“My Father is working until now, and I am working” (John 5:17). When you and I read it, it doesn’t sound offensive. But to the Jewish leaders, these were blasphemous words. They were already angered by Jesus’ total disregard of their Sabbath traditions. Now this man from Galilee was claiming equality with God. The Jewish leaders heard His message loud and clear, and their resolve to kill Him grew all the more.
The response of these leaders makes it difficult for us to deny Jesus’ claims to be God. That is who He is. He brought this world into existence. He created everything, and as Colossians 1:17 states, “in Him, all things hold together.” The issue of His identity was a recurring theme throughout Jesus’ earthly ministry. He underscored the truth that He was and is God time and time again. But many times when He made such claims, in the next breath, He said things like “The Son can do nothing of His own accord,” or “I can do nothing on my own?” (John 5:19, 30). Why would the creator of the heavens and earth say such things?
When you look underneath the hood, these statements amplify the idea of God being His Father, and that He is equal with God. But they also show that as a man, Jesus chose to live in dependence on His Father. He didn’t have to, but He did so willfully. Paul put it this way, “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” Phil 2:5-8 (ESV)
He lived in dependence upon His Father to teach us how to live. When Adam and Eve decided to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they in essence declared their independence from God. And mankind has tried to make it on its own ever since. All we have to do is watch the evening news to see how that has worked out for us. Our independent, rebellious attitude toward God has made a mess of things. Jesus, the independent one, came to earth, and through His life showed us how to live in dependence.
We are created beings. We are supposed to live in dependence on our creator. When we do, life makes sense. Let’s take a lesson from Jesus and declare our dependence on the Son.
Month: October 2011
The Message Matters
The message matters. And not just any message. There is only one that will save and that is the message concerning Jesus Christ. This is never more clearly stated than in the first several chapters of 1 Corinthians.
Paul had been very exact in his presentation of the Gospel to the Corinthians. He didn’t use fancy words or persuasive tactics in his communication. He simply preached the death, the burial and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Add to this message or take away from it and you have robbed it of its power.
The Corinthians were doing just that. Many of the Corinthians believed water baptism was part of the Gospel message. Others relied on the wisdom of man as the way and means of knowing God. But these just caused all kinds of confusion and even divided the believers to the point that Paul called them babes in Christ.
There is nothing we can add as far as the Gospel is concerned. It is all of Jesus and none of us. His death took away our sins. His resurrection brings life to our dead spirits. This doesn’t make sense to us. It even sounds like foolishness. This isn’t the message our minds would conceive. That is why it had to be revealed to us by the Spirit of God.
To those who accept the message for what it is, it becomes both the power of God and the wisdom of God. The message does matter. Don’t let anyone tell you differently.
The Game Changer
I am an Apple man. I love their innovative products. Most everyone else does as well. I don’t know anyone who does not have an Apple product.
Steve Jobs and his creative team at Apple changed the computing world for the better. His genius, leadership and marketing prowess have given us products that are simple to use, elegant in style, and as the younger generation would say, “just way cool.”
The world’s reaction to his death shows the enormous impact he has had in the world. Time Magazine literally stopped their presses to change the cover of their next issue to honor this computer icon. The number of posts about Steve Jobs on Facebook and Twitter is off the charts. Many are even using Job’s image as their profile picture. He is being heralded as a game changer and joined to John D. Rockefeller and Henry Ford as the most influential innovators America has ever produced. Rarified company indeed, and a spot well deserved for Mr. Jobs.
Jobs wanted to put a ding in the universe. He wanted to be a game changer. Here is a quote from him, one that many people are sharing through the social networks to honor this significant man: “Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes… the ones who see things differently — they’re not fond of rules… You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can’t do is ignore them because they change things… they push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.”
He did see things differently, and he was brave enough to follow his heart and mind. But did Steve Jobs change the world?
The Apostle John wrote this concerning the world: “For everything in the world–the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does–comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever” (1 John 2:16-17). Despite the great advances in technology, the world remains as it has been since Adam and Eve ate the forbidden apple. And it will continue under sin’s influence and the deceptive philosophies of the evil one until Jesus returns. That is the world.
Jobs changed the way we function in this world. He changed the way we listen to music, the way we connect with one another, and the way we share our lives. In many ways he has helped to make our lives simpler, yet more elegant. And for that he is a game changer. But even so, the world is still a mess. Humanity is mired in sin and death. Evil is everywhere. Technology cannot change this dark reality. Human hearts still gravitate toward sin and evil and rebellion.
But God has not left us without hope. He sent the Game Changer, Jesus Christ. He came to rescue us from the corruption of this world. Those who trust in Him are snatched out of this world and placed into His Kingdom. John described this as “being in the world, but not of the world.”
One day, there will be new heavens and a new earth and we will be part of it. Jesus sent His Spirit into our lives as a guarantee of what is to come. Until then, Jesus continues to impact this world by imparting His life to those who receive Him.
There have been many people throughout history who have changed the way we function in the world. But there is only One who can, and who will change the world itself, the One who has power over sin and death.