Thursday, August 28, 2014
WORLD VS. CHRIST (4)
THE WORLD SAYS ...
Jesus wasn't the "Messiah," that is to say in the Hebrew language, the "anointed one" of God. This view is held with all religions outside of Christianity, including Islam which considers Jesus to be a prophet, but certainly not God, and certainly not as great a prophet as Muhammad who actually founded the Islam faith. This rejection of Jesus as the Messiah is particularly surprising among Judaism itself, which continues to wait and look for the promised "Messiah" from God.
THE BIBLE SAYS ...
Jesus is THE MESSIAH. The Bible teaches that God chose Abraham to be the father of a special nation from which the Savior of the world would be born. This Savior was to be a blessing not just to that nation, but to "all the families of the earth" (Genesis 12:1-3) because He would "save His people from their sins" (Matthew 1:21). The promise of the Savior was passed down from Abraham to Isaac, to Jacob, and to Judah. It was from Judah that we get the names Jew and Judaism. Even non-Jews in Jesus' day knew about the promised Messiah. But when He came to His own people, they rejected Him (John 1:11). When Jesus spoke to a woman at a well in Samaria, "The woman said to Him, 'I know that Messiah is coming' (who is called Christ). When He comes, He will tell us all things.' Jesus said to her, 'I who speak to you am He'" (John 4:25-26). Both Old Testament Jews and Gentiles (other nations), who believed God's promise of His "anointed one," the Messiah, the Savior of the world, were saved by virtue of their faith just as believers are saved today. The Apostle Paul wrote in the New Testament letter to the Roman Christians teaching,
"It was not through law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith ... This is why 'it was credited to him as righteousness.' The words 'it was credited to him' were written not for him alone, but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness-- for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification" (Romans 4:13, 22-25).
WITH BELIEVING HEARTS WE PRAY ...
Jesus my Savior,
You are the Way, the Truth, the Life;
Grant us that Way to know,
That Truth to keep, that Life to win,
Whose joys eternal flow. Amen!
