B. What is the nature of His work (Work of Christ)
Having looked at the person of Jesus we will now turn our attention to the work of Jesus.
1. Preaching, teaching and healing (words and deeds)
The gospel records that Jesus performed both words and deeds. The words can refer to the preaching and teaching of Jesus, while the deeds can refer to the way He lived and to the miracles He performed.
As important as these were they were not His primary reason form coming.
2. Primary work
It is important that we understand that Jesus’ primary reason for coming was removal and restoration.
Removal of the penalty of sin and restoration to our relationship with God. While preach, teaching and even miracles were performed by numerous people, it required someone who was fully Human and fully God to be able to remove sin and restore relationship.
Lets look at this in three great acts
a. Christ’s death
Mark 10: 45
The penalty of sin required a sacrifice therefore for Jesus to be that sacrifice He had to be fully human and die a real death. But for the penalty to completely paid the sacrifice had to be perfect, thus the need for Jesus to be fully God.
Jesus did not become God after His death, He always was fully God, fully human.
b. Resurrection
Romans 1:4, 4:25, Acts 10: 4-43
The resurrection not only demonstrated that God accepted Jesus’ sacrifice, it is also the assurance of our salvation. If Jesus has not been fully, bodily resurrected then there is no hope for us. But just as Jesus was fully resurrected so also shall we.
c. Ascension
Acts 1: 1-2
The ascension is often overlooked in Baptist life. It is as if Jesus simply rode off into the sunset. Nothing could be further from the truth. Jesus ascended into heaven to continue that
which He had started.
“Killing Jesus,” says Walter Wink, “was like trying to destroy a dandelion seed-head by blowing on it.” (The Jesus I Never Knew , Phillip Yancey 226)
“Christ died for our sins, He was raised for our justification, he now lives to make intercession for us. This is the redemptive work.” Christian Doctrine for Everyman - Jimmy A. Millkin
C. Theological Question: Does Jesus remain Incarnate? Last week we digressed a little in our discussion of the incarnation and in doing so neglected to explain just what incarnation mea
Friday, October 26, 2007
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Jesus (part 1)
Lesson 4
Jesus Christ
Introduction
Last week we looked at the first person of the Trinity, God the Father. Tonight we are going to look at the second person, God the Son. We are going to talk about Jesus.
We are going to do this in two ways: Who He is and What He did.
A. Who is Christ (person of Christ)
There are two terms that describe Jesus the person: He is a man and He is God.
1. Jesus was a man
The Scriptures reveal that Jesus "being made in human likeness, and being found is appearance as a man." Philippians 2: 7b-8a
But what sort of humanity was it? Was He actually human or just looked that way?
a. Humanity was real
First, the humanity was real. He expressed emotions, He had need for sleep, He ate, He cried, He laughed, He hurt (Although the Scriptures do not mention it, I am sure He even used the bathroom.)
John 15:11
Matthew 26: 37
"I once showed to a class several dozen art slides portraying Jesus in a variety of forms-African, Korean, Chinese-and then asked the class to describe what they thought Jesus looked like. Virtually everyone suggested he was tall (unlikely for a second-century Jew), most said handsome, and no one said overweight." (87)-Philip Yancey The Jesus I Never Knew
b. Jesus’ humanity was unique
1. Unique origin
His birth was different than ours. In Matthew and in Luke we read that Jesus was born of the virgin Mary.
William Hendricks better calls this the virginal conception because it was the conception and not the birth that was different. (Layman’s Library of Christian Doctrine: Who is Jesus Christ)
2. He was Sinless
A second way that His humanity was unique was that He is sinless. This means that unlike you and me He lived without sinning.
Hebrews 4: 15
His sinless is important in many ways, but the most important is that is only by being sinless that He was able to take on our sins.
2 Corinthians 5:21
2. Jesus is God
One of the struggles of the early church came from those who denied Jesus’ humanity. For them it was unthinkable, and impossible, for God to become human. So they argued that Jesus only looked like a human but really wasn’t one.
In our generation the opposite has become the argument. We can easily accept that a person named Jesus existed , but there is much debate over whether he is also God. The strongest argument coming from those whose who say Jesus never claimed the title. Nor did His followers see Him as God. Such an example is the DaVinci Code.
But in Scripture we find the opposite to be true.
a. Claims
1. Jesus
Jesus claimed to be in relationship with God: Luke 2: 49
He claimed to know God: John 8: 19
He claimed to have pre-existed John 8: 58
He allowed His followers to worship Him John 20: 26-28
2. Jesus’ followers
His followers believed Him to be God. John at the start of His gospel shares this. Paul testifies to this in a number of places two of them being: Colossians 1: 15 and I Timothy 3:16.
3. Jesus’ deeds
Another thing that testifies to Jesus divinity is the actions in His life. He demonstrated control over nature and the super natural. He healed diseases and sickness. He even showed control over death. The greatest testimony was His own resurrection.
Jesus Christ
Introduction
Last week we looked at the first person of the Trinity, God the Father. Tonight we are going to look at the second person, God the Son. We are going to talk about Jesus.
We are going to do this in two ways: Who He is and What He did.
A. Who is Christ (person of Christ)
There are two terms that describe Jesus the person: He is a man and He is God.
1. Jesus was a man
The Scriptures reveal that Jesus "being made in human likeness, and being found is appearance as a man." Philippians 2: 7b-8a
But what sort of humanity was it? Was He actually human or just looked that way?
a. Humanity was real
First, the humanity was real. He expressed emotions, He had need for sleep, He ate, He cried, He laughed, He hurt (Although the Scriptures do not mention it, I am sure He even used the bathroom.)
John 15:11
Matthew 26: 37
"I once showed to a class several dozen art slides portraying Jesus in a variety of forms-African, Korean, Chinese-and then asked the class to describe what they thought Jesus looked like. Virtually everyone suggested he was tall (unlikely for a second-century Jew), most said handsome, and no one said overweight." (87)-Philip Yancey The Jesus I Never Knew
b. Jesus’ humanity was unique
1. Unique origin
His birth was different than ours. In Matthew and in Luke we read that Jesus was born of the virgin Mary.
William Hendricks better calls this the virginal conception because it was the conception and not the birth that was different. (Layman’s Library of Christian Doctrine: Who is Jesus Christ)
2. He was Sinless
A second way that His humanity was unique was that He is sinless. This means that unlike you and me He lived without sinning.
Hebrews 4: 15
His sinless is important in many ways, but the most important is that is only by being sinless that He was able to take on our sins.
2 Corinthians 5:21
2. Jesus is God
One of the struggles of the early church came from those who denied Jesus’ humanity. For them it was unthinkable, and impossible, for God to become human. So they argued that Jesus only looked like a human but really wasn’t one.
In our generation the opposite has become the argument. We can easily accept that a person named Jesus existed , but there is much debate over whether he is also God. The strongest argument coming from those whose who say Jesus never claimed the title. Nor did His followers see Him as God. Such an example is the DaVinci Code.
But in Scripture we find the opposite to be true.
a. Claims
1. Jesus
Jesus claimed to be in relationship with God: Luke 2: 49
He claimed to know God: John 8: 19
He claimed to have pre-existed John 8: 58
He allowed His followers to worship Him John 20: 26-28
2. Jesus’ followers
His followers believed Him to be God. John at the start of His gospel shares this. Paul testifies to this in a number of places two of them being: Colossians 1: 15 and I Timothy 3:16.
3. Jesus’ deeds
Another thing that testifies to Jesus divinity is the actions in His life. He demonstrated control over nature and the super natural. He healed diseases and sickness. He even showed control over death. The greatest testimony was His own resurrection.
Friday, October 5, 2007
God (part 2)
The Attribute of God
While the nature of God reveals “that He is,” the attributes of God tell us some thing about God.
There is no completely comprehensive list, and at times descriptions of God’s nature is also seen as an attribute.
Bill Bright in his little booklet “13 Steps to Discovering His Attributes” lists the following: God is a personal Spirit, is all-powerful, is ever-present. Knows everything, is sovereign, is holy, is absolute truth, is righteous, is just, is love, is merciful, is faithful, and he never changes.
Let’s look at one of these: holiness.
The holiness of God
One of the hardest attributes to grasp is the concept of God being Holy. This is complicated because:
1. What exactly does holy mean?
The simplest definition of Holy is “set apart”. God is set apart from everything else. Creation is temporary, God is eternal, Creation is impure, God is pure, Creation is tainted with sin, God is without sin.
Another way to understand Holy is being perfect or pure, unlike anything else.
2. If God is holy then why do bad things happen?
I realize that this statement is often phrased as “If God is loving then why do bad things happen?” But that it is not really the complaint, because many wonderfully loving people allow bad things to happen all the time. Or a person might ask “If God is all powerful why does He allow bad things to happen?” Again the question is wrong because even if you were all powerful you would not stop all the evil, because you would not recognize the evil.
Therefore the real problem is that God is loving, is all-powerful, and He is holy which means He is well aware of the difference between good and evil and yet it still exists.
3. If God is Holy how can I have anything to do with Him?
This hits to the heart of the matter. God is Holy and I am not, so how can we have anything to do with each other?
Understanding why Jesus came and why He had to die for our sins is caught up in this understanding of God’s Holiness. If we are going to be in relationship with God then we also need to be made holy. We are incapable of such a thing, but Jesus, being God, is holy and therefore capable of making us holy.
Let me explain it in another way. In the Old Testament items would be designated as holy (an item used in the Temple or perhaps a piece of ground. The items were not themselves holy, but were called so do to their association with God who is Holy.
In the same way we who believe in Jesus Christ are called holy (Not because we are perfect or pure) but because of our closeness (being found in) Jesus Christ who is Holy.
While the nature of God reveals “that He is,” the attributes of God tell us some thing about God.
There is no completely comprehensive list, and at times descriptions of God’s nature is also seen as an attribute.
Bill Bright in his little booklet “13 Steps to Discovering His Attributes” lists the following: God is a personal Spirit, is all-powerful, is ever-present. Knows everything, is sovereign, is holy, is absolute truth, is righteous, is just, is love, is merciful, is faithful, and he never changes.
Let’s look at one of these: holiness.
The holiness of God
One of the hardest attributes to grasp is the concept of God being Holy. This is complicated because:
1. What exactly does holy mean?
The simplest definition of Holy is “set apart”. God is set apart from everything else. Creation is temporary, God is eternal, Creation is impure, God is pure, Creation is tainted with sin, God is without sin.
Another way to understand Holy is being perfect or pure, unlike anything else.
2. If God is holy then why do bad things happen?
I realize that this statement is often phrased as “If God is loving then why do bad things happen?” But that it is not really the complaint, because many wonderfully loving people allow bad things to happen all the time. Or a person might ask “If God is all powerful why does He allow bad things to happen?” Again the question is wrong because even if you were all powerful you would not stop all the evil, because you would not recognize the evil.
Therefore the real problem is that God is loving, is all-powerful, and He is holy which means He is well aware of the difference between good and evil and yet it still exists.
3. If God is Holy how can I have anything to do with Him?
This hits to the heart of the matter. God is Holy and I am not, so how can we have anything to do with each other?
Understanding why Jesus came and why He had to die for our sins is caught up in this understanding of God’s Holiness. If we are going to be in relationship with God then we also need to be made holy. We are incapable of such a thing, but Jesus, being God, is holy and therefore capable of making us holy.
Let me explain it in another way. In the Old Testament items would be designated as holy (an item used in the Temple or perhaps a piece of ground. The items were not themselves holy, but were called so do to their association with God who is Holy.
In the same way we who believe in Jesus Christ are called holy (Not because we are perfect or pure) but because of our closeness (being found in) Jesus Christ who is Holy.
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