GOD SENDS HIS SON

Our study of God’s Story has focused upon Old Testament episodes identifying human sin and God’s desire to help. So now we turn to the New Testament. Thus far the coming Messiah has been anticipated. Jesus, the central figure of God’s Story, stepped out of eternity, and into humanity to reveal God’s redemptive plan. The New Testament does not tell a new story, it reveals God’s conclusion to the story He has been telling since the beginning. “Who is Jesus”? has been asked for 2,000 years. Answers include everything from blatant denials He ever existed, to seeing Him as a great philosopher-humanitarian, to understanding Him as the Son of God. I see Jesus as the infallible inerrant Son of God, who lived a perfect life, died a sacrificial atoning death, and was raised to life again. I trusted Jesus as my Savior in late October 1959. Think about the date you trusted Jesus as your Savior.

Read John 1:1-2, 14 The Son’s Identity

Sometime around AD 90, the apostle John set out to answer the question, “Who is Jesus?”.  The result was the Gospel of John. John knew Jesus was the pinnacle person of God’s Story. The Bible begins with the words, “In the beginning” (Gen. 1:1). John chose to begin his story of Jesus the same way, with the words “In the beginning”. He did this as an acknowledgment that Jesus deserved the same reverence and recognition normally reserved for God. More importantly, John wanted to establish from the first that Jesus was not an afterthought or a plan B in God’s Story.  Rather, Jesus was actively involved as the key character of God’s Story from the “the beginning”. In fact, John’s beginning goes beyond the beginning of creation recorded in Genesis 1:1. John began his Gospel with an emphasis on the Word, “ho logos”. In this context, ”word” described what was spoken, done, or existed. With the words “in the beginning was the Word”, John declared that Jesus existed before creation. Though he did not call Jesus by name until John 1:17, John declared Jesus to be pre-existent, divine Word.

The “word” was term used by theologians and philosophers, both Jewish and Greeks, in many different ways. In Hebrew Scriptures, the “word” was an agent of creation (Ps. 33:16, the source of God’s message to His people through the prophets (Hosea 4:1), and God’s law, His standard of holiness (Ps. 119:11).  In Greek philosophy, the “word” was the principle of reason that governed the world, or the thought still in the mind. While in Hebrew thought, the “word” was another expression for God. John’s description shows clearly that he is speaking of Jesus (1:14)- a human being he knew and loved, but at the same time the Creator of the universe, the ultimate revelation of God, the living picture of God’s holiness, the one who “holds all creation together” (Col. 1:7). To John, the new understanding of the “word” was the Good News of Jesus Christ. As one of Jesus’ 12 disciples, John writes with credibility and the details of an eyewitness. John’s book is not a biography (like the book of Luke); it is a thematic presentation of Jesus’ life.

Many in John’s original audience had a Greek background. Greek culture encouraged worship of many mythological gods, whose supernatural characteristics were as important to Greeks as genealogies were to Jews. John shows that Jesus is not only different from but superior to these gods of mythology. What Jesus taught and what He did are tied inseparably to who He is. John shows Jesus as fully human and fully God. To say the “word” “ was with God” indicated a separate Person who was with God the Father in eternity past. To say the “word” “ was God” indicated Jesus was not a separate God, but rather a separated Person within the Godhead. The “word” also “took up residence among us”. “Among us” echoes Isaiah’s prophecy of Immanuel, “God is with us” (Isa. 7:14).  Because the “Word took up residence among us”, “We observed His glory”.  Jesus is God’s only and unique Son. Before Christ came, people could know God partially. After Christ came, people could know God fully because He became visible and tangible in Christ. Christ is the perfect expression of God in human form.

Read John 1:11-13, 18, 29 The Son’s Purpose

What’s the sad news of verse 11? (Jesus’ own people did not receive Him.) What’s the great news of verse 12? (For those who did receive Jesus He gave them the right to be children of God.) Having identified the Son, John sought to spell out His purpose. First, Jesus purposed to reach His own people. John recounted how Jesus “came to His own”. Understandably, Jesus went first to the Jewish people in order to get them back on track with God’s plan. Unfortunately, many of “His own people did not receive Him”. Second, Jesus purposed to redeem all who would receive Him, Jew or Gentile. John quickly focused on those “who did receive Him”. They received Him by taking hold of His message and accepting His words as truth. Those who “did receive Him” were those who “believe in His name”. To believe “in His name” means to buy into every aspect of His character and purpose.

Third, Jesus purposed to manifest the will of God. Those who believe in Jesus’ name “were born” of God. John likened becoming a child of God to being born in a spiritual sense. In America, the phrase “born again”, derived from John 3:3, became popular and political when presidential candidate Jimmy Carter used the phrase. Fourth, Jesus purposed to reveal God. Jesus became flesh, people can understand God through His ministry. For the second time, John referred to Jesus as “the One and Only Son”, rendering “monogenes”.  The term speaks to Jesus’ unique relationship with the Father, making Him uniquely qualified. Because Jesus came to earth from “the Father’s side”, He revealed God to people.

Finally, Jesus purposed to take away the world’s sin. John the Baptist identified Jesus as “the Lamb of God”, a title used only twice (John 1:29, 36).  John the Baptist called people’s attention to Jesus, “Here is the Lamb of God”. For the Hebrews, the “lamb” was the sacrificial animal of the Passover. According to the law, without the shedding of blood there was no forgiveness of sin (Heb. 9:22). Thus, “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” was God’s ultimate sin-sacrifice to remove our sins once and for all. No human being has ever actually seen God. But the Word who had an intimated relationship with Him has declared Him to humans. In verse 18, Jesus, the seen, explained precisely and clearly the unseen God,  the Father. A new creative and redemptive act was begun through the Word who became a person. In Christ, God became a man who lived on earth – and in Revelation, John tells us God will again live on this new earth.

Read Matthew 4:17-24 The Son’s Ministry

How did the lives of Peter, Andrew, James, and John change when they encountered Jesus? (They left their nets and “immediately” left their current life and followed Jesus.) What is the message to us in the actions of these disciples? (To follow Jesus unconditionally!) Jesus ministry consisted of three primary activities: preaching, teaching, and healing. An important aspect of His preaching was an emphasis on repentance (Matt. 4:17).  Preach renders the Greek “kerusso”, meaning “to be a herald” of a message with an implication of formality and authority (Paul tells us this also). God’s desire was to change lifestyles by having the people repent and establishing one’s relationship to God. Matthew preferred to refer to the kingdom of God as the “kingdom of heaven” and he stated it had come near- if you repent and put it in your heart. Matthew used Jesus’ words over and over again to emphasis the importance of having a “right heart”.  Jesus started His ministry with the same message people had heard John the Baptist say “Repent of your sins”. The message is the same today as when Jesus and John gave it. Becoming a follower of Christ means turning away from our self-centeredness and “self” control and turning our life over to Christ’s direction and control.

Jesus used the ministries of teaching, preaching, and healing in order to point people to God (vv. 23-24). Jesus’ preaching took the form of open-air proclamation, often times impromptu as the occasion arose. As for healing, Jesus touched people therapeutically. Jesus’ teaching took place in synagogues He visited. Because of Jesus insightful teaching, authoritative preaching, and effectual healing of many, “the news about Him spread throughout Syria”. In New Testament times, Syria referred to the Roman providence and region just north of Galilee. Here, His reputation grew fast and people came to Him- and “He healed them”. Jesus was not their best hope for healing. He was their only hope!!! Jesus is our only hope and the only way to salvation. In God’s Story, Jesus is all we need.

GOD PROMISES THE MESSIAH

Gifts of all kinds and for all occasions are given with an element of anticipation and excitement.I just took my youngest granddaughter out shopping for gifts for her seventh birthday. We went to Old Navy and Toys R Us, and then we went to Ci Ci Pizza to eat. This was obviously a gift for me of a different kind, but sometimes we receive an even more perfect gift. When we were married, we could consider our spouse as a real gift. The idea of getting a person as a gift could be considered in a theological context. This lesson is important because the culmination of everything we have looked at to this point in God’s Story is wrapped up in the coming Messiah. Jesus is the One who fulfills the law for us. One who reigns over God’s eternal kingdom, and the One who restores us and makes us His own.  As a result of this lesson, we should be able to speak with greater confidence about Jesus as the promised Messiah, Jesus Christ is the indescribable gift offered to all.

Read Isaiah 53:2-3 The Messiah Became One of Us

Isaiah is generally considered the greatest totally human prophet. Isaiah provides the Old Testament perspective of the coming and the work of Christ. The first part of the Book of Isaiah is 39 chapters, with the message of judgment for sin. The second part of the book is 27 chapters that brings a message of forgiveness, comfort, and hope of the coming Messiah. Do you see the parallel? The key verses of Isaiah 52:13- 53:12 are called the fourth Servant Song. A brief review of the Servant Songs in Isaiah will help set the stage for our study. Here are four Servant Songs:

1. The Establisher of Justice (Isa. 42:1-4; Matt. 12:18-21).
2. The Bringer of Worldwide Salvation (Isa. 49:1-6; Luke 2:32; Acts 13:47).
3. The Tormented Teacher (Isa. 50:4-9; John 8:29; 15:10).
4. The Suffering Servant (Isa. 52:13- 53:12).

Some scholars have added a fifth servant song (Isa. 61:1-2) – primarily because Jesus read it at the synagogue (Luke 4:18-19).

Isaiah introduced the concept of calling Jesus the Suffering Servant. First, Matthew indicated Jesus’ healing ministry fulfilled Isaiah 53:4 (Matt. 8:17). Second, and most dramatically, Philip interpreted Isaiah 53:7-8 as a prophecy about Jesus (Acts 8:32-35). Third, Mark 15:28 and Luke 22:37 reference Isaiah 53:12, seeing Jesus’ death between two sinners as a fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy. Fourth, John quoted Isaiah 53:1 as being fulfilled in the rejection of Jesus (John 12:38). Fifth, Peter tied Isaiah 53:9 to Jesus life, Isaiah 53:5 to Jesus’ death, and Isaiah 53:6 to Jesus’ atoning work for our sins (1 Peter 2:22, 24-25).

A key aspect of the fourth Servant Song is the idea that the Messiah became one of us (Isa. 53:2). Jesus became human and dwelt among us (John 1:14). In verse 2, the analogy is “a young plant” needing to establish a good root system to draw moisture and nutrients from the soil. Yet, unfortunately, the young plant has its roots in “dry ground”, meaning the plant will be less than well-nourished or hearty. The analogy is then applied directly to the Servant in the words, “He didn’t have an impressive form or majesty”. The phrase “impressive form” renders the same Hebrew word used in 1 Samuel 16:18 to describe David as a handsome man.

However, this Servant was not handsome. Nor from all appearances did He possess majesty, meaning “splendor” or “grandeur”. In Samuel 16:7, God told Samuel that man looks on the outward appearance but the Lord sees the heart. So Isaiah described the Messiah (Servant) as possessing no extraordinary physical features that made Him stand out from the crowd. Why do you think that was true? (It emphasis that the heart- not appearance- is the real value of a person. It also makes it very clear that the message, miracles, and spiritual attraction is what made Jesus so important.) In God’s Story, the most unassuming people are the real stars; never is this truer than when applied to Jesus. Jesus completely fulfilled Isaiah’s prophecies about the suffering Servant. Those of us who “know” Jesus in the pardon and forgiveness of our sins can praise Him for all eternity. How are the promises God makes different from the promises we make? (We often break our promises and many times make them in haste. God never makes His promises and they are every lasting, well thought out promises.)

Read Isaiah 53:4-9 The Messiah Suffered for Us

As God’s suffering Servant, Jesus suffered for us. Jesus did not merely succumb to the overwhelming deceit of the Jewish leadership of His day. Nor did He fall victim to the irrepressible might of the Roman government. He suffered deliberately, on purpose, as the central figure in God’s Story. Verse 4 juxtaposes two contrasting realities; the realty of Christ’s suffering for us and the realty of our misjudgment of Him. As we read Isaiah, we must be amazed of how accurate, with so many details, his prophecy is. How could an Old Testament person understand the idea of Christ dying for our sins- actually bearing the punishment that we deserved? The sacrifices suggested this idea, but it is one thing to kill a lamb, and something quite different to think of God’s chosen servant as that lamb. But God was pulling aside the curtain of time to let the people of Isaiah’s day look ahead to the suffering of the future Messiah and the resulting forgiveness made available to all people. Isaiah even foresaw that the Messiah would be put on trial and buried in a rich man’s tomb.

Isaiah speaks of Israel straying from God and compares them to wandering sheep. Yet God would send the Messiah to bring them back into the fold. We have hindsight to see and know the identity of the promised Messiah. But if we know all Jesus did and still reject Him, our sin is much greater than that of the ancient Israelites, who could not see what we have seen. We must give our life to Jesus Christ, the “good shepherd” (John 10:11-16), or we would be going our way like a wandering sheep. Jesus is the Lamb (53:7) offered for the sins of all people (John 1:29; Rev. 5:6-14). The Messiah had to suffer for our sake, bearing our sins to make us acceptable to God. Revelations 4:1-2 tells us that John actually went up to heaven and says that he was “instantly” in the Spirit. What does that tell us? (It tells us that we cannot enter heaven in our current form and state of sin. It tells us that no sin can enter heaven. It also tells us that John really went to heaven as stated in Rev. 4-1-2.) So Isaiah was telling all, even in 680 BC, that the Messiah would come and make us without sin and be acceptable to enter heaven!

Read Isaiah 53:10-12 The Messiah Rescues Us

Verse 10 could be completely misunderstood because it sounds harsh and cruel. We might question how the Lord could delight in crushing or bruising His innocent Servant. The proper understanding spotlights God’s delight in the Servant’s death as the path of salvation for sinners. Do we think that God did not know that Jesus would be resurrected? God loves us so much He took delight and was pleased His Servant submitted to being crushed so we might regain life. Jesus was not the helpless victim. Rather, He laid down His life of His own accord (John 10:14-18). Thus the Servant became a “restitution offering”- a specialized sin offering that included making restitution to the offended party, whereby guilty sinners could find atonement through offering sacrifice. The Servant served as our “restitution offering”. Verse 10 is the only place in Scripture a person served as a restitution offering. The promise that the Servant “will see His seed” and “prolong His days” indicated the Servant’s death would not be the final chapter of His Story. The Lord’s “pleasure”, that sinners have guilt removed and receive atonement, will succeed because of the Servant.

Verse 11 tells of the enormous family of believers who will become right with God, not by their own works, but by the Messiah’s great work on the cross. They are justified because they have claimed Christ, the righteous Servant, as their Savior and Lord (Romans 10:9; 2 Cor. 5:21). Their life of sin is stripped away and they are clothed with Christ’s goodness (Ephesians 4:22-24).

Then in verse 12, the Servant is said to receive from God “the many as a portion” and “the mighty as spoil”. The terms “portion” and “spoil” refer to rewards of military conquest. People’s souls are at stake in the spiritual warfare between Satan and the Lord. “Because He submitted Himself to death”, the Servant became the conquering Redeemer of human kind. God’s long-term plan mandated His Servant bear “the sins of many”. This was God’s gift to the Servant, per Isaiah. However, the real, magnificent gift is to us, the true believers of Jesus. Think about how we should express our thanks to God. Normally we would make a phone call or write a note to say thanks for a gift, but that is not possible with God. We must find our heartfelt way to thank God for all He has done for us. So Isaiah was a true servant of God, and was used as a prophet to tell of the Suffering Servant to others who would believe. Isaiah was a vital part of God’s Story and we all have the choice to claim our portion in God’s Story.

GOD RESTORES HIS PEOPLE

When you were younger, have you ever broken something like a vase, statue, or table decoration because you were doing something you were not supposed to be doing? Then you tried to “hide” the “crime” by gluing the object back together. Were you finally discovered? I heard a story where two young boys were throwing a football in the house and knocked a special vase off of the table. When it fell the boys figured it would shatter into many pieces, but it broke cleanly into two pieces. With the help of some good glue, they repaired it and returned it to the table. A few days later their dad brought home some flowers for their mom. Guess where the flowers were placed? That’s right- and the vase leaked. They were busted and their dad disciplined both of the boys. Fortunately, their dad gave them many other chances to get things right. God is that way too. When we mess up, He disciplines us as a loving Father (Prov. 3:12).  He restores us. Last week, we learned or were reminded how God disciplined the Israelites. Now we are going to see how God restores His people.

Read Jeremiah 29:10-14 The Promise of God

God continued to carry out His plan for His people. God is sovereign and faithful –and this lesson focuses on how God kept His promise to restore a “remnant”. This is the remnant that returns from a 70 year exile in Babylon to rebuild the temple. Scholars differ on the exact dates of this 70—year period in Babylon. However, it seems most likely to refer to the 70 years between the fall of Assyria and the fall of Babylon (609-539 BC). This seems to be what Jeremiah was saying when he connected the 70 years to Babylon (v.10). But some can make a good case for time being 586-516 BC, the overlapping period that Jerusalem was without a temple. Remember, the temple was the visible symbol of God’s presence. Regardless, all agree that God sent His people to Babylon for a long time, not the short captivity predicted by the false prophets. Jeremiah, in verses 5-9, encourages the “remnant” to prepare for the 70 year exile by building houses, plant gardens, marry, raise children, allow the children to marry, seek Babylon’s welfare (while they were in that land), and finally not to heed the false prophets and diviners. Jeremiah knew the long exile would take its toll on the Jews if they did not try to live as normal lives as possible- because many of them would not live to return from exile. Why do you think it was important that God told Jeremiah the length of the exile? (Think about sitting in constant preparation, likely doing nothing, for a return trip to Jerusalem.)

So why 70 years?  First, the land (Jerusalem) would have a Sabbath rest (2 Chron. 36:21) – after being “destroyed”. Second God would then “attend to” and “confirm” His “promise” to the people (v.10). God would visit His people and also would confirm His promise, literally His good Word. Notice “you” is plural in verse 10, as God spoke through Jeremiah to His people, not to an individual. The promise was to restore them “to this place” – Jerusalem. We are all encouraged by a leader who stirs us to move ahead, someone who believes we can do the task given and who will be with us all the way. God is that kind of leader. He knows the future and His plans for us are good and full of hope. The “remnant” was being prepared for the heart of God’s Story- the earthly presence of Jesus.

God did not forget His people, even though they were captives in Babylon. He planned to give them a new beginning with a new purpose- to turn them into new people. In times of dire circumstances, it may appear as though God has forgotten us. But God may be preparing us, as He did the people of Judah, for a new beginning with Him at the center. They could call upon Him with confidence. Although the exiles were in a difficult place, they need not despair because they had God’s presence, the privilege of prayer, and God’s grace. If we seek Him wholeheartedly, He will be found. Neither a strange land, sorrow, perception of problems, nor physical difficulties can break our fellowship with God. We know God restored the “remnant” and He will restore us when we search for Him with all our hearts. This is yet another promise filled in God’s Story.

Read Ezra 1:1-5 The Return of God’s People

While His people languished in exile, God prepared the next chapter in His Story, determining to restore His people to the covenant land of Judah. Yet how would they escape their captors, navigate the 800 miles from Babylon to Jerusalem, and arrive safely? God had a new exodus in mind. Rather than fight the Babylonians Himself through miraculous plagues as He did in Egypt, God replaced the Babylonians with the Persians. Enter Cyrus the Great, a fierce, warrior-king whom the Lord referred to as “His anointed” (Isa.45:1). A year after defeating the Babylonians, Cyrus issued a proclamation freeing the exiled peoples, allowing them to be repatriated to their homelands, and encouraging them to build temples to their gods (Persian wording). We are told in verse 1 that this was all God’s doing. Cyrus’ proclamation appears in Ezra 1:2-4 and it spread from Persia in the east to the region of modern Turkey in the west and down along Egypt. Thus Cyrus’ proclamation extended over the entire promise land, enabling him to free the captives and allowing them to return safely to their homeland.

Amazingly, the proclamation begins with “The Lord, the God of heaven…” and ends with a call for financial support from acquaintances of those who would make the journey. Now what was left was for the correct response from God’s people. Why was God’s way of fulfilling His promise, in this case, so amazing? ((Cyrus was a Gentile, in what is today’s Iran, shown had shown leadership and mercy in unifying the Medes (one of the kingdoms in Daniel’s prophecy) and the Persians. Now God used him to permit the Jews to return by defeating the Babylonians (in Today’s Iraq)!) Cyrus even instructed those of the exiles who chose to remain in Babylon to support the efforts of their returning Jewish brethren. Ezra made no reference to the irony of a Gentile king having to instruct his Jewish subject to help each other. However, the emphasis does not lay so much on Cyrus’ tolerant attitude toward his conquered subjects as on the power of God.

Read Nehemiah 8:1-6 The Response of God’s People

Nehemiah describes a magnificent scene at the square in front of the Water Gate. Ezra, the scribe and priest, was to read the “Book of the Law of Moses that the Lord had given Israel”. We are told the reading took something like 6 hours- daybreak to noon. However, at the end of Ezra’s reading, they all bowed down and worshipped the Lord wholeheartedly. This was the scene to celebrate the completion of Jerusalem’s walls. Nehemiah, the governor, returned to Jerusalem from Persia to rebuild the walls and it took only 52 days (Neh. 6:15).

An important account of an event involving Ezra and the rebuilding of the temple is not in our lesson material, likely because the issue was to recount the people’s response to God in this amazing scene by Nehemiah.  During Ezra’s efforts to get the people to rebuild the temple, he had to contend with a lot of opposition from those already in and around Jerusalem. As you may recall, the people who had returned from Babylon in the early groups, lost focus and were building for themselves- not God. Ezra finally got their attention back on the temple and got it completed. Also as a side note here, it may be helpful to say that even though the Book of Jeremiah appears later in the Old Testament chronologically than the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, Jeremiah describes events that historically preceded them. There is also some questions among scholars that maybe the writing of the books of Ezra and Nehemiah appear out of order chronologically- but it doesn’t change the events. What is certain is that Ezra’s life and Nehemiah’s life overlapped and they were contemporaries (8:9). Ezra was much older and Ezra’s journey to Jerusalem from his exile appears to happen sixty years from Cyrus’ proclamation. Nehemiah’s return was another 13 years later and as we see in verses 1-6, he was successful in getting the walls rebuilt. Ezra had been successful in getting the returning “remnant” to rebuild the temple, prior to Nehemiah leading in rebuilding the walls. This seems a very good reason why the book of Ezra is placed first in the Bible.

Many of God’s people returned to Jerusalem and many more remained in Babylon. Many who stayed back had made their homes in Babylon and had family they did not want to leave. Some of these had married outside of their Jewish religion and did not want to leave their spouse and children. Ezra had told them that to return to Jerusalem they must leave these “outsiders’ behind or they would violate God’s law. This was not an easy choice. Many times we seem to face hard choices but we need to make them for God. Those who returned were the faithful “children” of God and had responded as God wanted- many leaving spouses and even children behind.

These verses in Nehemiah again were describing only those who had returned to Jerusalem and had helped in building the walls. Therefore, these were the “remnant” people who set the stage for the lineage that led directly to Jesus, His life, His death, and His resurrection.