Jesus: An Overview of the Christ
C.S. Lewis once said, “You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”
Who is Jesus? The Bible makes it very clear that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who paid for the sins of the world. He is much more than just the Son of God. Scripture makes it clear that he not only is the Son of God, but He is eternal; He has always been and always will be. John 1:1-2 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him not even one thing came into being that has come into being.” This shows us just how important Jesus was in the creation of the world, but more than that, it shows us how He continues to exist through the Word of God.
Jesus came to earth to die, fulfilling the many prophecies of the Old Testament. One of the most beautiful passages in the Old Testament comes from Isaiah 53:5-6:
“But He was pierced for our offenses, He was crushed for our wrongdoings; the punishment for our well-being was laid upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed. All of us, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; but the Lord has caused the wrongdoing of us all to fall on Him.”
This passage, with the knowledge we have of Jesus, makes it clear that the passage is in reference to Him. This is only one example of hundreds within the Old Testament.
Some of these prophecies include the virgin birth of the Savior. This is a crucial element of Jesus’ being. As fully divine and fully human, God used this birth to unite the full deity and humanity of Christ. Of course, God could have formed Jesus and sent him to earth without a human parent, but then some could argue his humanity. By being born of a virgin woman, His humanity was solidified, while fulfilling the prophecies of old.
While His humanity is important, his divinity is equally important. All of Scripture points to the Savior and our desperate need for Him. Colossians 1:15a tells us that, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation…” The necessity for Jesus to be fully divine is crucial in understanding Jesus. The disciples even questioned this in John 14:8-10:
“Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you for so long a time, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? The one who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on My own, but the Father, as He remains in Me, does His works.”
A finite being, a human, is not capable of bearing the sin of the entire world, but more than that, salvation comes from the Lord. Just before this passage, Jesus helps his disciples (and us) understand that through Him and only Him, salvation is possible. John 14:6 says, “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.”
Jesus is the Son of God sent to die for the sins of humanity as a being that was fully God and fully man. He walked on Earth two thousand years ago…so why is it important today? I want to share one of my favorite images of Jesus as our King. Many are familiar with Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem the week before His death. Palm branches were laid before Him and the people shouted “Hosanna!” Just before this famous scene, Jesus tells his disciples to go into the city and get a donkey for Him to ride into the city, which He does, the animal noted in each of the gospels. Now, fast forward to the book of Revelation. In chapter 19, we see Jesus once more, this time astride a white horse. The imagery here is beautiful! In that era, ancient kings would ride a donkey if they came in peace. If they came in war, they would ride a horse. So here, in this picture of Jesus as King, we see him entering Jerusalem on a donkey – peacefully, just as He was foretold to do. Later, in Revelation, we see that Jesus will eventually return riding on a horse as a king ready for war.
All of this information, though fascinating, is a lot to understand. Why do you care? How is seeing Jesus as the fully human, fully divine Son of God who died and resurrected for your sins going to change your life? I leave you with this: if Jesus is your Lord, then you are a slave. If you are a slave, your life is not your own. If your life is not your own, then every action should be dedicated to serving your Lord and King. So, how does your life reflect belonging to the King?