Who is Jesus? (#11)
Over the past ten weeks, we have had the opportunity to consider the identity of Jesus Christ. Although we have certainly not covered the topic exhaustively, I believe that we have seen several helpful ideas that are both applicable to life and anchored to Scripture. We have thought about Jesus’ incarnation and role as Creator and Sustainer of all things. We have considered how Jesus makes the invisible Father known to us and speaks on His behalf. We have seen…
Who is Jesus? (#10)
As Job went through an indescribable amount of suffering in Job 1-2, in Job 9, Job pictures himself in a courtroom with God. In Job’s attempt to demonstrate his innocence before God, he highlights this problem in Job 9:33: “There is no arbiter between us, who might lay his hand on us both.” In Job’s situation, there is no mediator between him and God. There is no one to intercede between the two parties. There is no one to lay…
Who is Jesus? (#9)
One of the most familiar titles that is used to describe the Lord Jesus is “Son of God.” This phrase is used to refer to Jesus about thirty-seven times in the New Testament. Just to list a few of those, in Matthew 16:16, Peter confessed Jesus to be “the Son of the living God.” As Paul states, “When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who…
Who is Jesus? (#8)
In the Old Testament, God made a very powerful promise to King David: “When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom… I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever” (2 Samuel 7:12-13). This promise is echoed to the prophet Isaiah: “There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from…
Who is Jesus? (#7)
If you had the opportunity to read last week’s article, we thought about what Jesus being the “Son of Man” means. Based on how the Old Testament uses the phrase the majority of the time, this title demonstrates our Lord’s humanity. Demonstrating great humility, Jesus came to earth and lived as a human being. While being true, this is only a part of what Jesus being the “Son of Man” means. For Jesus, the title “Son of Man” demonstrates not…
Who is Jesus? (#6)
In the New Testament, the phrase “Son of Man” is used to describe Jesus almost eighty-eight times. In fact, this was Jesus’ favorite way to refer to Himself. Jesus refers to Himself as the “Son of Man” about fifty times throughout the four Gospels. What is the significance of this phrase? What does this title teach us about the identity of our Lord and Savior? In the Old Testament, the phrase “son of man” is oftentimes used to simply refer…
Who is Jesus? (#5)
What does it mean for Jesus to be “the Christ”? When I was younger, I thought that “Christ” was Jesus’ last name. As I grew in knowledge, I found that to be incorrect. Instead of being a name, “Christ” is a title that Jesus holds, position that He occupies, and function that He carries out. “Christ” is a term that describes to us who Jesus really is. “Christ” is a word in the New Testament that comes from the Greek…
Who is Jesus? (#4)
Consider the words of Hebrews 1:1-2: “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son.” Going back to the Old Testament, God spoke to the nation of Israel through His prophets. Prophets were messengers of God. God communicated to the prophets the message that He wanted the nation of Israel to hear. Then, the prophets would proclaim God’s message…
Who is Jesus? (#3)
Scripture is very clear in stating that human eyes have never seen and are not able to see the fullness of God’s glory and person. In the Bible, God is described as being “invisible” (Colossians 1:15; 1 Timothy 1:17). God is the one “whom no one has ever seen or can see” (1 Timothy 6:16). The Apostle John uses the same phrase two different times in order to describe this reality: “No one has ever seen God” (John 1:18; 1…
Who is Jesus? (#2)
One of the most well-known, important stories in all of the Bible is the seven days of creation recorded in Genesis 1-2. Truly, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). In the midst of the Ten Commandments, we find an excellent summary of this indescribable series of events: “For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day” (Exodus 20:11). All…
Who is Jesus? (#1)
Over the next few weeks, I would like us to consider a question of the greatest importance. It is a question that determines who we are, what we do, and where we will spend an eternity. Who is Jesus? What does the Bible teach us about the identity of Jesus? As we think about this question together, we are going to examine several different passages over the next several weeks. Today, we are going to begin by thinking about what…
The Fruit of the Spirit Is… What’s Holding Us Back?
As I was researching in preparation for this article, I came across an article from USA Today entitled “Weirdest Laws Passed in Every State.” In previous generations in the United States, many laws have been passed that are truly odd in today’s world. In Tennessee, a person cannot hold a public office if he/she has been involved in a duel. In Virginia, a person cannot hunt on Sunday, unless it’s for raccoons. In Vermont, forbidding people to put up clotheslines…
The Fruit of the Spirit Is… Gentleness
Just as trees produce certain fruits, Christians must produce certain qualities and characteristics on a daily basis. These qualities and characteristics are listed in Galatians 5:22-23 and are identified as “the fruit of the Spirit.” Part of the fruit we are empowered by the Holy Spirit to produce is gentleness. Oftentimes, we struggle with gentleness. That could be because we believe that gentle people constantly get run over in life or because we want to mask rudeness as “simply being…
The Fruit of the Spirit Is… Faithfulness
In his biography, C.S. Lewis writes of a dear friend that he had during World War I. This friend was worried about what would happen to his wife and kids if he were to die in battle. In order to ease his friend’s mind, Lewis promised his friend that, if he were to die in battle, he would make sure that his family was taken care of. As the war dragged on, Lewis’ friend ended up being killed. Being faithful…
The Fruit of the Spirit Is… Goodness
“Are you a good person?” The answer to that question depends on a person’s perspective. On one hand, as Jesus says, “No one is good except God alone” (Luke 18:19). Emphasizing how all people are under sin, Paul says, “No one does good, not even one” (Romans 3:10). We all have sins and temptations that we struggle with. But on the other hand, as those who have been cleansed by the blood of Christ, we are to be people of…
The Fruit of the Spirit Is… Patience
Just as trees produce certain fruits, Christians must produce certain qualities and characteristics on a daily basis. These qualities and characteristics are listed in Galatians 5:22-23 and are identified as “the fruit of the Spirit.” The fourth fruit that we are empowered by the Holy Spirit to produce is patience. What does the Bible have to say about patience? Generally, in all circumstances, followers of Jesus are to be people of patience. As Christians, we are urged “to walk in…
The Fruit of the Spirit Is… Peace
Just as trees produce certain fruits, Christians must produce certain qualities and characteristics on a daily basis. These qualities and characteristics are listed in Galatians 5:22-23 and are identified as “the fruit of the Spirit.” The third fruit that we are empowered by the Holy Spirit to produce is peace. What does the New Testament have to say about peace? First, we must realize that we serve a “God of peace” (Romans 15:33; 16:20; 2 Corinthians 13:11; Philippians 4:9; 1…
A Mother’s Love
Can you imagine what it would have been like to see Jesus as He hung on the cross? Jesus had been scourged. He had been beaten, slapped, and spit on. He had the crown of thorns placed on and driven into His head. As Jesus suffered because of the sins that we have committed, metal spikes were driven through His hands and feet. People who passed by mocked Him. Because of the position that He was in on the cross,…
The Fruit of the Spirit Is… Joy
Just as trees produce certain fruits, Christians must produce certain qualities and characteristics. These qualities and characteristics are listed in Galatians 5:22-23 and are identified as “the fruit of the Spirit.” The second fruit that we are empowered by the Holy Spirit to produce is joy. What is joy? I am afraid that we sometimes confuse joy with happiness. While the two are very similar, there are some major differences. Happiness is based on circumstances in life; joy is not.…
The Fruit of the Spirit Is… Love
Just as trees produce certain fruits, Christians must produce certain qualities and characteristics. These qualities and characteristics are listed in Galatians 5:22-23 and are identified as “the fruit of the Spirit.” When people repent and are baptized for the forgiveness of sins in the name of Jesus Christ, they receive the gift of God’s Spirit (Acts 2:38). Receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit, they are empowered by the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 3:16) who dwells within them (1 Corinthians 3:16-17;…
The Fruit of the Spirit (Introduction)
Certain trees bear certain fruits. To my knowledge, an apple tree will always produce apples. An orange tree will always produce oranges. In the same way, true followers of Jesus will always produce a certain fruit. These defining qualities and characteristics are called “the fruit of the Spirit” and are found in Galatians 5:22- 23. In that text, Paul lists nine qualities that every Christian should demonstrate every day: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience,…