1. Unmarred Presentation
"According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love" Eph 1:4

2. Unmovable Position
"That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love" Eph 3:17

3. Unmerited Patience
"With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love" Eph 4:2

4. Unfeigned Profession
"But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ" Eph 4:15

5. Unlimited Provision
"From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love" Eph 4:16

6. Unconditional Pathway
"And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour" Eph 5:2

"Let us break Their bands asunder, and cast away Their cords from us."
Verse 3 - The voice of anarchy, spoken by the heathen

"Yet have I set My King upon My holy hill of Zion."
Verse 6 - The voice of anger, spoken by God

"Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Ask of Me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; Thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel."
Verses 7b-9 - The voice of authority, spoken by the Father

"I will declare the decree: the Lord hath said unto Me."
Verses 7a - The voice of anticipation, spoken by the Son of God

"Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and ye perish from the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him."
Verse 12 - The voice of admonition, spoken by the Holy Spirit

"Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour;
but about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is, My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" Matthew 27:45-46

The centre of the seven sayings from the cross but appeared first and quoted most, five times. (Psalm 22:1, Matthew 27:46a,b, Mark 15:34a,b)

How awesome when the omniscient Christ uttered the word "Why"!

Why? Not the enquiry but the exclamation
Why? Not the answer but the anguish
Why? Not the reason but the reproach

Surely, this is the most holy ground and calls for our highest worship as we think of the sorrow of His death, the shame of His cross and the shedding of His blood when His Soul was made an offering for sin.

"We see Jesus .... by the grace of God He should taste death for every man" Hebrews 2:9

The Death/Cross of Christ as a means of
1. Release (Gal. 1:4)
2. Removal (Gal. 2:20-21)
3. Restoration (Gal. 3:1)
4. Redemption (Gal. 3:13)
5. Relationship (Gal. 4:4-5)
6. Reproach (Gal. 5:11)
7. Result/Rule (Gal. 5:24)
8. Rejection (Gal. 6:12)
9. Rejoicing (Gal. 6:14)

Outline provided by Thomas Bentley.

Chapter 1-2 : Foundation of the Gospel (Personal & Historical)
Chapter 3-4 : Function of the Law (Polemical & Doctrinal )
Chapter 5-6 : Freedom in the Spirit (Practical & Moral)

Chapter 1-2 : Look to Christ
Chapter 3-4 : Learn from the Law
Chapter 5-6 : Live by the Spirit

Edited 27 Apr 2010

The Death of Christ is
- Supernatural (Matthew)
- Sorrowful (Mark)
- Sympathetic (Luke)
- Scriptural (John)

Another Perspective
- Power (Matthew)
- Pain (Mark)
- Pity (Luke)
- Purpose (John)

Sincere Bread
"My Father giveth you the true bread from heaven." John 6:32

Saving Bread
"For the bread of God is He which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world." John 6:33

Satisfying Bread
"I am the bread of life: he that cometh to Me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst." John 6:35

Sustaining Bread
"Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on Me hath everlasting life. I am that bread of life." John 6:47-48

Sacrificial Bread
"I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world." John 6:51

Read Part 1.

The Position of Christ (Heb 5:6)
"Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec"

The Power of Endless Life (Heb 7:16-17)
"Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec"

The Perpetuity of Priesthood (Heb 7:21)
"Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec"

1. Fellow Citizens (Ephesians 2:19)
2. Fellow Disciples (John 11:16)
3. Fellow Helpers (2 Corinthians 8:23)
4. Fellow Heirs (Ephesians 3:6)
5. Fellow Labourers (Philippians 4:3, Philemon 1:1,24)
6. Fellow Prisoners (Romans 16:7, Philemon 1:23)
7. Fellow Servants (Colossians 1:7)
8. Fellow Soldiers (Philippians 2:25, Philemon 1:2)
9. Fellow Workers (Colossians 4:11)

Edited 2 July 2009

Intelligent Paul wrote, He "knew no sin" (2 Corinthians 5:21)
Impetuous Peter wrote, He "did no sin" (1 Peter 2:22)
Intimate John wrote, "in Him is no sin" (1 John 3:5)
Insightful author of Hebrews wrote, He is "without sin" (Hebrews 4:15) or "sin apart"

1. Bread of Life, Living Bread (John 6:35, 41, 48, 51)
2. Light of the world (John 8:12, 9:5)
3. Door (John 10:7,9)
4. Good Shepherd (John 10:11,14)
5. Resurrection (John 11:25)
6. Life (John 11:25, 14:6)
7. Way (John 14:6)
8. Truth (John 14:6)
9. True Vine (John 15:1,5)

Also commonly counted as seven I Am's
1. The Bread of Life (John 6:35, 41, 48, 51)
2. The Light of the world (John 8:12, 9:5)
3. The Door (John 10:7,9)
4. The Good Shepherd (John 10:11,14)
5. The Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25)
6. The Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6)
7. The True Vine (John 15:1,5)

1. Covenant (24:5, 55:3, 61:8)
2. Strength (26:4)
3. Burnings (33:14)
4. Joy (35:10, 51:11, 61:7)
5. God (40:28)
6. Salvation (45:17)
7. Kindness (54:8)
8. Sign (55:13)
9. Name (56:5, 63:12, 63:16)
10. Light (60:19, 60:20)

His name appeared eleven times in the Sciptures. Nine times in the Epistle to the Hebrews, once in Genesis and once in Psalms.

Fourteen descriptions of him given in Hebrews 7:1-3
1. King of Salem
2. Priest of the most High God
3. Met Abraham
4. Blessed Abraham
5. Abraham gave him tithes
6. King of righteousness
7. King of peace
8. Without father
9. Without mother
10. Without descent
11. No beginning of days
12. No end of life
13. Made like unto the Son of God
14. Abideth a priest continually

Nine attributes of the Holy Spirit
1. Grace (Heb 10:29)
2. Truth (John 14:17)
3. Life (Rom 8:2)
4. Adoption (Rom 8:15)
5. Promise (Eph 1:13)
6. Wisdom (Eph 1:17)
7. Revelation (Eph 1:17)
8. Glory (1 Pet 4:14)
9. Holiness (Rom 1:4)

Three Punishments
- the antediluvian world (2:5)
- cities of Sodom and Gomorrha (2:6)
- angels that sinned (2:4)

Three Personages
- Noah (2:5) by contrast
- Lot (2:7) by contrast
- Balaam (2:15)

Three Parties
- walk after the flesh (2:10)
- in the lust of uncleaness (2:10)
- despise government (2:10)

Three Propensities
- natural brute beasts (2:12) --> evil speaking and railing
- spots and blemishes (2:13) --> deception and adultery
- cursed children (2:14) --> covetous practices

Three Pictures
- clouds carried with tempest (2:17)
- wells without water (2:17)
- gloom of darkness (2:17)

Three Portrayals
- dog (2:22)
- sow (2:22)
- ass (2:16) by contrast

"received up" (Mark 16:19, Acts 1:2) - Dignity of the Son
"taken up" (Acts 1:9) - Delight of the Father
"carried up" (Luke 24:51) - Display of Divine Presence
"went up" (Acts 1:10) - Demonstration of His Power
"ascend up" (Eph 4:8) - Dominion of His Ascent

Read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8.

An three-fold analysis of the apostasy in 2 Peter as contrast with the Way, the Truth and the Life.

Way
- pernicious ways (2:2)
- covetous practices (2:14)
- walking after their own lust (3:3)

Truth
- damnable heresies (2:1)
- feigned words (2:3)
- willingly are ignorant of (3:5)

Life
- swift destruction (2:1)
- filthy conversation (2:7)
- wrest … unto their own destruction (3:16)

Genesis 7 : The Flood - Victory over the World
"The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ" 1 Peter 3:21

Exodus 14 : Red Sea - Victory over the Law of Sin (typified by Pharoah)
"Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."
Romans 6:3-4

Joshua 3 : Jordan River - Victory over the Flesh
"In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead." Colossians 2:11-12

Matthew's Gospel presented the death of Christ from a supernatural perspective.

The sun
"Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour." Matt 27:45

The sanctuary
"The veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom." Matt 27:51a

The stones
"The earth did quake, and the rocks rent, and the graves were opened." Matt 27:51b-52a

The saints
"Many bodies of the saints which slept arose." Matt 27:52b

The soldiers
"Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God." Matt 27:54

John's Gospel presents the death of Christ from a perspective that it was pre-determined in the Scriptures.

Tunic of His Crucifixion
"They said therefore among themselves, Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be: that the Scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They parted My raiment among them, and for My vesture they did cast lots. These things therefore the soldiers did." John 19:24

Thirst before His Death
"After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst." John 19:28

Treatment of His Body
"For these things were done, that the Scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken." John 19:36

Testimony (Totality) of the Scriptures
"And again another Scripture saith, They shall look on Him whom they pierced." John 19:37

A lamb for a individual (Gen 4:4)
A lamb for a household (Exo 12:3)
A lamb for a nation (Eze 45:15)
The lamb for the world
"Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world." John 1:29
"He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet He opened not his mouth: He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He openeth not His mouth." Isaiah 53:7