What we believe about salvation really matters because only Jesus could take our place on the cross so that we could have the opportunity to take our place in the relationship with God that we were created for...

This week we have been looking at the fifth statement that comprises our doctrinal statement as a church, which addresses what we believe as a church about the concept of salvation. This statement summarizes the answer to the question “How can we be rescued from the selfishness and rebellion that separates us from God? How can I be restored to the relationship with God that I was created for, but walked away from?’

Wednesday, we looked at a section of a letter in the New Testament of the bible called the book of 2 Corinthians, where we discovered that as a result of what God has done for us through Jesus life, death, and resurrection, we receive a new heart and a new spirit, as the Holy Spirit takes up residence in our lives. As followers of Jesus we have been transformed by Jesus so that we can experience a relationship with God through Jesus.

You see, when God the Father looks at us as followers of Jesus, He does not simply see us. Instead, He sees us in Christ. Right now, in a mystical and spiritual way, God the Father sees you, in Christ, in Heaven. As followers of Jesus we are part of the church, which is the body of Christ here on earth. But even now, we are mystically and spiritually a part of the body of Christ in Heaven. Our old lives prior to Jesus are fading away in the rearview mirror of our lives. We now have a new life that provides us a new hope and a new future with God as a result of our relationship with Jesus.

Today, we will see Paul reveal this reality for us beginning in 2 Corinthians 5:18:

 Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.

Now what is so interesting here is that the word reconciled here, in the language that this letter was originally written in, means to exchange hostility for a friendly relationship. So if Paul was writing this letter in the language that we use in our culture today, these verses might sound something like this:

 “This new life that we have with God is all a result of what God has done for us. Because when we were hostile to God and at odds with God, God chose to exchange that hostility for a friendly relationship through Jesus death on the cross for our selfishness and rebellion. As a result of all that Jesus had done to selflessly place humanity before Himself as He placed Himself on the cross in our place, we have been given the opportunity to be the vehicle that he uses to reestablish a broken relationship between those around us who are far from God and God. We have been given the opportunity to proclaim that God’s transformational activity through Jesus provides all humanity the opportunity to exchange hostility toward God for a friendly relationship with God. By believing, trusting, and following Jesus, God no longer counts our rebellion against us because Jesus has already paid the penalty that was counted against us. And if that was not enough, God has also entrusted us with the responsibility to proclaim to the world that God desires to exchange hostility toward God for a friendly relationship with God through what He has done for us through Jesus.”

Paul then hammers home how the love of Jesus compelled and motivated Paul and other early followers of Jesus to engage in the kingdom mission that they had been given by Jesus in verse 20:

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”?

Here we see Paul paint a powerful word picture for the members of the church at Corinth when it come to the kingdom mission that they had been given and were now passing on to followers of Jesus throughout history: “We are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us.”

 Now in the first century, just as it is today, an ambassador is a representative of someone who speaks or acts on that their behalf. If you are a follower of Jesus, do you realize that that you are an ambassador for Him? As followers of Jesus we are to live our lives in a way that speaks and acts on Jesus behalf.

Paul then proclaimed to the members of the church at Corinth, and humanity throughout history, the message that he was to deliver from Jesus as an ambassador that was representing Jesus. Paul, acting on Jesus behalf, appealed and begged that those who would read this letter would exchange their hostility toward God for a friendly relationship with God.

Paul then provided the reason why they could have the opportunity to exchange their hostility toward God for a friendly relationship with God: “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” In other words, God gave Jesus, who was without sin, the kingdom mission to enter into humanity so the He could live the life we were created to live but refused to live, and then willingly allow Himself to be treated as though He lived our selfish and sinful lives so God the Father could treat us as though we lived Jesus perfect life and enter into a right relationship with Him.

Now this leads us back to the question that will run throughout this series, which is “Dave does what we believe about salvation really matter?” And the answer to that question leads us to a timeless truth about why it really matters. And that timeless truth is this: What we believe about salvation really matters because only Jesus could take our place on the cross so that we could have the opportunity to take our place in the relationship with God that we were created for.

Only Jesus death on the cross in our place could provide, once and for all, the opportunity for all humanity to receive the forgiveness of their selfishness and rebellion and the relationship with God that they were created for. Only Jesus death on the cross, in our place, can satisfy God’s justice when it comes to the punishment for selfishness and rebellion and remove the guilt that results from our selfishness, sin, and rebellion.

Only Jesus resurrection and ascension provide the proof that God the Father accepted Jesus sacrificial willingness to live the life that all humanity refuses to live and die the death that all humanity deserves to die for our selfish rebellion. Only Jesus death and resurrection provides us the opportunity to be rescued from an eternity separated from God as a result of our selfish rebellion, because Jesus selflessly placed humanity before Himself as He placed Himself on the cross in our place.

So here is the question to consider: How are you responding to Jesus selflessly placing humanity before Himself as He placed Himself on the cross in your place? And what makes the answer to this question such good news is how simple it is to have a relationship with Jesus. Receiving the forgiveness for sin and entering into the relationship with God that you were created for can summarized in three simple words: believe, trust, and follow.

First, you need to believe that you have done selfish things that have hurt God and others and are in need of forgiveness and that Jesus was who He said He was; that Jesus was God in a bod, who entered into humanity and allowed Himself to be treated as though He lived our selfish and sinful lives so that God the Father could treat us as though we lived His perfect life. Second, you need to trust that Jesus life, death, and resurrection provides forgiveness of sin and the relationship with God you were created for. And third, you need to follow Jesus as Lord and Leader. It’s as simple as that. 

And because of that reality, my hope and my prayer is that we would respond to the reality that what we believe about salvation really matters because only Jesus could take our place on the cross so that we could have the opportunity to take our place in the relationship with God that we were created for, so that we would experience forgiveness and the relationship with God that we were created for and live lives that God can use to reveal and reflect Jesus to those around us who are far from God.

 

A Death That Results In New Life...

This week we are looking at the fifth statement that comprises our doctrinal statement as a church. This fifth statement addresses what we believe as a church about the concept of salvation. This statement summarizes the answer to the question “How can we be rescued from the selfishness and rebellion that separates us from God? How can I be restored to the relationship with God that I was created for, but walked away from?’

Yesterday we talked about the reality that all humanity throughout history has had this selfish and rebellious bent within us that has driven us to reject the relationship with God that we were created for and that leads us to do things out of that selfishness and rebellion that hurt God and others. And as a result all humanity is in need of rescue because we reflect Adam, who serves as our original representative.

And as we discovered last week, that other representative, that second Adam, so to speak, is Jesus. Jesus represented what humanity was created and designed to be when it comes to how we are to live in relationship with God and in community with one another. Jesus came to humanity to represent humanity and explain to humanity what it means to be truly human. In addition, Jesus is our substitute. Jesus is our substitute in that Jesus took our place on the cross.

Jesus death, once and for all, provided the opportunity for all humanity to experience the forgiveness of their selfishness and rebellion and the relationship with God that they were created for. In other words, Jesus death on the cross provided the opportunity for every sin that humanity would commit past, present and in the future to be paid for.  

Jesus death on the cross provides us salvation because Jesus death alone satisfies God’s justice and removes humanities guilt that results from selfishness, sin, and rebellion. And Jesus resurrection and ascension provide the proof that God the Father accepted Jesus sacrificial willingness to live the life that all humanity refuses to live and die the death that all humanity deserves to die for our selfish rebellion. Jesus resurrection also reveals the victory that He accomplished over selfishness, sin, and death that was brought about by the rebellion of humanity.

Jesus death and resurrection provides us rescue from an eternity separated from God as a result of our selfish rebellion. And in a section of a letter that is recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible called the book of 2 Corinthians, we see the Apostle unpack this reality for followers of Jesus throughout history. So let’s look at this section of this letter together, beginning in 2 Corinthians 5:14:

“For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.

The Apostle Paul begins this section of his letter to the members of the church at Corinth by providing the motivation that drove him and other early followers of Jesus to share the claims of Christ and the message of the gospel with those who were far from God. When Paul uses the word controls here, this word, in the language that this letter was originally written in, literally means to compel or to motivate.

Paul’s point was that the love of Jesus drove Paul to tell others about Jesus. The love of Jesus compelled and motivated Paul and other early followers of Jesus to share God’s message of rescue through the claims of Christ and the message of the gospel throughout the known world. Paul then explains and unpacks the claims of Christ and the message of the gospel to the members of the church at Corinth.

And that message was that Jesus, as our representative and our substitute, died for all. As our representative and substitute, Jesus died on the cross for our selfishness and rebellion in our place. Jesus selflessly placed humanity before Himself as He placed Himself on the cross in our place.

And the reason that Jesus died for all, was so that all died. But what does that mean?  Paul provides that answer to that question in verse 15, when he states that He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.

Paul’s point to the members of the church at Corinth, and to followers of Jesus throughout history, is that just as Jesus placed humanity before Himself as He placed Himself on the cross in our place, as followers of Jesus we are to place Jesus before ourselves and live our lives in way that reveals and reflects Jesus and that is engaged in the kingdom mission that we have been given by Jesus. As followers of Jesus, the selfless love of Jesus should compel and motivate us to live our lives in a way that places Jesus as large and in charge of our lives and that shares that claims of Christ and the message of the gospel with those around us who are far from God.

We see Paul further unpack how the love of Jesus compelled and motivated Paul and other early followers of Jesus to share God’s message of rescue through the claims of Christ and the message of the gospel throughout the known world in verse 16:

 Therefore from now on we recognize no one according to the flesh; even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no longer.

Here we see the Apostle Paul reveal for us the reality that as a result of all that Jesus had done to selflessly place humanity before Himself as He placed Himself on the cross in our place; as a result of how the love of Jesus compelled and motivated Paul and other early followers of Jesus to engage in the kingdom mission that they had been given by Jesus, they recognized no one according to the flesh.  

In other words, Paul and other early followers of Jesus relationship with Jesus and one another was not simply an earthly relationship that would be confined to their time together here on earth. And as a result, Paul and other early followers of Jesus did not view their relationship with Jesus and one another from a human point of view that was focused on externals.

You see, even though Paul and other early followers of Jesus came to a knowledge of Jesus while Jesus was here on earth, Jesus death and resurrection changed forever how these early followers of Jesus came to view and relate to Jesus. Paul then reveals exactly how their view and relationship with Jesus was forever changed as a result of all that Jesus had done to selflessly place humanity before Himself as He placed Himself on the cross in our place in 2 Corinthians 5:17:

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

Now to fully understand what Paul is communicating here, we first need to understand what Paul means when he uses the phrase “in Christ”. With this phrase, Paul is revealing for us the reality that the reason why as followers of Jesus we are new creatures is due to God’s activity through Christ that results in our relationship with Christ. We are new creatures as a result of being transformed by God's transformational activity in our lives through Jesus.

As a result of what God has done for us through Jesus life, death, and resurrection, we receive a new heart and a new spirit, as the Holy Spirit takes up residence in our lives. Now the big fancy church mumbo jumbo talk word for this is the word regeneration. That is what Paul means when he says that if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature. As followers of Jesus we have been transformed by Jesus so that we can experience a relationship with God through Jesus.

You see, when God the Father looks at us as followers of Jesus, He does not simply see us. Instead, He sees us in Christ. Right now, in a mystical and spiritual way, God the Father sees you, in Christ, in Heaven. As followers of Jesus we are part of the church, which is the body of Christ here on earth.

But even now, we are mystically and spiritually a part of the body of Christ in Heaven. Our old lives prior to Jesus are fading away in the rearview mirror of our lives. We now have a new life that provides us a new hope and a new future with God as a result of our relationship with Jesus.

 

Friday, we will see Paul reveal this reality for us…

Satisfying Justice and Removing Guilt....

At the church where I serve, we have been spending our time together looking at what we believe as a church as it is contained in the doctrinal statement of our church. And as we go through this statement, our hope and prayer is to accomplish four specific things.

First, our hope and my prayer is that we would be able to explain what we believe as a church in a clear and straightforward manner. Second, our hope and our prayer is that we would be able to explain what we believe as a church by spending our time together focused on a few passages that best capture what we believe as a church.

Third, our hope and our prayer is that we would be able to explain why what we believe as a church matters. And fourth, our hope and our prayer is that we would be able to explain what we believe as a church in a way that reveals how relevant what we believe is to our day to day lives.

This week I would like for us to look at the fifth statement that comprises our doctrinal statement as a church. This fifth statement addresses what we believe as a church about the concept of salvation. This statement summarizes the answer to the question “How can we be rescued from the selfishness and rebellion that separates us from God? How can I be restored to the relationship with God that I was created for, but walked away from?’ So let’s look at this fifth statement of our doctrinal statement together:

We believe that Jesus Christ, as our representative and substitute, shed His blood on the cross as the perfect, all-sufficient sacrifice for our sins. His atoning death and victorious resurrection constitute the only ground for salvation.

Now as we have talked about throughout this series, to fully understand what is being communicated in this statement, we first need to understand what all the church mumbo jumbo talk words in this statement mean. So, as we have done throughout this series, I would like for us to break down this statement into parts so that we can come to a better understanding of what is being said here.

First, let’s take a minute and unpack the phrase “We believe that Jesus Christ, as our representative and substitute”. As we discovered when we looked at what our doctrinal statement said about humanity, all humanity throughout history has had this selfish and rebellious bent within us that has driven us to reject the relationship with God that we were created for and that leads us to do things out of that selfishness and rebellion that hurt God and others. And as a result all humanity is in need of rescue because we reflect Adam, who serves as our original representative.

However, it is because of this principle of Adam as our representative that we can have hope that God would provide another representative, that could represent us and live the life that we were created for in relationship with God and one another. And as we discovered last week, that other representative, that second Adam, so to speak, is Jesus.

Jesus represented what humanity was created and designed to be when it comes to how we are to live in relationship with God and in community with one another. Jesus came to humanity to represent humanity and explain to humanity what it means to be truly human.

But not only is Jesus our representative. In addition, Jesus is our substitute. Jesus is our substitute in that Jesus took our place on the cross. Jesus Christ entered into humanity and allowed Himself to be treated as though He lived our selfish and sinful lives, so that God the Father could treat us as though we lived Jesus life. Instead of us dying on the cross to pay the penalty for our selfishness and rebellion, Jesus substituted, or took our place on the cross to pay the penalty for our selfishness and rebellion.

This is what is referred to in the second phrase of the doctrinal statement, which says that Jesus “shed His blood on the cross as the perfect, all-sufficient sacrifice for our sins.” When we say that Jesus death on the cross was perfect and all sufficient, we are saying that Jesus death, once and for all, provided the opportunity for all humanity to experience the forgiveness of their selfishness and rebellion and the relationship with God that they were created for. In other words, Jesus death on the cross provided the opportunity for every sin that humanity would commit past, present and in the future to be paid for.  

In addition, by being perfect and all sufficient, we are saying that Jesus death on the cross is the one and only way that deals with our selfishness and rebellion against God so as to satisfy God’s justice when it comes to the punishment for selfishness and rebellion. This makes Christianity different than any other religious systems.

While other religious systems emphasize what we can do to become right with God, only Christianity bases our relationship with God on what God has done for us. This is what is referred to in the final sentence of the doctrinal statement, which says “His atoning death and victorious resurrection constitute the only ground for salvation.”  When we talk about Jesus atoning death, this phrase refers to His willingness to pay the penalty and punishment that our selfishness and rebellion deserve.

Jesus death on the cross satisfied God’s right response of justice and judgment against the sinful rebellion of humanity. Now the big fancy church mumbo jumbo talk word for this is the word propitiation. The word propitiation simply means that God’s right and just response to our selfish rebellion and sin was satisfied through Jesus death on the cross.

But not only does Jesus death on the cross satisfy God’s right and just response to our selfishness and rebellion. Jesus death on the cross also provides us expiation. Now expiation is a big fancy church mumbo jumbo talk word that refers to the removal of the guilt that comes as a result of the selfish rebellion of humanity. You see Jesus death on the cross provides us salvation because Jesus death alone satisfies God’s justice and removes humanities guilt that results from selfishness, sin, and rebellion.

This is the core message of the Gospel, the “Good News” that we have been reconciled to God through Jesus Christ. God chose to use Jesus to reconcile or reunite all of the creation that had been separated from God due to sin, back into proper relationship with Himself. In addition, God chose to use Jesus to redeem or purchase us from slavery to our selfishness and rebellion and place us back into relationship with Himself.

Now you might be thinking to yourself, “Well Dave, how can we know that Jesus death is perfect and all sufficient? How can we know that Jesus death on the cross really does what Jesus said it does”? That is a great question. And the answer to that question is found in the resurrection of Jesus.

You see, Jesus resurrection and ascension provide the proof that God the Father accepted Jesus sacrificial willingness to live the life that all humanity refuses to live and die the death that all humanity deserves to die for our selfish rebellion. Jesus resurrection also reveals the victory that He accomplished over selfishness, sin, and death that was brought about by the rebellion of humanity. Jesus death and resurrection provides us rescue from an eternity separated from God as a result of our selfish rebellion.

And in a section of a letter that is recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible called the book of 2 Corinthians, we see the Apostle unpack this reality for followers of Jesus throughout history. We will begin to look at that section tomorrow…

What we believe about Jesus really matters because Jesus is God in a bod who came to earth to explain God to us and to explain to us what it means to be truly human...

This week we have been looking at the fourth statement that comprises our doctrinal statement as a church. This fourth statement addresses what we believe as a church about Jesus. This statement summarizes the answer to the question “Who is Jesus?”

So far, we have discovered that when we say that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, what we are saying is that Jesus Christ is God-in-a bod. We are saying that Jesus Christ is God who came to earth and became a man without ceasing to be God. In Jesus Christ, we see visibly the nature and character of the invisible God. Jesus has a special status and position in relationship to all creation in that He existed before creation.

In addition, as the hands of creation, all things were created through Him and for Him. Everything was created through Jesus and everything was created for Jesus. Jesus is holding all things together. He holds the earth in its orbit; He holds the laws of gravity in place; He gives us every breath that we take.

And although Jesus existed from all eternity as God, He did not consider and regard His high position as God as something that needed to be held onto or asserted in order to achieve personal advantage or prestige. While Jesus could have kept a firm grasp on His Divine status and privilege, Jesus chose to let go of that status and instead chose to enter humanity to grasp and embrace the form of a condemned slave. Jesus purposefully laid aside His Divine status and the divine prerogatives so as to be able to die.

And because Jesus willingly chose to let go of His divine status and prerogatives and instead chose to enter humanity to grasp and embrace the form of a condemned slave, God responded by raising Him to the highest of heights. At the title that God gave Jesus, every being and power will submit to His prestige and preeminence; whether the beings and powers reside in the Heavenly places, whether the beings and powers reside on earth, or whether the beings or powers reside under the earth. There is no place in existence that will not submit to the title that God gives His Son Jesus as our High Priest and as our Advocate.

Now today we are going to look at the sentence in our doctrinal statement that states “Jesus-Israel’s promised Messiah-was conceived through the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary.” You see, as humanity selfishly rebelled against God, God made a promise to the Jewish people. And that promise was that God would send a rescuer, a deliverer, a Messiah, who would bring the Jewish people back to God and back to prominence in the world.

We see God reveal His promise of a Messiah in a section of a letter in the Old Testament of the Bible called the book of Isaiah. At the time that this section of the book of Isaiah was written, which was between 736 and 734 B.C., the Jewish people were a nation that was divided into two kingdoms, the northern kingdom, which was referred to as Israel and the southern kingdom, which was referred to as Judah. Judah was led by  a man named King Ahaz.

Now King Ahaz was one of the most wicked kings that ever led the Jewish people. King Ahaz embraced the idolatry that had previously consumed the northern kingdom of Israel. As part of his idolatrous worship, King Ahaz even burned his sons in fire. During this time in history, the northern kingdom, Israel made an alliance with the nation of Aram, which was located in modern day Syria, to attack Judah.

And as the united armies of Israel and Aram marched toward Jerusalem, King Ahaz and Judah had a choice; who were they going to trust? Would they trust in the Lord? Or would they place their trust in the nation of Assyria, which were the Jewish people’s hated enemy. However, to trust the nation of Assyria would require entering into a covenant that involved recognition of the Assyrian gods and an admission of their lordship. King Ahaz would have to redesign the temple altar in order that sacrifices to their gods could be made.

It is in this context that the prophet Isaiah approaches king Ahaz as the king is making preparations for the defense of Jerusalem to deliver a message from the Lord. And the Lord’s message to the king was this: “Do not fear this army, because this plan will not occur. And do not place your trust in the Assyrians, place your trust in me. But if you do not trust me, if you trust the Assyrians, understand this; you surely will not last”.

The prophet then put the king to the test by inviting King Ahaz to test God. King Ahaz, however, refused to test God, because Ahaz had already made up his mind. The king had already decided that he would place his confident trust in Assyria instead of the Lord. And it was in this context that Isaiah proclaimed the following beginning in Isaiah 7:13:

Then he said, "Listen now, O house of David! Is it too slight a thing for you to try the patience of men, that you will try the patience of my God as well? Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.

Then some 700 years after this original promise that was given to King Ahaz was fulfilled, another messenger from the Lord, this time the Angel Gabriel, delivered a message from the Lord to a teenage Junior High girl who lived in a small rural town in Israel. A message that Luke records for us in an account of Jesus life in the Bible called the gospel of Luke in Luke 1:26:

Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth,  to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.  And coming in, he said to her, "Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you." But she was very perplexed at this statement, and kept pondering what kind of salutation this was.The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God. "And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. "He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end."

Now God’s message to Mary, if it was communicated in the language that we use in our culture today, would have sounded something like this: “Mary, do not be afraid because God is with you and is going to extend grace to you. God is going to reveal His transformational intervention and activity in your life in a miraculous way. You see, Mary you are going to have a child; and this child is not just any child. You are going to have a son and you are to name him Jesus, or Yahweh saves. And the reason that you are to name Him Jesus is because He is God in a bod. God is coming to the earth through you as the Lord God is sending His Son Jesus, who is God, to take on flesh and fulfill the promise that He had made to bring the Jewish people back to Him. The son that you will give birth to will rule and reign as He reveals and establishes the kingdom of Heaven for all eternity".

Now imagine yourself as Mary. Out of the blue, an angel of the Lord shows up to tell you that you are going to become pregnant and give birth to God: What would you be thinking? What would you be feeling at that point? How would you respond? Probably just like Mary did in verse 34:

Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I am a virgin?"

In other words, Mary is asking “how is this possible?” Now this was not a question of doubt or a lack of faith. Instead, this is a question that flowed from a desire to understand. Mary is asking “How am I going to get pregnant and have a child if I have never had sex before? I mean, usually you have to have sex before you get pregnant. I have not had sex and I am not married, so how am I going to become pregnant with God?” We see the angel Gabriel’s response in verse 35:

 The angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God.

To understand the angel Gabriel’s response, we first need to define some terms. When the Angel Gabriel says "The Holy Spirit will come upon you”, this phrase literally means that the Holy Spirit will come and move upon you. The phrase “the power of the Most High will overshadow you” literally means that the power of God would cover you.

In other words, Mary would become pregnant as a result of the supernatural power of God as displayed through the Holy Spirit, who would creatively and supernaturally bring about the physical conception of Jesus. In church mumbo jumbo talk, this is referred to as the Immaculate Conception and the virgin birth.

Mary did not become pregnant because God had sex with Mary. God moved in a supernatural and unique way, displaying His power through the Holy Spirit, to bring the second member of the Trinity into humanity as the only begotten son of God. That is why the Angel Gabriel stated that the holy Child shall be called the son of God.

The phrase “Son of God”  in the Bible is not a term that is used to simply describe one’s place in a family tree. The phrase “Son of God” is a title that is used to describe Jesus association with God as the second member of the Trinity. As the Holy Child, as God in a bod, Jesus would be set apart as distinct and different from any other human child. Jesus was fully God and fully man.

And Jesus was set apart and sent to earth with a specific mission, which was to give His life to provide humanity an opportunity to be rescued from the selfishness and rebellion that separated humanity from God so that they could receive forgiveness and experience the relationship with God that they were created for.

Now, after unpacking all of that information that is contained within this statement of our doctrinal statement, we still have to answer the question: “Dave does what we believe about Jesus really matter?” And the answer to that question leads us to a timeless truth about why it really matters. And that timeless truth is this: What we believe about Jesus really matters because Jesus is God in a bod who came to earth to explain God to us and to explain to us what it means to be truly human.

What we really believe about Jesus really matters because Jesus is like none other. Jesus is like none other because Jesus is God-in-a-bod. Jesus is God who came to earth and became a man without ceasing to be God. Jesus is like none other because Jesus is 100% God and 100% man. What we really believe about Jesus really matters because Jesus came to humanity to explain God to humanity.

God the Father sent Jesus into humanity to explain Himself to humanity. So, when we wonder what God is like, all we have to do is to look at the life of Jesus. When we wonder how God feels about a certain issue, all we have to do is look at the life of Jesus and see how He responded or answered that issue.

And what we really believe about Jesus really matters because Jesus came to humanity to explain to humanity what it means to be truly human. God the Father sent Jesus into humanity to explain to humanity what a relationship with God was designed to be. Jesus entered into humanity to live the life in relationship with God that we were created and to live, but refused to live. Jesus entered into humanity to live the life in relationship with humanity in community with one another that we were created and to live, but refused to live.

And what we really believe about Jesus really matters because Jesus came to humanity to do something for humanity that humanity was unwilling and unable to do, which was to allow Himself to be treated as though He lived our selfish and sinful lives so God the Father could treat us as though we lived Jesus perfect life.

Abandoning Entitlement So As To Embrace Humanity...

This week we are looking at the fourth statement that comprises our doctrinal statement as a church. This fourth statement addresses what we believe as a church about Jesus. This statement summarizes the answer to the question “Who is Jesus?” This fourth statement of our doctrinal statement states:

We believe that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, fully God and fully man, one Person in two natures. Jesus-Israel’s promised Messiah-was conceived through the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life, was crucified under Pontius Pilate, arose bodily from the dead, ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father as our High Priest and Advocate.

Yesterday, we unpacked the phrase “We believe that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, fully God and fully man, one Person in two natures.” We looked at the reality that when we say that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, what we are saying is that Jesus Christ is God-in-a bod. We are saying that Jesus Christ is God who came to earth and became a man without ceasing to be God.

We believe that Jesus was 100% God and 100% man in one body. We then looked at a letter in the New Testament of our Bible called the book of Colossians, where we discovered that Jesus has a special status and position in relationship to all creation in that He existed before creation. Everything was created through Jesus and everything was created for Jesus.

But not only were we created by Jesus and for Jesus; we talked about the reality that right now, at this moment, Jesus is holding all things together. He holds the earth in its orbit; He holds the laws of gravity in place; He gives us every breath that we take.

In addition Jesus Christ has the special position or status as being the head of the church. Jesus Christ has the special status as being the one who came from God and entered into humanity in order to found the new community of believers called the church through His life, death and resurrection. And it is in Jesus resurrection, as the first, which began the process which we achieve victory over selfishness sin and death and enter into the eternal relationship with God that we were created for by believing, trusting and following Jesus Christ as our Lord and leader.

And as God in a bod, Jesus did what only He could do. Jesus reconciled all things to Himself. Paul’s point here is that God chose to give humanity the gift of His son Jesus in order to reconcile, or reunite, all of creation that had been separated from God due to our selfishness, rebellion and sin, back into proper relationship with Himself

You see, only God is big enough to pay for the sins of all of humanity, past, present and future. And only another human could represent humanity on the cross. A dog, or a cow, could not represent me. Jesus, as God in a bod, did only what He could do. The cross provides reconciliation for all of God’s creation and will bring all of creation, regardless of location, back into proper relationship with God.

We see this reality communicated in the last sentence of our doctrinal statement, which says “He lived a sinless life, was crucified under Pontius Pilate, arose bodily from the dead, ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father as our High Priest and Advocate.” The Apostle Paul further unpacks the truths that make us this section of the doctrinal statement in a section of a letter that is recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible called the book of Philippians. So let’s look at that section together, beginning in Philippians 2:5:

Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.

Paul begins this section of his letter by commanding the members of the church at Philippi, and us here today, to have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus. If Paul was giving us this command in the language we use today, the command would sound something like this; be dominated by the same kind of thinking that dominated Jesus; have the same focused mindset that Jesus had. But what kind of focused mindset did Jesus have?

Paul answers that question for us in verse six, when he states that although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped. In other words, although Jesus existed from all eternity as God, He did not consider and regard His high position as God as something that needed to be held onto or asserted in order to achieve personal advantage or prestige. Jesus never played the “God card”. Although He had every right to do so as the Creator of the universe, Jesus never played that God card. Jesus never used who He was in order to achieve personal advantage or prestige.

Instead of playing the God card, Paul explains to us in verse seven that Jesus emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant. But what does Paul mean when He says that Jesus emptied Himself?  What Paul is communicating here is that Jesus laid or set aside His divine prerogatives and privileges.

Instead of playing the God card, Paul states that Jesus laid aside His Divine prestige and prerogatives in order to engage and enter into our world by taking the form of a bond servant, made in the likeness of men. While Jesus could have kept a firm grasp on His Divine status and privilege, Jesus chose to let go of that status and instead chose to enter humanity to grasp and embrace the form of a condemned slave. Jesus abandoned His entitlement so that He could embrace humanity. But why would Jesus do that?

Paul answers this question with two powerful points. First, Paul explains that Jesus entered into humanity and took on human nature so that He could not only be truly Divine; Jesus entered humanity and grasped and embraced the form of a condemned slave so that He could experience the human condition and the most profound and humbling manner. Paul then gives us the second powerful point in Philippians 2:8. Let’s look at it together:

Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

In verse 8, Paul explains that Jesus purposefully laid aside His Divine status and the divine prerogatives so as to be able to die. You see, God created us for a relationship with Him and one another so that we could each play a small role in His huge story. But instead of entering into the relationship with God and each other that we were created for, we selfishly chose to reject the relationship with God and the role in His story so that we could create our own story, where the story is all about us and where we are the star. 

And God’s response to our selfish rejection and rebellion, which the Bible calls sin was this: “I’ll show you. I’m going to send my one and only Son. And I’m going to send my one and only Son to make things right and to deal with your selfishness. And He is going to deal with your selfishness and sin by dying for you. My Son, who created the universe is going to come to you and humble Himself, and die, for you, and for me”.

But Jesus did not enter into humanity to die just any death. Jesus entered humanity to die on a cross. Crucifixion, which is the form of death that awaited Jesus at the end of His life on earth, was the most humiliating form of punishment ever devised.

Now a natural question that comes to mind is “why would Jesus do that? Why would Jesus allow Himself to suffer the most humiliating death imaginable? And why would God send His Son to endure so much pain and rejection?” Great questions.  We see Paul provide the answer to those questions in Philippians 2:9-11. Let’s look at it together.

For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

In these verses, Paul reveals the reality that because Jesus abandoned His entitlement so that He could embrace humanity, God highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name that is above every name. Paul’s point here is that because Jesus willingly chose to let go of His divine status and prerogatives and instead chose to enter humanity to grasp and embrace the form of a condemned slave, God responded by raising Him to the highest of heights.

Paul continues by stating that God did this by giving Jesus the title that is above every other title. Paul explains that our response to Jesus will be that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. At the title that God gave Jesus, every being and power will submit to His prestige and preeminence; whether the beings and powers reside in the Heavenly places, whether the beings and powers reside on earth, or whether the beings or powers reside under the earth.

There is no place in existence that will not submit to the title that God gives His Son Jesus as our High Priest and as our Advocate. Now right about now you are thinking to yourself “But Dave, you skipped over a sentence.” Yes, I did skip and sentence and it is that sentence that we are going to look at next, which states “Jesus-Israel’s promised Messiah-was conceived through the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary.”

We will look at that sentence on Friday…

"God-In-A-Bod"...

At the church where I serve, we are spending our time together looking at what we believe as a church as it is contained in the doctrinal statement of our church. This week, I would like to look at the fourth statement that comprises our doctrinal statement as a church. This fourth statement addresses what we believe as a church about Jesus.

This statement summarizes the answer to the question “Who is Jesus?” And, as we will discover, it is this question that is the most important question that anyone can ask and answer. So let’s look at this fourth statement of our doctrinal statement together:

We believe that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, fully God and fully man, one Person in two natures. Jesus-Israel’s promised Messiah-was conceived through the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life, was crucified under Pontius Pilate, arose bodily from the dead, ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father as our High Priest and Advocate.

Now you might be thinking “Well Dave, I mean that sounds great, but what does all that mean?” So what I would like for us to do is to break down this statement into sections so that we can come to a better understanding of what is being said here.

First, let’s take a minute and unpack the phrase “We believe that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, fully God and fully man, one Person in two natures.” The first word that we need to define is the word incarnate. The word incarnate literally means to take on flesh.  So, when we say that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, what we are saying is that Jesus Christ is God-in-a bod. We are saying that Jesus Christ is God who came to earth and became a man without ceasing to be God.

Now the big fancy church mumbo jumbo talk word for this concept is the word incarnation. In other words, we believe that Jesus was 100% God and 100% man in one body. That is what is meant by the phrase “fully God and fully man, one Person in two natures.”

And in a section of a letter that is recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible called the book of Colossians, we see the Apostle Paul unpack this concept. So let’s look together as the Apostle Paul unpacks who Jesus is as God-in-a bod, beginning in Colossians 1:15:

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-- all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.

Paul begins this section of His letter to early followers of Jesus from a church in what is now modern day Turkey by stating that Jesus Christ is the image of the invisible God. But what exactly does Paul mean here? What Paul is communicating here is that in Jesus Christ, we see visibly the nature and character of the invisible God.

Jesus Christ is God in a bod; He is in very nature and character God who took on flesh and entered into humanity to reveal and explain God the Father to us. Paul then continues by stating that Jesus Christ is the firstborn of all creation. When Paul uses the word firstborn, he is referring to a special status that is occupied by Jesus.

Now it is important to understand that Paul is not saying that Jesus is a created being; what Paul is communicating is that Jesus has a special status as it relates to all creation. Paul’s point here is that Jesus has a special status and position in relationship to all creation in that He existed before creation.

Paul unpacks this for us when he states that for by Him all things were created. And in case we were wondering, Paul explains what he means when he states all things by listing them for us: "both in the Heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether on thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities".

Paul’s point is that whether we are talking about the things that exist on earth or the things that exist outside of earth; whether we are talking about the things that we see or the things that we do not see; whether we are talking about the beings that exist on earth or the beings that exist in Heaven; whether we are talking about the positions of power that are held on earth of the positions of power that are held by angels and demons in the spirit world; everything has been created through His power.

In addition, Paul states that all things have been created through Him and for Him. You see, Jesus is the hands of creation; God the Father spoke and Jesus was the hands that created all that exists. And as the hands of creation, all things were created through Him and for Him. Everything was created through Jesus and everything was created for Jesus.

But not only were we created by Jesus and for Jesus, Paul continues by stating that Jesus is before all things and in Him all things hold together. Paul is reiterating the reality that Jesus is not a created being; Jesus existed before time began and before creation. Then Paul states that in Jesus all things hold together. A message by Francis Chan brought this principle home in a powerful way.

Right now, do you realize that we are sitting on a chunk of dirt that we call the earth that is spinning around this blazing ball of fire that we call the sun? We are spinning around this blazing ball of fire at 67,000 miles per hour. Oh, and by the way, the ball of dirt that we are on is spinning itself at 1,000 miles per hour. What would happen to us and the earth if there stopped being gravity for one second? If we were any closer to the earth, we would be consumed by fire; if we were any further away from earth, we would freeze to death. Have you ever stopped to think about that?

Paul is revealing for us the reality that right now, at this moment, Jesus is holding all things together. He holds the earth in its orbit; He holds the laws of gravity in place; He gives us every breath that we take. But not only is Jesus unique because of His nature and because of His role in creation. Paul then provides a third reason why Jesus is unique in Colossians 1:18:

He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. For it was the Father's good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.

Paul continues his stream of thought in verse eighteen by stating that Jesus Christ is head of the body, the church. Paul’s point here is that Jesus Christ has the special position or status as being the head of the church. The church is the global community that is united in the fact that they have come to believe trust, and follow Jesus Christ as Lord and Leader. And as the body of Christ, the church has been divinely designed by God to be the vehicle that He uses to reveal His Son Jesus to the world.

Paul then states that Jesus is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead. But what exactly does Paul mean here? Paul’s point here is that Jesus Christ has the special status as being the one who came from God and entered into humanity in order to found the new community of believers called the church through His life, death and resurrection.

And it is in Jesus resurrection, as the first, which began the process which we achieve victory over selfishness sin and death and enter into the eternal relationship with God that we were created for by believing, trusting and following Jesus Christ as our Lord and leader. Paul then hammers his point home in verse nineteen when He states that it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him. In other words, God looked at His eternal and sinless Son Jesus and considered Him as worthy of the place of preeminence and prominence. The fullness that Paul refers to here refers to the incarnation, the fact that Jesus is God who took on flesh.

Jesus did not stop being God when He entered into humanity. Jesus added to His deity humanity. Jesus is 100% God and 100% man; He is God in a bod. And as God in a bod, Jesus did what only He could do, which Paul reveals for us in verse 20.

As God in a bod, Jesus reconciled all things to Himself. Paul’s point here is that God chose to give humanity the gift of His son Jesus in order to reconcile, or reunite, all of creation that had been separated from God due to our selfishness, rebellion and sin, back into proper relationship with Himself. Paul then explains that we are reunited with God because Christ made peace through the blood of His cross.

Paul’s point is that God responded to our selfishness and rebellion by sending His Son Jesus to humanity, where He allowed Himself to be treated as though He lived our selfish and sinful lives so God the Father could treat us as though we lived Jesus perfect life. You see, only God is big enough to pay for the sins of all of humanity, past, present and future. And only another human could represent humanity on the cross. A dog, or a cow, could not represent me.

Jesus, as God in a bod, did only what He could do. The cross provides reconciliation for all of God’s creation and will bring all of creation, regardless of location, back into proper relationship with God. We see this reality communicated in the last sentence of our doctrinal statement, which says “He lived a sinless life, was crucified under Pontius Pilate, arose bodily from the dead, ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father as our High Priest and Advocate.”

Tomorrow, we will see the Apostle Paul further unpacks the truths that make us this section of the doctrinal statement…

A better representative that provides the opportunity for rescue...

This week we have been looking at the third statement that comprises our doctrinal statement as a church where I serve. This third statement addresses what we believe as a church when it comes to the human condition. This statement summarizes the answer to the question “Where did humanity come from? Who am I? And what went wrong? Why does the world seem so messed up?”

And it is in this statement that we discovered the timeless answer to these questions in that what we believe about humanity really matters because all of humanity has been separated from God as a result of our rebellion against God. We talked about the reality that just like our first parents, all humanity throughout history has had this selfish and rebellious bent within us that has driven us to reject the relationship with God that we were created for. And just like our first parents, that selfish and rebellious bent leads us to do things out of that selfishness and rebellion that hurt God and others. And it is that selfishness, rebellion and sin that separates us from God.

And ultimately, it is because of this principle of Adam as our representative that we can have hope that God would provide another representative that could represent us and live the life that we were created for in relationship with God and one another. And as the Apostle Paul continues in this section of this letter, we will discover a timeless truth that provides hope of the possibility of rescue from our rebellion against God as a result of this second Adam, this second representative. So let’s discover this timeless truth together, beginning in Romans 5:15:

But the free gift is not like the transgression. For if by the transgression of the one the many died, much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many.

I  this verse we see Paul reveal for us the reality that while Adam’s action of selfish rebellion and sin was credited to our account in a way that separated us from the relationship with God that we were created for, the transformational actions of Jesus Christ provided all humanity the opportunity to be rescued. Jesus entered into humanity in order to live the life we refused to live and die the death that we deserved to die for our selfishness and rebellion.

And it was in Jesus willingness to be our representative and His actions here on earth that overcame the actions of our original representative, Adam. And as Paul continues to compare Adam and Jesus, we see a second comparison between Adam and Jesus, beginning in verse 16:

The gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned; for on the one hand the judgment arose from one transgression resulting in condemnation, but on the other hand the free gift arose from many transgressions resulting in justification. For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men. For as through the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.

In these verses, we see the Apostle Paul continue to compare and contrast the implications that the lives of Adam and Jesus have as our representatives. First, in verse 16, Paul explains that unlike the first Adam who brought judgment, guilt, and condemnation, Jesus brought the free gift of rescue that declares us not guilty of having a problem with God.

Second, in verse 17, Paul reveals for us the reality that unlike the first Adam, who brought humanity death, Jesus Christ brought humanity the opportunity to experience life. Third, in verse 18, Paul reminds us that through Adam’s one act of selfishness and rebellion, all of humanity was condemned as being guilty of having a huge problem with God; a problem that resulted in physical, spiritual, and eternal separation from God.  However, through Jesus one act righteousness, there resulted justification of life to all men. Paul’s point here is that Jesus death on the cross satisfied God’s absolute justice by paying the penalty that all humanity faced as a result of the act of our first representative, Adam.

And because of this one act by Jesus, justification is available to all humanity. All of humanity has the opportunity to be declared not guilty and experiencing the eternal life that they were created for with God. And in case the members of the church at Rome missed his point, the Apostle Paul reminds the readers of his letter of this timeless truth again in verse 19. Paul here is revealing for us the reality that while Adam brought all humanity at odds with God in a way that resulted in us being treated as outsiders when it came to a relationship with God, Jesus Christ brought all humanity the opportunity to be right with God so that we could be treated as though we were insiders with God.

And you can respond to the opportunity that Jesus brought to all humanity to be rescued, reconciled and renewed. Jesus offers all humanity the opportunity to be rescued from the selfishness and rebellion that separates us from God so that we can be reconciled, or to exchange hostility against God for a relationship with God.

Jesus offers all humanity the opportunity to be rescued from the selfishness and rebellion that separates us from God so that we can be renewed from being a sinner who sinners to being a saint who sometimes sins. And we experience the forgiveness and the relationship with God that we were created for when we respond to all that God has done for us through Jesus life death and resurrection by believing, trusting and following Jesus as our Lord and Leader.

And it is to Jesus that we will turn our attention to next week...