THE KNOWLEDGE OF JESUS CHRIST

The Knowledge Of Jesus Christ

John 5:39-40; Luke 24:27, 44; Phil.3:10

“Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.” (John 5:39–40)

“And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.” (Luke 24:27)

“And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.” “Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,” (Luke 24:44-45)

“That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;” (Philippians 3:10)

If you were asked to give a clear explanation to a non-believer of who Jesus is, what will your answer be? What will you say to them? Jesus asked His disciple this same question, “Who do men say I am?” We too must answer that question. We will approach it with humility and restrict ourselves to what the Bible says about our Lord Jesus Christ and what He says about Himself, and that will suffice us.

HIS NATIVITY

Gen.3:15; Micah 5:2; John 1:1-3; 8:56-58; Mat.22:41-45; Col.2:8-10

Jesus said some things about himself while He was still ministering and after His resurrection that are worthy of note as we set out to study the scriptures. He said that the entire Hebrew Scriptures wrote about Him. Moses wrote of Him. The Prophets wrote of Him and the Psalms wrote of Him. Just so you understand, the Hebrew Bible is divided into three parts: (i) The Torah (all five books of Moses), (ii) The Nevi’im (All the Prophets), and (iii) The Ketuvim (All the Psalms and associated books). Jesus said that the entire Hebrew Scriptures spoke of Him. Imagine what this could have meant to His immediate hearers. Preposterous! Unthinkable! Unbelievable! You could see why they would pick up stones to stone Him. Some other times they would demand, “Who are you?” (John 8:25). He told the Jews, “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it and was glad” (John 8:56), and “Before Abraham was, I am” (John 8:58). He said, “David called (Me) Lord” (Mat.22:41-45; Psalm 110:1)

Prophecies About

Isaiah 7:14; 9:6; Jer.23:5-6; Micah 5:2; Mal.3:1-3; Dan.7:13-14

Prophecies about the birth of Christ is written throughout the Scriptures. What we have on the outline are just some of the more direct prophecies. He would be from the tribe of Judah (Gen.49:10). He would be born in Bethlehem (Mic.5:1-2). He would ride on an ass or a donkey (Zech.9:9). He would be tortured (Psalm 22). He would come before the destruction of the second Temple (Dan.9:24-27). He would die, be buried and resurrected (Isa.52:13-53:12).  

In the Hebrew Bible Isaiah 7:14 reads, “The young woman” shall conceive and bear a child”. So it is not just ‘a young woman’ or ‘a virgin’, but THE young woman, – a particular young woman, Mary, the chosen young woman – shall conceive and bear a Son.

In chapter 9:6 the prophecy continues in greater detail by giving the Child’s Names –Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. What child is this? According to prophecy, His coming would take many by surprise (Mal.3:1; Isa.53:1-2). Prophet Isaiah was filled with perplexity when the life of Christ from birth to death was revealed to him.

He is the Righteous Branch and the Lord our Righteousness in (Jer.23:5-6). In (Dan.7:13-14), He is called the Son of Man who will receive authority to rule in an everlasting Kingdom.

The Annunciation

Luke 1:11-17, 26-33; Mat.18-21; John 1:1-3; Isa.40:1-5; Mat.3:1-3;

His birth was preceded by the birth of a forerunner, John, the Baptist. He came to prepare the way for the Messiah. John stirred up the people with sharp and uncompromising messages. “Repent for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Mat.3:1-2). He told them that he was the voice prophesied in (Isa.40:1-5) declaring “prepare ye the way of the Lord”.

Mary was espoused to marry Joseph the carpenter, but God chose her womb to carry the Messiah! She said, “How can this be since I am still a virgin? God said don’t worry, that’s why I chose you. She said but I have never known any man, Joseph and I are not married yet. God said don’t worry, that’s why I chose you. I am God. I create things out of nothing! When Mary submitted to the will of God the miracle Immaculate Conception took place. When we submit to the will of God, the miraculous will take place. Things that were not will be brought into existence.

The Birth

Gen.32:25-32; Mal.3:1-3; Luke 2:5-14; Mat.2:1-2; John 1:1-3, 14

The Old Testament details many pre-incarnate appearances of our Lord Jesus Christ. The “Man” who wrestled with Jacob (Gen.32:25-32); the Angel who came to visit Abraham and made him a promise (Gen.18:1-5, 9-10), who spoke to Abraham about the destruction of Sodom (Gen.18:16-22); the Captain of the LORD’s host who appeared to Joshua (Josh.5:13-15). He was the Smitten Rock which gave abundant water in the wilderness (Exo.17:6; Num.20:7-11).

But He became flesh and was born in the form of a man (John 1:14). The birth of Jesus Christ was heralded by angels. They sang glory to God at His birth. To further confound the ruling powers of the moment, He was born in a manger! This is what marked the beginning of Christ’s human existence on earth among His creation. This is beyond what our minds can comprehend. Wise men came to worship Him. Wicked men tried to wipe Him out.

Of this incomparable One it is said that “in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God”; yet such an One, who thus occupied the highest place of Deity in company with the Father and the Spirit, “was made flesh, and dwelt among us.” He who is from everlasting to everlasting was born of a woman and died on a cross. He who according to the mind of the Spirit is Wonderful, was spit upon by men. He who, by the same mind, is Counsellor is rejected of men. He who is The mighty God is crucified in abject weakness. He who is The everlasting Father, is a Son who learned obedience by the things which He suffered. He who is The Prince of Peace must Himself tread the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God, for the “day of vengeance” must yet be in His heart and He must yet break the nations with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces as a potter’s vessel. He who said, “I am among you as he that serveth,” also said, “Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.” He who is the chaste, wooing Lover of the Canticles is the King of glory who is mighty in battle. He who created all things occupied an infant’s cradle. He who is holy, harmless, undefiled, and separate from sinners was made to be sin in behalf of others. He who was the Bread of Life was Himself hungry. He who was the giver of the supernatural Water of Life was Himself thirsty. He who was God’s Gift of Life to a lost world was Himself dead. He who was dead is alive forevermore.^[1]

This is the great mystery of Christ the Messiah of Israel, the Saviour of the World, Christ, who has both humanity and divinity. Paul the apostle captures this in a poignant, emotional and moving prose in (Phil.2:5-11).

HIS NAMES

Isa.7:14; 9:6; Jer.23:5-6; Mat.1:21; John 2 1:1-3

His Name is Jesus (Yeshua) (Mat.1:21); Son of Man; Son of Abraham; Son of David (these show his humanity); Wonderful, counsellor, The Mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace (Isa.9:6); The Lord our Righteousness (Jer.23:5-6); He is Immanuel (Isa.7:14); He is The Word (Logos). All these show His Divinity. As Logos, He was in the beginning. He was with God, and He was God (John 1:1). Jesus was not created. He was not made. He was the only begotten (John 3:16). This word is translated from the Greek word, monogenes. In the way it was applied to Christ, it means unique in kind, the only one of its class (John 1:14, 18; 3:16, 18). Jesus is unique and shares the same nature as God the Father. He is different from believers who are only sons of God by creation and adoption. No ordinary flesh and blood man can hold the names attributed to Christ. The Mighty God can only be applied to God. The everlasting Father can only be applied to God. The Judge of all the earth can only be God. Jesus is the Mighty God.

HIS MINISTRY

Mat.1:21; John 3:14-19; Isa.52:13-14; 53:1-12

He is the Saviour (John 3:16). He is the Light of the World; He is the Bread of Life; He is the Good Shepherd (John 10:7-11, 14; Psalm 23); He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29); He is the Sin Bearer (2Cor.5:22). He is Messiah the Prince, the Deliverer, the Giver of the water of Eternal Life (John 4:13-14). He told His hearers, “The thief cometh not but for to steal and to kill and to destroy, but I am come that they might have life and have it more abundantly” (John 10:10).

Jesus came to reconcile man to God. All humans are born to live in relationship with God. That relationship was broken by sin. So Christ came that He might destroy the works of the devil and reconcile man to God. If you haven’t got this relationship with God, you will feel a deep, deep void inside of you, a gap, a feeling of emptiness. Nothing in this world can fill that void. Relationship with men or women cannot fill the void. Sex outside or inside marriage cannot fill the void. It deepens the void instead. Money and wealth cannot fill the void. Drugs, alcohol abuse cannot fill the void. Sports activities, education, recreation, closest human relationships all fail to fill that void.

Only a full relationship with God, a reconciled position with God, can fill the void. Jesus Christ came to fill that void in man. If you don’t have Jesus, that void is still there. In (John 8:3-12), we see a perfect example of Christ’s reconciling work. With the command, “Go and sin no more” the void was filled, and the woman in that story was set free. He is the Bread of life (John 6:35), the only one who can satisfy our hunger for meaning and purpose in life; hunger for forgiveness (Mark7:20-23), desire for life beyond death (Eccl.3:11).

Jesus Christ is the Only Way to God (John 14:6). Eternal life flows from Him (John 4:13-14). He is the Judge of the living and the death, Who is to be honoured as the Father is honoured (John 5:18-27). He is the Light of the world bringing the light of the Gospel message into the darkness of human hearts (John 1:9; 8:12; 9:5; 12:46). If you believe and walk with Him you will not walk in darkness.

He died to give us freedom and power. Power to be free from sin and its guilt and consequences (Rom.6:23); Power to be free from addiction of any sort (John 8:34, 36); Power to be free from fear, fear of death; fear of the unknown (Heb.2:14-15). For those who believe in Jesus, death is not the end. It is the gateway to heaven. Power to know God (Isa.59:2). When Jesus died on the Cross, He removed the barrier between us and God. We become His sons and daughters through faith in Jesus Christ. Power and freedom to love. We can now love without the baggage of lust and selfishness (John 15:12-13; 1John 4:19). We love our brothers and sisters as Christ loved us. Power to change (Gal.5:22). Christ gives the Holy Spirit to the believer, empowering us to change so that our lives manifest the fruit of the Spirit.

Do you know Jesus? Have you received him as your Lord and Saviour? Are you washed in His blood? Is that void, that emptiness, that separation from God caused by sin still evident in your heart? Do you have assurance that you have been saved? You can receive that today if you commit your life to Jesus. He will forgive your transgressions and remember them no more!

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^[1] Chafer, L. S. (1993). Systematic theology (Vol. 5, p. 4). Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications.