Many people believe that John, the son of Zebedee, refers to himself in his gospel as the “disciple whom Jesus loved.” Yet the scriptures indicate that this phrase probably refers to Lazarus of Bethany.
God loves to make us whole. He wants our bodies healthy, our minds clear and alert, our spiritual understanding enlightened. He is our Savior and sent His Son to be our savior. That is what “Jesus” means in Hebrew: Jehovah saves. The title Jehovah is used many times in the Bible and shows God’s willingness to help us. In the Bible, God also uses the title Elohim to show that He is able (as Creator) to meet our every need. He is both willing and able to care for us.
I’ve always loved being in the sun. Growing up in rural Missouri, summers were full of sun-filled fields and forests, bright with flowers. Living in Australia and California, the sunrises and sunsets near the ocean filled me with strength and peace. God invented the sun to show us that each new day starts fresh with His blessings. And the greatest blessing of all time, is that God so loved us that He sent His only Son to redeem and save us. We have eternal life through Jesus Christ, God’s son.
After choosing twelve apostles, Jesus taught his disciples what they should do.
Luke 6:17:
And he came down with them, and stood in the plain, and the company of his disciples, and a great multitude of people out of all Judaea and Jerusalem, and from the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, which came to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases.
We have seen who Jesus said he was as the Messiah and also some prophecies from the Old Testament about the Messiah. Now let’s see what expectations the people of Jesus’ time had about who the Messiah was and what he should do.
Some people are confused about who the Messiah would be. Who did the Judeans in Jesus’ time think that the Messiah would be? They knew the promised savior would be God’s Son who would save the world.
We have seen that Jesus said he was what the scriptures promised he would be: the seed of the woman who would crush the serpent’s head, the Son of God, the anointed one, the Messiah. Religious leaders tried to kill him NOT because he said he was God, but because he claimed to be the Messiah. This was blasphemy to them. Now we will see how the Old Testament, specifically the Book of Psalms, spoke of the Messiah. This promised redeemer was not God, but His Son.
Some religious people try to isolate New Testament selections to prove that Jesus was a God-man who came to earth. One of these is Philippians 2:1-11. Yet, when viewed in the beauty with which God had the Apostle Paul write this truth, we see that Jesus Christ is our lord and savior, and NOT equal with God our Father, the Creator.
During this holiday season I’ve had the joy of singing Christ-based hymns and carols with my middle-school students. I have sweet memories of growing up in the church and remembering Jesus Christ and his accomplishments during this time of year. There is nothing or no one more important to talk about.
When privately meeting with Nicodemus, Jesus Christ shared some of the greatest truths ever uttered by man. One of them was:
John 3:13-15:
And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.