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WAWARE SECONDARY SCHOOL-CHRISTIAN RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

CHRISTIAN RELIGIOUS
EDUCATION CODE: 313

FORM THREE (3)

TEACHING AND LEARNING NOTES


BASED ON KNEC/KICD SYLABUS, KLB BOOK 3 & COORDINATED PAST KCSE
MARKING SCHEMES

PREPARED BY HUMANITIES DEPARTMENT- WAWARE SCHOOL

2020
JANUARY 2020
EDITION

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THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT


THE HOLY SPIRIT is the third person in the trinity
The power of Christ that the suffering servant of Yahweh was empowered by the spirit of God to be able
to endure all the sufferings and challenges he faced during his mission.
He also helped Christ to carry out his ministry successfully and withstand temptation by the devil while
he was in the wilderness.
The Old Testament prophets and the disciples of Jesus Christ were guided and empowered by the spirit of
God. The holy spirit was instrumental in the salvation of God`s chosen people right from old testament
times and the new testament times to date.
Holy Spirit also helped the prophets in the Old Testament to perform miracles, deliver Gods messages
and withstand hostility.
The spirit of God used during creation….…``and the spirit of God was moving over the face of
waters``.(genesis 1;2),Let us make…Genesis 1;26
The one who gives gifts like healing and prophecy
The Holy Ghost and also the spirit of God

TEACHINGS OF JESUS CHRIST ON THE ROLE OF HOLY SPIRIT


Jesus Christ received the of God at His baptism which led him to the wilderness, strengthened him to
overcome temptations and guided him throughout his public ministry.
JESUS TEACHINGS ON THE ROLE OF HOLYSPIRIT john14:15-26
john16:5-15, Acts1:7-8
The Holy Spirit is divine
The Holy Spirit would be sent by God after his ascension
Jesus teachings on the role holy spirit
The Holy Spirit reveals the truth about God
The Holy Spirit acts as counselor
The Holy Spirit is comforter to believers
The Holy Spirit is an advocate to believers
The Holy Spirit guides believers
Holy Spirit enables disciples to witness for Jesus Christ
Holy Spirit enables believers to worship in spirit and truth
The Holy Spirit acts as teacher who teaches the believers
The Holy Spirit glorifies Jesus Christ and God

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Holy Spirit gives believers courage


Holy Spirit judges believers
The Holy Spirit will continue with Jesus work of forgiving sins
The Holy Spirit is a companion
Question; in groups of five discuss Jesus teachings on the role of Holy Spirit
THE WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE EARLY CHURCH
Revealed God`s message
Exposed people secrets
Inspired people to pray and speak in tongues
Gave people power to perform miracles
Provided guidance in choosing disciples/leaders
Empowered people to persevere persecution
Strengthened people to preach
Enabled Christians to live in unity and strengthened believer’s faith.
BACKGROUND OF PETER
● He was one the twelve disciples

● He was the first disciple to be called

● He accompanied Jesus wherever he went

● He acted as spokesperson for the disciples

● He was originally called Simon

● Jesus called him caephas meaning ‘the rock, the stone`

● He denied Jesus three times

● He repentented after denying Jesus

● He was instrumental in the appointment of of Matthias the successor of Judas Iscariot

PETERS MESSAGE ON THE DAY OF THE PENTECOST: Acts2;1-13


● Pentecost is Greek name for the Israelites festival of wheat harvest which was celebrated
50days after the Passover. Also known as feast of weeks.

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● It commemorated the day God gave the commandments to Israelites through Moses. In the New
Testament it is held to celebrate and remember the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the apostles and
followers of Jesus Christ. Before ascending to heaven Jesus Christ told his disciples to wait in Jerusalem
until they receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit would empower them to go to the world and
be Jesus witnesses.

● On that day the disciples were gathered in a room when suddenly a voice came from the sky
which sounded like a strong wind flowing and filled the room

● The disciples looked and saw what looked like tongues of fire which spread and touched every
one

● They were all filled with Holy Spirit and talked in other languages.

● Some people thought the disciples were drank but peter defended them by saying they were not
drank……acts2;6

● On that day,many believers were baptized increasing the group by about 3000 people.

o Describe events of the day the Pentecost

o Outline peters message on the day of pentecost

FACTS ABOUT PETERS MESSAGE ON THE DAY OF PENTECOST: Acts2;14-40


1. Peter said the disciples were filled with the holy spirit

2. He said they are not drunk

3. He said Jesus was the son of God

4. Gods power was seen by the miracles, signs and wonders performed by Jesus Christ

5. Jesus had been killed by the Jews because of their wickedness

6. God raised Jesus Christ back to life

7. Jesus Christ was a descendant of David

Facts about peters message on the day of Pentecost.;acts2;14-40


8. Jesus ascended to heaven and He is at the right hand side of God

9. Jesus is God Christ the messiah

10. Peter called upon people to repent their sins so as to be forgiven

The people were to be baptized by Jesus name.


Signs of the holy spirit on the day of the Pentecost
● Presence of tongues of fire

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Disciple’s speaking in tongues


● Strong/powerful wind

● Noise from the sky

● Baptism of many people[conversion of many people to Christianity- about 3000 people

CONTRIBUTION OF APOSTLE PETER TO THE SPREAD OF THE GOSPEL IN THE EARLY


CHURCH
● Preached on the day of the Pentecost converting 3000 people to Christianity

● Carried out healing miracles that attracted many people

● Condemned evil practices in the early church

● Clarified the Gentile commission to the early church

● He baptized the first gentile to the early church[Cornelius]

● He appointed deacons to care for the widows

LEADERSHIP QUALITIES SHOWN BY PETER ON THE DAY OF PENTECOST


● Courage

● Wisdom

● Commitment

● Principled

● Knowledgeable

● God fearing

● Creative

● Ability to defend his colleagues

● Care for the needy

● Prayerful

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SIGNIFICANCE OF THE OUTPOURING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT TO CHRISTIANS TODAY


✔ Christians learn that they need to devote to the teachings of Jesus Christ just like the apostle who
met daily for fellowship and prayer

✔ Christian’s learn that holy spirit unify believers the same way it unified disciples from different
backgrounds and nations

✔ Christians learn that it is important to be obedient like who obeyed the instructions of Jesus
Christ

✔ We also learn that baptism of the Holy Spirit is important for every Christian.

✔ They learn the holy spirit help in spreading the word of God the same way he helped the
disciples to bring more people Christ

✔ Holy Spirit helps Christians to be bold and courageous in preaching the gospel. The apostles
were bold enough to face persecutions as they were spreading the gospel of Christ.

PAUL`S TEACHINGS ON THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT first Corinthian’s 12,13 and 14
Spiritual gifts are extraordinary favors’ given human beings by God
They are special talents to be used for the service of others and not for one`s personal benefit or
gratification
THE NINE GIFTS OF HOLY SPIRIT
❖ WISDOM

❖ KNOWLEDGE

❖ FAITH

❖ HEALING

❖ SPEAKING IN TONGUES

THE NINE GIFTS OF THEHOLY SPIRIT


❖ PERFORMING MIRACLES

❖ PROPHECY

❖ DISTINGUISHING OF SPIRITS/DISCERNING

❖ INTERPRETATION OF TONGUES

IMPORTANCE OF THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT


⮚ The gift of wisdom

Ability to make sensible decisions and give good advice according to Gods will.

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This makes one to expound and make deep understanding. it enables Christians to make right decisions
on matters concerning the church.
Helps Christians realize who God is and his purpose for human beings. it also assist them to interpret
spiritual truth and make appropriate judgment’s
⮚ Gift of knowledge

Ability to have an in-depth understanding of a situation or spiritual issue. Gives Christians revelations and
understanding of the kingdom of God without being taught about them.
It enables Christians to understand basic facts about Jesus and his mission
It enables the apostles to spread the word of God. Some Christians have the gift of understanding of the
scriptures can distinguish what is biblical and what is not.
⮚ The gift of faith

Refer to confidence in God’s help which inspires us to undertake difficult tasks .it is also
being able trust in God and encouraging others to do so. It is the strong conviction that
help Christians perform miracles. Prophet Elijah used the gift holy spirit during the Mount Carmel.
⮚ Gift of healing ;acts3;1-10

Refers to powers to heal all forms of sickness miraculously by invoking the name of God
⮚ The gift of performing miracles

This is using Gods powers to perform signs and wonders that give authencity to Gods word. This power
demonstrates the saving power of Christ. They are the product of the spoken word of
God……………..psalms 33:6
⮚ The gift of prophecy

To proclaim a message on what will happen in future. The gift edifies, exhorts and comforts believers. It
is divinely inspired and anointed utterance. It is also the ability to to interpret God`s word and relate it to
His people. It enable Christians fore tell future as revealed to them.
⮚ The gift of distinguishing /discerning spirits

Ability to determine whether or not a message or a person or an event is truly from God. Ability to
identify the source of spiritual gifts, whether it is from Holy Spirit or evil spirits. Peter was blessed with
the gift of discernment and it enabled him to know that Ananias and Sapphira lied to Holy Spirit.

⮚ The gift of speaking in tongues. /glossolalia-Ability of some people to utter static and
unintelligible speech. It is also to convey a message or utter words of a language that is unknown to the
person uttering the words. The Holy Spirit energizes the tongue guide to guide believers through language
and music.

⮚ The gift of interpreting tongues

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Ability to understand and interpret messages of those speaking in tongues. It is translating what is being
spoken by those with the gift of speaking in tongues to others in a language they can understand.
TEACHINGS OF ST PAUL CONCERNING THE SPIRITUAL GIFTS
⮚ Gifts should be used for the service of others and not for one’s personal gains and gratification.

⮚ Gifts should be used for building of the church.

⮚ There is only one Holy Spirit that manifests its presence by conferring a variety of spiritual gifts
to the believer.

⮚ Just as the human body has many parts playing different roles so does the holy spirit.

⮚ Gifts are meant for the unity of the church.

⮚ Love is the greatest of all gifts and should be demonstrated by loving others.

⮚ Gifts are works of power which comes from God.

⮚ All gifts are the same and none is more important than others.

⮚ Gifts should be used rightly for the mission of God and for the good of the Church.

Ways in which the gift of love is supreme over other gifts according to st Paul
✔ The gift of tongues becomes nothing but meaningless noise when unaccompanied by love.

✔ The gift of prophecy or knowledge is not of any value without love.

✔ Neither faith is so strong as to move mountains nor generosity so great to give ones possession
nor does martyrdom mean nothing without love.

✔ Love contains virtues.

QUALITIES OF LOVE ACCORDING TO ST PAUL[first corrinthians:13


● Love is patient and kind

● Love is not arrogant or rude

● Love is not jealous or boastful

● Love does not insist on its on way

● Love is not disrespectful in its dealing’s

● Love is not deceitful or irritable

● Love bears all things

● Love is eternal

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● Love believes, hopes and endures all things

● Love does not rejoice in wrong but rejoices in the truth.

REGULATIONS FOR THE USE OF SPIRITUAL GIFTS ACCORDING TO ST PAUL.


❖ Must be exercised in an orderly manner in order to contribute the community

❖ In any one meeting, not more than two or at most three people may speak in tongues.

❖ Those who speak in tongues should not speak at the same time but one after the other.

❖ The one who has the gift of interpretation should explain the message to the congregation.

❖ If there is no interpreter available the person with the gift of tongues should refrain from speaking
in tongues or do it private.

❖ Only three prophets should speak at the assembly using the gift of prophecy. The other members
should listen and assess what the other prophets are saying.

CRETARIA FOR DISCERNING THE GIFT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT mathew7:15-26


First corrinthians12:1-3 Galatians 5:16-20
The following are the methods used to distinguish true spirits from false spirits
a. R Loyalty to jesus/conformity to the faith.

No one can say ‘Jesus is lord ‘except by the holy spirit


One who manifests aspitual gift must also acknowledge Jesus Christ truly from his heart.
b. the test of love

Divine love is the crown of character. To discover whether or not a spiritual gift has the Holy Spirit as its
author, Jesus Christ says the exercise of the holy spiritual gifts must lead to the harvest of fruits of the
Holy Spirit.
c. The doctrinal test

The holy spirit, by whose inspiration the scriptures were written cannot contradict that which it wrote.
Prophecy or message in tongues should always be in agreement with the scripture’s

d. One who is under the influence of the holy spirit should be able to recognize jesus as lord and
saviors

e. One who is under the influence of holy spirit is known by its acts{he/she will act and behave
according to the teachings of the Bible.

Discuss ways in which you can show love in the society according to Paul teachings.
WAYS IN WHICH THE GIFTS OF THE HOLYSPIRIT ARE BEING MANIFESTED IN THE
CHURCH TODAY

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● Some Christians have the gift of knowledge and wisdom.it enables them to understand and
interpret Gods message. They are also able guide other Christians in making right decision while
handling difficult issues.

● Some Christians have the gift of healing. This guides them to heal the sick through prayer and
faith in God.

● The gift of speaking in tongues. Today in most churches it is believed that those who speak in
tongues are believed to have received baptism of holy spirit of fire

● The gift of discerning of spirit.it helps Christians to distinguish between manifestation of Holy
Spirit and that of evil spirit. The gift also helps leaders to choose ministry teams or suggest people to
recruit for ministry roles.

● The gift of prophecy. Used to proclaim messages from God. Also in condemning evils such as
corruption, bribery and ethnicity.it is also used to tell people of Gods future plans for them. It has
greatly helped in evangelization.

● Gift of faith. This gives them confidence to believe in Gods promises, power and judgments

● Love as a fruit of the Holy Spirit. It is depicted when Christians show concern for others. This is
through visiting the sick, helping the poor and needy and assisting the orphaned.

● The Holy Spirit enables Christians of different denominations to work together in unity for
development of church.

● strengthens them with other gifts of the holy spirit.

● It gives Christians courage to speak the truth even when in difficulties.

THE FRUITS OF THE HOLYSPIRIT Galaltian’s 5:16-26


Christians are known by the fruits of the Holy Spirit which includes,
❖ Love

❖ Joy

❖ Peace

❖ Kindness

❖ Patience

❖ Goodness

❖ Faithfulness

❖ Self control

❖ Humility

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The challenge for Christians is to choose between having faith in Christ who became human being and
gave himself for the life of the world or chose the values which are the desires of the flesh which include;
o Immorality

o Idolatry

o Sorcery

o Jealousy

o Anger

o Disagreements

o Drunkedness

Those who belong to Christ have crucified their weak human nature with all its passions and
desires.
WAYS IN WHICH THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT HAVE BEEN ABUSED IN CHRISTIAN
CHURCH TODAY
1. Cheating that one has a certain gift of the holy spirit.

2. Commercialization of the gifts of the holy spirit. People are asked to pay money before they are
prayed for or healed.

3. Unscrupulous Christians may impart demonic powers on the innocent faithful.

4. False interpretation of the Bible/prophecy.

5. Some Christians who possess the gifts of the Holy Spirit develop pride/superiority complex.

6. Distinguishing one’s self as a person with special call with an intention of exploiting others.

7. Wrong use of the gifts of the holy spirit where faithful’s gets to the ecstasy or trance that may
lead to injuries.

ACTIVITIES OF THE CHURCH IN KENYA THAT SHOW THAT THE HOLYSPIRIT IS WORKING
AMONG CHRISTIANS.
▪ Praying

▪ Bible study

▪ Speaking in tongues

▪ Fruitful decision making to an individual or the church.

▪ Singing and dancing for the lord

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▪ Condemning sins

▪ Giving offerings to the church

▪ Celebrations of sacraments

▪ Bringing of new converts to church

▪ Patrol care and counseling

▪ Helping the needy or the poor.

▪ Cooperation between different churches.

▪ Writing Christian literature

▪ Confession of sins

▪ Preaching or teaching the word of God

DISCUSS HOW YOU CAN SHOW LOVE IN THE SOCIETY ACCORDING TO THE TEACHINGS
OF PAUL.
How the gifts of the holy spirit brought disunity in the church at Corinth.
a. People who had the spirit of speaking in tongues despised those did not have. They felt this
was the main work of the holyspirit and looked down upon those did not have.

b. There was competition involving speaking in tongues. Believers were competing in speaking
louder longer and in different languages.

c. One who spoke in tongues to the congregation without an interpreter could not be
understood.

d. People did not show love which is eternal to one another as they used the gifts of the holy .

e. There was disorder in the church worship at Corinth; they were trying to outdo each other
in manifestation of the gifts of the Holy Spirit like; prophecy, speaking in tongues, singing and
revelation.

f. They used the gift for their own personal benefits instead of growth and development of the
church. Some even demanded payment before healing the sick while others were boastful and
arrogant.

g. According to the church at Corinth the only way one could prove that he or she had the
gifts of the Holy Spirit was by speaking in tongues. Those with gifts of wisdom, prophecy or
knowledge were despised.

QUESTIONS

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1. What can Christians learn from the story of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the day of the
Pentecost?

2. Identify some of the ways Christians demonstrate the fruit of the Holy Spirit.

3. State the symbolic signs of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost.

4. Identify the elements of the fruits of the Holy Spirit and briefly explain their importance to
Christians.

5. Discuss Paul’s teachings on the gifts of the Holy Spirit to the church at Corinth.

6. What was the signifance of the out pouring of the Holy Spirit to the twelve disciples?

7. Describe ways in which gift of the Holy Spirit are used in the church today.

8. Explain the criteria for discerning the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

9. Explain Paul’s teachings on gift of speaking in tongues.

UNIT:2THE UNITY OF BELIEVERS

Refers to oneness of those who have faith in Jesus Christ as their savior.
The togetherness of Christians.
Those who believe in the salvation of Christ and therefore they have new life.
Believers are like the Israelite’s who were the chosen people of God in the Old Testament. The
Israelites were united by the fact that they were united by the fact that they were descendants of
Abraham and were recognized by the sign of circumcision. In the new testament they are known by
different names.ie, christiansbrethen, disciples,faithfuls,church, the saints.
Due to the fact that this group consisted of converts from various social and cultural backgrounds, it was
necessary that they learn how to accommodate and tolerate each other.
New Testament refers to oneness of those who have faith in Jesus as unity of believers.
In the New Testament we are known by different names:
● Christians

● Faithful’s

● Disciples

● Believers

Christians in the new testament are united through baptism.


They are the assembly of the people of God.

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Christians demonstrate unity by holding joint prayer sessions.


Man is made in the image and likeness of God and have common destiny.
Yahweh is the God of all Nations.
Jesus death brought death brought redemption to all.
According to John, God loved the whole world
Jesus sent his disciples to the world to preach.
WAYS IN WHICH JESUS DEMONSTRATED UNITY DURING HIS MINISTRY
▪ He chose the twelve disciples from different backgrounds.

▪ He fed the five thousands people

▪ He healed the centurion servant

▪ He mixed with the tax collectors

▪ He preached good news

▪ He visited women disciples[Marth and Mary]

▪ He invited everybody to Gods kingdom.

▪ He ate the last supper with his disciples

▪ He died for sinners.

The new testament illustrate the concept of unity of believers using various images or symbolic
expressions like;
1. The body of Christ

2. The people of God

3. The church

4. The bride

5. The vine and the branches.

I.The people of God refer to; first Peter2;9-10

In the Old Testament; the term people of God referred to;


a. Descendants of Abraham who were Israelites.

b. They believed in Gods promises to Abraham.

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c. They were circumcised i.e. prerequisite for one to become amember of Abraham and Gods
family.

IN THE NEW TESTAMENT THE PEOPLE OF GOD ARE;


⮚ Those who follow God and his teachings

⮚ Those who have faith and commitments to the commandments of God

⮚ Those who believe in God

⮚ They are the chosen race

⮚ The royal priesthood

⮚ The holy nation

⮚ They are special people because God has preserved them Himself. They are chosen so that they
may proclaim the wonderful acts of God to the world.

⮚ Their destiny is no longer of this world but in their eternal home/heaven.

⮚ They share in the resurrection of Christ by not engaging in evil acts but promoting peace and
prosperity.

⮚ They stand out among others by living righteous life

⮚ They are united with God through his son Jesus Christ

Ways in which Christians can exemplify the new people of God


o Helping the needy

o Being role model

o Spreading the good news

o Praying for themselves and others

o Condemning injustice

o Sharing wealth with the needy

o Giving offerings

o Singing and dancing

o Forgiving those who offend them

o Being humble

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CHARACTERISTICS OF PEOPLE OF GOD


I.They are the chosen race

II.They are the chosen people

III. Are chosen to proclaim Gods wonderful acts/deeds

IV.They are royal priests

V.They are a holy nation

VI.They are believers in Christ

VII.They have the responsibility of declaring the mighty works of God.

Christians are followers of Jesus Christ and form a corporate identity as being divinely chosen;
✔ They are united with God through Jesus Christ who died on the cross so that they could attain
salvation.

✔ They commit themselves to God by believing in Him and devoting their lives to Him.ie leading
holy lives

✔ They preach the word of God to all people and call people to repentance as they baptize them

✔ Being a holy nation they strive to lead holy lives as they have been called to serve God

✔ They are Gods owns people because he chose them by sending His own son to die on the cross
and redeem them from sin bondage

THROUGH JESUS CHRIST DEATH, GOD INITIATED ANEW COVENANTAL


RELATIONSHIP WITH HIS PEOPLE.
THE BODY OF CHRIST REFER; first corrinthians12;12-27,EPHESIANS4;1-12
St Paul uses symbolism of body of Christ;
1. The church is the body of Christians

2. Each part is essential to the proper functioning and growth of the body.

3. Each person is important in the body of Christ

4. Christian’s depend on each other and works in the unity for the common good of each other.

5. Members of the church have been called to serve in several church ministries. Ie
pastors,teachers,evangelists and prophets.

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THE BODY OF CHRIST


● Believers are members of the church.

● Believers have been baptized into one body by the Holy Spirit.

● The function of each believer is necessary for the well-being of the church

● Different members have been blessed with different spiritual gifts which should be used to enrich
the church and glorify God.

● Believers share the same rights and privilege in the body of Christ.

● Just as human body is one with different parts Christian should remain united.

● Believers should lead their lives according to their call with lowliness, patience, meekness and
eagerness to maintain the unity of the spirit.

● They are encouraged to have virtues which promote unity among themselves; ie humility.
Gentleness and patience.

Noteby:
Elements of unity centered on the trinity of God; that should exist among believers are;
● One body which is the universal church

● One spirit that dwells in the church.

● One baptism

● One God and father of all nations

● One lord Jesus Christ who is the head of the church.

Question ;how can Christian’s preserve the unity of believers?


Find out what Christian’s share as the body of Christ.
How Christian’s can apply/exemplify unity of believers.
1. As one body they are to unite and and use their abilities for the welfare of the church.
Ie.evangelize, prophecy and preaching.

2. The body of Christ is made up of different parts just like our physical bodies are made up of
hands, ears, mouth, stomach etc.

3. Some parts may be prominent and much of the work they do is not always obvious, but we cannot
undermine their importance.first;corrinthians12;13

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4. There is no division among Christian’s since all members of the body of Chris are one, if one
member suffers, then everyone suffers.

THE VINE AND THE BRANCHES; john15:1-5


Old testament.
In the Old Testament God was the vine dresser while the Israelites were the vine. God had planted the
vine [Israelites] and God looked after her Israelites very well but Israelites did not produce good results.
New testament.
Jesus Christ used analogy of the vine and branches to bring importance of unity of believers.
God is the vine dresser while Jesus Christ is the vine and Christians are the branches.
Christians are encouraged to bear fruits by remaining faithful to Christ.
God as the gardener breaks off the branches that do not bear fruits.
Christians who fail to be faithful will be pruned and thrown in the fire and burnt, just like the dead
branches are thrown into the fire…..john15:2
Christians should remain faithful {united in Christ}
Christians should love one another as Christ loved them.
Christians are expected to obey Gods commandments; just as Christ was obedient to his father.
Jesus Christ links all Christians to God and therefore they should abide in Christ as he is the only
way they can bear good fruits.
QUESTION; Discuss lessons that Christians learn from teachings of the vine and branches
THE CHURCH{THE ASSEMBLY OF GOD} reference Ephesians5;21-32
Abuilding where believers go to worship
Refers to a universal group of believers who profess the Christians faith.
In the New Testament it refers to worldwide community of Christians who follow and believe in Jesus
Christ.

● People who belong to the lord or community of believers

● Just as husband wife come together from different backgrounds so do members of the church who
should live in harmony with one another.

● Christ has authority over the church just as the husband is the head of the home

● Husbands should love their wives just as Christ loved the church

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● Husbands should love their wives the same way they love and care for their bodies

● The bond that exist between husband and wife is expected to be demonstrated by members of the
church.

● Believers should love one another for the sake of unity in the church.

● Christians are called out of sins to live as anew assembly of God.

● Christians are equal in God’s eye.

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Topic Three. Teachings From Selected Old Testament Prophets Introduction


This chapter introduces one to the wor k of prophets in the Old T estament. In For m One,
some prophets wer e taught e.g. Moses, Elijah, Nathan and Samuel.
Traditional African prophets wer e also taught.
In For m Three, we compare true and false prophets and the Traditional African prophets.
Learning outcomes. By the end of the topic, you should be able to:
a. Define a prophet, and prophecy
b. Identify categories of prophets
c. Explain the importance of prophets in Israel.
d. Descr ibe the characteristics of prophets.
e. Explain how prophetic messages wer e written.
f. Compare the r elationship between prophesies in the Old Testament and the New
Testament.
Lesson One: Prophets
Learning outcomes. After reading this lesson, you should be able to: -
1. Give a correct definition of a prophet, and prophecy
2. List prophets in categories
a. Definitions of a prophet, and prophecy
The wor d prophet comes from a Hebr ew word “Rabii’ meaning ‘one who is called or one
who announces God’s message.
A prophet is also referred to as a seer.
A prophet is a person sent by God to teach and give people messages about things to come
in futur e from God.
Prophets r eceived divine messages from God and communicated them to the people.
A prophet
Is ther efore a person who for etells events as revealed to him or her by God. Examples of
prophets include Samuel, Elijah, Jer emiah and prophetesses (female prophet) Deborah, and
Huidah.
Prophecy
Is a statement, a message of something that is going to happen in the future.
The action of giving futur e messages is called prophecy.

b. Categories of prophets

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There wer e many categor ies of prophets. These wer e:


a) Major Prophets.
These wer e Prophet’s whose messages cover ed a long period of time.
Their messages wer e long and detailed. For example Prophet Jer emiah, Ezekiel, and
Daniel.
b) Minor prophets.
There are 12 books of the Minor Prophets examples They are called minor because their
messages are short, brief and do not contain detailed infor mation.
The Minor Prophets are Amos, and Hosea , Joel, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum,
Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi.
c) Canonical prophets the term canon means law.
Canonical prophets are law prophets.
The individual utterances of these prophets are laws. Both minor and major prophets are
canonical prophets.
d) The early prophets
Ar e Moses, Nathan Elijah, and Elisha. These pr ophets belonged to guilds schools.
Their prophecies are not recor ded under their names.
Their prophecies are written in books, which do not bear their names.
e) Cultic prophets
like Hannah (N.T.) served in the places of worship. They assisted the pr iest officiating
worship.
f) Professional / court prophets like Samuel, Micah, and Gad lived together in the temple
and in groups.
They earned their living through their w ork. They did not wor k elsewher e.
g) False prophets
Ar e pr etenders to speak in the name of Yahweh but God did not call them.
They spoke lies in accordance with the messages people wanted to hear.

c. Characteristics of true prophets


There wer e two (2) major categories of prophets in the Old Testament,
(1) true prophets and
(2) false pr ophets.

True prophets

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are those whose pr ophecies occurr ed and wer e fulfilled.


Prophesies of false pr ophets did not occur.
True prophets distinguished themselves fr om false prophets and or dinary people.
They experienced God dramatically when He called them and in their ministry.
They wer e God’s spokesmen and women.
They responded in faith to their call.
God gave them specific tasks in their commission and God’s assurance an d support in
their ministry.
They urged people to r epent and turn back to God.
In their messages, they taught that God demands sincer e worship and not elaborate rituals.
They understood God and taught about God righteousness, goodness, mer cifulness, and
loving care.
They condemned evil in the society and proclaimed God’s judgment and punishment to
those who failed to keep the covenant.
They spoke with author ity and acted with courage. They upheld God as a universal God
for all nations.
They talked of a remnant that shall r emain after punishment or those that have continued
to worship God sincer ely.
Their utterances wer e true because they wer e fulfilled.
They spent a lot of their time in prayers.
They prayed regularly. At such times they withdr ew from peopl e in order to have a quiet
time to seek God.
All the true prophets received opposition from their audiences and they wer e r eady to
suffer for telling God’s word.

d. The Characteristics of false prophets.


Some of the pr ophecy of false pr ophets contradicted pr ophesies of the true prophets.
False prophets followed their own imaginations, and gave false hopes. They told people
what they wanted to hear.
They had no personal knowledge of God.
Hence, their prophecies wer e not in line with the divine r evelations.
They used evil forces such as magic, and divinations to call upon the spirits of the dead.
They wer e paid for prophesy and benefits materially from their clients.
They served Baal and wer e mainly immoral.

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They committed cr ime.


Review questions
How can we know true and false prophets today?

Lesson Two: Importance of Prophets in Israel Introduction Learning outcomes. After


reading this lesson, you should:
Lesson Two: Importance of Prophets in Israel
Introduction
1. Descr ibe the work of prophets in Israel
2. Explain how God communicated with prophets and Israelites
3. Analyse the content of the Prophetic messages
1. Work of prophets in Israel
Prophets kept Israelites in communication with God. They communicated God’s will to the
people of Israel.
They for etold God’s judgments and punishment for sinners. They condemned the
behaviour of the rich towards the poor.
Through their messages, people r efor med their lives since they condemned all for ms of
social evils and ritual sins.
They contributed to the wr iting of their messages leading to the compilation of the Bible.
Prophets guided and gave people hope.
They taught people the laws of God.
They warned people of dangers to come.
They condemned idolatry and stressed the worship of one true God, Yahweh.
They anointed the Kings in Israel.
Kings consulted the prophets befor e any major undertaking such as war among others.
They acted as conscience of kings.
They advised them and challenged Kings when they went wr ong.
2. God’s communication with prophets and Israelites
God communicated to Prophets through visions, voices that wer e audible and clear, events,
prayers, dr eams, signs, or dinary things, and words which came to their minds with gr eat
power.
Writing messages of the prophets

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The canonical prophets as mentioned earl ier had their works and prophecies recorded
under their names.
Canonical prophets are r eferr ed to as writing prophets. It’s possible that some pr ophets
wr ote down their own prophecies.
They wr ote what God spoke to them as He dictated.
An example is Jer emia h who wrote what he was told …’Get a scroll and write on it
ever ything that I have told you about Israel, Judah and all nations. (Jer emiah 36:2, Isaiah
30:8).
Two, the prophet’s message wer e pr obably written by other people.
These wer e their assistant, secr etary, scribe, and disciples or followers as the prophet
prophesied.
Thirdly some of the prophetic messages could have been pr eser ved as oral traditions and
later written as books.
A good example is 2 Kings.
e. Content of the Prophetic messages
Prophetic messages contained lessons from God to Israel. For example, the:
i. Prophetic sayings wer e and still are oracles or poetic passages spoken by God himself
through prophets.
The prophecies wer e addr essed to differ ent nations. They carried specific teachings to the
people, for example pr edicting futur e occurr ences.
ii. Narratives in the first person give an account of the pr ophet’s testimony.
They spoke of their exper iences with God, and responses to the call of God. They tell us
about prophet’s impelling comp ulsion to speak God’s wor d.
The narratives are written in the first person.
They have a for mat ‘ The Lord said to me… The year that King Uzziah died, I was the
Lor d…”
iii. Narratives in the third 3rd person have messages written by a thir d party, i.e. not the
prophet but another person.
For example, “Isaiah said to them, “Thus you shall say to your master, thus says the Lord:
“Do not be afraid of the wor ds.” (Isaiah 37:6).
The message r ecounts the prophets’ personal life, and political background.
Lesson Three: Prophesies in the Old Testament, New
Testament and African Traditional Society
Introduction

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The Israelites and the African traditional societies as well as other wor ld communities had
prophets who for etold the futur e.
Among the Israelites, ther e wer e pr ophets chosen by God and false pr ophets who told
messages which communities wanted to hear.
Among the African traditional communities, ther e wer e wise men and women who
prophesied about the futur e.
In this lesson, we shall compare these pr ophecies and le arn what was similar and differ ent
about these them.
The Old Testament prophecies are compared with those from the African traditional
society and the New Testament Learning outcomes.
After studying this lesson, you should be able to:
a. State relationships between Prophesies in the Old Testament New T estament and the
African Traditional Society
b. Discuss the similarities between prophets in the African traditional society and the Old
Testament.
c. Identify differ ences between prophets in the African tradi tional society and the Old
Testament.
a. Relationships between Prophesies
Several Old Testament (O.T.) prophecies wer e and are fulfilled in both the old and New
Testament (N.T) in the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.
The Law of Moses is used in both the Old Testament and the New Testament.
However Jesus gave the law a deeper meaning.
The teachings and pr ophecies of the pr ophets provided the foundation for the message in
the New T estament.
The prophecies of Prophet Nathan to King David that God would raise up an offspr ing
from the lineage of David was fulfilled in Jesus Christ, the expected messiah.
Jesus disciples in the New T estament referred a lot to messages in the Old Testament.
The teachings of Jesus in the New Testament are based in the Old Test ament prophecies.
They are ther efor e similar to each other because New Testament is a continuation of the
Old Testament.
The New Testament is the new covenant spoken of by Prophet Jer emiah and other Prophets
like Isaiah, Micah, and Nathan.
Their prophecies about Messiah are fulfilled in the New T estament.
b. Similarities between prophets in the African traditional society and the Old
Testament.

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In both traditions, prophets:


Wer e endowed with divine powers and they dealt with r eligious matters.
Acted as inter mediaries between God and people
Warned people of impending dangers and disasters due to disobedience
Had supernatural exper iences
Encouraged morality and discouraged evil ways
In some cases, could heal
Withstood oppr ession and opposition by the political rulers
Encouraged people to fight injustices in society
Foretold futur e disasters such as drought and wars.
They explained why they wer e going to occur.
Wer e consulted when things wer e not well in the society.
Received r evelations through dr eams, visions and thoughts.
Wer e gender sensitive male pr ophets and female pr ophetesses.
c. Differences (O.T.) between prophets in the African traditional society and the Old
Testament.
The Old Testament prophets had a per sonal r elationship with God. They communicated
God’s messages to Israelites.
The prophets in the African traditional society communicated and r eceived messages from
the ancestor spirits.
Old Testament prophets wer e God’s mouthpieces.
They began their prophesy with ‘thus saith the lord’…. While the prophets in the Afr ican
traditional society predicted what would happen to individuals, and communities.
The authority of prophets in the Old Testament came fr om God while the authority of
prophets in the Afr ican traditional society came from their ancestors’ spir its.
In the Old Testament prophets wer e called dir ectly by God while in some African
traditional communities the prophetic office was her editary.
The African traditional prophets dealt with family and loc al community issues while Old
Testament prophets dealt with national issues, and crises.
African traditional prophets wer e diviners while Old Testament prophets consulted God.
d. Relevance of Old Testament prophets to Christians today
Christian should be ready to be messengers of God. The call to be a Christian has a
prophetic role.

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Some Christians are called to the office of a prophet and should prophecy for the glory of
God and for the common good of the people.
As God’s spokes person one should always stand for the truth.
Christian should proclaim God’s will even if the message is not pleasant to the people.
Once appointed as a prophet, one should pass the messages to who ever they are sent to
without fear or favour.
God’s messengers should always condemn the social political economic evils in the
society.
As God’s messengers Christians should live exemplary lives.
They should stand for what they pr each and should expect persecutions because of their
wor ks as God’s messengers.
They should be r eady to suffer for the sake of the gospel.
Christians should pray to God to give them guidance, wisdom, and inspiration to be able
to handle hardships in their lives.
They should provide hope for the people in times of suffering.
Christians should realize that God calls both men and women to His service. They should
be ready to obey Gods’ prophetic call and not run away e.g. Jonah.
They should be concer ned and take care of the welfare of the poor community members.
Revision questions
1. Define the ter ms prophet and prophecy
2. List five categories of true prophets
3. State the differ ence between true and false prophets
4. In what ways wer e God’s prophets called?
5. Outline the similarities and differ ences between the old testament prophets and the
traditional African ones.
6. What is the r elevance of pr ophets to Christians today?
Topic Four: Prophet Amos Introduction
Amos is one of the prophets God sent to Israel to warn the people because of their evil
life.
Politically, the Nation of Israel had bec ome rich. Ther e gr ew classer, the rich and the
poor.
The rich started oppr essing the poor.
Socially, ther e was still the r ich – poor gap.

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The rich exploited the poor.


Merchants sold bad food, expensive and used false measur er.
Religiously, the Israelites had turned away from God and wer e worshiping false gods.
Syncr etism was practiced.
Priests wer e paid and God’s prophets wer e rejected. It is in this situation that Amos was
called.
He is called thr ough visions.
Amos is one of the canonical or writing pr ophets.
The book of Amos is a temptation of oracles spoken by the prophet on differ ent occasions.
Note that after the death of King Solomon, the kingdom of Israel was split into two and
rules by Rehoboam and Jeroboam.
The northern Kingdom; called Judah was ruled by Rehoboam and was inhabited by two
tribes.
The souther n kingdom called Israel was ruled by Jeroboam and was inhabited by 10 tribes.
Amos came from Judah and prophesied in Israel.
Topic Learning Outcomes. By the end of this topic, you should be able to:
a) Analyse Prophet Amos work in Israel
b) Describe the call of Amos
c) Explain the teaching of Amos
d) Relate relevance of Amos teaching to Christianity today
Lesson One: Prophet Amos work in Israel Read Amos 1:1 Learning ou tco mes. After
reading this lesson, you should:
1. Descr ibe the call of Amos
2. Descr ibe the socio, political and economic situation in Israel dur ing the time of Prophet
Amos
3. Explain religious situation in Israel
1. The call of Amos (Amos 1:1,3:8,7:10 – 15)
Prophet Amos was born in a village called T ekoa in Judah, the souther n kingdom. Befor e
his call, Amos was a shepherd and a dresser of sycamor e tr ees.
He was not a professional prophet.
But God called him to be a prophet. He r eceived his call in for m of a vision around 758
BC.

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Amos responded to God’s call with obedience.


He felt a deep compulsion to prophesy (Amos 3:8). God dir ected him to give his message
to the people of Israel, the norther n kingdom (Amos 7:15).
He was asked to speak the will of Yahweh.
He was also to for e tell punishment if Israelites did not repent their sins.
His message was opposed, and challenged by Amaziah the priest of Bethel.
2. Religion.
Israelites worshipped Yahweh and other gods. Idolatry was also present.
This for m of worship is called Syncr etism .
There was religious hypocrisy. Like today, ther e was an emphasis on external obser vances
of r eligious practices and less concern for inter nal obser vances.
The priests wer e paid for religious wor k.
Those who couldn’t pay did not have r eligious cer emonies.
They wer e offer ed at the expense of the poor.
The prophets of God wer e rejected.
3. Social – economic – political situation.
When Amos pr ophesied, King Jeroboam ruled Israel, the northern kingdom while King
Uzziah ruled Judah.
Amos was sent to prophesy to the people of Israel in the norther n kingdom.
He concentrated his wor k mainly in Bethel and Samaria – the capital city of Israel and the
main centres of worship.
When Amos started his prophesy, ther e was peace and prosper in Israel and Judah. Both
kingdoms wer e wealthy. However, the wealth did not reach the poor.
This was because the wealth and power wer e in the hands of the king, his family, his
officials, and wealthy merchants.
As a result, Israel citizens wer e divided into two classes; the rich and the poor.
Unfortunately, the rich people owned big luxur ious houses.
They drunk wine, and used the most expensive perfumes.
They acquir ed their wealth at the expense of the poor.
They oppr essed and exploited the poor.
The mercha nts of trade for example, wer e dishonest in their trade businesses.

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They sold bad wheat to unsuspecting customers and overcharged customers by measuring
with false scales.
Because of the inflated prices, the poor borrowed money fr om the rich at high inter e st
rates to buy basic things like food.
Hence, ther e was massive briber y and corruption in society and law courts.
As a result the poor lacked basic necessities or needs like food, shelter, and clothing.
It was at this time when God sent Amos to give proph esy to Israel.
SAQ. How did the rich oppr ess the poor in Israel?
Lesson Two: Visions of Amos Read Amos 7: 1 – 9, 8:1 – 3. 9:1 – 4)
Vision is a pictur e we have in our mind. It is a future to come. Amos was shown many
visions by God.
Lesson outcomes. After reading these verses in A mos you should be able to: -
1. Analyse all the visions and
2. State the message of each vision
3. Summaries things that God condemned through Amos
1. The vision of the locusts (Amos 7:1 – 3 )
Amos saw a swar m of locusts being sent by God to destroy all plants and food crops in the
land.
The locusts wer e, a sign of disaster, which God was going to send to Israel as a
punishment for their disobedience.
Amos cried to God to forgive the people. God heard and changed his mind.
2. The vision of a great fire (A mos 7:4 – 6)
Amos saw a vision of a supernatural fir e that burnt up the land.
He asked God to forgive the people and God listened. The punishment was stopped.
3. The vision of a crooked wall/ the plumb line (A mos 7:7 – 9)
Amos saw the Lord standing beside the wall checked it with a plumb line.
The wall repr esented the Israelites.
They stopped obser ving the laws of their covenant with God. God found Israelites
disobeying the covenant.
God promised to destroy holy places of Israel..
4. The vision of a basket of ripe fruits (Amos 8:1 – 3)

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In this vision, Amos saw a basket of ripe fruits. Fruits are harvested at the end of the
summer.
This meant that Israel was ripe for punishment for her r efusal to turn to God.
Amos did not pray for forgi veness.
God would no longer withhold His judgment. Time for repentance was over.
5. The vision of the destruction of the altar. Read Amos 9:1 – 4.
Amos saw the Lord standing by the altar.
The Lor d or der ed the destruction of the temple.
The shrines of Dan a nd Bethel wer e destr oyed because they wer e the centr es of idolatry.
No one would escape punishment no matter wher e they hide.
Summary of issues that God pointed out to Israel through Prophet A mos
a. Lack of social justice Ther e was lack of social justice a nd r esponsibility by the king of
Israel. Social justice means dealing with other people fairly.
It implies showing concer n for the needs of others.
b. Lack of responsibility.
This refers to the rulers and people of Israel being accountable for their actio ns.
In moder n life, it is doing ones duty and fulfilling ones obligation to God and others.
c. Practice of hypocritical religion in Israel.
The Israelites wer e insincer e in their worship.
They made empty sacrifices.
They worshipped idols as well as God. They profaned the name of God (Yahweh).
They made idols of Baal and offer ed sacrifices to them.
They worshipped other gods. This is syncr etism and God does not allow worship of any
other God but himself.
d. God’s judg ment against Israel and other nations.
God promised to destroy Israel and leave a remnant of them for restoration.
e. Oppressions of the poor by the rich
God condemned King Jeroboam rule of Israel because of the oppr ession of the poor,
gover nment corruption and briber y of king’s officials.
These officials sold the righteous for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals (shoes) i.e.
its like practising slaver y.
The rich trampled on the poor, despised them and placed no value on the poor.

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The poor gave their gar ments as security for loan.


This was contrary to God’s commandments.
The gar ment was supposed to be r eturned back to the owner befor e sunset.
The Samaritan women wer e ‘fat like the well fed cows of Bashan’ led luxur ious lives and
wer e ver y unkind to the poor.
The rich took an excessive shar e of the harvest from the far mers. Rulers loved luxury and
wer e arrogant.
They loved mater ial things and showed pride in material possessions.
They used expensive per fumes.
f. Corruption and bribery.
The judges wer e corrupt. They accepted bribes. Ther e was a conspiracy between the r ich
and the judges against the poor.
g. Pride in materials possessions
The capital city of Israel was Samaria. It was built on a mountain called Bethel, which was
also a place of worship.
There was prosperity in the land.
The Israelites prided themselves in their riches and materials possessions. Amos told them
God would destroy their wealth.
h. Dishonesty.
This is telling lies, cheating or using unjust means to get certain things.
The wealthy mer chants waited impatiently for the end of the holy days so that they could
engage in lucrative businesses.
They cheated the poor by using false scales. They sold bad wheat to the poor.
They mixed good and bad grains and sold them to unsuspecting people.
i. Sexual immorality
Sexual immorality was prevalent or common in Israel. For example a father and son would
have sex with the same girl.
There was temple (cultic) prostitution. Ther e was dishonesty; sexual immorality.
This sexual behaviour made t he temple unholy.
j. Drunkenness
They Israelites spent time drinking when the poor lacked the basic needs.
They engaged in excessive drinking of wine.

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They even forced the Nazarites to dr ink wine. They accepted drunkenness.
k. Profaning the name of the God
Israelites did not respect the name of God.
They committed sin. They forced Nazirites to drink wine; forcing it down their throats yet
they knew that Nazirites wer e people set aside and chosen by God to ser ve God.
This act showed contempt of God’s commands. Nazirites wer e not supposed to dr ink wine
or cut their hair.
Israelites did this to show their contempt of the Lord.
l. Hypocritical Religion and Idolatry in Israel
Hypocrisy is pr etending to be something differ ent fr om the person one is.
It is also saying one thing, and doing another thing.
For example, Israelites did a lot of r eligious rites accor ding to the laws of Moses and yet
majority of them wer e unjust, corrupt and oppressed the poor.
They obser ved the external religious activities while their he arts wer e corrupt and
insincer e.
Amos condemned Israelites for this hypocrisy, characterized by insincer e worship, and
mixture of r eligious beliefs leading to diverse practices of religion i.e. syncr etism.
This is a combination or mixture of Israelites’ mo notheism (Yahwehism) and worship of
idols and other gods especially Baal, the gods of their neighbours.
m. Empty sacrifices
The Israelites made elaborative offer ings and sacrifices.
Yet God was inter ested only in sincer e worship and fr ee will offer ings and not mer e
sacrifices, and tithes.
‘Take away fr om me the noise of your songs’ (Amos 5:21 – 23).

Lesson Three. God’s Judgment Against Israel and Other Nations Read Amos chapter
1 and 2
Learning outcomes. After studying this lesson, you should be able to:
a. State the sins committed by Israel and other nations
b. Identify how God punished Israel and other nations
i) Israel.
She committed several crimes, which wer e condemned by Prophet Amos. Read lesson two
again befor e you go on and list down cr imes that were pointed out by Amos.
Okay, you have seen that Israel committed crimes of injustice, disobedience to God,
breaking their covenant with God, idolatry, hypocrisy among other sins mentioned above.

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Israel was punished for these crimes.


Punishments wer e sever e. Israelites would be exiled forcibly and painfully.
Earthquakes, famines, fir es, oppr ession fr om foreign kings, epidemics and divine silence,
would destr oy their kingdom and holy places.

ii) Syria.
Its capital was Damascus. Syria committed war crimes. The soldiers wer e excessively
cruel in times of war.
They murder ed their prisoners brutally. For this cruelty, their punishment was to be
sever e.
Their palaces would be destroyed by fir e and the people would be exiled in Kir.
iii) Gaza and philistines.
Their crime was capturing other people and selling them into slaver y. For this sin, God’s
punishment was destruction of their city by divine fir e.
It would burn down the wall of Gaza city and destr oy it.
God would have no mor e association with them.
iv) Tyre.
Their Crime was violation of a treaty of friendship they had made.
They broke it by capturing a “whole nation into exile in the land of Edom”.
The punishment was …God would send fir e to destr oy city of Tyre and its fortress (Amos
1:9-10).

v. Edom.
Her people wer e descendants of Esau. Yet Edom was ruthless to the Israelite to whom they
wer e closely r elated.
For this cr ime of ruthlessness, the punishment was … God would destroy them by fir e.
vi) Ammon
committed crime of brutal killings. The people of Ammon a ttacked and killed their
neighbours.
They “ripped open pr egnant woman in Gilead” (vs. 13).
God’s punishment was destruction of the fortress and wall of the city of Rabbah by fire.
“Their king and his officers will go into exile: (vs. 15).

vii) Moab.
The people of Moab; their crime was mishandling the body of the king of Edom.

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They burned his bones to ashes. God’s punishment was destruction of the city of Kerioth
by divine fir e.
The people, their rulers and leaders would be killed in battle.
viii) Judah.
Their crimes wer e
(1) failur e to obey God’s commands and
(2) despising god’s teaching.
ix) Samaria, Egypt and Ashdod.
Their crime was dishonesty and “filling their mansions with things taken by cr ime and
violence” (Amos 3:10). Women of Samaria committed the crime of drunkenness,
oppr essing the weak and poor.
The punishment for all these countries is destruction of their land, mansions and army.
But a remnant will not go to captivity, and shall not be destr oyed.
Amos said the r emnants are like … 2 legs, or a piece of an ear of a sheep rescued fr om the
mouth of a lion (Amos 3:12).
x) A maziah the priest of Bethel.
He strongly opposed Amos and told him to go back and prophesy in Judah.
Amos told Amaziah God sent him to Israel. His punishment for opposing God’ s messenger
was..
Amaziah’s wife would be a harlot, his childr en will die in the war, his land will be given
to others, and Amaziah will die in a foreign land (Amos 7: 14 -17).
Lessons to learn from God’s judgment of Israel and other nations
The Assyr ians attacked Israel, occupied their land and exiled others.
God is
(a) universal,
(b) God hates sin
(c) God is concer ned about the welfare of his people
(d) God is mer ciful and spares a remnant.
xi. Israel’s election (Amos 2:9 – 11, 3:1 – 2, 9:7
Election: is an act of choosing a person or group of people for a purpose or action.
Israel’s election r efers to God’s choice of the Israelites out of the entire human kind to be
his people.

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God chose them to serve him, be a Holy nation and to be the light of the wor ld.
God made a covenant with the Israelites.
In the covenant they agr eed to live a holy life. In r eturn, God looked after them.
He led them out of Egypt to the wilder ness and finally to Canaan.
God chose His prophets from the Israelites and raised Nazirite s.
Despite God’s favour, the Israelites rebelled and sinned against God.
And although Israelites wer e r eminded that God cared for other nations equally and are to
be punished if they disobeyed God; and that they wer e neither superior, nor better than
other nations, they disobeyed God several times.
xii. The day of the lord
Amos taught that the day of the lor d would be a day of sever e judgment for sins.
. It is not a time of happiness, joy or victor y. It is a day of darkness, terror, disaster,
gloom, wailing, flooding, mourning, defeat, punishment, famine for food and God’s word.
xiii. The Remnant and Restoration.
Remnant means a small number of survivors.
These are the Israelites who will r emain after the entir e nation is punished.
They are also those who r eturned to Jerusalem after the exile.
Restoration is an act of r einstating things / persons to their for mer state or position.
Amos infor med the Israelites that God was still looking after them, and waiting for their
repentance.
The nation of Israel would not be destroyed completely.
God would pr eserve the few righteous ones.
He would raise the fallen dynasty of David.
People would be r estored back to their land to rebuild their cities.
There was to be a gr eat harvest and grapes shall over flow.
xiv. Duty o f Christians.
Christians are the selected people of God.
As the chosen ones, they should one, live holy lives and two, use their position to serve
God and others.
Three, Chr istians have a moral responsibility to spread God’s word, four, care for the
needy and five, be the light of the world.

xv. The Day of the lord. Read Amos 5:18 -20, 6:3-5, 8:7-13.

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in the Old T estament, the day of the Lor d is the day that Yahweh would make Israel
victorious against other nations.
On this day the Israelite believed that God would establish his rule over and with Israel.
The day of the Lor d was also believed to be the day when Israel would be prosper ous,
would have favour with God, and the just would triumph over the wicked.
In the New T estament, the day of the lor d is also t he Day of Judgment (Parousia).
It is the day of the second coming of Chr ist.
On that day, ever yone will be judged. Christians believe that it is the day that Christ will
come for His bride (the church).
Those who had obeyed the laws of God shall be receive d by Christ and given the r eward of
the eter nal life. On that day, God’s kingdom shall be established and Chr ist will reign
for ever.
xvi. Relevance of Amos teachings to Christians today.
The messages of the prophecy of Amos are relevant to Christians today . This is because
God is universal.
He chose Israel but still punished her for her disobedience, and sins just as He punished
other nations like Syria and Gaza.
The message that God hates hypocrisy is ver y clear.
Thus Christians should truthful and practice what they pr each.
They must worship God in sincer ity. Other messages are:
Justice.
Christians should be just / fair in dealing with others.
Self – Indulgence.
Christians should not pursue luxur y and selfindulgence when others lack the basic needs.

Bribery.
Christians should condemn briber y and corruption, and uphold justice.
Punishment.
Christians should bear in mind that God will punish ever y evil.

Wealth.
When Israel became wealthy, they departed from the covenant with God.
Christians should shar e their wealth with the needy and acquir e their wealth justly
Hypocritical religion.

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Amos taught about hypocrisy in religion. This was for example offer ing empty sacrifices.
Christians have to learn to be sincer e, to be concerned about their inter nal well being and
soul mor e than outward obser vances of religion.
Drunkenness. Christians should not engage in activities that can divert their faith fr om
God.
If that happens, they should learn to be Repentant.

Revision exercise
1. List the visions that Amos saw
2. Explain the evils that Amos condemned in his teachings
3. Give r easons why pr ophet Amos condemned idol worship in Israel
4. List evils in the society today that Amos would condemn

Topic Five. Prophet Jeremiah


Introduction.
Israel had not taken heed to Amos’ prophecies. This was especially on idolatry. So, God
sent another prophet to continue with the same wor k. Jer emiah was ther efor e appointed as
a prophet.
Jer emiah is one of the Old Testament Major Prophets. He was called to a prophet at
around 627 B.C.
He was called as a young man, probably 20 years old. He prophesied in the southern
kingdom- Judah, for a period of 40 years.
His prophetic ministry took place befor e and during the exile of Judah.
Learning Outcomes. By the end of this topic, you should be able to: -
a Describe the political, Social, and religious background of prophet Jer emiah.
b Describe the personal life and call of Jer emiah.
c Explain the evils condemned by Jer emiah.
d Explain the contents of the temple ser mon.
e Highlight the r elevance of Jer emiah’s teaching on evils, false pr ophets and Christians
today.

Lesson One: the Call Jeremiah


Learning outcomes. After r eading this lesson, you should be able to: -
i. Describe the situation of the people of Judah
ii. Identify religious, political and socio classes of Judah

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iii. Describe the call of Jer emiah


iv. Explain lessons that moder n Christians can learn fr om the call of Jer emiah.
a. The Kingdo m of Judah
Social background The people of Judah wer e divided into thr ee social classes. At t he top
wer e the (i) Aristocrats.
These wer e the ruling class, which consisted of the king, his family, royal officials,
princesses, priests, and professional prophets.
This class of the rich oppr essed the poor.
Below them was the class (ii) of technical pr ofessional such as stonecutters, carpenters,
builders, masons, blacksmiths, masons, and others craftsmen (2 Kings 12:12). Below them
was class (iii) made up of poor people such as slaves, widows, orphans, and foreigners.
All these poor people wer e mistr eat ed.
In ter ms of ethics, ther e was moral degradation.
They committed adulter y, prostitution, murder, false witness, and corruption.
Religions background.
The Kings and people of Judah worshipped idols.
They practiced human sacrifice, divination and magic, and listened to false pr ophecies.
They abandoned their covenant with God and their way of life and practiced syncr etism,
which is worshipping God and other false gods like Baal.
King Josiah tried to restor e true worship by carrying out several r efor ms.
Prophetess Huldah prophesied that Judah would be punished after Josiah’s death since he
humbled befor e Yahweh.
Political Background.
Prophet Jer emiah lived in the 7th century BC and prophesied when Judah was ruled by
King Josiah, and later his sons Jehoiakim, and Zedekiah; and king Jehoiachin.
Judah was conquer ed and ruled by Assyrians who wer e conquer ed by Egyptians who ruled
Judah up to 605 BC. Egyptians; wer e conquer ed by Babylonians under King
Nebuchadnezzar. This was accor ding to the prophecies of Jer emiah.
b. The Call of Jeremiah. Read Jer 1: 19.
Jer emiah’s father was a priest called Hilkiah.
He was born in the territory of Benjamin; at a place called Anathoth, He was well
educated.
Jer emiah was called to be a prophet in 627 B.C during the r eign of King Josiah.

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He received his call in for m of a dialogue with Yahweh. God told him that he had
appointed him to be his messenger; even befor e he was for med in his mother’s womb, God
had selected him to be a prophet.
Jer emiah said he was too young and did not know how to speak.
Jer emiah was forewar ned of the hostility he would encounter in his prophetic career. God
told him that He would protect him and not to fear.
God touched Jer emiah’s mouth. This symbolized that God is the one who shall put wor ds
in his mouth.
Jer emiah r esponded to God’s call in faith and obedience.
He was given a message that God was going to bring judgment upon the Kingdom of
Judah.
God promised to make him a fortified city, an iron pillar and bronze wall for protection.
He was commanded by God not to marry, neither have childr en and not to attend social
gather ings, weddings, and funerals. His mission made him isolated and lonely.
As a result, his own family and r elatives r ejected him and plotted to kill him. But he had
few friends like Ebed- melech, Ahikam who helped him to get out of a pit.
Jer emiah was persecuted by; the kings of Judah. Priests including priest Pashhur opposed
him, and false prophets like Hannaniah.
He prophesied that God shall punish wicked Kings, priests, and ordina ry people.
He suffer ed spiritually and emotionally. At the fall of Jerusalem in 587 B.C, the army
officers of Nebuchadnezzar released him fr om prison.
He went to Egypt wher e he died at an old age and as a faithful servant of God.
His life was symbolic to t he people of Judah. During his call, Jeremiah saw two visions.
Vision one was the vision of a “branch of an almond tr ee”. The tree seemed dead, bare, yet
life was in it.
This vision was telling Judah that although God seemed to be ‘sleeping’, He was watch ing
over them if they obey Him.
Vision two was “a pot boiling in the north, and it is about to tip over this way” (1:13).
The boiling pot tilted away from the north signified that the destroyers of Judah would
come from the north.
The pot was ready to boil over and spill its contents. This meant that Judah was soon
going to have trouble. Babylon would pour horrifying disasters on Judah.
Lessons from the call of Jer emiah God has a purpose for each person and He can call
anybody to do His wor k.
He calls the unbor n, the young, old, rich, and poor.

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God pr epares people for His wor k, through specific exper iences at family level, in school,
and church.
A person who is called to ser ve God should be ready to meet opposition. God protects His
ser vants and promises to be with them.
Jer emiah felt inadequate to speak. Christians should not let their human weakness hinder
them fr om perfor ming their tasks.
Christians should respond to God’s call in obedience.
Lesson Two. Evils Addressed by Jeremiah. Read Jeremiah 2, 3, 4, 5,7, 9, 10, 23, and
28.
Learning outcomes. After reading this lesson,
1. Name the evil practices that Jer emiah condemned
2. Explain why Jer emiah condemned these evil practices
There wer e many evils in Judah and Israel. We have mentioned some of them. These wer e:
necromancy, dishonesty, deception, false prophecy, human sacrifice, and idolatry.
i. Necromancy.
Wor ds related to necromancy are divinations, magic, sorcery, and playing tricks on
people’s minds.
Necr omancy is the art of seeking hidden knowledge fro m the myster ious world of spirits:
using magic, and divination, which is invoking the dead.
Divination was condemned in the Hebr ew language. Diviners, magicians, sooth sayers and
fortunetellers used necromancy.
Prophet Jeremiah condemned necromancy.
Reasons why Jeremiah condemned necromancy
Necr omancy was a deception and ther efor e an evil practice. The diviners gave false
infor mation from their own imagination.
This practice polluted the true worship of Yahweh and indicated Israelites lack of faith in
the one true God.
Two, by trusting in divination, and magic, the Israelites showed their lack of knowledge of
the one true God.
Three, by consulting the mediums, the Israelites disobeyed God (Jer 27:8 -10).

ii) Deception and Dishonesty


Dishonesty is lack of mora l integrity or moral uprightness.
Deception is cheating, and telling lies intentionally.

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It is also giving false and misleading infor mation. The Israelites wer e dishonest because
they worshiped God and at the same time committed social injustices against their brothers
and sisters.
Their repentance was insincer e. Ther e was treachery, and gr eed.
They laid traps for each other. People pr etended to be friendly and at the same time
conspir ed to kill.
Jer emiah challenged the Israelites people to ‘circumcise the ir hearts which wer e deceitful.
Their tongues wer e ‘deadly arrows’ and they listened to false prophesies like that of
Hannaniah Jeremiah condemned deception.
This was because it led to syncr etism, and hypocrisy in worship; and br eaking down of the
covenant way of life.
Jer emiah warned the Israelites and asked them to repent.
iii. False prophesy by Hannaniah. Jer 28
During the r eign of king Zedekiah, Hannaniah broke the yoke that Jer emiah was wearing.
Hannaniah spoke in the name of Yahweh. He lied to the pe ople as he spoke from his
imagination and dr eams.
Jer emiah denounced Hannaniah. He predicted and prophesied the death of Hannaniah in
the same year.
And it came to pass. Jeremiah had also prophesied that the captivity of Judah should be
long contrary to Hannaniah who said Judah will be exiled for 2 years.
Reasons for condemning false prophets Prophets of Baal wer e still in existence.
False prophets like Hannaniah had filled the people of Israel with unr ealistic hopes of
peace yet Judah was to be destroyed. Recall the
characteristics of true and false prophets.
False prophets did not condemn sin. They prophesied for money and in the pr ocess misled
people away from Yahweh.
False prophets prophesied from their dreams, imaginations and not from God.
They gave people false hopes. They intended to make themselves popular, with the King
and the people.
iv) Human sacrifice.
The people offer ed human sacrifice to idols and oppr essed each other.
Human sacrifice is the act of killing human beings for a religious or spi ritual purpose.
The Israelites copied this activity from the Canaanites.

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Childr en wer e believed to be the best sacrifice since people believed they would get gr eat
favors from the deities.
Some kings such as Ahaz and Manasseh sacrificed their sons to idol s.
Jer emiah condemned human sacrifice.

Reasons for condemning human sacrifice


Human sacrifice was an act of idolatry. It indicated infidelity of the Israelites to the one
true God.
It demonstrated Israel’s disr espect for the sacred gift of life.
It showed their lack of knowledge of the true nature of Yahweh.
Human sacrifice defiled the land for life is in the blood.
Blood speaks hence the land was crying at this vengeance.
God did not ask for human sacrifices.
Human sacrifice was a sign of lack of love of G od and love for one another.
It is a demonstration of disregard for human life.
Only God has the right to take away life.
In our country people kill each other ever y day especially on the road.
Why do we do this?
v. Idolatry
Idolatry is the worship of man y gods. Idols are images made by people for worship. The
Israelites practiced syncr etism, which we said was the worship of Yahweh and idols.
The people of Israel wer e worshipping Baal the Queen of heaven, sun, moon, stars, and
also Yahweh (Jer 8:2).
Idols wer e placed even in Yahweh’s sacred places. The temple was defiled by idols.
This the temple unclean. Jer emiah condemned it.
He told the people of Israel that “{they have forsaken the fountain of living waters (GOD)
and hewn out for themselves broken cist erns (IDOLs) that can hold no water” (Jer 2: 11 -
13).

Why did Jeremiah condemn idolatry? Read Jer 2: 20, 2:1 - 3, 5: 7- 8.


Idolatry is like adulter y and prostitution. It defiled people and was a sign of lack of faith
in Yahweh.
It defiled the land.

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Idolatry led to divine judgment and punishment. People of Judah abandoned Yahweh the
‘Husband’ and chased “lovers” the idols and deities The Israelites (Norther n kingdom) had
been punished before and yet Judah did not learn from them.
By worshipping idols Judah br oke the covenant and their relationship with God.
And unless the people of Judah repented, they would be punished; as ther e is only one true
living God to be worshipped and obeyed.
Is ther e idolatry among Chr istians today’s.
vi. Other evils condemned by Jeremiah
People of Judah trusted that the temple was secure, holy and cannot be destroyed.
Jer emiah denounced this false belief about the temple. He warned them that God would
destr oy the temple because of the many evils committed in it.
The temple of God had become a ‘den of robbers’ and human sacrifices.
People of Judah committed other evils such as hypocrisy (Jer 7; 9 -10); social injustice
(adulter y, mur der), stubbor nness, and rebellion.
vi. The temple
Temple is a place of worship. The temple of Israelites was in Jerusalem.
It signified the pr esence of God among his people.
The Israelites believed God could never destroy or allow destruction of the temple.
Jer emiah stood at the gates of the temple court during Jehuiakim’s reign, and Judah that
God would destroy the temple and send them to exile.
He urged them to r epent and turn back to God.
King Josiah heard the message of Jer emiah and he r efor med r eligious practices in Judah.
vii. Religions reforms carried out by King Josiah
This topic is not clearly spelt out in the syllabus.
It is based on the book of Deuter onomy. The scroll was discover ed in the temple during
repairs.
Josiah order ed the r epair of the temple of God.
He led a national cer emony to review the covenant.
He destroyed idols and altars associat ed with the worship of foreign deities throughout
Judah.
He eliminated all the priests associated with the worship of false deities.
He celebrated Passover in Jerusalem.
The successors of King Josiah did not follow his example. They became corrupt.

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They persecuted the prophets of God.


They listened to false prophets. They promoted idolatry and child sacrifice.
viii. The Relevance of Jeremiah’s teachings to Christians today.
Christians should denounce hypocrisy in the society today.
They should not result to witchcraft, divination and sorcery.
They should be upright, and worship God in sincerity.
They are to proclaim divine judgment upon those who r efuse to obey God’s will, just like
Jer emiah declared God’s judgment upon Judah due to the sins of the peopl e.
Like Jer emiah, Chr istians should speak out against moder n idols like love of money,
power, obsession with sports, sex, and drugs among other evils. Christians should
condemn destruction of human life, violence; murder, abortion, parents killing their ow n
childr en, genocide and exploitation of the poor.
Christians should be aware of the existence of false teachings and prophecies.
They should pray for God’s guidance and wisdom to be able to distinguish truth from false
teaching.
Christians have a respons ibility to correct one another and call on sinners to repent.
Christians are to be trustworthy, upright, and merciful to the poor and condemn
dishonesty.
They should practice justice in their relationship with others; preach against disobedience,
stubbornness and pray to God to help them overcome these vices.
Read these review questions and answer before reading answers
1. Why was Jer emiah reluctant to accept the call?
2. Which evils / sins did Jer emiah Condemn?.
3. Give examples of idol worship in Kenya.
4. Descr ibe Jer emiahs temple ser mon
SAQ answer.
1. Jeremiah felt inadequate because he was too young to wor k for God.
He argued that he did not know how to speak.
He was afraid. He knew he would face stiff opposition from the people of Judah.
The message of God’s judgments is difficult to deliver.
2. Read text again and look for evils and sins that Jer emiah condemned.
3. Examples of idol worship in Kenya are many.

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Some people including Chr istians practice witchcraft, sorcery, personality cults and her o
worship of religions and political leaders. Other people, worship money, materialism,
media, and sports obsession with power / status Sexual immorality – devil worship.
4. Jeremiahs temple ser mon. Read text again.
Lesson Three. Jeremiah’s Teachings on Judgment and Punishment
Read Jeremiah 5:12 -18, 6;1-30, 7:30, 8:1-17, 10: 17-25, 15;1-9, 17:1-13, 25: 1-38
Learning Outcomes. By the end of this topic, you should be able to: -
a Summarize in two paragraphs Jer emiah key teachings.
b Explain the significance of symb olic acts related to judgement and punishment.
c Describe suffer ing and lamentations of Jer emiah.
d Explain the teachings of Jer emiah on the new covenant.

a. Jeremiah teachings.
Sin was inter nalise in the hearts of the people of Judah. God punished them.
God punishes people because of their unfaithfulness.
Punishment is a penalty, for an offence or a crime committed.
But in punishing people, God is a just judge. He does not punish people without a reason
irrespective of their status.
God judges people by looking into their hearts. Divine judgment is for a group. For
example, the people of Judah wer e punished as a group.
However God searches each person’s heart and judges accor dingly.
God executes His judgment by means of political and historical events. Div ine
punishments are in for ms of natural disasters like dr ought, famine, and epidemics.
God’s punishment is unavoidable, and inescapable.
Judah took the best option by surrender ing to the Babylonians.
The purpose for God’s judgement is to correct the sinner . God gave his people a chance to
repent befor e he punished them.
God’s judgment is universal.
It is not limited to one nation. God punished the neighbours of Judah who at that time
wer e Egypt, Moab, Ammon, and Babylon.
God’s punishment is sever e compared to that of venomous snakes that bite the people of
Judah.
God’s judgement is not necessarily a punishment from God for one’s sins.

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It is symbolic. The suffer ings of Jer emiah wer e symbolic of the life of the people of
Judah.
What can we learn about God’s pu nishments? Ar e moder n disasters such as cyclones,
floods, earthquakes, landslides, epidemics, bomb blasts, civil wars, forest fir es, rebellions
in schools a sign of God’s judgment and punishment? What do you think?
b. Symbolic acts related to judgement and punishment
People use several methods to convey messages to each other.
We use songs, advertisements, dramas, and stories by the fir eside, in novels, the Inter net,
and magazines to communicate messages about childr en, adults, society, political leaders,
poverty and many others.
The prophets used:
(1). Oracles; ‘Thus says the Lor d’;
(2) Allegor ies
(3) Parables
(4) Songs
(5) Symbolic Visions
(6) Symbolic actions and
(7) dramatized messages
Symbolic acts of Jeremiah
i The linen waist cloth (Jer.13)
ii Jer emiah’s personal life (Jer.16)
iii Jeremiah’s visit to a potter (Jer.18)
iv The broken earthen flask (Jer.19)
v The symbolic vision of 2 baskets of figs (Jer.24)
vi The wearing of the yoke

i. The Linen Waist Cloth. Read Jer.13


Jer emiah was instructed by God to buy a linen waistcloth and wear it around his waist
without dipping it in water.
He was told to hide the cloth in a hole near river Euphrates. After wards he was told to
take the cloth. He found it spoilt for wearing.
Significance.
The liner material was for priestly garments in Israel. It symbolized Israel’s holiness.

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The unwashed cloth r epr esented Judah’s sinful pride.


Israel used to cling close to God but now Israel / Judah wer e spoilt, rebellious, arrogant
and pursued for eign gods.
God was going to destroy them if they did not repent.
The spoilt linen waistcloth was a symbol for future God’s action.
ii. Jeremiah’s personal Life. Read Jer 16.
His life was a symbolic act. He was told not to marry, have childr en, and nor attend
funerals, social gather ings, feasts and wedding parties.
Significance.
The personal life of Jeremiah was one of suffer ing. This signified the suffer ing that the
people of Judah would be subjected to.
Judah was punished because of their wickedness and r ebellion.
Jer emiah’s loneliness signified the per ishing of families through the sword, famine and
disease.
It would be a time of terror for the families of Judah.
Their nor mal social life of feasting, merry making would come to an end.
There would be no weddings and no one to bury the dead.
Hence Jer emiah was forbidden from mour ning for the dead.
iii. Jeremiah’s at the potter’s house (Jer.18)
Jer emiah was told to go to a potter’s house.
He found the potter making a clay vessel. “ Whenever a piece of potter y turned out
imperfect, he would take the clay and make it into something else (18: 4).
The potter made a better pot, mor e perfect vessel than the spoilt one.
Significance.
God is the potter. People of Judah are the clay. As the potter destr oyed to vessel, God
intended to destr oy Judah because of their wickedness and mould those who r epented into
better people.
God was going to shape them into faithful people.
God’s judgement was to be a corrective punishment.
iv. The broken clay Jar. Read Jer.19.
God told Jer emiah to buy a cla y flask He then took some elders and priests to the valley of
Valley of Hinnon.
He deliver ed a ser mon condemning the people of Judah for their idolatry and other evils.

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Jer emiah then broke the clay jar in their presence and announced to them that Yahweh
would destr oy Jerusalem and Judah as Jer emiah had destroyed the jar.
Significance.
The kings, priests and prophets of Judah would be shatter ed like the clay flask because of
their sins. Sine, they brutally sacrificed their childr en; they are to suffer horrif ying
experiences at the hand of their enemies.
They shall suffer starvation and turn into cannibals; eating their own childr en and
neighbours (v.9).
Broken pieces of a clay pot cannot be moulded. No one was to escape judgment.
However ther e is hope after punishment.
v. Two Baskets of Figs (Jer.24).
Jer emiah r eceived the visions, after the deportation and exile of leading citizens of Judah
and Israel to Babylon.
Two baskets of figs wer e placed in front of the temple.
One basket had ver y good figs, which had ripened.
The other basket had bad figs unfit for human consumption.

Significance.
The basket of good figs signified the first exile. God would r enew their hearts; use them to
fulfil his promises to the Israelites. He would recr eate them to a new people.
The basket of the bad figs repr esented people living in Jerusalem and Egypt.
Since they wer e not exiled they had a self -righteous attitude.
They thought that God spared them because they wer e truthful but it was not so.
They shall also be destr oyed through famine, and diseases. This vision signifies hope and
restoration of the Israelites.

vi. Jeremiah Wears an Ox Yoke. Read Jer. 27.


When Zedekiah son of Josiah became the ruler of Judah, Jer emiah was instructed by God
“to make” for himself “ a yoke out of lea ther straps and wooden cr ossbars” and to wear it
around his neck (27: 2).
Jer emiah moved around in the yoke for quite sometime in public.
He was also given a message for ambassadors of kings of Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, and
Sidon, who wer e coming to see Ki ng Zedekiah in Jerusalem.
They wer e to give God’s message to their kings.
The message was to “submit to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia; his son, and his
grandson.

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Any nation that accepted this message shall not suffer; but if any nation ..will no submit
to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia rule, God will punish that nation by war, starvation
and disease” Read Jer 27:6-8.
The message for king Zedekiah was to surrender to the Babylonian rule and live, if he
resists he would per ish.
The message for priests and people of Judah was not to be misled by the false pr ophets.
The temple would be destroyed.
Its treasures looted by the Babylonians.

Significance.
The yoke r epr esented the Babylonians rule. Nebuchadnezzar was used by God to bring
judgment to all nations.
Yahweh is a universal God and his judgment is universal. Sinners are punished r egardless
of their origin or nation.
Those who r epent are spared.
Reflection questions
Why did God inspir e Jer emiah to use symbolic acts to convey his message?

Answer
Israelites wer e stubbor n.
Jer emiah acts wer e reminders to Judah to turn to God and stop idolatry and all the sins
they wer e committing.
They had dr ifted too far from God.
False prophets wer e prophesying lies to them.
The people of Judah wer e expected to meditate o n these acts and understand God’s will for
them and see the ser iousness of the matter.
This was also to imprint a lasting impr ession in their minds.
SAQ. Which methods do pastors / priests use to communicate God’s message to Christians
today?
c. The sufferings and lamentations of Jeremiah Read Jer 11, 12, 17:14 – 18, 18:18- 23
, 20: 1 – 6, 27, 37, and 38.
Jer emiah sufferings wer e experiences that wer e painful; physically and emotionally.
In suffering ther e is loss and grief.
Lamentations are strong emotional expr essions of pain and grief.
Jeremiah suffered in the following ways.

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I. Rejection by his own family and relatives.


They plotted to kill him. This grieved Jer emiah.
II. Anathoth planned to kill him but God protected Jer emiah.
He pronounced God’s judgment upon them.
III. Jeremiah suffered when he was accused falsely.
He was accused of blasphemy after the temple ser mon.
He for etold the destruction of the temple, just like Jesus Christ in the New T estament did.
IV. He was accused of treachery.
That he was planning to leave Jerusalem and join the Babylonians.
This led to Jer emiah being arrested and put in an under ground jail.
V. Jeremiah received death threats because of speaking for God.
King Jehoiakim plotted to kill prophet Uriah.
The prophet escaped to Egypt but he was followed to Egypt, arrested and killed by king
Jehoiakim.
The king had planned to accuse Jer emiah of Uriah death. Ahikam and other elders
defended Jer emiah. (Jer emiah 26)

VI. Jeremiah suffered loneliness and solitude.


He felt emotional anguish and complained to God of his or ders not to marry, neither attend
social gathering and celebrations.
This made Jer emiah lonely since he did not participate in the family life, political life,
community activities and r eligious life.
VII. Jeremiah experienced inner personal struggle
Due to his love for his own people He did not want to see them suffer but the people wer e
stubborn Read Jer. 12:1 – 6, 15:10 – 21, and 27.
VIII. Jeremiah’s prophesying judgment caused him emoti onal pain and agony.
His messages wer e mainly of sever e judgment and punishment.
IX. He went through a spiritual struggle in his relationship with God.
He felt frustrations, doubts, self-pity and despair.
He wonder ed why God made him suffer. Why do the wic ked pr osper? He also wonder ed
why God was taking too long to fulfil his prophecies.
God assured him that Judah would be punished and promised to give Jer emiah victory
against his enemies.

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X. Jeremiah suffered physical assault, imprisonment and an attempt o n his life.


Pashhur, the chief temple pr iest order ed beating and chaining of Jeremiah to the temple
gate.
Jer emiah prophesied that Pashshur’s name would change to ‘terror ever ywher e’.

XI. King Zedekiah released Jeremiah from the cell to his court.
Jer emiah continued to prophecy and was thr own in a muddy cister n.
Her e he was rescued by Ebed- melech an Ethiopian Eunuch.
The court officials had accused him of not being patriotic. Jer emiah remained in jail until
the Babylonians overthr ew Jerusalem.
He did not change his prophecies. Read Jer. 10:1 – 6, 27, 37, and 38.
Is there relevance of the sufferings and lamentations of Jeremiah to Christians today?
From his suffering Christians lear n to be r eady to face opposition and rejection from their
own family members and relatives for the sake of the gospel.
Christians should be prepar ed to suffer persecution for the Lord.
Christians should be ready to make sacrifices for the sake of God. Be ready to lead humble
lives.
Jer emiah’s open confessions to God encourage Chris tians to be open to God. Christians
should let God avenge for them just like Jer emiah prayed to God to r evenge his enemies.
Christians should not lose hope in times of difficulty.
Christians learn that tribulations strengthen their faith.
Christians should learn to deal with negative emotions such as self – pity, grief and trust
God.
Jer emiah was told by God to repent of his negative utterances.
Christians should do the same as they are assured of divine security and protection against
their persecutors.
Lesson Four. Jeremiah’s Teaching About the New Covenant
A covenant is an agr eement. Another wor d for covenant is testament. Jer emiah taught that
ther e would be a new covenant between God and Israel.
This new covenant would be differ ent from the Old (Sinai) covenant.
The new covenant would renew the br oken r elationship between God and his people.

Lesson outcomes. After reading Jeremiah’s teaching:


a. State the ter ms of the new covenant.
b. Identify the differ ences between the old covenant and the new covenant

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c. Summar ize the similarities between the old covenant and the new covenant
a. The New Covenant.
In the new covenant, the law would be written in the hearts of the people unlike the old
covenant wher e the law was written on stone tablets.
Ever y individual would know God personally and not through prophets as it was during
times of Jer emiah and previous one.
Each person would be r esponsible for his/her sins.
God would forgive sins and r emember them no mor e.
The new covenant would be established after God’s punishment of Israel and establishing
a’ new Israel’, a ‘new people’ of God.
The new covenant would establish a new beginning. People would for get the first Exodus.
The second Exodus would be deliverance and restoration from Babylon.
God would initiate the new covenant as he did with the first.
It would be a new covenant of peace, unity, prosper ity, Joy and gladness. In the new
covenant a ‘righteous branch’ would be established.
The new covenant would be ever lasting. It would not be br oken again.
b. Differences between the old covenant and the new covenant Old Covenant New
Covenant
1. Based on law Based on faith
2. Word written on stone tablets Word written in peoples hearts
3. God known personally by a few priests prophets and prophets Each to person to kn ow
God personally
4. Covenant broken when people sinned Ever lasting covenant
5. Sins punished collectively Sins punished individually
6. 1st Exodus from Egypt 2nd Exodus fr om Babylon
7. Sealed by animal sacrifice Sealed by Jesus sacrifice (blood) What are the similarities
between the old and the new covenant? Jesus fulfilled the new covenant.
Jesus is the ‘righteous branch’ from the lineage of David. In the last supper, befor e his
death, Jesus said ‘this cup which is pour ed out for you is the new covenant i n my blood.
Read Luke, 22:20.
The death and r esurrection of Jesus marks the new covenant.
Jesus spoke of for giveness of sins of humanity Jesus for gave people’s sins, for example,
the sinful woman in Simon’s house (Luke7: 36 – 50). In the new covenant the law would
be wr itten in people’s hearts.

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Jesus summarized the Mosaic Law into ‘love God with all your heart, mind, strength and
love your neighbour as you love yourself.
Jesus established the kingdom of God as a new community of God’s people based on faith
(the Christians).
Jesus fulfilled the new covenant prophecies The teachings of Jer emiah new covenant of
hope and restoration is fulfilled in Jesus Christ and the new testament church (Christians)
Heb.8:7 – 12.
Lesson Five. Jeremiah’s Teachings on Hope and Restoration
Learning Outcomes
(a) Explain the symbolic acts related to hope and restoration.
(b) Descr ibe the fall of Jerusalem and the exile of the Israelites.
(c) Relate the r elationship of the teachings of Jer emiah to the New T estament and
Christian life today.
A. Symbolic acts related to hope and restoration.
The symbolic acts wer e one hope and restor e. Hope is to expect something that is desir ed;
while to restor e is to bring back as nearly as possible the for mer or original state or
condition.
The symbolic acts wer e 5 in number.
The first symbolic act was a vision of 2 baskets of figs. We have discussed it. Refer to the
symbolic act related to judgment.
The second symbolic act was Jeremiah buying a field.
God instructed Jer emiah to buy a field fr om his cousin Hanamel of Anathoth.
Jer emiah bought the field for 17 cents of silver.
He then handed the title deed and open copy to Baruch.
Baruch was told to keep the title deed and the copy in an earthen vessel for preser vation
for a long time.
Jer emiah prophesied the r estoration of the exiles to their homeland.
The significance of this symbolic act is the assurance of restoration of Judah and Israel
after suffer ing.
People will be restor ed to their homeland.
After 70 years people of Judah would r econstruct their homes, cultivate their land, and
own property (Jer 32; 1 -15).
The third symbolic act was Jeremiah’ letter to the Jews in Babylonia.
Jer emiah wr ote to the people of Judah a letter of encouragement while in exile.

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They wer e to settle down, build houses, marry and have childr en, live in peace with the
Babylonians.
They wer e to pray for the welfare of their masters and to ignor e false pr ophets who lied to
them about the safety of Jerusalem and a quick return.
God would restor e them back to their land aft er 70 years of exile wer e over. The exiles
wer e to trust in God and not give up (Jer.29).
The fourth sy mbolic act was a wooden ox yoke.
The yoke r epr esented captivity and suffer ing of Jews in exile.
It was also a sign of hope if the people of Judah wer e wi lling to submit to the Babylonian
rule.
God would restor e them back to their land. Their yoke would be broken and they would be
set fr ee.
The fifth symbolic act was the visit to the porter’s house
b. The fall of Jerusalem and the exile of the Israelites (J er.39)
Jer emiah’s prophecy came to pass. Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians in the ninth year of
king Zedekiah in 587BC.
The Babylonians conquer ed Jerusalem and seized it. King Zedekiah fled but; he was
captured by the Babylonians ar my.
He witnessed the execution of his sons. His eyes wer e gauged out.
He was then taken in chains to captivity in Babylon.
Solomon’s temple was looted and destroyed. Villages, Jerusalem and the palace wer e
destr oyed and burnt down.
The priests, court officials, army officials, pe ople in the upper class, craftsmen wer e
executed.
City people wer e taken to Babylon as captives.
The poor, aged and a few people wer e left behind and given vineyards to farm.
Nebuchadnezzar’s army was brutal to the Israelites. Many wer e killed.
A few like Ebed – Melech wer e spared as prophesied by Jer emiah (he had rescued him
from the well).
Nebuchadnezzar order ed the r elease of Jer emiah.
He was treated well Judah became a province of Babylon.
Gedaliah was appointed gover nor of Judah.
He stayed at Mizpah, the headquarters of Judah.
Ishmael killed Gedaliah. Later Jer emiah was forced to go to Egypt by the Israelites.

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Jer emiah died in Egypt, an old man, and still faithful to his call.
Lesson Six. Relating the Teachings of Jeremiah to the New Testament and Chris tian
Life Today
Learning outcomes. By the end of the lesson you should be able to: -
1.Describe the teachings of Jer emiah in relation to Christian life today
2. Descr ibe the teachings of Jer emiah in r elation to the new testament
Jer emiah was rejected by his; r elatives, friends and the Israelites. In the New T estament,
Jesus was
rejected in his hometown of Nazareth: and by the r eligious leaders of Israel.
Jer emiah compar ed himself to a lamb being led to the slaughter.
Jesus in the New Testament is r eferr ed t o as a lamb led to the slaughter.
Jer emiah’s suffer ing symbolizes divine judgment over Judah.
However Jesus suffer ings was to bring salvation to all mankind.
Both Jeremiah and Jesus exper ienced spir itual agony. Jer emiah exper ience agony and felt
left alone by God.
Jesus too felt agony when praying in the garden of Gethsemane and when on the cr oss.
Jer emiah taught that God is universal and a just judge.
The gospel of Jesus is universal and ever ybody is judged according to his or her faith in
God.
Jer emiah and Jesus accused the Israelites of turning the temple into a “den of robbers”.
Jer emiah and Jesus wer e both accused of blasphemy.
Both challenged false beliefs about the temple.
Both Jeremiah and Jesus spoke of the coming judgment of God.
The new covenant was fulfilled in the life and ministr y of Jesus Christ Jer emiah spoke of
hope and restoration.
Jesus gives hope of eter nal life in the New T estament.
ii. Relationship of Jeremiah’s teaching to Christian today.
Christians are to pr each the gospel of Jesus Christ.
They are empower ed by the Holy Spir it to endure suffer ing and to gr ow spir itually.
Christians like Jer emiah face false prophets who speak in Jesus name.
Christians are to be watchful and obey Yahweh Like Jer emiah Chr istians should call
people to r epentance.

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The new covenant is fulfilled in Chr istian’s individual r elationship with God. Christians
are the new people, the new Israel as prophesied by Jer emiah.
His teachings reveal that God is universal.
Christians are from all corners of the earth.
Christians should prepare for divine judgment by practicing love, righteousness, self -
denial, and faith in God.

Revision exercise
1. List the evils that Jer emiah condemned
2.What are some of the evils that church leader s condemn today?
3. Explain the symbolism used during the call of prophet Jer emiah
4. What did Jer emiah teach about the new covenant?
5. Why did prophet Jeremiah condemn the way the Israelites worshipped?
6. Explain Jeremiah’s temple ser mon as recor ded in jer emiah7: 1 -15
7. What for ms of punishment did Jer emiah prophesy that God would use on Judah?
8. Outline the content of Jer emiah’s letter to exiles in Babylon
9. Explain four symbolic acts related to judgement and punishment as demonstrated by
prophet Jer emiah
10. Identify the r elevance of Jer emiah’s teaching to Christians today
11. In what ways is the prophetic mission of Jeremiah similar to that of Jesus?
Topic Six. Nehemiah
Introduction
The book of Nehemiah is a historical writing.
Nehemiah is a record of his deep dependence on God and his fre quent prayer to God.
Nehemiah means “Yahweh has comforted.
Nehemiah was the son of Hacaliah of Judah.
He was not a prophet.
He was exiled to Babylon.
Persians captured Babylon and impr oved the living condition of the Israelites.
They wer e allowed r eligious fr eedom but had to pay tributes.
Learning outcomes. By the end of this topic you should be able to;
a. Describe the historical, religious and social background to Nehemiah

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b. Identify occasions when Nehemiah prayed


c. Explain the importance of pr ayer in Christian life
D .Descr ibe leadership qualities of Nehemiah and r elevance to Christians today.

Lesson One. Background to Nehemiah


Learning outcomes. After reading this lesson,
i. Describe how the people of Judah lived and worshipped.
ii. Explain the conquest of Israel and Judah by for eign forces.
iii. Give r easons why God allowed Judah and Israel to be conquer ed and exiled.

a. Political and historical background.


From 587 BC to 538 BC, Israelites wer e in exile. In 538 B.C., the first group of Israel ites
was set free and retur ned to Judah.
Cyrus the Gr eat, of Persia ruled his subjects thr ough gover nors.
They wer e led out of Babylon by Joshua the high priest and Zerubbabel who became the
first gover nor of Judah.
Some Jews remained in Babylon.
They wer e r eferred to as Jews in Diaspora or dispersion. Other Jews remained in other
lands including Egypt, and Mediterranean lands Nehemiah.
He was a cupbearer in the palace of the Persian king Artaxerxes I.
He later became a gover nor of Judah.
Even after the r ebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem, Israelites remained subjects of the
Persian king.
The Wall of Jerusalem was important to Israel and Judah.
The Wall repr esented a sense of pride, ownership, privacy, independence and Security.
The Greeks conquer ed the Per sians; who wer e later conquer ed by Romans.
b. Social background
The Jews in for eign lands retained their Jewish way of life.
The land of Israel was partly occupied by for eigners.
The foreign cultur es of neighboring rulers influenced Israelites who r eturned .
They for example, inter married with for eigners, a custom that God did not allow. Israelites
wer e not to inter marry with other people accor ding to the Mosaic Law.
In spite of this however, Jews maintained their separated identity.
Some of the for eigners despised Jews.

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The wealthy Jews oppr essed the poor Jews.


In Jerusalem ther e was starvation.
Nehemiah condemned oppr ession of the poor.

c. Religious background
Jews returned to r ebuild the temple of Jerusalem and the altar of God for sacrifices.
While in exile, Jews wer e allowed by the Babylonian king to practice their religion.
They worshipped Yahweh, practiced circumcision, obeyed dietary laws and obser ved the
Sabbath.
The exiles could not however obser ve all the r eligious practices for example offering
animal sacrifices.
Nehemiah r eturned to Jerusalem to r ebuild it’s the wall.
The temple of Jerusalem was rebuilt, clear ed and dedicated to God.
Lesson Two. Prayers by Nehemiah and modern Christians
Learning outcomes. After reading this lesson the learner sho uld be able to:
a. Outline occasions when Nehemiah prayed to the Lord.
b. Discuss the importance of prayer
Nehemiah prayed, mour ned, and fasted.
He prayed often and for all actions, keeping God’s law, for giveness, punishments, human
relations, Jerusalem, good works, contributions and offerings, obser vance of Sabbath day,
and preparing duty allocations for priests and Levites. .
i. When he learnt about the suffering of Jews who remained in Judah and the ruined
state of Jerusalem;
He prayed for for giveness on behalf of his people (Neh.4: 1 – 11).
ii. Making a request to King Artaxerxes to be permitted to return to Judah (Neh.2: 4 –
iii. When his enemies ridiculed the Jews and planned to discourage them from
rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem.
Tobiah in particula r said that the wall was poorly constructed and it could be br ought
down by; a fox jumping on it.
Nehemiah r equested God to punish the enemies who wer e mocking temple builders (Neh.4:
4 – 5).

iv. When he learnt that his enemies were conspiring to attack Je rusalem to stop the
construction work
He prayed and or ganised people to provide a 24 -hour guard of the wall (Neh.4: 7 – 9).

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.v. For his good work,


He prayed for his wor ks (Neh 5:19).
vi. When his enemies plotted to destroy him
He prayed God for strength and courage to over come his enemies (Neh 6: 19).
vii. When Shemaih attempted to frighten him to hide in the temple claiming that there
was a plot to kill him,
Nehemiah prayed and asked God to punish his enemies (Neh 6:14).
viii. When he organized contribut ions for Levites and musicians; and people to
distribute them.
He asked God to remember his wor k for the house of God (Neh 13:14).
ix. He stopped trade on the Sabbath day, and organised rest on the Sabbath day.
He warned traders against violating the Sabb ath law. He asked Lor d to r emember him for
these actions (Neh.13: 22).
x. Nehemiah prayed for punishment of the son of Joiada.
The son of Joiada had brought disgrace to the priest hood by marrying a foreigner, the
daughter of Sanballat from the town of Bet h Horon, (Neh 13:29).
After cleansing the Israelites of for eign influence, he forbade mixed marriages.
xi. He prepared duty regulations for priests and Levites.
He allocated them duties. He then organised Jews to bring offer ings for maintaining
priests and Levites.
He prayed God to remember his work for the temple, priests and Levites (Neh 13:31).
b. Importance of prayer in Christian life
Through prayers, Christians expr ess their faith in God and praise God for his gr eatness,
goodness, holiness, and majesty.
Prayer brings Christians closer to God; it strengthens their relationship with God.
Through prayer Christians request for their needs, blessings, success, good health, and
protection among other r equests.
Prayers help Christians to listen to God and to s eek his will. Prayer is a source of strength.
It gives Chr istians courage to face and overcome life’s challenges.
Christians seek guidance, comfort and support in times of trials.
In prayer, Christians inter cede for the sick, poor, hungry, prisoners, frien ds, family and
community. The communal / public prayers unite Christians together.
Through prayers, Christians ask for forgiveness and the ability to for give others.

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In prayers, Christians trust that God listens and answers their prayers.
Lesson Three: Leadership Qualities of Nehemiah
Learning outcomes. By the end of the lesson you should be able to: -
1. State the leadership qualities of Nehemiah.
2. Explain the r elevance of Nehemiah’s leadership qualities to Christians today.
Introduction.
A leader is someone charged with the r esponsibility of guiding, controlling, directing and
leading others.
Nehemiah had many leadership qualities. These were: -
1) God fearing man.
Nehemiah fear ed God, relied and depended on God.
2) Prayerfulness.
He prayed constantly befor e and after making decisions.
3) Courageous.
He displayed courage even when his life was in danger.
4) Hard work and commit ment.
He was dedicated to the r ebuilding of the wall of the temple and Jerusalem.
5) Team spirit
He was a team leader, motivati ng people to work.
6) He had planning and or ganizational skills
7) He was visionary
He had compassion for the needy especially the poor, Levites and priests
9) He was patriotic loved his country
10) Wisdom. He made wise decisions at the right time.
11) He led by example, a role model
12) He was honest and sincer e in his prayers
13) He was shrewd and impartial
14) His trusted God absolutely.

15) He was decisive.


He told God about decisions he had made and asked

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for their recognition.


16) He was humble.
He asked to be allowed to retur n to Jerusalem and oversee the r epair of its wall and
temple.

17) He believed in law and punishment of wrong doers.


He asked God to punish lawbr eakers especially Jews who married for eigners.
b. Relevance of Nehemiah’s leadership t o Christians today
Christians should copy all the leadership qualities of Nehemiah.
They should trust in God and seek his guidance in all their activities and needs.
1. Christians should live a life of prayer.
2. Christians should be courageous, be r eady to defend the gospel of Jesus Christ.
3. Christians should be dedicated to their work. Work diligently and honestly.
4. Christians should set realistic goals and or ganize their activities.
5. Christians should seek wisdom from God to be able to choose.
appropriate activities to attain their visions.
6. Christians should care for the needy and be compassionate to all.
7. Christians should be patriotic and r eady to defend their country against internal /
external thr eats.
8. Christians should need to fight for the rights of the helpless childr en, widows, orphans,
and aged.
9. Christians should seek God first, view themselves as servants of God and be good role
models.
Lesson Four. Building the Wall of Jerusalem
The wall of Jerusalem was destroyed when Babyloni ans conquer ed Judah.
After finishing the wall, he dedicated it to the Lor d.
Dedication is to devote something in honor of a person held dear or to set aside something
for some special purpose.
Learning Outcomes. After reading this lesson, you should be abl e to: -
a. Describe the problems that Nehemiah faced when building the wall of Jerusalem.
b. Descr ibe the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem.
c. Identify lessons, which Christians can learn from Nehemiah.
a. Nehemiah rebuilt the wall of Jerusalem.

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The rebuilt wall had several gates with differ ent names.
The gates wer e the entrances to Jerusalem.
Their names wer e Dung gate, Potsher d gate, Fountain gate, Water gate, Horse gate, East
gate, Sheep gate, Fish gate, Watch gate and Ephraim gate.
Knowing t he names of the gates may not be necessary but its good infor mation.
b. Problems faced by Nehemiah.
When Nehemiah was building the wall of Jerusalem, he faced many challenges.
There was lack of cooperation by the nobles of Tekoa.
They did not want to do ma nual work at first but they later repented.
Nehemiah faced opposition from enemies such as.
Sanballat, and Tobiah, the Arab who tried to thwart the progr ess of Nehemiah’s work.
As he built Jerusalem, the rich oppr essed the poor.
This was worsened by famine The pr iests misused the temple and the offer ings.
For example, temple duties had been abandoned.
The Levites wer e not getting their share of the offer ings and the Sabbath was violated.
There was laxity in observance of the Sabbath.
This was a challenge to Nehemiah because Sabbath day should be kept holy.
There was a lot of for eign influence because of the conquests by several for eign armies,
inter marriages and interactions between Jews, neighbor ing people and for eigners.
Marriages in particular threa tened the identity of the Israelites as a nation.
Worse still Priests married to for eign women defiled the priesthood accor ding to
Nehemiah.
Because of these assimilations of Jews thr ough marriages, Nehemiah knew that Israel and
Judah would eventually be l ost as God’s nation.
Because of his opposition to these interactions, Nehemiah received death threats.
c. Dedication of the wall of Jerusalem (Neh. 12:27 – 47)
The rebuilt wall was dedicated to God. The wall restor ed security and prestige of God’s
people.
The wall of Jerusalem was set -aside for God in a solemn cer emony.
There was a dedication cer emony in which people sung with symbols, harps, lyr es,
trumpets and other instruments.
The priests, and Levites purified themselves.

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The people led by Ezra, Nehemia h, the pr iests and other leaders of Judah walked around
the wall.
They divided themselves into two groups.
One gr oup walked fr om the right side and the other gr oup from the left side and conver ged
at the temple.
Sacrifices wer e offer ed and people r ejoiced.
Some men wer e appointed to be in charge of the stor ehouses; wher e tithes, and first fruits
of harvest wer e kept.

d. Relevance of Nehemiah’s experience to Christians today


Christians should expect opposition, as did Nehemiah.
They should not be afraid of b eing ridiculed, mocked and despised.
If it happens, Christians should persever e in God’s wor k.
They should put their trust in God like Nehemiah did.
They should also fight for the welfare of the disadvantaged gr oups and not exploit them.
They have a moral obligation to condemn injustice and take practical steps to help solve
problems that afflict individuals, groups, nations, and society.
They should be in the for efront fighting HIV/ AIDS and drug abuse.
Christians should be on the look out for exter nal influence that may corrupt morals of the
society and the church.
They should learn that leadership involves suffer ing, persecution, and sacrifices.
This is for egoing personal inter ests for the sake of the kingdom of God.
Lesson Five: Renewal of the Covena nt
Learning outcomes. After reading this lesson, you should be able to: -
i. List the stages followed to renew the covenant.
ii. Identify issues that Ezra mentioned in his prayer.
iii. List the vows that wer e made by the Israelites during r enewal of the co venant.
i. Stages of the renewal of the covenant.
Israelites wer e the chosen people of God.
They had suffer ed many hardships.
There was ther efor e a need for the r enewal of the covenant between God and Israelites.
The cer emony to r enewal the covenant was h eld in Jerusalem and was led by Ezra, the
Levites and other r eligious leaders.

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The renewal of the covenant can be discussed in 3 main stages:


Stage 1.
A gr eat public assembly was held in the squar e of Jerusalem inside the water gate. God’s
law was read and expounded to the people.
The people of Israel praised and worshipped God.
They cried and grieved.
They wer e sad because they r ealized that they had failed to obser ve the Mosaic Law.
They wer e instructed to go and celebrate, as it was a holy day of God an d an occasion for
joy not sorrows.
State 2.
The feast of booths/tabernacle was celebrated for 7 days.
It was a reminder of the days in the wilder ness when the Israelites dwelt in tents.
The Law of Moses was read each day during the celebrations.
Stage 3.
There was a public confession of sin. People fasted, prayed and praised God.
The public confession was followed by the r enewal of the covenant vows and a promise to
keep God’s law in futur e.
Ezra’s prayer closed the celebrations. In his prayer, he r ecalled God’s acts of cr eation.
He then r ecounted the histor y of the Israelites.
He mentioned the pr evious acts of God; wher e the Lor d had demonstrated His love and
mercy for the Israelites.
He then confessed the sins of their ancestors and the present Israelites.
These wer e the sins of r ebellion and disobedience.
ii. Pro mises and vows made by Israelites during the renewal of the covenant.
Israelites promised God that they would.
Live accor ding to God’s law, by obeying all his commands and requir ement s.
Stop inter marrying with for eigners living in their land.
Cancel debts ever y 7th year.
Contribute annually towards the temple expenses to ensur e that the house of God was
not neglected.
Provide sacrifices and offerings for the temple and arrange for provision of wood for
burnt sacrifices accor ding to the law.

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Offer first fruits of their harvest and dedicate the first bor n and flocks as requir ed by
the law.
Pay for their tithes as required by the law.
Which lessons can we learn fro m the renewal of the covenant?
God is good, loving, mer ciful, and faithful to his promises.
God for gives all people and we ar e all sinners.
We fail in our moral obligation to God and to one another.
Since we ar e sinners, we should r epent our sins and striv e to live according to God’s law.
Christians are to encourage one another as well as others to repent as it brings about
reconciliation with God and with one another.
Christians should be forgiving and avoid situations that lead them to sin.

SAQ. Check fro m form 1 work, this informat ion.


1. Outline Nehemiah’s final refor ms.
2. What is a covenant?
3. What are the components of a covenant?
4. Discuss how the covenant was renewed.
5. List examples of covenants in the Old Testament and moder n life.
6. Explain what Christians can lear n from the experiences of Nehemiah.
7. Compare or relate the teachings from Nehemiah’s exemplary life to the teaching of St.
Luke’s Gospel and Christian life today.
Lesson Six: Final Reforms of Nehemiah
Introduction.
Changes for impr ovement are known as refor ms, which are either political, economical,
social, religious or a combination of any of them.
Examples of refor mers are King David, Prophet Elijah, and Martin Luther King among
others.
Nehemiah. After building the wall, Nehemiah went back to King Artaxerxes II who if you
remember had given per mission to go to Jerusalem and build its destroyed per imeter wall.
Later he r eturned to Jerusalem and carried out these refor ms.
Lesson outcomes. After reading this lesson, you should be able to:
a. List refor ms of Nehemiah

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b. Suggest what we can learn from the teachings of Nehemiah and that of St. Luke’s
Gospel.
a. Reforms by Nehemiah.
We have discussed r efor ms, which Nehemiah carried out during his stay in Judah, wher e
he was the gover nor (Neh 5:14).
The major reforms were
i Rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem as well as its gates.
ii Cleansing of the temple:
Nehemiah thr ew him out Tobiah a for eigner who was living in the temple quarters.
iii Reinstatement of the Levites and other temple wo rkers.
Levites, and musicians had left the temple duties to work in their farms to earn a
livelihood.
They wer e supposed to wor k in the temple and be supported by member contributions.
Nehemiah organised Jews to make offerings and tithes to support temple workers. With
these contributions, Nehemiah r einstated and r edeployed Levites, priests, musicians and
other temple wor kers.

iv Reform of the Sabbath observance.


The Israelites wer e told by the Lord to wor k for 6 days and r est on the Sabbath day.
The Jews started wor king on the Sabbath day. The merchants camped outside waiting for
the r eopening of the gates of the temple to do business.
When Nehemiah started r ebuilding Jerusalem, he or der ed closur e of the gates of Jerusalem
from the eve of Sabbath to the end of the Sabbath.
Separations from foreigners (Neh.13: 23 – 30).
It was against God’s law to marry for eigners.
Nehemiah cursed the men who had married for eign wives.
He beat Jews, pulled their hair and forced them to take oaths that neither they, nor their
sons nor daughters shall inter marry.
vi Purification of priesthood and the office of the Levites.
Nehemiah cleansed the priesthood.
He sent away Eliashib, a grandson of the High Priest Joshua, because he had given Tobiah
a foreigner, a room in the temple.
b. Comparing teachings of Nehemiah and St. Luke’s Gospel
i Nehemiah lived a prayerful life while St. Luke’s gospel emphasizes importance of
prayer.

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Jesus taught the role of prayer in Christianity.


ii Nehemiah fasted, St. Luke’s gospel r ecords that Jesus fasted.
iii Nehemiah prayed for forgiveness of sinful Jews. We see Jesus in St. Luke’s gospel
being a leader who prayed for the forgiveness of his enemies.
iv Nehemiah cared for the needy.
Jesus showed compassion to the needy and taught his followers to fo llow His example. v
Nehemiah condemned evil so did Jesus
vi Nehemiah is seen as a refor mer of the Mosaic Law. In St Luke Gospel, Jesus was also a
refor mer.
He insisted on inner holiness.
vii Nehemiah cleansed the temple of traders so did Jesus.
viii Nehemiah was ver y strict on the Sabbath obser vance. St. Luke’s gospel teaches that
Jesus is lor d over Sabbath.
He healed and “Wor ked” on Sabbath.
ix Nehemiah was opposed to racial inter marriages, St. Luke Gospel was dedicated to
Theophilus, a gentile convert.
x Christianity kingdom of God in St. Luke’s gospel is for all, not just the Jews.
xi. Nehemiah had good leadership skills and wisdom. These are demonstrated in St Luke
Gospel.
c. Relating Nehemiah’s teachings to Christian life today
i Prayers and fasting are fundamental to Christians just like they wer e to Nehemiah who
led a prayerful life.
ii Nehemiah’s example teaches Christians to face all for ms of opposition with courage,
wisdom, and fir mness.
iii The good leadership qualities of Nehemiah are relevant to Christians and they are to be
emulated.
iv Nehemiah cared for the needy. Christians should lear n to give spiritual food, physical
food and clothing to the needy, orphans, widows.
v As Nehemiah renewed the covenant, Christians should seek spir itual renewal publicly
and privately.
They should seek for communal as well as individual for giveness.
vi Nehemiah cleansing the temple and or ganised an inventory for temple contributions,
offer ings and tithes. He also appointed key people to look after temple contribut ions and
pay Levites and priests.
Christians should learn to use the church buildings and contributions rightly.

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vii Nehemiah was guided by the Law of Moses and land just like Christians are guided by
the scr iptures.
(Bible) and the law of the nation. The Bible is the source and basis of Christian principles.
Revision questions
1. Descr ibe the political backgr ound of Nehemiah
2. Descr ibe the social background to the vocation of Nehemiah
3. Descr ibe the religious background to the vocation of Nehemiah
4. Descr ibe occasions when Nehemiah prayed
5. State occasions when Christians pray
6. What is the importance of prayer in Chr istian life?
7. Identify the leadership of Nehemiah’s patriotism
8. Explain the r elevance of Nehemiah’s leadership to a Christian toda y
9. Explain the r elevance of Nehemiah’s exper ience to Christians today
10. explain the problems that Nehemiah encounter ed in his vocation
11. Explain the steps taken by Nehemiah to renew the covenant
12. State the promises the Israelites made during the r enewal of the covenant
Study activities.
Visit a church or your church and obser ve the display of the gifts of the Holy Spirit by the
members.
Study the books of Amos, Jer emiah and Nehemiah befor e hand.

Form three answers.


Topic One: the Gifts of the Holy Spirit.
Qn a. Explain the meaning of the Pentecost.
Pentecost means fifty days after the harvest.
It was one of the r eligious festivals celebrated by Israelites annually.
In the Old Testament, the day of the Pentecost was celebrated during the w heat harvest
in order to thank god for the blessing of the harvest.
Israelites came fr om all over the wor ld and gather ed in Jerusalem for this celebration.
In the New T estament, the meaning of the festival changed.
It was celebrated to commemorate the coming of the Holy Spirit upon God’s people as
they gather ed in the upper room.

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Qn b. Describe the manifestations of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. (Acts 2:
1-40) OR (narrate the events that took place on the day of Pentecost).
Disciples gather ed in a room.
Sounds came fr om heaven like a rush of mighty wind and filled the house.
There appeared tongues of fir e.
The tongues of fir e wer e distributed on each one of them.
They wer e filled with the Holy Spirit.
They wer e spea king in for eign languages and tongues.
Those who wer e obser ving them wer e amazed, as they could not understand what they
wer e saying.
They accused them of being drunk.
Peter stood up and explained that they wer e not drunk as it was too early in the day to
get drunk.
He explained how they wer e filled with the Holy Spirit as prophesied by prophet Joel.
He told them that it was Jesus whom they had rejected and cr ucified who had sent them
the Holy Spirit.
The people asked peter what they could do.
Peter told them to r epent and be baptized.
On that day about 3000 people wer e added to the church.

Qn c. write down five teachings we learn about Jesus from Peter’s speech on the day
of Pentecost.
Jesus was from Nazar eth
He had a divine nature or was son of God
He had a human natur e
He was attested by God to wor k miracles and wonders thr ough Jesus.
Jesus’ death/ crucifixion was accor ding to God’s plan
God raised Jesus from the dead
Jesus conquer ed death
The death and r esurrection of Jesus fulfils the pr ophecy of David
Jesus was a descendant of David
The Holy Spir it was from Jesus Christ as he had promised.
God has made Jesus Christ both lord and Christ/ messiah

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Jesus ascended into heaven. He is exalted at the right hand of God


The risen Christ is a source if hope or salvation to many sinners/crippled/the dead
Qn d. What were the qualities of peter that made him a successful leader for the
apostolic church?
He was a man of gr eat faith
He was a good orator
He dedicated his life to Jesus
He was filled with the holy spir it
He could perfor m miracles or wonders
He was an eye- witness of the ministry of Jesus Christ.
He was full of wisdom and knowledge i.e. Anania’s and Saphira’s case.
Qn e. what lessons can Christians learn fro the events of the day of Pentecost
They learn that Jesus always honors and keeps his promises e.g. he pr omised to send
the Holy spirit and did it.
Baptism in the holy spirit is ver y important for ever y believer.
That obedience yields immediate r esults i.e. the disciples obeyed Je sus by testifying in
Jerusalem and they r eceived the Holy Spirit.
It is important for believers to meet for fellowship. The disciples did this and they
received the Holy Spirit.
That the Holy Spirit enables Chr istians to declare the gospel with bol dness.
It was the plan of God that Jesus was crucified.
Jesus indeed r ose fr om the dead as peter witnessed
Jesus was the son of God.
Qn f. state the teachings of Jesus on the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spir it comes from the father
The Holy Spir it will comfort disciples
The Holy Spir it will abide with believers forever.
He was to teach the world and r eveal the truth about God
The Holy Spir it would guide them into all truth and make them understand or know
mor e about Jesus
The percolate i.e. comforter/make strong/counselor who give advice

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He was to help them attain eter nal life. If it was necessary for him to die and return to
the father so that Holy Spirit will be sent to them.
It was to replace Jesus as a counselor and an advoc ate
He was to give the disciples author ity to forgive or not to for give
The spirit would remind them all that Jesus had taught them
The holy spirit will repr ove the world of sin, righteousness and judgement
He would glorify Jesus amongst the believer s
He will enable believers to be witnesses of Jesus in the whole world
He was to str engthen disciples as a wonderful counselor
He was to continue with the work of Jesus as a witness
Qn g. what is the role if the holy spirit according to Jesus?
He comforts believers
He teaches believers all things
He bring into remembrance all that Jesus taught his disciples
The holy spirit would convict the wor ld of their sins and lead them to righteousness
He will guide the believers in all the truth
He will glor ify Chr ist and teach about him
He will tell of the things to come in the future
He would not speak on his own author ity but would speak only what he hears from the
father.
He will enable believers to be witnesses of Jesus in the wor ld
He will counsel believers because he knows the mind of God
He will enable believers know the per fect will of God
Qn h. what is the role of the Holy Spirit in the believers (or Christians or th e church)
He enables believers to pr each with power
He comforts believers
He guides believers in all truth
He gives believers boldness to witness about Jesus
He enables Christians to produce the fruit of the spir it
He washes sacrifices and justifies the believer in the name of Jesus
He teaches believers all things

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He enables Christians to access God the father and son in prayer


He enables Christians talk in tongues in worship
He enables Christians to perfor m miracles i n the name of Jesus
He enables Christians to declare sins and transgr essions of others
Qn i. Outline the fruits of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:6 -26)
Love -showing compassion to one another
Joy -deep happiness when one has a good relationship w ith God
Peace -being at peace with all people
Patience -being to wait in difficulties
Kindness -being caring and helpful towards others
Goodness -seeking to do best in their lives
Faithfulness -having confidence in God
Gentleness -being calm and avoiding violence
Self-control - have str ong control over their emotions
Qn j. state the criteria for discerning of the spiritual gifts
The gift must glorify Jesus so that one who is under the influence of the Holy Spi rit
will be able to recognize Jesus as lord and savior.
The gifts must not call Jesus accursed
The test of love. The gift must be accompanied with a good or true frit. To discover
whether or not the person who has the holy spir it must bear the frui ts of the spirit.
One who is user the influence if the Holy Spirit is known by his or her way of life.
He/she will act and behave in accor dance with the teachings of Jesus.
Doctrinal test for example, pr ophecy should always in agr eement with the sc riptur e
because the Holy Spirit cannot contradict what is written.
Loyalty or confor mity to Jesus. The gift doesn’t envy other believers
The gift must be subject to the word of God
The true gift will be guided by principles of sincer ity and hon esty
The true gift will humbly submit to God
The gift should encourage the gr owth of the church and edify her
Qn k. List down the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
The gift of wisdom (a deep understanding of who God is an his purpose for human life)

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The gift of knowledge that is the basic understanding of the truth about Jesus Christ
The gift of faith that refers to the confidence or truth in God’s inspiration and help in
undertaking difficult tasks
The gift of healing: the power to heal all types of sicknesses
The gift to perfor m all types of miracles including healing
The gift of prophecy: that is the ability to expound on the scriptur es and for etell its
future implications
The gift of distinguishing gifts: the ability to tell t he differ ence between gifts that
come from the spir it and those that are not
The gift of speaking in tongues: the ability to understand and interpr et tongues
Lastly the gift of love, which is the greatest of all the spiritual gifts.
Qn l. Explain why Paul taught that love is the greatest of all spiritual gifts.
Paul taught that love is the gr eatest of all spiritual gifts. He said that love is patient
and kind
It’s not jealous or boastful.
It is not arrogant or rude or conceited. It does not hold grudges or ill manner ed or selfish
It does not insist on its own way. It is not irritable or resentful
It does not rejoice at wrong doings but rejoices in the truth
Love bears, believes, hopes and endur es all things
It is ready to deep fir m its faith, hope and its patience
Love does not succumb to pressur e but always persever es
He justified that love is the gr eatest gift of the spiritual gifts because in prayer, the gift
of tongues becomes nothing but meani ngful when accompanied by love (charity)
On faith, Paul says that even if one has faith that can move mountains but has no love,
he is nothing
Charity or gener osity including sacrificing own life is nothing without love
Qn m. Explain how the Holy Spirit is manifested in the church today
Through dynamic, power, bold and vigorous teaching of the gospel
Through speaking in tongues in many evangelical churches
Through the gift of healing many people are healed as they ar e prayed for
Through the gift of love, Christians show mercy to all members of the society
regardless of their race, sex or age (helping the poor in the society)

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Through the gift of prophecy some believers give proper guidance to the church
Through the gift of disc er nment of spirits believers are able to tell the type of spirit
that is in operation
Through the gift of faith, believers have been able to accomplish tasks that seem rather
impossible
Some Christians through the holy spir it are able to withstand a persecution to the point
of death
The holy spirit convicts sinners and makes them confess their sins
Through the holy spirit many Christians see heavenly visions and dr eams
The fear of the lor d is upon many evangelical groups through the Holy Spirit
In some evangelical gatherings, ther e are many supernatural things during worship e.g.
shaking and swaying
It is also manifested through prayer at individual or congr egational levels
Through decision making in church i.e. solving proble ms and issues in church
Through singing and dancing or music
Through offertory and alms or sadaka
Holding fellowship meetings, bible study and reading the bible
Celebration of sacraments e.g. Eucharist and lor d’s supper
Bringing new converts to the church
Pastoral cave and counseling It is manifested in Ecumenism: wor king together of the
churches
Writing Christian literature e. g. books, pamphlets and magazines
Enabling Christians to confess their sins and reconciliation meet ings
Education and giving instructions
Qn n: State ways in which the gifts of the Holy Spirit have been abused in the church
today.
Cheating that one has a certain gift of the Holy Spirit
Commer cialization of the gifts.
People are asked to pay money befor e being prayed for or being healed.
False interpretation of the bible, prophecy or predicting the futur e.
Unscrupulous Chr istians may impart demoniac powers or innocent faithful.

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Some Christians who possess the gifts of the Holy Spir it develop pride or selfishness or
super iority complex.
Wrong use of the gifts of the Holy Spirit wher e faithful get into ecstasy or trance which
may lead to injuries.
Distinguishing oneself as a person with a special call e.g. preacher with intent ion of
exploiting others or situations.
Topic Two: Unity of Believers
Qn a. Write down the terms used in the New Testament to refer to believers in Christ
The people of God
The body of Christ
The bride of Christ
The vine and the branches
The assembly of God
Christians
The people of the way (followers of the way) other ter ms
Followers of Christ
New Israel
Church
The sheep
The royal church
Brethr en
Royal race
Royal priest hood
Holy nation
The childr en of light
Saints
Brothers and sisters in Christ

Qn b. identify five causes of disunity in the early church


The question on the inclusion of the gentiles in the church.
Some Jewish Chr istians wer e not r eady to accept gentile Chr istians in the church unless
they under went circumcision.

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There was negligence of the widows in the distribution of food


Disagreement between and among leaders e.g. Paul and Barnabas, Peter and Paul
Groupings in the church wher e some Christians owed lo yalty to individuals.
They said that they belonged to individuals like Apollo others Peter and others Paul
Question of immorality, wher e some Christians did not live accor ding to the teachings
of Christ.
The problem of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Some Christians became arrogant because
they wer e mor e gifted than others.
Differ ent interpr etations of the doctrines e.g. resurrection, sin, salvation, Christology,
Holy Spirit, dressing.
Behaviour during the lor d’s supper
Christians took others to a pagan rule of law
Question of the r esurrection of the body
Question of celibacy
Question of incest sexual immorality
Differ ent approaches to common life between Chr istians communities in Jerusalem and
Antioch
Qn c. identify factors, which cause disunity among Christians today
Selfishness or gr eed for money by some Christians
Rivalry or competition for leadership positions or gr eed for power
Misinterpretation by some Christians of the wor k of the holy spirit
Arrogance or pride by some Christians
Corruption in the church
Failur e by some Chr istians to live according to the law of God or their failur e to live
exemplary
Lack of concern by some Chr istians about the plight of others
Misinterpretation of the b ible or doctrinal differ ences
Misuse of church funds or power by some leaders
Lack of transparency and accountability in running church affairs
The emer gence of charismatic movements in the church cr eates a situation wher e some
Christians think that they are mor e spiritual or holier l than others
Political interfer ence wher e Christians find themselves in differ ent political camps

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Sexism wher e women ar e not involved in decision -making. Women ar e under


repr esented
Discrimination against the youth or churches ignor ing the youth in running the church
Tribalism wher e Christians are divided along tribal lines
International differ ences
Qn d. Discuss reasons why members of Christian families in Kenya find it difficult to
harmoniously live together
Unfaithfulness or promiscuity
Misuse of family resources or lack of r esources
Child abuse e.g. beating, raping, incest or favou rism
Alcoholism or drug use and abuse
Separation of family members e.g. due to wage labour or education
Denial of conjugal rights
Sickness e.g. HIV/AIDs, impotence, barrenness or cancer
Child delinquency
Lack of tolerance or forgiveness or presence of cruelty
Greed for wealth or self esteemed pr estige or professionalism
Religious fanaticism or denominational differ ences
Traditional or cultural inhabitation or western cultural influences or per missive
Generation gap

Qn e. explain how the church strengthen family relationships today


Through guidance and counseling and mediation
Hold seminars, confer ences for couples, childr en the youth through publications on
Christian living e.g. magazines, books or pamphlets
Use of mass media e.g. televisions. Radios or videos
Through offer ing pastoral care in homes or house to house visits
Giving financial support to the needy families
Praying for families
Through preaching, teaching and condemning vices
Offer ing employment to the jobless
Providing vocational training skills

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Selected Old Prophets and Their Teachings.


Q1. Define the terms prophet and prophecy
Prophet: Refers to one who speaks God’s message. He is God’s spokesman.
His message includes predictions of the future.
Prophecy: Is the message spoken by a prophet. Oracles spoken by prophets.
Q2. List the five categories of true prophets
i) Major prophets
• These include Isaiah, Jer emiah, Ezekiel and Daniel.
• They are called Major Prophets beca use the books are long and contain clearly written
messages.
• They bear the names of the wr iters.
ii) Minor prophets
• These r efer to 12 books that are short and contain less important than those in major
books e.g. Amos, Hosea, Joel, Obadiah thr ough to M alachi.
iii) Canonical prophets
• Both the major and minor prophets are together referred to as canonical prophets.

iv) The early prophets


• They belonged to guilds or schools.
• They lived together in communities under a chief prophet. Elijah and Elisha a re
examples.
• These ar e those who ser ved in places of worship e.g. at Dan, Bethuel)
• They wer e called cultic prophets because they wer e associated with religious activities in
shrines.
• They traveled around together delivering oracles.
v) Cultic prophets
• They wor ked side by side with priests and said prayers especially people’s petition to
Yahweh.
Q3. State the difference between true and false prophets
True prophets False prophets
They wer e called by God to be His spokesmen
Not called by God.
Wer e obedient to God.

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Not obedient to Him.


Believed in one God.
Could worship other gods and led people into immorality.
They wer e prayerful.
Not prayerful.
Spoke and acted with authority from God.
No authority fr om God.
They led holy lives.
Wer e immoral e.g. believed in false gods.
Spoke God’s wor d.
Spoke their opinion.
Suffer ed physically and psychologically because of speaking the truth.
Run away suffer ing.
Spoke the truth.
False.
Did not ask for pay.
Asked for pay.
Spoke for m a common tradition based on the Mosaic Law.
Did not have any r efer ence.
Q4. In what ways were God’s prophets called?
Some wer e called thr ough visions or dreams e.g. Amos and Samuel.
Others wer e called thr ough other prophets e.g. Elisha.
Words or message came into their minds.
Through prophetic symbolic actions e.g. Jer emiah
Through common objects – an object becoming a significant sign of God’s power and
activities Jer. 1:11-13.
Through prayers.
Q5. Outline the similarities and differences between the Old Testament prophets and
the Traditional African Ones
a) Similarities:
Both possessed spir itual powers.

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Both wer e mediators between people and a Supreme Being.


Both perfor med the role of healing people physically and spiritually (miracle).
They received calls mainly through visions/dr eams, which wer e consider ed
super natural.
Wer e both expected to be people of integr ity and obedient to religious codes.
Gave warnings and solutions to their people in case they offended the Supr eme Being.
Foretold the futur e.
b) Differences:
Old Testament Tradition African
Received their message fr om God
Received their message fr om spirits and ancestors.
Appointed by God.
Inher ited
Rejected by people
Respected and fear ed in society
Prophecy went to other nations
Confined in tribal community
Prophecies pr eser ved in wr iting
Passed on orally
Believe and worship of one God
Believe in god spir its
Perfor med miracles
Did not
Q6. What is the relevant of prophets to Christians today?
Through reading their prophecies, Christians get to know the will of God.
Jesus who is the cornerstone of Christianity is stressed t hroughout prophecy – since
Abraham.
Prophecy has helped many to be preachers (i.e. prophecy = preaching).
Christians lear n to be faithful to Yahweh just like the Old Testament prophets.
They too learn to be holy and prayerful like them e.g. Jer emiah.
Prophets encouraged justice e.g. Elijah, Chr istians should do the same.

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As prophets, Christians should provide hope to the people in times of suffer ing.
They learn that they can face suffer ing just like the prophets did e.g. Jer emiah e.g.
persecution, rejection etc.
They should condemn sin like the pr ophets.
The wr itings of the prophets strengthen their faith when they need them.
Prophet Amos
Q1. List the visions that Amos saw
He saw a swarm of locusts. Amos 7:1 -3
He saw a great fir e. Amos 7:4-6
The plumb line/crooked wall. Amos 7:7 -8
Basket of ripe fruits. Amos 8:1 -3
The destruction of the temple. Amos 9:1 -4
Q2. Explain the evils that A mos condemned in his teachings
Sexual immorality (A mos 2:17)
• Amos condemned temple pr ostitution – 23:17.
• Father and son wer e going to the same woman.
• They copied these fr om the Canaanite pagans, which was wr ong and unfaithful to
Yahweh.
Slavery: (Amos 2:6)
The righteous, the rich made the poor slaves.
This is because they borrowed from the rich and could not repay so they made them work
like slaves and treated them harshly.
Some sold them for a paid of sandals.
This was breaking G od’s laws, which guided them on how to tr eat their poor fellow
Israelites.
Idolatry: Amos 5:26
Amos accused them for breaking God’s covenant by worshipping other gods.
Cheating in Business: He condemned the following:
• Merchants used false measur es
• They overcharged the poor
• Sold goods of low quality

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• They sold poor people for not paying debts


• They too charged high inter est rates
Bribery and Corruption Ex. 23:8
• He condemned elders who wer e unjust and corrupt.
• They took bribes and gr ew rich fr om heavy levies fr om innocent people in law courts.
Greed and excessive luxury
• He condemned women of Samaria who drink and lived in luxur y when ther e wer e poor
needy people.
Breaking God’s law on garments secur ed for pledges
• God gave Israelites items that wer e to be given out to the cr editors as a guarantees for
the goods
borrowed e.g. Millstones for grinding, wer e to be taken and retur ned in the evening
because they wer e used daily.
Robbery and Violence
• Poor wer e being oppressed an d violated.
Self – Indulgence and false sense of security
• Leaders thought God could not punish them because they wer e a chosen race.
• But Amos told them they would be attacked.
Q3. Give reasons why Prophet Amos condemned idol worship in Israel
It broke the covenant way of life.
It was against the 10 commandments, which dir ected the Israelites to worship one God.
It was a sign of disobedience to God.
It promoted immorality e.g. temple prostitution.
The worship of God belittled and d egraded God.
It promoted falsehood in the society.
Religion became commer cialized.
Led to false pr ophecy.
People got concerned with external behavior and not inter nal.
Q4. List evils in society today that Amos would condemn
Tribalism
Briber y and corruption

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Robber y with violence


Dishonesty in business
Grabbing of public land and property
Stealing
Oppression of the poor e.g. underpayment
Immorality e.g. prostitution
Prophet Jeremiah
Q1. List evils that Jeremiah condemned
• Human sacrifice
• Hypocrisy in worship
• Dishonesty in business
• Defilement of the temple – temple pr ostitution
• Social injustice
• Idolatry
• False prophecy
• Necromancy
• Exploitation of the poor
Q2. What are some of the evils that the chu rch leaders condemn today?
• Hypocrisy/pr etence in worship
• Murder/suicide/abortion/genocide
• Exploitation of the poor/robber y
• Dishonesty
• False prophets
• Human sacrifices among devil worshippers
• Sexual immorality e.g. adulter y
Q3. Explain the symbolisms used during the call of Prophet Jeremiah
God touched Jer emiah’s mouth. This was to symbolize that God was the source of the
message. Jer emiah was to deliver.
A branch of an almond tree that was base – God was watching to see the fulfillment of
the message he gave to Jer emiah.

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A pot of boiling facing away from the North and about to tilt toward Judah. God would
use a nation fr om the North to bring judgement on the people of Judah because of their
wickedness.
A fortified city. A bronze wall and an iron pillar. God was going to protect him even
though he was going to meet opposition.
To uproot and pull down, to destroy and overthrow. God would pass judgement on the
nation of Judah and other nations.
To build and to plant. Ther e was still hope of the r estoration of people of Judah after
exile.
Q4. What did Jeremiah teach about t the New Covenant?
The new covenant was to be wr itten in people’s hearts.
The covenant was to be made between God and the r emnant community after exile.
The people wer e to have a personal knowledge of God in the new covenant.
God was to forgive their sin and r emember them no mor e.
Each individual was responsible f or his won sins.
The new covenant was to be initiated by God.
The new covenant was to last for ever.
It was as a result in the emer gence of a new people of God or new Israel.
Q5. Why did Prophet Jeremiah condemn the way the Israelites worshippe d?
They broke God’s commands e.g. the 1st and do not worship other gods – they
worshipped idols.
They practiced hypocr isy i.e. they wer e concerned with exter nal religious obser vance
while their hearts wer e far from God.
They forgot the saving histor y of God and worshipped other gods e.g. Asherah.
They practiced syncr etism i.e. they worshipped both Yahweh and for eign Gods.
They listened to false prophets and r ejected God’s prophets e.g. Jer emiah. They even
killed some.
They dishonor ed the sanctity of human life by offer ing human sacrifice.
They neglected the disadvantaged (widows & orphans).
They wer e dishonest in business and deceitful to one another.
They narrowed themselves in necromancy, divination and magic.
They rebelled against God by breaking the covenant relationship.
Q6. Explain Jeremiah’s temple sermon as recorded in Jeremiah 7:1 -15

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God commanded prophet Jer emiah to speak in the temple.


It was a response to the people of Israel to stop understanding religion thr ough the
practice of syncr etism and immorality.
At the gate to the temple, Jer emiah proclaimed that the people of Judah had to change
their way of life and stick to the cove nant they made with God.
They had to stop defiling the temple of placing idols in it.
They had to stop committing social injustices and as mur der er/exploitation of the weak,
orphans widows and for eigners.
The practice of human sacrifice was mur der and displeasing to God.
Hypocrisy was bad.
The Israelites believed that the temple was secur e from destruction because of its
holiness was not true.
God would destroy Israelites/Jerusalem thr ough invasion of a for eign nation.
If the people stopped their evil ways, God would not bring judgement upon them.
God would destroy the temple of Jerusalem and send the people to exile.
Q7. What forms of punishment did Jeremiah prophesy that God would use on Judah?
The punishment would be in for m of a for eign body that God use to conquer Judah.
They would be attacked and their city destroyed.
People would suffer and die due to their sins.
The punishment would in for m of dr ought. This would affect people and animals.
God’s punishment would come through death, diseases and swor d.
Their punishment would be a defeat inflicted to them by Babylonian.
The punishment would be the loss of their land to a foreign nation and their
enslavement.
God would allow the enemy to destroy Jerusalem and take survivors to captivity.

Q8. Outline the content of Jeremiah’s letter to exiles in Babylon (Jer. 29)
He encouraged the Israelites in Babylon to build houses and live in them.
Plant gardens and eat their produce.
Marry and incr ease.
Pray for their rulers.
Not to worship false gods.
Not to be cheated by false prophets.

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To obey their masters.


Worship one God.
Q9. Explain four symbolic acts related to judgement and punishment as demonstrated
by Prophet Jeremiah
Linen waist cloth – the r otten/useless linen cloth that had been hidden in the caves and
lift to rot stood for Israel’s state of being useless befor e the eyes of God. A sign that they
had soiled their priesthood.
Jeremiah was asked not to marry the solitary life symbolized solitude in exile.
Two baskets of fig fruits – the bad fruits signified that the bad people would be
punished.
Wooden yoke – he was asked to carry a wooden yoke and work around with it
signifying suffer ing in Babylon – exile.
Breaking an earthly flask – destruction of the temple.
Visit to a potter – wher eby the potter destr oyed a pot due to poor shape and r emolded
it. God would remold Israel to a shape befitting them.
Not to comfort anybody – these would be sorrow and suffer ing, no help while in exile.
Q10. Identify the relevance of Jeremiah’s teaching to Christians life today
Christians are called to pr each God’s gospel as Jeremiah did.
Christians should accept suffer ing like Jer emiah did.
They should learn to distinguish between false and true prophets.
Like Jer emiah, they should condemn evil in society.
They have a duty to call people to r epentance as Jer emiah did.
Christians should be good examples to the people by living, holy and upright lives as
Jer emiah did.
People should be able to know the natur e of God through the lives of Chr istians.
They should believe they ar e the new community as prophesied by Jer em iah in the new
covenant.
Q11. In what ways is the pr ophetic mission of Jer emiah similar to that of Jesus?
Both wer e r ejected by their own relatives and communities.
Both experienced opposition fr om political and religious authorities.
Both prophesied the destruction of the temple.
Both lamented over the stubbornness of the people of Jerusalem.
Both predicted divine judgement and punishment in Israel.

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Jer emiah pr edicted the new covenant that is fulfilled by Jesus.


Prophet Nehemiah
Qn 1. Describe the political background of Nehemiah
He wor ked during the Babylonian exile which lasted between 589 - 538 BC
During his vacation, Israelites wer e oppr essed politically
The Israelites hoped that God would soon liberate them fr o this bonda ge
In 538 BC the Babylonians wer e conquer ed by Cyrus the gr eat king of Persia
In 538 BC king Cyrus allowed Israelites to retur n to Judah
King Cyrus gave the Israelites a decr ee to rebuild the temple of Jerusalem
In 538BC the first exile und er Zebu Babel
Joshua the priest departed from Babylon and started to r ebuild alters of God
Under the guidance of prophets Haggai and Zachariah the temple was rebuilt and
dedicated
The second exile arrived under prophet Ezra; after king Artaxerx es author ized Ezra to
re establish
Israelites religious and moral expectations of the Mosaic Law.
Nehemiah was a servant the king Artaxerxes palace.
The king authorized him to go and rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.
Amidst all opposition from Samaritan, Nehemiah accomplished the r econstruction of
the walls of Jerusalem in 52 days. He then dedicated the walls to God.
This restor ed the sense of political pride in Israel.
However the Israelites remained subjected to the Persians and continued to pay tribute.
The Persians wer e later overthrown by Romans who ruled the entir e r egion until the time
of the birth of Jesus.
Qn 2. Describe the social background to the vacation of Nehemiah
Israelites men married for eign women
Childr en spoke differ ent languages from their mothers
Hebr ew language almost became extinct
Nehemiah condemned mixed marriages and even banned them
Exiles who r eturned home wer e humiliated by for eigners who partially occupied their
land
The Samaritans thr eatened Nehemiah’s life as the r ebuilt walls of Jerusalem

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Rich Jews oppr essed the poor e.g. they would confiscate their property for failur e to
repay debts
Qn 3. Describe the religious background to the vocation of Nehemiah
While in exile the Babylonians allowed the Jews to continue with their r eligious lives.
The exiles became the period of purification
They returned with a new zeal to worship God; they r ebuilt the altar under Zerubbabel
for offer ing burnt offer ings to God
The returnees built the temple of Jerusalem under Haggai and Zachariah and dedicated
to god by Ezra
Nehemiah embarked on r ebuilding the walls of Jerusalem amidst opposition in 52 days
the wall was complete.
Consequently, Jerusalem once mor e became the centre of worship for Israel. Idolatry was
not allowed again in Israel after the exile.
The temple of Jerusalem was dedicated to Yahweh. The Israelites r enewed their
covenant with God under prophet and priest Ezra.
Nehemiah carried out va rious religious refor ms.
Qn 4. Describe occasions when Nehemiah prayed
When he heard about the suffer ing of his fellow Jews back in Judah
When he lear ned about the state of ruin of Jerusalem and king Atarterxes to r equest
him to allow him go back to Judah.
When his enemies e.g. Tobiah and Samballat ridiculed him as he r econstructed the
walls of Jerusalem.
When he lear ned of his enemies conspiracy to attack Jerusalem.
When his enemies conspir ed to destr oy his life/ kill him
When Shemia h attempted to frighten him to hide in the temple as hi life was in danger.
When he cleansed and arranged the temple as a house of God.
When he warned the people of Judah against violating the Sabbath law
After chasing away the son in law of Samballat from the temple
After cleansing the Israelites of for eign influence
Qn 5. State occasions when Christians pray
When they ar e faced with diverse persecutions.
They ask God to protect them
When they don’t understand certain scriptures.

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They ask God to give them r evelation


When they ar e faced with certain difficulties of life.
They ask God to help them
When the nation is facing political crisis. They pray for peace
When they feel inadequate and sinful. They ask God to perfor m certain miracles for
them e.g. healing.
Qn 6. What is the importance of prayer in Christian life?
Prayer helps Christians to praise God, give thanks to him and to repent
It helps Chr istians to pour out their hearts to God
It helps Chr istians to r ely to God for emotional and mental stability.
It helps put our problems to God
It strengthens Christians. It gives them determination and character to r emain steadfast
in their r esponsibilities despite the cha llenges
Through prayer a Christian can r equest to stand against personal attacks and
temptations
Prayer is the source of courage and strength in times of tribulations
It brings one closer to God, we use it to praise God, use it to ask for God’s supply of
their needs, used to ask for forgiveness and promotes important virtues e.g. persistence
and patience and promotes unity among differ ent communities
Qn 6. Identify the leadership of Nehemiah’s patriotism
He was a tune patriot i.e. after talk ing to the Jews and getting the news of distribution
of Jerusalem, he was forced to go back home.
Reliance to God. He totally relied on God and to his call i.e. in most cases he prayed
befor e carrying out an activity
Devoted/ talented. As a cupbear er to the emperor he was an educated, talented and
trustworthy young man
Visionary. He had a vision and he shared it with enthusiasm to inspir e Jerusalem
leaders to r ebuild the wall.
Initiative.
He took the initiative to persuade the emper or to put things right.
Exceller or ganizer. He carefully or ganized the r ebuilding process.
He or ganized how the wall of Jerusalem was to be built in steps.
Careful planner. He carefully examined and inspected the wall before starting the wor k.

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People’s repr esentative. He was a proper representative of his people in Israel.


he had a sense of r esponsibility to his community.
Shrewd. He avoided the meetings organized by his opposer and over looked the abuses
placed on him.
Impartial. He appointed men of integrity and God fearing to keep guard over Jerusalem.
Selfless and kind. He had the skill of solving problems. He hence cancelled all debts
that people had.
Homogenous. He employed differ ent strategies to counteract his opposer.
Qn7. explain the relevance of Nehemiah’s leadership to a Christian today
A Christian should use his/her present position to serve God
Christians should acknowledge God as their source of power and giver of gifts
A leader should appoint people wh o are trustworthy and honest to help him/ her in
ruling the countr y
God answers our prayers as a result of asking others for help
A Christian leader should keep his /her plans a secret until it matures to make an
announcement.
Christians should share their visions with others the way Nehemiah did.
Leaders should take care of the needy in the society.
As a Christian one could be lured to temptations; the way Nehemiah was opposed we
should be ready to r esist temptations.
Christians should be ready to help in solving problems in the society Christians should
act as role.
models by carrying out spiritual activities with the truth and helping in wor k after starting
projects.

Qn 8. Explain the relevance of Nehemiah’s experience to Christia ns


They should not exploit the needy and disadvantaged
They should defend the rights of the weak and use their wor k place, family and friends
They should ask God to protect them from the mischief of their enemies
That they should pray to God to give them guidance in their endeavors
That they should persever e in all difficulties as Nehemiah did
The should condemn the injustices in the society
They should know that leadership involves challenges and difficulties

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They should be practically involved in problem solving e.g. HIV/AIDs scourge


Qn 9. Explain the problems that Nehemiah encountered in his vocation
Oppression of the poor Jews by the r ich Jews e.g. demanded high inter ests on borrowed
money
Great opposition from the enemies they tried to frustrate his/her efforts to build the
walls of Jerusalem
Threat to his own life. His adversaries wanted to kill him
Lack of co-operation and support from the Jews. They r efused to wor k with him on the
wall project
Excessive for eign influence in Israel. Inter marriage brought about for eign influence
which thr eatened to extinct the Jew cultur e and language
Violation of the Sabbath laws. Israelites went on to do their daily chor es on the
Sabbath day
Abuse of the temple. Eliaship housed Tobias the heathen and God’s enemies
Misuse of offer ings. The levies wer e denied their share of sacrificial offer ings as
requir ed by the law
Qn 10. Describe the steps taken by Nehemiah to renew the covena nt
Ezra the priest read the book of the covenant and explained the meaning of the Law of
Moses.
The Israelites listened carefully and their lives changed.
They responded Amen, amen
Celebration of the feast of shelters.
After reading the scriptur es, they r ealized that they had not been celebrating the feast of
shelters.
This was to remember their deliverance fr om Egypt.
They wer e also to think about God’s protection and guidance.
The Israelites confessed of their sins as they learnt that they had not been following
God’s commandments.
Nehemiah was devoted to confession of national sin and prayers to God’s grace.
Recital of God’s dealings with Israel.
They recital of God’s mighty acts is done in this.
They remember ed their history and this rene wed God’s grace and power in them.
A renewed covenant sealed. The covenant was renewed in wr iting and the leaders put
seals.

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The binding agr eement that people and God was done by the Israelites joining hands.
Qn 11. State the promises that Israelit es made during the renewal of the covenant
That ever y seventh year, they would cancel debts accor ding to the Mosaic Laws.
That they should observe God’s commandments and live accor ding to his laws.
That they would offer the first of their harves ts as required by Torah.
That they would dedicate their first -born sons to God.
That they will not inter marry with for eigner s at all.
That they will not buy corn or anything else on the Sabbath day.
That they will remit their arrival temple expenses to ensur e that God’s house was okay.
That they will provide sacrifices and offerings at the temple.
That they will pay their tithes according to the law.
Group study activities
1. Read and study the book of Luke by
2. Dividing up the chapters in the book of Luke among the members of the class and let
ever y group present a summary of the chapters allocated to them.
3. Check out movies about the life, death and resurr ection of Jesus Christ but not e that
your study according to the syllabus is based on St. Luke’s gospel.

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