This week I am deviating slightly from the advertised plan. Instead of the videos now and the Q&A next week, I am giving you all three at once.
You can find:
PILLAR 2 Part 1 Video HERE
PILLAR 2 Part 2 Video HERE
PILLAR 2 Q&A Video HERE
Here is a summary of the transcript of the two videos that captures just the gist of the teaching.
The TruthTalks Audio is HERE or at the very bottom of the page.
Summary of Transcript: Pillar Two – Jesus-Centred
This transcript presents Pillar Two of the “Three Pillars of Truth” series, focusing on being Jesus-centred as the central foundation for Christian faith and biblical interpretation. The three interconnected pillars are Bible-based (Pillar One), Jesus-centred (Pillar Two), and Spirit-dependent (Pillar Three), with Jesus serving as the focal point that connects all three.
Why Jesus Must Be Central
While Scripture reveals God as triune (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), Jesus must be the primary focus rather than the Trinity as a whole. This is because:
- The Trinity is incomprehensible: As limited three-dimensional beings, humans cannot fully grasp the Trinity concept, making it unsuitable as a practical focus.
- The Father is unseen: Jesus explicitly stated that “no one has seen the Father except the one who came from God” (John 6:46), making the Father inaccessible as a direct focus.
- The Holy Spirit is ethereal: Compared to wind by Jesus, the Spirit has no bodily form and cannot serve as a tangible reference point.
God the Father himself directed attention to Jesus, saying “This is my son whom I dearly love… Listen to him” (Mark 9:7). Jesus taught that the Holy Spirit’s role is to “bring glory to me [Jesus] by taking from what is mine and making it known to you” (John 16:13-14).
Jesus as God Incarnate
Jesus is the full manifestation of God as attested by several key scriptures:
- Colossians 1: Jesus is “the image of the invisible God” with “all his fullness” dwelling in him.
- Colossians 2: “In Christ all the fullness of the deity lives in bodily form.“
- Hebrews 1: Jesus is “the radiance of God’s glory, the exact representation of his being.“
- John 14:9 “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.”
Critical Implications
Source of Truth: Jesus, not even the bible, must be acknowledged as the ultimate source of truth, though this truth is revealed exclusively through Scripture.
Salvation and Evangelism: Belief in Jesus’ divinity is essential for salvation. He cannot save if he is anything less than God, nor could he represent humanity if he were anything less than man.
Transformation: The goal of spiritual transformation is to become more like Jesus, requiring believers to look to him as the model and example.
Future Hope: Jesus himself, in his resurrected being, provides evidence and assurance of believers’ future hope in the second coming.
The Christocentric Method of Biblical Interpretation
Here is a ‘three boxes (three-box?) model’ for Bible study:
Practical Applications
Direct Applications include Jesus’ teachings on Sabbath observance, adultery, and paying taxes, where he gives clear teachings on these subjects.
Deduced Applications cover areas like sexual sin (modelled after Jesus’ grace-filled treatment of the woman caught in adultery), the status of women (demonstrated through Jesus’ respectful treatment of Mary and Martha), and self-defence (inferred from Jesus telling disciples to buy swords for protection).
Contemporary Relevance
The modern church has deviated from being Jesus-centred, often focusing instead on spiritual gifts, faith as a concept, or biblical knowledge alone. I advocate for a Jesus-centred revival as essential for the church’s renewal.
Jesus is not just one aspect of biblical interpretation, but the essential interpretive key that unlocks proper understanding of Scripture, God’s character, and Christian living in its entirety.
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