steveamooti

1. John the Baptist, the first messenger, came to announce the soon-to-be-fulfilled prophecies in Isaiah, Malachi, and others, and prepare the nation to receive Him. But many of the bends and dents refused John's message, even when some of those refusing were preaching the coming of the Messiah, down to the exact location (Bethlehem Ephrathah. 2. Then Jesus Christ came, kind of suddenly - as a human baby - when everybody was expecting some conquering hero who would emerge from one of the descendants of David. And probably none of the Temple officials recognised Him when He entered the Temple on many occasions, but especially at the triumphal entry into Jerusalem. His message was sharp, penetrating the consciences of His hearers. Some repented (one of the reasons He had come in flesh), but most stayed put, just like today, when we continue to follow our sinful natures, even when we know we are going in the wrong direction.

Jesus may have been born a helpless babe, but God moved heaven and earth to announce Him to the world (angels, stars, the Jewish scholars, shepherds, blaze of lights on a hillside, foreign dignitaries).

I wonder what would have happened if Jesus had been born in a high-class hotel and heaven had announced Him as Lord (Ling), Saviour, and Messiah (liberator from Rome) to high-ranking Roman and Jewish officials. Herod would probably have reacted as he did when he finally got the news from the Wise Men from the East. The "big men" in lofty offices would probably have scoffed at the announcement and declined to go to worship a cave where cattle resided. They would probably have sent a centurion to get the little "brat" out of there and sort Him out!! So it's also practical that Jesus was born in the circumstances He was so that He could live to accomplish what He had been sent to do. Thank God for those circumstances.

That is so true! "Going with the flow" means interpreting life the way the world is. In my experience, I had to give up a job because I was required to do things that go against my Christian principles. For about one year after I left, it was very difficult but God did come through for me. the world speaks of a legacy of material wealth for my children, but I can't find the money to invest. So people sneer and scoff at my Christianity because there are avenues for earning which are clearly unchristian. It's tough being a Christian in this part of the world!

In what way did the lambs on the first Passover protect the families of God's people? God said that when He saw the blood on the door posts and lintel, He would pass over that house. Of course, God knew the Jewish families but He wanted obedience from those families. I suspect that there were Jewish families who did not believe Moses when he gave them God's instructions. These families must have lost their first born children and animals. What is the primary point of comparison between the first Passover lambs and what Christ did for us as our Passover Lamb? Blood! the blood of the lamb then, and the Blood of Jesus today. God sees the Blood of Jesus on believers and graciously forgives us

Christ shed His blood so that I would no longer live according to what the world thinks is a great life (comfortably rich, other people serving me (for my money), belonging to high-flying clubs, etc. But then I would be missing the truly great life with God. So Jesus, the Son of God paid for my sin (the price was His blood) so that I could be reconciled to God. And now I am yoked to Christ (Mathew 11:29) and therefore need to live according to how He lived on earth (pleasing His God, loving people, and doing acts of mercy, among others). The Holy Spirit is in me to teach me how to grow in this direction.

Philippians 2:5-11: Jesus was/is God, but He accepted to become a human being so that He could be punished brutally for my sin, to the point of death. When it was finished, He was raised to His former glory beside His Father. My salvation through Jesus is mighty expensive, and for this, I am mighty glad

As Jesus hang on the cross, He must have looked down the corridors of time, saw me, and said in His heart: My Father, look at that dirty little scambag down there. Load those sins also on the load I already have and let Me take his punishment also. I am deeply grateful for that decision Lord.

It should enable us to seriously think of how God sees our sin. If it requires death of an animal instead of ourselves, then it must be serious indeed in the eyes of God. And if bulls and goats were not good enough but God accepted them anyway, then we must be extremely grateful for God who passed judgment of death, but then the Judge stepped down from the judgment seat and took the sentence of death Himself. How merciful, how loving!!

I am not sure why because one person may kill a goat to atone for sin, another may kill, or may accept the killing of the same goat to eat meat. Basically the goat is killed. So, is the repulsiveness sincere for the meat eater?

as has been stated in the text, the Jews used lambs for sacrifices to God to take away their sins so that they could be in right standing with God. But to me "Lamb" seems to also convey the idea of meekness, unassuming behaviour, innocence since these creatures tend to exhibit these traits. the Jews might have believed that the sacrificial arrangements given by God were unique to them. Now John was saying that the gentiles were being invited to be part of the sacrificial system which Jesus was heralding. How could this be?11

Steve Nsita is my name. I am Ugandan and a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. I have done a number of JesusWalk Bible studies, and I am excited to do this one on Behold the Lamb of God. Looking forward to the interaction on this forum

I have a problem here Ralph. "...if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel". My experience is that I am unable to continue, be established and firm on my own steam. I can only continue and grow only by the grace of God. My part is to seek, or keep in step with the Holy Spirit so that, as you have said, "...our heart is set on serving Christ, and his grace and his promises are our security". Trouble is you have prevented us from using "proof texts" from elsewhere in the Bible, and yet you use them all the time, even in this particular section, you have used them. And so, that verse continues to be difficult for me. Is it saying I must "continue" on my own, or continue to trust the Holy Spirit to enable me to continue? Very confusing. Texts from elsewhere in the Bible would help me to resolve this confusion to some extent.

Saul's faith in God had been totally obliterated by faith in his power and tradition, so that even when the Holy Spirit forced him to prophesy (he must have been told when he regained his consciousness), he still refused to realise his folly and return to God. So it seems to me that people prophesy when the Holy Spirit comes on them to lay or strengthen the foundation of their faith. This does not seem to have happened for Saul the first time, and neither did it happen the second time; but clearly this was the case for the believers on the day of Pentecost (at least for some of them since the Bible does not tell us what later happened to most of those gathered together when the Holy Spirit struck)

I think David's motive for marrying Michal was love. Verse 20 says that Michal was in love with David. Hopefully this love was mutual; but also becoming the King's son-in-law would raise his status (already in high esteem in the country because of his military prowess), to an all-time high. So in verse 26, David was pleased when he was told the bride price stated by the king. With his trademark faith in God, he knew he would manage.

Are we unworthy to serve Christ? If so, why? If not, why not? we can only become worthy to serve Christ when we accept His forgiveness so that He can pour in use the gift of the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit, we wouldn't even be able to see the thongs on Christs shoes, even if His foot was one foot from our eyes. We would be that blind

This was real life material for me. I often worry about my inability to conform to the society norms of a diplomatic approach to things. I am impatient when people, especially leaders in my church, try to smooth over unchristian behaviour with nice words, or even when they keep silent. I find that I have blurted out my impatience, and then hold my breath and think Oh my God!! I should not have said that. But I also now realise that many times I say things out of pride. May the good Lord continue to smooth over my very rough edges so that He can use me for His Glory

I have often been asked to do things in my work (a consultant), which I decline to do because I think I am not qualified to do. But sometimes, at the insistence of the one asking me to do the job, I accept, only to discover that I have done it, not by my own cleverness, but by the power of God. The challenge is how to discern the voice of God from the babel of noises in my heart and mind.

We often underestimate the depth of the world view of our scientific culture. Zechariah had to unlearn the belief that when one is past child bearing age, one cannot have children. But God graciously gave Zechariah 9 months to unlearn, and after that Zechariah would compose a song of praise to God. He had learnt his lesson in solitude!! I myself, 64 year old and childless with my wife, often balk at the thought of getting a child at 65 years of age. Shall I be alive when the kid is ready to go to secondary school 13 years hence, and 10 years later, complete university? But God has demonstrated that HE is able in all things. May the God of Elizabeth and Zechariah be my strength in my doubts about many things.

What is rebellion?: refusing to do what should be done and going off to do my own thing. In this case, rebellion is refusing to do the will of God (especially as revealed in scripture) and doing our own bidding inspite of knowing what God wants me to do. this is especially so when what God wants me to do is difficult or unpleasant to my mortal understanding In what way is rebellion as bad as witchcraft or occult practices?: Witchcraft is abandoning God and seeking help from evil forces. God is at hand for any help we might need, but we prefer to look for that help from witches, etc. What does rebellion have to do with arrogance?: We think we are perfectly capable of finding solutions in our lives, and so deliberately ignore God. The arrogance is heightened when we are christians who have tasted the Living God but knowingly go in another direction when God speaks to us through His Word. What can we do when we find rebellion against God in our hearts? What happens if we do nothing?: And this happens to me daily!! Mercifully, the Holy Spirit convicts us about this rebellion and prompts us to go back to God with humility, confess our sin, and seek forgiveness. If we do it, then God has promised to forgive us through Jesus Christ

My name is Steve Amooti Nsita from Uganda. I am looking forward to studying the life of David in fellowship with the other brothers and sisters in Christ