My servant grew up in the LORD’s presence like a tender green shoot, like a root in dry ground. There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him. He was despised and rejected— a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care. Isaiah 53:2-3
One of the great things about God is that He wants us to know Him. Not just know about Him, but, to know Him. Obviously as human beings we are defined by the laws of the universe within which we exist and it’s impossible with our finite limitations to fully understand an eternal being with infinite power over time and space. Thus we debate and argue over who or what God is, or if we even believe in Him in the first place. But for those who do, God gave us the Bible. He allows us a glimpse into who He is and how He thinks and what He wants.
When we take a look at Jesus within the pages of His Word we can visualize to some degree what he looked like as a man. We know that he was born in the middle east so he would have the physical characteristics of a middle eastern man. We know that his dad was a carpenter and it’s reasonable as the oldest son in his family to suggest that he had some training as a carpenter. We don’t know much about his childhood except that at the age of 12 he already had a firm command of Old Testament Scripture; he amazed the scholars and teachers of the law with his knowledge even as a kid. We also know that even in his youth he either fully knew what his purpose was or he had a really good idea. He told His mom that his priority was to be about his Father’s work, and it wasn’t Joseph or carpentry he was talking about.
As an adult we know that he didn’t own anything significant. He made the comment to his followers that he didn’t own a home or even live in one. His skin would have been dark toned, not only due to his gene pool, but because he spent the majority of his time outside. His feet would’ve been deeply calloused from walking town to town. He apparently was no GQ model either. The description in Isaiah 53 says he wasn’t attractive. I’m not sure if this hurts his feelings or not, but, it’s what the Bible says. We know that sometimes he slipped out of sight in the middle of crowds so he just looked like any ordinary first century middle eastern guy.
The Bible doesn’t go into a lot of detail about what Jesus looked like primarily because it’s not important. What is important is who Jesus is, what he did and why. And this is what we’re going to focus on this morning.
There may be some here this morning who are wondering why it’s important to even to know this, or maybe you have had conversations with people who want to know more about Jesus. Anytime I talk about faith I like to start by discussing why it’s important to believe in Jesus.
Hebrews 11:6 says, “And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.” We need to have faith that God exists before we can sincerely seek him. In Hebrews 4:12 God tells us that the Word is alive and powerful. I want you to take a look at your Bible, or if you are reading on your smart phone or other device, hold it up. Would you refer to the book or device in your hand as alive and powerful? These are inanimate objects. How can a book be alive and powerful?
These Scriptures teach that without faith we cannot please God. We also know that the Bible is living and powerful. And we’ll discover why in just a moment. With this power you hold in your hands, you’re going to examine the most important person who has ever graced this planet. Introduce yourself to the One who will one day see you face to face and say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”
So who is Jesus?
Let’s read John 1:1, 14-17
In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. So the Word became human[d] and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son. John testified about him when he shouted to the crowds, “This is the one I was talking about when I said, ‘Someone is coming after me who is far greater than I am, for he existed long before me.’” From his abundance we have all received one gracious blessing after another. For the law was given through Moses, but God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. But the unique One, who is himself God, is near to the Father’s heart. He has revealed God to us.
John tells us that the Word was in the beginning. This would be a reference to our beginning. The beginning of life on earth. Not God’s beginning, because he didn’t have one, he’s eternal. Then verse 14 says that this Word became flesh. The Word of God became human. And then John tells us that John the Baptist, Jesus’ cousin shares with people that the Word of God is Jesus himself. There is no doubt based on John chapter 1 that Jesus Christ is the Word of God, that Jesus is God. Jesus is the message of God, all that God wants to say is seen in the life of Jesus. Jesus is the Word of God in flesh. Jesus is the picture of God. Not only did Jesus speak the words of God, He lived them perfectly. Jesus is the living Word of God. This is why the Bible you hold in your hand is alive and powerful. If you understand this as truth then your life is blessed!
The first blessing is that in Jesus there is life:
John 1:4; 12-13 - The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone. But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn—not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God.
The second blessing is that in Jesus you know God:
John 1:18 - No one has ever seen God. But the unique One, who is himself God, is near to the Father’s heart. He has revealed God to us.
John 14:6-8 - Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. If you had really known me, you would know who my Father is. From now on, you do know him and have seen him!” Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.” Jesus replied, “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and yet you still don’t know who I am? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father! So why are you asking me to show him to you? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words I speak are not my own, but my Father who lives in me does his work through me
So who is Jesus? He is the Word of God and He is God
Jesus got in trouble with the religious leaders of his day because He claimed to be the Son of God, diety with God. So the Jewish leaders tried all the harder to find a way to kill him. For he not only broke the Sabbath, he called God his Father, thereby making himself equal with God. John 5:18
We struggle in our attempts to define or explain God. Is it possible for us to understand how Jesus can be the Son of God, and God at the same time? Can we explain how he prayed to His Father, yet at the same time is the Father? If I could explain the nature of God in way that I could understand Him fully He would at that point in time cease to be God to me. Simply put, there are aspects of God’s nature and God’s ways that are unexplainable to us. I like to think of it this way. When I flip a switch to turn on the light I’m not exactly sure how the light turned on. I’m not an expert in electricity. You may have a general idea of how electricity works, but, do you have to totally understand electricity to know that the light works?
Philippians 2:6 says, Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.
The phrase “Though he was God” as translated by the NLT in greek is the word morphe. We get the word morph from this word. Thanks to pop culture, movies, books and comics we have a general idea of what it means for something to morph into something else. This is what Jesus did as God he morphed into a human being. Bruce Wayne morphs into Batman. Peter Parker morphs into Spiderman. Bruce Banner morphs into the Hulk. And of course everyone knows Clark Kent morphs into Superman. These are human beings who morph into something stronger, more durable, and bigger than life. They can do things mere humans are not capable of. Humans need these superheroes to protect them from the evil in the episode. The ultimate superhero of all time, our real superhero, did the opposite he morphed from God into a human being.
Sometimes ancient languages, especially languages that are not spoken anymore, like the language of the NT, Koine Greek, the original meaning of words are muddled or not quite clear. I like to study from the American Standard Version because it’s the closest version in English to a literal translation of the ancient Greek text. According to the ASV Philippians 2:6 says, “ who, existing in the form of God, counted not the being on an equality with God a thing to be grasped” It’s not the best translation to read, but, I like this because it helps me understand a key idea. It’s not that Jesus couldn’t grasp that he was equal with God, it’s that we can’t grasp the idea.
Jesus knew this, so when he says things like, “Why do you call me good? Only God is truly good” He is identifying with the human condition. Jesus constantly points to His Father throughout his ministry, because Jesus wants all of us to point to His Father. Ultimately this is all about God. Jesus is God, but, He, as a human provided an example for what a life about God and for God looks like.
One of the most important Scriptures that speak to why Jesus became a human being is in
Hebrews 2:14-18
Because God’s children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. Only in this way could he set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying. We also know that the Son did not come to help angels; he came to help the descendants of Abraham. Therefore, it was necessary for him to be made in every respect like us, his brothers and sisters, so that he could be our merciful and faithful High Priest before God. Then he could offer a sacrifice that would take away the sins of the people. Since he himself has gone through suffering and testing, he is able to help us when we are being tested.
So who is Jesus? He is the Word of God, He is God and He is our Savior
Colossians 2:12-15 says, “For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead. You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.”
To know for sure if you are growing as a Christian you must realize that you are changed by your relationship with God. You do not try to figure out what list of rules is required to go to heaven. Rather, you simply submit your heart, soul, mind, and strength to God because of your love for Him.
The Gospel of John sums it up best when he concludes his book with
The disciples saw Jesus do many other miraculous signs in addition to the ones recorded in this book. But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in him you will have life by the power of his name.
John 20:30-31
One of the things that I enjoy doing to discover more about who Jesus is and how I can be more like him with my attitude and priorities is to walk through one of his stories told in the Gospel books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John and take note of three parameters.
First, in the story I’m reading what do I observe about the personality of Jesus. Was he kind, generous, angry, patient, was he positive, negative, and/or critical?
Second, what do I discover about his priorities. What does Jesus consider most important; what does he put first and/or what is he willing to sacrifice to achieve his priorities?
Third, how did Jesus display his power? What does he have power over? What really amazes me about his power?
Using these parameters as a means of discovering more about Jesus let’s walk through a quick story in his life and then you can go home and try it for yourself.
In John 2:1-11 We find Jesus in the home of a family friend who is hosting a wedding celebration. During the course of the celebration all the wine in the house is consumed. This would leave the host frantic. This was a social outrage. The friends and family attending this celebration would never allow these folks to live this down. At every social function from now on, they would be the laughing stock the brunt of all the jokes. “Remember when the Horovitz’s ran out of wine? They spent so much money on themselves they couldn’t afford to take care of their own guests.” Hahahahah....Apparently Mary was on very good terms with the hosts. They were probably related. For whatever reason Mary feels that she needs to do something about it to help out her friends, understanding the gravity of the situation, she took her son aside and asked him to make more. And of course like any son, Jesus argues with his mom. “No”, he says. “It’s not my problem. It’s not time for me to make this kind of move”. And of course like any mom, she just ignores him, and tells the servants to do what Jesus tells them to do. Mary was a mover, a shaker and from this story we can gather influential, too. So Jesus tells the servants to fill six stone water jars used for washing feet, hands and other ceremonial cleansing rites with water. Then he tells them to dip into the water jar and take the sample to the DJ, well, that’s what we would call him today. The DJ is very impressed and also confused so he asks the bridegroom about it. Hosts of parties back in Jesus day always served the best wine first. People were sober enough to appreciate it. But after knocking back a few, taste buds are numb and nobody knows the difference. But this was the best wine the DJ had all night. Why are you serving the best wine now? We don’t know how the bridegroom answered that one, but, we’re told that after Jesus turned hand washing water into the best tasting wine at the party his disciples believed in him.
So from this story what do we see of Jesus personality? I find him to be a mommy’s boy. And even though as God he doesn’t feel the timing is right, he obeys his mom.
What do I discover of his priorities? His obedience to his mom despite his reservation about the timing of his life’s work is important to note. His relationship with his mom is a priority. He tells John to take care of his mom as he died on the cross. Jesus also doesn’t just make wine. He makes the best wine. If Jesus is going to do something, he does it well.
And what does this story from Jesus life show me about his power? Obviously he has power over creation. He can change the physics of nature. As the creator he has the power to make his creation into whatever he wants it to be.
I hope this morning that I helped you to understand more about who Jesus is. Of course there is so much more to discuss and discover but our time is limited. I encourage you to go home and try the exercise that I did with you this morning. Other stories you can look at are John 5:1-18; John 8:1-11; Matthew 4:1-11; and Matthew 14 (one of Jesus longest days) or choose your own.
I pray that you are ready to know Jesus as your Savior today. You can talk to one of our church leaders who are here this morning. Jesus is the only way to God. Obeying the Word of God who is Jesus, we can’t separate the two, they are one and the same is the only way for you to experience eternal life.
Don’t do what many have already done. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care. I hope this morning that you will face him, acknowledge him and care about who He is.
