Meet Jesus - Day 27 of 40 - God

"In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God." (John 1:1 NLT)

The "Word" John was referring to is Jesus. So John 1:1 could also be said, "In the beginning Jesus already existed. Jesus was with God, and Jesus was God."

Many religions and religious leaders look at Jesus positively. This can be said of Gandhi (Hinduism), Muhammad (Islam), the Dalai Lama (Buddhism) to name a few. But considering Jesus as God is another thing. And Jesus: God is exactly what separates those who follow Jesus from all other world religions. 

As mentioned in previous daily devotions, in all world religions, man needs to do something on his/her own part to obtain salvation, eternal life with God. Those who follow Jesus know from God's Word that there is nothing man can do to earn salvation. As Paul wrote, "For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard." (Romans 3:23 NLT) Because of us always falling short, we needed an external source to save us; eternal life with God is something we could never achieve by good works. And if we are truly honest with ourselves and did the counting, how could we ever really count more good works done by us in a lifespan over our evil actions and thoughts? So this is what God did...He sent Himself to earth to save us by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This act of Jesus: God is the epitome of the word grace. 

Other religions use the word grace, but when you look deeply enough there are always strings attached, whereby negating what grace is supposed to mean (love with no strings). 

How do you find what God did in sending His Son (Himself) as true grace ("undeserved love", "love without strings attached")? How has God's grace impacted your life? How may we introduce God's grace as known in Jesus: God to another?

Meet Jesus - Day 26 of 40 - Messiah

Read Luke 7:18-50. 

"John’s two disciples found Jesus and said to him, 'John the Baptist sent us to ask, "Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?" At that very time, Jesus cured many people of their diseases, illnesses, and evil spirits, and he restored sight to many who were blind. Then he told John’s disciples, 'Go back to John and tell him what you have seen and heard—the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor. And tell him, ‘God blesses those who do not turn away because of me.’”

In this account Jesus gave the long answer. He responded to the question of John's disciples with the evidence of his actions. In John 4:25-26, Jesus was more succinct, "The woman said to him, 'I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things.' Jesus said to her, 'I who speak to you am he.'”

Messiah means "anointed one" as in oil poured on one. Another snapshot of Jesus: Messiah found in Luke 7:46-50:

[Jesus speaking to Simon the Pharisee] "'You neglected the courtesy of olive oil to anoint my head, but she has anointed my feet with rare perfume. I tell you, her sins—and they are many—have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love.' Then Jesus said to the woman, 'Your sins are forgiven.' The men at the table said among themselves, 'Who is this man, that he goes around forgiving sins?' And Jesus said to the woman, 'Your faith has saved you; go in peace.'”

Christian Cyclopedia reports, "The OT [Old Testament] offers hope of a messiah-king after the image of David (e.g., Ps 2; 18; 20; 21; 45). It also refers to Messiah in such terms as the coming Judge (e.g., Is 42:1–4), Ruler of Israel (e.g., 2 Sm 7:13; Zch 9:9; Ps 2:6; Dn 9:25), Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (Is 9:6; cf. Ju 13:18)." Jesus filled the hope of all of these. 

Most importantly for us..."who is this man, that goes around forgiving sins?" Answer: Jesus: Messiah.

Many movies include a messiah theme (all ripped off from the Bible). In these movies, the characters look to the One who would come to save, redeem, put things right again. One could look at Star Wars Episodes I-III as Old Testament. And Episodes IV-VI as New Testament. In Episodes I-II, the Jedi were looking to the One who would provide order to the universe. Ultimately, in Episodes VI (with a rocky road of destruction in the middle) that One was Anikan Skywalker (aka Darth Vader) who defeated the evil emperor.

How is Jesus the One to you? How has he saved, redeemed, put things right in your life? How may you express this to another?

Meet Jesus - Day 25 of 40 - Deliverer

[Paul wrote, quoting the prophet Isaiah] "I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, and in this way all Israel will be saved. As it is written:

'The deliverer will come from Zion;

    he will turn godlessness away from Jacob.

And this is my covenant with them

    when I take away their sins.'” (Romans 11:25-27 NIV)

The deliver who would come, who came, is Jesus. 

On Day 17, we met Jesus: Savior. Savior and Deliverer are similar descriptions for who Jesus is. We looked at Jesus: Savior with a fairly broad stroke. Today, we will look at Jesus: Deliverer in a more intimate way as expressed in Psalm 40. Here is a personal testimony as to what Deliverer means from Jesus' great, great, great, great (on and on) grandfather David:

I waited patiently for the Lord;

    he turned to me and heard my cry.

He lifted me out of the slimy pit,

    out of the mud and mire;

he set my feet on a rock

    and gave me a firm place to stand.

He put a new song in my mouth,

    a hymn of praise to our God.

Many will see and fear the Lord

    and put their trust in him.

I proclaim your saving acts in the great assembly;

    I do not seal my lips, Lord,

    as you know.

I do not hide your righteousness in my heart;

    I speak of your faithfulness and your saving help.

I do not conceal your love and your faithfulness

    from the great assembly.

But may all who seek you

    rejoice and be glad in you;

may those who long for your saving help always say,

    “The Lord is great!”

But as for me, I am poor and needy;

    may the Lord think of me.

You are my help and my deliverer;

    you are my God 

(Psalm 40:1-3, 9-10, 16-17a NIV)

What words would you choose to explain what Jesus: Deliverer means to you? As a witness, with whom may you share your testimony?

In closing, enjoy U2's singing of Psalm 40 (a favorite of mine):

Meet Jesus - Day 24 of 40 - Prophet

Read Luke 7:11-17.

"Great fear swept the crowd, and they praised God, saying, 'A mighty prophet has risen among us,' and 'God has visited his people today.'” (Luke 7:16 NLT)

Christian Cyclopedia defines the word prophet, "in Scripture a prophet is a divinely inspired forth-teller (1 Sm 10:6; Jer 1:2; Eze 1:1; Hos 1:1; 1 Ptr 1:11; 2 Ptr 1:21) who rebukes sin (2 Sm 12; Is 58:1; Eze 3:17; Mi 3:8), shows God's mercy (Is 40; 53), and in gen., proclaims messages of God (Ex 4:14–15; 7:1–2: Eze 11; Heb 1:1–2)."

We see all of these prophetic qualities in Jesus' life.

• Rebuking sin (John 8:11)
• Showing God's mercy (Matthew 5:3-12)
• Proclaims messages of God (The Sermon on the Mount - Matthew 5:13-7:29)

Throughout the Old Testament, God's prophets forth-told of the coming Messiah, the one who would come and save God's people.

Jesus forth-told of this as well.

"Some of the people who lived in Jerusalem started to ask each other, 'Could our leaders possibly believe that he is the Messiah? But how could he be? For we know where this man comes from. When the Messiah comes, he will simply appear; no one will know where he comes from.' While Jesus was teaching in the Temple, he called out, 'Yes, you know me, and you know where I come from. But I’m not here on my own. The one who sent me is true, and you don’t know him. But I know him because I come from him, and he sent me to you.'" (John 7:25a, 26b-29 NLT)

What separates Jesus from all the other prophets is that Jesus came to the world and forth-told the Good News of Himself. 

"For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him." (John 3:16-17 NLT)

Where else in the God's Word do we find Jesus: Prophet? What were people's reaction to the prophecy He shared? Who were offended? Who were afraid? Whose lives were forever changed, saved by God, not to perish but to have eternal life with our Loving God?

"And the news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding countryside." (Luke 7:17 NLT)

How may we spread the news and introduce Jesus: Prophet to others? How may we reveal from God's Word that Jesus wasn't just a man who taught great wisdom and did kind things, but that He was (is) God Himself, who came to us (not us to Him) to save us from sin and death?

Meet Jesus - Day 23 of 40 - Mediator

me·di·a·tor (mēdēˌādər) / noun - a go-between; one who gets in the middle of two parties for the purpose of reconciliation. 

Another word for go-between is bridge. If there is a great divide between point A and point B, we need a bridge to reconcile that gap. That is what Jesus is...our bridge to God, our mediator with God the Father.

"For, There is one God and one Mediator who can reconcile God and humanity—the man Christ Jesus." (1 Timothy 2:5 NLT)

Review the bridge analogy. Become familiar with it. Practice it with another follower of Jesus. Learn to share it verbally. Learn to share it by actually drawing it out. Take turns and try this during a small group meeting. 

Here is one way to introduce Jesus: Mediator to another. As you practice it, you become that much more equipped, prepared and ready when given the opportunity to share with one who is far from God. 

Meet Jesus - Day 22 of 40 - Authority

Read Luke 7:1-10.

“So Jesus went with them. But just before they arrived at the house, the officer [of the sick slave whom Jesus was asked to heal) sent some friends to say, ‘Lord, don’t trouble yourself by coming to my home, for I am not worthy of such an honor. I am not worthy to come and meet you. Just say the word from where you are, and my servant will be healed. I know this because I am under the authority of my superior officers, and I have authority over my soldiers. I only need to say, ‘Go,’ and they go, or ‘Come,’ and they come. And if I say to my slaves, ‘Do this,’ they do it.” (Luke 7:6-8 NLT)

This Roman officer knew of Jesus’ authority. The rumors were true.

In this 40-day devotional, every other day, we’ve been reading through the Book of Luke. We are only in Luke 7 and already have seen these examples of Jesus’ authority distinguished:

• Resisted the devil’s temptations. Luke 4:1-13.
• Filled with the Holy Spirit’s power. Luke 4:14a.
• Reports of His power flooding the region. Luke 4:14b. 
• Praised for His teaching in the synagogues. Luke 4:15.
• Everyone spoke well of Him and were amazed by Him. Luke 4:22.
• Casting a demon from a young man. Including the people’s exclamation “What authority and power this man’s words possess!” Luke 4:35-36. 
• Healing many. Luke 4:39, 5:13, 5:24, 6:10, 6:19.
• Immediate response from His disciples to follow Him. Luke 5:10-11, 5:27-28, 6:12-16.
• Authority over the Sabbath. Luke 6:5.

Jesus has the same authority today. And the above list only scratches the surface. These accounts of Jesus’ authority come from less than 1/3 of the entire Book of Luke. 

What authority of Jesus do you point to in your life, in the world around us? How is Jesus’ authority good news to all? Along with the Word (like what we are reading in Luke), how may we introduce Jesus: Authority to those around us? 



The rest of the above story from Luke 7...

"When Jesus heard this, he was amazed. Turning to the crowd that was following him, he said, 'I tell you, I haven’t seen faith like this in all Israel!' And when the officer’s friends returned to his house, they found the slave completely healed." (Luke 7:9-10 NLT)

Meet Jesus - Day 21 of 40 - Vine

Read John 15:1-8.

[Jesus said] "Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches." (John 15:5a NLT)

"Remain in me, and I will remain in you." (John 15:4a NLT)



What are 3 ways you'd describe a vine to someone?



What are 3 ways you'd describe a branch to someone?



When you think of Jesus as the vine and His followers as the branches, what 3 images or thoughts come to mind? 



What are 3 ways you've experienced Jesus being your vine?  



If you've completed the above, you are ready to introduce Jesus: Vine to another. :)