“Blessed be
the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant
mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus
Christ from the dead,” 1 Peter 1:3 (NKJV)
In
the precious and beautiful name of Messiah Yeshua “Jesus,” greetings.
Have you given any thought to what it was like to live in
the first century, when Jesus walked on earth?
I have. I’ve actually had the
wonderful opportunity to play the role of Jesus in front of live audiences, in
a variety of locations and on many different occasions. I’ve had other [Biblical] roles as well,
Paul, Nicodemus, Satan’s encounter with Jesus in the wilderness (a soliloquy),
and others, but my all-time favorite is John the Dunker “Baptist”.
As often as I’ve thought about the events that took place in
the first century, the closest I’ve ever come to [actually] being there was while
performing before live audiences, and some two thousand years later. No complaints here, I enjoyed every minute of
it. I thanked God for each, and every,
opportunity.
And the people stood looking on.
But even the rulers with them
sneered, saying, “He saved others;
let Him save Himself if He is the Christ, the chosen of God.” Luke
23:35 (NKJV)
I know it’s only one verse of [Scripture] but in Luke 23:35,
do you see any reason to believe Yeshua led those “rulers” to believe
Yeshua was God? Better yet if you were
asked to play the role of one those [sneering] “rulers” today, would you
be okay with saying “He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the
Christ, the chosen of God”? I ask
because saying Christ is “the chosen of God” presents a [serious] problem
for some of the “systems” of belief floating around these days.
The woman said to Him, “I know that
Messiah is coming” (who is also called Christ). “When He comes, He will tell us
all things.” Jesus said to her, “I
who speak to you am He.” John 4:25-26 (NKJV)
Isaiah 49:6 (NKJV): Indeed He says,
“It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant. To raise up the tribes of Jacob, And to restore
the preserved ones of Israel; I will give You as a light to the Gentiles, That
You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth.”
“Behold! My Servant whom I have chosen, My Beloved in whom My soul is
well pleased! I will put My Spirit upon Him, and He will declare justice to the
Gentiles. Matthew 12:18 (NKJV)
I’d be okay with saying “He saved others; let Him save
Himself if He is the Christ, the chosen of God” because it proves these “rulers”
were not only good listeners, they paid very close attention to the things
Yeshua was doing as well. Yeshua did
save others. He “I who speak to you
am He” admitted to being “Messiah” Christ (John 4:25-26) and, He’s “My
Servant whom I have chosen,” the chosen of God (Isaiah 49:6 and Matthew
12:18).
I don’t know about you but after reading Isaiah 49:6 and
Matthew 12:18, I see the follower of the Anthanasian Creed having one heck of a
time trying to explain how “the Son is
God” can be, “the chosen of God”.
I certainly wouldn’t be found attempting to pull that one off, on stage,
or at the local coffee house. Knowing
the inspired word of God endures forever, keeps me from even thinking about
such a thing.
I can’t leave Luke 23:35 out there by itself.
Therefore, when the chief priest and
officers saw Him, they cried out, saying, “Crucify Him, crucify Him!” Pilate
said to them, “You take Him and crucify Him, for I find no fault in Him.” The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to our law
He ought to die, because He made Himself the Son of God.” John 19:6-7
(NKJV)
When the “Jews” answered Pilate, saying, “We have
a law, and according to our law He ought to die, because He made Himself the
Son of God,” would you say Yeshua gave these “Jews” every reason to
believe Yeshua is the Son of God? I
would.
God bless.
In His Care… Jim
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