Who Is Jesus?

NOT!

We hear all the time things like, “Jesus was a great teacher.” Or, “Jesus was a prophet.”  I completely agree.  He was, indeed, a great teacher, a great man, and without a doubt, a prophet. The problem is, all these titles even when used together, fail to convey the complete picture of who Jesus really is.

Why should you trust what I say about Him?  Don’t trust me. Let’s look at the Old Testament and see what is written there about what we should expect in our Messiah.

• Micah 5:2 says we can expect our Messiah to be born in Bethlehem.  We see in Matthew 2:4-6, Jesus was born in Bethlehem.
  
• He would come through the line of David, 2 Samuel 7:12, Jeremiah 23:5.  The very first verse of the New Testament records the fulfillment of this prophesy.
  
• The bible says in Isaiah 7:14 that He would be born of a virgin. Luke 1:35 says this came to pass.
  
• He was prophesied to ride into Jerusalem on the foal of a donkey in Zachariah 9:9 and we see this happen in Matthew 21:8-10.

If you think these passages are uncanny, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.

• He would be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver (Zechariah 11:13, fulfilled Matthew 26;15)
• His hands and feet would be pierced, He would be stared at, they would divide His garments and cast lots for His clothing ( Psalm 22, fulfilled in John 19:36-36)
• He would suffer for us and be beaten (Isaiah 53:3-7 Isaiah 50:6, fulfilled in Matthew 27:27-31)
• He would be called out of Egypt (Hosea 11:1, fulfilled in Matthew 2:14-15)
• He would teach in parables (Psalm 78:1-2, Matthew 13”34-35).
  

These are just a few of the passages of the Old Testament that explain who we can expect Jesus to be.

Jesus fulfilled over 300 Old Testament prophesies. By the way, the odds of one man fulfilling just 8 of these prophesies are 10 to the 17^th power.  I want to drive that point home.  The odds of Jesus fulfilling just 8 of the Old Testament prophesies about the Messiah are 1 chance in 100 quadrillion!  The odds of Him fulfilling all of them are beyond reckoning.

Now that we know what the Old Testament tells us to look for, let’s see what Jesus says about himself.  

The first thing to note is, Jesus claimed to be the fulfillment of Old Testament prophesies in Luke 24;44.

In Matthew 5:17, Jesus says He is the fulfillment of the Law.  If you are new to the Bible, The Law was the covenant between God and Israel that set them apart from all other nations.  It included all the do’s and don’t’s and sacrifices, and don't forget the blessings.  While the Law set the Israelites apart from everyone else, it also showed us how far removed we are from the presence of God.

Jesus’ favorite designation for himself was Son of Man and He calls himself this 30 times; Mt. 8:20, Mt. 18:11, Mt. 24:37, Mark 10:45, Luke 9:58, Lk 11:29-32 are just a few examples.  Son of Man was a veiled way to claim to be the Messiah without blatantly saying it.  Those with ears to hear would equate the phrase with the 7th chapter of Daniel which speaks of the one like the Son of Man being seated beside God and given all authority.  Those without ears to hear would think he was just calling Himself a human being, the way God addresses Ezekiel in his book.

He called Himself the Chief Cornerstone in Matt 21:42, Mk 12:10, and Lk 20:17.  This is a reference from Psalm 118:22

I’m going to give another list here: 

• Bread out of Heaven (John 6:32)
• The Light of the World ( John 8:12)
• The Resurrection and the Life (Jn 11:25)
• The Way the Truth and the Life (John 14:6)
  
• The True Vine (John 15:1).
  
• The main thing Jesus called Himself was God!

Genesis 1:1 says, 

“In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth."

John 1:1-3,14 says, 

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God.  The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him; and without Him was not any thing made that was made…and the Word was made 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."

The next passage I want to point out is: Exodus 3:13-14. It says, (Moses is speaking to God in the burning bush here), 

“Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The god of your fathers hath sent me unto you, and they shall say unto me, what is his name? What shall I say unto them?

And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and He said, thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.”

Hang on to that thought.

I’m not going to write the next passage out but tell the story because it’s long.  The eighth chapter of John records an exchange between Jesus and the Pharisees.  The part I want to zero in on begins in verse 23 (please read it for yourself) where Jesus tells them they are from below but He is from above.  They then, ask Him who He is.  

Jesus told them who He is but they aren't listening.  Jesus told them that if they knew Him, they would know the truth and the truth would make them free.

Of course, the Pharisees didn't get it and said, "We are Abraham's descendants and have never been slaves of anyone.

Jesus explained that whosoever sins is a slave to sin.  He told them He knows they are Abraham’s descendants, yet they try to find a reason to kill Him; and that they really are of their father, the devil.

So, this exchange goes on for a while and finally the Pharisees accuse Him of being possessed because Abraham and the prophets all died yet, Jesus claimed that those who believe on Him wouldn’t taste death.

This is the part I love and I will write it as it is written in the Bible.

“Jesus said, ‘Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad.’

‘You are not yet fifty years old,’ they said to Him, ‘and you have seen Abraham!”

    ‘Verily I say unto you,’ Jesus answered, ‘Before Abraham was             born, I AM!’

    At this they picked up stones to stone Him…”

They knew exactly what Jesus was claiming and wanted to stone Him for it.  There are a lot of verses declaring the divinity if Jesus, but the one above is my favorite.

In conclusion let me just say, Jesus was not an angel.  Jesus was not just a man, a great teacher, or just a prophet.  Jesus was God in the flesh, God in human form, our hope, and our redeemer.

I hate to tell you this but, not all religions lead to God. 

Strait is the Gate and narrow is the way that leadeth unto life and few there be that find it. Matthew 7:14

There is no other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. Acts 4:12

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.” John 14:6

Jesus is the only way, and not only that, you absolutely HAVE to know who He really is.  Just thinking of Jesus as a prophet or teacher or great man will not cut it.  You have to believe that He is the only begotten of the Father who came and died a cruel death in our stead and rose from the dead on the third day.  You have to believe that we are hopelessly lost without Him because it is the truth.  God made a way and that way was Jesus who, as the Son, was God made man.