At this time of the year, as well as the year to come, we who know the reason for the season must resolve, even as Paul did, to preach “Jesus Christ as Lord.” Jesus is the heart of Christmas, and honoring Him and exalting Him must be at the heart of everything we do.
It is in this spirit that I want us to explore this question today: “What kind of man was this whose birth was so significant that it splits time into B.C. and A.D.?” (B.C. stands for “Before Christ” and A.D. stands for “Anno Domini” - “Year of our Lord”).
1. What does the Bible say about Him?
A. Jesus was Human.
We believe in the virgin birth of Jesus Christ, but it was not actually the birth which was supernatural. It was the conception which was supernatural. Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit. After the supernatural conception, Jesus was born just like any other baby is born. He was born of a woman when the time for delivery had come.
He also experienced life like any other person. As a carpenter in Nazareth, His hands grew rough through hard work, His feet got tired and dirty as He walked the roads of Palestine, and He even got blisters, like any other man. He worked, He played, He laughed, He cried, He grew tired, He grew hungry, He grew thirsty, He knew loneliness, He knew weariness, He knew sorrow, He knew happiness. He experienced life like you and I do, yet was without sin.
B. Jesus was Divine.
The biblical writers called Jesus “Emmanuel,” which means, “God with us.” What did they mean? They meant that there had never been a person like Jesus, nor would there ever be a person like Him again. In Jesus Christ, they came face to face with God.
“In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” - Hebrews 1:1-3a (NIV)
In Christ, God took on flesh for two primary reasons:
A. To reveal to us what we could never know on our own.
“Jesus is God spelling Himself out in language that men can understand.” - S.D. Gordon
B. To pay for us what we could never pay on our own.
“At the heart of Christian faith is the good news of redemption for sin through one who would stand in the sinner’s place bearing his guilt and satisfying the debt of God’s eternal just wrath. Only God could do this; the great Judge of mankind was judged for us. However, only a human being should stand in the place of humans; yet he had to be perfect himself. Who could do that? One who is God and yet, at the same time, perfect man, the Lord Jesus Christ.” - John Hannah
Scripture says Jesus is the unique person of the ages - the God-man!
2. What did Jesus say about Himself?
Jesus claimed to be God in the flesh. This claim is unique to Jesus.
“Buddha never claimed to be God. Moses never claimed to be Jehovah. Mohammed never claimed to be Allah. Yet Jesus Christ claimed to be the true and living God. Buddha said, ‘I am a teacher in search of the truth.’ Jesus said, ‘I am the Truth,’ (John 14:6). Confucius said, ‘I never claimed to be holy.’ Jesus said, ‘Who convicts me of sin?’ (John 8:46). Mohammed said, ‘Unless God throws his cloak of mercy over me, I have no hope.’ Jesus said, ‘Unless you believe in me, you will die in your sins,’ (John 8:24).” - Anonymous
Jesus confirmed His claims through His sinless life and victorious resurrection.
“If Christ is truly God, His claim to be the only way has to be taken seriously. If on the other hand, He is merely one more person in a pantheon of pretenders, His proclamations can easily be pushed aside. That is precisely why the resurrection is axiomatic to Christianity. Through the resurrection, Christ demonstrated that
He does not stand in a line of peers with Buddha, Baha’u’llah, Krishna, or any founder of a world religion. They died and are still dead, but Christ is risen.” - Hank Hanegraaff
What did Jesus claim for Himself? That He was the unique person of the universe - God in the flesh - the only hope of men!
3. What does history say about Jesus?
Unbelievers and believers alike have acknowledged that Jesus Christ is the unique person of the ages.
The ancient Babylonian Talmud (850 A.D.) refers to Jesus and the fact that he was crucified on the eve of the Passover. The same document scornfully refers to Mary his mother as an “adulteress,” proving that the story of the virgin birth was well known.
First-century Jewish historian Josephus made references to Jesus:
“At this time there was a wise man who was called Jesus. And his conduct was good, and he was known to be virtuous. And many people from among the Jews and other nations became his disciples. Pilate condemned him to be crucified and to die. And those who had become his disciples did not abandon his discipleship. They reported that he had appeared to them three days after his crucifixion and that he was alive; accordingly, he was perhaps the Messiah concerning whom the prophets recounted wonders.”
Many first century Jewish coffins, or “ossuaries” are inscribed with the sign of the cross or the name of Jesus. In 1873, some were found near Bethany inscribed with the names of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus, each with the sign of a cross. Another was inscribed in Greek, “Jesus, the Redeemer.” Still another was inscribed with “Jesus, the LORD.” The ossuary of Matthias (possibly the disciple who replaced Judas) was inscribed “Jesus is [Jehovah].”
Many first and second-century historians refer to Christian’s belief that Jesus was resurrected and their willingness to die for what they believed. Cornelius Tacitus wrote in 112 A.D. that Nero, to suppress the rumor that he ordered the burning of Rome . . .
“falsely charged with the guilt, and punished with the most exquisite tortures, the persons commonly called Christians, who were hated for their claims. Christus, the founder of the name, was put to death by Pontius Pilate, procurator of Judea in the reign of Tiberius…”
“I am an historian, I am not a believer, but I must confess as an historian that this penniless preacher from Nazareth is irrevocably the very center of history. Jesus Christ is easily the most dominant figure in all history.” - H.G. Wells (Historian & Author)
“If Jesus Christ did not live, and He was not the Son of God and He is not the Messiah, then there never has been a Messiah and there never will be.” - Alfred Edersheim, (Historian & Author)
Conclusion:
What do you say about Jesus?
“Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” - Philippians 2:6-11 (NLT)
The Greek word, translated “confess” is “homologeo,” which means “to say the same.” The Bible and history echoes the claim of Christ to be the unique person of the ages, the Messiah, the Savior, the One uniquely qualified to redeem us from our sins and bring us into a personal love relationship with God. But to benefit from what He was uniquely qualified to do, we need to confess, say the same thing about Christ that He claims for Himself.
To do so now, results in salvation (Romans 10:9);
To do so later, results in condemnation.
