When Peter identified Him as “the Christ, the Son of the living God” in Matthew 16:17, Jesus answered him,
“Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.”
This is a mind-blowing truth that is hidden from the human mind until God shines His light in there. I read the Bible nearly every day for nearly two decades and didn’t get it — not until God revealed that He is Jesus and Jesus is God in human flesh. I know it without a doubt but cannot explain it or convince anyone else. Only God can.
It’s not that He hasn’t said so. The NT has several strong statements about God = Jesus. For instance:
John 1:1. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
At least one cult tries to insert an “a” to make this verse say “the Word was a god” yet there is no “a” in the Greek language. After much thought and self-examination, I can understand their denial. They have not had that necessary revelation from the Father; they do not want Jesus to be their only way of salvation; and they have a huge problem with the very thought of it — God became a man?
One cult member said, “He would never stoop to do something like that!” Yet the Bible says He did, and even declares that this is God’s glory; our powerful Creator became flesh and lived among us, bled and died for us, and rose again for us, that we might be forgiven our sin and have eternal life. That cult member says He died to give us the right to earn our salvation, but that is not a biblical concept. We all sin and fall short. Without a Savior, we are lost. Egos aside, we need divine intervention. This gospel message is incredibly wonderful; it puts all my pride in its place. Like the publican, all I can mutter is, “Lord have mercy on me a sinner.”
However, this gospel message is too much for my puny mind, too incredible for any human to invent, too awesome. It makes my worship feel insignificant and insufficient. And how could I ever think myself worthy to earn or deserve anything but wrath from such a holy God who loves the world so much that He dropped into it, making faith in Him possible? Because He became a man, I can believe in Him, even fellowship with Him through this God-man JESUS who made it plain:
John 14:6. “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
The name JESUS is a Greek translation of Joshua, a Hebrew name that means “The Lord (Yahweh) is salvation.” In Matthew 1:21, an angel told Joseph that Mary “will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” and verse 23 refers to the prophecy that “the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name ‘Immanuel’ (which means God with us.)”
Scripture reveals who Jesus is, yet without the Holy Spirit, no one ‘gets’ it. 1 Corinthians 12:3 says, “Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says ‘Jesus is accursed!’ and no one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except in the Holy Spirit.”
Titus 2:13 talks about “waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ.” In several gospel passages, Jesus used the term “I AM” which the Jews knew referred to God as Yahweh in the OT. For this, they were angered and tried to stone Him. Eventually He was crucified for the same reason; He declared Himself God and those who could not see or admit their need for a Savior put Him to death.
GAZE INTO HIS GLORY. The glory of God is seen in Jesus Christ. This man who is God speaks to my heart each day and works to transform me into His image. Incredible! Totally incredible! But His revelation of Himself is true and powerful and once seen, the identity of God as Jesus Christ cannot be denied!
1 comment:
Great job, Elsie! I have had problems explaining the "God-Man". Darrell
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