man in WHite
Who is the Man in White?
Encountering Jesus
Many people have had dreams or visions of a “Man in White,” who is indescribably beautiful. He is offering a compelling invitation to “Come, follow Me!” But Who is this Man in White?
It is easy to think of the historic Jesus saying, “Come follow me!” because He did exactly that with his original disciples. It is not difficult to imagine that His presence must have been extremely compelling because they left what they were doing and immediately followed Him.
Rather than forcing anyone to follow him, or arguing them into falling in line, it was simply His presence that moved them so powerfully. Some dropped their fishing nets. Matthew not only left his tax-collecting, he made restitution to people he had not treated fairly.
The accounts of those who have experienced the call of Jesus as a Man in White, beckoning or calling them to follow, speak of such amazing beauty, and compelling invitation, that they are willing to leave literally everything to follow Jesus. The challenge is that they don’t know much about Him when they respond to His invitation. It is very much like those in the first century who dropped everything to follow Jesus. They knew how powerfully Jesus had impacted their life, but they had to work out Who He is and what it means to be a follower of Him.
Your experience of The Man in White has been shared by many people, spanning over many centuries. One of the most important accounts of Jesus as the Man in white is found in the Transfiguration.
Jesus Transfigured
Matthew 17:1 Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; 2 and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. 3 And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. 4 Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”5 While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!” 6 And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid. 7 But Jesus came and touched them and said, “Arise, and do not be afraid.”
Notice that only Jesus was transfigured with blazing white light around Him and coming from Him.
Although the disciples of Jesus were already in awe of Him, they didn’t fully understand Who He was. The transfiguration demonstrates that Jesus is more than just another man.
Jesus described Himself as the Light of the World
“Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”
John 8:12
In retrospect, the disciples recognized that “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” John 1:4-5
Jesus and the Old Testament
In the opening five books of the Old Testament (often called the Pentateuch
(meaning Five Books)), we read that God created by speaking. “And God said, ‘Let there be light, and there was light.” (Genesis 1:3) God creates with His words. To see how that works, imagine that I am with you, and I say the word “Unicorn.” At that moment, (presuming you were not already thinking about unicorns!) something new is created. Where there was not previously a mental image of a unicorn, now, suddenly with the word being spoken, the image of one is created in your mind.
God’s use of words is similar, only,
His words have so much more power! When He speaks, whatever He is describing does not just emerge as a mental concept, it is created as reality. When God says, “Butterfly” for example, butterflies fill the earth!
Now, if we turn to the account of the Apostle John writing about Jesus in his Gospel, we read that all creation was carried out by The Word, Who is described as God.
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.
Not only did The Word do the creative work at creation, John goes on to say that it is relationship with God that gives life. Rather than a set of religious rules that grant acceptance to us, it is relationship that is key. God wants to share His life with us:
John 1:10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 11 He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
•
The Word was the agent of creation.
•
The Word is with God.
•
The Word’s glory = the Father’s glory.
•
The Word is God.
•
The Word became flesh.
•
Jesus is the Word.
•
Therefor: Jesus is God.
John then goes on to explain that this Word of God is not just words that are spoken by God, “The Word” is actually a person who is fully God:
John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
This is a remarkable revelation. If God Himself goes to the trouble to be born into the world (through the miraculous circumstances of the Virgin Birth with Mary), we can have confidence that He is doing so to reach us and address whatever needs we have. Notice also, that the glory found in Jesus is the same glory found in God the Father. If the Word, Who is also the Son, has the same glory as God the Father, it speaks of His divinity as well. This verse was very important in the discussions of how to articulate Who God is in Trinity. For many reasons, it can be argued that this might be the most important verse in the Bible!
There are other places in the New Testament where Jesus is explicitly referred to as God.
In John 8:58, Jesus refers to Himself as
“I AM.” That was a phrase that was well known to those who heard Him speak. It was a quote from Exodus 3:14 which was rendered in the commonly available Greek language Old Testament translation called the Septuagint (often written as LXX), where God told Moses that His name was I AM.
Exodus 3:14…and God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”
Jesus echoes that same language in the Gospel of John:
John 8:58 Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say
to you, before Abraham was, I
AM.”
Three centuries before the birth of Jesus, the Scriptures of the Old
Testament were translated into Greek. That translation was called the Septuagint, often referred to as LXX. In the Septuagint, I AM was rendered in Greek: ????? ???? (Ego eimi-I AM). ? When the Jews to whom Jesus was speaking heard Him say that, there was no doubt to them what He meant. He was claiming to be pre-existent as God before His birth as a man. It was also clear in their response to Him that they took His statement of “I AM” to echo the name of God from Exodus. The text of John’s Gospel continues:
John 8:59 Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.
They picked up stones to stone Him because they thought He committed blasphemy by claiming to be God. Of course, He was claiming to be God, but it was not blasphemous, it was the truth!
When Jesus was arrested and brought in front of the Sanhedrin (the Jewish Council), they asked him many questions. He remained silent, only answering them when He was asked if He was the Christ. “Christ” meant “anointed One,” echoing “anointed One” in Hebrew, Meshek (Hebrew: ????????, Meshek meaning Messiah).
Mark 14:60 And the high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus, saying, “Do You answer nothing? What is it these men testify against You?” 61 But He kept silent and answered nothing.
Again the high priest asked Him, saying to Him, “Are You
the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?”
To this, Jesus answers:
Mark 14:62 Jesus said, “I am. And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” (emphasis added)
Following His resurrection from the dead, Jesus told His disciples to “Go,” and make disciples. He claims all authority and also omnipresence (being able to be present everywhere), encouraging them, saying, “Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matt. 28:18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. (emphasis added)
Jesus also claimed the authority to forgive sins, an authority that was understood only to be held by God.
Mark 2:5 When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.” 6 And some of the scribes were sitting there and reasoning in their hearts, 7 “Why does this Man speak blasphemies like this? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
The evening of the day Jesus rose from the dead, He appeared to His discouraged disciples who were hiding for fear of undergoing the same fate Jesus had. In commissioning them to go and forgive sins, Jesus says to them:
John 20:19 Peace be with you.” 20 When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. 21 So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” 22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” (emphasis added)
The power to forgive sins was understood to be a power that only God has. In commissioning the disciples to go a forgive sins, He is demonstrating His dominion over sin, delegating authority to His disciples.
Additional New Testament references to Jesus as God
There are other places in the New Testament where Jesus is referred to as God as well. In this passage from Romans, Paul describes his anguish at his kinfolk who have not come to faith in Christ. He makes it clear that they are called to come to Jesus, and that Jesus is the One Who is the eternally blessed God.
Rom. 9:1 I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit, 2 that I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen according to the flesh, 4 who are Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises; 5 of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen. (emphasis added)
In the book of Romans, Paul also describes Christ’s resurrection as a proof of His divine nature and authority:
Rom. 1:1 Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God 2 which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, 4 and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. (emphasis added)
In the book of Philippians (Paul’s letter to the Christians in Philippi), Paul gives them (and us, of course) the challenge to emulate the mind of Christ in choosing humility. Notice in this passage how Paul describes Christ’s humility, pointing out that Jesus, Who was preexistent with the Father as God “emptied Himself, …taking the form of a [human] servant”:
Phil. 2:5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be held on to, 7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. 9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name, which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
This is a remarkable challenge to us to walk as humbly as Jesus did! Of course, we cannot match the depth of humility that was demonstrated by God the Son because He did not have the momentum of sin that the rest of us have in our lives.
This passage from Philippians also makes something else clear. Jesus set aside the prerogatives of divinity in order to be born as a helpless baby (i.e., Jesus). That means that although
He was fully God and fully man, He chose not to use the powers He had as God, but submitted himself to the will of the Father, living and ministering in the power of the Holy Spirit. In the same way that you can hold a butterfly in your hand without crushing it, Jesus chose not to use the power He had as God. Instead, He chose to live as a man who was submitted to the Holy Spirit. Since the Holy Spirit dwells in us, we should be able to manifest the gifts and power of the Holy Spirit as well. It is the risen and victorious Jesus that calls us to humble ourselves in our service to God and relationships with others. In the book of Titus, Paul describes Jesus as “our great God and Savior Jesus Christ:
Titus 2:11 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.
Why Jesus Has Come into the World
Remember that under the
inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the Apostle John wrote, John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
God wants us to know that He has come into the world “in the flesh,” being born as Jesus. He has also revealed Himself as a “Man in White” with dazzling beauty, either saying or somehow making it clear that He wants us to follow Him. But, why has He come? Why does He want us to follow Him? What does He want? He wants to have a personal relationship with you! Imagine it! The God Who is creator of the Universe wants to have a relationship with you! Not as a slave, but as a friend!
John 15:15 “No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. 6 You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you. 17 These things I command you, that you love one another.
Jesus said that He came so He could have a relationship with you as a friend! Imagine that! The creator of the universe wants to be your friend!!
Jesus Calls Us His Sheep who Know His Voice!
John 10:1 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. 2 But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.
How Do We Come to Know Him?
Instead of just knowing about Jesus He tells us how to come to actually know Him. In the Book of Revelation in the Bible, Jesus said:
Rev. 3:19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. 20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.
He is speaking of our heart as a “door” to our life. Jesus appearing to us in dreams and visions, or causing a yearning in our heart to know Him is what He means by “knocking.” Your inquiry about Jesus is motivated by Him knocking at the door of your heart. In order to respond to Him, you do
that by praying a simple prayer. Notice Jesus does not say that we have to do anything first. He just wants to have a relationship with us! Once we are in a relationship, Jesus helps us to become the person we were creaeted to be: a child and friend of God. You could pray a simple prayer like this.
“Lord Jesus Christ, thank you for loving me. Thank you for inviting me to open the door of my heart. I open my heart and invite you to come and live inside me. I want to honor You as my Lord, the one in charge of my life. Thank you for the many promises you have made to me. Help me be faithful to what you call me to be and do. I thank you for forgiving my sins. I will live my life as a thank you to You, seeking to be faithful to You. As you have instructed, I am praying these things in Your name. Amen.”
Now You Have Prayed to Accept Jesus. What Has Happened?
For those who have lived under religious rules, it seems “to good to be true” that simply praying to accept Jesus as the Lord of you life could possibly work, but that is exactly the way God designed things to work. He wants to have relationship with us!
Committing to Jesus to be our Lord brings many other wonderful benefits!
1. He says we are “born again,” and become a child of God.
John 1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
2. He promises that after this life, we will live with Him forever in heaven.
John 17:3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.
3. He promises us a place at His heavenly banquet where we will be with Him in joy forever.
Rev. 22:17 And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.
4. He forgives our sins!
Timothy 1:15 This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. and
1John 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
5. He promises to lead us into abundant life.
John 10:10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
6. We receive access to the gifts, fruit, and power of the Holy Spirit. Acts 1:8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and
Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Acts 2:38 Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”
7. We become members of His Body, which is the Church.
Cor. 12:12 For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit.
Coming Into Relationship With Jesus Christ is Your Life’s Greatest Purpose God says:
Jer. 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you.
It was God’s plan for you to come to faith in Jesus Christ and be joined with other Christians in Christ’s Body, the Church. This is the place where the greatest fulfillment is found.
God Will Never Abandon You! Deut. 31:6 Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.”
After His resurrection He promised: Matt. 28:18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
www.ekk.org/MBB.welcome.resources.
Encountering Jesus
Many people have had dreams or visions of a “Man in White,” who is indescribably beautiful. He is offering a compelling invitation to “Come, follow Me!” But Who is this Man in White?
It is easy to think of the historic Jesus saying, “Come follow me!” because He did exactly that with his original disciples. It is not difficult to imagine that His presence must have been extremely compelling because they left what they were doing and immediately followed Him.
Rather than forcing anyone to follow him, or arguing them into falling in line, it was simply His presence that moved them so powerfully. Some dropped their fishing nets. Matthew not only left his tax-collecting, he made restitution to people he had not treated fairly.
The accounts of those who have experienced the call of Jesus as a Man in White, beckoning or calling them to follow, speak of such amazing beauty, and compelling invitation, that they are willing to leave literally everything to follow Jesus. The challenge is that they don’t know much about Him when they respond to His invitation. It is very much like those in the first century who dropped everything to follow Jesus. They knew how powerfully Jesus had impacted their life, but they had to work out Who He is and what it means to be a follower of Him.
Your experience of The Man in White has been shared by many people, spanning over many centuries. One of the most important accounts of Jesus as the Man in white is found in the Transfiguration.
Jesus Transfigured
Matthew 17:1 Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; 2 and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. 3 And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. 4 Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”5 While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!” 6 And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid. 7 But Jesus came and touched them and said, “Arise, and do not be afraid.”
Notice that only Jesus was transfigured with blazing white light around Him and coming from Him.
Although the disciples of Jesus were already in awe of Him, they didn’t fully understand Who He was. The transfiguration demonstrates that Jesus is more than just another man.
Jesus described Himself as the Light of the World
“Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”
John 8:12
In retrospect, the disciples recognized that “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” John 1:4-5
Jesus and the Old Testament
In the opening five books of the Old Testament (often called the Pentateuch
(meaning Five Books)), we read that God created by speaking. “And God said, ‘Let there be light, and there was light.” (Genesis 1:3) God creates with His words. To see how that works, imagine that I am with you, and I say the word “Unicorn.” At that moment, (presuming you were not already thinking about unicorns!) something new is created. Where there was not previously a mental image of a unicorn, now, suddenly with the word being spoken, the image of one is created in your mind.
God’s use of words is similar, only,
His words have so much more power! When He speaks, whatever He is describing does not just emerge as a mental concept, it is created as reality. When God says, “Butterfly” for example, butterflies fill the earth!
Now, if we turn to the account of the Apostle John writing about Jesus in his Gospel, we read that all creation was carried out by The Word, Who is described as God.
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.
Not only did The Word do the creative work at creation, John goes on to say that it is relationship with God that gives life. Rather than a set of religious rules that grant acceptance to us, it is relationship that is key. God wants to share His life with us:
John 1:10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 11 He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
•
The Word was the agent of creation.
•
The Word is with God.
•
The Word’s glory = the Father’s glory.
•
The Word is God.
•
The Word became flesh.
•
Jesus is the Word.
•
Therefor: Jesus is God.
John then goes on to explain that this Word of God is not just words that are spoken by God, “The Word” is actually a person who is fully God:
John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
This is a remarkable revelation. If God Himself goes to the trouble to be born into the world (through the miraculous circumstances of the Virgin Birth with Mary), we can have confidence that He is doing so to reach us and address whatever needs we have. Notice also, that the glory found in Jesus is the same glory found in God the Father. If the Word, Who is also the Son, has the same glory as God the Father, it speaks of His divinity as well. This verse was very important in the discussions of how to articulate Who God is in Trinity. For many reasons, it can be argued that this might be the most important verse in the Bible!
There are other places in the New Testament where Jesus is explicitly referred to as God.
In John 8:58, Jesus refers to Himself as
“I AM.” That was a phrase that was well known to those who heard Him speak. It was a quote from Exodus 3:14 which was rendered in the commonly available Greek language Old Testament translation called the Septuagint (often written as LXX), where God told Moses that His name was I AM.
Exodus 3:14…and God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”
Jesus echoes that same language in the Gospel of John:
John 8:58 Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say
to you, before Abraham was, I
AM.”
Three centuries before the birth of Jesus, the Scriptures of the Old
Testament were translated into Greek. That translation was called the Septuagint, often referred to as LXX. In the Septuagint, I AM was rendered in Greek: ????? ???? (Ego eimi-I AM). ? When the Jews to whom Jesus was speaking heard Him say that, there was no doubt to them what He meant. He was claiming to be pre-existent as God before His birth as a man. It was also clear in their response to Him that they took His statement of “I AM” to echo the name of God from Exodus. The text of John’s Gospel continues:
John 8:59 Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.
They picked up stones to stone Him because they thought He committed blasphemy by claiming to be God. Of course, He was claiming to be God, but it was not blasphemous, it was the truth!
When Jesus was arrested and brought in front of the Sanhedrin (the Jewish Council), they asked him many questions. He remained silent, only answering them when He was asked if He was the Christ. “Christ” meant “anointed One,” echoing “anointed One” in Hebrew, Meshek (Hebrew: ????????, Meshek meaning Messiah).
Mark 14:60 And the high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus, saying, “Do You answer nothing? What is it these men testify against You?” 61 But He kept silent and answered nothing.
Again the high priest asked Him, saying to Him, “Are You
the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?”
To this, Jesus answers:
Mark 14:62 Jesus said, “I am. And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” (emphasis added)
Following His resurrection from the dead, Jesus told His disciples to “Go,” and make disciples. He claims all authority and also omnipresence (being able to be present everywhere), encouraging them, saying, “Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matt. 28:18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. (emphasis added)
Jesus also claimed the authority to forgive sins, an authority that was understood only to be held by God.
Mark 2:5 When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.” 6 And some of the scribes were sitting there and reasoning in their hearts, 7 “Why does this Man speak blasphemies like this? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
The evening of the day Jesus rose from the dead, He appeared to His discouraged disciples who were hiding for fear of undergoing the same fate Jesus had. In commissioning them to go and forgive sins, Jesus says to them:
John 20:19 Peace be with you.” 20 When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. 21 So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” 22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” (emphasis added)
The power to forgive sins was understood to be a power that only God has. In commissioning the disciples to go a forgive sins, He is demonstrating His dominion over sin, delegating authority to His disciples.
Additional New Testament references to Jesus as God
There are other places in the New Testament where Jesus is referred to as God as well. In this passage from Romans, Paul describes his anguish at his kinfolk who have not come to faith in Christ. He makes it clear that they are called to come to Jesus, and that Jesus is the One Who is the eternally blessed God.
Rom. 9:1 I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit, 2 that I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen according to the flesh, 4 who are Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises; 5 of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen. (emphasis added)
In the book of Romans, Paul also describes Christ’s resurrection as a proof of His divine nature and authority:
Rom. 1:1 Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God 2 which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, 4 and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. (emphasis added)
In the book of Philippians (Paul’s letter to the Christians in Philippi), Paul gives them (and us, of course) the challenge to emulate the mind of Christ in choosing humility. Notice in this passage how Paul describes Christ’s humility, pointing out that Jesus, Who was preexistent with the Father as God “emptied Himself, …taking the form of a [human] servant”:
Phil. 2:5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be held on to, 7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. 9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name, which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
This is a remarkable challenge to us to walk as humbly as Jesus did! Of course, we cannot match the depth of humility that was demonstrated by God the Son because He did not have the momentum of sin that the rest of us have in our lives.
This passage from Philippians also makes something else clear. Jesus set aside the prerogatives of divinity in order to be born as a helpless baby (i.e., Jesus). That means that although
He was fully God and fully man, He chose not to use the powers He had as God, but submitted himself to the will of the Father, living and ministering in the power of the Holy Spirit. In the same way that you can hold a butterfly in your hand without crushing it, Jesus chose not to use the power He had as God. Instead, He chose to live as a man who was submitted to the Holy Spirit. Since the Holy Spirit dwells in us, we should be able to manifest the gifts and power of the Holy Spirit as well. It is the risen and victorious Jesus that calls us to humble ourselves in our service to God and relationships with others. In the book of Titus, Paul describes Jesus as “our great God and Savior Jesus Christ:
Titus 2:11 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.
Why Jesus Has Come into the World
Remember that under the
inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the Apostle John wrote, John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
God wants us to know that He has come into the world “in the flesh,” being born as Jesus. He has also revealed Himself as a “Man in White” with dazzling beauty, either saying or somehow making it clear that He wants us to follow Him. But, why has He come? Why does He want us to follow Him? What does He want? He wants to have a personal relationship with you! Imagine it! The God Who is creator of the Universe wants to have a relationship with you! Not as a slave, but as a friend!
John 15:15 “No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. 6 You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you. 17 These things I command you, that you love one another.
Jesus said that He came so He could have a relationship with you as a friend! Imagine that! The creator of the universe wants to be your friend!!
Jesus Calls Us His Sheep who Know His Voice!
John 10:1 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. 2 But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.
How Do We Come to Know Him?
Instead of just knowing about Jesus He tells us how to come to actually know Him. In the Book of Revelation in the Bible, Jesus said:
Rev. 3:19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. 20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.
He is speaking of our heart as a “door” to our life. Jesus appearing to us in dreams and visions, or causing a yearning in our heart to know Him is what He means by “knocking.” Your inquiry about Jesus is motivated by Him knocking at the door of your heart. In order to respond to Him, you do
that by praying a simple prayer. Notice Jesus does not say that we have to do anything first. He just wants to have a relationship with us! Once we are in a relationship, Jesus helps us to become the person we were creaeted to be: a child and friend of God. You could pray a simple prayer like this.
“Lord Jesus Christ, thank you for loving me. Thank you for inviting me to open the door of my heart. I open my heart and invite you to come and live inside me. I want to honor You as my Lord, the one in charge of my life. Thank you for the many promises you have made to me. Help me be faithful to what you call me to be and do. I thank you for forgiving my sins. I will live my life as a thank you to You, seeking to be faithful to You. As you have instructed, I am praying these things in Your name. Amen.”
Now You Have Prayed to Accept Jesus. What Has Happened?
For those who have lived under religious rules, it seems “to good to be true” that simply praying to accept Jesus as the Lord of you life could possibly work, but that is exactly the way God designed things to work. He wants to have relationship with us!
Committing to Jesus to be our Lord brings many other wonderful benefits!
1. He says we are “born again,” and become a child of God.
John 1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
2. He promises that after this life, we will live with Him forever in heaven.
John 17:3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.
3. He promises us a place at His heavenly banquet where we will be with Him in joy forever.
Rev. 22:17 And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.
4. He forgives our sins!
Timothy 1:15 This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. and
1John 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
5. He promises to lead us into abundant life.
John 10:10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
6. We receive access to the gifts, fruit, and power of the Holy Spirit. Acts 1:8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and
Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Acts 2:38 Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”
7. We become members of His Body, which is the Church.
Cor. 12:12 For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit.
Coming Into Relationship With Jesus Christ is Your Life’s Greatest Purpose God says:
Jer. 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you.
It was God’s plan for you to come to faith in Jesus Christ and be joined with other Christians in Christ’s Body, the Church. This is the place where the greatest fulfillment is found.
God Will Never Abandon You! Deut. 31:6 Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.”
After His resurrection He promised: Matt. 28:18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
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