The commands of Jesus Christ
Last year during Holy Week we laid aside the whole week to study God's Plan of Salvation as revealed in the Bible. This more detailed look at the faith seemed to strike a chord for many people and so this year I would like to build on what we did last year.
Again and again we have laid before us the demands and commands of Jesus Christ. We are called upon to give our hearts over to Jesus. He commands us to love God above all things. He teaches us about how to live, who is going to get into heaven and who is going to hell. For the Christian he is the central figure of the faith. And yet within the church today there is a profound ignorance concerning Jesus. He is abused, misunderstood, misrepresented and worst of all by most people ignored. Only lip service is paid to his teaching and certainly little thought given to his impinging on our lifestyles.
We have lying before us the most wonderful week. A week in which we can pray at leisure for so many things and a week when we can as it were take our time to go into a subject in great depth.
And so in this holy week let us make Jesus the focus of our attention and in particular let us focus on his divinity although I would hope later in the week to touch upon his humanity.
Now let us in the first instance look at some of the scriptural testimony to Jesus. I would like us to divide this into five sections.
The first deals with some of the things that Jesus said about himself.
Jesus made some fairly outrageous claims in human terms. Do you recall for example the words recorded in John 10 - "I and my Father are one." Now that as phrase may be taken in many ways. I may say to someone that my wife and I are as one on a certain issue. But not here, this isn't what Jesus is saying. He doesn't mean that he is on he same wavelength as God and teaching only what God wants taught. Here something much more profound is being said. That this is the case can be seen by looking at other texts, so for example as Jesus tries to explain the hostile crowd what is meant when he says this he says, "in order that you may know once and for all that the Father is in me and that I am in the Father." Or later on he says, "Whoever sees me sees also him who sent me."
Now let's be blunt about this lest there be any misunderstanding - Jesus is claiming to be God. Such a claim has profound implications upon our response to Jesus and his teaching. For it means quite clearly that the Creator himself has in human form instructed us how to live an to live in any other way will place in the situation of disobeying God. Because at the end of the day that's what this all boils down to doesn't it. Is this for real? Is Jesus who he said he was? If he is then isn't it time we sat up and paid attention? We can't keep putting off till tomorrow making that big decision for Jesus. You can't think for one minute that salvation can be found in he institution of the church. Be in no doubt the call of Jesus is very real and must be treated as the most important event in our lives. Any other response is inappropriate. And that's what made life so difficult for Jesus, that's what led to calvary. People wouldn't take it seriously. Event the would be followers found the demands to hard. Do you remember the rich young man? It was too hard for him to give up his wealth and follow Jesus.... what is too hard for you? What is getting in the road?
So what did his friends think of this? These were ordinary people. They saw the reality of the man Jesus. They watched him eat and drink and perform all the normal bodily functions. They heard him snore, they watched him grow tired and weary. They lived with him. Such claims would be sorely tested against reality. Well we know what they saw, eventually that is. As Jesus revealed more and more about himself so belief and understanding came slowly into their minds. Peter in time comes to say, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." And John of course begins his gospel by saying, "Before the world was created, the Word already existed; he was with God and he was the same as God." The disciple in time came to know that this man was God, they were helped in many ways to reach this understanding and they record for us for example the times when the Fathers voice was heard.
Matthew 3v17, after the baptism of Jesus, "Then a voice said from heaven,"This is my own dear Son, with whom I am pleased." Or again at the time of the crucifixion, "While he was talking a shining cloud came over them and a voice from the cloud said, "This is my own dear Son, with whom I am pleased - listen to him.."
As we continue this scriptural testimony to the divine of Christ let's consider penultimately seven texts. We will feel their weight all the the more effectively if I read them to you as a whole.
They all come from John's Gospel,
1v34, "I have seen it, said John, and I tell you that he is the Son of God."
5v36, "But I have a witness on my behalf which is even greater than the witness that John gave; what I do, that it, the deeds my Father gave me to do, these speak on my behalf and show that the Father has sent me."
5v37, " And the Father who sent me, also testifies on my behalf."
5v39, "You study the scriptures because you think that in them you will find eternal life. And these very scriptures speak about me. "
8v14 - 16, "Even though I do testify on my own behalf what I say is true because I know where I came from and where I am going....I am not alone in this; te Father who sent me is with me."
15v26, "...The Spirit who reveals the truth about God and who comes from the Father, I will send him to you from the Father and he will speak about me."
15v27, "And you too will speak about me because you have been with me from the very beginning."
And lastly for today consider the witness recorded in scripture of evil spirits. Now there are a number of reference to this in scripture but let me quote just one from Luke 4v41, "Demons also went out from many people, screaming, "You are the Son of God!" Jesus gave the demons an order and would not let them speak because they knew that he was the Messiah."
From Jesus' own words, the testimony of his friends, voices from heaven and words of the evil spirits themselves - we have a single common theme - Jesus is divine. He is God. But what does that mean? And that's where we will pick up our study tomorrow night...what does it mean when we say Jesus is God?
But we must consider one other factor .... Jesus laid all these things before the people. Today that same truth is laid before you as it has been faithfully for years. What does Jesus say?
John 5v39, "Yet you are not willing to come to me in order to have life...."
And that's a puzzle. Here we are with the offer of eternal life. Freedom from sin. The offer of love, a place in heaven. We see Jesus reaching out towards us....and how few there are who will embrace the faith, "yet you are not willing to come to me in order to have life......"
So few there are who will embrace Jesus as Lord....maybe this coming week will be a time of real commitment - the time to make the real change in your life..... and for those who have already embraced life in all it fullness this week will be time of real joy and real learning and real worship. Together we walk forward in faith towards eternity. "Come to Jesus in order to have life."