Why Jesus – Part 4
An Empty Jar
Scriptures: Revelations 20:14-15; 21:3-4; Psalm 23
Introduction:
This morning my message is part four of my series “Why Jesus.” In parts one through three, I reviewed prophecies pertaining to the Messiah that only Jesus fulfilled. I shared with you that it is nearly impossible for one man to have fulfilled eight different prophecies that were given hundreds of years before his birth let alone over a hundred plus prophecies. I have tried to impress upon you that if you believe the Bible as you say you do, there is no way you cannot accept the fact that Jesus is the Messiah – the One who brings us back into a proper relationship with God. To illustrate our current position I used an analogy of a UPS man trying to deliver a package and demanding more and more identification that you are whom you say you are and yet they refuse to give you the package. I told you this is the same when people today question if Jesus is the Messiah with all the proof that is available that He truly is the One. Last week I shifted the analogy slightly as asked you to think about the UPS man who knocks on your door and you refuse to answer and accept the package. This is what we are doing when we refuse to open our hearts to Jesus. He is ready to come in unto us if we will just open the door. In the first three messages I wanted you to accept the proof that Jesus is the Christ. This morning I want to shift from the prophecies that prove that Jesus is the one and only Messiah to why we need Him.
The subtitle of my message this morning is “An Empty Jar.” You may ask what does this have to do with Jesus being the Messiah and my answer is “Everything!”
I. Did Jesus Really Exist
Let me take a short detour before I get into the heart of the message as it relates to the empty jar. I told you a couple of weeks ago that there existed information on Jesus the Christ separate from what has been recorded in the Bible. This morning I want to provide a few examples of this information that many of you may not be familiar with that also provide proof that Jesus existed. You see, there are those who believe that the stories in the Bible are just that – stories. There have also been TV documentaries where scholars are interviewed and they question if “the Jesus in the Bible” really existed. It is a foregone conclusion for a true Christian that we believe that Jesus existed and is real. We believe what is recorded about Him in both the Old and the New Testaments. We believe that He is alive and sitting on the right hand of the Father interceding on our behalf. We believe that we will see Him face to face when we die or meet Him in the air should we still be alive at His second coming. Although we believe this, there are many who do not accept the Bible and question Jesus’ existence first and Him being the Messiah if they are able to first believe that He indeed existed.
When I was doing my research, I came across several non-biblical references to Jesus. I have shared with you previously about the Jewish historian Josephus who mentions Jesus twice in his “Antiquities of the Jews.” This volume of books was written approximately 94 years after Jesus’ death and resurrection. In book 18 he refers to Jesus as a “wise man as he was a doer of wonderful works; a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure.” Some scholars debate whether this quote is authentic because it is favorable of Christ and a Jewish historian would generally not speak this way of Him. However if Josephus was secretly a believer then this would make sense - just something to consider. In book 20 Josephus wrote about James the brother of Jesus. Again, it is interesting that he not only mentions Jesus, but one of Jesus’ brothers. Surely a historian would know if Jesus actually existed and had family members! There are a couple of other references that I read that also caught my attention as I had not heard of these two individuals. The first reference was captured in a book written by Pliny the Younger.
Pliny the Younger was governor of Bithynia in Asia Minor. He wrote ten books with the tenth book being written in AD 112. He wrote the following: “They (the Christians) were in the habit of meeting on a certain fixed day before it was light, when they sang in alternate verses a hymn to Christ, as to a god, and bound themselves by a solemn oath, not to any wicked deeds, but never to commit ant fraud, theft or adultery, never to falsify their word, nor deny a trust when they should be called upon to deliver it up; after which it was their custom to separate, and then reassemble to partake of food but food of an ordinary and innocent kind.” Doesn’t this sound just like Church? It sounds like they had their morning service, took a break, and then possibly came back for the Lord’s Supper. Again, this was captured by someone that was not a professed Christian!
The second reference came from a Greek writer named Lucian. He wrote a satire (a story in which vices and follies are held up to ridicule and contempt) about a philosopher who takes advantage of the generosity of Christians. Here is what he said when he mentions Jesus about 165 years after His death and resurrection: “The Christians, you know, worship a man to this day the distinguished personage who introduced their novel rites, and was crucified on that account…You see, these misguided creatures start with the general conviction that they are immortal for all time, which explains the contempt of death and voluntary self-devotion which are so common among them; and then it was impressed on them by their original lawgiver that they are all brothers, from the moment that they are converted, and deny the gods of Greece, and worship the crucified sage, and live after laws. All this they take quite on faith, with the result that they despise all worldly goods alike, regarding them merely as common property.” Although this was captured in a satire, it had to have been based on what was known at the time about Christianity and the choices of those who called themselves Christians.
I shared these selective writings for one purpose – they speak of Jesus with an understanding that He actually existed. These were all written within a 175 years of His death and resurrection. Why is this important? Jesus is the only man to have walked the earth that people still question His existence even though there is historical proof that He lived. As you think about this, consider this point as a comparator. On July 4, 1776 the Declaration of Independence was signed. No one, and I mean absolutely no one questions that any of the signers existed! Why? Because we have written proof and some pictures of what the individuals looked like that proves they lived. This document was signed 238 years ago and we do not question its authenticity or the lives of the people who signed it. So think back to when these historians who wrote of Jesus the Christ. They wrote about Him within 175 years of His death and resurrection. These men were respected leaders. Surely they would not have written about some made up man regardless of how good his reputation and works were! For them to reference Jesus if he had not existed would be the same if I publicly when on television and professed that Abraham Lincoln never lived. I would suffer no end of ridicule as would these historians if they had written about a fictional individual claiming him to be real. No, Jesus lived and died for our sins and He is very much alive today. So this understanding brings me to the point of this message – Why Jesus? We need Jesus because without Him we are empty jars waiting to be discrded – and yes I mean discarded!
II. An Empty Jar
When I was young a lot of things came in glass jars versus the plastic containers we see today. Most of us have heard of or seen a mason jar because many of our family members preserved their own food. These jars sort of represent what I want to express to you. Back in the day, we had recycling, but it was not a place where you took things – it was your home. Back in the day, it was not uncommon to see a jar on the table filled with sweet tea because when the jar became empty of whatever was in it when it was new – it was recycled into a drinking glass. Some of you may not have ever experienced that, but back in the day, that was recycling. Today when we purchase our jelly in a glass jar, when the jelly has been consumed and we can no longer get any ore out of the jar, we toss the jar into the trash or set it aside to be recycled. This is the image that comes to my mind when I think about my relationship with Christ and why I need Him in my life.
If you do not recycle you throw your empty jar into the trash or a recycling container. It is no longer of any use to you because what was in it is now gone. The jar is empty. You’re done with it. You cannot see any additional use for it so you place it in an area where you can later discard it. This is what happens to people when they die without Christ in their lives. Up until the time that we take our last breath God has hope and a use for us. We are like the jar that still has something in it that we need. We are not empty yet. However, when we take our last breath, our spirits leave our bodies and they go to a place that has been prepared for us – either heaven or hell. The Bible makes this clear. If a person goes to hell, they will remain there until the Day of Judgment. Revelations 20:14-15 records, “Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death; the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” When God “throws” a person into the lake of fire it’s the same as when we throw our empty jars away. We do not know where the jars will end up and we will never see the jars again. (Even if the jar was recycled and we repurchased it, we would have no way of knowing that this was a jar we previously owned so to us it is a new jar.) We have no further use of the jar so it is thrown out with the trash. Please understand that I am not calling anyone who has not accepted Christ trash, I am just making this analogy of what will happen when someone will forever be separated from the presence of God because they refused to accept Jesus as the Christ.
But, and this is a good “but”, if a person dies after accepting Christ, then that person gets recycled for another use. Revelations 21:3-4 says, “And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” God has a place for us. Our usefulness on the earth ends with that last breath, but God still has a use for us. You see, that old, empty jar which becomes a drinking glass which will be used to hold that sweet tea, water or lemonade that provide nourishment on a hot summer day. That empty jar now becomes a coin bank where we put our excess coins so they do not get put into the washing machine. That empty jar becomes a fertilizer bed where flower seeds can germinate before they are planted into the ground. That empty jar becomes a container that can hold and preserve other things that need preserving. This is what happens when a Christian dies. God does not discard us and He has a place prepared just for us where we abide in His presence. It’s almost like He has us on display before the devil saying “these are forever mine!” We will forever be in His presence. This is why I need Jesus – I cannot do this on my own! Without Christ in my life I am an empty jar that cannot be refilled! Man cannot give me what I receive from Christ! Possessions cannot give me what I receive from Christ! Regardless of the material things I possess, it is Christ within me that provides what I truly need!
III. An Overflowing Jar
So, why Jesus? I accepted Christ almost fifty years ago as a child. I have tried to serve Him faithfully even though I have made my share of mistakes and I have committed my share of sins with full knowledge that I was sinning. God delivered me through Christ and my focus is to be the best that I can be for Him in order to accomplish what He has called me to do. In my best and in my worst moments I have had times when I felt I was an empty jar. You ever felt that way? When you’re so worn out you are actually sick and tired of being sick and tired. You’re like the jar that is empty but still people come to you still seeking what was in you. It’s like when you turn the jelly jar on its side to make sure you get all of the jelly out of the creases of the jar before you throw the jar away.
Have you ever felt that you had given your all and there was nothing left? That what you had you gave it freely and now you need to be replenished? You’re the empty jar and yet no one is putting anything back into you. You’re waiting for that next fulfillment of something. You’re on the sidelines hoping against hope that your usefulness is not over while at the same time being tired of fulfilling your purpose. You ever been there? When you were tired of fulfilling your purpose or walking in your calling and giving out while at the same time wondering within yourself if you were of any use at all? Did your life matter? Have you done so many things wrong that you believed within your heart that you were of no further use to God? Have you been there? Have you had these thoughts? I have been there! I have wondered about my impact on the lives of you and others who I interact with. I have been so frustrated where I questioned God about my being and if I was truly doing things as He had directed me. I have had times when I prayed and prayed for a deliverance that God had already provided to me, but I was not able to see it because my mind was so focused on the problem.
Have you been there? Have you had those times when you were empty. You had given out all you had and you did not think there was anything left? Maybe you gave it to a job. Maybe you gave it to a relationship with a spouse or someone else. Maybe you gave it all out to your Church? If you have been there or are having these thoughts right now please understand that these thoughts originate with our enemy and he is a liar! Cast those thoughts down – do not allow them to take rule within your house! What God has called you to do He has also equipped you – you need to know that you have a reserve! If you have been there then you fully understand “Why Jesus!” If you’ve ever been an empty jar, you understand “Why Jesus!” If you’re an empty jar right now, let me tell you “Why Jesus!”
David said in Psalm 23: “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures: he leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul: he leads me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for you are with me; your rod and your staff they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies: you anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.”
In verse five it says “You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over.” You see that? David understood that when he was empty, it was our Savior who would refill us. We might be empty jars in our own eyes and in the eyes of others, but not in Jesus’ eyes. As long as there is breath within us and we are willing to be filled, Jesus is in the filling business! Not only does He fill us, He does not stop when we are filled to max capacity. You see, He fills us until we are running over and need to share some with others. You not only have enough for yourself, but your jar is so full that it runs over. Let me paint what this looks like so you can see it with your mind’s eye. Normally when we pour water into a cup, we stop pouring before the cup is full because we know if we keep going it will overflow and spill onto the counter or floor. But what if you had a second cup under your main one? The overflow would then go into the second cup, and third cup and so on and so forth. My point is this, as one cup is filled, the overflow flows into the next cup. So it is with Christians! The Spirit of God will keep us filled and overflowing so that we have something to share with others in need. We do not become empty jars because we are constantly being filled. Satan wants us to think we are empty, but in reality, we continue to overflow. We just have to have the mindset to release it! Are you dry this morning or are you being filled?
I want to encourage you this morning. Paul wrote in Galatians 6:9 “Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.” If you’re tired this morning – hand in there! If you’re feeling like an empty jar sitting on the shelf waiting to be filled, hang in there! Your time is coming. Focus on what David said. Accept that Jesus the Christ is your Shepherd and that He will fill you. He has you covered!
Why Jesus? I do not know about you, but on the Messiah can handle my issues. He is the only one who can look beyond my faults, my needs, my insecurities, my pride and my loneliness to fill my need. He can see within me where no one else can see. To Him I am an open book – nothing hidden! No one else can know and understand me like Him? If you do not know Him this morning – today is a good day! If you know you but have blocked Him out in parts of your life and in those areas you are starting to run dry – today is a good day! What about you?
I will continue this series next week.
Until next time, “The Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord lift up His countenance on you and give you peace.” (Numbers 6:24-26)
