CONVERSATIONS ABOUT JESUS: NAMES OF JESUS - RABBI/TEACHER

 

CONVERSATIONS ABOUT JESUS (NAMES OF JESUS)

Tuesday, February 23, 2021

Rabbi/Teacher (John 1:38)

Based on Ann Spangler’s Praying the Names of Jesus

 

The Name

·      Rabbi, or Teacher, was normally reserved for someone who had studied under another rabbi for many years. 

·      Jesus stepped into ministry by simply calling 12 disciples. 

·      Most rabbis merely passed along the teachings of the rabbi under whom they had studied; Jesus spoke with authority!

·      We are called to become His disciples, to stay as close to Him as those original 12 – studying His life, examining His teaching, and allowing His spirit to remake us in His image. 

·      Jesus as Rabbi is the only teacher who is all-wise, all-good, all-powerful, and able to not only transform our minds, but also our hearts. 

 

The Key Scripture – Matthew 23:8

Jesus said to His disciples, “But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one Master.”

 

Understanding the Name

·      In ancient Israel, all education was religious education. 

·      In the first century, “Rabbi” came to be used as a title for scribes or theologians trained in the Law (Law of Moses). Scribes were also known as “teacher of the law.” The KJV calls them “lawyers.” These scribes worked with the Pharisees, and added many rules & regulations laws to the Mosaic law, placing heavy burdens on the people. 

·      “Rabbi” is literally translated “my great one”, or “my master” or “my teacher.” 

·      Jesus was enormously popular, drawing crowds, using questions, discussions, proverbs, parable, symbolic actions, and even miracles to teach people how to live. 

 

Questions 

·      Why do you think Jesus cautioned against His disciples in Matthew 23:8?

·      We also see “Teacher” in John 13:3-8, 12-17. Why do you think Jesus washed His disciples’ feet, making this one of the last lessons he would leave them prior to the crucifixion?

·      How have you experienced people in leadership serving you? 

·      Do you see your primary identity as a disciple of Rabbi Jesus? How would your life be different if you did?

 

Take Aways

·      Rabbis & disciples were extremely close. They were linked for life. The idea was to live and breathe the master’s teaching, learning not just knowledge but also character. How are we so closely connected to Rabbi Jesus? Are we?

o   We are called to keep moving, growing, learning, becoming. 

o   We are lifelong disciples of Jesus. 

CONVERSATIONS ABOUT JESUS: NAMES OF JESUS - IMMANUEL

CONVERSATIONS ABOUT JESUS (NAMES OF JESUS)

Immanuel (Matthew 1:23)

Based on Ann Spangler’s Praying the Names of Jesus

 

The Name

·      The name “Immanuel” appears twice in the Hebrew Scriptures (OT), once in the New Testament. 

·      Literally translated “with us is God.” Matthew’s Gospel says, “God with us.” 

·      When our sins made it impossible for us to come to him, God took the outrageous step of coming to us, of making himself susceptible to sorrow, familiar with temptation, and vulnerable to sin’s disruptive power, in order to cancel its claim. 

·      In Jesus, we see how extreme God’s love is. It’s personal. It’s intimate.

 

The Key Scripture - Matthew 1:22-23

 

All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet:

“Look! The virgin will conceive a child!
    She will give birth to a son,
and they will call him Immanuel,
    which means ‘God is with us.’”

 

Understanding the Name

·      The name “Immanuel” first appears in Isaiah 7:14 as part of a prophetic word that Isaiah spoke to King Ahaz of Judah. (Judah was the southern kingdom.) At the time, Syria & Israel (the northern kingdom) had formed a coalition against Assyria. 

·      Isaiah urged Ahaz to trust in the Lord, rather than appealing to Assyria for help against Syria & Israel, who were threatening to invade Judah for not joining their coalition. 

·      Ahaz didn’t listen, and Isaiah proclaimed: “All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’).

·      Matthew cites this prophecy, applying it to Jesus. 

·      God has a persistent desire to dwell with His people. In becoming a man, Jesus, He did so in a unique way. 

·      Immanuel, God with us, to rescue, to redeem, to restore our relationship with Him. 

 

Questions

·      How have you experienced “Immanuel” – God being with you in your life?

·      Matthew begins & ends his Gospel with the promises that God is with us. How would you life be different if you began and ended each day with the firm belief that God is with you? 

·      What does this title of Jesus reveal about his nature?

Take Aways

·      God promises to be with us. 

·      God is persistent in pursuing you. 

·      God is present in the great sufferings and in the great joys. 

·      God lives in us and through us. 

Pastoral Prayer: February 7, 2021

Good morning, Church! Let us quiet our hearts and go to the Lord in prayer:  

Be still and know that I am God.

Be still and know that I am.

Be still and know that. 

Be still and know.

Be still.

Be.

 

O Good and Gracious God,

we love You.

Yes, Lord, we love You, 
for Your love is so pure, so divine.

Your love transforms our souls and minds. 

Your love has the power to bring new hope

in to our lives. 

Your Scripture encourages us, molds us, and teaches us, 

and Your most significant instructions center on the gifts of love.

As You have loved us so deeply, 

so must we also love one another. 
This is a privilege, to love and to love well.  

 

As we seek to obey this great commandment, 

we call upon You to lavish Your love and healing 

onto members of our faith family,

John Liles and Ernie Dunham, who continue their journeys of healing. 

 

We mercifully seek Your Presence to remain with

Paul Cooke and Suzanne Pace, 

as they continue their recoveries at home. 

 

We mourn with Don Olson, as he grieves the loss of his brother, Stewart Terry, 

and with John Mark Wilcox in the death of his brother, Paul Wilcox. 

 

And, Lord, we celebrate the creation and birth of Jackson Troy Alexander Hitt.

We pray for rest-filled nights for Troy’s parents, Cody & Cara Hitt, 

and we gleefully rejoice with Troy’s grandparents, Paul & Mary Koerner. 

 

O Lord, continue to teach us 

how to love one another, 

and care for one another, 

as we walk through painful seasons 

and joy-filled milestones together. 

To all those who are hurting, 

to all those who are away from their families, 

may Your love and our love be a balm for their souls. 

 

O, Lord, as we prepare our hearts and ears 

to hear today’s message from You through Dr. Bell, 

we are reminded our hope and our victory is in YOU. 

 

Through the wisdom and knowledge that comes from You, 

we know that we shall be truly free. 

Freedom is not the right to do what we want, 

but the ability to do what we ought. · 

Without Christ, we are slaves to sin, 

unable to do what is right. 

Jesus has liberated us to walk in right relationship with You, O God, 

and to be the kind of people You created us to be. 

 

And so we call upon You, O Mighty One, to:

bring life where there is death, 

bring hope where there is fear, 

bring freedom where there is bondage, 

bring the sweet aroma of life 

where there is the stench of death.

 

Loving God, re-form and re-shape us 

in all the places in our lives that are not conformed 

to Your purposes and intentions. 

Guide us in the way that leads to life. 

And remind us of who we are because of Jesus. 
May we fight the lies and wanderings surrounding our hearts, 

and rely solely on Your strength. 

Break us from the chains of fear that hold us hostage. 

As we dwell in Your Word, 

as we make a home in Your Scriptures,

as we learn from You and grow in grace, 

may our hearts come to know Your truth, 

and may that truth set us free from the bondage of sin – 

a freedom that only comes as we continuously and enduringly abide in You.

 

We pray this is the name of Jesus, 

the ultimate bondage breaker, 

who taught us to pray as one by saying these words... 

 

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name.

Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

For thine is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

CONVERSATIONS ABOUT JESUS: HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Hello, Friends! Samuel Zepeda and I are back with Conversations about Jesus in 2021! 

Catch us every week live on Facebook at 1:30pm CST. 

Next Tuesday, February 9, we will begin a study on the Names of Jesus, based on the book by Ann Spangler. 

Check out this week's video for all updates!