Introduction
The impact of Jesus on history is eloquently captured in a short literary piece entitled One Solitary Life. Perhaps you’ve heard it before. It reads this way:
“Here is a man who was born in an obscure village, the Child of a peasant woman. He worked in a carpenter shop until He was thirty, and then for three years He was an itinerant preacher. He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never owned a home. He never had a family. He never went to college. He never put His foot inside a big city. He never traveled two hundred miles from the place where He was born. He never did one of the things that usually accompany greatness. He had no credentials but Himself. He had nothing to do with this world except the naked power of His Divine manhood. While still a young man, the tide of popular opinion turned against Him. He was turned over to His enemies. He went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed to a Cross between two thieves. His executioners gambled for the only piece of property He had on earth while He was dying—and that was His coat. When He was dead He was taken down and laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend. Such was His human life—He rises from the dead. Nineteen wide centuries have come and gone and today He is the Centerpiece of the human race and the Leader of the column of progress. I am within the mark when I say that all the armies that ever marched, and all the navies that ever were built, and all the parliaments that ever sat, and all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man upon this earth as powerfully as has that One Solitary Life.”
The third article of our Shiloh doctrinal statement speaks of the life of Jesus Christ. We read the article earlier as a congregation at the beginning of our service.
This morning I would like us to consider the words and works of Christ as portrayed in the Gospel of Luke. Please turn with me in your Bibles to Luke chapter 1.
Jesus is described in One Solitary Life as “the Centerpiece of the human race.” As Christians, we would describe Jesus as “the Centerpiece of our faith.” Christ is the foundation of Christianity. He is at the very heart of all that we believe. Having said that, it would be impossible for me to convey all that should be said about Christ in only 30 minutes. So permit me this morning to give you an overview—a thumbnail sketch—of Jesus Christ our Lord. I believe that the life and ministry of Jesus can be summed up in 4 statements. First, …
1. HE CAME TO US
We start in Luke 1:26, reading these words: “In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, ‘Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.’ Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.’”
We mentioned last Sunday morning that the Bible teaches the doctrine of the Trinity. That is, that there is one God in three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And God the Son came to earth as a man, being born of Mary.
Now, the Old Testament prophesied the birth of Jesus Christ. For example, the prophet Isaiah predicted He would be born of a virgin. And He was. Look at verse 34: “‘How will this be,’ Mary asked the angel, ‘since I am a virgin?’ The angel answered, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.’” The prophet Micah predicted Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. And He was. And we read in 2:1: “In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to his own town to register. So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.”
And so while Mary and Joseph were in Bethlehem, she gave birth to a son and named Him Jesus. God came to us in the person of Jesus Christ. But God didn’t come to earth simply for the purpose of being born. And this leads us to our second statement about Jesus. He came to us, but secondly …
2. HE LIVED AMONG US
Turn over to chapter 3. Jesus was raised in the town of Nazareth. And He worked as a carpenter, learning the trade from His stepfather, Joseph. We read in 3:23: “Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry.”
Jesus ministered in the land of Israel for about three years. And both His words and His works were astounding. Take His words, for example. Jesus taught like no other rabbi had ever taught before. Look at a sample of Jesus’ teachings over in 6:27. Jesus said, “But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.”
Now, that’s the opposite of what conventional wisdom would dictate. Our natural tendency is to do the opposite of what Jesus is commanding here. Our natural tendency would be to hate our enemies and to kick them when they’re down—not to help them. Jesus taught as no other teacher had taught. Matthew states in his gospel: “When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law.”
Jesus’ works were equally astounding. The 4 gospels record 35 miracles of Christ. And He performed all types of miracles—there were miracles of nature where He calmed a storm at sea; miracles of multiplication where He took a few loaves and fishes and made enough to feed thousands of people; miracles of healing where He caused the lame to walk and the blind to see; supernatural miracles where He cast demons out of people. Jesus even had power over life and death. One of those miracles that is unique to Luke is recorded in 7:11: “Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, ‘Don’t cry.’ Then he went up and touched the coffin, and those carrying it stood still. He said, ‘Young man, I say to you, get up!’ The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother.” Imagine—raising a dead man to life!
Jesus went about Israel ministering by teaching the truth and doing good. But He didn’t live among us simply to be an inspiration and an example through His words and works. He lived among us to ultimately fulfill a mission. He came to us; He lived among us; and then, thirdly …
3. HE DIED FOR US
Jesus came to die. And He was well aware of this. His arrest, His trial, and His crucifixion did not take Him by surprise. In fact, He foretold it. He told His disciples exactly what was going to happen to Him. Turn ahead two chapters to Luke 9. The Apostle Peter had just confessed that Jesus is the Christ—the Messiah of God. We then read in Luke 9:22: “And he [Jesus] said, ‘The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.’”
Jesus knew He was going to die. Jesus always lived in the shadow of the cross.
William Holman Hunt was a 19th-century British painter. One of his paintings shows the interior of a carpenter’s shop. Joseph and the young man Jesus are working inside. The painting shows Jesus pausing from His work in order to stretch Himself. And as He does, His shadow on the wall behind Him is in the form of a cross. Another of Hunt’s paintings depicts the infant Jesus running with outstretched arms to His mother Mary. And as Jesus runs, his shadow cast the form of a cross. Those paintings depict the truth of why Christ came to earth. Jesus came to die. But why did He have to die?
Turn ahead to chapter 19. Tucked away in the pages of Luke 19 are the words of Christ in which He very succinctly states His earthly mission. In Luke 19:10 Jesus tells us why He had to die: “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”
Jesus Christ came to earth to save us from our sins. We have disobeyed God and have broken His commandments. We are sinners, wandering far from Him—lost in our sins. Jesus came to seek and to save us. And He did so by dying on a cross for our sins.
And after His death, He miraculously rose from the grave. We are told this in Luke 24. Look at Luke 24:1-8: “On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, ‘Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: “The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.”’ Then they remembered his words.”
Later, Jesus actually appeared to His disciples and proved that He was indeed alive. And then Jesus began once again to teach His disciples. And so we read in verse 45: “Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. He told them, ‘This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.’”
Jesus Christ came to us; He lived among us; He died for us; and finally I notice that …
4. HE WENT FROM US
Look at what Jesus said in verse 49: “‘I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.’ When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them. While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God.”
After Jesus gave His disciples final instructions, He ascended into heaven—He went from us. And that’s where He remains until this day. But Jesus is not just sitting idly in heaven. Rather, He has a ministry up there—a ministry of intercession. Jesus Christ is praying for you! The writer of Hebrews informs us in 7:25 that Jesus always lives to make intercession for us.
Conclusion
The Lord Jesus Christ came to us; He lived among us; He died for us; and He went from us. That’s His life and ministry in a nutshell.
There’s an additional article in our church doctrinal statement that further defines our belief in the sacrificial death of Christ. It reads: “We believe that God sent Jesus Christ as the Savior of mankind and, through the offering of Himself on the cross and the shedding of His own precious blood, He propitiated God and reconciled the sinner and became the substitute for every man who, by faith, accepts Him as his personal Savior.”
Jesus died on the cross as a sacrifice in payment for our sins. If we trust in Him alone as our Savior, then He forgives our sins and gives us eternal life.
Turn back a few pages to Luke chapter 22. There we read of the Passover that Jesus celebrated with His disciples on the night before He died. Luke 22:19 says, “And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.’ In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.’”
Jesus told His followers to gather together and remember Him. And we do that even today—2,000 years later. Jesus told us to remember Him by eating bread—which is a symbol of His body that hung on the cross, and by drinking juice—which is a symbol of His blood that was shed for the forgiveness of our sins.
We celebrate the Lord’s Table here at Shiloh on a monthly basis—on the first Sunday of each month. It is not necessary for you to be a member of this church to participate with us in Communion. You might be a first-time visitor with us today. That’s okay. The only requirement that we have is that you’re a believer—that you have by faith trusted in Jesus as your Savior. If you’ve done that, then we invite you to celebrate the Lord’s Table with us. In just a moment the ushers will come forward and distribute the bread. Please take a piece of bread and then hold it until all have been served. And then we will all eat the bread together. Likewise with the juice.
Let us pray.
Communion
