Who Is Jesus Really?
his question has been raging ever since Jesus stepped onto the
world's stage through his miraculous virgin birth, and it will continue to do so, until the climactic events of Revelation happen in real time, and bring us to the end of time as we know it. Why is this question regard-ing Jesus' nature, true identity, and purpose so important? Why does it matter one way or the other? Well dear reader, it matters a great deal, because your answer to these questions will decide your eternal fate, according to the Bible. These days, such questions usually get a lot of people's feathers ruffled, don't they?
With regard to a question itself, if we don't know the answer, then it is well within our power to search for it; each person is directly responsible for their refusal to search out the answer to a question, even to search for the truth. So I will be examining this all important question of who Jesus really is in an effort to banish ignorance (willful, or genuine cluelessness), apathy, and even perhaps, the illusion of knowledge, all of which are soulish blights that assault biblical faith. None of these things are good excuses for refusing to answer any direct question, much less this vitally important one. Then of course there are the scholarly giants, or "Bullwinkels" out there that think they know everything about everything, and you can't possibly tell them anything that they don't already know. These people are, sadly, nearly unreachable because they're unteachable. And so, I don't expect them to stay very long on this page, except to maybe inject their poison in the comments. This of course in no way means that I know everything; I'm still learning too. And now dear reader, are you ready? Have you decided to search for the answer to this extremely important question that I have asked above? If so, then I urge you to read on.
First Things First
There are those who brazenly assert that you can make the Bible say what ever you want. This, dear reader, is true enough, but that doesn't mean that this wicked inclination is the right thing to do. Anyone who claims to read, study, and follow sound doctrine (or Scripture) had better be really saved by grace, through faith, or honest enough to want to understand it, with God's help. Why? Because the Bible is not a book that the careless or the unsaved should mess with, it is sharp and those who don't have the proper guidance from God's Holy Spirit will end up cutting themselves and others on it, maybe even beyond repair. Or worse yet, as warned in Revelation 2:16, Jesus himself will come and do some carving on 'em with the very same sword of his mouth. I don't say that to be sadistic, I'm simply voicing hyperbole to get us to understand the seriousness of properly dividing the word of truth. When there is a 'he said, she said,' situation regarding Scripture (or doctrine), all one needs to do is read the passage for oneself and use proven exegesis principles to rightly divide, or set the disputed passage in proper order, while relying on the Holy Spirit to help you understand what is being said. There are rules for proper Biblical exegesis, and if you are interested, I touch on some of these principles here. There are other times when supposed contradictions and doctrinal disputes are a matter of the reader not understanding progressive revelation and paradox. First, let's look at what a contradiction is versus a paradox. Then I'll move on to what progressive revelation is, and then I'll finally address the question of whether or not Jesus is the Messiah. Sorry dear reader, but some prep work has to be done before we can move on to chewing the meat and potatoes course.
Contradiction Vs. Paradox
A contradiction is a combination of statements, ideas, or features of a situation that are opposed to one another. However, the existence of a "true" contradiction, well, there are philosophers out there that doubt such a thing even exists. I know...frustrating isn't it? Whenever you feel like reading something that causes you to chase your tail until you're dizzy, then read material put out by unsaved worldly philosophers. At any rate, we will continue on with the current and accepted definition for "contradiction" until the "truth seeking" philosophers get their act together.
Contradictions, contrary to the opinions of atheists and apostates, are not found in Scripture. Many of the things that these groups of people see as "contradictions" are really misinterpretations of Scripture on their part. Why? Well because the light of the Spirit of God isn't in them - in other words, they aren't saved. Their "light" is really darkness. The Spirit of God is the teacher of the saints, and gives power to obtain a sound understanding of Scripture to those who are truly saved, but also to those who possess common sense, and a love of truth.
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Jesus said that a house divided against itself will fall; he said this when he was defending how he cast out demons solely by the power of his word. The hypocritical Pharisees claimed he did so by using Satan's power. However, according to Jesus, not even Satan, the father of lies, murder, and confusion, rules his kingdom in contradiction, or in direct opposition to himself. I have found that much of what is claimed to be contradictions in Scripture are really paradoxes.
For example, in Gen. 32:30, Judges 6:22; 13:22, Isa. 6:5 and Ezek.1:26-28 there are recorded accounts of people having "seen" God. Then in the N.T. verses of John 1:18 and 1 John 4:12, it is stated that nobody has ever seen the face of God. "Ah ha!", the critics pounce. So this is an actual contradiction, right? Is it? Or is this an example of a paradox?
When a statement is made by someone in the Bible, it needs to be taken in context and in light of what has been revealed up to that present time. So, those who said they saw God's face in the Old Testament didn't say in the same verse, or surrounding verses that no one at any time has seen God's face. Most of the time they thought there were dead meat because as far as they were concerned, they had seen God face to face. However, they were not really seeing God's literal face, but an image, or likeness, or "theophany," since God in his true essence is an invisible Spirit that can't be seen with human eyes.
And so, by taking this supposed contraction in context of the progressive knowledge that was revealed to us by the N.T. writers, like John and Paul, they in truth said, "no one has ever "seen" God's (actual) face at any time." Therefore, any supposed contradiction related to these verses only exists in the mind of the one who insists on seeing one, namely, those who are spiritually blind, and well, to put it bluntly, dead in their trespasses and sins.
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God Loves a Good Paradox
The Bible was inspired by God, and written down by intelligent, sane, and reasonable holy men. By "inspired" it is meant that God "breathed" his words into them, and they wrote it down accordingly, by using their own style of writing. And we can see that his masterful work contains several paradoxes such as:
Yes dear reader, God's love of a good paradox is evident because they abound in Scripture. Why does God use this literary tool to get his point across, and his will done, why not be more direct? Well, paradoxes have a way of causing us to think and search for answers, or at least that is what they should do. Paradoxes are curious things, and are irresistible bait to the curious mind. Those who would rather die than think, are not in the least interested in searching out, or mining the depths of a paradox, which lies in wait to reveal a treasure trove of knowledge and truth to the diligent seeker. The poor souls that willfully remain ignorant are the ones that see without seeing, and hear without hearing. Jesus spoke in parables to the people to illustrate their willful ignorance and the stubborn hardness of their hearts toward God's word. Why would he do that? To prove that they were the ones who were preventing themselves from being healed of their sins. Buried treasure is found by the curious and ardent seeker, not by the dreamer, or apathetic and lazy couch potato.
- exaltation through humility [Num 12:3, 6-8; Job 22:9; Eze 21:26; Jam 4:6-10 ; 1Pe 5:6]
- strength through weakness [Joel 3:10; 2Cr 12:10; Hbr 11:34]
- receiving through giving [ Ecc 11:1; Luk 6:38; Act 20:35 ]
- freedom through servitude [ Exd 21:1; Rom 6:18; 1Cr 7:22]
- gain through loss [Mat 10:39; Mat 16:25; Mar 8:35; Luk 9:24: Luk 17:33; Phl 3:7-8]
- living through dying [Jhn 12:24]
Yes dear reader, God's love of a good paradox is evident because they abound in Scripture. Why does God use this literary tool to get his point across, and his will done, why not be more direct? Well, paradoxes have a way of causing us to think and search for answers, or at least that is what they should do. Paradoxes are curious things, and are irresistible bait to the curious mind. Those who would rather die than think, are not in the least interested in searching out, or mining the depths of a paradox, which lies in wait to reveal a treasure trove of knowledge and truth to the diligent seeker. The poor souls that willfully remain ignorant are the ones that see without seeing, and hear without hearing. Jesus spoke in parables to the people to illustrate their willful ignorance and the stubborn hardness of their hearts toward God's word. Why would he do that? To prove that they were the ones who were preventing themselves from being healed of their sins. Buried treasure is found by the curious and ardent seeker, not by the dreamer, or apathetic and lazy couch potato.
"For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them." Matthew 13:15 NIV
What Is "Progressive Revelation?"
I had mentioned something called "progressive revelation" and some of you may not know what that is. Simply put, we humans are (for now) on a need to know basis. God only tells us what we need to know, when we need to know it. This is a very good policy if one wants to keep certain things under wraps, until it is time to let the cat out of the bag. But for those with inquiring minds, they will have a bit of a problem with this policy. Because they want to know much more than what God is willing to divulge for the time being, this can get these people into some trouble, usually of the evil spiritual kind. God has a brilliant and mysterious plan that he has devised, and he is working it out like the ultimate tactical expert that he is. Even so, he does give us some prophetic glimpses of what is to come, but these glimpses themselves are given a bit of encryption using symbols, which are validated by partial fulfillment. The true identity of the Almighty is a perfect example of this very thing. Now, after laying some ground work, we can fully examine if Jesus is God, or just a godly man.
Why Would God Want, or Need To Become A Man?
Now then, let's fully consider the question of why God would want, or need to become a man and whether or not Jesus is God in the flesh, or just a man. People who "logically" say it is impossible for Jesus to be God in the flesh reason that a "god" can't die. This is true, a spiritual being like God, or an angel doesn't have mortal flesh, and is therefore impervious to physical death, they are immortal. But the point they seem to miss entirely is that this is exactly why Jesus had to come. God hinted that he would come as a man, for the express purpose of dying as an acceptable sacrifice to himself, for man's sins. Why would he do this seemingly crazy thing? Why would he leave his heavenly realm of great power and glory to become a lowly mortal? He did this for several reasons. One reason is simply this: because he can. Another reason is so he could be the goodly example to us humans on how to live the Christian life. Another very and perhaps the most important reason, was to provide himself with a mortal human body that he could use to live among his creation, and "feel" what it was like to be tempted with sin, and then it could be used to bleed and die on the cross. Many people will and do balk at this, even though Scripture progressively reveals these truths.
There are those that reason that Jesus was just a man who was able to not sin because he had the power of the Holy Spirit resting upon him. Well, think of all the godly men who were born to us before Jesus, men like Abraham, Issac, Jacob, Moses, Joseph, David, Solomon (in his early years), Isaiah and Daniel. Even though these men were righteous, they still had sin in their lives, and no matter how much of God's Holy Spirit came upon them, they were still not able to live completely sinless lives. A real sinless champion was needed to meet God's requirements to bring atonement and reconciliation to his creation that was held captive by the destroying condition of sin and death. Enter the promised Messiah. This foretold anointed one would do what was impossible for mere mortals to do. Let's read in Isaiah 59:16--
There are those that reason that Jesus was just a man who was able to not sin because he had the power of the Holy Spirit resting upon him. Well, think of all the godly men who were born to us before Jesus, men like Abraham, Issac, Jacob, Moses, Joseph, David, Solomon (in his early years), Isaiah and Daniel. Even though these men were righteous, they still had sin in their lives, and no matter how much of God's Holy Spirit came upon them, they were still not able to live completely sinless lives. A real sinless champion was needed to meet God's requirements to bring atonement and reconciliation to his creation that was held captive by the destroying condition of sin and death. Enter the promised Messiah. This foretold anointed one would do what was impossible for mere mortals to do. Let's read in Isaiah 59:16--
He saw that there was no man, |
So perhaps this should be repeated, God never found any man to be worthy to be the Messiah. In Isaiah 41:28, we are told once more that God looked and saw no man, and no counselor that could answer a word he asked of them. As great as past human deliverers were, they can't compare to the coming Messiah. And as if that isn't enough, in Isaiah 63:5 we read that there was no one to help bring righteousness and salvation to the people, therefore his own arm brought him salvation, and still to come is his vengeance against the unrepentant wicked. Why this sounds like Isaiah 61:1-2a, doesn't it? Dear reader. Jesus is the fulfillment of these Scriptures. But Jesus is not some demi-god, he is fully God, and fully man. How can this be? By paradox. When God came to dwell with us as Jesus, the Scriptures teach that for a time, he willingly lowered himself even below his own angels. Almighty God (eternal divinity), by this process, could temporarily take on human flesh, so he could identify with our sinful flesh without actually sinning, and then physically die for our sins, as the sinless Lamb of God. Let me be clear, Jesus' flesh was not sinful, or else he wouldn't be a perfect sacrifice. We are told that he submitted even unto death, just as he foretold he would, through his holy prophets. This temporary, and self-imposed limitation would include a limiting of divine knowledge to his own incarnation - Jesus. How did he do this? I don't know exactly how, and the Bible doesn't give any details. I just know that we are on a need to know basis, and I know that he did it-that's faith talking, which supersedes rational thought in the face of human impossibility.
With Man This Is Impossible...
There are people who insist it is not possible for the Father to be his own son. They argue that Jesus didn't know the time of his own second coming, and always spoke of the Father as being greater than he. This is all true. Yet, humanly speaking, it is a well known phenomenon that we humans can and do compartmentalize information in the subconscious when we experience some sort of trauma, like a really bad car accident. To deal with the physical, and emotional pain of the event, our brain “hides” the details in the subconscious mind, away from the conscious mind, as a way of coping. That is why some accident victims have 'foggy' recollections, or even no recollections, after a horrific accident, or other trauma. When the victim with the “foggy” memory, or amnesia is carefully put under hypnosis by a highly trained professional, they are able to reveal in great detail what they witnessed during the traumatic event under the careful direction of the hypnotist, who safely puts the person as an observer to the event, not as a participant; their conscious mind is therefore bypassed. Even in this state, apparently, a hypnotist can't over rule a person's own will, meaning they can't order them to kill themselves, for instance.
However, military scientists in Hitler’s evil regime found a way of programming the human mind to do evil by using this defense mechanism against the person, and making the person their mindless slave. Our own government uses the Nazi's research and techniques to program their own assassins. Through trauma via torture, they split the personality of the person into cells, or “alters” like Jason Bourne, for example. The die hard fans of the pop-culture Sci-fi series "V" will recognize this when they recall how Juliet was captured by the aliens and tortured to make her a secret double agent for their side. Thus Hollywierd clearly demonstrates for us this technique. We even see how the person will not have any knowledge of their alter ego's exploits. But even with all their mental tinkering capabilities, these human programmers still have problems with their victims as they usually fight their programming. When the will of the programmed subject fights the imposed will of the programmer, they usually have flashes of memory and vague recollections, and boughts of paranoia, coupled with other strange behaviors. So if all of this is possible on the natural level, with evil men at the reins, then I say it is entirely possible for the Father to deny Jesus [His own incarnation-or himself], divine information such as His second coming for the entire time he was made lower than the angels. However, I would also like to add that Jesus didn't fight God's will, he embraced it as his own.
Why would He hide this information from himself as Jesus? I don't know, I'm not God. Like I said, how do we know what it is like to be a righteous, divine, eternal being confined into a pile of mortal flesh, even though Jesus' flesh was not "sinful?" I can only imagine that must have been kinda traumatizing! The only thing I can think of from Scripture at the moment is Jesus' own words, where he declares several times, that he was sent by the Father and didn't do, or say anything of his own will, but did the Father's will. He only did and said what his Father told him to do and say. So if the angels who are just above humans, but below God and don't know the time of Jesus' coming, then certainly, Jesus, the human incarnation of God, wouldn't know it either. This doesn't mean Jesus was a mindless slave to the Father, it just means he willfully did only what the Father told him to say and do, like an obedient servant behaves for a master.
Those who refuse to acknowledge Jesus' dual role of divine savior and suffering servant, they will refuse this explanation. Just like they refuse the witness of Thomas, when he called Jesus his Lord and God, and worshiped him. They will balk at this and look for Scriptures where others were giving worship to God by proxy, like righteous Daniel was worshiped by the pagan Nebuchadnezzar. However, they seem to ignore the fact that Jesus doesn't correct Thomas of this very grave error (if Jesus was in fact only human), especially since Jesus made it clear you are only to worship the Father. Isn't that odd? That clearly means, Jesus is the Father in the flesh. Since they will not accept this progressive revelation, then they must be left to their willful ignorance, and blind stubborn refusal of the truth – Lord help them. Which tragically, I am sure is their sentiment toward me.
Human Sacrifice, or God's Sacrifice?
This brings up the inevitable and unsavory subject of human sacrifice. Why would God allow Jesus to be a human sacrifice, when thousands of years before, he forbade Abraham from offering Isaac, and also made it illegal for an Israelite to participate in it by the law of Moses? Doesn't that make God out to be a hypocrite, and even a demented God? These are good and valid questions. When people question God's honor on this subject, it's usually because they don't understand the concept of the sin offering as laid out in Leviticus and other Scriptures. I'm not saying that because I think I know everything, because I don't. I'm saying that because it's true, they don't understand the reasoning and purpose behind the ritual of the Levitical sacrifices.
I know dear reader....I know....Leviticus it isn't the most exciting book in Scripture, but it is very informative, and a vital foundation for proper instruction in righteousness, especially regarding what is and isn't an acceptable sacrifice to God. Leviticus chapter 16 lays out for us the ceremony of the Day of Atonement, Israel's once a year sin cleansing sacrifice. I highly recommend you read it in its entirety, as it also applies to Jesus' passion. I will highlight the verse in Exodus that deals with the requirements of the Passover sacrifice, because Jesus is our Passover Lamb. And I will show you how Jesus met these requirements, and then explain why pagan inspired human sacrifices are abhorrent to him.
I know dear reader....I know....Leviticus it isn't the most exciting book in Scripture, but it is very informative, and a vital foundation for proper instruction in righteousness, especially regarding what is and isn't an acceptable sacrifice to God. Leviticus chapter 16 lays out for us the ceremony of the Day of Atonement, Israel's once a year sin cleansing sacrifice. I highly recommend you read it in its entirety, as it also applies to Jesus' passion. I will highlight the verse in Exodus that deals with the requirements of the Passover sacrifice, because Jesus is our Passover Lamb. And I will show you how Jesus met these requirements, and then explain why pagan inspired human sacrifices are abhorrent to him.
'Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats.' Exodus 12:5 NKJV
God said that sheep and goats are clean animals(Lev 11:1-3), and they were acceptable to be eaten and used as sacrifices. Okay, how come? Well, I don't really know why other than they chew cud, have cloven hooves, and are herbivores, and more importantly, because God said so. Anyway, as "stupid" and domesticated animals, these sheep and goats are dependent upon their owners for the quality of their lives. They appear to be void of willingly participating in good, or evil, but they don't have the breath of God within them like man does(Gen 2:7). They are, I guess, the closest thing to being “innocent”, and “sinless” as we can get. Even so, if the animal was lame, sick, spotted, or scared, it was to be considered unacceptable or “evil,” or “sinful.” On the flip side, a human child is considered by most of us to be dependent upon its parents, and seems to be “innocent”, and “sinless” as well. However, we forget that God says all humanity is tainted with Adam's sin, even though none of us have committed the exact same sin. We are still subject to the penalty of Adam and Eve's fall (Rom.5); all of us fall short of God's glory. As we grow up, then we each pile on our own sins upon ourselves. So by this we understand that a baby is still a creature with an inherited sin nature (a condition much like a disease) the babe is therefore spotted, or blemished, and is not acceptable as a sacrifice to God. That is why Jesus' flesh simply can't be considered to have this human sin condition, his flesh is spotless. He himself says that he came from above; that he came from the Father in heaven, his father was not human, He's God. The Bible even says that the Holy Spirit overshadowed Mary, and conceived him in her womb. Not through normal sexual means, but supernaturally.
In Exodus 12:6- 8, concerning the Passover, the Israelis were required to keep the selected animal until the proper day, the fourteenth day of the first month, and then the whole assembly was to kill their lambs at twilight. Then they were to sprinkle some of the lamb's blood onto the two door posts and on the lintel [an allusion to the cross] of their homes, where they ate it. It was to be roasted whole in the fire, and not cut or broken up into pieces. This could also be another allusion to there being only one LORD. After all, Paul did ask the Corinthians in 1 Cor. 1:13 if Christ was divided, the answer to that rhetorical question is"no." This holy meal was also eaten with unleavened bread, another symbol of sinlessness. And so we see that Jesus is both the sinless Lamb of God and the sinless unleavened bread, or manna from heaven. These things foretold of what was to come. And so, in no way are we to use a sinful human being as a sin offering to a sinless God. That is why the pagan practice of sacrificing human children to idols of stone, wood, or metal was and still is, an abhorrent abomination to Him. He said in Jer 32:35 that this thing was done by his own people, something that never entered into his mind for them to do. Some cultures actually (Lord give me strength) ate these children! This is cannibalism, something God never commanded to be done, and he abhors it as well. The Passover Lamb and unleavened bread are symbols of Jesus, not actually Jesus – this is where “transubstantiation” is to be considered the unholy pagan practice of ritual cannibalism. When Jesus made references to the communion elements of his body and flesh to his disciples, they were to be symbols only, but many of his disciples took it quite literally and ended up leaving him over it- it offended them.
So it is in this sense and purpose that Jesus was offered unto God (or to Himself), because he was the only one qualified to accomplish the work as the sinless Lamb of God, to take away the sins of the world, because only God is sinless. No angel, no human, and certainly no animal could do it, no matter what Kenneth Copeland says. Any other attempt at redemption is frowned upon, and it won't be acceptable, because like Abraham said, God has already provided the way of redemption for his creation - Jesus crucified, his perfect sinless sacrifice. God needed this act to be done right, so he did it himself. Just as God can swear by no one higher than himself, there was no one higher that he could anoint for that monumental task, other than himself (Psalm 45:7).
Yes, this whole brouhaha, or troubling question of Jesus being God in the flesh seems pretty simple to me --I'm a simple girl mind you; not a simpleton. God anointed [ Psa 2:7; Acts 13:33; Hbr 1:5-9; Hbr 5:5] and sent Himself as His only Begotten Son, to earth, as the incarnation of God, in other words: Jesus. There is only one Savior and Redeemer of mankind concerning sin, that is spoken of in Scripture, not two or three. In the process of becoming human, Jesus willingly limited and submitted himself to his higher office– The Father. Why? For the sole purpose of fulfilling what He planned before He laid the foundations of the world, a plan that entailed Him to live a sinless life among his creation, and to submit himself, even to death, for God humbled himself and became a man. By doing this, He cleverly out did His opponent, Satan, who is prideful, and as a created being, desires to be like the Most High. God defeated Satan through the paradox of the crucifixion of His mortal body, in order to ransom us from sin's effects and God's righteous judgement, and put us back into right standing with God Himself, after the rebellion in the Garden placed all creation onto subjection of death. Through Jesus' bodily death, the price for sin was paid in full, and now any who accept Jesus' gracious gift of salvation by faith will be saved. Why is this so difficult to understand and accept?
The Messiah Whose Son Is He?
And now, concerning Jesus' role as the Jewish Messiah, as I understand it, there were three branches of Judaism being practiced in Judea during Jesus' day. These branches were the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the Essenes. The Pharisees, at the time of Jesus, were looking for their triumphant human Messiah, while the Sadducees were not looking for the Messiah at all, and the Essenes were looking for two of them! And these sects were all jealously vying for followers among the people of Judea. These men who were jealous of Jesus' ministry wanted to (at the very least) embarrass him with their "knowledge" of Scripture, and then digressed into desiring to murder him. In Matthew chapter 22, one of their pitiable attempts to entrap Jesus occurred when the Sadducees gave Jesus a parable of a 7 time widow and then they wanted to know which husband would be her husband after the Resurrection. I often wonder if Jesus looked at them with a blank stare, or did a face palm and then shook he head before he answered them.
Anyway, after their well deserved doctrinal defeat that Jesus dished out to them, a Pharisee attempted to finish the job by asking Jesus what the Law's greatest commandment was. After Jesus set that record straight by giving the man (and us) his two great commandments, then it was his turn to question them. "'What do you think about the Messiah, whose son is he?' The son of David, they replied.'" Notice that they didn't have to confer with one another this time, they actually knew the answer, or did they? Jesus continues his examination concerning the question he asked, in order to make sure that they really knew the answer. He said to them, "How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him 'Lord'? For he says, "'The LORD said to my Lord, "Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet."'If David calls him 'Lord,' how can he be his son?" Booya! The score is: Jesus:3, Sadducees/Pharisees: 0! They couldn't, or wouldn't answer Jesus' question. Why not? Because.....well... Matthew Henry does a great job of explaining:
Anyway, after their well deserved doctrinal defeat that Jesus dished out to them, a Pharisee attempted to finish the job by asking Jesus what the Law's greatest commandment was. After Jesus set that record straight by giving the man (and us) his two great commandments, then it was his turn to question them. "'What do you think about the Messiah, whose son is he?' The son of David, they replied.'" Notice that they didn't have to confer with one another this time, they actually knew the answer, or did they? Jesus continues his examination concerning the question he asked, in order to make sure that they really knew the answer. He said to them, "How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him 'Lord'? For he says, "'The LORD said to my Lord, "Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet."'If David calls him 'Lord,' how can he be his son?" Booya! The score is: Jesus:3, Sadducees/Pharisees: 0! They couldn't, or wouldn't answer Jesus' question. Why not? Because.....well... Matthew Henry does a great job of explaining:
"When Christ baffled his enemies, he asked what thoughts they had of the promised Messiah? How he could be the Son of David and yet his Lord? He quotes Ps 110:1. If the Christ was to be a mere man, who would not exist till many ages after David's death, how could his forefather call him Lord? The Pharisees could not answer it. Nor can any solve the difficulty except he allows the Messiah to be the Son of God, and David's Lord equally with the Father. He took upon him human nature, and so became God manifested in the flesh; in this sense he is the Son of man and the Son of David." Matthew Henry commentary of Matt. 22:41-46
Ha ha! See? The experts in Judaism had no idea who their Messiah was, much less what his mission was. Well, to be completely honest, Judaism in any form, is not a completely biblical religion, that's why they didn't then, and don't now, know their Messiah. Now now, before any Jewish, or Zionist readers get their kosher panties in a bunch, please hear me out. Paul (a former Pharisee) noted that Jews have an enthusiasm for God, but they don't know him (Romans 10:1-4). Judaism is historically on record as being a mixture of Babylonian mystery religion (witchcraft/mysticism), man made traditions, and biblical camouflage (the Torah) to make it all seem godly. Please don't think that Judaism is the only religion to do this; the Catholic religion does the same thing, only their idolatry is much more visible. And many other so-called Christian faiths such as Mormonism, Jehovah's Witnesses, Calvinists, Pentecostal's, and more recently, the Emergent (Emerging-same thing) brand are all in the same idolatrous and false doctrinal sick bed.
As for Abraham, Issac, and Jacob, well, they were NOT "Jews" either, nor did they practice Judaism. Judaism came about after the Jews (people from the Israelite tribe of Judah) went into (and then came out of) Babylonian captivity for their idolatrous crimes against the LORD. The LORD told them not to learn their captor's pagan ways, but unfortunately, they didn't listen. Ezekiel 8 covers their persistent idolatry, and Nehemiah had a devil of a time with them too. Anyway, Moses, the prophets, and Jesus did't practice Judaism either. The Holy Scriptures were penned by: Moses, all the prophets, godly priests, and the saved apostles; not one line was written down by a single "Jewish rabbi." These holy men (who didn't practice Judaism) foretold of a Messiah (or an Anointed One) who would come and free his people from their bondage (to sin) and exile, and also bring in the Gentiles to the family. And then he'd rule his people in their own land, under his unending kingdom of peace and prosperity.
There is a good (all be it long) article that I read that explains how today's brand of Judaism continues to dishonestly blind Jews to the knowledge of Jesus being their long awaited Messiah. You can read it here. I want to make it clear that I do not advocate Jew bashing, nor do I wish Christians to jump on any of the Judaism bandwagons and support that faith. Remember that the faith of Abraham was not Judaism, and he is considered to be the father (or first human) of faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus said that Abraham saw Jesus' day and rejoiced (John 8:56). I love the Jews, but hate Judaism, as it is the synagogue of Satan. Jesus is not only their Messiah, but he is the Gentiles Messiah too! For a list of Messianic Prophecies Jesus fulfilled you can see it here.
As for Abraham, Issac, and Jacob, well, they were NOT "Jews" either, nor did they practice Judaism. Judaism came about after the Jews (people from the Israelite tribe of Judah) went into (and then came out of) Babylonian captivity for their idolatrous crimes against the LORD. The LORD told them not to learn their captor's pagan ways, but unfortunately, they didn't listen. Ezekiel 8 covers their persistent idolatry, and Nehemiah had a devil of a time with them too. Anyway, Moses, the prophets, and Jesus did't practice Judaism either. The Holy Scriptures were penned by: Moses, all the prophets, godly priests, and the saved apostles; not one line was written down by a single "Jewish rabbi." These holy men (who didn't practice Judaism) foretold of a Messiah (or an Anointed One) who would come and free his people from their bondage (to sin) and exile, and also bring in the Gentiles to the family. And then he'd rule his people in their own land, under his unending kingdom of peace and prosperity.
There is a good (all be it long) article that I read that explains how today's brand of Judaism continues to dishonestly blind Jews to the knowledge of Jesus being their long awaited Messiah. You can read it here. I want to make it clear that I do not advocate Jew bashing, nor do I wish Christians to jump on any of the Judaism bandwagons and support that faith. Remember that the faith of Abraham was not Judaism, and he is considered to be the father (or first human) of faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus said that Abraham saw Jesus' day and rejoiced (John 8:56). I love the Jews, but hate Judaism, as it is the synagogue of Satan. Jesus is not only their Messiah, but he is the Gentiles Messiah too! For a list of Messianic Prophecies Jesus fulfilled you can see it here.
The Twofold Ministry of The Messiah
The ministry of the Messiah, or the Anointed One, is twofold, or two phases. These two phases are laid out for us in Isaiah 41:28; 59:16-17; 63:5 and more famously in Isaiah 61:1-2a.
Phase 1: The Suffering Servant.
No one wants to belong to a losing team, right? This is human nature. Yet there are many people who like to root for the underdog....weird, huh? In keeping with human nature, the Jews wanted their conquering Messiah to burst into town and march his righteous army on Rome to deliver it a crushing defeat, so the Jews could then rule the world with him. Unfortunately for them, that was their plan, but not God's. Well, they were actually putting the cart before the horse. And before anyone clicks their tongues at them for missing it, consider how those who follow today's Dominonist Movement are doing the exact same thing regarding Jesus' second coming. These modern misguided souls claim that they will rule and reign on the earth BEFORE Jesus' second coming. They think that it is their ruling and reigning that will usher in Jesus' long awaited return. But like the Jews before them, they can't seem to understand the Scriptures that say the Messiah (Jesus) has to physically come before any victory is wrought. During phase 1, there was a dirty job to do, and the only one who could do it was God's anointed servant - Jesus, or really God himself!
Yes, that's right, God anointed himself to be the Messiah. That means that the Messiah was to be and is God himself. Don't worry, Scripture supports this. Isaiah 9:6 alone makes this claim possible and true.
Phase 1: The Suffering Servant.
No one wants to belong to a losing team, right? This is human nature. Yet there are many people who like to root for the underdog....weird, huh? In keeping with human nature, the Jews wanted their conquering Messiah to burst into town and march his righteous army on Rome to deliver it a crushing defeat, so the Jews could then rule the world with him. Unfortunately for them, that was their plan, but not God's. Well, they were actually putting the cart before the horse. And before anyone clicks their tongues at them for missing it, consider how those who follow today's Dominonist Movement are doing the exact same thing regarding Jesus' second coming. These modern misguided souls claim that they will rule and reign on the earth BEFORE Jesus' second coming. They think that it is their ruling and reigning that will usher in Jesus' long awaited return. But like the Jews before them, they can't seem to understand the Scriptures that say the Messiah (Jesus) has to physically come before any victory is wrought. During phase 1, there was a dirty job to do, and the only one who could do it was God's anointed servant - Jesus, or really God himself!
Yes, that's right, God anointed himself to be the Messiah. That means that the Messiah was to be and is God himself. Don't worry, Scripture supports this. Isaiah 9:6 alone makes this claim possible and true.
I quote from Harold C. Felder's article entitled: Giving An Answer: Divinity of Christ
"The prophet Isaiah writes of the Messiah “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isa. 9:6). Here we see the title “Mighty God” used to refer to the Messiah. This very title is used of God in the very next chapter: “A remnant will return, a remnant of Jacob will return to the Mighty God” (Isa. 10:21). So the logic is easy to follow: the title “Mighty God” refers to God; and since this title is assigned to the Messiah, the Messiah must be God; and since Jesus Himself claims to be the Messiah, Jesus is claiming to be God." Harold C. Felder
I just love that don't you? The only thing that the Bible does not support (and therefore neither do I) in Harold's article is the false Trinity teaching. Ironically, the answer to this error lies in the very same verse he sites to prove the Messiah, meaning that Jesus, is God. These titles of office in the Isaiah verse are all held by the same "PERSON" or being, Jesus Christ, not by three individuals sharing one office of God. So I hope and pray that Jesus will quickly help Harold to see the error of the "Holy Trinity" teaching. God, the Almighty is Almighty because of his "Omni" powers of: Omnipotence, Omnipresence, Omniscience, and Omnificent (I didn't make that word up, it means all-creative). These Omni powers are a huge part of his true divine nature and are expressed through the various offices and titles of power he holds. That is what makes our God one awesome God, and not three separate co-equal, co-eternal persons. This is a false teaching fostered by the rudimentary Roman Catholic church fathers in the 4th century.
Anyway, we've all heard the saying; "If you want something done right, then do it yourself" right? Well, that is EXACTLY what God did. The Suffering Servant's mission of mercy was to preach good tidings (i.e. the gospel) to the poor (in spirit), he was sent to heal the brokenhearted, and to proclaim liberty to the captives (of sin), and to open the prison of those who were bound to their sins(i.e. redemption/salvation). He came to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord - that being that the Messiah has come at last! Jesus said that he didn't come to be served, but to serve, and boy oh boy did he serve and suffer. The dirty job he came to do, something no other could do, was to die on a cross for the world's sin. That was phase 1. But before phase two can come to pass, there is another dirty job that must be done before our King of Kings, and Lord of Lords touches down on the Mount of Olives in real time. God's refining fire must come and remove all of the spiritual dross from the saints, which will be accomplished through suffering persecution, and his wrath must fall on the wicked apostates and unregenerates alike, those that have rejected Jesus.
Anyway, we've all heard the saying; "If you want something done right, then do it yourself" right? Well, that is EXACTLY what God did. The Suffering Servant's mission of mercy was to preach good tidings (i.e. the gospel) to the poor (in spirit), he was sent to heal the brokenhearted, and to proclaim liberty to the captives (of sin), and to open the prison of those who were bound to their sins(i.e. redemption/salvation). He came to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord - that being that the Messiah has come at last! Jesus said that he didn't come to be served, but to serve, and boy oh boy did he serve and suffer. The dirty job he came to do, something no other could do, was to die on a cross for the world's sin. That was phase 1. But before phase two can come to pass, there is another dirty job that must be done before our King of Kings, and Lord of Lords touches down on the Mount of Olives in real time. God's refining fire must come and remove all of the spiritual dross from the saints, which will be accomplished through suffering persecution, and his wrath must fall on the wicked apostates and unregenerates alike, those that have rejected Jesus.
Phase 2: The Triumphant Avenger & Ruler Over All The Nations
Remember when Jesus stood up in the synagogue of his home town to read Isaiah 61? Everything was peachy-keen until he stopped reading midway through verse 2. He stopped reading and declared that this prophecy was fulfilled in their ears. Whoa! After that Jesus was escorted to the brow of a hill by the hometown angry mob. Thankfully, he just walked passed them, because it wasn't his time to die yet. Anyway, the part he didn't read involves his second coming; when he will appear in the clouds, sitting on his white war steed, and will dispatch the Anti-Christ and False Prophet to the Lake of Fire, and Satan to the Bottomless Pit, or Tartarus. Oh yeah! I can hardly wait for the glorious day, can you? This glorious day is of course after the Great Tribulation takes place, or the day of God's vengeance (Isaiah 61:2b). After that, Jesus will finally set up his righteous kingdom, and all of those who were martyred will reign with him, for a literal thousand years, or a very long time, figuratively speaking (Isaiah 61:3-11). Wow, what a time that will be, huh?! Can you imagine?
Anyway, this is a point of contention, and what causes many Jews to stumble over Jesus being the Messiah: He didn't come to them to unleash a massive butt-kicking on the heathen Roman government, and usher in a subsequent world peace where the Jews would reign with him. Unfortunately, they continue to be blind of the fact that there can be no world peace without there first being peace between mankind and God. They cling to the Old Testament sacrifices even though there is no standing temple. The peace that Jesus brought through his cross, the one that was and is past all human understanding, fulfilled the OT type and shadow sacrifices, as God planned. The Jews aren't the only ones who stumble over this fact, many of us Gentiles still don't realize just how much sin separates us from God, making us his enemies, thus causing war and other miseries in the spiritual and natural realm. Sin's blood requirement had to be dealt with once and for all first, causing peace between sinful man and our righteous God to be possible. Jesus' blood shed at the cross is the peace treaty between God and man. This divine treaty between heaven and earth will eventually lead to Phase 2, which is judgement of the wicked, and finally, unprecedented world peace for the righteous! This will happen only according to God's already appointed time; it's not in our control.
Remember when Jesus stood up in the synagogue of his home town to read Isaiah 61? Everything was peachy-keen until he stopped reading midway through verse 2. He stopped reading and declared that this prophecy was fulfilled in their ears. Whoa! After that Jesus was escorted to the brow of a hill by the hometown angry mob. Thankfully, he just walked passed them, because it wasn't his time to die yet. Anyway, the part he didn't read involves his second coming; when he will appear in the clouds, sitting on his white war steed, and will dispatch the Anti-Christ and False Prophet to the Lake of Fire, and Satan to the Bottomless Pit, or Tartarus. Oh yeah! I can hardly wait for the glorious day, can you? This glorious day is of course after the Great Tribulation takes place, or the day of God's vengeance (Isaiah 61:2b). After that, Jesus will finally set up his righteous kingdom, and all of those who were martyred will reign with him, for a literal thousand years, or a very long time, figuratively speaking (Isaiah 61:3-11). Wow, what a time that will be, huh?! Can you imagine?
Anyway, this is a point of contention, and what causes many Jews to stumble over Jesus being the Messiah: He didn't come to them to unleash a massive butt-kicking on the heathen Roman government, and usher in a subsequent world peace where the Jews would reign with him. Unfortunately, they continue to be blind of the fact that there can be no world peace without there first being peace between mankind and God. They cling to the Old Testament sacrifices even though there is no standing temple. The peace that Jesus brought through his cross, the one that was and is past all human understanding, fulfilled the OT type and shadow sacrifices, as God planned. The Jews aren't the only ones who stumble over this fact, many of us Gentiles still don't realize just how much sin separates us from God, making us his enemies, thus causing war and other miseries in the spiritual and natural realm. Sin's blood requirement had to be dealt with once and for all first, causing peace between sinful man and our righteous God to be possible. Jesus' blood shed at the cross is the peace treaty between God and man. This divine treaty between heaven and earth will eventually lead to Phase 2, which is judgement of the wicked, and finally, unprecedented world peace for the righteous! This will happen only according to God's already appointed time; it's not in our control.
In Conclusion
So there you have it dear reader, throughout the pages of Scripture, the LORD God reveals himself through paradox and progressive revelation, to not only be the Almighty Father God, but also that he and he alone, is the Messiah, and is his only begotten Son, Jesus! This seemingly impossible feat is done by the Almighty's "Omni" powers. Chose to believe Scripture, or don't. If you don't believe it, then may I be so humble to suggest you reevaluate your salvation. Meaning, which Jesus do you believe in? The Jesus of the Bible, or the Jesus man made traditions and false religions have built? I encourage you to seriously consider this question and seek out its answer in the Spirit of truth! Amen.
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