jeffersonvann

The Heart of Nahum (1:1-8)

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Nahum 1:1-8 ESV

An oracle concerning Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum of Elkosh. 2 The LORD is a jealous and avenging God; the LORD is avenging and wrathful; the LORD takes vengeance on his adversaries and keeps wrath for his enemies. 3 The LORD is slow to anger and great in power, and the LORD will by no means clear the guilty. His way is in whirlwind and storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet. 4 He rebukes the sea and makes it dry; he dries up all the rivers; Bashan and Carmel wither; the bloom of Lebanon withers. 5 The mountains quake before him; the hills melt; the earth heaves before him, the world and all who dwell in it. 6 Who can stand before his indignation? Who can endure the heat of his anger? His wrath is poured out like fire, and the rocks are broken into pieces by him. 7 The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; he knows those who take refuge in him. 8 But with an overflowing flood he will make a complete end of the adversaries, and will pursue his enemies into darkness.

We have been spending some time in the Old Testament prophets. I have been making the point that the OT prophets were God’s outlet. If you want to know what God feels – what his reaction is, ask one of his prophets. So throughout the prophets we keep hearing about God’s plans to destroy his enemies. The great nations which conquer and oppress God’s people are often the recipients of these oracles of impending judgment. In Nahum’s case, the oracles predict the destruction of the Assyrian empire.

Nahum’s prophecy was written between 660 and 630 BC. The Assyrian empire was destroyed in 612 BC. That means that this prophecy has long been fulfilled. But it still speaks to us today. Nahum explains in his first few verses why God judges. I want us to get a good grasp on what Nahum taught here, because it will help us understand God’s impending judgment on the world, otherwise known as hell.

Fire is a scary thing, and hell is a scary subject. But it is a reality. We do ourselves no favor ignoring the subject.

Nahum explains that judgment is coming because of the very nature of God himself. The Assyrians had brutalized many nations to obtain their prominence, and all the while God was watching them like a jealous parent. To be jealous is not the same thing as being envious. You are envious of something you do not have. You are jealous of something that you do have. God would not let the Assyrian empire go unpunished because they had attacked and brutalized his own people. For his own honour he would avenge the violence.

Let’s get something straight. Lots of people have done bad things to me, but I have no desire to see them burn up before my eyes. I am not an avenger. But God is an avenger.

Nahum explains that judgment is coming because God had chosen to postpone it. He is a God who keeps wrath for his enemies (2). That means that he does not immediately squish his enemies like a bug whenever they do something wrong. If he did that, there would be no one left to repent and become his people. He gives us time to realize the error of our ways and come to him seeking forgiveness and restoration.

Yet, at the same time, God does not keep his wrath forever. There must be a day of judgment or else God is not just. It is the nature of God that demanded that someday the Assyrians would “pay the piper.”

Nahum explains that the judgment that is coming will appropriately deal with Assyria’s sins because God is great in power (3). He has the ability to make them pay for what they have done. The Assyrians had arrogantly boasted that they would destroy the God of Judah just like they destroyed the gods of all the nations around them. Hezekiah prayed. Isaiah prayed. Then, in demonstration of that great power, God had an angel kill 185,000 Assyrian troops in their sleep. So, for Nahum, complete judgment upon Assyria is only a matter of time.

The only reason Assyria had not been destroyed is that God is slow to anger (3). God feels the anger, but he is in complete self-control, and will only express that anger at the appropriate time.

Nahum explains that the judgment that is coming will not miss anyone. The Assyrians had a philosophy that said might was right. Nahum’s message to them was that God’s judgment would come no matter how much power or land or influence they possessed. They thought that since they were on top that God had no problem with them. They were dead wrong.

Nahum explains that the judgment that is coming will not destroy anyone by mistake. The people of God did right in trusting in him to carry them through the day of trouble (brought on by the Assyrians). He would help them to survive the troubles of the day because he is good. He helps those who cling to him for help.

Nahum explains that the judgment that is coming will destroy all those who do not personally choose to trust in God. The LORD is the refuge. The people of Judah could not trust in their works to save them, nor could they trust in Egypt, or any other power. Only God could keep his people safe from the coming judgment

There is a judgment coming, and it is just as sure as Assyria’s judgment – because it comes from the same God. Hell is an event in the future of humanity. God has decreed it, and it is going to happen even if nobody in the world believes in it.

Jesus said If your right eye or right hand causes you to sin, tear them out and throw them away! It is better to lose them than to have your whole body thrown into hell (Matt. 5:29-30). He said we should fear God, because he is able to destroy both soul and body in hell (Matt. 10:28). Hell is going to be an unquenchable fire – which means it’s going to burn everything up that is thrown into it, and nobody will be able to put is out. The Bible calls it the second death, from which there will be no resurrection. God is going to come “with an overflowing flood he will make a complete end of the adversaries.”

I mentioned that hell is a scary idea, and it is meant to be. God does not want to destroy anyone. But he will. He is a God of justice, and he must punish every evil deed and thought. If you are here today, and you have committed and evil deed or thought – even just one – then hell is for you. But God is pleading with you right now. You see, he has already punished Jesus Christ on the cross. He did that out oif his own grace. All he asks of you and me is that we trust in him. He wants to be our stronghold, our refuge. He rescued his people from the judgment he visited upon the Assyrians. He can rescue us from hell too.

_____________

LORD, we confess that we have sinned against you, and deserve your judgment. We also confess that Christ’s death on the cross is our only refuge from hell.

Should the Advent Christian denomination survive?

The answer to the question “should the Advent Christian denomination survive?” is not obvious. Organizations outlive their usefulness, lose their original objectives, become superfluous or obsolete. This is just as true of Christian denominations as it is of individual churches. Sometimes decisions are made which lead to that fate, although the people making those decisions might have had the best of intentions. Stuff happens.

In New Zealand a few years ago, a denomination much like ACGC evaluated itself, and made the decision to disband. Many of the proponents of the move suggested that members would have more influence among mainline evangelical churches by joining those churches, and that maintaining a separate denomination was not practical. From the advantage of hindsight, the results of that decision appear to be mostly negative. A very few of the churches have decided to start a new Advent Christian conference in New Zealand.

Many Advent Christian churches in the U.S.A. and elsewhere have already surrendered their denominational distinctives, for whatever reason. They preach and teach the second coming of Christ at about the same frequency as other churches. They rarely – if ever – proclaim the message of life only in Christ – that is, conditional immortality. They appear to be going out of their way to be just like the other evangelical churches in their communities. This trend is bound to lead to suggestions among our churches that perhaps it is time for ACGC to give up its lease and go the way of all flesh.

Among these churches, many have named or renamed themselves, with names which are ambiguous. The names either do not reflect the Advent Christian heritage, or they do so in less obvious ways. They strive to be community churches – which is honourable – but they do not appear to want to be recognized as representing any particular denomination. Many within these churches (and within others who have retained the name) have no idea what the Advent Christian churches have historically taught, and some do not even care to know.

Tests of Authenticity

These realities make the question this article asks an important one – one which our churches must go to the scriptures to find an answer for. The Bible provides a number of texts which can serve as tests of authenticity for a denomination, as well as for individual churches. By examining these scriptures, churches can evaluate whether they are doing the works Christ expects of his Church. They can also see if their message fits that which Christ called his Church to proclaim.

The Confession Test

After Peter confessed the Jesus was the Christ, Son of the Living God – Jesus blessed him and said “on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”[1] The word hell that Jesus used here was hades – which signifies not the place of final punishment but the state of death. The gates of hades is another way of saying the grave. Jesus promised that the Church that Peter would have a part in founding would survive; it would not die.

Any church which dares to confess the truth about Christ will be in danger of persecution and trouble from this world which is in opposition to Christ’s kingdom. The Church (notice capitalization), however, will never be totally eradicated because The Church is the means of Christ’s mission. The extent to which the Advent Christian denomination is part of The Church depends upon to what extent it maintains its confession of Christ.

The Discipling Test

Christ called his Church and all the groups within it not only to maintain a confession but also to “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that (he has) commanded (us)”.[2] This discipling role is also a test to see if a denomination is living up to its calling. We are not called simply to preserve a truth, but to infect the world with it. Churches have to be contagious. If a group starts losing more churches than it plants – something is wrong.

Discipleship involves four commitments:

First, it is a commitment to prioritize Jesus Christ. Compared to your commitment to Jesus, all other commitments and relationships must be regarded as the enemy. Jesus said “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters– yes, even his own life– he cannot be my disciple.” (NIV Luke 14:26).

Secondly, it is a commitment to the work that Christ calls you to do. Jesus said “Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.” (NRS Luke 14:27). We don’t all have the same cross to bear, but we all must be committed to doing what we were charged to do. That commitment includes allowing Jesus to turn us into the kind of people who can do what he wants us to do. He said to his disciples “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” (NKJ Matthew 4:19).

Thirdly, it is a commitment to sacrifice. Jesus said “any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.” (NIV Luke 14:33). This means investing everything you have in the cause of the Master. That investment may mean giving away things that you possess. It may mean using those things to benefit others in Christ’s kingdom, or to help the needy.

Fourthly, it is a commitment to the truth. Jesus said “You are truly my disciples if you keep obeying my teachings.” (NLT John 8: 31). This commitment starts as a desire to learn the truth, and further manifests itself as a disciplined lifestyle that stays with and lives the truth that is learned.[3]

It is not enough merely to plant things which call themselves churches. Those churches must contain disciples.

The Lamp Tests

In Revelation 2-3, the question was whether the churches in Asia Minor in the first century AD would survive. The churches were pictured in a vision as seven golden lampstands, with Jesus walking among them.[4] Jesus addresses each church with a challenge. If the people in the churches overcame the challenge, their church would survive. Otherwise, Christ would remove their lampstand.

This passage is a reminder that no church or group of churches is guaranteed survival, even if it has had a great past. What matters is how the church faces the challenges of the present. That is the question Advent Christians are facing today. Our future depends on how authentic we are in the present.

The Distinctiveness Test

When the apostle Paul was dealing with the problem of undisciplined tongues-speaking in the churches at Corinth, he said “if the bugle gives an indistinct sound, who will get ready for battle?”[5] He argued that just making a lot of noise is not the way to do Christian ministry. Words need to be intentional for them to accomplish what the Holy Spirit wants. The same can be said of churches and denominations. History reveals that when any organization ceases to serve a distinct purpose and carry a distinct message, that organization is doomed to failure.

But what is the distinct message of the Advent Christian denomination? In spite of the fact that we have the word advent in our name, the message of the soon coming of Jesus Christ fails to qualify. It certainly deserves to be an emphasis in our teaching (especially in this age when there is so much excess baggage attached to the teaching). But this is a message which has been faithfully proclaimed and one about which we are in agreement with the vast majority of Christendom.

To nail down what deserves to be our denomination’s distinct message-mix one must combine a doctrinal essential which we share with other evangelicals and a doctrinal distinctive to which we have been attached from the beginning of the Adventist movement. The essential is salvation by grace; the distinctive is conditional immortality.

There is no doubt that there are other evangelical groups and denominations who have been more faithful and successful at planting churches which proclaim the truth of salvation by grace than we. There are also certain groups which have been more successful at teaching their members the conditionalist truth that life is only in Christ than we have been. But our calling is do both and sacrifice neither. Perhaps the following Venn diagram will illustrate:

Advent Christians find our niche and our usefulness to the kingdom of God by celebrating eternal life by God’s grace and by recognizing that eternal life is a gift, not an innate possession. We tell people that God does not owe them eternity, but offers it through Christ – and Christ alone. This message is important, and worth proclaiming. It is not supposed to be a secret that we keep.

The reader will notice that the title of this article begins with the word should and not the word will. There is no means of determining how long the Lord will preserve the denomination. The question that has been put forth for inquiry is “should the denomination survive?” The answer will depend on whether the churches continue to confess Christ, continue to make disciples for him, continue to overcome obstacles to our witness, and continue to proclaim the unique message God gave us to preach.

[1] Matthew 16:18.

[2] Matthew 28:19-20.

[3] Jefferson Vann, The Commands of Christ (http://commandsofchrist.wordpress.com/2009/12/01/chapter-19-determine-to-be-discipled/)

[4] Revelation 1:12-2:1.

[5] 1 Corinthians 14:8.

The Heart of Micah (7:18-20)

Micah 7:18-20 ESV

Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love. 19 He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities under foot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. 20 You will show faithfulness to Jacob and steadfast love to Abraham, as you have sworn to our fathers from the days of old.

We have been spending some time among the Old Testament prophets. God gave us the messages of the prophets because their messages were intended to outlast them. The Old Testament poetry expressed the heart of the people of God, but the prophets expressed the heart of God. They showed God’s reaction to the world that he created.

We should expect to get a clear picture of what God is like by reading the prophets. Nowhere is that more obvious than the writings of Micah.

Micah can be dated from “probably before the fall of Samaria in 722/21 B.C. to Sennacherib’s march to Judah in 701 B.C.” The prophet Micah lived during the times of three kings of Judah–Jotham (750-732/35), Ahaz (735-713/16), and Hezekiah (716-687) (David Malick).

That makes Micah a lesser known contemporary of Isaiah. He was probably quoting Isaiah 2 in his mountain prophecy of Micah 4. Both prophets spoke for God during a time when the nations all around Judah were gaining prominence. It seemed like God’s people were in danger of being lost. The mountain prophecies encouraged God’s people to live by the light of his word, because some day all the nations would come to Jerusalem to be taught God’s word. This was also a time of warfare and bloodshed, but both prophets spoke of a time of peace, when the weapons of war would be turned into instruments of agriculture.

Micah concludes his prophecy by highlighting one characteristic of the LORD. It is his steadfast love (18,20). This is that special term chesed that I have mentioned before. It refers to God’s loyalty to his covenant people. I think that God had this word in mind when he instructed his people to make a sign on their doorposts at the Passover. That sign would look like the Hebrew letter Chet, which is the first letter in Chesed.

Micah proclaimed that God’s steadfast live is like the Passover. He forgives our sins by passing over them because of the blood of the Lamb. That Passover lamb represented Jesus, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.

Micah also predicted that God would again have compassion on his people and tread their iniquities under foot. The picture, I believe, is that of the conquest, when God went before Israel and gave them victory over their enemies. But the enemies of which Micah speaks are sins. These are our true enemies. There are three categories of sin: 1) transgressions, 2) sins against conscience, 3) sins of omission. God loves us so much that he does not want to just pass over our sins, he wants to defeat them – to tread them under his feet. This life – this Christian life – is the time in which he wants to do that for us.

Micah proclaims that God’s steadfast love will yet do one more thing to put an end to sin in our lives. He will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. I think Micah is harking back to the time when Israel was leaving Egypt and they were being pursued by Pharaoh’s armies. God drowned the enemy’s troops in the Red Sea, but let his people pass through the Sea. Casting sins into the depths of the sea is a way of getting rid of them forever. They are not on the shore for us to see again every low tide. They are drowned, forgotten, forgiven. This is what God is going to ultimately do for us.

What has God’s steadfast love done for you today? Perhaps you are here today, and you cannot even say that you know that you are forgiven. You can have forgiveness today, and you don’t have to do anything for it. Christ was the Passover lamb. Accept God’s forgiveness today.

Perhaps you are here today, and you have been struggling with some personal sin. God wants to tread your iniquities under his feet. Give him free reign over your life, and let him defeat your real enemies.

Perhaps you have some regrets. You know you are forgiven, and you no longer commit those sins anymore, but you just can’t quite forgive yourself. God wants to take those sins and drown them in the depths of the sea.

LORD, we want to experience the fullness of your grace today.

For those of us who have never come to you before, give forgiveness.

For those of us who are struggling with personal sins, give us victory.

For those of us who are hanging on to past regrets, give us the courage to forget what you promised to forget.

There is no God like you, LORD. Thank you for your steadfast love.

Time Travel

I have always been fascinated by the concept of time travel. Among my favourite movies are those in which the characters travel through time in some way. These include Frequency, Deja Vu, Timeline, and the Back to the Future series. Who among us would not like to go back to our past to correct some oversight, or to let someone know that you care about them who is no longer here to hear it.

Of course, there is usually a twist in the movie plots. Fixing one problem winds up causing several other. In Frequency, the hero saves his father from a fire, and inadvertently causes many others to die. In Back to the Future, Doc Brown regrets that he ever made that infernal time travel machine, and orders Marty to destroy it.

I think my fascination with time travel is actually growing as I get older, even though I am not as much a fan of sci-fi as I have been. I have almost lived five decades and along the way I have made some decisions which have mapped out my life for me. Some of those decisions I cannot undo. Time travel movies let me toy with the idea of “what if I had…”

Movies like this are also a reminder for me to take advantage of the time that I have. It is a precious resource, and must be used wisely. I hate the thought of spending heaps and gobs of time on things that do not really matter – things that are insignificant.

It isn’t that I am afraid of death. I am angry at death. Death is an end. And, even though I am a Christian, and I believe in a resurrection unto eternal life, I resent the fact that I must keep losing friends and relatives along the way – and that someday my friends and relatives are going to lose me. The Bible calls death an enemy. If they read a poem at my funeral, I want it to be “rage against the dying of the light.”

Time travel movies are exciting to me because they represent an attack against the status quo of life – a rebellion against the tyranny of time. I would love to go back to the time of that first kiss, that first paycheck, or that chance that I had and blew it. But I cannot go back. The best that I can do is keep going forward in the right direction.

OK, 2010 is history. I do not like it, but it is there. I begrudgingly take down one calendar and put up another. And while I do that I say a prayer to the LORD that this year I waste less time, and invest my time on more important things.

ACST 32. Christ: The Nazarene

There have been those who have problems understanding and believing what the Bible says about Christ’s pre-existence and deity as the eternal Logos. There have also been those who cannot quite accept the flip-side of the issue. The Bible insists that Christ was (and is and always will be) fully human as well. In the same chapter where he writes of the Logos coming to earth, John says that he “became flesh” and pitched his tent among us.[1]

Jesus was called (among other things) a Nazarene.[2] The title referred to the fact that he grew up in Nazareth, a town in Galilee. Except for a few miracles connected with his birth and one particular incident when he was twelve,[3] we know nothing about that childhood. The scriptures leave us to assume that the early years of Christ’s life were relatively insignificant. Jesus did not take advantage of his divine nature during these years. Instead, being human, he submitted entirely to his human nature and became a servant instead of the Master.

Jesus Got Hungry

One of the signs of Jesus’ full humanity was that he became hungry.[4] The scriptures indicate that his body worked like every other body, being subject to the same limitations and needs. One of the first needs any person feels is hunger. Immediately after birth most babies instinctively search for their mother’s breast. One day when Jesus was hungry he walked up to a fig tree, but found it empty. Matthew tells us that “he said to (the tree), “May no fruit ever come from you again!” And the fig tree withered at once.”[5] Perhaps Jesus was doing something symbolic there – indicating his disgust at Israel. His own nation was being like that fig tree – pretending to bear fruit but bearing nothing. But Jesus’ hunger was real. He was like any one of us.

Jesus Got Tired

Jesus and his disciples traveled a great deal, and almost always walked wherever they went.[6] His encounter with the woman of Samaria happened because Jesus was tired after a long day of walking, so was sitting at the well.[7] The human body was created with a mechanism for self-renewal, and fatigue is part of that mechanism. The urge to rest showed that Jesus was completely human. He was not pretending to be human, nor was his humanity completely under the control of his divine nature. Weariness showed that he was real.

Jesus Got Emotional

Another clue that Jesus was completely human was the way he reacted to the things that happened around him. Even though Jesus knew that Lazarus was asleep (dead) and he was going to wake him up (by raising him from the dead), Jesus still wept and was overcome by sorrow at his friend’s grave.[8] In the same way, we Christians weep over the deaths of our loved ones. Even though we know that their deaths are not permanent. Our sorrow is not like that of unbelievers who have no hope.[9] Yet we do sorrow, because we know that death is real and the loss is real.

Jesus was called a man of sorrows.[10] The scriptures tell us that he wept, but it is not recorded that he laughed. Doubtless he did. He surely experienced the full range of emotions. The writer of Hebrews implied that Jesus experienced all aspects of humanity so that he could be a sympathetic high priest.[11]

Jesus Experienced Limited Knowledge

As the divine Logos, Jesus was omniscient. Throughout eternity he knew all things. But for the short time between his incarnation and his ascension, Jesus apparently limited his own knowledge of certain facts. At one time during his ministry he was surrounded by crowds, and a woman seeking healing touched his garment. He asked who it was.[12] This may have been only to draw the woman out so that he could heal her, but it certainly suggests that Jesus’ knowledge was limited during his earthly life.

When Jesus was teaching about his second coming, he indicated that the exact timing of this future event was known only to his heavenly Father. He said that “concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”[13] The New Testament says a great deal about this event, but nowhere does it tell us when it will occur. In God’s wisdom, this fact is hidden from us. Jesus could live with that. He did not have to have all his questions answered. It was enough for him to know that the Father knew. It should be enough for us as believers as well to know that Christ is coming again, and to seek to live our lives in such a way that we are prepared for him when he comes.

Jesus Experienced Psychological Anguish

Jesus was born in the shadow of his own cross. He described his coming suffering as a baptism that he is destined for, and said “how great is my distress until it is accomplished!”[14] Imagine going through life knowing that you are destined to die a horrible painful death, and there is nothing you can do about it. He knew that his own people would turn against him. He knew that his own disciples would run in fear at his arrest. He knew that he would be betrayed by one of his own students.

The apex of Christ’s lifetime of mental suffering came on the night of his betrayal, when he was praying alone in the garden called Gethsemane. That night Jesus said “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death.”[15] He prayed to God alone while his heart was breaking. Luke tells us that “being in an agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”[16]

A tremendous spiritual battle was being fought that night. The devil, having been defeated when he tried to tempt Jesus years before, had only “departed from him until an opportune time”[17] Now Satan was giving Jesus all that he had. Men who have undergone great physical torture and endured it without breaking have been known to fall apart when they felt that their loved ones were in danger. Possibly Jesus ordeal in Gethsemane involved the fact that he knew the eternal lives of multitudes of people rested upon his shoulders. The rescue of the entire human race depended upon his ability to withstand the temptations of the devil that night.

The writer of Hebrews showed how this terrible event fit within the plan of God for Christ and those he would redeem:

In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek.[18]

What was at stake was Jesus qualification to be “the source of eternal salvation.” If Jesus had not endured and overcome the anguish of that fateful night, he would not have been qualified to go to the cross to purchase salvation for humanity. He had to endure the worst and remain the best so that he could redeem his own.

That psychological anguish continued while Jesus endured the cross. Even as his life’s blood poured from him, he had to face the fact that his mother would be left alone. He also felt the horrible emptiness that even his heavenly Father was going to turn his back upon his suffering. When he cried out “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”[19] He was not just quoting scripture. He was expressing how he felt.

Jesus Experienced Temptation

Before Jesus began his ministry with his disciples, he underwent a time of prayer and fasting in the wilderness alone. There Satan joined him and tried to thwart God’s purposes by tempting Christ to sin.

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written, “‘ Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'” Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, “‘ He will command his angels concerning you,’ and “‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.'” Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.'” Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “‘ You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.'” Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.[20]

This ordeal in the desert was not the only time Jesus was tempted. He was completely human, so there were many times when the enemy sought to overcome him through this tactic. Once the devil even utilized the apostle Peter to convince Jesus that he could achieve God’s will without going to the cross. Matthew records that Jesus “turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.””[21]

It was God’s will that “we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.”[22] That “in every respect” suggests that there will be no temptation that any of us have to endure that Jesus has not already endured and was victorious over. His victory was a human victory. He did not utilize his divine powers to overcome temptation because that would have disqualified him to be our high priest.[23]

Jesus Experienced Physical Pain.

Jesus took on humanity in order to save humanity. He did not just take on the appearance of humanity. The Bible presents him as a babe in a manger, but the Bible does not say “no crying he makes.” He was what Pinocchio wanted to be; he was a real boy. Real boys and laugh and snuggle and wet themselves. They also cry, because they experience discomfort. Eight days after his birth, Jesus was circumcised. He felt pain.

Before having his flesh nailed to the wooden beams of the cross, Jesus had already been beaten almost to death by the Roman guards. On the cross, every breath was an experience in agony. Every movement accentuated the pain. He spoke several times, and each word was paid for by pain. Just as the sacrifices suffered when being slaughtered outside the gate of Jerusalem, so Christ suffered outside the gate “in order to sanctify the people through his own blood.”[24]

The fact that Christ, as a completely human being was able to suffer and remain sinless is an example for those of us who choose to follow him. Peter says “For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.”[25] If Christ were some divine being posing as human, his suffering and death could hardly serve as an example for his followers.

Because Christ was who he was – what he did matters. Even in the first century – during the time of the apostle John – some were beginning to doubt that Christ was fully human. John attacked this heresy by proclaiming that “every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God.”[26] He had to teach this doctrine because “many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh.”[27] To deny that Christ was fully human was to deny Christ.

Yet this was the same John who had declared that Christ was God and with God in the beginning.[28] The apostle encourages believers to hold to two seemingly opposite truths at the same time. Christ is simultaneously both fully divine and fully human. This mystery shall be explored in the next chapter.

[1] John 1:14.

[2] Matt. 2:23; Mark 14:67.

[3] See Luke 1-2.

[4] Matt. 4:2.

[5] Matt. 21:19.

[6] The only exception I can think of is Jesus’ riding the donkey’s colt during the triumphal entry (Matt. 21; Mark 11; Luke 19; John 12).

[7] John 4:6.

[8] John 11:11,35,38.

[9] 1 Thess. 4:13.

[10] Isaiah 53:3.

[11] Heb. 4:15.

[12] Luke 8:45-48.

[13] Mark 13:32.

[14] Luke 12:50.

[15] Matt. 26:38.

[16] Luke 22:44.

[17] Luke 4:13.

[18] Heb. 5:7-10.

[19] Matt. 27:46.

[20] Matt. 4:1-11.

[21] Matt. 16:23.

[22] Heb. 4:15.

[23] Heb. 2:17-18; 4:15-16; 5:2,7; 7:25.

[24] Heb.13:12.

[25] 1 Peter 2:21-23.

[26] 1 John 4:2-3.

[27] 2 John 1:7.

[28] John 1:1-2.