Christians today often talk about “assurance of salvation,” but sometimes do not consider what the Bible says about where that assurance comes from. Did you know that the Bible, and 1 John in particular, provides some very clear tests to determine if we really know God? And more than that, God teaches through 1 John those who do truly know him how to live a life of joy as we learn to live in close communion with him.

Many Christian leaders today are hesitant to preach or teach on the book of Romans. They think that it is “too deep” or too complicated for them and so they focus on what they think are easier books of the Bible. In reality, Romans is one of the most practical books in the New Testament. In fact, it is lifechanging for those who take the time to study it and are careful to embrace respond to its message. In this letter, Paul is essentially defending the integrity of the gospel message that he proclaimed. In God’s great wisdom, though, Paul’s defense of the true gospel is intended to help Christians throughout the centuries to understand just how powerful the Good News of Jesus Christ really is. The gospel, we learn in Romans, does not just save people from God’s wrath; it also transforms them! In other words, all those who have been genuinely justified by faith will also inevitably be sanctified (made increasingly holy) as well. What a glorious gospel!

As our subtitle for this course makes clear, the Gospel of John highlights the fact that Jesus is God in human flesh. Like all other books of the Bible, though, God has not given us the Gospel of John simply to teach us a theology lesson. Instead, the Gospel of John increasingly reveals more about the identity of Jesus so that we might ask ourselves whether we truly embrace him as he is. For, only as we do this can we truly claim to believe in him and so receive the gift of eternal life. Like the rest of the New Testament, the Gospel of John helps us to understand what it means to live as a disciple of Jesus in this world. More than that, it presents to us the way that we can know the truth, be set free by the truth, and enjoy the abundant life that Jesus came to give us!

The meaning of the book of Revelation has perhaps inspired more debate than any other book of the Bible over the last two millennia. Some Christians delight in trying to figure out its mysteries, while others have given up trying to understand the visions of both heaven above and of God’s coming judgment on this world. In this course, you will discover not only that the book of Revelation can be understood, when we read it within its historical context and follow the directions that it provides for interpreting it, but it is also a powerful call to discipleship that churches and individuals desperately need to hear today. You cannot study the book of Revelation without being profoundly changed, if “you have ears to hear.”

Be sure to download a copy of the Student Notes to follow along and add your own notes. Although the Reflection and Response Questions that follow each session are included in the Student Notes, we have also placed them in a separate file that you can download and use as you consider how God would have you respond to the message of each part of Revelation.

May God speak to you powerfully as you study this book and motivate you and empower you to live as an overcomer as you await the return of Jesus.