With Christmas coming we will be telling the story again of a Baby
who was born in Bethlehem, but do you know the beginning of the story?
Do you know the man who was the Baby? He is Jesus Christ our Lord!
We need to know who Jesus is! While reading about the number of Christians
who have converted to Islam in the last several years, of the reasons
given it was evident that those who converted had no Biblical concept
of who Jesus is. John wrote:
John 1
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the
Word was God.
2 He was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made
that was made.
4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.
In the beginning was the Word. John says the Word was with God and
He was God and all things were made through Him. In Him was life in the
beginning! John is bringing our attention to the Book of Genesis, the
story of Creation that begins with the same words … “In the beginning
God created the heavens and the earth.” John wants us to know that Jesus
was there! Jesus is the Creator!
The Apostle Paul confirms this in Colossians:
Col 1
16 For by (Jesus) all things were created that are in heaven and that
are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or
principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for
Him.
17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.
18 And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning,
the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.
Jesus was there when the invisible things were created! All the angels
and all of the eternal inhabitants of heaven were created through Him.
And all the thrones, dominions, principalities and powers were made through
Him! When Lucifer rebelled it was through the authority of Jesus that
he was cast down to the earth!
In creation, when God said, “Let there be light” it was through Jesus
Christ that these things were created! He was involved in creation, bringing
forth the beauty of this world! And after creating all the wondrous things
of earth and sky we hear God saying …
Genesis 1
26 … "Let
Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness;
Note the words “us” and “our” as God speaks to Himself. I have a hard
time understanding this but the Bible is clear that there is but one
God and His name is I AM. He is also known as Jehovah and is called Adonai!
Yet He expresses Himself in three persons: the Father, the Son, and the
Holy Spirit!
Jesus is not a lesser Being. He is God Himself! He is the second Person
in the God-head. He did come into existence at the time of His birth
because He always was and always will be! He is God.
Jesus is the One who gave Himself as a sacrifice for our sins, before
we were ever born!
Rev 13:8
8 All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not
been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation
of the world.
His sacrifice was not made because He was a lesser being than God …
He is God! And He took your sins and mine on the cross … before we were
born! We could never have born the punishment for our own sins, but Jesus
the sinless man took the punishment for us!
From the beginning and throughout the Old Testament we have evidence
of His presence. He frequently appeared to people and gave them encouragement
and instructions in the Old Testament. Sometimes we miss the significance
of the words when He is described as the Angel of the LORD … but that
was Jesus taking on a physical form in order to communicate with mankind.
Gen 16:7
7 Now the Angel of the LORD found (Hagar) by a spring of water in the
wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur.
10 Then the
Angel of the LORD said to her, "I will multiply
your descendants exceedingly, so that they shall not be counted for
multitude."
11 And the
Angel of the LORD said to her: "Behold, you
are with child, and you shall bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael,
because
the LORD has heard your affliction.
12 He shall
be a wild man; His hand shall be against every man, and every man's
hand against him. And he shall dwell in the presence
of all
his brethren."
The Angel of the LORD is speaking to Abraham’s wife’s handmaiden, Hagar. She
is the one who Abraham took as a concubine and a son was born to him through
her. Sarah was unhappy with her and made her life miserable! Hagar had fled
from Sarah and God is comforting her in this passage. Only God can promise
that He will multiply the descendants of a particular person. Only God can
understand the nature of the Arabic nations before the father of those nations
are born. Ishmeal.
It is Jesus
the One who sees the end from the beginning, who is able to tell
Hagar about an unborn son and his descendants! It is
Jesus who
is seen as the Angel of the LORD throughout the Old Testament! He didn’t
begin His ministry on earth after He was born! Just as He said to the
Pharisees, John 5:17 "My Father has been working until now, and
I have been working."
It was Jesus who called to Abraham to stop him from giving his son
as a sacrifice.
Gen 22:12 …"Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him;
for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son,
your only son, from Me."
It was Jesus who called out to Moses from the burning bush!
Ex 3:2
2 And the Angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire from
the midst of a bush.
6 Moreover
He said, "I am the God of your father — the
God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob."
Jesus guided the Israelites through the desert for He was the pillar
of fire by night and the cloud by day.
He was the Rock in the desert that poured out water at Moses’ command.
It was Jesus who hindered Balaam’s donkey as Balaam hurried to disobey
God.
It was Jesus who was the Commander of the Lord’s Army who led Joshua
to victory at Jericho and to conquer the enemies of Israel in Palestine.
It was Jesus who called Gideon into leadership and led him into battle
with the Amorites.
It was Jesus who gave Samson his birth and his strength!
Jesus gave food and drink to Elijah and that food and drink sustained
him for forty days!
Jesus did not begin His ministry on earth after He was born in Bethlehem!
He was involved in the lives of mankind from the beginning and He is
still involved with us!
John 14:16-18
I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide
with you forever —
17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither
sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and
will be in you.
18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.
As Jesus was preparing the disciples for His departure, He promised
“another Helper.” The word another means “one who is of the same kind.”
This is the Holy Spirit who Jesus tells the disciples that He is already
dwelling with them … and will be in them! The One dwelling with them
is Jesus! He promises the Holy Spirit to them as the One who will live
in them! The Holy Spirit brings the presence of Jesus into our lives!
Jesus has been present with His Church from the Day of Pentecost until
now! He has worked miracles and healings! He has caused great revivals.
He has led believers in His triumph throughout the ages! When times are
hard He gives strength and grace! He said, “I will never leave you nor
forsake you.” This is the Jesus who was born as a baby in Bethlehem!
And He is the soon returning King!
1 Thess 4
16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with
the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead
in Christ will rise first.
17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with
them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always
be with the Lord.
This is what Christmas is about! He is so much more than a baby! He
is the Creator! He is the “I AM” of the burning bush! He is the Commander
of the Lord’s Army. Jesus told John on the Island of Patmos …
Rev 1:8
8 "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End," says
the Lord, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."
This is the One who was born at Bethlehem! This is Jesus! This is what
Christmas is about! Don’t lose sight of the total picture! He is God
who came to earth as a man in order to redeem all mankind and take us
with Him to Heaven! He is Jesus! He is Lord! He is the Almighty!
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