Not our Ways

Not our ways
The prophet Micah said,
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting.” Micah 5:4.
Micah predicted accurately the birth place of Jesus.
The Prophet Isaiah said,
"Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? 
He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. 
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering.Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 
Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. 
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. 
We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way;and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. 
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. 
By oppression and judgment he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken. 
He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. 
Yet it was the LORD'S will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand. 
After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life  and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities. 
Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.” Isaiah 53:1-12.
We Christians believe this is an accurate description of Jesus, the suffering Messiah. The one who would die for the sins of mankind.
I know many, especially Jews do not believe this. They are looking for the conquering Messiah one who will conquer the world and bring universal peace.
I can understand this. The Jews are probably one of, if not, the, most persecuted people in history. I can see why they would want to see a conquering Messiah. And Christians believe Jesus will one day return as that conquering Messiah bringing with Him universal peace.
That being said, as I noted, believers in Christ Jesus see Him as a suffering Messiah that takes away the sins of the world. That offers eternal life to all who would believe in Him. The apostle Paul said,
“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.  
For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.” 
Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?  
For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.  
Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom,  but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,  but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.  
For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength. 1 Corinthians 1:18-25
In a nutshell what Paul is saying is God does not do things the way man does.
It would seem better from a human stand point for the Messiah to come in power and might and conquer the world. However to my way of thinking that would not necessarily create faithful followers. Many would simply pay lip service to God because they feared what He could do to them.
On the other hand coming as a suffering Messiah shows first of all how far in human terms God would go to show man the way to heaven. Secondly coming as a suffering Messiah requires faith on the part of the individual. Which is what God wants.
The writer of Hebrews stating,

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for 

and certain of what we do not see.”  

                                                        Hebrews 11:1

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” Hebrews 11:6.
The apostle Paul states,
“That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  
For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.
As the Scripture says, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame.”  
For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him,  for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved"Romans 10:9-13.
Ultimately however the choice is up to you the individual. You must decide for yourself whether or not Jesus is indeed the Son of God, The Saviour of mankind.
Please think about it. 

About Jesus

About Jesus
In a Short time it will be Easter a time Christians world wide celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus. Many things have been said about Jesus. However what does the Bible say about Him.
Luke’s gospel records,
“In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee,  to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.  
The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” 
Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.  
But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.  
He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,   and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.” 
“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” 
The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.” Luke 1:26-35.
Here the gospel writer asks us to believe that God sent an angel to tell Mary that she would conceive a child through by the Holy Spirit and giving birth to the “the Son of the Most High”.
This is purely a faith thing. You either believe it or you don’t. Certainly Luke the writer believed it to be true. As did all the writers of the New Testament.
Now when it come to the birth of His Son. I don’t think God did not just pick a woman at random. Tradition says Mary was of humble birth. Certainly she was not of a ruling royal household.
     However she was most likely devout. Her cousin Elizabeth was married to Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron.
Later we also learn that when Jesus was born he was taken to the temple to be dedicated to the Lord.
We are told in Luke 2:41,
“Every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover.”
The parents of Jesus were devout believers in God. Who practiced their faith. A faith being the Son of God Jesus probably recognized early in his life. A faith Mary and Joseph helped him cultivate. Giving him and understanding human understanding of his faith.
“Luke also records,
“Every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover.  
When he was twelve years old, they went up to the Feast, according to the custom.  
After the Feast was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it.  
Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends.  
When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him.  
After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers.”  Luke 2:41-47.
From this we can assume that Jesus had a very good understanding of the scriptures. That he was it seems a genius.
Jesus also had a sense of who he truly was Luke’s gospel recording,
“When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.” 
“Why were you searching for me?” he asked. “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?”  Luke 2:48,49.
He knew even as a teenager that he was at the very least called to do God the Fathers work. That his life was to have a higher purpose.
That purpose Christians believe was to be the suffering Messiah. The Christ who would die for the sins of the world. The apostle Paul telling us,
“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.  
Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.  
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:6-8 
The question the New Testament places before everyone who reads it is simple. Who do you believe Jesus is?
A good man?
A good teacher?
Son of God, Saviour of mankind. God incarnate?
Please think about it. 

The Question Becomes

The Question becomes,
Matthew’s gospel records,
“Meanwhile Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” “Yes, it is as you say,” Jesus replied. 
When he was accused by the chief priests and the elders, he gave no answer.  
Then Pilate asked him, “Don’t you hear the testimony they are bringing against you?”  
But Jesus made no reply, not even to a single charge—to the great amazement of the governor. 
Now it was the governor’s custom at the Feast to release a prisoner chosen by the crowd.  
At that time they had a notorious prisoner, called Barabbas.  
So when the crowd had gathered, Pilate asked them, “Which one do you want me to release to you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?”  
For he knew it was out of envy that they had handed Jesus over to him. 
While Pilate was sitting on the judge’s seat, his wife sent him this message: “Don’t have anything to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of him.” 
But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus executed. 
“Which of the two do you want me to release to you?” asked the governor. “Barabbas,” they answered. 
“What shall I do, then, with Jesus who is called Christ?” Pilate asked. They all answered, “Crucify him!” 
“Why? What crime has he committed?” asked Pilate. But they shouted all the louder, “Crucify him!” 
When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. “I am innocent of this man’s blood,” he said. “It is your responsibility!” Matthew 27:11-24.
The above is Matthew’s account of the trial of Jesus before the Roman Governor Pontius Pilot.
At the trial of Jesus that day we have the world in microcosm. We have the religious leadership of the day, we have the average person in the crowd, and we have the secular Roman governor. We also had God the Father.
The religious leadership had brought Jesus before Pilot to be put to death. They’d trumped up some charges but not having the authority to impose the death penalty themselves the brought Jesus before the Roman governor who did.
The religious leadership could have dropped the charges. Or upon being given the choice between a “notorious prisoner, called Barabbas”, and Jesus, they could have let Jesus go. Instead they chose Barabbas.
The Roman governor who from the text knew what the religious leaders were doing could have released Jesus. Even his wife told him,
“Don’t have anything to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of him.” 
The crowd was also given a choice to release Jesus. However they chose to follow the leading of the religious leadership and called for Jesus to be crucified.
God was also present at this trial also. Jesus is the Son of God. God could have in a show of his power sent angels to rescue Jesus. After all what better way to prove who Jesus was. However God’s ways are not our ways.
God asks man to no matter the circumstances to have faith in Him and His ways.
The writer of Hebrews telling us,
“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”  Hebrews 11:1
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” Hebrews 11:6.
Jesus was not the conquering Messiah the Jews of the day were looking for. Jesus is the suffering Messiah described in Isaiah chapter fifty-three that states,
“Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? 
He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. 
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 
Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. 
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. 
We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. 
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. 
By oppression and judgment he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken. 
He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. 
Yet it was the LORD'S will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand. 
After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life  and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities. 
Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors .For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.” Isaiah 53.
This is the central belief of Christianity. Jesus died for the sins of all who would believe in Him. The writer of Hebrews telling us,
“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways but in these last day he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he has appointed heir to all things and through whom he made the universe.
 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” Hebrews 1:1-3.
As I said this is what Christians believe. It is what Christians present to the world.
So the question becomes who do you think Jesus is?
Please think about it.