House of Hope Online

May 28, 2023

Here is the audio version:

Or, if you prefer Spotify:

Happy Memorial Day Weekend to all of you and a special heart felt thank you to God for all those who have paid the ultimate price by laying down their lives for their country, that we may enjoy the many freedoms that we have today – freedoms that include the right to worship Jesus.

Jesus said this:

John 15:

 13 “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.

Those who gave their lives for this country exhibited a Christ-like characteristic and expressed a Christ-like love for others.  Let us be grateful this weekend and always.

The word of the Lord today is titled: “Who Jesus Is.”  Last week we talked about the importance of a believer’s perseverance in the faith that Jesus is the one and only Way to eternal life.  We studied what the Bible tells us about the coming “apostasy,” which means a great falling away of believers in the end times.  An apostate is one who formerly claimed to be a believer, but subsequently decides to no longer believe in Jesus as the only way to salvation. 

Last week’s word was an encouragement to build ourselves up in our faith, pray in the Holy Spirit, and keep ourselves in the love of God, who gives us the perseverance we need to remain in the faith.

Today I want to talk about who Jesus is.  Who is He and why should we believe He is the exclusive way to eternal salvation?

There are many places in the Bible to describe who He is, but I want to just cover a few scriptures that describe Him and what He should mean to us in our faith walk.  Let’s start with perhaps the most quoted scripture concerning Jesus.

John 3:

 16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.

He is the only begotten Son of God who brings eternal life.  Further, Jesus’ words explain that He is the sole way to eternal salvation.

John 14:

 6 Jesus *said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me.

If you are a Christian, you must believe the words of Jesus, and His words say He is the only way to the Father.  But there are other scriptures that tell us who Jesus is, and I want to go through a few passages that explain why He is the exclusive way to salvation and how we should proclaim it.

Colossians 1:

 15 And He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation.

 16 For by Him all things were created, [both] in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities–all things have been created by Him and for Him.

 17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.

 18 He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the first-born from the dead; so that He Himself might come to have first place in everything.

• He is the image of the invisible God.  Father God is Spirit, but Jesus is the image of God because He is one with the Father in the Trinity.
• He is first born of all creation, meaning He existed with the Father before He came to earth.
• He is before all things, confirming He existed before the creation of the earth.
• In Him all things hold together.  He is the glue.  There is no unity without Jesus, and to worship Him we must be in unity with other worshippers by the Holy Spirit.
• He is head of the Church.  He is the head of our lives, He is the head of our families, He is the head of our ministries, and He is the head of our work efforts.  All things should and must flow through Him.
• He is the beginning, the first-born from the dead.  Get that: He is the first to be born again from the dead.
• He Himself has first place in everything. In the King James version, verse 18 says He has preeminence in everything.  The word “preeminence” means dominance, and a controlling power and influence.  This means He is Lord of our lives.  Therefore, there should be no other ruler or dominant influence in our lives.  There can be no worldly logic in our mind that disputes the word of God and Jesus’ exclusive authority to provide forgiveness and salvation.  We can have no idol, no gods before Him. No pastor, teacher, husband, wife, child, or boss can be before Him or above Him in our lives.  He is the preeminent One! 

When you think of a controlling power, that sounds harsh and cold, but that’s not who Jesus is.  He is our friend and our brother, who loves us unconditionally, and wants to help us.  As a practical matter, this means if we consult Him daily, He promises to guide us through the wisdom of the Holy Spirit.  He wants to walk with us through our storms, our tribulations, and He is the source of the perseverance we need to get through the storm.  He is more than a passageway to future salvation; He is also a faithful friend and advisor today in our daily lives.

The Apostle Paul continues in Colossians 1 to describe a reconciler of all things and all believers.

Colossians 1:

19 For it was the [Father’s] good pleasure for all the fulness to dwell in Him,

 20 and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, [I say], whether things on earth or things in heaven.

 21 And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, [engaged] in evil deeds,

 22 yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach–

 23 if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister.

The Bible says our fleshly or sinful nature is hostile toward God, who opposes pride, selfishness, and all other sin.  God is incompatible with the assertiveness that we see in this world, assertiveness that advocates for the acceptance of sin that is an abomination to God.  Therefore, we need to be reconciled to God to be saved.  Jesus is our reconciler.  He is the blood sacrifice offered for our covenant of eternal life.  God’s law requires a blood sacrifice to sign the eternal contract for the forgiveness of sin.  Jesus is that sacrifice.  His spilled blood and death bring us into agreement or harmony with God.  He makes us compatible with Him who is without sin.  Verse 23 says He is our reconciler if indeed we continue in the faith and do not move away from the hope of the Gospel.  In other words, He reconciles us if we persevere in the faith and do not become an apostate.

In addition to being our reconciler, Jesus is our healer.  In Acts 3, Peter and John demonstrate healing and teach us an important lesson about who Jesus is.  At the temple during the hour of prayer, they encountered a man who had been lame since birth and whose custom was to beg for money at the temple.  Here is what happened:

Acts 3:

 4 And Peter, along with John, fixed his gaze upon him and said, “Look at us!”

 5 And he [began] to give them his attention, expecting to receive something from them.

 6 But Peter said, “I do not possess silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you: In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene–walk!”

 7 And seizing him by the right hand, he raised him up; and immediately his feet and his ankles were strengthened.

 8 And with a leap, he stood upright and [began] to walk; and he entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God.

 9 And all the people saw him walking and praising God;

 10 and they were taking note of him as being the one who used to sit at the Beautiful Gate of the temple to [beg] alms, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

 11 And while he was clinging to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them at the so-called portico of Solomon, full of amazement.

 12 ¶ But when Peter saw [this], he replied to the people, “Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this, or why do you gaze at us, as if by our own power or piety we had made him walk?

 13 “The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified His servant Jesus, [the one] whom you delivered up, and disowned in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release Him.

 14 “But you disowned the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you,

 15 but put to death the Prince of life, [the one] whom God raised from the dead, [a fact] to which we are witnesses.

 16 “And on the basis of faith in His name, [it is] the name of Jesus which has strengthened this man whom you see and know; and the faith which [comes] through Him has given him this perfect health in the presence of you all.

Jesus is Healer, the minister is not.  Peter makes that clear in verse 12 when he says he and John have no special power.  In verse 16, Peter teaches that the name of Jesus made the man well.  Peter also says our health comes from the faith which comes from Jesus. So, even the faith we need comes from Jesus as a gift of the Holy Spirit.  Get that, it is not your ability to believe this passage, it is the Holy Spirit who brings an anointing to you to believe.  Just yield your doubt and fears to Him.

The healing of the lame man presented some disturbing problems to the church leaders in Acts 4.  Peter and John were jailed overnight because five thousand people became believers, proclaiming that Jesus was resurrected from the dead with the power to heal.  The next day the rulers, elders, and scribes gathered to interrogate Peter and John.

Acts 4:

 5 ¶ And it came about on the next day, that their rulers and elders and scribes were gathered together in Jerusalem;

 6 and Annas the high priest [was there,] and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of high-priestly descent.

 7 And when they had placed them in the center, they [began to] inquire, “By what power, or in what name, have you done this?”

 8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of the people,

 9 if we are on trial today for a benefit done to a sick man, as to how this man has been made well,

 10 let it be known to all of you, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead–by this [name] this man stands here before you in good health.

 11 “He is the STONE WHICH WAS REJECTED by you, THE BUILDERS, [but] WHICH BECAME THE VERY CORNER [stone.]

 12 “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men, by which we must be saved.”

How powerful it is to hear the man who denied Jesus three times now articulating the power of Jesus to heal and provide good health.  That is the power of Jesus to transform our lives, to anoint us with boldness to speak the Gospel. 

Note again in verse 12 that Peter re-emphasizes that there is salvation in no other.  There is no other name under heaven by which we are saved.  That is, Jesus is the exclusive way to the Father and eternal salvation.  That is who He is.

Peter’s and John’s words and strong conviction created a predicament for the church leaders.  They could not deny that a miracle had occurred because so many witnessed it, so they just told Peter and John to no longer speak or teach in the name of Jesus.  The response from Peter and John is a lesson for us.

Acts 4:

18 And when they had summoned them, they commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.

 19 But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge;

 20 for we cannot stop speaking what we have seen and heard.”

 21 And when they had threatened them further, they let them go (finding no basis on which they might punish them) on account of the people, because they were all glorifying God for what had happened;

 22 for the man was more than forty years old on whom this miracle of healing had been performed.

Peter and John said they could not and would not stop talking about Him.  To avoid the apostasy, and to minister to others, we cannot stop talking about the exclusivity of Jesus as Messiah, and Lord and Savior, as the One that God gave the world, so that whoever believes in Him shall have eternal life.

Let us pray.

Father God, thank You for who Jesus is.  By Your word, He is the exclusive way, the truth, and the life.  He is in Your image, the first born of all creation, and the first born from the dead.  He is Lord of our lives, the head of the church, and a faithful friend and advisor.  We proclaim and declare that He has preeminence over all things and through Him we are reconciled to you.  He is our healer.  We pray for the Holy Spirit to anoint us to never stop speaking about Him, and to proclaim there is no salvation through anyone else.  In Jesus’ name, we pray for transformation in our lives and boldness in proclaiming the Gospel.  Amen.