Gregory of Nazianzus, (A.D. 381) said of Jesus,
"He began His ministry by being hungry, yet He is the Bread of Life.
Jesus ended His earthly ministry by being thirsty, yet He is the Living Water.
Jesus was weary, yet He is our rest. Jesus paid tribute, yet He is the King.
Jesus was accused of having a demon, yet He cast out demons.
Jesus wept, yet He wipes away our tears.
Jesus was sold for thirty pieces of silver, yet He redeemed the world.
Jesus was brought as a lamb to the slaughter, yet He is the Good Shepherd.
Jesus died, yet by His death He destroyed the power of death."
Who is this man Jesus?
He was taken before Pilate and accused of having claimed to be the Son of God. Pilate, the Roman Governor, being greatly troubled and unsettled, confronted Him in the Judgment Hall, asking many questions. But, He answered him not a word (Matthew 27:14). He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He opened not His mouth (Isaiah 53:7).
Who is this man Jesus Christ? Who is Jesus of Nazareth? Who is this man called the Christ?
First of all: He is God Almighty.
Don't misunderstand what I am saying. Jesus was not merely the Son of God or God's ambassador, or even God's messenger. He Himself was and is God Almighty. The Scriptures made this clear. They declared, "Behold the Lord Himself will give you a sign; a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son and thou shall call His name Immanuel" (Isaiah 7:14) which being interpreted is "God with us" (Matthew 1:23.
In John 10:30, Christ boldly declared; "I and My Father are one." The disciples said, "Show us the Father." Jesus replied, "He that hath seen me has seen my Father" (John 14:9). Jesus further makes this great truth clear by saying, "If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him" (John 14:7).
Who is this man Jesus? "In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God and all things were made by Him; without Him was nothing made that was made" (John 1:1-3).
Who is this man Jesus? He is God come to this earth. He is God in human flesh. Jesus of Nazareth is the living and true God who visited this earth in the likeness of sinful flesh. God came to earth and He reconciled us unto Himself in Christ. God was in Christ. He purchased the church with His own blood.
And this same Jesus, the God/Man, is our only hope. Some hundreds of years ago, a Monk lay dying in his bed. The priest had come to give him the Final Unction. However, the Monk, in spite of his cloistered life, been exposed to the gospel. To the shock and of the other monks he dispatched the priest, refused the crucifix and ordered his room to be emptied of all the other religious trappings. He then, with dying eyes, looked to heaven and cried, "Tua vulnera, Jesu! Tua vulnera, Jesu!" "Thy wounds, Jesus! Thy wounds, Jesus!"
This man knew who Jesus was. He knew we are not saved by anything we can do, but by that which the God/Man has done for us. We are not saved by what we have suffered, but by what Christ has endured. "Tua vulnera, Jesu! Tua vulnera, Jesu!" Our everlasting hope was hung upon the cross. In His doing, dying and rising again is all our acceptance before God. We are called to trust in Christ in life and in death.
Who is this man Jesus Christ? He is the God/Man and He is our only Saviour.
And that's the Gospel Truth!
"He began His ministry by being hungry, yet He is the Bread of Life.
Jesus ended His earthly ministry by being thirsty, yet He is the Living Water.
Jesus was weary, yet He is our rest. Jesus paid tribute, yet He is the King.
Jesus was accused of having a demon, yet He cast out demons.
Jesus wept, yet He wipes away our tears.
Jesus was sold for thirty pieces of silver, yet He redeemed the world.
Jesus was brought as a lamb to the slaughter, yet He is the Good Shepherd.
Jesus died, yet by His death He destroyed the power of death."
Who is this man Jesus?
He was taken before Pilate and accused of having claimed to be the Son of God. Pilate, the Roman Governor, being greatly troubled and unsettled, confronted Him in the Judgment Hall, asking many questions. But, He answered him not a word (Matthew 27:14). He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He opened not His mouth (Isaiah 53:7).
Who is this man Jesus Christ? Who is Jesus of Nazareth? Who is this man called the Christ?
First of all: He is God Almighty.
Don't misunderstand what I am saying. Jesus was not merely the Son of God or God's ambassador, or even God's messenger. He Himself was and is God Almighty. The Scriptures made this clear. They declared, "Behold the Lord Himself will give you a sign; a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son and thou shall call His name Immanuel" (Isaiah 7:14) which being interpreted is "God with us" (Matthew 1:23.
In John 10:30, Christ boldly declared; "I and My Father are one." The disciples said, "Show us the Father." Jesus replied, "He that hath seen me has seen my Father" (John 14:9). Jesus further makes this great truth clear by saying, "If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him" (John 14:7).
Who is this man Jesus? "In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God and all things were made by Him; without Him was nothing made that was made" (John 1:1-3).
Who is this man Jesus? He is God come to this earth. He is God in human flesh. Jesus of Nazareth is the living and true God who visited this earth in the likeness of sinful flesh. God came to earth and He reconciled us unto Himself in Christ. God was in Christ. He purchased the church with His own blood.
And this same Jesus, the God/Man, is our only hope. Some hundreds of years ago, a Monk lay dying in his bed. The priest had come to give him the Final Unction. However, the Monk, in spite of his cloistered life, been exposed to the gospel. To the shock and of the other monks he dispatched the priest, refused the crucifix and ordered his room to be emptied of all the other religious trappings. He then, with dying eyes, looked to heaven and cried, "Tua vulnera, Jesu! Tua vulnera, Jesu!" "Thy wounds, Jesus! Thy wounds, Jesus!"
This man knew who Jesus was. He knew we are not saved by anything we can do, but by that which the God/Man has done for us. We are not saved by what we have suffered, but by what Christ has endured. "Tua vulnera, Jesu! Tua vulnera, Jesu!" Our everlasting hope was hung upon the cross. In His doing, dying and rising again is all our acceptance before God. We are called to trust in Christ in life and in death.
Who is this man Jesus Christ? He is the God/Man and He is our only Saviour.
And that's the Gospel Truth!
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