 |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
We Believe in Jesus INTRODUCTION The motto of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church is "In essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty, in all things charity." An "essential" is a truth shared not by Presbyterians alone but by all Bible-believing Christians. For example, this is our "essential" belief about Jesus Christ: "Jesus Christ, the living Word, became flesh through His miraculous
conception by the Holy Spirit and His virgin birth. He who is true God
became true man united in one Person forever. He died on the cross a sacrifice
for our sins according to the Scriptures. Indeed, this is a mouthful. Is this really what the Bible teaches about Jesus Christ? Yes, and I'd like to give you some verses to go along with these points this morning. JESUS, THE LIVING WORD, IS TRUE GOD John 1:1-14 The deity of Christ is an important theological issue, but it is also an important practical issue. Everyone has gods. Sometimes we simply call them role models. And we know that our lives are either the better or the worse, depending on who our role models are. When we worship Jesus as our God, we look into His face and seek to emulate him in our lives. Indeed we fall short. We aim for his example, and what better example could we aim at? This affects our lives in practical and obvious ways. The Roman governor Pliny described the Christians in his district in c. 100 A.D. "On a fixed day they were accustomed to come together before daylight and to sing by turns a hymn to Christ as a god, and they bound themselves by oath that they would not commit robbery, theft, or adultery, that they would not betray a trust nor deny a deposit when called upon. After this it was their custom to disperse and to come together again to partake of food, of an ordinary and harmless kind." This is another way of saying what I have often observed, that Christians are the finest people you can know. And I say that this is true because our God is the finest God you could possibly imagine. It rubs off! JESUS, BY THE VIRGIN BIRTH, BECAME TRUE MAN Isaiah 7:10-14 King Ahaz, though he was a descendant of David physically, was not a descendant spiritually. So when a man of God made an offer on God's behalf to show him a sign, he refused it. Then comes that prediction that we remember each year in December, that the virgin will conceive and give birth to a son. It is a prophecy given to the people collectively ("Hear now, you house of David") the fulfillment of which is impossible apart from divine intervention. It is fulfilled in the life of Mary who became pregnant miraculously, through the agency of the Holy Spirit. JESUS, ON THE CROSS, DIED FOR OUR SINS Romans 5:6-8 There is an interesting progression in these verses. We, those of us for whom Christ died, are named three times. We are called "powerless," "ungodly," and "sinners." These are all unflattering terms but each one is more pointed than the last. This is the love of God, and it is unconditional. If it is conditioned upon anything, it is conditioned upon man's disqualification to receive it. If you think of someone you dislike committing a crime, and if you imagine yourself offering to pay his fine, or doing time in jail for him, then you can begin to understand the amazing concept of what we call the substitutionary atonement of Christ. He lays down his life, not to save the good people, but to save the likes of you and me! JESUS, ON THE THIRD DAY, ROSE FROM THE DEAD Luke 18:33 First Jesus made the prediction that he, the Son of Man, would be raised to life three days after his death. Then some of the disciples, on the third day after the crucifixion, were telling a stranger how distressed they were about their loss. Then that stranger turned out to be Christ himself. JESUS, EVEN TODAY, REIGNS AS LORD Hebrews 4:14 In the statement of our "essentials of the faith," two specific offices of Christ are named. He is said to be our High Priest and Mediator. Both of these offices suggests the role of a go-between. Christianity is objected to, especially today, because of our exclusive claim we make that Jesus is the only way. (Our claim is not that the Presbyterian church is the only way, but that Jesus Christ is the only way.) How can we back that up? Simply by explaining that only one person has ever existed who can stand in the gap between God and man, and that is Jesus who is fully God and fully man and whose mission was to bring the two together. The one term that best summarizes both of these roles of Christ, and
every other– prophet, king, savior, shepherd, judge, etc.–
is Lord. |