Sermon Date: May 8, 2011
Sermon Title: Jesus Was Just a Man
Sermon Text: Luke 1:35, John 2:1-5, Mark 14:1-2
Small Group Text: See below.
The most profound question that has ever… or will ever be asked was put forward by a Jewish carpenter turned Rabbi living 2,000 years ago: "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?" (Matthew 16:13) The right answer to this question is as problematic today as it was back then, but for different reasons. Back then, the right answer was thought to be blasphemous by the religious elite of Jesus’ generation. Today, the right answer is thought to be ludicrous within a rationalistic world-life view. And yet the New Testament church has historically believed that how a person answers this question determines his/her eternal destiny. The theological term used to describe God becoming a man is the word, incarnation which means simply “the bodily appearance of God.” The theology of the Christian church is founded upon the divine incarnation of the Son of God, Jesus Christ. Remove the deity of Jesus and there is no Christianity. But it is his claim to be God incarnate – and his ability to support that claim – that has made the person of Jesus so controversial. This then is the pivotal question that has divided Christ’s followers from his critics over the past twenty centuries: is Jesus Christ truly God revealed as a human being? In our day, it falls within the parameters of political correctness for the church to assert that Jesus was an extraordinarily gifted person, a moral person, a wise philosopher, a Jewish sage and a political reformist. But in a rationalistic, relativistic culture such as ours, it is socially unacceptable to claim that he is God and that his teachings are the sole means to life beyond the grave and the only viable solution to global problems. To compound this dilemma, Christ’s deity presents a personal crisis for anyone who recognizes it as fact. Inherent within this acknowledgement is the decision to either bow to the Lordship of Jesus Christ or reject his rightful rule over one’s life – if indeed he is God as the Bible claims. All this taken into consideration, it’s to be expected that alternative ideas have emerged over time about who Jesus of Nazareth really is. And yet there is no skirting the impact of Jesus’ life upon the world. One author, Dr. James Allen Frances, described the life of Jesus this way:
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He was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman. He grew up in still another village, where He worked in a carpenter shop until He was thirty years old. Then for three years He was a poor itinerant preacher. He never wrote a book. He never held public office. He never had a family nor owned a house. He never went to college. He never traveled more than 200 miles from the place where He was born. Jesus did none of the things one usually associates with greatness. He had no credentials but Himself. He was only thirty-three when public opinion turned against Him. His friends deserted Him. He was turned over to His enemies and went through a mock trial. He was nailed to a cross between two thieves. When He was dying, His executioners gambled for His clothing, the only property He had on earth. When He was dead, He was laid in a borrowed tomb because of the pity of a friend. Two thousand years have passed, and today He is still the central figure of the human race. He still will not be relegated to a particular niche of our experience nor will He compromise His principals for the sake of political correctness. All the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever sailed, all the parliaments that ever sat, all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man on earth as much as that one solitary Life He is Immanuel, Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. He is the Plumb Line, the Rock of Ages, the Lily of the Valley, and the Bright and Morning Star. (http://lavistachurchofchrist.org/LVarticles/StoryOfJesus.html)
The person of Jesus Christ belongs to history. Few qualified historians question the fact that Jesus of Nazareth actually lived. But the Bible does not merely acknowledge Jesus’ historical existence. The Scriptures go further to say that Jesus was both human and divine, perfect man and perfect God. This Christian doctrine was formally recognized at the First Council of Ephesus (431 A.D.) where church leaders employed the term “hypostatic union” to describe the coming together of Christ's humanity and divinity. This was not to infer that Jesus was some-part-man and some-part-God; but rather, that he was fully man and fully God in one personality. A Sample of Biblical Evidence for Jesus’ deity • •
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Direct statement (John1:1,2) Indirect statements: o Worshipped as God (John 20:28) o Equal with God in name (Matthew 28:19) o Equal with God in character (Colossians 1:15-20; Hebrews 1:3) o Equal with God in nature (essence) (John 10:30) Jesus Christ does the work of God o Creates the universe (John 1:3-10) o Upholds creation (Colossians 1:17) o Is able to forgive sin (Mark 2:7) o Raises the dead (John11:25) o Judges all things (John 5:22) Christ Himself claimed to be God: o That he preexisted prior to life on earth: He existed before Abraham (John 8:58-59) He pre-existent in heaven with glory before His incarnation (John 3:13; 6.33, 38, 62; 8.23, 42;10:30-39;16:28;17.5) o Accepted the title “Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:15-17; Mark 8:29-30; Luke 9:20-21) o Said he had seen the Father the Father (John 6:46) o Said, “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30) o Said he could and would forgive sins (Mark 2:5-11, Luke 5:20-24) o Said prayer should be made in his name (John16:23,24) o Claimed to be God while on trial (Matthew 26:63-64; Mark 14:61-64; Luke 22:70) even at the peril of His life for claiming it o To know Christ was to know God (John 8:19; 14:7) o To see Christ was to see God (John 12:45) o To receive Him was to receive God (Mark 9:37) o To believe Him was to believe God (John12:44) o To honor Him was to honor God (John 5:23) o To hate Him was to hate God (John15:23)
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If today, over 2,000 years later, we’re suspicious of the idea that Jesus claimed to be God; or if we’re inclined to think the church conjured up the claim to lend credibility to the faith; let’s at least be sure of this one thing: According to the Biblical record, the Jews within earshot of Jesus’ claim understood perfectly well what he said and meant. To them, anyone claiming to be God would be the most wicked blasphemy that could come from the mouth of man – and worthy of death. (Matthew 26: 63-66; Mark 14:55-65; Luke 22:63-65; John 5:1718; 8:58-59). Alternative explanations: What would be your impression of someone who claimed to be God in the flesh, God incarnate – the perfect reflection of God? There seems to be only a few options for how we might process such a claim. Either the person is a liar, a lunatic, a legend, or the Lord of life. Was Jesus a liar? Even religious scholars from various world religions – though not acknowledging the deity of Christ – readily admit that the historical Jesus of Nazareth was a great moral teacher and one of the greatest men who ever lived. Could Jesus come down through 2,000 years of history as a “great moral teacher” and also be the instigator of the greatest deception in world history? It’s not likely. Never once, according to Biblical history, did Jesus’ most ardent critics catch him in a lie or deception. Instead, he has become known as the personification of truth (John 14:6). Was Jesus a lunatic? No imbalance in his mental or emotional conditions are ever evident from the Biblical account of his life, ministry and teaching. Nor do his critics accuse him of mental illness. His enemies accused him of sacrilege, but not mental illness. It is also worthy to note that under the most extreme pressure (e.g., multiple trials within several hours and the threat of the worst kind of death), Jesus maintained a calm, composed and controlled disposition. Even Pontius Pilate, fifth Prefect of the Roman province of Judaea, (26–36 A.D.) was impressed with Jesus’ composure throughout the trial that led to Jesus’ execution (Luke 23:4; John 18:38; 19:4-6). Was Jesus a legend? “Perhaps, the problem is not Jesus’ alleged claim to be God, but the dubious character of the Christian church. In the attempt to add credibility to the Christian faith, the church, over time, perpetuated a myth – a legend – that Jesus claimed to be God. A myth that Jesus – the good moral teacher – would have denied outright!” These, or words to this affect, have been put forward by scholars who cannot accept the Biblical record of Christ’s claim. Is this explanation within the realm of possibility? •
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The problem of time: A legend takes time to form (to be embellished) – at least a full generation if not hundreds of years. Think of the legend of Robin Hood or King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Obviously a legend or myth takes time to form; otherwise, people still living could readily refute the myth and kill it before it spreads. For example: President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963. Any mythical stories attaching to his life and service could easily be dismissed by eyewitness accounts of people still living today. The Gospel records of Jesus were written within half a generation of his life. Countless people were available to refute and disprove the Gospel claims – but instead, the deity of Jesus Christ formed the cornerstone of Christianity from its inception. The cultural climate was not favorable to a mythical savior: o The Romans (prevailing culture of the day) were less superstitious than the earlier cultures – having an affinity for knowledge, facts and empirical evidence. o The Jews also were known for brokering in cold, hard evidence. They wanted to see with their own eyes the evidence for truth claims. It seems foolish to the Jews because they want a sign from heaven as proof that what is preached is true; and it is foolish to the Gentiles because they believe only what agrees with their philosophy and seems wise to them. 1 Cor. 1:22 (Living)
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Doubtful sources of the legend: o Was Jesus the source? We have already determined that the nature and character of Jesus Christ would not allow him to perpetrate a bold-faced lie. o Were the disciples the source? Not likely. This suggestion has more problems than answers: • Could simple fishermen really conjure up such a complex system of deceit and then beguile the world into believing a religion based upon a deliberate and preposterous lie? • Was not the character of Christ’s disciples commensurate with their teaching in its emphasis upon moral integrity? Their standard of morality and ethics would hardly allow them to be liars. • Would the disciples die for what they knew was a lie? Men have historically died for wrong ideas but not many men will die for what they know to be a lie. And even if Christ’s claim to deity was a scam, it would seem plausible that at least one disciple would have broken on the threat of torture or death and revealed the whole plot. But not one did. Eleven of the twelve Apostles died a martyr’s death except John who was exiled to the prison island of Patmos for his faithful witness to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Jesus is Lord Therefore, the most plausible explanation is that Jesus really did claim to be God incarnate – the God-man who came from heaven to redeem this lost world back to the Father. We come face to face with the reality that the Son of God shared all of the attributes, glory, and status of God the Father, and that all this really was revealed in the life and words of Jesus Christ. There are simply no other plausible explanations. The earliest texts (multiple manuscripts) bear witness to a divine Christ. These early writings are so close to the events of Christ’s life and ministry as to preclude some “myth-making” activity on the part of the early church. As with citing any ancient historical event, it would be naïve to say there are no difficulties with this conclusion. History is not given to the rigors of the scientific method: an historical event cannot be repeated in the lab. But an honest, objective investigation into the historical facts of Christ’s life and his own claim to be God incarnate, are too stubborn to simply be dismissed because the facts defy common logic. Perhaps the source of this conundrum is rooted in the philosophical presupposition that there is no God; and if there were One, he would not or could not reveal himself through an incarnation. But for those of us who believe – who know with absolute certitude that Jesus is the Son of the Living God, we are assured that Jesus Christ will someday prove once again that he is more than a man. He will come to earth a second time in glory, majesty and divine supernatural power and the whole world will be astonished at his coming. For then, there will be no doubt that Jesus Christ is God in the flesh. •
Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen. Rev. 1:7
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