The Reason He Came

John 18:36-38 36Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.” 37Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” 38Pilate said to him, “What is truth?” After he had said this, he went back outside to the Jews and told them, “I find no guilt in him…”

Christmas naturally poses questions to the world – who is Jesus and why is He so special? Why do people celebrate His birth? What is the meaning of Christmas?

• I am sure you have asked similar questions about Jesus at some point in your life.

• What better way to know Him than to hear from Him directly.

• We have just read from John 18 what Jesus said about Himself and the reason He came.

• It was an exchange He had with the Roman governor Pilate, who has the task of sentencing Jesus.

• Jesus was innocent but the Jewish leaders had him arrested and brought before the governor.

In speaking these words to Pilate, Jesus revealed His true identity:

“For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world — to bear witness to the truth…” (18:37a)

• We are all clueless why we are born but not for Jesus. He knows about His birth and He can tell us the reason He came.

• His words reveal the uniqueness of His birth and the purpose of His birth.

THE UNIQUENESS OF HIS BIRTH

Jesus did not have his start at birth. We all do but not Him. Jesus existed before He was born. He was able to state the reason for His birth.

• These are not the words of any ordinary man. His birth was the fulfilment of many prophecies from the OT scriptures. It was planned for.

• Christmas is a visitation, the coming of the divine into our world. Jesus came from God.

The theological word for this is INCARNATION. Jesus, who is God, takes on human flesh and becomes a man.

• Phil 2:6-7 says Jesus “6who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.”

• Christmas was not His beginning. He has always existed. At Christmas, God stepped into time and space and entered our world.

Prophet Micah prophecised it – Micah 5:2

• “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.” ?????????????

• He was from of old, from ancient days. Daniel used a similar phrase - “Ancient of Days” ?????3 times in Daniel 7 (7:9, 13, 22) to depict the eternal God.

The Son of God entered our world! We are told to call Him Immanuel (Matt 1:23) - prophesied by Isaiah (7:14) some 740 years before His birth – meaning, “God with us”.

• No wonder Jesus has to tell Pilate, “My kingdom is not of this world.”

• If I am trying to build my kingdom on earth, then my servants (followers) would be taking arms and fighting for me now. But My kingdom is not of this world.

John, the author, wants us to know the deity of Christ, right from the start.

• Having been with Jesus for 3 years, John has seen and heard enough to know Him.

• When he sits down to write, he wasted no time telling us who Jesus is.

• His first words were (John 1:1-4), “1In the beginning was the Word (referring to Jesus), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was in the beginning with God. 3All things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made. 4In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.” (1:1-4)

• John 1:14 “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

John proclaims the deity of Jesus without reservation. No words of greetings. No preparation for us, the readers. He did not beat around the bush.

• Jesus is the Son of God who came into our world. He is God-incarnate.