| Chapter
3
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JESUS CHRIST
Jesus the Son of God was and forever will be subject
to the authority of God the Father.
1
Corinthians 11:3
"But
I would have you know ... the head of Christ is God."
Jesus
the Son of God existed before His physical birth in
Bethlehem.
The
Bible refers to this pre-existence and clearly states
that He existed before the creation of the world.
John
1:18
"The
only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father."
John
16:28
"I
came forth from the Father, and am come into the world."
John
17:5
"And
now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with
the glory which I had with thee before the world was."
John
8:58
"Jesus
said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before
Abraham was, I am."
When
Jesus had accomplished His pre-existent role, four things
happened that preceded his coming to this world:
1. The Prophets announced that he would come as Christ the Messiah.
2. The Wise Men from the east saw the sign of His coming in the sky.
Matthew
2:1-2
"Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea behold,
there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,
Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for
we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship
him."
3. The Saints of God in Jerusalem were waiting for His coming with fastings,
praying night and day.
Luke
2:25
"And,
behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was
Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting
for the consolation of Israel."
Luke
2:36
"And
there was one Anna, a prophetess. Which departed
not from the temple, but served God with fastings and
prayers night and day and spake of him to all them that
looked for redemption in Jerusalem."
4. Jesus prepared Himself for His earthly mission.
From
His pre-existent position in Heaven Jesus saw a suffering
human race. He saw the sin, affliction, bondage, pain
misery and poverty that satan had inflicted upon mankind
and came to mans rescue.
Hebrews
2:14-17
"That
through death he might destroy him that had the power
of death, that is, the devil;
And deliver them who were all their lifetime subject to bondage.
He
took on him the seed of Abraham.
Wherefore
in all things it pleased him to be made like man."
This
so beautifully describes the feelings of Jesus before
He came to this world. He had feelings of love and a
sense of duty to help a dying humanity. In order to
do this He chose to live in a human body. He speaks
to His Father about His earthly mission and the conversation
that He has with His Father reflects this:
Hebrews
10:5-7
"Wherefore
when he cometh into the world, he saith ... a body hast
thou prepared me:
Lo,
I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,)
to do thy will, O God."
This
is such an incredible statement from Jesus. He refers
to the plan of God for His life, written in the volume
of Gods books in Heaven and he yields Himself to Gods
will.
The
Life of Jesus.
The
Bible tells of the wonderful birth of our Lord Jesus
Christ in Bethlehem.
Luke
2:7
"And
she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him
in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because
there was no room for them in the inn."
Luke
2:11
"For
unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour,
which is Christ the Lord."
And
so we have the miraculous virgin birth of Jesus. The
Holy Spirit came over the womb of Mary and the human
body of Jesus was conceived within her. Jesus had no
earthly father.
From
that moment, Jesus had only one purpose in His life
and that was to do His Fathers business.
This
He revealed to His parents when He was twelve years
old.
Luke
2:49
"Wist
ye not that I must be about my Father's business?"
It
was a summary of His life's work.
His
anointed ministry purpose was to do good on earth.
Acts
10:38
"How
God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and
with power: who went about doing good, and healing
all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with
him."
This
actually describes what His three years of earthly ministry
was all about. It had a well-planned and organized program.
Each year it started and ended at Capernaum. His twelve
disciples and seventy witnesses went ahead of Him to
the cities to prepare the people for His coming, saying
the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.
When
Jesus arrived, He healed the sick, cast out devils and
set the captives free. He raised the dead and ministered
to the poor.
His
preaching and teaching was phenomenal and there are
about fifty discourses in the Gospels that contain a
wide range of themes. He also reveals the mysteries
of the Kingdom through His parables. His life on earth
was a perfect sinless life and set an example of Christian
living to all men.
1
Peter 2:21-22
"Christ
also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye
should follow his steps:
Who
did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth:"
All
nine fruits of the Holy Spirit were demonstrated in
His life:
1.
Love -
Jesus
manifested love in His dealings with men. When He was
told that Lazarus was dead, He wept and the people said
that it was because Jesus loved him so much.
John
11:36
"Then
said the Jews, Behold how he loved him!"
2.
Joy -
Luke
10:21
"In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father,
Lord of heaven and earth."
3.
Peace -
While
the Disciples were terrified in the midst of a storm
on the Sea of Galilee, Jesus said - "Peace be still."
Mark
4:39
39 And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still.
And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.
4.
Longsuffering -
Jesus
continued to teach men and patiently endured their unbelief
with much longsuffering.
Matthew
17:17
"Then
Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation,
how long shall I be with you? How long shall I suffer
you?"
5.
Gentleness -
Jesus
revealed His gentleness in His dealings with children.
Mark
10:16
"And
he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them,
and blessed them."
6.
Goodness -
Acts
10:38
"Jesus of Nazareth ... who went about doing good ."
7.
Faithfulness -
After
Simon Peter denied the Lord at the death of Jesus, he
decided to go back to fishing again, but Jesus faithfully
went looking for him to restore him.
John
21:3-4
"Simon
Peter saith unto them, I go a fishing and that night
they caught nothing.
But
when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore:"
8.
Meekness -
Jesus
showed meekness by being willing to take on a human
body.
Philippians
2:8
"And
being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself."
9.
Temperance -
Jesus
exhibited temperance and self-control by His lifestyle
including a time of fasting in the wilderness for forty
days.
Matthew
4:2
And
when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was
afterward an hungred."
All
nine gifts of the Holy Spirit were manifested through
Him:
1.
Healing -
Matthew
4:23
"And Jesus went about all Galilee, healing all manner of sickness and all manner
of disease among the people."
2. Working of miracles -
John
2:11
"This beginning of miraclesdid Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth
his glory;"
3.
Faith -
Jesus
exercised His faith and then explained how it worked.
Mark
11:21-22
"And
Peter calling to remembrance saith unto him, Master,
behold, the fig tree which thou cursedst is.
And Jesus answering saith unto them, have faith in God."
4.
A Word of wisdom -
The
very best learned men and lawyers tried to outwit and
catch Jesus with difficult questions but failed hopelessly
because of His wisdom.
Mark
12:13-34
"And
they send unto him certain of the Pharisees and of the
Herodians, to catch him in his words.
And
Jesus answering said unto them; Render to Caesar the
things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that
are God's. And they marveled at him. And no man after
that durst ask him any question."
5.
A Word of Knowledge -
Jesus
demonstrated a word of Knowledge when He saw Nathanael.
John
1:48
"Nathanael
saith unto him, whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered
and said unto him, before that Philip called thee, when
thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee."
6.
Discerning of spirits -
Jesus
discerned that a woman's infirmity was satanic bondage.
Luke
13:16
"And
ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom
Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed
from this bond on the Sabbath day?"
7.
Divers kinds of Tongues -
When
Jesus raised up Jairus's daughter from the dead, He
prayed and spoke in an unknown tongue.
Mark
5:41-42
"And
he took the damsel by the hand, and said unto her,
Talitha cumi;"
8.
Interpretation of Tongues -
Mark
5:41-42
"And he said unto her, Talitha cumi; which is, being interpreted,
Damsel; I say unto thee, arise."
9.
Prophecy -
Jesus
prophesied of future events.
Matthew
24:33-34
"So
likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know
that it is near, even at the doors.
Verily
I say unto you, this generation shall not pass, till
all these things are fulfilled."
The
five main Ministries of the Holy Spirit operated through
Him:
1.
Apostle -
Hebrews
3:1
"Wherefore, holy brethren, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession,
Christ Jesus."
2.
Prophet -
Jesus
said that He was a Prophet without honor in His own
country.
Matthew
13:57
"But
Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour,
save in his own country, and in his own house."
3.
Evangelist -
Jesus
preached the Gospel. (Evangelio) It is the same word
that is used for Evangelist.
Mark
1:14
"Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God."
4.
Pastor -
The
word Pastor means Shepherd and Jesus is our Good Shepherd.
John
10:11
"I
am the good shepherd:"
5.
Teacher -
While
Jesus ministered on earth, men called Him a Teacher.
John
3:2
"The
same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi,
we know that thou art a teacher come from God."
Jesus
ultimate purpose was to die and destroy the devil and
sin.
Hebrews
2:14
"That through death he might destroy him that had the power of death,
that is, the devil."
John
the Baptist revealed that Jesus would accomplish this
as the Lamb of God.
John
1:29
"Behold
the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world."
He
came as Gods sacrificial lamb >to die for the sins of man so
that we could be saved from satan, hell, sin, sickness,
death and poverty.
Isaiah
53: 5-7
"But
he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised
for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was
upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
All
we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every
one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the
iniquity of us all.
He
was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not
his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter,
and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth
not his mouth."
This
event is recorded in:
Matthew
27:33-38
"And
when they were come unto a place called Golgotha, that
is to say, a place of a skull, they gave him vinegar
to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof,
he would not drink.
And
they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting
lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by
the prophet, they parted my garments among them, and
upon my vesture did they cast lots.
And
sitting down they watched him there;
And
set up over his head his accusation written, THIS IS
JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
Then
were there two thieves crucified with him, one on the
right hand, and another on the left."
Jesus
died so that He could purchase us with His blood.
Revelation
5:9
"Thou
hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred,
and tongue, and people, and nation."
When
Jesus was physically put to death, His body was cruelly
mutilated. The brutal roman soldiers punched his face
beyond recognition. His back was whipped apart by a
flagellum, a roman whip made of nine leather thongs
and metal pieces at the end of each thong. A platted
crown of three inch thorns was forced into His head
and upon His shoulders was tied a heavy one hundred
and ten pound patabellum. (The crossbar of the cross)
Our
Savior was battered, dehydrated and exhausted. He was
led out of the Fortress of Antonio onto the Via-Delarosa,
to stumble the way to Calvary. The centurion Longinus,
led the procession of sixty soldiers to take Jesus to
Golgotha. They nailed His hands and feet with six inch
nails onto the cross, piercing His skin, muscles, tendons
and arteries.
This
experience of His crucifixion took Jesus past natural
death to the ultimate price described as the second
death. There is no telling how traumatic this suffering
must have been. We know that His sweat turned to blood
and He cried out to God the Father, to let the cup pass
from Him. The blood capillaries under His skin were
bursting under the strain and suffering He was experiencing.
This medical condition is known today as Hematidrosis.
No human has ever suffered so much.
When
Jesus completed His sacrifice on the cross, He spoke
these words -
John
19:30
"It
is finished."
The
sacrifice was made, the price was paid and the work
was done.
On
the third day after the crucifixion, Jesus arose from
the dead
John
20:6-9
"Then
cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the
sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie,
And
the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with
the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by
itself.
Then
went in also that other disciple, which came first to
the sepulchre, and he saw, and believed. For as yet
they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again
from the dead."
On
several occasions after His resurrection, Jesus appeared.
Acts
10:40-41
"Him
God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly ...
to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose
from the dead."
1
Corinthians 15:3-4
"How
that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
And
that he was buried, and that he rose again the third
day according to the scriptures:
And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve:
After
that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren
at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this
present, but some are fallen asleep.
After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles.
And last of all he was seen of me also."
Forty
days after His resurrection He ascended into Heaven.
Acts
1: 9
"And
when he had spoken these things, while they beheld,
he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their
sight."
Jesus
Christ the Son of God was exalted by God the Father.
Hebrews
1:3-13
"Who
being the brightness of his glory, and the express image
of his person, and upholding all things by the word
of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins,
sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high:
Being
made so much better than the angels, obtained a more
excellent name than they.
But
unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever
and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre
of thy kingdom.
God,
even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness
above thy fellows
But
to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my
right hand."
Philippians
2:9-11
"Wherefore
God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name
which is above every name:
That
at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things
in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the
earth;
And
that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is
Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Jesus is now at the right hand of God the Father and exercises His present
day ministry.
This
ministry includes the following positions and functions;
-
He is our Savior.
-
He is our Good Shepherd.
-
He is our High Priest.
-
He is our righteous Advocate.
-
He is our Intercessor.
-
He is our Lord.
-
He is our King.
Jesus
saved us and continues to save others from eternal damnation.
1
Timothy 1:15
"Christ
Jesus came into the world to save sinners."
Hebrews
7:25
"Wherefore
he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come
unto God by him."
He
continues to help and save us in all situations of our
Christian experience.
Jesus
is our Good Shepherd.
John
10:11
"I
am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life
for the sheep."
Jesus
shepherds and takes care of Gods children.
He
is our High Priest.
Hebrews
7:17
"For
he testifieth, Thou art a priest for ever after the
order of Melchisedec."
His
High Priestly sprinkling of His blood in Gods Temple
in Heaven took care of all sins past, present and future.
Hebrews
9:12
"But
by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place,
having obtained eternal redemption for us."
1
Peter 2:9
"But
ye are a royal priesthood"
We
are priests of God, and Jesus is the High Priest of
our priestly activities.
He
is our Righteous Advocate.
1
John 2:1
"We
have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous."
When
satan comes before God in the Courts of Heaven to accuse
us, Jesus our Advocate rises up in our defense.
He
knows and understands the Laws of God. He also knows
our thoughts, behavior and temptations and because on
earth He was tempted and tried in all things just like
us, He can help us.
He
is our Intercessor.
Hebrews
7:25
"Wherefore
he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come
unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession
for them."
Jesus
continually sees our needs and when we are in danger
and prays for us.
He
is our Lord.
Philippians
2:11
"And
that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is
Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
Jesus
is our Lord and Master. We are His servants and we obey
his commands.
He
is our King.
Revelation
19:16
"And
he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written,
KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS."
As
children of God we are subjects and citizens of the
Kingdom of God, and Jesus is our King. We owe and pledge
our allegiance to Him and are in subjection to Him.
When He returns to this earth to set up His Millennial
Kingdom, He will be crowned as King of all Kings.
The
glorious promise of His return to earth.
We
have this glorious promise that Jesus will soon return.
Luke
21:28
"And
when these things begin to come to pass, then look up,
and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth
nigh."
1
Thessalonians 4:16-17
"For
the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout,
with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump
of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
Then
we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together
with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air:
and so shall we ever be with the Lord."
Revelation
19:11-16
"And
I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he
that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and
in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
His
eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many
crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew,
but he himself.
And
he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his
name is called The Word of God.
And
the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white
horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
And
out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he
should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with
a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the
fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
And
he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written,
KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS."
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