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Introduction to Christianity Course

This five unit course is meant to provide you with good information so you can understand the basic ideas involved in being a Christian. To help you get a good idea of what following Jesus involves we have provided lots of information from the source texts of Christianity - so you can hear what Jesus and his apostles said for themselves.
There are five Units in this Introduction to Christianity Course

1. WHAT IS GOD LIKE?

2. WHAT A MESS WE'RE IN!

3. DOES GOD REALLY LOVE US?

4. CAN GOD MAKE A DIFFERENCE TO ME?

5. IS THERE ANY HOPE FOR THE FUTURE?

We suggest you read through each unit slowly. You may prefer to print out each unit so you can write down some of your own thoughts.

This Course can also be done one to one or in a group setting.

If you would like to know more about any of these ideas, please contact us and we will be very happy to explain further.

The first unit of the Course is What is God Like?

We hope you find this course helpful.

Dale Appleby

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Evangelism and Mission: Resources and Ideas

This is a changing list of resources that may provide ideas and resources for various aspects of evangelism and church growth. Feel free to let me know about other useful links.

Latest Additions:

Some resources from multi-site churches

Anglican Church Planting Initiatives
ACPI exists to “Serve tomorrow’s churches today” by encouraging and assisting the planting of healthy, missionary-minded churches.

Church Power Point: free images for worship and sermons

The Text This Week: a virtual study desk for students, teachers and preachers.

YouVersion is an online resource and a free mobile Bible application with over 5 million users. It allows people to read the Bible (a variety of versions) online by a variety of methods, keep their own journal and interact with other users - and more.

Read more: Evangelism and Mission Resources and Ideas

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Introduction to Christianity 1

1. WHAT IS GOD LIKE?

Christians believe God exists. We know that he made everything. We don't know how, but we do know that "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." Genesis 1:1, NIV.

We know too, that he keeps caring for what he has made. He has never lost interest in any part of it (Matthew 6.25-33).

But what is God like?

People have different images of God. It is not hard to think of a variety of different opinions people have of what God is like.

Can you list some?

It is hard to know which, if any, of these gives a fair picture of what God is like? May be it is not possible to know. Or maybe it doesn't matter.

Christians say we can know God, and we can know what he is like.

1. How Can We Know The True God Who Is Really There?

There are at least three things that lead us to know the true God. Can you identify them from these passages?

1.1 Romans 1.20

"Ever since the creation of the world his eternal power and divine nature, invisible though they are, have been understood and seen through the things he has made. .." Romans 1:20, NRSV.

1.2 Hebrews 1.1

"Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets," Hebrews 1:1, NRSV.

1.3 Hebrews 1.2,3; John 1.18.

"... but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds. He is the reflection of God's glory and the exact imprint of God's very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word. When he had made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high," Hebrews 1:2,3, NRSV.

"No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father's heart, who has made him known." John 1:18, NRSV.

2. God Is Like Jesus Because Jesus Is God

"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers--all things have been created through him and for him. He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell," Colossians 1:15-19, NRSV.

We can know what God is like by knowing what Jesus is like. We can know God by knowing Jesus.

Can you list some ideas of what God is like from these passages?

2.1 Matthew 7.21-23

""Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name?' Then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers.'" Matthew 7:21-23, NRSV.

2.2 Matthew 9.36

"When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd." Matthew 9:36, NRSV.

2.3 Matthew 25.31-34, 41-46

""When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, 'Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world;" Matthew 25:31-34, NRSV.

"Then he will say to those at his left hand, 'You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.' Then they also will answer, 'Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?' Then he will answer them, 'Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.' And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."" Matthew 25:41-46, NRSV.

2.4 John 1.10-12

"He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God," John 1:10-12, NRSV.

2.5 John 3.16

""For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life." John 3:16, NRSV.

2.6 John 11.25-26

"Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"" John 11:25,26, NRSV.

3. BUT ..........

Do people want God to be like Jesus?

Why do you think people shy away from having Jesus as their God?

If you would like to follow up anything in this unit, please contact us and we will try to help you.

The next Unit in this Course is 2. What A Mess We are In.

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Introduction to Christianity 2

2. WHAT A MESS WE'RE IN!

We saw in the last unit, that if we want to know what God is like, we should look at Jesus.
Jesus not only tells us what God is like, he also shows us what we are meant to be like. God has made people to be like himself.

As we live in his world he wants us to act responsibly, to care for each other and for what he has made.

1. But Something Has Gone Wrong.

Despite all the good in the world, it is obvious that there is a lot of bad. We are in a mess. One only has to read the paper to know that something drastic has gone wrong with God's world.

There are many examples of the mess human beings have got themselves into. Can you list some examples?

2. Why Are We In Such a Mess?

The Bible helps us to understand why we are like we are. What explanations do these passages give?

2.1 Romans 1.18-23

"For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and wickedness of those who by their wickedness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. Ever since the creation of the world his eternal power and divine nature, invisible though they are, have been understood and seen through the things he has made. So they are without excuse; for though they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their senseless minds were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools; and they exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling a mortal human being or birds or four-footed animals or reptiles." Romans 1:18-23, NRSV.

2.2 Romans 3.12

"All have turned aside, together they have become worthless; there is no one who shows kindness, there is not even one."" Romans 3:12, NRSV.

2.3 Romans 5.12

"Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death came through sin, and so death spread to all because all have sinned--" Romans 5:12, NRSV.

Do you think that everyone, to some extent, is involved in this kind of disobedience or going away from God's ways, or not?

3. Is There A Way Out?

Many people have tried to improve themselves. Some follow special sets of rules, a bit like people trying a diet. But the Bible tells us that the problem is inside us.

Read Mark 7.20-23. What has to change if we are to escape from this tendency to do wrong?

"And he said, "It is what comes out of a person that defiles. For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person."" Mark 7:20-23, NRSV.

God has provided a way for us to start again. The past can be forgotten by God and a new kind of life begun.

There are at least three aspects to the way out. How do these passages help us understand them?

3.1 Romans 5.6-11

"For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. Indeed, rarely will anyone die for a righteous person--though perhaps for a good person someone might actually dare to die. But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us. Much more surely then, now that we have been justified by his blood, will we be saved through him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more surely, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life. But more than that, we even boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation." Romans 5:6-11, NRSV.

3.2 Acts 2.38.

"Peter said to them, "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." Acts 2:38, NRSV.

3.3 John 3.1-8

"Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. He came to Jesus by night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God." Jesus answered him, "Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above." Nicodemus said to him, "How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother's womb and be born?" Jesus answered, "Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be astonished that I said to you, 'You must be born from above.' The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."" John 3:1-8, NRSV.

4. BUT ...

Why do you think some people don't want to turn away from wrong, or turn to God?

If you would like to follow up anything in this unit, please contact us and we will try to help you.

The next Unit in this Course is 3. Does God Really Love us?