JESUS OF NAZARETH LUKE 24 – 19

Sat, 17 Dec 2016 09:52:48 +0000

BY RACKSON CHITANDA

Today’s discussion is centered on Jesus Christ of Nazareth. His authority, Power and Holiness. The quotation is about two followers of our Lord Christ Jesus, who were walking to a village called Emmaus, which was about six miles from Jerusalem. It was on the third day after the crucifixion of our Lord Jesus on the Cross. The two followers of Christ Jesus, were not able to recognize the Lord, when He joined them as they walked their way to Emmaus, until he broke bread in front of them. My prayer is that, scripture will burn in our hearts, as we read the Gospel as well as the Old Testament in the Book of life, the Bible, as was the case with two followers of Christ Jesus (Luke 24:32).

The lineage of ancestors in which Christ was born included the following: Perex, Hezron, Ram, Amminadab, Nashon, Salmon, Boaz whose mother was Rahad, Obed whose mother was Ruth, Jesse the father of King David, the father of King Solomon (Ruth 4: 13 – 22). There were fourteen generations from Abraham to David, and fourteen generations, from David to the exile in Babylon, and fourteen generations from the birth of the Messiah (Mathew 2:7) The Nazarene. Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, who gave birth to Jesus, who is called the Messiah. This is the royal lineage of our Lord Christ Jesus.

The Lord Jesus Christ, was called several names among them are the following: The Holy One, John 6:66; The Son of Man, John 6:62; Messiah, John 7:26, Son of Joseph, John 6:41-42, Teacher, John 3:2; Saviour, Luke 1:69 and John 4:42.

He called himself “I am who I am” John 8:24. See also Exodus 3:14 – 15. All the above names stand to define the power, authority and holiness of our Lord Christ Jesus. We should not neglect mentioning His name in prayer and supplication.

In the beginning the Word already existed, the Word was with God, and the Word was God. From the very beginning, the Word was with God (John 1:1). According to this scripture, it is very clear that, what Jesus Christ taught and what he did are tied inseparably to who He is. It is in the book of John, that we are able to see very clearly Jesus being presented as fully human and as well as fully God. Although Jesus took upon Himself full humanity, and lived as a man, He never even for a minute ceased to be the eternal God, who always existed. He is the sustainer and creator of all things and the source of eternal life. For many people who are believers in Christ Jesus, this is the truth about Him and it is the foundation of all truth.

This is the basic truth about our Lord Christ Jesus, and was the reason John wrote this gospel, in order to build faith and confidence in believers of Christ Jesus, so that we may believe that he truly was and is the Son of God (John 20:30-31). In this scripture it is written “The disciples saw Jesus do many other miraculous signs in addition to the ones recorded in this book. But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in Him you will have life by the power of His name” The only way we can fully understand the life and Mission of Jesus Christ is by studying the Gospel. We should know his mission by what he taught.

It is why through Him, Christ Jesus, that we shall be able to receive eternal life if we believed. In the Book of John 1-14, the Bible says “The Word became a human being, and full of grace and truth, lived among us. We saw His glory, the glory which he received as the Father’s only Son we should not make a mistake of minimizing His humanity and His divinity. Both the Jews and Gentiles who did not believe in Christ Jesus received condemnation (John 5:24) that we should avoid.

The name “I am who I am” which also appears in the Book of Exodus 3:14 – 15, have the same meaning, signifying the God who never changes. Not to believe in Jesus Christ as both fully man and divine, will be missing a very important point as believers in the Gospel, which is the Word of God. Our Lord Christ Jesus had all the feeling of man and yet He never sinned (1st Peter 2:21). That was and still is His divinity.

In Corinthians 1:15-16, the Bible says “Christ is the visible likeness of the invisible God. He is the first born Son superior to all created things. For through Him, God created everything in heaven and on earth, the seen and the unseen things, including spiritual powers, lords, rulers and authorities. God created the whole universe through Him and for Him.  This is a very strong statement from St. Paul on the divinity or divine nature of our Lord Christ Jesus. In the Book of Philippians 2:6, the Bible says, “He always had the nature of God, but he did not think that by force he should try to remain equal with God.” And verse 10 and 11 read as follows “And so, in honour of the name of Jesus, all beings in heaven, on earth and in the world below will fall on their knees, and all will openly proclaim that fact that he did not commit sin, means that he never gave up his deity, when he became man, and called Jesus.” In John 10:30, the Bible reads, “The Father and I are one.” Our Lord Christ Jesus, is telling us that Him and His Father are actually one, who are we to dispute that fact; on the same Book and chapter, but on verse 38, the Lord Christ Jesus says that “The Father is in me and that I am in the Father” Therefore the Father and the Son are inseparable. This is the truth about Christ Jesus, since the scripture cannot be altered (John 10:35).

In the book of 1st John 5:7, the Bible says, “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word and the Holy Ghost, and these three are one (King James Version). The Word that is mentioned have is the same Word that created the heavens and the earth. Genesis 1:1-5 and John 1:1. This is the Word which is the source of life and became flesh. Because the word became human, in Him Jesus became our (1) perfect teacher. In this case then, we should all be obedient to the word of God, the Gospel of truth, the teachings of Christ Jesus (2) we have to be able to look at Christ Jesus as our perfect example. He is to be our role model as to what we must become when we believe in Him Christ Jesus as our Messiah and savior. He is actually showing us, how we should live and give us the power to live as we are expected to live (1st Peter 2:21). Christ Jesus came on earth as a perfect sacrifice, he came as a sacrifice for our sins, and Jesus’ death satisfied God’s requirements for the removal of sin.

In the book of Colossians 1:15-20, we are told that Christ Jesus is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and that he is supreme over all creation. It is he who holds all creation together; those include the heavens, the earth, the sun, the moon, the stars and all the creation. He is supreme over all who rise from the dead. (18) He is the head of the church, which is his body. For God in all His fullness was pleased to live in Christ. When we see Christ, then we see the invisible Go and in Him, is the existence of God.

What we read in Colossian 1:1-16, is about the strongest statements about the divine nature of Christ Jesus. In John 1:18, the Bible says “No one has even seen God. But the unique one, who is Himself God, is near to the Father’s heart. He has revealed God to us.” God’s will upon man was taught by His Son Christ, we learn the lesson on truth about the knowledge of God, salvation of man through faith that comes by the grace God. God communicated with various people in the Old Testament, specially the prophets for specific messages. But no one saw God. Could Jesus be both God and the Father’s unique Son? In Christ, God revealed His nature and essence in a way that could be seen and touched in Christ. Could it be that God truly became man and lived on earth? Let us consider what is written in the book of Matthews 4 verse 7 which says “Jesus responded; “You must not test the Lord your God”. See also Deuteronomy 6:16. Here Satan was warned never to test his God. Now which God? Was Christ Jesus referring to himself or to his Father? Surely it was to himself. This is the deity of Christ Jesus.

The glory of Chris Jesus is His presence with miracles and wonders that he does to the glory of His Father God Almighty Jehovah Jireh. Great is this power that, some humanity has gotten very rich out of the power to heal the sick. Wonders and miracles will not stop mesmerizing humanity.

In Matthews 4:23, it is written that while on earth, Jesus performed three core functions, namely, preaching, teaching, and healing. The blind had their sight restored, the lame could walk and the dead had life again. In some instances, the mention of the name of Christ Jesus was enough to heal the sick. Faith from the sick was not always necessary (Acts 3:1-9). Apostles Peter and Paul were very good at utilizing the power in the name of Jesus into action, to the benefit of the people, wherever they went to preach the word of God. See also Acts 9:34.

In Colossians 3:17, we are told that whatever we do or say, we should do it as representatives of the Lord Jesus giving thanks through him to God the Father. In John 8:12, the Lord Jesus said “I am the light of the world, whoever follows me will have the light of life and will never walk in darkness.”

May the grace of our Lord Father God Almighty and His son Christ Jesus be upon us all, and our mother Zambia, forever more. Amen!