WAEC SSCE - Christian Religious Studies - 2008 (Essay)

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Paul's teaching on spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians 12)

Writing to the Corinthian church, Paul did not want them to be ignorant concerning spiritual gifts. His teaching may be outlined as follows:

• One source of all gifts: There are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; varieties of service, but the same Lord; varieties of working, but the same God who works all in all. Every gift is given by the one Holy Spirit.
• Gifts are for the common good: To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the profit of all, not for private boasting.
• The variety of gifts: To one is given the utterance of wisdom, to another the utterance of knowledge, to another faith, to another gifts of healing, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of tongues.
• The Spirit distributes as He wills: All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as He chooses. No one can claim credit for the gift he possesses.
• The analogy of the body: Just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members, though many, form one body, so it is with Christ. The church is the body of Christ, and believers are members of it. By one Spirit all were baptised into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free.
• Every member is necessary: The foot cannot say it does not belong because it is not the hand; the eye cannot say to the hand, "I have no need of you." God has arranged the members, each with its function, so there should be no division. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one is honoured, all rejoice together.
• Order and appointment in the church: God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, gifts of healing, helping, administration, and various kinds of tongues. Not all have the same gift, and believers should earnestly desire the higher gifts.

Paul then pointed them to a still more excellent way, the way of love, which surpasses all the gifts (leading into 1 Corinthians 13).

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(a) How James proved that "faith apart from works is dead" (James 2:14-26)

James raised the question, "What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him?" He then proved his point in several ways:

• The example of the needy brother: If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled," without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.
• The challenge of demonstration: Someone may claim, "You have faith and I have works." James answered, "Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works." Faith that cannot be seen in action is worthless.
• The faith of demons: "You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe, and shudder." Mere intellectual belief without obedience is no better than the belief of demons.
• The example of Abraham: Abraham was justified by works when he offered his son Isaac on the altar. His faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works. Thus the Scripture was fulfilled, "Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness," and he was called the friend of God.
• The example of Rahab: Likewise Rahab the harlot was justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way.

James concluded, "As the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead." Genuine faith always shows itself in good deeds.

(b) Two deeds of faith

• Providing food, clothing and help to the poor and needy.
• Obeying God's command even at great personal cost, as Abraham did in offering Isaac, or showing hospitality and protection to God's servants, as Rahab did.

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(a) How Jesus demonstrated humility, from Paul's epistle to the Philippians (Philippians 2:5-11)

Paul urged the Philippians to have the same mind that was in Christ Jesus, and then described how Jesus demonstrated perfect humility:

• Though He existed in the form of God and was equal with God, He did not count that equality with God as a thing to be grasped or clung to for His own advantage.
• Instead He emptied Himself, laying aside His divine glory and taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.
• Being found in human form, He further humbled Himself by becoming obedient, submitting fully to the will of God.
• His obedience went to the uttermost, even to death, and not an ordinary death but the shameful death on a cross.

Because of this humble self-abasement, God highly exalted Him and gave Him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Thus Jesus showed that the path to true exaltation is through humble obedience and self-giving.

(b) Two ways one can exhibit this virtue

• By putting the interests and needs of others before one's own and serving others without seeking personal glory.
• By being obedient and submissive to God's will, and by accepting lowly positions or suffering when necessary without pride.

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(a) Joseph's first encounter with Pharaoh (Genesis 41:1-45)

After two full years, Pharaoh had two troubling dreams. In the first, seven fat cows came up out of the Nile and were devoured by seven thin and ugly cows. In the second, seven plump ears of grain were swallowed up by seven thin ears blasted by the east wind. Pharaoh was troubled in the morning and called all the magicians and wise men of Egypt, but none could interpret the dreams.

Then the chief butler remembered Joseph, who had rightly interpreted his own dream and that of the baker while they were in prison. He told Pharaoh about the young Hebrew. Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and he was quickly brought out of the dungeon. He shaved, changed his clothes, and came before Pharaoh. Pharaoh said, "I have had a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it; but I have heard that you can understand a dream and interpret it." Joseph humbly answered, "It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh a favourable answer."

Pharaoh recounted the two dreams. Joseph explained that both dreams were one and the same, revealing what God was about to do. The seven fat cows and seven good ears were seven years of great plenty, and the seven thin cows and blasted ears were seven years of severe famine that would follow and consume the land. The dream was doubled because the matter was fixed by God and would come to pass soon. Joseph then advised Pharaoh to appoint a discreet and wise man over the land, and to set overseers to gather one-fifth of the produce during the years of plenty and store it as a reserve against the years of famine.

The advice pleased Pharaoh and his servants. Pharaoh said, "Can we find such a one as this, a man in whom is the Spirit of God?" He then set Joseph over all the land of Egypt, gave him his signet ring, clothed him in fine linen, put a gold chain about his neck, and made him second only to himself. He gave him the name Zaphenath-paneah and Asenath as wife.

(b) Three qualities of Joseph that earned him Pharaoh's favour

• Humility and godliness: He gave all glory to God, saying the interpretation was from God and not from himself.
• Wisdom and discernment: He not only interpreted the dreams but offered a wise plan to save Egypt from the coming famine.
• Intelligence and administrative ability: Pharaoh recognised him as discreet and wise, a man in whom was the Spirit of God, fit to govern.

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(a) How Lazarus was raised from death (John 11:1-44)

Lazarus of Bethany, the brother of Mary and Martha, fell sick. The sisters sent word to Jesus, "Lord, he whom you love is ill." When Jesus heard it He said, "This illness does not lead to death; it is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it." Though He loved the family, He stayed two more days where He was. Then He told the disciples, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him." When they misunderstood, He said plainly, "Lazarus has died; and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe."

When Jesus arrived, Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. Martha met Him and said, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." Jesus assured her, "Your brother will rise again," and declared, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live." Mary also came weeping, and when Jesus saw her and the Jews weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit and troubled, and Jesus wept.

They came to the tomb, a cave with a stone lying against it. Jesus said, "Take away the stone." Martha objected that there would already be a stench after four days. Jesus reminded her, "Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?" So they took away the stone. Jesus lifted up His eyes and prayed, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me." Then He cried with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!" The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with grave-clothes and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said, "Unbind him, and let him go." As a result many of the Jews who had come with Mary believed in Him.

(b) Two lessons the story teaches Christians

• Jesus has power over death; He is the resurrection and the life, and faith in Him gives hope of eternal life.
• God's delays are not denials; what seems like too late for man is an opportunity for God to display His glory, so believers should trust Him even in the face of death and disappointment.

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(a) Jonah's flight from the presence of God to Tarshish (Jonah 1:1-17)

The word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, "Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it, for their wickedness has come up before me." But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish, away from the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa, found a ship going to Tarshish, paid the fare, and boarded it to go with them, running away from his assigned mission.

But the LORD hurled a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty tempest, so that the ship threatened to break up. The frightened mariners each cried to his own god and threw the cargo into the sea to lighten the ship. Meanwhile Jonah had gone down into the inner part of the ship and lay fast asleep. The captain came and rebuked him, "What do you mean, you sleeper? Arise, call on your god! Perhaps the god will give a thought to us, that we may not perish."

The sailors cast lots to know on whose account the trouble had come, and the lot fell on Jonah. They questioned him, and he confessed, "I am a Hebrew, and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land." He admitted he was fleeing from the LORD's presence, and the men were greatly afraid. He told them, "Take me up and throw me into the sea; then the sea will quiet down for you, for I know it is because of me that this great tempest has come upon you." The men first tried hard to row back to land but could not, for the sea grew more violent. Then they prayed to the LORD not to hold them guilty of innocent blood, and threw Jonah into the sea, and the sea ceased its raging. The men feared the LORD greatly, offered a sacrifice, and made vows. And the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and he was in its belly three days and three nights.

(b) Two moral lessons from his flight

• No one can escape or hide from the presence and purpose of God; disobedience only brings trouble.
• Disobedience to God can endanger not only oneself but also innocent others, as the sailors were placed in danger by Jonah's flight.

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(a) The death of the first child born to David by Uriah's wife (2 Samuel 12:15-23)

After David had committed adultery with Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah, and arranged for Uriah to be killed in battle, the prophet Nathan rebuked him and declared that, because he had despised the LORD, the child born to him would surely die. David confessed, "I have sinned against the LORD," and Nathan told him the LORD had put away his sin so that he would not die, but that the child would die.

The LORD then struck the child that Uriah's wife had borne to David, and it became very sick. David pleaded with God for the child; he fasted, went in and lay all night on the ground. The elders of his house stood beside him to raise him from the ground, but he would not, nor would he eat food with them. On the seventh day the child died. His servants were afraid to tell him, saying, "While the child was still alive we spoke to him and he would not listen; how then can we say the child is dead? He may do himself harm."

But David perceived from their whispering that the child was dead and asked, "Is the child dead?" They answered, "He is dead." Then David arose from the ground, washed, anointed himself, changed his clothes, went into the house of the LORD and worshipped. He then returned home and asked for food and ate. His servants were surprised and asked why he had fasted and wept while the child was alive but rose and ate when it died. David answered, "While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept, for I said, Who knows whether the LORD will be gracious to me, that the child may live? But now he is dead. Why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he will not return to me."

(b) Three lessons from the episode

• Sin has consequences, and even a forgiven sinner may still bear the results of his wrongdoing.
• Genuine repentance and submission to the will of God bring peace and acceptance, as seen in David's worship after the child's death.
• Fervent prayer and fasting are proper while there is hope, but one must humbly accept God's final decision and not despair.

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(a) Saul's battle with the Philistines on Mount Gilboa (1 Samuel 31:1-13; cf. 1 Samuel 28)

The Philistines gathered their armies to fight against Israel, and Israel encamped at Gilboa. When Saul saw the great Philistine host, he was afraid and his heart trembled. Because the LORD did not answer him by dreams, by Urim or by prophets, Saul disguised himself and went to the witch of Endor, seeking a word through the medium. Through her, Samuel announced that the LORD had departed from him and become his enemy, that the kingdom would be given to David, and that on the next day Saul and his sons would be with him, and Israel would fall to the Philistines.

In the battle on Mount Gilboa the Philistines fought fiercely against Israel. The men of Israel fled before them and fell slain on the mountain. The Philistines pressed hard after Saul and his sons and killed Jonathan, Abinadab and Malchishua, the sons of Saul. The battle went heavily against Saul, and the archers found him and wounded him severely. Saul said to his armour-bearer, "Draw your sword and thrust me through with it, lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through and make sport of me." But his armour-bearer was too afraid, so Saul took his own sword and fell upon it. When the armour-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his sword and died with him. So Saul died, and his three sons and his armour-bearer, all on the same day.

When the Israelites on the other side of the valley saw that the army had fled and Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their cities and fled, and the Philistines came and occupied them. The next day the Philistines found the bodies, cut off Saul's head, stripped his armour, and fastened his body and those of his sons to the wall of Beth-shan. But the men of Jabesh-gilead came by night, took down the bodies, burned them, buried the bones under a tamarisk tree, and fasted seven days.

(b) Two reasons the outcome could be blamed on Saul

• Saul had persistently disobeyed God, so that the LORD rejected him and departed from him, leaving him without divine guidance in battle.
• Instead of trusting and seeking God properly, Saul consulted a medium at Endor, a forbidden practice, showing his lack of faith and further sealing his doom.

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(a) The parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin (Luke 15:1-10)

The tax collectors and sinners were drawing near to hear Jesus, and the Pharisees and scribes grumbled, "This man receives sinners and eats with them." In reply Jesus told these two parables.

The lost sheep: "What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And coming home, he calls together his friends and neighbours, saying, Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost." Jesus added, "Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance."

The lost coin: "What woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it? And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbours, saying, Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost." Jesus concluded, "Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents."

(b) Two ways these parables are significant

• They reveal the seeking love of God, who actively goes after the lost sinner and does not wait passively, showing that every individual is precious to Him.
• They teach that there is great joy in heaven over the repentance and recovery of even one sinner, and they answer the critics by justifying Jesus' welcome of tax collectors and sinners.

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(a) The teaching of James on effective prayer (James 5:13-18)

James taught that prayer is the proper response to every situation of life. He said, "Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise." His teaching on effective prayer includes the following:

• Prayer in sickness: "Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven."
• Confession and mutual prayer: "Confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed." Prayer should be accompanied by a clean and forgiving heart.
• The power of righteous prayer: "The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working." Effective prayer must come from a righteous life and be offered fervently and in faith.
• The example of Elijah: Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, yet he prayed earnestly that it might not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain and the earth bore its fruit. This shows that the fervent prayer of an ordinary but righteous person can achieve great results.

(b) Four causes of unanswered prayers

• Unconfessed sin and an unclean heart, which separate a person from God.
• Lack of faith, doubting when one prays.
• Wrong or selfish motives, asking in order to spend it on one's own pleasures.
• An unforgiving spirit, disobedience, or hypocrisy which hinders fellowship with God.

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(a) Luke's account of the healing of the demoniac (Luke 8:26-39)

Jesus and His disciples sailed to the country of the Gerasenes, opposite Galilee. As Jesus stepped ashore, a man from the city met Him who had demons. For a long time he had worn no clothes and lived not in a house but among the tombs. When he saw Jesus he cried out, fell down before Him, and shouted with a loud voice, "What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me." For Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. The demon had often seized him, and though he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the wilderness.

Jesus asked him, "What is your name?" He answered, "Legion," for many demons had entered him. They begged Jesus not to command them to depart into the abyss. Now a large herd of pigs was feeding on the hillside, and the demons begged Him to let them enter the pigs. He gave them permission. The demons came out of the man and entered the pigs, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.

When the herdsmen saw it, they fled and told the people in the city and countryside. The people came out and found the man from whom the demons had gone, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. Those who had seen it told how the demoniac had been healed. Then all the people of the region asked Jesus to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear, and He got into the boat to return. The man who was healed begged to go with Him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, "Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you." So he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus had done for him.

(b) Two reasons the evil spirits were sent into the swine

• The demons themselves begged Jesus to allow them to enter the pigs rather than be sent into the abyss, and He granted their request.
• It served as visible proof that the man had truly been delivered and that the demons were real and destructive, since the drowning of the herd demonstrated the power that had held the man captive.

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(a) The trial of Jesus before the high priest (Mark 14:53-65; cf. Matthew 26:57-68)

After His arrest in Gethsemane, Jesus was led away to the high priest, where all the chief priests, the elders and the scribes were assembled. The chief priests and the whole council sought testimony against Jesus to put Him to death, but they found none. Many bore false witness against Him, but their testimonies did not agree. Some stood up and testified falsely, "We heard him say, I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another not made with hands," yet even about this their witness did not agree.

Then the high priest stood up and asked Jesus, "Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?" But Jesus remained silent and made no answer. Again the high priest asked Him, "Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?" Jesus answered, "I am; and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven." At this the high priest tore his garments and said, "What further witnesses do we need? You have heard his blasphemy. What is your decision?" They all condemned Him as deserving death. Then some began to spit on Him, to cover His face, to strike Him, and to say, "Prophesy!" and the guards received Him with blows.

(b) Peter's behaviour during this period (Mark 14:54, 66-72)

Peter had followed Jesus at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest, and sat with the guards, warming himself at the fire. While he was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest saw him and said, "You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus." But Peter denied it, saying, "I neither know nor understand what you mean," and he went out into the gateway. The servant girl saw him again and said to the bystanders, "This man is one of them," but again he denied it. After a little while the bystanders said to Peter, "Certainly you are one of them, for you are a Galilean." Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, "I do not know this man of whom you speak." Immediately the cock crowed a second time. Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken to him, "Before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times," and he broke down and wept bitterly.