Final Edit CWV-Benchmark Gospel Essentials
.docx
School
Grand Canyon University**We aren't endorsed by this school
Course
CWV 100
Subject
Philosophy
Date
Jan 2, 2025
Pages
8
Uploaded by LieutenantBoulder12117
1Benchmark—Gospel EssentialsArneisha HamiltonGrand Canyon UniversityCWV-101: Christian WorldviewProfessor Ray MeadowsNov 24, 2024
2Benchmark—Gospel EssentialsWhen we are discussing the nature of God, it is important to talk about his characteristics such as love, forgiveness, and grace. In the Christian perspective, God is considered the creator who supports and shows us the right form of humanity. The nature of humanity is kind of simple because it focuses on the good and the potential wrongdoing. But, there have been struggles from the human race with moral choices and personal wants. He shows us not only how God will interact with humanity but how he wants us to interact with one another. God has shown us through the spirit and human forms of his son, Jesus how to live a righteous life. Through God’s grace and kind heart, he shows a restoration by allowing us to seek forgiveness and get back on the right path with God. God’s love and grace are not just characteristics but important ways that guide our everyday lives. Gospel Essential BeliefsNature of GodThe triune of God is that God is one, which is known as the Trinity. God exists in three different forms, but God is still just one. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are all a part of the triune. According to Diffey, “A good understanding of the Trinity is that God is one person but exists in three: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Knowing this is important because understanding the Trinity is essential to the Christian worldview.” (2022, p. 79). God’s characteristics vary from many amazing things. The Son, Jesus Christ, sacrificed his own life to cover all of our sins. That was a show of grace because he didn't know about himself, but he thought about all of us. The Holy Spirit can be known as the way of God’s presence. This is one that I was taught in church: whenever someone would shout or praise the Lord, people would say that the Holy Spirit was speaking to them. So in my religion, we look at it as the ways that God
3communicates with us. God’s creation is one simple answer, the world. In Genesis 1-2, it talks about how God created the world in just six days while he rested on the seventh day. There is a brief timeline of how things happened. Day 1 God created light, day 2 he created the sky, day 3 he created the earth and seas, day 4 he created the sun, moon, and stars, day 5 he created water and sky animals, and the last day he created land animals and people. Nature of HumanityThere are two meanings of human nature. There is a spirit one and an earthly one. The earthly meaning of human nature is the ways of thinking, feeling, and acting. These are characteristics of things that come to humans naturally. The spiritual meaning of human nature is that humans have a purpose on earth. God thinks that human nature can reveal what is really in our hearts. Human purpose is something that a person was put on this earth to do. One of the main things humans do while finding their purpose is to learn and grow into better people. Jim Uhley states, “God states that every person ever born can do things to only a certain extent. But if you are a person who is in Christ, you can become a new creation that comes from the power of the Holy Spirit. As one tries to find their purpose, you must show love to your neighbors.” (2022, p. 255). Some can say that when Adam and Eve bit the forbidden fruit, that was the fall of humanity. After they had disobeyed God, sin was introduced to everyone in the world. The root of human problems is sin and the heart that we have. If our hearts are not devoted to God, that means that we do not trust him to fix things in our lives. We have to have a heart that believes in Jesus so that we can transform sin into goodness in our lives. Nature of JesusJesus' true identity is something that has always been questioned, whether it was from people or scientists. In the Christian worldview, Jesus is the son of God, and he is fully human
4and fully God. As stated in Topic 4 Overview, “Jesus was the son of God before he was even born into our world. One of the things people celebrate that falls on Christmas is when God took the role of flesh and had Jesus dwell around the people which is called the incarnation.”(Grand Canyon University, 2021, Jesus Christ, God-Centered Mission). Jesus was sent from God sinless to make sure that his teaching was preached to others. He came with love, grace, and compassion. Jesus was made to show us the righteous way of life. Jesus' kingdom was a new way that God thought of to make sure his rulings and teachings were on Earth. Jesus' purpose was to make sure that he put God in people's hearts and that he brought them together to believe in God by making things such as churches. Churches were an example of a congregation that was brought together so that everyone could have the chance to learn of Jesus' purpose. Jesus was sent so people could repent for their sons and believe in the Gospel when he preached about the good news of God. In the Christian worldview, Jesus’s identity is very significant to us. One of the most important reasons is that it gives us life lessons on how to live one's life according to God’s will. Jesus gave us the teaching to know what Christian ethics and morality are. Also, it gave us an understanding of God’s love that was brought from Jesus' life through his teachings. Another thing why it is significant is his resurrection which shows us that there was a great victory over death and that we can all have hope for eternal life. RestorationIn the Christian worldview, the solution to human problems is something that we can learn from Jesus. The root of human problems is sin. If we could take the time to devote our lives to God, that could be the solution. Also, before the problems can be fixed, one needs to repent for all their sins so God can give grace and forgiveness to one. Jesus put his life on the cross for all our sins. Once one repents, then the focus moves on to living one's life according to Christian values.
5Grace, faith, and repentance play a huge part in salvation. Grace that comes from God saves us from the bad sins that we make, and it helps us with the results that we could face from those sins. Faith is something that we get from God’s grace. Faith means that one has to put their full trust in God. Once one has faith in God, then one has made room for God to provide grace in one's life. It is stated, “There will be something that will happen and it will make humanity repent for its sin but not for sorrow or shame but to show God the gratitude for salvation and praise him for his love and mercy.” (Analolios, p. 383). Repentance is for one to have a change of their mind on the sins they have committed. Repentance is when you ask the lord to forgive you for what you have done, and you are seeking to change their lives around to make their life righteous to God. Christians think the transformation of self and society is something that has significance. Christians feel that this comes from a process of renewal by God. One must choose to accept Jesus Christ as their savior and into their life. Doing this can allow something that is called the Holy Spirit given by God. Once the spirit enters one's life, it can lead to one making more faith-based changes with their actions and character. In my church, this is what we call being born again because you are away from a life of sin and entering a life of holiness. Christian FoundationsThe concepts of the gospel essentials such as the nature of God, the nature of humanity, the nature of Jesus, and restoration are all so important to the Christian worldview. As a Christian, it helps the understanding of God’s true character and Jesus in our lives as the Savior but most importantly the possible outcomes for restoration to a better relationship with God. If Christians did not have these concepts in their lives than the Christians would not have direction and guidance on how to live righteously. The nature of God is important to the Christian belief because God is the most powerful, loving, and graceful savior Christians know. By knowing the
6nature of God, it gives Christians the right to build trust and to always rely on God. The nature of humanity is important to Christians for many reasons. The most important reason is that Christians understand that all humans were indeed created through God’s eyes. But even though humans were created through God’s eyes, humans are still open to sin and must remember to ask for forgiveness through Jesus to keep the relationship with God. The nature of Jesus is important to Christians because it is what Christians base their lives on. Christians believe that Jesus is both fully God and fully human. Once one believes that, it can give Christians the right to speak to God through Jesus since he sacrificed his life on the cross. Restoration is important as well because it gives up the openness to repent for our sins. Once Christians repent for their sins, then there is a chance for restoration into a new life. Analysis of the Implications of the Christian WorldviewChristians have a very good worldview when it comes to human values and dignity. Christians believe that all humans were created in God’s image. Regardless of whether the human is rich or poor, black or white, or even a sinner. Christians believe that everyone was made how God intended. Humans are to be treated with the same compassion and love that God gives us. Now, compared to religions such as Judaism, which believe good acts of kindness are how one gains salvation. Christians believe that it is something very simple as just having faith in Jesus Christ. The Christian worldview can influence people's thinking and behavior in many ways. One of the main ways is the way of living the life God wanted humans to. For example, the Ten Commandments are something that every Christian looks up to and follows. By following those commandments, one is building their life mentally and physically based on God’s teaching. There are a few things that people find confusing about Christianity. One of the things that someone has asked is “How can one person be three different things?”. Some people
7do not understand the concept of the Trinity, which is that God was the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Another thing would be the whole existence of God and how he was made himself. Some can not believe that God was just made and took control of Earth and created everything in it just like they don't understand how Jesus rose on the third day after his death. ConclusionGod’s love and grace are not just characteristics but important ways that guide our everyday lives. Through God’s grace and kind heart, he shows a restoration by allowing us to seek forgiveness and get back on the right path with God. God exists in three different forms, but God is still just one. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are all a part of the triune. If our hearts are not devoted to God, that means that we do not trust him to fix things in our lives. We have to have a heart that believes in Jesus so that we can transform sin into goodness in our lives. In the Christian worldview, Jesus is the son of God, and he is fully human and fully God. Jesus put his life on the cross for all our sins. Once one repents, then the focus moves on to living one's life according to Christian values. The concepts of the gospel essentials such as the nature of God, the nature of humanity, the nature of Jesus, and restoration are all so important to the Christian worldview. Christians believe that all humans were created in God’s image. ReferencesDiffey .D (2022). Wisdom in the beginning. In D. Diffey & R. Holland (Eds.), The Beginning of Wisdom: An Introduction to Christian Thought and Life(5th ed). Grand Canyon University. Uhley. J (2022).Emotional Obstacles to Wisdom. In D. Diffey & R. Holland (Eds.), The Beginning of Wisdom: An Introduction to Christian Thought and Life(5th ed). Grand
8Canyon University. Grand Canyon University (2021) CWV-101 Topic 4 Overview. HaloRowe, C. K. (2023). Becoming Human: Deification in the Image of Jesus Christ. International Journal of Systematic Theology, 25(1), 39–46. https://doi-org.lopes.idm.oclc.org/10.1111/ijst.12627