Amanda Diable

Jesus
Week 6:
Step 1:
Keller discusses the topics of one’s relationship with God and the problem of sin. Keller
states, “Christianity teaches that our main problem is sin” (Keller, 180). There are several
types of religions in the world today, and what makes Jesus and Christianity the correct
one to lead someone to salvation. “The answer to that is that there is a profound and
fundamental difference between the way that other religions tell us to seek salvation and
the way described in the gospel of Jesus…Only Jesus claimed to actually be the way of
salvation himself” (Keller, 180). Keller discusses the case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
where Dr. Jekyll creates a potion to separate his good and evil personalities. Keller states,
“Stevenson is saying that even the best of people hide from themselves what is within –
an enormous capacity for egotism, self-absorption, and regard for your own interests over
those of all other” (Keller, 181-182). Keller discusses that self-aggrandizement being the
substance for the misery throughout the world today. Just like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,
we find ourselves hiding from or self-centered role for evil acts, however situations
happen that behave as the potion, and they appear (Keller, 182). Keller later states, Sin
and evil are self-centeredness and pride that lead to oppression against others, but there
are two forms of this…being very bad and breaking all the rules and being very good and
keeping all the rules and becoming self-righteous” (Keller, 183). If one chooses to avoid
sin and live morally to cause God to bless and save them, then this will lead to one
looking at Jesus as a teacher, role model, and a helper, however one does not look at
Jesus being a Savior.
The Prodigal God 1, is a YouTube video about a parable in the gospel of Luke.
The story is about 2 sons and their father. The young son demands his portion of his
father’s estate now. By the father selling the portion of the estate to his son, the father lost
his status in the community. The younger son basically was asking his father to tear his
life apart, to tear his standing in the community apart, to tear himself apart and was in a
way wishing him dead (children did not get their portion of the estate until the father had
passed away). The father did sell the portion of the estate, leading the younger son to take
his share and eventually live in poverty, get taken advantage of, and live a life in ruins.
The life the son developed living made him realize the fool he has been. The son created
a plan to go home and tell his father he has not been worthy and to make him like one of
the father’s hired men (the son wanted to earn his way back). When the father saw him
coming home the father ran to him and showed compassion, but the father wanted to
bring him back and not earn him back. A lot of people are like the younger son because
they want the things God provides (the father is like God in this parable) but they do not
want God (they want to live their lives their way, not God’s way). These people
 eventually decide to go home one day and God will accept and love them no matter who
they are or what they have done in the past. The older son is in the field and asked the
servant what all the commotion is in the house (dancing and music). The servant tells him
his brother has come back and the father has killed the fattened calf for him. The older
brother was furious, angry, and refused to join the feast. It was the older son’s turn to
assault the integrity of the family. Father went out to plead with the older son, the son
tells him he never disobeyed him whereas the younger son squandered his property and
come back and is getting a feast with a fattened calf. The older son is upset with the cost
of the feast (fattened calf is the most delicacy and expensive). This is the greatest day in
the father’s life but the older son doesn’t care. All the older son cares about is his
inheritance and sees his father diminishing the inheritance with the cost of the feast. The
father tells the older son that he is always with him and everything he owns belongs to
the older son (the younger son already got his inheritance and lost it). The father responds
tenderly once again and tells the older son he wants him at the feast, but the older son still
refuses to join. Jesus shows us that there are two ways to be alienated from God; by being
bad (the younger son) and by being very good (the older son). These are two escapes
from God and a lot of Christians have the heart of the older brother, where they think is
they pray a lot and live life by following Jesus then they will get into heaven, however
these Christians/people do not see Jesus as their salvation but instead they see themselves
as their salvation (Prodigal God 1 Video).

Step 2:
1. First, Watch the video: "Atonement and Sacrifice". Write (200 words): Explain: what is
the meaning behind Jesus's death, and how do Christian rituals represent this
A new king would come from the line of David and deal with the evil in the world
in a surprising way. The King would become a servant, suffer, and die for the evil
committed by his own people. In addition, the new king’s life would be offered as
a sacrifice and that is the promise of Jesus. Jesus believed he was fulfilling the
promise by suffering and dying on the cross. Jesus stated, “He came to serve, and
give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). Ransom refers to the sacrifice
of atonement and all through the New Testament it discusses Jesus’ death being
an atoning sacrifice for the people. The New Testament covers the debt that
humans owe God for contributing to all of the evil and death in His world. Jesus’
death provides purification, according to the New Testament authors, where
Jesus’ blood symbolizes his life having this ability to wash away the vandalism
that evil has caused in and around the people so they can live at peace with God.
In addition, Jesus’ death was not final because he rose from the dead and this
symbolizes Jesus breaking the power of death and evil, showing that he lives on
to offer his life to anyone who will accept it.

Early Christianity included practicing animal sacrifice, which included atonement

and purification. Evil ruins things in two ways, a direct effect (atonement) and an
indirect effect. Today, there are two rituals that take place instead of sacrificing
animals. These rituals are baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Baptism is a ritual that
 consists of one being under water and coming back out of the water. Going
into/under the water symbolizes a personal connection one now has with Jesus’
death. Coming out of the water symbolizes the person coming back to life with
Jesus. Baptism is a sacred ritual that joins one’s story to the death and resurrection
of Jesus. The Lord’s Supper is a reenactment of Jesus’ final meal with his
disciples. Jesus used bread and wine to portray his coming death as a sacrifice.
Today, his followers refer to this as Communion. His followers take bread and
wine to remember and participate in the power of Jesus’ death and life.

2. Second, Read and write (200 words): the chapter by Keller: "The Story of the Cross,"
explaining Keller's argument.
Keller discusses the story and meaning of the cross. Keller states, “The primary
symbol of Christianity has always been the cross. The death of Jesus for our sins
is at the heart of the gospel, the good news. Increasingly, however, what the
Christian church has considered good news is considered by the rest of our culture
to be bad news” (Keller, 193). Keller then discusses the act of forgiveness and
explains that in the Christian world Jesus had to suffer and die in order to be able
to forgive the sins of his followers. Keller then provides two reasons to support
this matter: real forgiveness is costly suffering and real love is a personal
exchange. Keller states, “Forgiveness means refusing to make them pay for what
they did” (Keller, 196). Keller continues by stating, “You are absorbing the debt,
taking the cost of it completely on yourself instead of taking it out on the other
person...but it is death that leads to resurrection instead the lifelong living death of
bitterness and cynicism” (Keller, 196). Keller later states, “Only if you first seek
inner forgiveness will your confrontation be temperate, wise, and gracious. Only
when you have lost the need to see the other person hurt will you have any chance
of actually bringing about change, reconciliation, and healing” (Keller, 197). In
order to have resurrection, one must have forgiveness. Under the section titled,
The Forgiveness of God, Keller states, “As Bonhoeffer says, everyone who
forgives someone bears the other’s sins. On the Cross we see God doing visibly
and cosmically what every human being must do to forgive someone” (Keller,
199). Earlier I said there were two reasons, the second reason is real love is a
personal exchange. Keller states, “If you take away the Cross you don’t have a
God of love” (Keller, 201). In addition, Keller discusses that when Jesus suffered
for us it symbolized a form of Jesus honoring justice (Keller, 203). When Jesus
suffered and died for the people, it was a symbol of Jesus “identifying with the
oppressed of the world not with their oppressors” (Keller, 203). There is a role of
reversal circumstances which consists of God, who is in a place of ultimate
power, reverses places with marginalized, poor, and oppressed (Keller, 203).
Without the Cross we would not have the forgiveness of God.