GOD THE SON
Matthew 16:13-16
INTRO: A certain university professor stated that Jesus was not God nor did He ever claim to be God. A small group agreed with him. A larger group ig¬nored what he said. A much larger group of Baptist pastors were up in arms. Baptists have always believed in the deity of Jesus Christ.
In today’s scripture, we hear Jesus asking the question "Whom do men say that I the son of man am?" Peter answered "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." What does The Baptist Faith and Message say that Baptists believe about Jesus? "Christ is the eternal Son of God. In His incarnation as Jesus Christ He was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. Jesus perfectly revealed and did the will of God...He made provision for the redemption of men from sin...He is the One Mediator, partaking of the nature of God and of man, and in whose Person is effected the reconciliation between God and man."
I. JESUS WAS A MAN.
Though as a man Jesus was tempted, He never committed any sins. He knew what it was to be a child, a teenager; to work with His hands to be hungry; to suffer lone¬liness, pain, and death; and to be rejected by those He loved.
The Bible says: "Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God,...was made in the likeness of man" (Philippians 2:5-7).
II. JESUS WAS SUPERNATURAL.
He was supernaturally born of a virgin. That Jesus was born of a virgin is clearly stated in the Scriptures. Some question this on two grounds. 1. That it is recorded only in Matthew and Luke. 2. That it is contrary to the natural laws of genetics.
1. As for the first, how many times must an event be re¬corded in the Bible to be true? How else could God become a flesh-and-blood man?
2. What about the laws of genetics. Mary raised that question herself. What God says, He can do. Is the virgin birth impossible? Even man can cause birth through artificial insemination and in the test tube.
This should not be confused with Jesus’ birth. But if man can do that, who is to say what God can or can¬not do. We cannot limit God’s power by man’s pow¬er.
Jesus performed miracles that no ordinary man could have done. He rose from the dead. A feat no ordinary man has ever done.
III. JESUS IS THE SAVIOR.
His main mission in life was to save people from the penalty, the power, and the presence of sin. The main purpose of Jesus’ church is to bring people to a saving knowledge of Jesus.
The Bible says of Jesus: "He shall save His people from their sins" (Matthew 1:21). "For the Son of man is come to seek and save that which was lost" (Luke 19:10). "Behold the lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world" (John 1:29).
IV. JESUS IS THE LORD OF LIFE.
When a person is genuinely saved, he makes certain that Jesus Christ is both Saviour and Lord in his life. If you are really saved, you will be trying to let Jesus control your life. The poet William Ernest Henley, in the poem "Invictus," states: "I am the cap¬tain of my soul. I am the master of my fate." For the Chris¬tian, that is wrong. Jesus is the Captain of our soul and should be the Master of our lives. (Read Romans 10:9 and Luke 6:46)
One young man, when given some advice by older Christians, replied, "Nobody’s going to tell me how to run my life." But that is exactly what Jesus must do. He must con¬trol your life and mine if He is to be our Lord.
V. JESUS IS DIVINE.
Was Jesus really God? Did He claim to be God? This is crucial. We cannot worship anyone less than God.
From the time of the New Testament, Christians have worshiped and reverenced Je-sus Christ as divine. The New Testament asserts the deity of Jesus.
Thomas addressed Jesus as "My Lord and my God." The Bible says: "Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal to God" (Philippians 2:5-6). The New Testament speaks of Jesus "who is the image of the invisible God" (Colossians 1:15). Jesus said: "I and my Father are one" (John 10:30).
VI. JESUS IS GLORIFIED.
After Hid death, Jesus rose from the grave and ascended into hea¬ven. He is now our High Priest, our Mediator, our Saviour, our Lord, and our Friend. Someday He will re-turn to this earth.
Since Jesus is God, since He is the second Person of the Trinity and has died for your sins, and since He is coming a¬gain, then Jesus should be your Lord and Saviour. If you claim Him as your Saviour and Lord, then you should obey His com¬mands.
He has commanded us all to repent and be baptized, to confess Him publicly, and to serve Him in our church and our community.
CONC: Yes Jesus was and is really God. He was not half-man and half-God. He was fully man and fully God. He was different from other men. He was supernatural in His birth, His life, and His resurrection from the dead.
He is supposed to be our Lord and Saviour. He is the divine Son of God. He was glorified as He rose from the dead. He is coming again, personally.
