WHY DID JESUS COME?
INTRODUCTION: As we transition from Thanksgiving to Christmas we start thinking about the arrival of Jesus into the world. We see manger scenes depicting the baby Jesus with his mom and earthly father. We hear about the shepherds and the wise men. It was the most exciting news since the exodus. Interestingly, God delivered his people in a miraculous way then and he was about to do so again; albeit this time the deliverance would be spiritual.
1) Jesus came to be 'God with us'.
Matt. 1:21-23, "She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”—which means, “God with us.”
In the Old Testament you had God showing himself to people in magnificent ways: pillars of cloud and fire, bright light, wind, thunder, hearing a voice only; things like that. Rarely did God show himself to people. Moses was allowed that privilege when he went up on the mountain to receive the ten commandments. The High Priest was allowed to go into the most holy place once a year where he would "meet with God".
But now, with the arrival of Jesus, you had the presence of God with the people face to face. Because God took on human form he could be in the presence of his people without them being afraid like they often were when God manifested himself to this people. Jesus was holy but he was also human; allowing there to be a personal presence. Jesus' coming would usher in the personal connection to God. Now they could experience the fullness of his love, mercy and grace from a practical, hands-on level. They would see first-hand God's ways in the purest examples.
The religious leaders had warped God's law by adding to it or confusing it by adding in their traditions. But Jesus Came to clarify the misrepresentations and show and teach what God had originally intended with his laws. Jesus promoted the laws of love and forgiveness; mercy and grace-as well as the need to obey. Jesus went against the status quo by ministering to Samaritans and women and children.
He taught servitude and humility. He emulated what it looked like to love God with all heart, soul, strength and mind. Jesus came to show us God so that we could be close and personal with him. Jesus came to show us that God isn't just someone who has a set of rules to follow; he wasn't just someone to fear. He was someone who wanted to nurture us and help us grow. Jesus came to make God relatable and show us how much God loves us.
2) Jesus came to serve.
Matt. 20:25-28, "Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
James and John, along with their mother, came to make a request of Jesus-that the two of them could sit on either side of him in his kingdom. The rest of the disciples were ticked off about it. They had trouble like this before when they were found arguing about which one of them was the greatest. Jesus saw both of these incidents as teachable moments. He knew how pride was a great stronghold. He taught them that he, although being the Lord, didn't come to demand servitude but rather to be a servant to others. He wanted his disciples to learn the lesson of humility. Jesus came to show and teach us humility.
John 13:12-17, "When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them."
Jesus served them in humility. He was their Lord but he humbled himself and washed their feet (something they weren't willing to do for him). And I like how he didn't ask for them to wash his feet in return-but each others' instead. Jesus wanted people to humbly serve one another. The disciple's examples are really no different than ours. We have the tendency to try to get ahead of others. We tend to have no problem with others serving us without the same determination to serve others. Jesus came to serve; not be served and he wants us to adopt the same level of humility and selflessness.
3) Jesus came to preach the good news.
Mark 1:35-39, "Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. Simon and his companions went to look for him, and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!” Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” So he traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons."
Jesus came to be God's voice to the people. The fulfillment of the Prophets who were proclaiming his coming-the last one being John the Baptist. Jesus' mission was for all his people to hear this great news; that their long-awaited Messiah had finally arrived. and Jesus was God's authoritative voice to the demons and evil spirits. He was able to show the people God's amazing power to set them free from demonic possession and oppression. Jesus preached healing, deliverance and salvation.
Luke 4:14-21, "Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. He taught in their synagogues, and everyone praised him. He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, and he began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Jesus quoted the prophecy about him in Isaiah 61:1. This was why he came-to preach to the people that their long-awaited Savior had arrived. That no longer would they be in darkness; no longer would they be bound by chains of oppression. Jesus came to preach the good news that this was the year of the Lord's favor; that today salvation has come-that through him they could become free.
4) Jesus came to die.
John 12:23-27, "Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me. “Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour."
Jesus came to save us. And in order to accomplish that he needed to die. Jesus knew that was his mission from the start. He knew in leaving heaven; in leaving the existence of glory he shared with the Father that he would be subjecting himself not only to human frailties but also to human death. But not only was he subjecting himself to physical death, he was also subjecting himself to spiritual death. Jesus took the punishment for our sins and that meant spiritual separation from God. He suffered the punishment of darkness and pure evil for the purpose of us being able to escape it. He died so we wouldn't have to. He was willing to be punished for what we did.
But the good news is that Jesus conquered death and rose from the dead. He fulfilled his duty and his life was restored; death no longer had mastery over him as Rom. 6:9 declares. And he loves us so much that he wants us to experience freedom from death. But not only freedom from death but also freedom from sin having mastery over us.
Rom. 6:1-11, "What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin—because anyone who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus."
What then, shall we go on living in the trap of sin? No way! We're free! We were baptized into Christ and we were forgiven and we now have the Holy Spirit living inside us. We are now able to overcome sin's stranglehold on us and instead strangle it. Jesus came to die so that we could come to live. C.S Lewis said, "The Son of God became man to enable man to become the sons of God."
CONCLUSION: Erwin A. Britton said, "The cuddly, cooing infant in the manger may evoke warm feelings and sentimental thoughts at Christmastime. But the man of Galilee has a message and a mission which we dare not lose in an ocean of wrapping paper." As we marvel at the endearing birth of Jesus it's important that we take time to think about all the reasons why he came. Just coming to be our Savior was only part of it. He had a lot to teach and show us along the way. Why did Jesus come? To show us who God is and how much he loves us; along with teaching us and showing us how to love him in return.
