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How can we know
Jesus? You already may know many stories about Jesus. They have
been familiar to you for many years.
In this course,
the stories you know, as well as some you may not know, are
gathered together and arranged in the order in which they probably
happened.
Many stories in
this course are written in the Bible. A few additional lessons are
stories that tell us about the culture and times that Jesus lived
in, and show us the usual happenings of Jewish life at that time.
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Tax
collectors were very disliked among the Jews. The reason was that
they were viewed as traitors to Israel, because they were Jews who
worked for the Roman government, who had conquered them. The tax
collectors also often took more than they were instructed to,
making themselves richer.
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Mark was a
young man who had been raised in Jerusalem. Although he was not
one of the twelve disciples, the closest followers of Jesus, he
seems to have become a Christian very early. He knew the Romans from
his contacts in Jerusalem and directs his story to them. He
stresses particularly the miracles that would impress a
conquering nation.
The Gospel of Mark tells of Jesus' later years and focuses on
the last of week of His life. This Gospel narrates the life of
Jesus from His meeting with John the Baptist to the Ascension.
The author of
the third Gospel is Luke.
Luke was an educated physician and an
inspired historian. He was the friend of the Apostle Paul, who
referred to Luke as the "beloved physician."
Luke's account of Jesus' life was
compiled from eyewitnesses to the ministry of Jesus.
Luke wrote for
the well educated. His account is full of human-interest stories
and repeats the notions of Jesus' pity and His shepherding care.
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We have
four
true biographies of Jesus. The first four books of the New
Testament, or the four Gospels, contain the record of his life
and work. The four Gospels that
we find in the New Testament are Matthew, Mark,
Luke, and John. The first three Gospels are usually referred to
as the "Synoptic Gospels," because they look at things in a
similar way, or they are similar in the way that they tell the
story. The Gospel of Mark was written the earliest, probably
between 70 and 75 A.D. The Gospel of Matthew was written somewhere
between 75 and about 85 A.D. and the Gospel of Luke was written
at least a decade later. John's gospel was written the latest
and is usually
dated around 95 A.D.
Matthew, who
wrote the Gospel named after him, had been a tax collector for the
Roman government before he met Jesus. Their own people, the
Jews, hated these tax collectors. Yet Matthew wrote the life of
Jesus for them. He includes the happenings that would appeal
particularly to the Jews. The Gospel of Matthew tells of
Jesus' life and ministry. Matthew gives an account of
Jesus' family history and also His commissioning of His
Apostles.
"Gospel" means "good
news." The message that Jesus has come as our Savior
was definitely good news for all! The early followers of Christ
knew this, and named their messages accordingly!
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The fourth
Gospel was written much later than the other three.
John was the
youngest of the disciples and lived the longest. As an old man he
added to the stories already written. He wrote about the things he thought
Christians still needed to know about Jesus, the Son of God.
John frequently explains Jewish
customs and often described places in Palestine.
These four
books form a very small part of the Bible, yet they present
practically all we know of Jesus. They are the heart of the
Bible, and each one gives us a different perspective on the life
and person of Jesus Christ.
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Beaded Cross Hanging
Materials:
- straw
- string, wool or ribbon
- pony beads -- any colors will
do. I used:
- 94 yellow
- 22 purple
- 4 mauve
- scissors
- pipe cleaner (optional)
Instructions:
- Print out the template (it
includes most of the directions on this page along with
the pattern for how to make this project)
- Cut 4 strings 1.5 to 2 feet long
- Make a
slip
knot in the center of each string
- Slip the knot over the straw
- Put 15 yellow beads on the first
strand of string. Tie the last bead tightly onto the
string.
- string 2 and 3: 5 yellow, 2
purple, 8 yellow. Tie the last bead tightly
- string 4 and 5: 3 yellow, 2
purple, 2 mauve, 5 purple, 3 yellow. Tie the last
bead tightly.
- string 6 and 7: 5 yellow, 2
purple, 8 yellow. Tie the last bead tightly.
- string 8: 15 yellow. Tie
the last bead tightly.
- Optional: thread the pipe
cleaner through all the bottom beads. I find this helps
keep the project hanging nicely.
- Thread a string through the straw
and tie in a loop to hang.
- Trim the leftover strings
Printing the Template:
- Close the template window after
printing to return to this screen.
- Set page margins to zero if you
have trouble fitting the template on one page (FILE,
PAGE SETUP or FILE, PRINTER SETUP in most browsers).
Note: When you're making this you'll
find it "hangs funny" and you'll worry that it isn't going
to work, but once you hang it up against a wall or
refrigerator, it will hang like the one in the photo above
(it just needs a solid surface and a bit of gravity to
straighten it out).
Using regular pony beads, it's about
as long as a pencil when it's complete. |
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Click here to read a storybook titled "The Life of
Jesus In Pictures."
Our Lord has done some
amazing things! We should always remember the story of
Creation
as one of the most awesome things ever
accomplished! Once the earth was created, then God sent
his son Jesus to save us. He loves us so much! The
Gospels tell about the great things Jesus did while He was
on earth. While viewing this flash presentation, think
about all the wonderful things our Lord has done for us.
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Thank You Jesus
To the tune of "Twinkle Twinkle Little
Star."
Thank you Jesus for the day.
Watch me while I work and Play.
Preach your word to all my friends
Keep me safe till the days' end.
Thank you Jesus for the day
These are the words that I pray. |
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Answer the
questions in the box below.
Be sure to use complete sentences.
When you
have completed your work, click on the "add comment" button
at the bottom of the page.
1. What are the
names of the four books of the Gospels?
2. Which story
about Jesus is your favorite, and why?
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