I talked about how we can have the wrong idea about many different things. We can be wrong about people, we can be wrong about science, we can be wrong about pizza toppings, we can even be wrong about what brand of deodorant we should buy, and that could really stink!
Then to make sure we had the right ideas about Jesus, we looked at what the bible had to say. And we found the bible says that Jesus is:
1. Jesus is the divine Son of God.
He is God in the flesh. He is part of that wonderful mystery known as the Trinity. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. One God in three Persons. Jesus is God in the flesh.
2. Jesus died as the perfect sacrifice.
He shed His blood on the cross. And because He was perfect – He never sinned – He was the only one qualified to bring forgiveness for our sins. The sinless, perfect, Lamb of God laid down His life because we sinned. Without the sacrifice of Jesus, we would have to die for our own sins. And there would be no hope of heaven for any of us.
3. Jesus rose again from the dead.
One of the proofs of Jesus’ divinity is the fact that He rose from the grave, just as He said He would. He rose physically – with a body that bore the scars. He didn’t just rise “spiritually” like a ghost or just in the hearts and minds of His disciples. The grave is still empty and there is still no body. His resurrection proved His power over death and the grave, giving you and me hope that when we die as believers in Jesus, we will be raised to be in heaven with Christ for all of eternity. Because of Christ’s resurrection, life doesn’t end at the grave. It continues forever in the presence of God.
4. Jesus will return to judge all people.
The Bible says that Jesus will return, and when He does, two main things will happen. He will gather His people to Himself and He will judge those who have rejected Him. And those who have refused Him on this earth will find out that their standard of whether Jesus should judge them doesn’t count. What counts is what Jesus says the standard is and Jesus’ standard is faith in Him.
Next we looked at our part as believers in all of this:
1. We need to make sure our faith is in the Jesus of the scriptures which is the Son of God. The Bible should be our primary source of information about Jesus. The eyewitness testimony of His followers. We also have first hand quotes from Jesus recorded by those who heard them.
We need to be like the folks in Berea when Paul came to them with the message of Jesus.
Acts 17:11 (New Living Bible)
11And the people of Berea were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, and they listened eagerly to Paul’s message. They searched the Scriptures day after day to check up on Paul and Silas, to see if they were really teaching the truth.
They didn’t just suck it all up from Paul. They checked it out.
2. We need to proclaim the Jesus of the scriptures to others. Talk to others about the Jesus of the Bible, and defend Him against the misunderstandings and wrong ideas others have about Him. When we hear others talking about Jesus and their getting it wrong, we need to gently but firmly tell them what the Bible says about Jesus. We don’t need to be rude, but truth needs to be proclaimed. It’s too important for people to walk away with a wrong idea about Jesus. It could cost them their very soul.
So now it's up to each of us as believers to make sure we are serving the Jesus that the bible talks about. Because missing out on who Jesus really is means the possibility of putting our faith in something false, and that will literally effect where spend eternity.
And if your reading this and your not a believer in Jesus, I encourage you to check out the Jesus I've been talking about in the bible and then fill that void in your heart by asking Jesus to come in and be your Lord. I know He will and I can tell you by personal experience, it will be the best decision you will ever make.
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