TELL ME THE STORY OF JESUS

TELL ME THE STORY OF JESUS

Pat Farish

               Where does the story of Jesus begin?  In Matthew 1 and Luke 1?  How about Genesis 3:15, where after the temptation and sin of Adam and Eve, the Lord God announced the curse on the serpent with these words, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”  This reference to “her offspring” is in anticipation of the virgin birth.   Mary, told by an angel that she was going to have a baby, asked “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” (Luke 1:34).   She was betrothed to Joseph, but “before they came together she was found to be with child”. For this apparent immorality, Joseph “resolved to divorce her quietly.”  But an angel of the Lord appeared to him, saying “do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.  She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”  Joseph “did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son.   And he called his name Jesus” (Matthew 1:18-25). 

The story of Jesus is The STORY OF HIS BIRTH, and adolescence.  Joseph and Mary had gone to Bethlehem to be registered; “And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth.  And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn” (Luke 2:1-7).  As the news of his birth spread, some shepherds received from an angel “good news of great joy that will be for all the people.  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord … And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!’’’ (Luke 2:8-14).   Matthew tells of wise men coming to worship him, bringing rich gifts. They had been enlisted by Herod to find Jesus and come back and tell him where he was.  They were warned in a dream not to return to Herod, so they departed to their own country by another way (Matthew 2:1-12).    Herod thought they  had tricked him (Matthew 2:16).

When he was twelve years old, Jesus went with his parents to Jerusalem at the Feast of the Passover.  When his parents began their return home, they walked a day’s journey before realizing that Jesus was not with them.  They returned to Jerusalem, and – after three days – found him in the temple.  The people “who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers”.  His parents were astonished.   Having searched for the twelve year old for three days, “great distress” (Luke 2:48) is a restrained description, it would seem, of their state of mind.  He “went down with them … and was submissive to them” (Luke 2:51).

The experience in Jerusalem is the only recorded event of Jesus’ youth.  The conclusion of this part of the story of Jesus is in Luke 2:52, “And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature, and in favor with God and man”.

The story of Jesus is THE STORY OF HIS COMPASSION.    Compassion means “a feeling of sorrow or pity for the sufferings ,,, of another; sympathy” (American College Dictionary).

Compassion is required of Christians.  It was found in the lives of Hebrew Christians, who “had compassion on those in prison …” (Hebrews 10:34).   Paul wrote that Christians should “Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts …’  (Colossians 3:12)

That spirit of compassion Christians must develop is exemplified in Jesus.  In numerous places in the history of his earthly sojourn he is depicted as being  compassionate.  Jesus “had compassion for” the crowds, because they were harassed and helpless, Matthew 9:36; “had compassion” on a great crowd and healed their sick, 14:14; said “I have compassion on the crowd because they … have nothing to eat”, 15:32; he “had compassion on” the grieving widow whose only son had died; he raised him from the dead, Luke 7:11-15.  In his teaching he often used parables, and in two – the parable of the Good Samaritan, Luke 10:33, and the prodigal son, Luke 15:20, the central character is specifically c00ompassionate.

Jesus wants us to be compassionate, tender-hearted as we observe the distress of others.  Someone may object, “I can’t correct all the sad situations in the world”, and that is true; and fortunately that is not required of us.  We just need to be sensitive to the situations we observe, and be prepared to do what we can.  As Jesus was, we must be “kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32).

The story of Jesus is THE STORY OF HIS INCARNATION.  Incarnation is “assumption of human form or nature, as by a divine being: the incarnation of God in Christ” (American College Dictionary).  John 1:1 has it, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God”.  Drop down to verse fourteen and read, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth”.  So, God became man. 

Did you ever wonder how Jesus could live thirty-three years, and never sin one time?  Perplexed by the awareness of my sins, I figured that he, having come from heaven, remembered what it was like there, and thus was able to rise above earthly temptation by thinking about that.  But, no; that is not the explanation of Jesus’ sinlessness. 

He “in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15).  Tempted as we are.  When we are tempted we have a choice to make; so Jesus, tempted as we are, had to choose.  He never made the wrong choice!  How did he do it?   Any explanation of his sinlessness which involves his deity, is a wrong explanation.  The Bible teaches that Christ “suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps.  He committed no sin … “ (I Peter 2:21, 22).  If Jesus did not sin because he was God, he was no example for man, who is not God.

How then did he live without sin?  He was tempted (Matthew 4:1-11), but he did not yield, because he was not tempted more than he could bear.  What is written in I Corinthians 10:13 explains Jesus’ sinlessness and our guilt, because  we are not tempted more than we can bear, either. “No temptation has overtaken you that  is not common to man.  God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape that you may be able to endure it.”  Jesus was sinless because he did not have to yield to temptation, and he did not yield.  Man is sinful because he did not have to yield to temptation, but he yielded.

The story of Jesus is THE STORY OF THE LAMB OF GOD.  In the time of the patriarchs and the Mosaic dispensation, lambs were used in sacrifice.  The lamb to be used must be “without blemish, a male a year old” (Exodus 12:5).  In Isaiah 53:7, the prophecy of the coming Messiah includes the suffering servant,  portrayed as “a lamb that is led to the slaughter”.   This is the background for the exclamation of John the baptist in John 1:29, ”The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, ‘Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world’”.  Jesus became man, “became flesh”, so he could be a sacrifice for sin.

The story of Jesus is THE STORY OF HIS DEATH.  He had spoken freely of his death; for instance, in Matthew 16:21, “From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”  

He prayed.   Matthew 26 tells of his prayer in Gethsemane,  praying to the Father, “My father, if it be possible let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you  will”.  A second time he made this appeal (:42); and then a “third time saying the same words again” (:44).  This is not merely the anguished pleading of a man facing death; rather, the death he is facing is one of unspeakable and indescribable horror.  His death will pay the penalty for all the sin of the world – from the first time in the Garden, to the present day, and for as long as the world stands.

The phrase “cheap grace” has been employed to deprecate God’s plan for man’s salvation; but there is nothing cheap about what Jesus suffered in paying for the sins of the world.  Try to comprehend it: his physical suffering on the cross was just a small part of his suffering:  he died, to pay what we owed, for our sin.

Listen: “Christ died for the ungodly … for us” (Romans 5:6-8); Christ “gave himself for our sins” (Galatians 1:4); “Christ died for our sins” ( I Corinthians 15:3); Christ “died for us …” (I Thessalonians 5:10).

John 19:34 tells of a soldier piercing Jesus’ side with a sword, and blood and water coming forth – he was dead.  The Romans, and the Council, and his disciples, knew he was dead. “When the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God, saying ‘Certainly this man was innocent!’” (Luke 23:47).  The Council, having engineered, as they thought, his death, rejoiced.  His disciples were hopeless; Luke 24:21, “But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.”

The story of Jesus Is THE STORY OF HIS RESURRECTION.  He was dead.   Roman soldiers, experts in death, were there making it sure.  He arose – as he had promised, Matthew 16:21 (and others).

The resurrection enabled HOPE: Peter will write  “According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (I Peter 1:3). 

“Hope” is desire plus expectation.  Things we desire but know we cannot get: no hope.  Things we expect but do not desire: no hope. 

Hope is important.  Lack of hope seems the motivation of Peter in John 21:3.    Paul includes it as one of three things that “abide“ (I Corinthians 13:13).  The hope of salvation is the Christian’s helmet, I Thessalonians  5:7.  What changed Peter?  “The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead”!  Confessing that Jesus is the Christ is the key to hope.  “Rejoice in hope’, Romans 12:12

“JUDGEMENT” is coming.  God “commands all people everywhere to  repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead’, Acts 17:30, 31.

One of these days we are going to wake up in the presence of God.  Do you think you will get a pass from that appointment?  Jesus was raised from the dead to give assurance that “we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil” (II Corinthians 5:10).

The resurrection declared Jesus to be THE SON OF GOD.  Romans 1:4,  he “was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord”.

Of all the miracles surrounding the life of Jesus, including his birth of a virgin, his healing the sick, feeding the multitude from nothing, raising the dead; his resurrection is the ultimate point.  If the resurrection is true, nothing else can be challenged.  The resurrection could be disproved, if it was a fraud.  If he was not raised from the dead, just produce his body – they could have done that then; and they would have, if they could – but they didn’t, so they couldn’t.  The empty tomb is the hallmark of the resurrection of Jesus.  ”He has risen”.

The story of Jesus: his heel bruised, a minor setback; Satan’s head bruised, a mortal wound: Hebrews 2:14, 15, he partook of flesh and blood like the children, “that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery”.

The story of Jesus: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”