Talk of JESUS . com

Tag: Genesis

Jesus Christ IS Lord – 1
Who IS JESUS?

What does the BIBLE say about JESUS?

.. Grace to you and peace, from the One who is and who was and who is to come, .. and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.

The Revelation of Jesus Christ to John 1:4-5 excerpt LSB

Our evangelism of the gospel may present the Lord Christ Jesus more casually than the scriptural truth that HE IS GOD!
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Christians and others sometimes talk of Jesus presumptively or perhaps even flippantly.

JESUS IS! just as the LORD told the Hebrews through Moses the explanation, 
I AM THAT I AM! 
Exodus 3:14 KJV  אֶהְיֶה אֲשֶׁר אֶהְיֶה
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- God IS! We certainly agree.
- Scripture is God’s written word. We agree that the BIBLE is truth.
- JESUS IS and was and will be.
JESUS defined

JESUS CHRIST LORD.

Without quibbling over the hundreds of NAMES Christians use to proclaim JESUS to unbelievers, let’s simply DEFINE and consider these three I have chosen today:

Ἰησοῦς

The KJV translates Strong’s G2424 in the following manner: Jesus (972x), Jesus (Joshua) (2x), Jesus (Justus) (1x).

Ἰησοῦς – Jesus
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Lexicon :: Strong's G2424 - iēsous
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Jesus = “Jehovah is salvation” Jesus, the Son of God, the Saviour of mankind, God incarnate [in the flesh!]

Before, Then, Now & Forever
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According to the GOSPELS of JESUS CHRIST
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In the beginning was the Word, and the Word [logos] was with God [theos], and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

Gospel of John 1:1-4 NKJV

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

Gospel of John 1:14 NKJV

Human History: ~4 B.C – ~A.D. 30
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Consider the enduring testimony of Scripture recorded in approximately A.D. 50 through the A.D. 90's, soon after the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ more than 2000 years ago.
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The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. – Mark 1:1 [A.D. 50’s]

Prologue of the Gospel of Luke:

Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.

In the days of Herod, king of Judea .. – Luke 1:1-5a ESV [~A.D. 60-62]

Βίβλος γενέσεως Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, υἱοῦ Δαβίδ, υἱοῦ Ἀβραάμ

The book [Biblos] of the genealogy [genesis] of Jesus [iēsous] Christ [christos], the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:

Matthew 1:1 [A.D. 60’s]

Χριστοῦ – Christ

“Where is He that is born King of the Jews? – Matthew 2:2

Pilate said to them, “Then, what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?”

They all said, “Let Him be crucified!”

Matthew 27:22 LSB, GNT

λέγει αὐτοῖς ὁ Πιλᾶτος τί οὖν ποιήσω Ἰησοῦν τὸν λεγόμενον Χριστόν

Christ defined

Χριστός Christós, khris-tos’; from G5548; anointed, i.e. the Messiah, an epithet of Jesus:—Christ.

Post-Resurrection – from A.D. 30’s – to ???? eternity
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The BIBLE documents MANY post-resurrection appearances of the Lord Jesus Christ to the Apostles, Paul, and others.
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In about A.D. 55 the Apostle Paul writes: 
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After that He appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep.

1 Corinthians 15:6 LSB

We may be familiar with the AWESOME appearance of JESUS to Saul [Paul] on a road to Damascus but read of a much later revelation of the risen Jesus to the Apostle John for UNDERSTANDING a more present, even future context of ALL CREATED MEN AND WOMEN appearing before the Throne of the Lord Christ Jesus!

The Revelation of Jesus Christ
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 ἀποκάλυψις Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ 
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Vision of the Son of Man

When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead.

But he laid his right hand on me, saying,

“Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.

Revelation 1:17-18 ESV

HEAR the Apostle John’s description of the Lord, SON OF MAN, as Jesus had described His Person born into this world, the same RISEN LORD John had witnessed some SIXTY YEARS before when he was a young Apostle.

~ A.D. 90-95

.. and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest.

The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.

The revelation of Jesus Christ to John 1:12b-16 ESV

LORD, Lord, lord

Fallen flesh resists JESUS as Lord, born in flesh and blood, the Son of Man dying in suffering flesh and sacrificed blood on a Cross.

Roger@TalkofJesus.com

Is JESUS your Lord?

CREATED humankind have difficulty accepting ALMIGHTY GOD, born as a mere man, suffering for sinful souls condemned to death and hell.

THEREFORE, WE who would be EQUAL to ALL resist following JESUS as Lord.

Lord defined
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What does Lord (or LORD) mean in the Bible?
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And Abraham answered and said, “Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the Lord, although I am but dust and ashes.

Genesis 18:27 LSB – אֲדֹנָי ‘ăḏōnāy

And he said, “Blessed be Yahweh, the God of my master H113 Abraham, who has not forsaken His lovingkindness and His truth toward my master H113; as for me, Yahweh has guided me in the way to the house of my master’s H113 brothers.”

Genesis 24:27 LSB – Lexicon :: Strong’s H113 – ‘āḏôn ‘

The unused root of [אֲדֹנָי ‘ăḏōnāy] used by Abram’s slave or servant referring to his owner:

אָדוֹן
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The KJV translates Strong's H113 in the following manner: lord (197x), master(s) (105x), Lord (31x), owner (1x), sir (1x).
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Note the intended authority implied in each of these human roles, let alone those references to God:
- firm, strong, lord, master
- reference to men
  - superintendent of household, of affairs
  - master
  - king
- reference to God
  - the Lord God
  - Lord of the whole earth
- reference to men
  - proprietor of hill of Samaria
  - master
  - husband
  - prophet
  - governor
  - prince
  - king
  - father
  - Moses
  - priest
  - theophanic angel
  - captain
  - general recognition of superiority
- reference to God
  - Lord of lords (probably = “thy husband, Yahweh”)
  - my Lord, my Lord and my God
  - Adonai (parallel with Yahweh)
ALL of these references to Lord are RELATIONAL. and ALL imply our UNEQUAL relationship as servants before a superior power.

kyrios – Lord
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Moving from the Hebrew Scripture to the Greek of the New Testament we observe Jesus asking followers about their RELATIONAL loyalty to Him.
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“Now why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?

Gospel of Luke 6:46 LSB – QUESTION of JESUS for followers

Do the christians you encounter call JESUS Lord? OR something else?

κύριος –

– From kuros (supremacy)
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κύριος kýrios, koo'-ree-os; from κῦρος kŷros (supremacy); 
supreme in authority, i.e. (as noun) controller; by implication, Master (as a respectful title):—God, Lord, master, Sir. 
- source
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he to whom a person or thing belongs, about which he has power of deciding; master, lord

JESUS, Son of Man, the Son of God

“I and the Father are one.”

John 10:30 [Or a unity, one essence}

And they all said, “Are You the Son of God, then?” And He said to them, “You yourselves say that I am.”

Luke 22:70

“For just like the lightning, when it flashes out of one part of the sky, shines to the other part of the sky, so will the Son of Man be in His day.

“But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. – Luke 17:24-25

ἐγὼ τὸ Ἄλφα καὶ τὸ Ὦ ὁ πρῶτος καὶ ὁ ἔσχατος ἡ ἀρχὴ καὶ τὸ τέλος

I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”

Revelation of Jesus Christ to John 22:13

Jesus says to his disciples (followers): “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. – John 14:6

Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates. – Revelation 22:14

To be continued…

NEXT: in Jesus Christ Lord part 2 – Christ, the Anointed One

Talk of JESUS . com

Comment on Scripture – Share the Gospel
July 27, 2024
Grace for the Everyday Sinner in 2024 C.E.
- Should grace be desired for more than simply acknowledgement of our blessings on occasion?
- Is the Biblical concept of ‘grace’ the same today as God’s GRACE in the New and Old Testaments?
What is grace?

We associate it with good things as in praying before eating and receiving mercy for those things we ought not to have done.

Paul frequently opens his letters to various churches with grace, peace and other gentle words of greeting. The Apostle then encourages believers in a spirit of grace given to all by God.

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
First Letter of Paul *[and Sosthenes]
to the church at Corinth 1:3 – LSB
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*Sosthenes = "saviour of his nation" - a Jew at Corinth who was seized and beaten in the presence of Gallio
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If God wills – a Mission ends, a Journey Home

Acts 18:17
And they all took hold of Sosthenes the leader of the synagogue, and began beating him in front of the judgment seat. But Gallio was not concerned about any of these things.

Gospel Grace
- Grace appears over 100 times in the Bible
- most frequently used in the New Testament.
The Greek word used by the Gospel writers and Apostles is χάρις pronounced: khar’-ece.

grace
- that which affords joy, pleasure, delight, sweetness, charm, loveliness: grace of speech
A brief look at varied New Testament use of grace, favor and graciousness reveals a much deeper and satisfying application of grace through Christ.

For of His fullness we have all received, and grace G5485 upon grace G5485.
Gospel of John 1:16 Legacy Standard Bible

Old Testament Grace

God’s grace before its fullness in Christ was proclaimed to the world

The Hebrew Bible or Old Testament also demonstrates God’s grace in action and in word. In Hebrew:

ḥēn חֵן

Translated in English as ‘grace‘ 38x and also as: favour (26x), gracious (2x), pleasant (1x), precious

But Noah found favor H2580 in the eyes of Yahweh.
Genesis 6:8

The favor and blessings of grace extend not only between the Lord God and man but also between the mortal flesh and blood of individual souls blessing one another.

Perhaps no blessing of grace is any better known than a benediction of parting the LORD spoke to Moses.

“Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, Thus you shall bless the people of Israel: you shall say to them,

יְבָרֶכְךָ יְהוָה וְיִשְׁמְרֶךָ׃ ס

יָאֵר יְהוָה פָּנָיו אֵלֶיךָ וִיחֻנֶּךָּ׃ ס

יִשָּׂא יְהוָה פָּנָיו אֵלֶיךָ וְיָשֵׂם לְךָ שָׁלֹום׃ ס

בְּמִדְבַּר (Numbers) 6 :: Westminster Leningrad Codex (WLC)
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The LORD bless you and keep you;
the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
the LORD lift up his countenance [or face] upon you and give you peace.
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“So shall they put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them.”

Blessing between the LORD and Israel from Numbers 6:24-26,27

Gracious people chosen for God’s grace

And of course most everyone desires at times to receive at least a portion of joy, pleasure, delight, sweetness, charm, loveliness, favour, grace, charm, elegance and acceptance.

Who receives grace?

Is God’s grace all-inclusive or exclusive?

Let’s take a brief look.

The Example of Noah

Then Yahweh saw that the evil of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And Yahweh regretted that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart.

But Noah found favor in the eyes of Yahweh.

Then God said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence because of them; and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth.
Genesis 6:5-6,8,13

Abraham’s Grace though Faith

And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; now he was a priest of God Most High. Then he blessed him and said,

“Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; And blessed be God Most High, Who has delivered your enemies into your hand.”
Genesis 14:18-20a

Now it happened that when Abram was ninety-nine years old, Yahweh appeared to Abram and said to him,

“I am God Almighty;
Walk before Me and be blameless, so that I may confirm My covenant between Me and you,
And that I may multiply you exceedingly.”
Genesis 17:1-2

Then Abram fell on his face, and God spoke with him…

Grace and Mercy

25:17 וְעָשִׂיתָ כַפֹּרֶת זָהָב

“You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold…

Grace is related to but NOT equal to mercy.

Mercy is a transaction granted by a greater one to a lesser recipient.

Grace is a part in a transaction by which supplication (or plea) may have been made from one to another. At times they are even equals — but often not.

In fact God or a king or any human authority may grant grace without you even asking.

תְּחִנָּה

supplication,

supplication for favour
- to man or
- to God
“And I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and of supplication,

so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced;

and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn.
Zechariah 12:10 LSB

“In that day a fountain will be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for impurity.
from Zechariah 13:1 – approximately 480 B.C.
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MORE about GRACE in every age NEXT TIME when we will ask:
"WHO NEEDS GRACE?" 

(You've probably guessed the answer already.)
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For from His fullness, we have all received and grace upon grace.
Gospel of John 1:16 – Berean Literal Bible

Comment on Scripture – Share the Gospel
January 4, 2024
Thanks-taking feasts of C.E. humankind
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A BIG meal of little thanks in a long season of thanklessness.
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Giving Thanks to the LORD

O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever.
1 Chronicles 16: KJV – v.34

16:34 הוֹדוּ לַיהוָה

We know the concept well — yāḏâ Yᵊhōvâ, from the Hebrew. This instance from a Psalm of David given to the priest for worship before the Ark of the Covenant. It is sometimes translated as ‘confess‘ (rather than ‘thank‘) the LORD.

“THANK GOD,” we might proclaim as a call to worship, at the table of sacrifice or in the place of the feast.

We also find Biblical lessons of thanks where God is involved but the ‘thanks‘ points to another or some provision by God.

The New English Translation uses a negative application of thanks referring to original sin.

But to Adam he said, “Because you obeyed your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’ cursed is the ground thanks to you; in painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life.
Genesis 3:17 NET
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What has fallen away from the grace of God on YOUR account?
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‘When He had given thanks..’

Our New Testament images of ‘thanks-giving’ mostly recall meals and feasts.

And he commanded the people to sit down on the ground: and he took the seven loaves, and gave thanks, and brake, and gave to his disciples to set before them; and they did set them before the people.
Mark 8:6 KJV

Some will recognize the Greek root from which we derive this:

εὐχαριστέω – eucharisteō

from G2170; to be grateful, i.e. (actively) to express gratitude (towards); specially, to say grace at a meal:

And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves:

.. And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.
Gospel of Luke 17:19-20 KJV
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Don't miss that feasts of the Lord God (by various names and in every season) ought to glorify God as WE give thanks for His provision, salvation and mercy.
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Recent Thanksgivings of the Common Era

Any who have READ my Thanks-giving posts of previous years may observe that occasionally I am haunted by ghosts of holidays past. Indeed most recently I have chosen to neglect Thanksgiving more than Christmas.

COVID – The Sĭn’ch WHO Stole Thanksgiving

November 26, 2020 of the Common Era

Thanksgiving: We’re a little late and Christmas a little early

November 17, 2017 of the Common Era

Dr. Seuss
Scrooge, Santa & the Grinch in days of sadness

“Watch for the coming ‘blitzchris’ of ads and marketing this week leading with holiday headlines of Thanksgiving and Christmas. From television to social media, mega-marketing messages will be unavoidable and ruthlessly relentless.

Thanks-taking

What is YOUR take away from the Thanksgiving and Christmas ‘holidays‘ of the Common Era?

It all started when the ‘back to school’ specials came off the shelf.

BLACK FRIDAY and beyond…

Guess who I found on my own site when I searched for Santa?

Thanks-giving in the days of our Lord by the ghosts of our Christmases past were long-ago lured into hurried holidays of Thanks-TAKING easily consumed in a ‘joy OF the world.’

Taking it all in with OUR own spin
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In order not to offend the inner-human insensitivities of the pagan purveyors of nature-ruled consumers seated at our 'Thanksgiving' table, 
perhaps tolerance of our fleshly excesses must rule over traditional manners of this Thanks-taking family feast. 

(Just for a day, of course, NO thanks-giving to God AND especially NO glory to JESUS Christ, even by acknowledgement of God's only Son in OUR prayer of 'thanks.' 
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Thanks-taking in 2023 of the Common Era

Christ Jesus (of the former years of our Lord) after all, has no place at the table of sinners here briefly today to give thanks for all of our taking. AND

Every American at the table this Thanksgiving must seek freedom FROM religion (rather than becoming a Pilgrim fleeing persecution for the faith of our forefathers).

Please note intended ironic contrast of Thanksgivings ‘in the years of our Lord’ AND in the ‘Common Era’ of these recent years.

WE are no Dickens or Spurgeon of the A.D. 19th century observing the hopeless tide of poor children begging blessing just beyond the churches of London.

WE are no A.D. 18th c. Washington (an Anglican), Adams (a Congregationalist), Witherspoon (a Presbyterian signer of the Declaration of Independence) or Jonathon Edwards, President of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) who famously preached “Sinners in the hands of an angry God.”
Source above: The Founding Fathers, Deism, and Christianity

SINNERS IN THE HANDS
OF AN ANGRY GOD
“Their foot shall slide in due time” (Deut. xxxii. 35)
AND certainly WE no longer reside in the New World of our forefathers but thank each other for our forefathers of REASON and idolic mother NATURE for the feast of this day.

Shall WE thank God for our Thanksgiving?
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Common Era culture including many 'christians' have eliminated our previous acknowledgement of the Lord Jesus Christ as the center-line of our world's history. 

Before Christ NOW becomes B.C.E. (meaning INSTEAD of Christ). 

Before Thanksgiving became 'Thanks-taking' Before Christmas 
(Make that: Before the holiday crowds).

Yet B.C.E. perhaps most appropriately refers to the centuries of these last days when Christians could thank God at Thanksgiving, that is:
+ IN THE YEAR OF OUR LORD = centuries A.D. 1- A.D. 20.
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A previous Thanksgiving

Was it A.D. 2014 or 2014 C.E.?
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You decide from the link above or brief excerpts below.
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- Who does the heathen, the unbeliever, thank?
  - Do you thank yourself for what you have given yourself this past year… for your successes in this brief moment of your mortal time in human flesh? … Why would you have gratitude to any, if you have not gratitude to God?
- 2 Samuel 22
  - Is there any question who David is thanking for his life – for his deliverance from Saul? David thanks God. David praises the Lord for saving him. David takes refuge in God. Do you?
“We give You thanks, O Lord God Almighty,
The One who is and who was and who is to come,
Because You have taken Your great power and reigned.
from the Revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ to the Apostle John 11:17 NKJV

Today, on this Thanks-giving of the Common Era, I praise our Lord God; the Father, Son and Holy Sprit Who IS, and Was and Will BE worthy of our continual THANKS and praise.

And I thank YOU, dear reader and student of Scripture, for sharing your thanks with others of this Common Era in these Thanks-taking last days of 2023.

Roger

Comment on Scripture – Share the Gospel
November 22, 2023