Cornerstone Curriculum, Official Certification Edition - Mentor's Guide

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prince, the devil. This quiet, confident announcement of the Kingdom of God being “at hand” or “near” suggests that with Jesus’ presence in the world, the Kingdom has come.

The contacts of this lesson all deal with identifying the beginning and/or start of God’s resolve to restore the Kingdom of God to earth. The notion of beginning is key, not only for introducing the Lesson, but will also be critical for the application of the truths in this session. For instance, knowing that God’s initiative lies at the heart of all of his salvific work is critical for our own attitude of thanks to God, as well as the confidence that we hold that the work of the Kingdom is in fact God’s own work. God is the worker, and we are coworkers with him in his harvest, for “we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building” (1 Cor. 3.9, ESV). God is the primary actor in the drama of salvation, and our role is to participate with God as co-workers in his vineyard. The heart of this contact is emphasizing the issues of the students, of course, but to do so in light of this central truth. This lesson focuses on the realization of the Kingdom’s presence in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. In a real sense, Jesus is the King whose person is the ground of his authority. In other words, who Jesus is becomes the basis of his Sovereign Majesty and authority. Jesus of Nazareth performs in his life and ministry the role of Yahweh’s King, calling a people out of the world that would be his peculiar possession (Isa. 55.5; John 10.16, 27). As Lord and King, Jesus has provided to his people his own judgments and standards which ought to regulate the operations and actions of his people in every way they govern themselves (1 Cor. 5.4-5; 12.28; Eph. 4.11-12; Matt. 28.19-20; 18.17-18; 1 Tim. 5.20; Titus 3.10). It is his kingly power and authority by which he protects, supports, and preserves his people in the midst of their tribulations, conflicts, and trials for his name’s sake (2 Cor. 12.9-10; Rom. 8.35-39), and through his kingly authority received from his Father, he as Lord

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T h e o l o g y a n d E t h i c s

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