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By Pastor Glenn Pease
CONTENTS
1. THE UNIQUENESS OF JESUS
Based on John 7:25‑46
2. OUR EXCELLING EXAMPLE Based
on John 13:1‑17
3. HIS STEADFAST FACE Based on
John 19:1‑16
4. THE GENTLE ENCOURAGER Based on Matt. 12:9,15‑21
5. THE ANGRY KING Based on Matt. 21:1‑17
6. THE MASK OF THE MASTER
MARK 1:21‑28
7. THE GREAT PHYSICIAN MARK 2:1‑12
8. THE HANDS OF THE HEAD Based on Mark 6:1‑6
9. THE MIND OF THE MASTER Based on Luke 2:40‑52
10. FOCUS ON FEET Based on Luke 7:36‑50
11. JESUS HAD A SENSE OF HUMOR Text for starting Luke 10:21
12. OUR DETERMINED SAVIOR based on Luke 9:51‑62
13. OUR KING'S GLAD FACE Based
on Luke 19:28‑44
14. THE KING IN TEARS Based on
Luke 19:29‑48
15. HIS HIDDEN FACE Based on
Luke 24:13‑35
16. THE TRIUMPHANT KING Based on John 12:12‑19
17. THE FACE OF CHRIST Based on
II Cor. 4:1‑6
18. JESUS IS EVERYTHING Based
on Rev. 1:5
19. WHO IN THE WORLD IS KING? Based on Rev. 1:5
20. WORTHY IS THE LAMB Based on
Rev. 5:1‑14
1. THE UNIQUENESS OF
JESUS Based on John 7:25‑46
An
advertisement that was originally printed in the Miner's Magazine as a serious add
was later published by the Reader's Digest as humor. The ad read,
"Wanted: Man to work on
nuclear fissionable isotope molecular reactive counter and three‑phase
cyclotronic uranium photosynthesizers.
No experience necessary."
Of course, it was a joke. No one
is that unique. On the other hand, how
can you find anyone with experience in a field that never existed before?
The New
Testament has a similar problem in the spiritual realm. The complex task of saving sinners, and yet
remaining just an absolutely loyal to his nature of holiness was God's problem.
Of course, it is only a problem from our point of view. In His eternal wisdom it was solved before
the world began. The job called for an
extremely unique person. He had to be
fully man, for only a man could live a perfect human life. If he was not truly man, the life he lived
would not be truly human. Yet, only God
could insure that such a life could be lived.
The paradox is that only God could do what was necessary, but it could only
be done as a man. The solution could
only be Jesus Christ‑the God‑Man.
All the paradoxes and problems of the relationship of God and man are
resolved in Christ who was both.
Robert
C. Moyer wrote, "In Jesus divine omnipotence moved in a human arm. In Jesus divine wisdom was cradled in a
human brain. In Jesus divine love
throbbed in a human heart. In Jesus
divine compassion glistened in a human eye.
In Jesus divine grace poured forth from human lips." Jesus was the most unique of all men, but
not just because He was God, but rather, because He was really man. That is, He was the only complete example of
ideal manhood ever seen on this planet.
Adam was the only other man who was ever perfect in his manhood, and he
fell. Jesus alone lived a perfect human
life. Jesus was unique, not just
because He was more than a man, but because He was fully a man. He was the man par‑excellence.
We need,
therefore, to stress His humanity as He did of Himself. His favorite name for Himself was the Son of
Man. In the bureau of standards in
Washington there is a gold bar exactly one yard long which is the standard by
which every measuring instrument in the United States is judged. There has to be one, and only one, final
absolute standard. Jesus is that
standard in the realm of human life, morality, and character. As deity He was no standard for human
life. Only as man did He become our
standard and ideal. In the incarnation
the human ideal became real.
Herman
Horne points out that realism and idealism are combined in Jesus Christ. He writes, "Human nature at its
possible best gives us the ideals for man.
If we want to know what the ideals of man's complete living are, we must
know what human nature is at its best; what it's elements are; what it is
possible for each element to attain in its development. Thus the real is the basis of the ideal; the
real at its best is the ideal; the real is the actual; the ideal is what is
possible for the real to become. Such
idealism as this has its feet on the ground; is practical. Idealism without reference to what the real
can become is visionary."
Christian idealism is based on the real of Christ. Jesus is the example of what the real man
can become. He is the ideal which we
shall attain, for we shall be like Him when we see Him as He is, according to
John.
Meanwhile, it is our task to learn of Him, and strive toward His ideal
manhood. Paul said in Eph. 4:12‑13
that the gifts of Apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers was,
"For the equipment of the saints, for the work of ministry, for building
up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the
knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature
of the fullness of Christ." He is
our standard, and we are to measure up to Him as the goal of all our study,
listening, worship, and service as Christians.
O Man of the far away ages,
O Man of the far away land,
More art Thou than all of the
sages,
More art Thou than creed or command.
To crown Thee we need but to
know Thee;
We need but to live Thee to prove,
For time nor decay can o'er
throw Thee‑
Humanity's ultimate Love.
Author unknown
Jesus
has no competitors in the field of perfect manhood. Hunter Blakely writes, "Men can conceive nothing higher than
to be Christ like. It is significant
that non‑Christians all around the world have been revising the character
of their deities with one purpose‑‑to bring them into conformity
with Christ. Mohammed is not compared
with Buddha, nor Confucius with Krishna, but one in all are brought before the
moral masterpiece, and the question has to be answered, is it Christ like?"
Jesus is
universal because of the perfect balance of his manhood. He combines in his life and character every
type of human goodness. He fits into
every age and culture. Whatever
goodness is being emphasized in a particular age it will be found exhibited at
its best in Jesus. This uniqueness of
Jesus in combining every value of manhood in perfect balance can be
abused. All men have to do is take one
aspect of Jesus and exaggerate it as the whole, and ignore the facts that bring
balance, and thereby have a Christ for their cause. W. A. Vissert Hooft, former president of the World Council of
Churches, an author of numerous books, gives concrete examples of this abuse.
He
writes, "...There is an 18th century Jesus who looks strangely like a
dignified free‑mason, and a 19th century Jesus, who resembles in all
essentials an enlightened democrat of the liberal variety. There is the revolutionary Jesus of the
Communist Barbusse, the pacifist of Tolstoy; the militant Jesus of the
Kiser. There is the Aryan Christ of
H.S. Chamberlain and the "German Christians;" the Jewish Christ of
the liberal Jews, the Russian Christ of Dostoievsky. The Indian Christ of Radakrishman. Some of these portraits are better than others. Some are naive or cynical attempts to
exploit Jesus for some cause which has no imaginable relation to his message
and mission. Others are attempts to
honor him by bringing him into the closest possible relation to the concrete
realities of our time. All, however,
reveal a tendency to use this man for some extraneous purpose which originates,
not from him, but from some other source."
It is
good for us to be aware of this as we study Jesus. Wherever there is power there is exploitation and abuse, and in
Jesus Christ there is great power, for even as a great man, apart from his
deity, his influence is great. If you
can persuade others that Jesus backs your program and ideas, you have the best
possible support. Let us keep in mind,
therefore, that Jesus Christ is the perfect man with perfect balance. No cause has exclusive claim on Christ, nor
does the advocate of any particular virtue.
Perfect balance must characterize any true study of the character and
teaching of Jesus.
Take the question of whether Jesus was
manly or womanly in character. Some
authors will dwell exclusively on his strength and courage. Others will magnify his compassion,
gentleness, and loving care of children.
Both are right, but both are wrong if they imply their picture is the
whole of Christ. Jesus combines in his
personality the ideals of both sexes.
Perfect manhood must combine the virtues of male and female. How could Jesus be the example and standard
for all if he had none of the feminine ideals in his character. Westcott wrote, "Whatever there is in
men of strength, justice, and wisdom; whatever there is in women of
sensibility, purity, and insight, is in Christ without the conditions which hinder
among us the development of contrasted virtues in one person." Failure to keep this balance led to the
feminine virtues of Jesus being forgotten in the Middle Ages. Jesus was presented as just and severe. Men longed for tenderness and compassion
also, and the result was that Mary was exalted to provide these qualities. Mariolatry could have been avoided had a
full picture of Christ been presented to men.
In
reaction to the Christ of severity a pietistic Christ was developed. Sentimentalism characterize the Christian,
and Christ was made effeminate. Men
left the church to the women and children, for they sensed Christ had nothing to offer to fulfill the masculine
aspirations of life. We are still
suffering from this defective portrait today.
A balance view of Christ would reveal he is the perfect ideal of both
the masculine and feminine. He redeems
the best in both. Christ has done more
to lift womanhood to a level of dignity and respect than all the religions of
the world combined. We should rejoice
that Christianity is a woman's religion, for our mothers, wives, sisters, and
daughters are women, and in Christ they can be the best of women. Women feel that no man really understands
their feelings, and they are probably right, but Jesus, the unique and perfect
man, understands completely.
There is
no male and female in Christ, for he combines both in one complete whole. This is why we see women following Jesus,
and being loyal to him all the way even through his crucifixion. It is good and wonderful that this is so,
but men must also see the masculine Christ.
The Christ in our text could make such an impression on the officers
sent to arrest him that they were afraid to lay hands on him. When they reported back to the Pharisees
without him, their reason was, "No man ever spoke like this
man." This is the testimony of his
enemies. They said he was the most
unique of men. He spoke with such
authority, power, and certainty. He was
a leader of men and captured the allegiance of strong men like Peter, and
zealous men like Simon the Zealot. He
offered men a challenge that called for the best that a man can be. Jesus calls all men to heroism. He calls him to take up the cross and follow
him.
The
history of heroic men is the history of those who have followed Jesus Christ.
Our first conviction about the manhood of Christ must be that he was unique.
Not only did no man ever speak like him, no man ever lived like him. Grace N.
Crowell wrote,
“One man alone to change the ways of men!
One humble man to draw the world to him!
Never before, nor will there be again His like‑
The stars made fade, and the sun's light dim,
And still no one will walk as once he walked,
Among the lowly, healing every ill,
And still no man will talk as once he talked,
To teach mankind to heed God's holy will.
Never a man like this‑no one at all
Moves as he moves within a circling light.
Head‑high above all others, straight and tall
He stands, imbued with power and with might.
He is the one, o men, who sacrificed
His life for ours‑‑the loving, living
Christ.”
It is
when we see Jesus as one of a kind in his humanity that we most see the reality
of his deity. He was the most unique of men.
2. OUR EXCELLING EXAMPLE Based on John 13:1‑17
You cannot imitate what you do not know. Any parrot who learns to swear does not
reveal its own character, but rather that of its owner and example. To copy or imitate by definition implies an
original to go by. It is the original
that determines the nature of the copy.
This concept is not limited to paper, metal and material objects. It applies to human lives as well. Practically all of life is an imitation of
one philosophy or another, one principle or another, one person or
another.
We are not living totally unique and original lives, for we
are all following patterns that existed before, and they were lived by millions
before we were born. The better we are
acquainted with the pattern the more we conform to it as a copy. This, of course, explains why Christians can
often be so unlike Christ, and so much like the world. They are so much more acquainted with the
world. The example of the world is
constantly before them, and they begin to imitate that pattern. The example of Christ is one to which they
are so seldom exposed that there is little chance for imitation.
The painter who would imitate Rembrandt, or the musician who
would like to be a copy of Beethoven must immerse themselves in the works of
these men. They will succeed only to
the degree that they know the original they seek to imitate. It is obvious that this holds true for the
Christian life as well. How can we be
Christ like if we do not know what He was like, and how He lived, and what He
taught?
Every experience that life brings is an opportunity to
imitate Christ, but how can we do so if we do not know how He would
respond? He had a home, He played, He
worked, He went to school, He had joys and blessings, He faced embarrassment
and trials, and He had social pressures.
He had to take a stand on social and political issues. He lived a genuine involved and complicated
human life filled with decisions, and it is worth all of the effort needed to
become acquainted with His life.
Before we launch out
into this sea of living water we need to chart our way so as to stir clear of
the island of liberalism that attracts so many as a landing spot, and from
which they do not depart again. What I
am referring to is the fact that the liberal element as far back as the 18th
century has made much of Christ as an example.
They cannot be surpassed in their stress on Jesus being the supreme
example of humanity. It was a very
attractive religion, but unfortunately, even though it was Christ centered, it
was not Christianity. It was because
the Christ it exalted was divorced from His deity. His example and teaching was isolated from His atonement, and
this left Him as an example period, and not the Savior and Lord.
Understandably, the Evangelicals opposed this diluted
theology, and stressed the atonement.
When ever the life of Christ was mentioned they would say, “Yes, but His
death was more important.” The result
of this emphasis was a neglect of the lessons we are to learn from our Lord’s
life. James Stalker, the evangelical
author of Christ Our Example, said, “It is time to object to these
divisions. Both halves of the truth are
ours, and we claim the whole of it.”
Why should we be robbed of any of God’s precious truth in Christ just
because it can be perverted and abused?
To let error have the monopoly on any truth is an evil, and a departure
from God’s will.
We cannot rightly ignore any part of inspired
revelation. It leads to the philosophy
that says, “Ignorance is the mother of devotion.” Certain truths are confusing to the people, and so the way to
keep peace in the church is to keep people ignorant. Such was the thinking of many in the past, and it worked. There was only one casualty and that was the
truth. The result was a loss of true
Christianity. No amount of peace is
worth that price. As evangelicals we
dare not yield to the temptation of ignoring and hiding any part of God’s Word
just because it can be perverted. Even
the deity of Christ was once so exalted for the purpose of denying the reality
of Christ’s humanity. In fact, this was
the first heresy in the early church.
No one could be so foolish as to ignore the deity of Christ just because
it can be abused. We are to hold forth
all of God’s truth.
This long introduction is to clarify what we are doing. We want it clear that what we will be
studying is vital and important, and it is given by God for our instruction,
but in itself it is an inadequate Christianity because Christ as our example
will not save us. We must know Christ
as Lord, and we must yield our lives to Him as our Redeemer, for it is only
from within the family of God that He is our example. Once we become a child of God by accepting Christ as Savior there
is no higher goal in life than to be like Him.
This is the witness of the whole New Testament. “Learn of me,” “Follow me,” said Jesus. “Let this mind be in you which was also in
Christ.” “Walk in love, as Christ also
has loved us.” Jesus said, “This is my
commandment that you love one another as I have loved you.” All we do is to be a pattern of what Christ
did. Rom. 15:2 says, “Let everyone
please his neighbor for his good to edification, for even Christ pleased not
himself.” Col. 3:13 says, “Forbearing
one another, and forgiving one another, even as Christ forgave you, so also do
ye.” When we can appeal to the example
of Christ for any attitude or conduct we stand on solid rock, for what is
Christ like is eternal.
And now to our text and to a specific case in which Jesus is
our example. This passage is a logical
place to begin since no one can miss it.
Jesus states plainly in verse 15 that the purpose of His action was to
give His disciples an example to follow.
We have here one of the most basic passages in the Word of God, for
Jesus goes to special lengths to become an example of humility. It doesn’t sound like such a big issue, but
John tells us if all was written that might be about Christ, the world could
not contain the books. If half a
chapter of his 21 can be devoted to this lesson on humility, that means it is
certainly a major issue from God’s point of view.
Humility seems like such a dull virtue because of our
misconceptions. Like the Greeks and
Romans, we don’t have much time for self-depreciation. Like them we equate humility with weakness,
cowardice and inferiority, and none of these are attractive. All of these false concepts are shed
quickly, however, when we look to Christ our example. Humility is not stepping on yourself, or degrading yourself.
Jesus never did either of these things. It is a surrendering of yourself to be
most useful. Humility means availability. The humble man is not so wrapped up
in himself that he is never available for the needs of others. Proud people are
too busy with their own agenda, but humble people will take time out of their
own pursuits to meet the needs of others. They are the volunteers who do not
have to do it, but they do because it needs to be done.
Did humility in Christ mean a low self-estimate? Was Jesus like the Carthusian monk who was
describing his little known order to a stranger saying, “As for learning, we are
not to be compared to the Jesuits, when it comes to good works, we don’t match
the Franciscans, as to preaching we are not in a class with the Dominicans, but
when it comes to humility we are tops.”
Such a concept of humility is naturally laughable, for it means to
specialize in inferiority. If this was
true humility, it would be an easy virtue to attain, for the only requirement
would be to do nothing. He who can most
magnify his inability becomes the most humble.
This foolishness has no part in the humility of Christ. No one has ever had such a high estimate of
himself. Jesus said, “A greater than
Solomon is here.” He said, “I am the
light of the world.” He said, “I am the
way, the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father but by Me.”
Look at our text
where Jesus is emphasizing His humility.
Does He lower His self-estimate?
Not at all. In verse 13 He says
that my calling me Lord and Master you are right. That is just what made His act the highest example of
humility. It was His superiority which
made His act of washing their feet a great example of humility. It is not humility for a servant to do so,
but it is for a master to do so. He did
not hold on to His superiority and fear to stoop lest He lose it. True humility is to use all of your ability
to serve. It is false humility to say
you cannot serve when you really are able.
True humility is to say I will stoop to do the job.
Humility is being strong and using that strength to lift the
weak. It is to wise and intelligent and
using your gifts to teach the less fortunate that they might share the values
of your advantage. True humility does
not say I am nothing, but it says I am something by the grace of God, and I can
be used of God to help others be something as well. Humility puts the best of men into the service of the rest of us
that we all might be lifted to higher ground.
The disciples needed this virtue because they had the typical attitude
that to be special and superior should put you in a privileged position of
being served. They wanted to reign and
not serve, but Jesus made it clear that privilege and special ability is only
of value when it is used to serve.
Jesus is the greatest possible example of true
humility. He did not grasp at equality
with God, but as Phil. 2:7-8 says, “But made of himself of no reputation and
took upon Him the form of a servant and was made in the likeness of men....He
humbles himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” The greatest act of service in history was
by the King of Kings when He died for the sins of the world. Albert Schweitzer said, “Example is not the
main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing.” Jesus laid down His
life as an example of just how much He loves us, and there is no greater
example of love than this in the universe. He is our excelling example.
Someone has said that a good way to gain humility is to
read the help wanted ads. You will be
surprised how many positions there are which you are too ignorant, too
unattractive, or to old to fill. This
is the false and negative kind of humility.
We look to Christ as our example, and He teaches us a positive type of
humility that says I have ability and blessings which I will use, not for
self-glorification, but for the edification of others. Christ like humility is a virtue of power
and strength and not the popular concept of anemic withdrawal.
A Christ like definition of humility is, the willingness to
give one’s self and any superiority he may have to the service of others. The highest profession on earth, from God’s
point of view, is to be a servant. We
haven’t begun to expound the text, but have just seen the over all purpose of
it. We want to look at one detail lest
we have a misconception. There are
Christians who take this message literally in terms of the example Jesus used
to teach His lesson. They continue to
wash one another’s feet in obedience to His words in verse 14. It is certainly not wrong to do so, but it
severely limits the application when the context makes it clear that the act
was filled with a non-literal spiritual significance.
In verse 7 Jesus shows that His act is symbolic of a higher
spiritual significance beyond the literal act of washing. The question of verse 12 asks if they know
what He has done. Certainly they knew
what He had done, but the meaning was what was important. The washing of feet was just a method of
demonstrating the principle of humility, and of the superior serving the
lesser. They could continue to use feel
washing as a method of service because it was a real necessity and a part of
their daily lives. To continue it in
our culture is not really a service, for we don’t need our feet washed when we
are invited to eat with someone. We do
not wear sandals, nor do we set low on couches with our feet near our food and
another. It becomes a mere ceremony as
an end in itself, and it can lead to the false view that one has fulfilled his
obligation to be humble by doing so.
Jesus certainty did not take up such a large portion of revelation to
teach us to wash one another’s feet. He
is teaching us to follow His example as a total way of life by giving ourselves
to the service of others. This is
Christ like humility, and He is our excelling example.
3. HIS STEADFAST FACE Based on John 19:1‑16
You never know when
something embarrassing will happen to you.
We are constantly on guard, for we do not like to be humiliated. Mrs. Howard Field was walking to a near by
funeral home for the funeral of an old acquaintance when she saw an Easter
bonnet that caught her eye. She went in
and purchased it. She felt it was
improper to carry it into the chapel, so she asked an usher to take care of it
for her. You can imagine her dismay
when she saw it being placed on the coffin with the flowers. At the grave site she hoped to recover it,
but she was too embarrassed to do anything, and so she watched her new Spring
hat lowered into the ground. She hardly
knew the woman being buried, but she was weeping as sincerely as the immediate
family.
Her embarrassment was real but hidden. In other situations we cannot hide, and we
are embarrassed by what is beyond our control.
The poet gives an example:
I sat next to the Bishop at
tea;
It was just as I feared it
would be.
His rumblings abdominal
Were simply phenomenal,
And everyone thought it was
me.
Then there are the deliberate efforts to get a laugh at the expense of others. It can be funny to embarrass others. This is the motive behind roasts and many other types of humor. We do this frequently as men. It is part of our sense of humor. Sometimes it borders on the cruel, however. For example, Bernard Shaw was browsing in a s