Please join us as we discover how God Uses Everyday Things, Even a Pool Table, To Teach Us About Him.
Supporting Scriptures for "Death And Life:" Romans 6:6-10 Romans 7:4 Romans 8:34 Luke 24:6
Throughout our Billiards Bible Studies we have learned how various pool table accessories can remind us of the historical events of "Creation" and "Jesus' Death and Resurrection." The cue ball reminds of God. The number "1" and "2" balls remind us of Adam and his wife before they sinned. The "8" ball reminds us of the Devil disguised as the serpent. The cue rack reminds us of the Garden of Eden and the cue chalk reminds us of the fruit on the "Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil" that God said would result in death if Adam and his wife ate from it. We are now down to the last accessory needed to play pool. The cue stick.
What can the cue sticks remind us of?
The cue sticks can remind us of death.
When we place the cue sticks in the form of the cross, we can be reminded that Jesus took the punishment of our sin by dying in our place.
Our choice is simple, do we want to accept the consequence of our sin and die ourselves or will we accept Jesus' sacrifice of dying in our place.
Whose body do you see on that cross, your own or the body of our Savior Jesus?
But remember, our mystery is about both death and life. We have just learned how the cue sticks can remind us of death, but how do they remind us of life?
The cross of Jesus is empty! Jesus overcame death by rising again to life on the third day just as He and the Old Testament scriptures said that He would. So that the empty cross and the empty tomb represent life!
If we were to have died, our body would still be in the tomb because we do not have the power to overcome death. But Jesus has proven that He has the power over death by rising again from the dead and appearing to many witnesses.
Jesus is alive!
"DEATH AND LIFE"
STUDY QUESTIONS:
Question 1
What is the purpose of Jesus' death on the cross as a sacrifice for our sin?
Romans 5:15 - "And what a difference between our sin and God's generous gift of forgiveness. For this one man, Adam, brought death to many through his sin. But this other man, Jesus Christ, brought forgiveness to many through God's bountiful gift."
1 John 1:7 - "But if we are living in the light of God's presence, just as Christ is, then we have fellowhip with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from every sin."
Question 2
What qualified Jesus as an acceptable sacrifice to God in order to take away our sin?
1 John 3:5 - "And you know that Jesus came to take away our sins, for there is no sin in Him."
Question 3
What does Jesus' sacrifice of His life show us about God?
Romans 3:25-26 - "For God sent Jesus to take the punishment for our sins and to satisfy God's anger against us. We are made right with God when we believe that Jesus shed his blood, sacrificing his life for us. God was being entirely fair and just when he did not punish those who sinned in former times. And He is entirely fair and just in this present time when He declares sinners to be right in His sight because they believe in Jesus."
Question 4
What could God do as a man that He could not do as God?
Hebrews 2:14 - "Because God's children are human beings - made of flesh and blood- Jesus also became flesh and blood by being born in human form. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the Devil, who had the power of death."
Question 5
Through whom do we gain victory over sin and death?
2 Timothy 1:10 - "And now he has made all of this plain to us by the coming of Christ Jesus, our Savior, who broke the power of death and showed us the way to everlasting life through the Good News."
Romans 6:8-9 - "And since we died with Christ, we know we will also share his new life. We are sure of this because Christ rose from the dead, and he will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him."
Question 6
In the Old Testament, animal sacrifice was required daily for sins committed. Why did this change in the New Testament?
Hebrews 7:27 - "He does not need to offer sacrifices every day like the other high priests. They did this for their own sins first and then for the sins of the people. But Jesus did this once for all when he sacrificed himself on the cross."
Hebrews 8:27-28 - "And just as it is destined that each person dies only once and after that comes judgment, so also Christ died only once as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again but not to deal with our sins again. This time he will bring salvation to all those who are eagerly waiting for him."
Hebrews 10:10 - "And what God wants is for us to be made holy by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all time."
Question 7
Jesus made claims while he was still alive that he would be killed and that he would rise again from the dead. It is one thing to make the claim and quite another thing to do it. From the verses below, list the witnesses to Jesus' resurrection.
Mark 16:9 - "It was early on Sunday morning when Jesus rose from the dead, and the first person who saw him was Mary Magdalene, the woman from whom he had cast out seven demons."
1 Corinthians 15:5-8 - "He was seen by Peter and then by the twelve apostles. After that, he was seen by more than five hundred of his followers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died by now. Then he was seen by James and later by all the apostles. Last of all, I, Paul, saw him, too, long after the others, as though I had been born at the wrong time."
Mark 16:12-13 - "Afterward he appeared to two who were walking from Jerusalem into the country, but they didn't recognize him at first because he had changed his appearance. When they realized who he was, they rushed back to tell the others, but no one believed them."
