The Humanity of our God: A SERMON FROM 4/30/1978

 

 The Humanity of our God 4/30/1978

 

The title of this message may bother some of you at first but I hope that tonight all of all of us can see a unique side of the "Great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ". I am against Godless humanistic philosophy as much as any Christian should be, but as much Jesus Christ was deity, He was and had to be all man. Let's look tonight at the Man, Jesus. Let's turn to Isa". 9-16, take note of verse 16. Now turn to John 1:14 while I read from Exodus 26:7,14. Keep these verses in mind while I read John 1:14. That word "dwelt" means “tabernacled” or “tented” or “encamped”. Just as God was among the children of Israel, dwelling within the tabernacle covered with animal skins, so God the Son, Jesus, tabernacled in the form of man covered with the flesh of man. The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us. Jesus Christ, the God-Man, fully God and fully Man. I'll be reading a lot of scripture so you may just want to write them Verses down and check them later) Heb 2:16-18, Heb 4: 15-16 Keep in mind these verses as we go on looking at Jesus, our brother and helper. "There's an old Indian saying that "You can't truly judge your brother 'til you've walked a mile in his moccasins". Well God, Jesus, has walked the second mile in our moccasins. Jesus is the Saviour now but one day will He be the Judge. Let's look now at Phil 2:5-8. As a man, Jesus, our example, was obedient, humbled Himself and became a servant. Now, I read from Luke 2:40, 51-52. Because of being obedient and being subject we see what the results were in Jesus' life. Now we'll look at I Peter 2:21-24. Jesus, our example, committed Himself to God, was obedient and God used Him and hath highly exalted Him. Before we look at specific ways Jesus was like us “in all points" – I want to share with you some thoughts I had while studying for this message. It's just mind boggling to think of the things involved in God living as man. Think about Jesus, the Creator, God the Son, in the womb of Mary yet undeveloped as a mature man but still God, "the helpless baby lying in a manger both in swaddling clothes the one who cast, the very stars shining above Him, into the Universe. Think of Jesus running through Joseph's carpentry shop perhaps falling and skinning his little knee, the Creator of the gravity that pulled Him to the floor. Think of Jesus, the First and the Last, Alpha and the Omega, the Creator of time, allowing Himself to be locked in time for 33 years. Think of the Infinite God becoming finite man, omnipresence confined to and the limitations of a body like ours. Think of Jesus wracked with pain, watching the man whose very heartbeat he kept going, driving heavy iron spikes through his hands. Think of Jesus, He who "by all things consist", the one who held every atom together in this would, being nailed to the very cross he held together.

See the Giver and Sustainer of all life letting Himself die! But praise God! Death is swallowed up in victory because the glorified God-man arose grave, the first born of many brethren! (Heb 13:8, John 20:27, Acts 1:9-1) I don't have time to read all the scripture I used to find ways Jesus was like us but I'll mention the words used to describe our Saviour. Luke 10:21 says Jesus rejoiced, I believe Jesus was a man of joy, in fellowship with the Father. He had no guilt, no sin but the peace of purity in this life, But He also was a man of sorrows acquainted with grief. The Gospels speak of his exceeding sorrowfulness, being heavy, in agony, troubled, "amazed” (dazed, stunned) at the agony of the cross set before Him. I looked up the Greek words for these words and the scene set forth is Jesus the man surrounded by grief pressing down on Him, pressing in on his mind, utterly astonishing Him to the point of death. His prayer in the garden with sweat as drops of blood (men on the battlefields under great stress have sweated blood through their pores). Jesus suffered the total eternity of hell in only a few hours for us. The Bible shows us he was a man of compassion, weeping for others, groaning within Himself with empathy. He went through temptation, hunger, thirst, exhaustion, betrayal, family misunderstanding, hate, and harsh criticism. For example read Ps. 69:8-9. The Gospels speak of his family, brothers and sisters being offended at Him. They thought their brother to be "beside Himself" – to be insane. People, family will treat us the same way many times if Christ be in us. Jesus was a man of prayer, devotions in solitude, in the wilderness alone with the Father, our example. I'll close with this, Heb. 12:1-4. Joy is set before us in the midst of strife – if we look unto our Brother who's ready to lead us to glory, Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith.