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Weekly Bible Study Resources
Bible Characters for Your Weekly Bible Study
Compiled by Lt Gen C. Norman Wood, USAF (Ret), Burke, VA 22015
For week of April 13 - 19, 2009
Smith, Judge Clifford P. (CSB, Assistant Secretary in Mrs. Eddy's Household, CoP, and Editor),
"Atonement," Christian Science Sentinel, Vol.32 (17 May 1930), p. 730.
--The doctrine of atonement has had a curious history.
• From the third century, to the twelfth, most Christians believed that Jesus, by his sufferings,
paid a ransom to the devil, and thus effected the deliverance of those who believed on him.
---From then until the latter part of the nineteenth century, the orthodox view was that
God accepted the righteousness of Jesus as a substitute for the righteousness of mankind, said to have
been lost by the fall of man, and accepted the sufferings of Jesus as an equivalent for the punishment
incurred by mankind for sin; all men being consequently released from punishment on condition of their
acceptance, by faith, of his sacrifice.
• This information is digested from reference works which also show that the doctrine last stated
is still held by the majority of Christians.
SECTION I: The Testimony of John the Baptist (John 1: 6, 7, 19, 20, 29, 35, 36)
TIME LINE: The Year of Inauguration (Jesus' 1st year of ministry), 27 AD, in Judea.
"As forerunner to Jesus [sent from God, v.6], John was to bear witness to [him] as the Messiah
and Son of God." (MacArthur Bible Commentary)
"When the narrative curtain opens [vv.19-21], John is on the stage. His only function is to bear
testimony to Jesus. His first statement is, 'I am not the Christ." (People's NT Commentary)
On the third day of the week, John the Baptist personally directed two of his own disciples to
Jesus in such a way that they actually left John to become followers of Jesus. [vv.35-37]
John the Baptist
(Abbreviated)
"We have only fragmentary and imperfect accounts of John the Baptist in the Gospels." (Baker
Encyclopedia) John the Baptist was the cousin and "forerunner of Jesus; a moral reformer, and
preacher of Messianic hope." (Who Was Who in the Bible) He is “an important figure in each of the
four New Testament Gospels." (HarperCollins Dictionary) "Luke adds that both John and Jesus were
announced, set apart, and named by the angel Gabriel even before their birth." (Who Was Who in the
Bible) John is identified with the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. “Reference to John is the first point of
convergence among the canonical Gospels, all of which gave a somewhat similar account of his person,
preaching, and activity, though varying in detail.” (HarperCollins Dictionary) ….
John was a forerunner of Jesus, not only in his ministry and message, but also in his death. In
early Christianity, the return of Elijah was applied to John the Baptist: “Elias verily cometh first, and
restoreth all things” (Mark 9:12). "John saw his mission as a fulfillment of Malachi's prophecy,
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Bible Characters for your weekly Bible study — April 13 - 19, 2009
'Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me' (Mal 3:1)." (All the People
in the Bible)….
"Lamb of God"
"LAMB OF GOD. The spiritual idea of Love; self-immolation; innocence and purity;
sacrifice." (S&H p.590)
"Being common in the Near East, lambs were one of the most usual sacrificial animals in
ancient Israel. Twice a day a lamb was slaughtered in the Temple; a lamb could be offered as a sin
offering; each family annually slaughtered a paschal lamb for Passover.
"The Fourth Evangelist, who adapted to his own purposes a number of traditions concerning
John the Baptist, added an extensive commentary to his first mention of the phrase 'the lamb of God'
(John 1:29-34). In his view, the final words of v.29, 'who takes away the sin of the world,' refer to the
redemption brought about by Jesus' death." (Oxford Guide to Ideas & Issues)
Armstrong, Henry J., "'A man sent from God,'" Christian Science Sentinel, Vol.39 (2 January 1937),
p. 345.
--We may not yet be ready for the ascension, but to the extent that Christian Science comes to our
consciousness, it begins to "restore all things" in our experience.
--In the New Testament we read: "There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same
came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe."
• This statement does not mean that a personal God sent a man named John to bear witness.
---It means that the Christ so illumined the consciousness of John that it "sent" or
impelled him to bear witness to others "of the Light" that had dawned upon him.
• In the same sense, every Christian Scientist is "a man sent from God…to bear witness of the
Light" that has come to him through the revelation of Christian Science; and when, through spiritual
enlightenment, the call to each one of us, let us follow the example of John, who, when he was "sent,"
also "came" and bore "witness of the Light."
Leishman, Thomas L., “John the Baptist and His Mission,” THE CONTINUITY OF THE BIBLE,
Christian Science Journal, Vol.89 (August 1971), p. 425.
--In view of the significance of John the Baptist, the average reader of the New Testament shows
relatively little knowledge of his work.
• We may well search the Gospels for a better understanding of this young man, who held a
unique position in the unfoldment of the career of Christ Jesus, the Founder of Christianity.
--What can be learned about the education and early training of the Baptist?
• …both sides of the family were of strictly priestly stock, and if his village had a synagogue,
John probably spent his early school days there.
---…he must have become thoroughly familiar with the Scriptures, the basic curriculum
for any young Jewish boy.
--The age at which time John left his home for what is called “the wilderness of Judea” is not known.
--The nobility of the Baptist is clearly seen in his refusal to accept the honor which the question implied
(see John 1: 19-28).
• Humbly he maintained his position of forerunner in fulfillment of prophecy, preparing the
hearts of the people to receive the Messiah.
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Bible Characters for your weekly Bible study — April 13 - 19, 2009
Henniker-Heaton, Peter J. (Associate Editor), "The Lamb of God," POEM, Christian Science
Journal, Vol.64 (April 1946), p. 157.
Not to the risen Lord we cling,
who said to Mary, "Touch me not,"
but to the eternal Christ and King,
the Lamb unblemished, without spot.
The risen Lord had form and face
and human tones to speak the name
of Mary, when with power and grace
transfigured from the tomb he came….
And Peter, who had thrice denied,
he thrice forgave with "Feed my sheep,"
in that same voice that bade subside
the storm that roused him from his sleep.
The babe who in the manger lay
In humble state on Christmas night,
The risen Lord of Easter Day,
A cloud received from human sight….
"Disarming the Assassin," Christian Science Monitor (31 March 1989), p. 17.
--…our outrage stems from an innate conviction of the value and dignity of man and of humanity's right
to just government.
• And doesn't this conviction demand that we not yield to despair?
---The Bible both encourages and commands, "Be not overcome of evil, but overcome
evil with good." (Rom 12:21)
--Although an enemy may wield a gun or other material device, isn't the primary weapon hatred,
perhaps, or desire for power?
• To expunge the destructive motive and instill good would, in a profound sense, disarm the
assassin.
--Transformation of character requires more than human persuasion, however.
• What's needed is the healing, regenerating activity of the Christ, of the divine influence in
human consciousness, "which taketh away the sin of the world." [John 1:29]
SECTION II: The Widow's Son Raised to Life (Luke 7: 11-15)
RELATED SCRIPTURE: I Kings 17: 17-24; II Kings 4:32-37
TIME LINE: The Year of Popularity and Fundamental Principles (Jesus' 2nd year of Ministry), 28 AD
at Nain.
“Now Jesus raises the dead, in anticipation of the series of claims he makes in 7:22, this time
echoing not Isaiah but I Kings 17:17-24, Elijah raising the son of a Sidonian widow. In his inaugural
sermon Jesus had already appealed to Elijah raising this widow's son (4:25-26), there making the point
that 'there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah,…yet Elijah was sent to none of them.'
Luke is echoing both 1 Kings 17 and Jesus' sermon in ch. 4.” (Eerdmans Commentary)
This story is unique to Luke. It “comes from Luke’s special material, L; it is without parallel in
the gospel’s tradition.” (Interpreter’s One Volume Commentary) “Soon afterward” (v. 11) hints that
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Bible Characters for your weekly Bible study — April 13 - 19, 2009
Luke is not quite sure when it happened. In v.12 the phrase carried out refers to the fact that “Jewish
tombs were always outside the walls, and burials were required to be performed within 24 hours.”
(Dummelow Commentary) "This [he…touched the bier, v.14] was a ceremonially defiling act,
normally." (MacArthur Bible Commentary) He delivered him to his mother (v.15): "Verbatim echo of
the Elijah story (see 1 Kgs 17:23). Throughout, Jesus' compassion is directed not only to the dead man
but to his mother." (People's NT Commentary)
The status of widows in ancient Israelite society was precarious. Having no inheritance rights
and often in want of life’s necessities, they were exposed to harsh treatment and exploitation. This
story is peculiar to Luke and it reveals Jesus’ sensitivity to the widow’s marginal existence. This
miracle was done in front of “much people” and similar to the raising of Lazarus in the presence of a
multitude of witnesses. The bier is a pallet, not a coffin. This raising from the dead is in contrast to the
struggle and difficulty experienced by both Elijah and Elisha, and indicates Jesus’ authority with the
single word of power: “Arise.”
"a widow" of Nain
"Nain was a small village in Galilee about seven miles southwest of Nazareth [and 25 miles SW
of Capernaum on the hill “little Hermon” as it slopes down to the plain of Esdraelon to the southeast,
not in Galilee proper; now a squalid collection of mud hovels]. Luke tells us that Jesus traveled to Nain
from Capernaum, where he had cured the slave of a Roman centurion. Before Jesus enters the village
gates, he encounters a funeral procession. Luke relates the circumstances to show how pitiful the
situation is. 'A man who had died was being carried out' (v.12), accompanied by his mother, a widow."
(Women in Scripture)
"The image of a widow as a symbol for the poor who are completely dependent on God is more
developed in Luke than in any other Gospel. Although there is a crowd of mourners around her, she
appears isolated in her sorrow and despair." (Women in the New Testament) "When a woman's
husband died in first-century [BC] Jewish communities, the wife was designated a widow, a term with
strict social/economic meaning. A 'widow' was a woman no longer under the authority of a male, either
her father or her deceased husband." (Women in Scripture)
"Needed for discipleship—modesty and affection," Christian Science Monitor (6 December 1988),
p. 19.
--There was a time when the Master and his disciples had traveled to Nain and saw a funeral procession
leaving the village. [Luke 7:11-16]
• A widow's only son had died.
• As Jesus approached the group, he touched the bier. The procession came to a stop.
---Then the master immediately restored the young man to life.
--Naturally the people were struck with awe at this dramatic act, and they accounted Jesus "a great
prophet."
• Yet there must have been something else about Jesus' character—including his spiritually
based humility—that caused the people to see that this was, after all, God's power at work.
Webb, Evelyn L., “’And he delivered him to his mother’,” POEM, Christian Science Sentinel,
Vol.27 (20 September 1924), p. 49.
O mother, weeping
On thy lonely way
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Bible Characters for your weekly Bible study — April 13 - 19, 2009
In sad procession,
Lift up now thy head;
For lo, the Christ speaks
Words of tenderness,
And bids the concourse halt
Its mournful path.
Then with command
The chains of death are loosed,-And Love divine
Brings back thy dear one.
See! He lives!
O suffering heart,
Where'er thou mayest be,
In thy grief lonely,
Remember this:
The dear and loving Christ,
Who spake in Jesus' time,
Stands ever close to thee
To stop the sad procession of thy thoughts;
And where fond hope lies dead,
Love will restore
All thou seem'st to have lost….
SECTION III: Jesus Is Anointed at Bethany by "a woman having an alabaster box"
(Matt 26: 6-13)
PARALLEL GOSPELS: Mark 14: 3-9; John 12: 1-8
TIME LINE: The Last Months: Saturday, April 1, 30 AD at Bethany
“St. John alone mentions the name of the woman who anointed Jesus, the quantity of the
unguent (1 litre=12 oz.), and the author of the mean speech, ‘Why was not this ointment sold for three
hundred pence, and given to the poor?’” (Dummelow Commentary)
"This [six days before the passover, John 12:1] most likely was the previous Saturday with
Passover coming six days later on Thursday evening through sunset Friday." (MacArthur Bible
Commentary)
"This promise [a memorial of her, Matt 26:13] is guaranteed by the inclusion of this story in the
NT." (Ibid)
Simon the leper
[Sī'muhn}
This Simon was "at a dinner in whose home at Bethany Jesus was anointed by Mary (Mark
14:3-9; cf. John 12:1-8). It is possible that he was the husband of Martha or the father of Mary, Martha,
and Lazarus. If he once was a leper, he obviously had been cured of his disease, possibly by Jesus."
(Interpreter's Dictionary)
"a woman having an alabaster box"/Mary of Bethany
This woman should not be confused with the one recorded in Luke 7:36-50, where in the house
of Simon the Pharisee, a notorious sinner anointed the feet of Jesus with precious ointment and wiped
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Bible Characters for your weekly Bible study — April 13 - 19, 2009
them with her hair. The homeowner's name is the same, but the persons and the period are completely
different. John clearly states that the Mary of this story was the sister of Martha and Lazarus (John
12:1-3).
“Mary, identified as the sister of Martha, is frequently remembered as she is depicted in Luke’s
very short exemplary story, or confused with either the anonymous woman penitent who washes and
anoints Jesus’ feet in Luke 7:36-50 or the famous disciple and witness to the resurrection, Mary of
Magdala.
According to Luke, when Jesus visited their house in Bethany, Mary sat at Jesus’ feet and
listened to his teachings while Martha worked in the kitchen. Mary sat listening eagerly for every word
that fell from the divine teacher. When Martha complained that Mary was no help, Jesus gently
rebuked Martha. Mary had chosen the good part, the “one thing needful.” "In John’s version Mary
anoints Jesus’ feet with costly ointment and wipes them with her hair, while Martha serves (12:1-3).”
(HarperCollins Dictionary)
Peel, Doris, “Bethany: At Easter Time,” POEM, Christian Science Journal, Vol.87 (April 1969), p.
199.
A man stayed here. (This we are told.)
He spent the night in the home of friends—
as often enough he must have done, having no fixed address
of his own. In Simon’s house, it may have been; or perhaps the one
where two sisters, who were dear to him, lived with the brother
raised from a tomb. In any case, whichever it was, the next morning
(and early, no doubt, in a land where morning breaks like a blaze)
he got up; washed in water fetched from a well; and dressed much
as he might today, in this same place….
Though the sisters (I think) stayed behind in the house.
From an open doorway they watched him go. And Martha, with a hand
raised suddenly to her throat, called out, “Take care of yourself!”
But Mary uttered no sound at all.
Mary stood there quiet as stone.
Gubbins, Florence Irene, “The Ointment Very Precious,” Christian Science Sentinel, Vol.35 (8 June
1933), p. 884.
--There was a supper held in Bethany at the house of Simon the leper, and Jesus was the guest of honor;
so we read in the Gospels.
• We are told that Lazarus sat at meat with Jesus whilst Martha served.
---Then, as the feast proceeded, Mary, her sister, came in with an alabaster box of
spikenard, very precious, which she broke, pouring the contents on the Master’s head till “the house
was filled with the odour of the ointment.”
• Was it that Mary’s spiritual intuition had discerned something of his glory that none of them,
not even his disciples, had so far been able to see?
---May it have been this spiritual insight in Mary which had satisfied the Master's
yearning for a response to his teachings when, on another occasion, Martha, cumbered with unnecessary
serving, rebuked Mary for sitting at his feet?
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Bible Characters for your weekly Bible study — April 13 - 19, 2009
SECTION IV: The Agony in the Garden (Matt 26: 18 The Master (to ;), 36, 39-45)
PARALLEL GOSPELS: Mark 14: 32-42; Luke 22: 39-46; John 18:1
TIME LINE: Thursday of Passion Week, 30 AD
"The references 'across the Kidron' [Cedron, John 18:1] and 'garden' can be fitted in with the
synoptic topography: 'to the Mount of Olives' (Luke 22:39) and 'a place called Gethsemane' (Mark
14:32; Matt 26:36)." (Eerdmans Commentary)
"The group of the three (Peter and the sons of Zebedee, cf. [Matt] 17:1-8) is closer to Jesus also
in his anguish and Peter is their leader ([Matt 26] 40; cf. [Matt] 17:4). Mt. follows Mk closely, and
lessens the strong language of MK slightly." (Peake's Commentary)
"'Temptation' [Matt 26:41] is here rather 'trial,' 'assault by the enemy' ([Matt] 6:13), and is made
clear by the saying about the willing spirit and the weak flesh, which cannot withstand the assaults."
(Ibid)
"Recognizing an opportunity for a safe arrest at night outside the city, Judas presumably left
Jesus and the disciples when they started for the Mount of Olives and called out a group from the high
priest's entourage to arrest Jesus." (Eerdmans Commentary)
Luke 22:41, about a stone's cast: "i.e., within earshot." (MacArthur Bible Commentary)
Peter
(Pee'tur)
(Abbreviated)
"Peter's role in the passion story was considerable." (Who's Who in the New Testament)
"At the Last Supper and throughout the passion narrative and resurrection account the Beloved Disciple
appears with Peter in a prominent role (chs. [John] 13-21)." (Interpreter's Dictionary) "Together with
John, he was entrusted with the preparations for the Last Supper, in which Jesus clearly confirmed his
leadership 'when you have turned again,' and at once foretold the threefold denial, which Peter
passionately contradicted. Peter also protested at the feet-washing, and then impetuously demanded that
Jesus wash him completely….although chosen to keep watch with James and John in the Garden of
Gethsemane, Peter slept with them. At the moment of arrest, however, it was Peter who struck out in
defense of Jesus with his sword—only to be rebuked by Jesus." (Who's Who in the New Testament)
English, Mrs. Marian C. (CSB and Lecturer, Colorado Springs, CO), "Gethsemane and spiritual
growth," Christian Science Journal, Vol.112 (September 1994), p. 10.
--The Way-shower never ceases to show us the way, and the Christly way always shows us the way out
of a night of despair.
--Jesus did not waste time ruminating on why he was in such a predicament.
• His entire focus was on the prayer that relinquishes all human tendency to want merely to be
relieved of the battle, and he patiently pressed on to higher demonstration of his Father's plan of
freedom and salvation for all.
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Bible Characters for your weekly Bible study — April 13 - 19, 2009
---Human emotions one might expect to find in such an ordeal—despair, sorrow, and
agony—seemed pervasive.
• But a deep study of the gospel accounts of the garden of Gethsemane (see Mark 14:32-42 and
Matt 26:36-46) reveals strong, uplifting, Godlike qualities that demonstrate the healing action of Christ,
Truth, in the face of extreme need.
Simoneau, Ida R., "'Could ye not watch with me one hour?'" Christian Science Sentinel, Vol.19 (16
December 1916), p. 305.
--On the wall space of a certain Christian Science Sunday school room wherein temporarily are held
also the church services, there is transcribed with excellently planned and loving foresight for its
application, the question that Jesus in Gethsemane asked of Peter and those with him who were found
sleeping: "Could ye not watch with me one hour?"
• In view of the fact that Christian Science Sunday services, the Wednesday evening meeting,
and the Sunday school each occupy about one hour, could a more direct appeal be made than this
reminder to members, pupils, teachers, and the entire audience, for their undivided attention during any
of our dearly loved services, meetings, or lectures?
--Our Church Manual reads: "A Christian Scientist is not fatigued by prayer, by reading the Scriptures
or the Christian Science text-book….Truth and Love rest the weary and heavy laden" (Art. XVII, Sect.
1).
• This applies as assuredly to participants as to members, who equally share in the observance
and the resultant blessing.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
The Bibliography is provided only in the notes of the first Sunday each month.
*The weekly Bible Lessons are made up of selections from the King James Version of the Bible
and the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy,
The Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science. The Responsive Reading this week is from the New
King James Version (NKJV).
"Several attempts have been made to modernize the AV/KJV. The most popular is the NKJV.
In it 'thee/thou' language has been updated, and archaic words and expressions replaced. Many of the
words and phrases that appear in italics in the AV/KJV—added to make better English sense—are
omitted. Personal pronouns referring to God are capitalized." (User's Guide to Bible Translations)
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