Jesus Flashcards
What title did followers use for Jesus to describe the special relationship he had with God?
•Son of God
- However, Jesus never referred to himself as the Son of God
What is the Old Testament definition for the Son of God?
•Kings we’re referred to as “God’s sons” due to being chosen by God for a special role
What is the Greek definition for the Son of God?
•A human who had become a divine being
What is the Christian definition for Jesus as the Son of God?
•They believe it means that Jesus is God
What is incarnation?
•It is God taking on human flesh
- This is supported by Jesus’ birth
What did the Council of Chalcedon define Jesus as?
•They defined Jesus as “truly God and truly man”
What does St. Paul believe about human nature?
•He believes it is sinful and corrupted
What did Apollinarius believe about the human mind?
•He believed that the “human mind…is enslaved to filthy thoughts”
- This means he believes Jesus’ human nature was replaced by the divine nature
What was Apollinarius’ theory rejected as?
•It was rejected as heresy
Who believed that if Jesus’ human nature was replaced by the divine nature it would have led to a “half salvation”?
•Nazianzen
What did Arius believe Jesus being the Son of God made him?
•He believed that if Jesus was the Son of God it would make him a creature who is subordinate to God
Why did Althanasius believe calling Jesus the Son of God must mean he is God himself?
•Because only God can save humans
What 2 biblical quotes support that Jesus knew he was divine?
- “The Father and I are one”
- “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father”
What quote supports that Jesus believed he was not divine?
•”The Father is greater than I”
- This is supported by Jesus never using the Son of God as a title and never directly claiming to be God
What 2 examples support that Jesus did not have full divine knowledge?
- Jesus prayed to God before his death and asked not to go through it
- Jesus asked who touched his cloak (The Bleeding Woman)
What 2 examples support that Jesus did have full divine knowledge?
- Jesus claimed he was “the way, the truth and the life”
- Jesus knew the personal history of the woman at the well (The Samaritan Woman)
What 3 different types of knowledge may Jesus’ have had?
- Direct Knowledge
- Infused Knowledge
- Experiential Knowledge
- This allows Jesus to have both divine and human knowledge
Who argued that Jesus willingly gave up divine attributes through kenosis?
•Thomasius
What 3 different types of miracles suggest that Jesus was divine?
- Healing Miracles (healing a blind man)
- Miracles over Nature (walking on water)
- Miracles over Death (his own resurrection)
How does Jesus forgiving a paralysed man for his sins prove he is divine?
•Because only God can forgive sins
- This means Jesus has the authority of God
Who argues that there is never enough evidence to accept testimonies about miracles?
•Hume
- This is because the human experience disproves miracles
Who argues that the stories of the miracles were written for their spiritual and metaphorical meaning?
•Schillebeeckx
- This is shown by the miracle of Jesus calming the storm being used to show how Jesus brings calm into our lives
Who argues that miracles are used to demonstrate that Jesus can save everyone, not that he is actually God?
•Wright
How do miracles prove that Jesus is not God?
•Other people perform miracles
- This is supported by Moses parting the Red Sea to save the Hebrews
* This means Jesus may have been a prophet
Why does Sanders argue that Jesus’ resurrection is a key reason to why Christianity survived?
•They question whether “without the resurrection, would [Jesus’] disciples have endured longer than John the Baptist’s? We can only guess, but I would guess not”
- This means Jesus coming back to life displays how he is God
Who argued “it was impossible for death to keep its hold on” Jesus?
•St. Paul
- This means Jesus was God as he had not sinned so did not deserve the punishment of eternal death
What does Bultmann argue about Jesus’ resurrection?
•He argues that it did not actually take place (its an element of mythology)
- However it can be used to explain God’s salvation of humans
How do The Gospels support Jesus as a Teacher of Wisdom?
•They display Jesus teaching his followers
Who said that “Jesus was a great moral teacher”?
•Dawkins
- He compares this to the way Gandhi and MLK Jr. are seen as Teachers of Wisdom
How does The Prodigal Son support Jesus as a Teacher of Wisdom?
•It displays how Jesus taught about repentance but also how he spent a lot of time with those considered as sinners
What 2 examples support that Jesus taught about forgiveness?
- Jesus taught his followers that they should forgive “seventy times seven”
- Jesus taught to “love your enemies”
How did Jesus teach about the importance of inner-purity?
- He opposed the Pharisees/Sadducees and their belief that actions make you righteous
- He taught about inner-purity in the Sermon on the Mount (“turn the other cheek”)
How did Jesus teach about caring for others?
•He showed by example
- This is supported by Jesus continuing to heal on the Sabbath despite the Pharisees criticisms (“the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath”)
Who argued that Jesus declared only non-sinners have the right to punish?
•Hitchens
- This means an imperfect society can never prosecute defenders
What does Hick argue about Jesus?
•He argues that Jesus is not God incarnate which means Christianity is a religion that shows people how to change from self-centredness to thinking about others
- This means Jesus is important due to the fact that he helped teach people this
Who argues that Jesus has to be seen as divine to be seen as a great moral teacher?
•Lewis
- This is because if a normal human were to act like Jesus “he would either be a lunatic or the Devil of Hell”
Who argues we are connected to God and God is connected to us because of the incarnation?
•Bonhoeffer
- This is because we belong to Jesus due to being him as when he took on our flesh he took on ourselves, which means we are in him (in the incarnation, on the cross and in his resurrection)
Why do people believe that Jesus was a liberator?
•Due to the way he treated the marginalised and also the challenges he made to
political/religious authorities
- This made his actions of liberating as important as his teachings
What 2 examples support that Jesus spent time with the marginalised and the outcasts?
- Jesus’ followers included prostitutes
- Jesus healed the bleeding woman (“Go in peace and be freed from your suffering”)
What 2 examples support that Jesus’ teachings were also about the marginalised?
1.The Beatitudes as Jesus offered hope to those who are persecuted (“Blessed are the meek”)
2. The Parable of the Sheep and the Goats as Jesus taught that to get to Heaven you need to help those in need (“I was hungry and you gave me something to eat”)
How do The Gospels support that Jesus frequently challenged religious authorities?
- Jesus continued to heal on the Sabbath
- Jesus declared that prostitutes and tax collectors would enter heaven before the Pharisees and Sadducees (“it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God”)
- The Sanhedrin arrested and tried Jesus
Who argues that the challenge to religious authorities was at the heart of Jesus’ message?
•O’Collins
- This is because “there was much in Jesus’ activity to provoke them”
What 2 examples support how Jesus actually got along with religious authorities?
- Jesus was entertained by a leading Pharisee
- The Sermon on the Mount as Jesus declared he had “not come to abolish the law but to fulfil it”
What 3 examples display how Jesus’ followers saw him as a Liberator?
1.His followers called him the Messiah
2. Jesus stated he “did not come to bring peace but the sword”
3. Jesus was crucified by the Romans for claiming to be the “King of the Jews” which was seen as an act of treason
What is the definition of Messiah?
•It means “anointed one”
- This for Christians implied political or military leadership and someone who would free them from the Romans
Who argued Jesus was a freedom fighter and acted as inspiration?
•Liberation Theologians
What did Restrepo claim?
•He claimed that “if Jesus was alive today he would be a guerrilla”
Who argued that Jesus was a revolutionary and that his triumphal entry to Jerusalem was a clear challenge to political authority?
•Aslan
- This is supported by the prophecy in the Old Testament that said a King would arrive riding on a donkey
What 4 examples support that Jesus was not a challenger to political authority?
- Jesus healed the ear of a soldier that was trying to arrest him
- Jesus never claimed the title of Messiah himself
- Jesus offered no defence when he was arrested
- Jesus told his followers to pay their taxes (“give unto Caesar what belongs to him”)
Who argues that Jesus does not condone or suggest “any violence against Rome”?
•McGrath
- This is because Jesus does not see himself as a Messiah or someone who would challenge political authority
