But what about Jesus? – the Messiah who came at the beginning of a new millenium 2 millenia ago – is He still Messiah? Is He the man for all seasons? Can He cope? Is he sufficient?
The Bible says so. I take you back to the words by the casket of Lenin: He was the greatest leader of people, of all time. He was the Lord of the new humanity. He was Saviour of the world. Did you catch the past tense? The Bible speaks of Jesus in 3 tenses. Heb. 13:8 says of Him, Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever. John gives us Jesus’ own description of Himself in Rev. 1:8 as …the Lord which is, which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.
And when Jesus left this world He left with this message: I am with you always, even to the end of the world (Matt.28:20) and I will come again and receive you unto myself (John 14:3). He had no reservations about all that. His only reservation is found in Luke 18:8; …when I return shall I find faith on the earth?
What do we need? We don’t need someone to design better cars for when better cars are made Buick will make them (so the old ad used to go). We don’t need someone to design bigger bombs than the ones that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki – we already have them! We don’t need someone to design a computer that can process more information faster – no sooner are they on the market and they’re obsolete. In short, we have men who design just about any gadget we want, but there’s more to life and the human condition than that. We want Someone who can identify with the whole spectrum of life – we want Someone who can give comfort in sorrow, joy in the midst of pain, hope in perplexity, reason for living, direction for our steps, and yes, we want it all, eternal life as well!
Matt. 1:20-23 explains, in part, the reason for the uniqueness of Jesus (the virgin birth), but John 1:1,2,14 explains more (God in the flesh). Back in the 13th century King Edward of England suppressed the country of Wales. The Welsh people thought they would not receive adequate representation before the throne. In order to placate these fears, the king had his wife Queen Eleanor go to Wales to Carnarvon Castle and at that place she gave birth to Prince Edward, heir to the throne. The king presented the child to the people as the Prince of Wales, later to be King of England. The people of Wales appreciated the gesture. On a far grander scale, God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on Him should not perish but have everlasting life. Christ came into this world that He might identify with us – to stand between God and man as Mediator.
In order to identify with another person, it is necessary to have similar experiences. Helmut Thielicke lived through the terrible bombing raids over Germany in world War 11. He said, When I was bombed out with my family, and on the following evening walked through the quiet streets of a village, looking for emergency quarters, I had a curious experience. Everything was as I imagined it to be – cows coming down the road to their barns, people talking about the harvest and sitting down around the lamp in the evening, a placed spared the tumult of war. But the longed-for peace would not come into my heart. I felt ostracised and the idyllic scene was tormenting rather than tranquilizing. In the next few days it drove me back to the ruined city and the people whose faces were still marked by the lines of terror. There I felt at home. They understood what I had gone through because they had suffered themselves. The people in the village did not understand…there is nothing more comforting than to have people who understand one.
So it is with Christ. Though He pre-existed in the form of God (Phil. 2:6-8), He took on flesh and was made like His brethren (Heb. 2:17,18), being tempted in all ways (Heb. 4:15,16). He can identify with the poor (Matt.8:20), the worker (Mark 6:3), the rejected (John 1:11), the outcast (Mk. 2:16,17) and the sorrowing (John 11:35). But He can also identify with the successful (John 6:15).
In a world of confusion won’t you turn to Jesus who is the Way? In a world of misunderstanding and misinformation won’t you turn to Christ who is the Truth? In a world where death is inevitable won’t you turn to Jesus who is Life? In a world that looks with disfavour on kings, presidents and prime ministers, come to Christ who is Lord of lords and King of kings. In a world where nations and empires crumble, why not come to Christ who has a kingdom that will never be destroyed? In a world of sin and uncleanness turn to Christ who is sinless and holy. In a world of strife, hatred, and war come to Christ who is the Prince of peace. To whom shall you go?