Essay Number One
God called upon Moses to free the Israelite people and despite his vulnerabilities, Moses still conducted the task. We can all relate to how Moses persevered and he succeeded in freeing the Israelite people. The events that led up to God’s call to Moses begin with him killing the slave driver in Egypt. One day when Moses witnessed a slave driver beating an Israelite slave, Moses kills the driver because he was fed up with the treatment of his original people. After he had killed the slave driver, he realized what the consequences for his crime would be so he ran away to Midian in order to avoid prosecution. While he was tending sheep on day he noticed a mysterious bush that was on fire, but not being burnt. He walked to the bush to investigate and he heard a voice from the heavens call to him and tells him to return to Egypt and free the Israelite people from the bondage of Pharaoh. Perplexed by who is calling him, Moses asked the name of the voice and the voice responded with “I am who am,” and Moses quickly realized that it was Yahweh who was calling him. He then spouts out his objections saying, “Who am I,” “Who are you,” “I am not a good speaker,” and “Send someone else.” But God, having perpetual faith in his creation, gave Moses three signs to convince him they were: turning his walking staff into a serpent, turning his hand into a leper and then healing it, and turning the river water into blood. Moses, being slightly reassured set out for Egypt and in a series of events he manages to free the Israelites from the Egyptian chains of sorrow. Moses’ objections to God’s call are vulnerabilities in Moses’ character. They show that even Moses, who we regard today as a patriarch of the Christian faith, was flawe...
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...enant the Israelites’ identity was formed because the covenant bonded them together and the Ten Commandments that God gave them set as a rule system that they should live their lives by, therefore establishing them as a unique people. As Christians we can find comfort in the covenant because we know that those same rules apply to us and the same community still exists today in the Christian church. The relationship that I have with my sister is special to me. It is special to me for many reasons; she has always been there for me, caring for me when no one else did, and being a good role model, a lot of her beliefs and ideals have provided the foundation for the formation of my own beliefs. My sister is as important to me as God was important to the Israelites, they both stand by me in my life and they both have helped to shape and form me into the person that I am.
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis1:1.) God’s perfect wisdom created everything. In Genesis 1 and 2 we can see that God has loving and gentile nature when He created the earth and heavens. God created man in his image and we are the only creation that God breathed in the breath of life for human beings (Genesis 2:7). God did not do this for any of other creations but only for humans. The Bible has many scriptures that tell us how creative God is. Genesis 1;26 states “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” God created all of this for us to have fellowship with him.
When God first approaches Moses in the form of a burning bush, God says “I have witnessed the affliction of my people in Egypt and have heard their cry of complaint against their slave drivers, so I know well what they are suffering. Therefore I have come down to rescue them from the hands of the Egyptians and lead them out of that land into a good and spacious land,” (Exodus 3:7). Moses however, questioned God’s judgement, saying, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and lead the Israelites out of Egypt?” (Exodus 3:11). Moses continues to question God throughout the rest of the chapter, but eventually begins his journey to rescue his
Exodus is concerned with the relationship aspect of the Patriarchal promises. Sometimes this relationship is expressed in various ways such as a blessing or guidance. By saying "I am the God of your father — the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob", He showed that he is faithful. He is faithful to His promises, such as God promised to give the Jews the land. When Moses turns to God's promises, he is in essence saying, “God we are not worthy of your blessings, we are here because of you, and we depend on you.” God acted as a parent towards a child. He wanted the best for His children. He, out of love for his children responded to them in different ways. At times he was tough, at other times gentle. Sometimes he enforced the rules and other times he would bend them depending on the occasion. Sometimes he denied his children of certain things and other times he gave openhandedly. He wants to love us and take care of us. Moses learned from God’s parenting skills. God taught lessons to his people as a parent would do. He also rescued his children when they were in trouble by defeating the powerful Egyptians and brought us out so that we could be his people.
...nnel for the message to the Israelites. This serves God's ultimately purpose of setting his chosen people free. Although Moses does not seem like a worthy candidate for the task, God gives him the power to overcome his flaws. Moses was successful in communicating and obeying God's word throughout his journey, because he never sought to control or possess the land or the people, unlike Pharaoh. In the end, the journey of the spiritual hero can finish in either one of these two paths. It is up to the individual whether or not they will succumb to temptation and be led down into hell and remain there forever.
Life is full of frustrations and confusion. There are times that questioning the purpose of one’s life to be living at all from their belief and faith in the one they believe. Christian Adherents are faced with these issues and are misguided by the loquacious talk of philosophers and scientists that seem to argue that the existence of human beings have been derived by something else other than God. These are illustrated through various forms of media and deem to be very convincing for most. However, there are people and ideas of the Christian Religion to comply back with what is said against it. Pope John XXIII was a significant role model for the Christian Religion as he showed true belief and faith to God through his deeds. Topics in debate of Bioethical issues are in question and the practices of the Christian belief are fact to the individual of the means of questioning the purpose here on Earth. Regarding the letter from Paul to the Corinthians, it says “Be on guard; stand firm in faith; be men of courage, be strong.” Its significance to believers is that they can be deceived in time of desperation and at times of hardship but God tells them to stay strong in faith and in courage no matter the distress they are facing.
The foundation of a Christian worldview is the belief in a personal God, creator and ruler of the universe. The Christian worldview views the world through God’s word, providing the framework for humanity to live by giving meaning and purpose to life. It defines who Jesus is, human nature, and how salvation is achieved. In essence it is the basis of which Christians behave, interact, interpret life and comprehend reality. A Christian worldview imparts confidence, answers to life’s problems, and hope for the future. In this paper I will discuss the essentials of a Christian worldview and an analysis of the influences, benefits, and difficulties sustaining the Christian faith.
This section of exodus focuses on Moses, an Israelite who was raised as an Egyptian, who has fled from Egypt after the Pharaoh tried to kill him for killing an Egyptian man. By Exodus 3:1 Moses is married to Zipporah daughter of Jethro who gives him a job working as a shepherd. While tending to his animals Moses arrives at Horeb also known as Mount Sinai or the Mountain of God. Here Moses has his first theophany with God in the form of a burning bush. During this passage God talks to Moses telling him what he needs to do: go to Egypt and convince the Pharaoh to let the Egyptians go by performing a series of miracles. What god is asking Moses to do is intimidating. At this time the Pharaoh was the ruler of Egypt who had a powerful army and the Israelite’s weren’t going to be easy to convince that God sent him. Despite the “signs” Moses is reluctant to take the role beca...
What is Christianity and why has it been able to develop into a continuously growing and evolving religion?
In the Biblical Book of Exodus, Moses was not originally supposed to be born under the Pharaoh’s rule because he was an Israelite male. Pharaoh decreed all Hebrew boys born were to be killed in the Nile River. Moses survived because Pharaoh’s servants feared God more. This law was one of Pharaoh’s ways to oppress the Hebrew people. It was a tactic to keep the majority of the population from growing as well as implementing slavery. However, that did not stop the Israelites from multiplying in size: “’And now indeed the cry of the Israelites has come to me, and I have also seen how severely the Egyptians oppress them. So now go, and I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt’” (New English Translation, Exodus 3:9-10). In this passage, God is speaking to Moses in the form of a burning bush that he has seen the hardships Pharaoh put the Israelites through, and that he will deliver them from their sufferings. M...
The following essay will evaluate the importance of the journey that takes place from Systematic to Practical theology; this view will be explored through Ronelle Sonnenberg’s research done regarding ‘being together’ in a youth setting. This essay will first build on the basis of Practical Theology; furthermore addressing the importance of the community aspect within a youth setting; this will lead to the process that takes place between a Systematic stance, leading to a Practical theological stance.
I grew up in a Christian home and my parents were very good about instilling Christian dogmas and doctrines into my mind from a young age. That being said, I most likely first heard the word theology from them, but I cannot remember the specific instance since I was only a mere child. If I did not in fact hear it from them first, the only other likely option would be that I heard the term while attending church. My parents played the biggest part in exposing me to theology in my house. Most nights when I was younger they would read me stories from the Bible, they would always discuss with my brothers and I what we learned in Sunday school after church and they played a major role in helping me attend extracurricular activities like small
As a student at the University of Portland, who has now spent a semester living amidst the Catholic culture, I have started to think about religion fundamentally different than prior to this year. Theology class has been enlightening. In class, a new external lens of how one can view faith while learning to think critically in the search of truth has been presented. The inquisitiveness in me has led me to ask hard questions regarding myself, my perceptions, my misconceptions, and even some heartfelt convictions while contemplating my faith. I have experienced legitimate struggles. I acknowledge I have ignorant barriers keeping me from totally living a life with God and for God due to the confusion of exactly what that means. “All truths are
A pastor has a great responsibility to minister the Word of God and to be a shepherd to his people. The pastor must be committed to biblical truths when he engages the work of the ministry. Some of these truths include: The Bible is the infallible Word of God, his preaching must be from the Word of God, and he must do proper exegesis to get to the authorial intent and proclaim that to his congregation.
Spirituality can have many different definitions, depending on who is asked. It can be something as simple as looking for a higher meaning to life, or something so complex that one can base their beliefs, religion and overall life around it. There are several different ways to express one's spirituality; rituals, songs, dances, stories, and writings are all common methods of expression.
“Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, men cannot live without a spiritual life.” According to Buddha, everyone needs some form of spirituality to define his or her life and existence. Webster Dictionary defines spiritualism as “a system of beliefs or religious practices based on supposed communication with the spirits of the dead, often times through mediums.” Though this is one general definition of spiritualism, this concept is one that does not hold a conclusive meaning. Each and every single person has the ability and right to create and practice their own idea of spiritualism. From ancient times to present day, the term and practice of spirituality has transformed, particularly from region to region. Despite the discrepancies in practices and overall understanding of this idea, spirituality has had an effect and impact upon all of humanity since the creation of time. This religion that is believed to have been established in the early eighteen hundreds, after two little girls claimed to have the ability to talk to spirits, sparked interest in this spiritual movement, allowing it to spread rather rapidly over many geographical locations. Aside from being recognized as a religion, spiritualism is also believed to be a form of philosophy and a science in which spiritualists believe that there is life after death and try to demonstrate this through the ability of attempting to communicate with those that have passed on. Spiritualism was socially different from other religions in existence at the time because it presented followers with a more tolerant belief system that assimilated the principles and facts from a selection the world's religions. Spiritualism also made it acceptable for women to play a disti...