1 00:00:04,690 --> 00:00:09,730 Greetings, this is Pastor David Bass at New Geneva Orthodox Presbyterian Church 2 00:00:09,730 --> 00:00:14,849 with the Moment of Truth, where we challenge you to think through an important issue of life and 3 00:00:14,849 --> 00:00:22,530 faith. And today, I would like to challenge you to think through the life and times of Jesus of 4 00:00:22,530 --> 00:00:30,250 Nazareth. New Geneva is planning a Bible study, a Wednesday night Bible study, in which we will 5 00:00:30,250 --> 00:00:37,369 explore the life and times of Jesus of Nazareth. One of my favorite topics, I love preaching through 6 00:00:37,369 --> 00:00:44,130 the Gospels and have done so in my ministry over the years, preached through each one of the four 7 00:00:44,130 --> 00:00:51,729 of the Gospels. And I love doing so because when we do that, we touch the life of Jesus. And what 8 00:00:51,729 --> 00:00:57,310 I would like to do, and he touches us then too, by the way, I would hope to tell you because the 9 00:00:57,310 --> 00:01:01,789 Scriptures are indeed a means of grace and the power of the Holy Spirit uses those Scriptures 10 00:01:01,789 --> 00:01:08,769 to bring to life the life and times of Jesus of Nazareth. And I've discovered over the years 11 00:01:08,769 --> 00:01:16,829 that everybody is interested and loves Jesus. Rare it is to find the man or woman who no longer wants 12 00:01:16,829 --> 00:01:24,269 to hear anything about this man. And we at New Geneva would like to offer you an opportunity, you 13 00:01:24,269 --> 00:01:31,549 friends, neighbors, relatives, workmates, an opportunity to see Jesus and see him through 14 00:01:31,549 --> 00:01:38,109 the eyes of the Gospels. There are other sources we have for confirmation of the existence of Jesus 15 00:01:38,109 --> 00:01:46,349 and perhaps some insights into him, but there is no place where the inspired Word of God intersects 16 00:01:46,349 --> 00:01:53,090 with the life of Jesus as it does in the four Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. And we will 17 00:01:53,090 --> 00:01:59,670 take a collective bird's eye view of the Gospels as we look at the life and times of Jesus of Nazareth. 18 00:02:00,230 --> 00:02:05,909 I love looking at the life of Jesus because I love Jesus, and I love looking at his life and 19 00:02:05,909 --> 00:02:12,949 trying to model my life according to his. Now, one of the resources that I will use in doing this 20 00:02:12,949 --> 00:02:20,710 is, well, I'll use several outside sources too, because there are some very good lives of Jesus that 21 00:02:20,710 --> 00:02:28,729 have taken the components and some of the background of the life of Jesus and brought them to life in a 22 00:02:28,729 --> 00:02:36,789 very vivid fashion. And one of my favorite resources along those lines is an older work back from the 23 00:02:36,789 --> 00:02:49,370 1950s, early 1950s, early 1950s and 40s by a French scholar named Henri Daniel Ropes. That's H-E-N-R-I, 24 00:02:49,930 --> 00:03:02,270 separate word, Daniel-Ropes, R-O-P-S, Henri Daniel Ropes. And he's written several most excellent books 25 00:03:02,270 --> 00:03:09,849 books on the life of Jesus. And I can tell that Daniel Ropes loves Jesus because of the way he 26 00:03:09,849 --> 00:03:17,189 writes. He's very eloquent, and he's very factual too. And he gets into some of the great background 27 00:03:17,189 --> 00:03:22,909 material of Jesus' life, the culture in which he lived, the religious setting, the Sadducees, 28 00:03:23,009 --> 00:03:28,610 the Pharisees, the Herodians, the Zealots, all of these different parties. He paints just a careful 29 00:03:28,610 --> 00:03:36,409 picture as well as common life and then the lives of the rulers of the time like Herod or Pontius Pilate 30 00:03:36,409 --> 00:03:44,389 or even the Emperor Augustus. And he has written a book called Jesus and His Times. It's a two-volume 31 00:03:44,389 --> 00:03:51,270 set. It's over 600 pages. So I don't expect those of you who come to our class to be reading through 32 00:03:51,270 --> 00:03:57,830 the book, Jesus and His Times. But just know that I am reading it. And if you would like to pick up a 33 00:03:57,830 --> 00:04:02,409 copy and read along with me, that'd be great to, or just to have it on your shelves, just to read 34 00:04:02,409 --> 00:04:08,870 and pick up and read when you get the opportunity. It's just filled with great background material and 35 00:04:08,870 --> 00:04:14,990 insight into Jesus and His Times. Once again, the resource that I will be using is Jesus and His 36 00:04:14,990 --> 00:04:24,810 Times by Henri Daniel Ropes. And I would just like to sample them from this book and maybe make a few 37 00:04:24,810 --> 00:04:31,709 comments as I go along, just to give you a taste of what we're in for. And once again, New Geneva 38 00:04:31,709 --> 00:04:38,670 Orthodox Presbyterian Church is planning for its fall ministry. We're going to begin on Wednesday, 39 00:04:38,870 --> 00:04:46,329 October 18th at 7 p.m. We are going to be exploring the life and times of Jesus of Nazareth. This will be 40 00:04:46,329 --> 00:04:53,769 a life of Jesus where we take a look through the lens of the four Gospels and kind of take them in a 41 00:04:53,769 --> 00:05:01,329 collective fashion to gain insight into this man, into this man who was also divine, who was also 42 00:05:01,329 --> 00:05:09,110 God in flesh. And we'll begin our study on Wednesday, October 18th at 7 p.m. in the homes of our people. 43 00:05:10,149 --> 00:05:16,649 And if you'd like, if you're interested in this, this sounds good to you. Why? You can call us 44 00:05:16,649 --> 00:05:26,209 at area code 208-523-0196 and make a reservation to be with us and to begin that study. Maybe you've 45 00:05:26,209 --> 00:05:31,230 got some other questions and further questions you'd like answered, and I'll be glad to answer 46 00:05:31,230 --> 00:05:42,050 those for you by calling 208-523-0196. Once again, we are beginning our study on the life of Jesus called 47 00:05:42,050 --> 00:05:47,610 The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth. That includes the times. That is, we'll be 48 00:05:47,610 --> 00:05:55,129 alerting this study with insight from the background in which Jesus ministered. That is, the political 49 00:05:55,129 --> 00:06:00,490 situation, the religious situation, the cultural situation in which Jesus grew up, and hopefully 50 00:06:00,490 --> 00:06:06,750 it will help throw light upon Jesus. And you'll see some things perhaps that you've never seen about 51 00:06:06,750 --> 00:06:13,829 him. And he will be able to minister to you as well through his Holy Spirit as we look at the life 52 00:06:13,829 --> 00:06:23,350 and times of Jesus of Nazareth. But right now, I would like to sample for you then from the book, 53 00:06:23,949 --> 00:06:31,209 one of the resources I'll be using, Jesus and His Times by Henri Daniel Rops. And I'll quote a little 54 00:06:31,209 --> 00:06:37,529 bit and then make a few comments as I go along. He begins his book this way. There once was a man 55 00:06:37,529 --> 00:06:45,910 who lived during a precisely defined period in the reigns of Augustus and Tiberius Caesar. His existence 56 00:06:45,910 --> 00:06:53,490 is an incontestable fact. He was known as a manual worker, a carpenter using the hammer and the plane 57 00:06:53,490 --> 00:07:00,750 with shavings curling around his ears. He could be seen walking along a road, which is still pointed 58 00:07:00,750 --> 00:07:06,689 out to us. In the evening, he would be stretched out upon a bed of rushes or a string hammock, tired out 59 00:07:06,689 --> 00:07:14,810 and sleeping like any other man, just like one of us, unquote. Oh, doesn't this say some very eloquent 60 00:07:14,810 --> 00:07:21,149 things about the humanity of Jesus? He lived during a precisely defined period in the reigns of Augustus 61 00:07:21,149 --> 00:07:29,329 and Tiberius Caesar. So many of the other myths of pagan religions are ahistorical. That is, they exist 62 00:07:29,329 --> 00:07:35,290 outside of time, and they cannot be precisely defined. This is one of the beauties of biblical 63 00:07:35,290 --> 00:07:43,730 Christianity, is that it stakes its truth claims on the claims of history. Jesus walked in real time 64 00:07:43,730 --> 00:07:51,350 and space. Jesus lived amongst us, did he not? Another human, just like one of us, as Henri Daniel Rops 65 00:07:51,350 --> 00:07:58,189 puts it, puts it. And therefore, the enemies of Christianity always try to attack the historical 66 00:07:58,189 --> 00:08:06,850 nature of it and have failed. Of course, they have worn out their hammers against the gospel on the anvil 67 00:08:06,850 --> 00:08:16,509 of the historical truth of the existence of Jesus. And he, Jesus, then the humanity, so poignantly 68 00:08:16,509 --> 00:08:24,230 pointed out to us by Henri Daniel Rops, talking about his manual labor as a carpenter, with the shavings 69 00:08:24,230 --> 00:08:30,649 curling around his ears, even as you can see on a carpenter, especially with longer hair. And he walked, 70 00:08:30,930 --> 00:08:38,470 of course, the hills and seashore of Galilee, the streets of Jerusalem, and lived as a man amongst other men, 71 00:08:38,710 --> 00:08:44,750 just like one of us. But he was also much more. Let me go on and read, then, from Jesus and his times. 72 00:08:44,750 --> 00:08:46,370 I go on and I quote, 73 00:08:47,090 --> 00:08:52,889 Yet he, that is Jesus, said the most surprising things that have ever been heard. He said that 74 00:08:52,889 --> 00:08:59,450 he was the Messiah, the heaven-sent witness through whom the chosen people were to fulfill their glorious 75 00:08:59,450 --> 00:09:06,490 destiny. More astounding still, he said he was the Son of God, and he was believed. He found men to 76 00:09:06,490 --> 00:09:11,909 accompany him along the roads of Palestine as he traveled across the country. He performed miracles 77 00:09:11,909 --> 00:09:16,690 with disconcerting ease. There were many who believed that he would bring about the political 78 00:09:16,690 --> 00:09:27,789 independence of Israel, unquote. So, Mr. Daniel Rops, in addition to giving us the poignant humanity 79 00:09:27,789 --> 00:09:36,029 of Jesus, also begins to anticipate the claims of Jesus as divine, as the very Son of God, as God in 80 00:09:36,029 --> 00:09:43,669 the flesh. And gee, indeed, Jesus would demonstrate this. As John puts it all, in the beginning was the 81 00:09:43,669 --> 00:09:49,330 word, right? From the very beginning to the very end, when Jesus would say, it is finished. So, Jesus 82 00:09:49,330 --> 00:09:56,509 demonstrates as well his divinity. That is, he is fully God and fully man in the one person, Jesus, 83 00:09:56,909 --> 00:10:03,750 Jesus of Nazareth. And we'll be taking these things up, of course, in our study on the life and times of 84 00:10:03,750 --> 00:10:12,870 Jesus of Nazareth. Let me remind you of that. I am so excited about beginning this then in our fall 85 00:10:12,870 --> 00:10:19,210 lineup of education. That is, we will be having a Wednesday night Bible study called The Life and 86 00:10:19,210 --> 00:10:27,490 Times of Jesus of Nazareth. It will be beginning on Wednesday, October 18th at 7 p.m., and it will be 87 00:10:27,490 --> 00:10:34,590 conducted in several homes of our people. And if you'd like to find the nearest home, graciously 88 00:10:34,590 --> 00:10:42,129 opened up by our hospitable members, there'll be refreshments and informal discussions. You can 89 00:10:42,129 --> 00:10:47,789 feel entirely comfortable in talking about the Jesus that you have come to know, whether you know 90 00:10:47,789 --> 00:10:51,750 much and have walked with him all your life or whether you have just been introduced to him. 91 00:10:51,750 --> 00:10:58,850 You will have your opportunity in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere to explore even further 92 00:10:58,850 --> 00:11:06,129 your relationship with Jesus and participate with us in our discussions and in our study 93 00:11:06,129 --> 00:11:13,169 of the life and times of Jesus of Nazareth. Once again, as we have seen from Daniel Rupps, 94 00:11:13,269 --> 00:11:21,649 he reflects on Jesus' divinity too. He was both the Son of God as well as the Messiah of Israel. 95 00:11:22,470 --> 00:11:27,009 So we see these things then beautifully brought out by Daniel Rupps in the opening of his book, 96 00:11:27,090 --> 00:11:34,309 Jesus and His Times, a resource I'll be consulting. But then Daniel Rupps goes on to say, and I quote, 97 00:11:34,309 --> 00:11:41,610 but then any mystic can collect devoted fanatics. The culmination of this scandal was that the man was 98 00:11:41,610 --> 00:11:48,070 suddenly wiped out without putting up the slightest resistance. So far from being discouraged by this 99 00:11:48,070 --> 00:11:54,809 failure, several of his disciples went out into the world to bear witness to his divinity, even with their 100 00:11:54,809 --> 00:12:01,909 blood. And ever since, mankind, seeing in this defeat the sign of victory, has prostrated itself 101 00:12:01,909 --> 00:12:08,110 before a common gibbet that is a cross. Just as if tomorrow a church should raise the scaffold for the 102 00:12:08,110 --> 00:12:20,029 veneration of the crowd. Unquote. Oh, once again, commenting on the unlikely story that a divine 103 00:12:20,029 --> 00:12:27,750 man, that is Jesus of Nazareth, could be so humiliatingly crucified and yet find followers. 104 00:12:27,750 --> 00:12:34,570 And there are reasons for that. Why a crucified Savior indeed is loved and beloved and proclaimed 105 00:12:34,570 --> 00:12:40,009 by his followers. And we will see this goes to the very heart and the very essence of the forgiveness 106 00:12:40,009 --> 00:12:46,029 of sin and the rejoicing of men. And when they realize that they are sinners saved by grace, 107 00:12:46,250 --> 00:12:52,409 then indeed they prostrate themselves, as Daniel Rupps says before this Christ and the labors that he has 108 00:12:52,409 --> 00:12:57,570 accomplished on the cross, because they know their sins are forgiven. Well, Daniel Rupps goes on. 109 00:12:58,149 --> 00:13:03,009 The mystery of Jesus is nothing more and nothing less than the mystery of the incarnation. 110 00:13:03,950 --> 00:13:09,830 What is the value of the small enigmas, excuse me, about which volumes of commentary have been written 111 00:13:09,830 --> 00:13:14,269 that one should not know with precision the date of his birth or of his death, that one should be 112 00:13:14,269 --> 00:13:20,809 mistaken about the village of his origin. All that and the rest are but of secondary importance and 113 00:13:20,809 --> 00:13:27,889 narrow perspective. The essential mystery is the enigma posed by this man, like one of ourselves, 114 00:13:27,889 --> 00:13:35,889 whose words and gestures bring into constant evidence unfathomable forces. And by this countenance 115 00:13:35,889 --> 00:13:44,049 deformed by agony through which we glimpse the very face of God. Indeed, unquote, from the book Jesus and 116 00:13:44,049 --> 00:13:52,090 His Times by Daniel Rupps. Indeed, he brings out highlights here. The relative triviality of all 117 00:13:52,090 --> 00:13:57,950 the questions that are of great debate among scholars, especially skeptics, that is the precision of the 118 00:13:57,950 --> 00:14:03,830 date of his birth or his death or the village of his origin. No, the essential thing is the mystery of 119 00:14:03,830 --> 00:14:12,529 this man, the mystery of humanity and divinity being united in one person. The one whose countenance 120 00:14:12,529 --> 00:14:18,669 is deformed by agony, as Daniel Rupps puts it, through which we glimpse the very face of God. Indeed, we see 121 00:14:18,669 --> 00:14:24,450 in the crucifixion, the burial, and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, the very face of God, 122 00:14:24,610 --> 00:14:32,350 as he both punishes sin and redeems sinners as he washes away their sin. Yes, the mystery of Jesus. 123 00:14:32,350 --> 00:14:36,789 Nothing more, nothing less than the mystery of the incarnation. Well, Daniel Rupps goes on, 124 00:14:37,509 --> 00:14:45,210 and I quote, Jesus is at once of history and beyond it. I love that. That's a great quote, 125 00:14:45,269 --> 00:14:50,830 isn't it? Because it describes the sweep of redemptive history. Jesus is at once of history 126 00:14:50,830 --> 00:14:57,190 and beyond it. Considering the number and the agreement of the witnesses concerning him 127 00:14:57,190 --> 00:15:01,269 and the abundance of the written testimony through which his gospel has been transmitted, 128 00:15:01,769 --> 00:15:08,049 one is inclined to say that there is no individual of his time about whom we are still so well informed. 129 00:15:08,649 --> 00:15:13,070 Yet, as he himself foretold, he has become the center of a thousand years of dispute, 130 00:15:13,850 --> 00:15:20,450 which each generation renews in contemporary terms, that this man of poor and uncultivated stock 131 00:15:20,450 --> 00:15:27,730 should remake the basis of philosophy and open out to the world of the future an unknown territory of 132 00:15:27,730 --> 00:15:35,070 thought, that this simple son of a declining people born in an obscure district in a small 133 00:15:35,070 --> 00:15:41,690 Roman province, this nameless Jew, like all those others despised by the procurators of Caesar, 134 00:15:42,210 --> 00:15:47,070 should speak with a voice that was to sound above those of the emperors themselves. 135 00:15:47,070 --> 00:15:55,490 These are the most surprising facts of history. Unquote. A very eloquent statement here made by 136 00:15:55,490 --> 00:16:01,450 Daniel Rops in his book, Jesus and His Times. Yes, Jesus confounded the wisest of the wise, 137 00:16:01,549 --> 00:16:08,929 did he not? As Paul says, and Jesus in his humiliating weakness outpowered the most powerful too, 138 00:16:09,029 --> 00:16:15,409 as Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians chapters 1 and 2. And Daniel Rops says that here in so many words as 139 00:16:15,409 --> 00:16:23,789 well, as this obscure carpenter's son in an obscure backwater, if you will, of the Roman Empire should 140 00:16:23,830 --> 00:16:30,730 rise above the powerful, should rise above the wise and speak with a voice, as Daniel Rops puts it, 141 00:16:30,789 --> 00:16:37,529 that was to sound above those of the emperors themselves. These are surprising facts of history, 142 00:16:37,750 --> 00:16:41,490 are they not? And they end up constituting redemptive history for us. 143 00:16:41,490 --> 00:16:49,350 Dear listener, Jesus is at once of history and beyond it. Well, Daniel Rops goes on to say, 144 00:16:49,830 --> 00:16:56,950 but his whole life, as it is recounted to us, is a tissue of miracles. I love that too. The life of 145 00:16:56,950 --> 00:17:02,929 Jesus is a tissue of miracles, isn't it? Shining with a light of supernatural provenance. 146 00:17:02,929 --> 00:17:09,069 Yes. The surprising facts cannot be detached from the stuff of his existence, Daniel Rops goes on to 147 00:17:09,069 --> 00:17:14,910 say, except by rending the whole fabric, denying this existence, casting doubt on all those who have 148 00:17:14,910 --> 00:17:22,509 testified to him. Yes. With the life of Jesus being a tissue of miracles, and we'll study these facts as 149 00:17:22,509 --> 00:17:31,289 well, it ends up Jesus' life shines as a whole with a light of supernatural provenance. So you can't 150 00:17:31,289 --> 00:17:36,430 detach miracles either, as modern scholars have tried to do, tried to explain away the miraculous of 151 00:17:36,430 --> 00:17:45,450 Jesus' life, and try to just make him merely human and not divine, and try and divest, demythologize was 152 00:17:45,450 --> 00:17:53,829 the term in the fifties used by the efforts of skeptical liberal scholars to divest Jesus of his 153 00:17:53,829 --> 00:18:01,509 divinity. But that can't be done without tearing apart the gospel as a whole. And he goes on to say, 154 00:18:01,589 --> 00:18:07,549 Daniel Rops does, the most astonishing fact of all is that this life, which culminated in agony, 155 00:18:07,549 --> 00:18:14,130 did not end. It reappeared in a stupefying new perspective. This dead man came to life. 156 00:18:14,130 --> 00:18:19,829 He spoke in mood. He showed himself to those who had known him alive. And in defiance of logic, 157 00:18:20,089 --> 00:18:25,670 his disciples were to say that this was for them the supreme and incontestable testimony. 158 00:18:26,269 --> 00:18:32,750 As Paul says, and if Christ has not risen, then our preaching is groundless, and your faith too 159 00:18:32,750 --> 00:18:39,529 is groundless, unquote. History must either reject Christianity or accept the resurrection, 160 00:18:39,529 --> 00:18:47,410 unquote, from Daniel Rops' book, Jesus and His Times. No accounting of the life of Jesus is 161 00:18:47,410 --> 00:18:53,109 complete unless it does include the resurrection. For without the resurrection, as Paul says, there 162 00:18:53,109 --> 00:18:58,930 indeed is no hope. Our faith is groundless too, and our preaching is worthless. So, as Daniel Rops so 163 00:18:58,930 --> 00:19:04,130 eloquently points out, it is the resurrection that is at the heart and center of the gospel, 164 00:19:04,130 --> 00:19:10,170 the resurrection of Jesus Christ. And we must all either reject Christianity or accept the 165 00:19:10,170 --> 00:19:15,809 resurrection. You cannot have both. You cannot have Christianity without the resurrection. And we 166 00:19:15,809 --> 00:19:21,450 will be exploring this truth, among others, that indeed, without the resurrection, there is no 167 00:19:21,450 --> 00:19:27,049 Christianity. We will be exploring these things in our Bible study, The Life and Times of Jesus of 168 00:19:27,049 --> 00:19:33,390 Nazareth. Let me underline that with you once more, that we are opening up a Bible study to the 169 00:19:33,390 --> 00:19:40,950 community, and we'll be having it in the homes of our people. And it will begin Wednesday, October 18th 170 00:19:40,950 --> 00:19:48,890 at 7 p.m. And if you'd like to explore this with us, join us. No matter where you are in your pilgrimage 171 00:19:48,890 --> 00:19:54,309 with Jesus, whether you've just begun or whether you have known Him all your life, we want to encourage 172 00:19:54,309 --> 00:20:01,710 you to join us in our study of The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth, beginning on October 18th and 173 00:20:01,710 --> 00:20:08,049 then continuing right through the year, 7 p.m., in the homes of our people. And if you'd like to book 174 00:20:08,049 --> 00:20:19,509 a place at a home near you, please call us at 208-523-0196. We'd like to get an idea of how many people we have 175 00:20:19,509 --> 00:20:26,450 coming and how many homes we need to reserve and set aside for the study. And that would be area code 176 00:20:26,450 --> 00:20:34,009 208-523-0196 to reserve a spot. We'll have probably a couple of nights of the week. If Wednesday night 177 00:20:34,009 --> 00:20:39,730 doesn't work for you, we hope to have maybe one or two other nights as an alternative. But we want to 178 00:20:39,730 --> 00:20:46,609 begin this study on The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth, and looking at the life of Christ 179 00:20:46,609 --> 00:20:53,970 through the lens of the four Gospels, and we'll take kind of a bird's-eye view of and kind of 180 00:20:53,970 --> 00:21:02,490 cobble together and put together a life train in the life of Jesus, of His different events and 181 00:21:02,490 --> 00:21:10,750 witnesses and so forth. Well, let me go on and finish the paragraph that I'd like to complete 182 00:21:10,750 --> 00:21:19,210 from a resource that I'll be using, and that is the book, Jesus and His Times, by Henri Daniel Ropes. 183 00:21:19,410 --> 00:21:30,049 He was a French scholar in the 40s and 50s, published this book, and you can just see the tender love 184 00:21:30,049 --> 00:21:39,509 and the complete integrity and honesty that Daniel Ropes has for the Gospels and for the life of 185 00:21:39,509 --> 00:21:45,609 Christ, all through his work, over 600 pages. So I'll be reading this. You don't have to, but if you 186 00:21:45,609 --> 00:21:52,509 want, you can read along with me. Well, let me cite then from this work another very strong paragraph. 187 00:21:52,509 --> 00:21:53,509 He says, 188 00:21:53,509 --> 00:21:59,049 Yet these particular difficulties do not account for the violence and bitterness of the discussions 189 00:21:59,049 --> 00:22:03,329 concerning Jesus. It is hardly possible to speak of Him without calling up passions, 190 00:22:04,109 --> 00:22:11,009 in which the interests of knowledge play little or no part. In another sense, also, He is a sign 191 00:22:11,009 --> 00:22:17,509 which men will refuse to acknowledge, even as Jesus said of Himself, didn't He? He sees into the 192 00:22:17,509 --> 00:22:23,230 most secret places, that is, Jesus. Jesus sees into the most secret places of our hearts. He judges us. 193 00:22:23,349 --> 00:22:28,430 We must either be with Him or against Him. And to Him, every man worthy of the name says once more, 194 00:22:28,789 --> 00:22:35,849 Who art thou? There's been a total change of morality since. On the hillside above Lake Tiberias, 195 00:22:35,910 --> 00:22:40,789 He pronounced the Beatitudes. Henceforward, He is the measure of everything that happens. 196 00:22:41,589 --> 00:22:47,450 The life of Christ is contained in history and contains it. It is not merely the vindication of some 197 00:22:47,450 --> 00:22:53,430 nameless tragic humility. It is the supreme explanation and the final standard by which 198 00:22:53,430 --> 00:23:00,289 everything is measured, from which history itself takes meaning and justification." Unquote. 199 00:23:00,630 --> 00:23:07,289 What an eloquent way to close His opening. Indeed, telling us of the historical sweep and impact 200 00:23:07,289 --> 00:23:14,049 of the life of Jesus. He has indeed been a controversy as well, has He not? A sign which men will refuse to 201 00:23:14,049 --> 00:23:22,269 acknowledge, even as Jesus said of Himself, and also of His words and His spirit at work in us, 202 00:23:22,789 --> 00:23:29,549 why culture has changed, history has changed. Would the West be what it is today with all of its advances 203 00:23:29,549 --> 00:23:35,670 and the envy of the rest of the world in terms of its culture, its morality, its fairness, 204 00:23:35,670 --> 00:23:42,410 all of these things and more, Jesus has had a profound impact, Jesus and His gospel. 205 00:23:43,410 --> 00:23:49,869 And we know that from the stars in which we've sent satellites all the way to your inner heart, 206 00:23:50,069 --> 00:23:55,289 it is Jesus who has had a profound impact. As Daniel Ross puts it, He sees into the most secret 207 00:23:55,289 --> 00:24:01,650 places of our hearts, does He not? And He does that. And such was the ministry and the amazement 208 00:24:01,650 --> 00:24:07,670 and the profundity that He evoked in the hearts and minds of those around Him, that every man, 209 00:24:07,750 --> 00:24:14,170 even today, every man worthy of the name man, as Daniel Ross puts it, must ask of Jesus, 210 00:24:14,549 --> 00:24:21,029 who art thou? I know that was on my heart and mind when I first began to hear about Jesus and 211 00:24:21,029 --> 00:24:27,630 first began to see Him in the scriptures. I said, who is this man? Who art thou? And the answer is 212 00:24:27,630 --> 00:24:31,730 there, though, in the scriptures, is it not? The answer is there. We do not know completely. We 213 00:24:31,730 --> 00:24:38,210 will be spending eternity plumbing the depths of the mystery of Jesus and the profundity of Jesus, 214 00:24:38,210 --> 00:24:43,130 but we have enough to know who He is that we might be saved. Do we not? And we have this in 215 00:24:43,130 --> 00:24:47,250 the Gospels. We have this in the scriptures. And what we would like to do at New Geneva 216 00:24:47,250 --> 00:24:52,910 Orthodox Presbyterian Church is offer you an opportunity to study with us the life of Jesus. 217 00:24:52,910 --> 00:25:00,269 We're starting a course on October 18th at 7 p.m. in the homes of our people, our study, 218 00:25:00,430 --> 00:25:08,269 the life and times of Jesus of Nazareth. And we would just like you to call us so that we can 219 00:25:08,269 --> 00:25:12,930 reserve a spot for you, have an idea of how many people we're going to have there so we can have 220 00:25:12,930 --> 00:25:18,750 materials and refreshments for you when you come. And we hope to just encourage a friendly 221 00:25:18,750 --> 00:25:27,609 atmosphere, safe atmosphere, in which to discuss Jesus. You know, there's no right or wrong opinion. 222 00:25:28,069 --> 00:25:33,809 The scriptures are always the ultimate touchstone and the measure of truth, so we will be using 223 00:25:33,809 --> 00:25:40,549 those. But do not be afraid of holding a mistaken opinion or maybe having an error of fact here or 224 00:25:40,549 --> 00:25:45,230 there because we are looking for input, for contribution, for what Jesus means to you, and 225 00:25:45,230 --> 00:25:53,930 also what the scriptures say objectively about this Christ. Join us, we ask you, beginning on October 226 00:25:53,930 --> 00:26:00,309 18th at 7 p.m. in the homes of our people, our study of the life of Jesus called The Life and Times of 227 00:26:00,309 --> 00:26:06,089 Jesus of Nazareth. And you can call us to reserve a spot for yourself and also to find out any more 228 00:26:06,089 --> 00:26:17,190 information that you might want to apprise yourself at 208-523-0196. Once again, call us for more 229 00:26:17,190 --> 00:26:27,230 information to reserve a spot at 208-523-0196. New Geneva meets for holy worship on Sunday at 10 a.m. 230 00:26:27,230 --> 00:26:34,789 at 101 4th Street on the corner of 4th and Boulevard. We encourage you to visit us and come and see us. 231 00:26:34,789 --> 00:26:42,049 We would welcome you for worship on Sunday at 10 a.m. at 101 4th Street on the corner of 4th and 232 00:26:42,049 --> 00:26:49,609 Boulevard. And call us for more information at area code 208-523-0196.