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Why did Jesus Come into the World?
The Reason for the gospel Imagine the creator of this vast universe, all that is seen and unseen, who has all knowledge, all power coming to the ones he created to make himself known to them. Well, that’s exactly what took place almost 2,000 years ago. To communicate with us in the best way possible, “God “became flesh,” He became one of the creatures he made, man. And that man was Jesus the Scripture speaks of. Why did God do this? Our greatest need is an eternal one. It’s not about what we can gain in this life now, not profits or pleasure, or making a lasting imprint of ourselves on this earth. In the end, none of these will nourish or satisfy our soul. Ours is a spiritual need, one that we were created for, to have fellowship with God and do His will, and this goes into eternity. Jesus came to earth because He loves us; He came to deliver truth in a world of falsehood that had lost its way, even to those he specifically delivered his commands and oracles to for millennia. But the main reason He came to earth was to be the final sacrifice for our sins. The simple reason is because we are not good. Some may think they are but none are as good as they think they are, and when compared to God’s standard who is Jesus we all see our shortcomings. His love prompted him to become man to accomplish what only He could, to rescue mankind, because we are sinful, and in a spiritually wrecked condition. We are in need of redemption but cannot redeem ourselves. Nothing short of the eternal creator could accomplish this; no man with sin could qualify to redeem us with his life. God would come to earth as man to cleanse the effects of the disease of sin inherited by all humanity. That is what is so amazing about the Bible story of Jesus. The creator came to earth; God who is perfect, righteous, and holy lived among his creatures that are unholy, and unrighteous, even those who were staunch enemies of him. After man was made from the earth and given dominion over the earth, Satan, an angelic creature smarter and more powerful than man came to Eve in the garden to deceive her. Tempting Eve to disobey God’s simple command, it resulted in Adam also disobeying God and bringing sin to earth. When Adam sinned through Eve’ succumbing to this foreign entity, it confirmed him and all of us in a change of nature, unholiness. Sin entered into man's nature and spread to the offspring of all people born. Because God is holy and righteous he had to judge them for their disobedience. Because God is also holy and righteous and loving He did something to reverse the separation from sin that took place. Jesus explains in John 6:38: “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me .” As a servant, he, the Son came to do the will of the Father. 1 John 4:14: “That the Father sent the Son as the Savior of the world.” God did not send an angel nor a good man, the savior is God himself. The Bible says, “the grace of God has appeared to all men.” Christ came for all, not some. Christianity is for everyone but not everyone will respond; only those who acknowledge they are sinful and believe in gods payment for sin. For one to know this they only have to look at God’s standard, his commands, and his law to find they have not obeyed them and have fallen short of keeping them. It only takes once to be guilty. Heb 10:7-10 “Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come-- in the volume of the book it is written of Me-- to do Your will, O God.’ Previously saying, “Sacrifice and offering, burnt offerings, and offerings for sin You did not desire, nor had pleasure in them” (which are offered according to the law god himself gave), then He said, “Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God” He takes away the first that He may establish the second. By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all .” Christ showed what sin brought to the perfect harmony we once had from the start. Notice that Jesus says the whole of the Old Testament is concentrated on him. God began the sacrificial system with Adam but it was not to continue, it was given temporarily, pointing to the Messiah, (until he came Gal.3) until the final covenant of blood would be established. These sacrifices were given to show how sinful man is, it brings death. The death of an animal was to cover our sins until the last sacrifice took place. He gave the law to make it more apparent to man that we are sinful, guilty of disobedience, falling short of keeping his requirements. John 8:12 Jesus spoke, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” John 12:46: “I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness.” Darkness is representative of sin and judgment. This means sin darkens our understanding and ruins our living. We need one that can show us the way to live, as a light in darkness so we will not stumble. We all know what light is, we depend on it every day. This is why the gospel is associated with light because it shows us our sin and presents the savior as the only solution. 2 Cor. 4:3: “But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.” Most may not want to think of themselves as being in darkness but this is how God sees them without the truth of knowing Christ. I John 1:5-6 “This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.” The light is His Word and His way, as Jesus said “I am the Way the truth and the life.” John the apostle writes that Jesus “was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.” (John 1:9-10) Those whom Jesus lived among were very aware of his claim of not originating from earth though not all believed him. They could not understand it. The people responded in John 6:42: “Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that He says, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” Jesus explained his purpose for becoming man Luke 19:10: “for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Which means everyone. Matthew 18:11-12 “For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.” What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying ?” God came to those who had the most knowledge of him first, those he was working with for centuries, those he entrusted His words to. His explained himself to the people as being the fulfillment of all the rituals and laws He gave them previously. God used human shepherds to explain how the chief shepherd would act. This is God’s heart to not lose a single one that is in his fold. He will go far and wide to retrieve the one who leaves. This was his mission, to come to earth and save us. It was for everyone, because everyone is lost. No one is born not lost. This is what sin does, it has the nature of darkness and from it we become comfortable living in a fallen, darkened world. But no one has to live in the world, or leave this world the same way. Jesus did not come as their ruler but as a man who served them so they could understand better how to relate to God. Matthew 20:28 “just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” The greatest sacrifice one can do is to give their life for another; Jesus gave his life for all, not a certain few. Many a soldier has given his life on the battlefield to save his fellow soldier which is the greatest human sacrifice. Jesus gave his life even for those who were enemies. Actually, we were all His enemies; even those who are now Christian, we should not forget this was once our state as well. Luke 9:56 “ For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them.” With a simple message of how to live life, God the Father sent the Son from heaven to earth to become a man to demonstrate what life is like living in obedience to their creator. Jesus was the perfect example of man having fellowship with his creator, having joy, living life to its fullest. It was the way God intended it to be from Adam onward. We are offered peace through trials, harmonious living, and a clean conscience as we trust and allow Christ to be Lord over our lives. One day we will have beyond what words can describe, beyond any of our dreams and imaginations (1 Corinthians 2:9). God’s message to us through His Only begotten Son John 3:16-17: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” John continues in v.19 “And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” Evil has been with us since the first parents disobeyed God and ate the fruit from the forbidden tree. Springing from our fallen nature, mankind’s history tells the story and bears witness to what is now part of mankind's living. We became as wild creatures when we were first made to be peaceful in the nature of our creator. Our sinful condition is overcome by the new spiritual birth, given God’s nature of righteousness (I John 2:29). John 10:10 “I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” This means a changed life from sin to righteousness, the fruit of the Spirit instead of the works of the flesh. Which are “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Gal. 5:22-23) Ephesians 5:9: (goodness, righteousness, and truth). Speaking to Pilate just prior to his crucifixion John 18:37-38 Pilate therefore said to Him, “Are You a king then?” “You say rightly that I am a king. “For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” Many people do not understand when they reject what Jesus says they refuse His way, siding with Pilate, admitting they do not understand nor know what is truth. Some people believe they have the truth. But Jesus said He is the truth, the truth is found in a person and that person is God’s Son who spoke only truth. And we have his words written to us today. 1 Timothy 1:15: “This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.” Paul who was far advanced in the Judaism of his day did not look at himself as holy than any other, but put himself as lower, calling himself the top tier of sinners. Understanding he needed to be forgiven just like anyone else. No matter who you are, we are all sinners that need the salvation that Jesus paid for. “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). God’s love holds him back from judgment today, he is merciful and does not want to see any perish, so He continues to allow his message of forgiveness and reconciliation to be proclaimed by those who know him. Many men have tried to find the right way without Jesus who said He is the way. They embraced all but only those who take ‘the way’ will find life, eternal life. Following rules and regulations of religion is not good news, Jesus said to follow him and explained to us what we call Christianity is an internal religion, because of the indwelling of the Spirit of God in the believer, the spirit of life is given and begins to transform us from the inside. No other religion but Christianity deals with the sinfulness of man, which is our detrimental spiritual condition. It is the life of God himself that works in us and through us. Christianity is based on faith, hope and love. Faith is to live in a fallen world, we can trust God who is watching and personally cares for our life. Hopefor our life today, and for the life that is to come is going to be more fulfilling and than anything we can experience on earth. Loveinthatwe love God who saved us from the penalty of our sins we are able to love him who we once hated, though he loved us. Because of this new life, love is indwelled in us that we are also able to love people in a greater manner, even those we may not know. If you want to have these in your life I point you to the Word which is from God to bring you to him. Jesus proclaimed “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." (Matt. 11:28-30) |
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