Lesson 1 - Teacher's Guide
- Luke 2:8-14 is a familiar passage of Scripture. Most people think that the angels were proclaiming that Jesus’ arrival would stop division, end strife, and usher in a new era of peace on earth. That’s not what this passage is saying. The position that Jesus came to bring peace among people simply cannot be defended (Matt. 10:34-36 and 24:6-8).
- The angels were announcing, “Peace. Good will toward men from God!” (Luke 2:14). Prior to the advent of the Lord Jesus Christ, God was at war against man’s sins. His wrath came upon people because of the sin in their lives. Jesus ended the war between God and man—He made all the difference! Yet most people still think of God as being angry at our sins.
- The Gospel is the nearly-too-good-to-be-true news that God isn’t angry with us, that He loves us, and that He wants to extend all of His blessings toward us. It’s the goodness of God that leads people to repentance (Rom. 2:4). God is just, but Jesus paid the price. He totally changed the way God deals with mankind.
- The anger and wrath of God has been atoned and appeased (2 Cor. 5:17-18). Reconcile simply means “to make friendly” or “to bring back into harmony.” God’s wrath was placed upon His Son, and He isn’t angry with us anymore! The reason Christianity isn’t having a greater impact on our world today is because we aren’t preaching this message. The power of God for us to receive salvation—forgiveness of sins, healing, prosperity, and deliverance—is released through the Gospel, the nearly-too-good-to-be-true news, of Jesus Christ (Rom. 1:16).
- God was in Christ not holding man’s sins against them (2 Cor. 5:19). Jesus—both by His life and message—declared, “God isn’t mad at man anymore. Your sins aren’t a problem!” Anyone who takes what I’m sharing and says “This is awesome. I love it! Now I can go live in sin” needs to be born again. If we are truly born again and have the hope of being like Jesus, then we’re looking for a way to overcome sin—not indulge in it (1 John 3:3). When the Lord Jesus Christ died for our sins, His sacrifice forever satisfied the wrath of God. Sin isn’t the issue!
Footnotes
| 1. | A. | Read Luke 2:8-14. What do most people think that the angels were proclaiming? (That Jesus’ arrival would stop division, end strife, and usher in a new era of peace on earth) |
| B. | In light of Matthew 10:34-36 and 24:6-8, can the position that Jesus came to bring peace among people be defended? (No) | |
| 2. | A. | What were the angels announcing in Luke 2:14? (“Peace. Good will toward men from God!”) |
| B. | What did Jesus end? (The war between God and man) | |
| 3. | A. | What is the Gospel? (The nearly-too-good-to-be-true news that God isn’t angry with us, that He loves us, and that He wants to extend all of His blessings toward us) |
| B. | According to Romans 2:4, what is it that leads people to repentance? (The goodness of God) | |
| 4. | A. | Read 2 Corinthians 5:17-18. What has been atoned and appeased? (The anger and wrath of God) |
| B. | Read Romans 1:16. How is the power of God for us to receive salvation—forgiveness of sins, healing, prosperity, and deliverance—released? (Through the Gospel, the nearly-too-good-to-be-true news, of Jesus Christ) | |
| 5. | A. | According to 2 Corinthians 5:19, what was God doing in Christ? (Not holding man’s sins against him) |
| B. | According to 1 John 3:3, what are people who are truly born again looking for? (A way to overcome sin) |
