Mary and Joseph each had their visit from an angel, and each held their piece of the puzzle. Mary had been told who the baby was, while Joseph had been told what he would do. How old was the child before such mysteries were entrusted to his reflection? The God of heaven, the source of the messages, surely guided them at every crossroad.
Who was this young boy with a twelve-year-old body and an ageless wisdom? We can imagine the whispered conversations between Mary and Joseph late at night. And when the time arrived—as inevitably it must—where would he go? What would he do?
We can imagine that he spoke often with those two. He discoursed with the local teachers. He pored over the words of the prophets until they were part of his very being. I am the one Isaiah described so long ago see Isaiah But his heart was true. When he knew the time was right, he journeyed deep into the wilderness alone, denying himself food and water.
There, in solitude, identity and mission came together for him. Why Did Jesus Come as a Baby? I have come to call. Matthew I have come.
John I come from him, and he sent me to you. I have come as a light to shine in this dark world. If the written record is any clue, no sense of mission has ever burned brighter. He spoke in the parlance of an ambassador on a short but urgent assignment. Perhaps his most moving purpose statement came on the day when he encountered a strange little man named Zacchaeus. His lack of dignity was appalling, but people tended to avert their eyes from Zacchaeus anyway.
After all, he had made his fortune by tapping into the corruption of Roman taxation. Conventional wisdom said that a noble teacher of godly truth should ignore such a public parasite. To seek and to save the lost. There is music and majesty in that statement.
One focus: the lost. Two actions: seek and save. Why Did God Become a Man? Seek and save. We think of pictures of sailors clinging to the wreckage of a ship. Helicopters hover in the night sky, shining their beacons on the sea in search of the living who must be saved.
We think of a collapsed mine, where workers are trapped far beneath the earth. Their oxygen runs low, and the men crouch in darkness, wondering if they dare hope for salvation. We think of a little girl at the bottom of a well, or even the favorite word picture of a single stray sheep trapped on a perilous outcropping. One animal in a flock of hundreds, and who would miss it? The shepherd would. He will leave the many to find the one, at any cost.
The coast guard will find those three or four bobbing sailors, and no taxpayer will complain about the expense. The miners will not be abandoned, and the little girl must see the sunshine once more.
These situations are urgent, and when they come across our television screens, everyone stops and prays and waits. When those New York Fire Department workers rushed into the rubble of the World Trade Center, they never stopped to ask about the risks. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost. John 3 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. John 6 For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me.
And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. John 9 John 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
John 12 I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness. John 18 For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth.
Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice. This list contains every reason Jesus gave as to why he came to earth that we see in the Gospels : Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Scripture passages from other books of the Bible besides the Gospels give more reasons why Jesus came into the world.
His blessings are not just for the ancient Bible heroes; they are not just for those already in heaven. They can be yours today in Jesus Christ. Mark For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. He washed their feet, He gave His life. This is astounding! The King of kings, the Lord of lords, came from heaven to earth to serve! Ask yourself: If Jesus, the Lord and Savior, left heaven to serve us in His life, death, and resurrection for our salvation, how much more should we be humble, willing, self-sacrificing servants of the Lord and of our fellow man?
John For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. John For I did not speak on my own, but the Father who sent me commanded me to say all that I have spoken.
So should we. And as Jesus did, so should we determine that our speech, our words, our conversations, will reflect the words and the heart of God. This confirms the great importance of reading our Bibles regularly, so that we are increasingly familiar with the thoughts of God on a multitude of subjects and can share those divine thoughts in our everyday speech. John As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.
Sharing is great! If this message has blessed you, please share it with your friends. Email them the browser link.
0コメント