. The fact that I’m up here—I was born a sinner, dead in my transgressions and sins, and God made me alive together with Christ. One of the most amazing miracles in the Bible is Jesus taking a dead person, Lazarus, and saying, “Lazarus, get up.” That should have made people say, “Oh my goodness, that’s God right there.” But the Jews who didn’t believe said, “We can’t have that guy around. We have to kill him.” I want you to know, miracles won’t make you believe. When you believe, it’s a miracle. When God takes a person dead in their sins and makes them alive, it’s the same as when God said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” and light was. It’s the same God, with the same power—when anyone believes, it’s a miracle.

So how do we discern what is true and false? God’s word is the standard. We’re warned in Deuteronomy—if a prophet or dreamer of dreams arises, gives a sign or wonder, and it comes to pass, but then says, “Come follow another god”—don’t listen. Paul said if anyone comes with another gospel, even an angel or someone doing signs, don’t believe them. The standard for whether you should believe someone—or believe me—is whether or not what I say is consistent with God’s word.

Do not believe every spirit; test them. In 1 John we see—even if a sign comes true, don’t listen if it’s inconsistent with God’s word. You’ll know them by their fruit, Jesus says. God is powerful; He still answers prayers. Sign gifts were given to the apostles and have ceased now that we’re in the church age. That doesn’t mean God doesn’t do miracles, but He doesn’t use them in the same way as in the early church. Any stories of miracles or signs anyone claims must be tested against God’s word.

As Jesus taught, if people reject Scripture and say, “If only I saw someone rise from the dead, then I’d believe”—no, you wouldn’t. Remember the story of Lazarus and the rich man? The rich man said, “If you send me back from the dead, my brothers will believe.” Jesus said, “No, they have Moses and the prophets. If you don’t listen to God’s word, you won’t listen to a miracle.” So don’t long for miracles—other than the miracle of new birth—and don’t neglect God’s word.

What’s Next: Age, Dating, Crushes, and Marriage

I want to leave enough time for discussion groups, so I’ll tell you what’s coming next time. A lot of you asked this question—maybe some boys roll your eyes, but some girls are like, “That’s my question!” And judging by the handwriting, it looks pretty feminine, but maybe some boys are thinking about it too.

Next time we’re together, I’ll take time to answer this, hopefully efficiently—we won’t say everything that could be said, but it’s clear from the questions that it’s on a lot of your minds: What does the Bible say, or what do you think, about age, dating, crushes, and marriage? We’ll talk about that next time. Please come even if you don’t want to hear about it; it won’t be the only thing we discuss.

Let’s break for discussion groups and learn about the person of Jesus.