KNOW JESUS
WHO IS JESUS?
In many ways Jesus was just like us. He was from a small town and a big family. He worked as a carpenter and often struggled financially (Luke 9:58.) He frequently said controversial things (Luke 16:24, John 6:54, Matthew 8:22, Matthew 15:26. Sometimes he showed up late; like really late, like 4 days late. No his financial problems were not due to his lack of punctuality. He wasn’t afraid to show his emotions—he stressed over God’s will for his life (Matt 26:36-46), he cried at a funeral (John 11), he even became angry and flipped over some tables (Matt 21:12-13). He made friends, and he made enemies. Some people loved him, and some people hated him. In many ways he was just you’re average Joe Jesus; but In others ways he was the most influential, significant person to ever walk the earth. It’s for this reason that there are three things that you absolutely have to know about Jesus.
JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD
How do we know that? First off, Jesus fulfilled over 300 Old Testament prophecies. These prophecies were so descriptive that mathematically speaking, the odds of someone fulfilling just eight of them is greater than 1 in a trillion. The odds of someone fulfilling 48 of them is 1 in 10 to the 157th power, (that’s a number with 157 zeros). The odds of someone fulfilling over 300 of these prophecies is so astronomical that it becomes a mathematical certainty that Jesus is the only begotten Son of God.
If math isn’t your thing, the second reason we know that Jesus is the son of God is because he said he was. Jesus can’t be just a good man, or just a good prophet, as some religions suggest. Jesus openly declared himself to be the son of God. Because of this, there are only three conclusions that a person can come to about Jesus he’s either a liar, a lunatic, or the Lord. No other conclusion makes logical sense; so hopefully the last option is your first choice.
JESUS DIED FOR YOU
Sin separates us from God. We don’t have the strength to separate ourselves from sin, so if it had not been for Jesus, we would never have had the opportunity to be connected to God. What did Jesus do? He paid the penalty for our sins. Jesus became our sin substitute. When Jesus was on the cross, God regarded him as a sinner. It’s not that Jesus was a sinner, it’s that God treated him as a sinner. God treated Jesus as if he was the only sinner, and as if he was single handedly responsible for every horrible deed that had ever been committed or would be committed. Why did God treat Jesus in a way that he didn’t deserve to be treated? It’s so that God could treat us in a way that we don’t deserve to be treated. God treated Jesus as a sinner so that he could treat us as righteous. This is why the essence of the Gospel isn’t spelled D-O or D-O-N-T; it's spelled D-O-N-E. It isn’t about what we do or what we don’t do; it’s about what Jesus has already done!
JESUS LOVES YOU
He always has and always will (Rom 5:8). His love for you isn’t based off of your words or actions, it’s based off of his choice (John 15:16, 1 John 4:19). Since his love is based off of his choice, and he’s the same yesterday, today, and forever, his love remains consistent throughout your life. This is why you can know with confidence that Jesus loves you as much right now as he ever has, or ever will. Regardless of what you did or didn’t do, said or didn’t say. Regardless of what happened or didn’t happen. It did not add to or take away from Jesus’ love for you. Translation, Jesus loves you forever and always (Rom 8:38-39)!
DO YOU KNOW JESUS?
One last thing! If Jesus loves us forever and always, then why would anyone ever end up in Hell? As powerful as Jesus’ love for us is, it does not produce a relationship by itself. A relationship can only be established when love is projected in both directions. So, even though Jesus loves you, if you don’t return the love you’ve received, there is no relationship. If you don’t have a relationship with Jesus, you can’t know him; and if you don’t know him, the last words you’ll ever hear him say are, “Depart from me, I never knew you.”
Do you know Jesus? I hope you do! But if not, I hope that knowing Jesus is the son of God, that he died for you, and that he loves you, will inspire you to establish a relationship with him today!
- Pastor Billy Shelton