CWV-101-301-RS-T5BenchmarkGospelEssentials-TEMPLATE
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Benchmark—Gospel Essentials
David J. Samuels
College of Theology, Grand Canyon University
101: Christian Worldview
Bill Good
11/16/2023
Benchmark—Gospel Essentials
It’s important as a Christian to know about the nature of God, Jesus, and Humanity; as well as the effects these have on our lives. God is loving, patient, caring, and kind, which are all traits we inherit from him. He created Earth, its creatures, and us humans so we can have dominion over it, as well as work, praise God and follow his word. Though this is our purpose, humans struggle with sin, making us unworthy of the kingdom of heaven. To counter this God sent his only son to sacrifice himself and teach us how to transform from darkness to light with his word. All these factors play a part in the constituting the foundation of the Christian Worldview and is why Christians can solve their problems through prayer and faith. Praying and following the word can increase our way of life making us happier, healthier, and better people overall.
Gospel Essential Beliefs
Nature of God
The triune God is made up of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Trinity can be confusing since all three parts are God, but they aren’t each other and there is only one God.
(Matt Slick, 2008) One way to look at it is that they’re all different forms of God; with the Father
being the unseeable and omnipresent form of God, Jesus being the physical, seeable, and human manifestation of God, and the Holy Spirit being the feelings, actions, and emotions of God in our
world today. God is Infinite, immutable, omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, merciful, and eternal. The list of his characteristics goes on and on with all of them being positive. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. (Genesis 1:1) He also created man as well as the light and earthly forms of life such as plants and animals which is explained in Genesis. Humans were made in his image (Genesis 1:27) giving us his traits such as love, patience, and 2
forgiveness. These creations took seven theoretical days with God resting on the seventh day, closing out the days of creation. After man was created, they were given a purpose which was to work and tend to the garden of Eden. That is until man fell into sin. Nature of Humanity
After falling into sin and losing connection from God, humans became sinful by nature, gaining lust, envy, hate, and jealousy. This sin causes us to fall into temptation and commit evil actions such as hurt, murder, and stealing. Though sin is apparent in our lives today, it doesn’t dictate our human nature. Our human nature is that we were created by God, in the image of God
and have a purpose to do whatever it takes so we can be as close to him as well as like him as possible and work for him in the kingdom of heaven. (Ephesians 5:1) The path to heaven is easier said than done. There are roadblocks such as jealousy, greed, and lust that are preventing us from passing. Humans also face problems such as war, famine, and death. All these problems that everyone faces stem from the same source, which is sin. Without sin there would be no need for war, no one would have negative emotions, and everyone would be happy, which is why it’s important to stay away from sin and try getting close to God. At one-point humans were unforgivable and had no future in the kingdom of heaven, which is why God sent his only son to save us from this fate. (John 3:16)
Nature of Jesus
Jesus is known as the son of God and is a part of the holy trinity. A term used to describe Jesus is
known as hypostatic union; in other words, one hundred percent God and one hundred percent man. He was born to the virgin Mary and lived a sinless life. Jesus spent most of his life teaching
and spreading his word as well as praying constantly. Near the end of his life, he had 12 disciples
and was inevitably betrayed by one who was known as Judas Iscariot. Jesus knew his fate as well
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as the fates of others and his fate was to have a cruel death on the cross and serve as a sacrifice for man so they could have a chance to join God in the kingdom of heaven. In other words, he took the punishment of man so they could part from sin. Jesus’s purpose was to establish the kingdom of God on earth by spreading his word and dying on the cross. Jesus is extremely significant for the Christian worldview. Without his sacrifice the fate of man would be sealed, and we would not have to chance to enter heaven. His death and resurrection proved that he was a revelation from God and created a cornerstone of the Christian Worldview.
Restoration
The solution to human problems is to live closely to the principles of the bible and turn away from sin, giving it no opportunity to get in our lives. One main reason people sin and fall into temptation is because they surround themselves in it. Any time they feel they’re about to sin they should imagine Jesus standing in front of them, because that’s actually what’s happening. They may not know it but God is always watching and he knows what we see, think, and do. Adam Phillips says, “Salvation is not possible without grace and faith.” There’s no way someone
can attain salvation if they aren’t faithful. To have faith is to believe and trust in God, and to repent is to accept that you’ve sinned and ask for forgiveness. When you have grace, faith, and repentance, you’re building your relationship with him as well as putting your trust in him to save you from sin. The transformation of self and society happens with everyone coming together as one body to lift each other, as well as society with the word of the Lord. To have the transformation of society you need the transformation of self. When many people build a personal relationship with God, they can join to spread the word and potentially transform societies.
Christian Foundations
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When it comes to the nature of God, humanity, Jesus, and restoration, these all play a part
in constituting the foundation of Christian Worldview. God is a being way beyond us sinners, yet
he still loves us and cares for us. He created everything and is all knowing, as well as omnipresent. His knowledge is beyond anything we could imagine, and he created us with a purpose. Though we sin, he humbles himself by coming to us in the form of a human and sacrificed himself for us to be saved. By ourselves we cannot overcome sin, but with God we can
be lifted beyond sin and into the kingdom of heaven. Repenting, praising, praying, and putting our faith in the Lord is the only way for us to thank him and show him how much he means to us. All this is important to the Christian Worldview because it tells us that with God, we can’t be held back by sin.
Analysis of the Implications of the Christian Worldview
Christian Worldview is set on the fact that we were made in the image of God. Because of this, no matter what race, age, or gender, every human has value. Christianity and Islam have many differences and many similarities, but when it comes to salvation they can be quite different. In Islamic belief, if you do good and follow its laws, you will attain salvation. In Christianity, nobody will be worthy of salvation no matter what they do or how many good deeds they’ve done. It is only with the gift of God that you will go to heaven. In other words, Christianity has a savior and Islam doesn’t with Adam Philips saying, “Islam has no Savior.” Having a Christian Worldview can make a person strive to do good and be unaffected by outside actions. The bible says to be angry but do not to sin. (Ephesians 4:27) Christians who follow this are likely to refrain from committing violent actions in blind anger. In other words, Christians can be less violent, more forgiving, and happy to help others in need. Something most people would find confusing about Christianity is that in Revelations, it says with all the events 5
preceding the second coming of Jesus, people will still sin. This confuses me because everything the bible says will happen is happening, but people still decide to go against God.
Conclusion
As a Christian, it’s important to read about the nature of God, Jesus, and Humanity as well as its effect on Christians everywhere. God created everything including us humans and we were made with a purpose which is to work for him and have dominion over the earth. Sin made us unworthy for the kingdom of heaven, which is why he sent his son, Jesus to die for our sins. With his ultimate sacrifice and resurrection, Jesus provided a cornerstone for the Christian Worldview. Christianity shapes the way people think today with Christians living fuller, happier,
and healthier lives. So, with God we can dedicate our lives to Christ by avoiding sin, spreading his word, praying, and keeping faith in him. All these factors set the foundation of Christian Worldview and through faith, will lead us into heaven as well as connect us with God.
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References
(English Standard Version, 2001, Ephesians 5:1) (English Standard Version, 2001, Ephesians 4:27)
(English Standard Version, 2001, John 3:16)
(English Standard Version, 2001, Genesis 1:1)
(English Standard Version, 2001, Genesis 1:27)
Phillips, A. (2023a, September 1). What role do Grace and faith play in christian salvation (2023)
. The Witness. https://thewitness.org/what-role-do-grace-and-faith-play-in-christian-
salvation/ Phillips, A. (2023b, September 11). Christian concept of salvation vs other religions (2023)
. The
Witness. https://thewitness.org/christian-concept-of-salvation-vs-other-religions/ Slick, M. (2022, February 22). What is the Trinity?
. Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry. https://carm.org/doctrine-and-theology/what-is-the-trinity/ 7