Philippians 2: 9 - 11 NKJV
There's something about a name. A name can tell you a lot about someone. A persons name can tell the world of their social status or how well known they are. If I had been born under the name Rockefeller I just might have a bit more jingle in my pockets. No matter, the name that I have is a indication of just who I am and where it is I come from. I guess you could say that I have dual citizenship, for I not only carry the name of my father but of my heavenly Father as well. Now, before too many people freak out and come down on me for claiming the name of Jesus as my own identity, take a look again at Galations 2:20. It is here that the apostle Paul tells us that it's no longer all about us, but of Christ Jesus who lives through us. Even the name of our savior has given us a indication of His very purpose. We are told that He will be named Immanuel, which means God with us (how true that is!) {Matthew 1:23}. So, even with the name of Jesus we get an idea of His purpose and destiny. All of this from a name. My name signifies my place in my earthly family, as do the names of my friends. However, imagine the furor over one who would refer to Himself as the Son of the living God! That is exactly what Jesus faced when He declared His own identity {John 14:8}. Either those of Christs day were unwilling to accept such a declaration or, as I suspect, it was all in our Lords loving plan for His children. The fury which Jesus caused by declaring His identity has been a topic of recent conversation for our group. However, as we cling to what the apostle Paul has pointed out, each of us can the very same declaration that Jesus did. I...am Jesus.
8Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him.10For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11Likewise you also, creckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 6: 7 - 11 NKJV
So I often pose the question to more than a few people when they ask me about my belief in Jesus. So, who is it that you THINK that you are? There are some answers that have even surprised me. One elderly gentleman told me that he saw himself as more of a peasant as compared to Jesus. Well, imagine his surprise when I told him that he is much more than that. Yet that is the message which we have received for so long from those who teach the gospel of Jesus. In fact, I was thumbing through a few facebook posts this weekend and came across one that described Jesus as a "polarizing" figure in history! Really? I guess maybe for those who never took the time to know the real Christ. To all too many people, Jesus is just a name and not a man. For if they were to see Jesus as a man then they may need to accept the need for a true relationship with Him. It is my feeling that this is what Jesus wants for each of us. Not only that, but a deeper relationship with Christ makes Him all the more real to us, which is how He is anyway. He is so much more than a name we read of in the pages of scripture. Jesus is our savior. Jesus is our life. It is also the name of Jesus that is the name which we ourselves carry.
7“If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him.” 8Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us.” 9Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?10“Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. 11“Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves."
John 14: 7 - 11 NKJV
~Scott~
No comments:
Post a Comment