Who is the Jesus of the Bible, and why do Christians actually worship Him? Those of us who grew up going to church know He is the “Son of God,” but—aren’t we all “children of God?” How is this different? More than that, what’s so special about Him that some consider Him more precious than anything else in their lives?
“But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall He come forth unto Me [God is speaking] that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.” (Micah 5:2 KJV)
Jesus Christ—the man who lived two thousand years ago in present-day Israel; who had a public ministry for three years from age thirty to thirty-three and was then executed by crucifixion—is God. That’s what’s so special about Him. But why? How?
No, it doesn’t mean that there was no God in heaven when Jesus Christ was born a baby in Bethlehem; in some way we can’t quite wrap our minds around, God was still there—but He was also here: Jesus Christ was our Immanuel, translated “God with us” (as recorded here by Matthew):
“Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord [God] by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin [Mary, His human mother] shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, And they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.” (Matthew 1:22-23 KJV)
How is any of this possible? Track with me here as John explains it:
“In the beginning was the Word [of God], and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him; and without Him was not any thing made that was made. In Him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness [not physical darkness; moral and spiritual darkness]; and the darkness comprehended it not [people didn’t get it].
“There was a man sent from God, whose name was John [the Baptist]. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light [he preached to the local people right before Jesus began His public ministry], that all men through Him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.
“That [Jesus Christ] was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not. He came unto His own [Israel], and His own received Him not [most didn’t believe].
“But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name: which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
“And the Word [of God; Jesus Christ] was made flesh [was born a human through Mary] and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth.
“John bare witness of Him, and cried, saying, “This was He of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for He was before me.”
“And of His fulness have all we received, and grace for grace. For the [Old Testament Israelite] law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him.” (John 1:1-18 KJV)
Okay; it’s a lot to pull apart. Let’s start with the fact that Jesus Christ existed—was—before two thousand years ago; that His “goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting,” and that “In the beginning was the Word [of God], and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Jesus Christ is “the Word” who was in the beginning, was with God, and was God; more than that, all things were made by Him.
How is any of this possible? Well, it’s difficult for us to understand, but since when does that mean it’s not correct or true? The complex laws of physics are difficult for me to wrap my mind around—the fact, for example, that scientists say there are as many as twelve dimensions when all I can comprehend are the three of length, width and height—yet that does not mean it is not true.
There’s more. The most important is that there’s a reason for God to have become a human baby. Because this isn’t an ancient fable of the “gods” wanting to check out the earth or something, there really was a purpose for the Word—the expression—of God becoming human, and that purpose requires us to comprehend the human condition.
We are born sinful. Our most innate instincts are toward self and what benefits self. Social scientists say this is a self-preserving adaptation, but it makes for a cruel world. And even the nicest of us cannot yank ourselves out of this innate tendency permanently; we may succeed in doing a kind, selfless deed, but again we revert back to what is our nature. God understands this, as well as the laws of justice and consequence; that this innate evil in us is worthy of judgment. That’s why He Himself became a human being—to fulfill the laws of justice on our behalf. Talk about LOVE!
Think about this! That’s why we love God; why we’re amazed by Him; why we consider Jesus Christ, God who became a human, precious beyond belief—because He didn’t make us bear the guilt of our own sins; He came and bore their guilt Himself!
God Himself, in the person of Jesus Christ, paid the guilt of my sin and imperfection so I—the guilty one—could be considered innocent! But some have actually perversely called this child abuse—they’ve said it is cruel of God the Father to subject His Son to such a fate. They’re missing the relational dynamic here.
Jesus Christ is referred to as God the Son, and God in heaven is referred to as God the Father, but this is merely human terminology to help us understand how God could still be, even as He also became human. The Bible isn’t an ancient myth; we don’t have some kind of “divine family” of father and mother (or just father—if it were a myth, why not?!) who give birth to a son.
It isn’t child abuse because there aren’t two Gods—a parent and a child—there is only one God; this is clearly taught in the Old Testament portion of the Bible: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD.” (Deuteronomy 6:4 KJV)
And this one God, somehow in a way that I cannot quite wrap my mind around, loved us so much that He fulfilled the requirement of justice on sin Himself. But why could He?
If you logically follow what God revealed to us in the Bible, it is because God supernaturally created Jesus Christ within Mary. Some will scorn the thought of Mary giving birth without having relations with anyone, but could God who created everything not do this? Anything else would have been the conceived sin-imbued child of two sinful human beings, incapable of paying for anyone’s sin. Jesus Christ is Immanuel—God with us—because He was supernaturally formed within Mary, not the natural result of a sexual relationship.
So what is faith in Jesus Christ? It is recognizing that Jesus is God Himself (“I and my Father are one.” John 10:30 KJV), who loved me enough to pay the punishment for my sin, and trusting Him to guide me to eternity. It is me seeing He isn’t a historical figure, a religious leader, a wise teacher, or the founder of a movement, but the Word, the very expression, of God Himself who loves me and accepts me when I trust Him and is safely carrying me through this life to eternity as I continue to trust Him. That’s why He is more precious to me than anything else!
Dear Jesus Christ,
Help me fully recognize who You are, as well Your ability to completely meet my every need in You and bring me safely to eternity in You—that You really are everything, and enough! Amen.
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