week 1 db

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Putting myself in Daniel's place I believe the first thing I would do would be to consider the purpose of the meeting which is prayer, fellowship, and Bible study. I would also consider that the passion that God's calling has produced in my life is not necessarily the passion of those in the group. In this case Daniel sounds more like a scholar than a student and his attitude rather than motivating the other members of the group is likely to take away their interest in meeting him. But since the question was asked then I should answer it considering what I have said before and with all intention to seek not only a scholarly answer but an answer that has direct application to the life of today's disciples.

As an example, I would begin by talking about the political climate in Israel and the need for the People of God to be free from the Roman oppression to which they were subjected. When we understand the socio-political context in the times of Christ, then we will know why this Messiah who for so long enjoyed much fame (Mt 4:24; 9:26; Mk 1:28; Lk 4:37), ended up being condemned to death on the cross, the most terrible and despicable of condemnations.

Talking about this proposes two important aspects that help understand the depth of Christ's ministry and his death on the cross. First of all most people did not understand or at best confused the purpose of the coming of the Messiah and limited their understanding of Him to a merely human role or limited to life in this world, no wonder Jesus had to emphasize things like "...My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence. (John 18:36, NKJV). Bearing this in mind we can see why his fame lasted so short and why those crowds that followed him, when they perceived that Jesus was not the Messiah they longed for, turned against Him. The historical context makes it evident that the people were focused on the present needs and not on the spiritual character of the Messiah's message.

On the other hand, understanding the aspect of death through crucifixion helps us understand the depth of the mystery of the Messiah's incarnation as Paul puts it when he says that Christ, "...made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. (Philippians 2:7-8). This is why in relation to death on the cross, the Biblical Commentary Matthew Henry observes that this form of death was, “a cursed, painful, and shameful death”[footnoteRef:1]. Knowing how much the Savior was able to humble himself is important for us to understand the depth of His love and in response to such love worship, thank, and serve Him. [1: Henry, M. (1994). Matthew Henry’s commentary on the whole Bible: complete and unabridged in one volume (p. 2324). Peabody: Hendrickson.]