Monday, January 17, 2011
FROM THE BEGINNING
Who is this Jesus whose birth we have recently celebrated? Can we really answer that question with any certainty? Do we have to wait for the next edition of "Time" or "Newsweek" to hit the newsstands to tell us? Certainly not!
"That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life--" (John 1:1).
The Scriptures do not contain "stories." They are not fabricated events created by the writers to build Him up. These are "eyewitness accounts." These words make it clear that Jesus was not a legend, but a real flesh and blood human being. The Apostle John underscores that fact when he says that He was "heard, seen, looked upon and handled."
Now I doubt that many would dispute that Jesus was human. Most believe He was human, but John says that he was "from the beginning." Even though He was born into the human race at Bethlehem, He existed long before then. In fact, the Son of God had no beginning; there was never a time when the Son of God was not. He existed before time began.
Jesus was and is God. This is a simple, yet tremendously important truth, for only the sacrifice of God's one and only Son could atone for the whole history of human sin and rebellion. He was the only perfectly obedient, sinless human being. He was also the one and only Son of God.
Who is this Jesus? In the weeks leading up to Lent we will take a close look at Jesus, at His person and work, so that we may know for certain in whom we trust -- and that He is able to do for us what He promises.
This world constantly changes ... and people change ... but God's Word remains constant. So we turn to the Word of God to know better the Word of Life and strengthen our relationship with Him. Amen.
