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| Who is Jesus? (Luke 1:26-38) | |||||
 Printer Friendly Version - opens in separate window With Easter approaching our attention is naturally focussed on Jesus. But at Reachout we know that not everyone will have that focus or share our understanding of who Jesus is. For these three weeks I want to focus on who he is, what the events of Easter mean to us and why it is so important that we remember and live in light of the Easter story.a) His full and perfect humanity We need to beware of the theology of popular carols! "Little Lord Jesus no crying he makes"? Luke tells us that he was born just like us (Lk.2:6-7). As a man he got tired, hungry and thirsty. Could Jesus catch a cold or cut himself? Yes! He wasn't armour plated. He was born to a human mother and his ancestry is clear (1:3; 3:23-38) - yet he was also eternal (32b-33). b) His full and perfect deity Although his was a human birth to a human mother nevertheless he had no Father but God; he was uniquely God's Son (1:32a, 35). But Jesus didn't become God's son in the same way (or at the same time) as he became Mary's son. Scripture makes it clear that "He was in the beginning with God" John 1:1-2f, 14, 18. God's Son - who was no-one less than God from the beginning and always in relationship of Son to the Father -became Mary's son, fully a human child. c) His holiness His birth was not the result of an improper sexual relationship with a god (1:35); Mary was still a virgin when she gave birth (Matt 1:25). The purpose behind this was that, while fully associating with our humanity, God was making a fresh start: "As it is written: 'The first man Adam became a living being', the last a life-giving spirit...The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven" (1 Cor.15:45,47) Rather than the unbeliever dragging down the relationship, the believer raises it and sanctifies it (1 Cor.7:14). This means that in Jesus there was: 1. No original/inherited sin (Heb 7:9-10) 2. No personal sin (2 Cor.5:21; Heb.7:26-27) Scripture tells us that Jesus was tempted in every way and able to sympathise with our weaknesses (Heb.4:15) … But James tells us that "God cannot be tempted...nor does he tempt anyone" (Jas.1:13). If Jesus was God, how could he be tempted? Was Jesus not able to sin - or able not to sin? It seems obvious that he could not sympathise if he found it easy to cope with temptation, if he had special powers. We do not have special powers. It is important to understand that He was like us. (Matt.26:39,41; Luke 22:44) 1. As God he was not able to sin 2. As man he was able not to sin 3. As himself (the Person he was) he did not sin (Heb.4:14-16) In himself Jesus had both human and divine natures - yet he was one person - fully God yet fully man. "Remaining what he was, he became what he was not." This is that thing that many are troubled by, a mystery, something beyond our experience. Yet God graciously makes it known if not fully understood and it is important that we accept what God has revealed and not reject what God has revealed on the basis of our limited understanding. Historic heresies tend either to jump one way or the other, declaring that Jesus was not fully God or not fully man … or not fully either! We should beware of any teaching that resolves the tension in this way - it is (literally) a wonderful tension; the mystery of God's suffering and God's sovereignty. 1. If Jesus is less than God is he able to save? 2. If Jesus is not a man is he able to save us? (Heb.2:14-18; 1 Tim.2:15) This mystery may be beyond our understanding - but by God's grace not beyond our knowing. It is vitally important that we know what we believe and what we don't believe. But we mustn't stop there. We need to keep refining our understanding of what we believe by reading the Scripture. This is the message we take into the world and, no matter how challenging the task, we are charged with it, equipped for it and, because of Easter, have a living Saviour to be with us in it. (I gratefully acknowledge my debt to Pastor Alistair Hornal of Mission Projects for the notes that formed the substance of this study) |
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