When we read the life of Jesus in the gospels, are we to see things that mark Jesus out as the unique son of God, or are we to see things that we are called to imitate and experience ourselves as followers of Jesus? I think the answer is yes (both and). In the series ‘How did Jesus’ we can explore some of those tensions; what makes Jesus unique, but what can we learn and copy today?
HOW DID JESUS HEAL? Clare Thompson 21/02/16.
The healing ministry of Jesus is something he called and still calls his followers into. Jesus healing ministry begins after his baptism and testing in the wilderness. Bible Ref. Luke 4:31-40
HOW DID JESUS MAKE DISCIPLES? Joey Mitchell 28/02/16
Jesus prioritised making disciples, and commanded his disciples to do the same (Matt 28:19). ‘Infectious discipleship’ is a word for the year at Woodlands and our mission statement ‘Continually reproducing the life of Jesus’ is a statement about discipleship. Bible Ref. Luke 5:1-11
HOW DID JESUS TEACH? Rob Scott-Cook 06/03/16
Jesus teaching was extraordinarily popular with all kinds of people (c.f. Luke 15:1). He taught crowds, but also took the small group of 12 disciples aside (18:31) to explain more deeply his message, to answer their questions or reflect on his ministry. What made Jesus’ message so attractive to them?
Bible Ref. Luke 15-18
HOW DID JESUS PRAY? Jon Wilcox & Dave Mitchell 13/03/16
Jesus’ prayer life was one of the most distinctive things about his relationship with God. It had a non liturgical intimacy. He called God by the intimate name ‘Father’. He practiced prayer as a key priority above the pressures of people. It was so distinctive that his disciples, brought up in the faith of their forbears, asked ‘Lord teach us to pray’ (Luke 11:1).
HOW DID JESUS SUFFER? Rachel Riddall 20/03/16
One aspect of the ministry of Jesus that we are explicitly called to imitate is suffering. Jesus said that his disciples must take up their cross. This is not a popular subject in contemporary Charismatic spirituality, yet throughout the world Christians are suffering through persecution more than at any time in history, sometimes literally taking up their cross.
HOW DID JESUS TRIUMPH? / EASTER DAY Tim Dobson 27/03/16
When Jesus hung on the cross, his opponents sneered ‘He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ’ (v 35). How much of being saved actually depends on ‘not saving your own life’? How was Jesus utter trust and dependence on God fulfilled in his dying? How do we try and ‘save ourselves’? Where do we need to trust in God’s salvation more?
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