Winston Salem church of Christ

Introducing Jesus – The Gospels

INTRO:

A. What would you think if someone introduced themselves by saying, “Hello,…. I AM NOT GOD!” Now that would be an unusual introduction, wouldn’t it? Unusual, although obviously true.

B. Saying “I am not God” is an unusual “introduction.” What would be even more unusual? “Hello, … I AM GOD!” That would be highly unusual, plus highly delusional, and highly blasphemous! In fact, it would be so shocking that even Jesus did not go around introducing Himself as the Son of God. Have you ever noticed that? He introduces Himself in far more subtle ways allowing the people to come to their own conclusions.

C. And yet, when we look at the various introductions given about Jesus, we see highly unusual introductions that would be highly delusional and blasphemous if they were not highly factual.

D. Considering what many people thought about Jesus, these inspired introductions are even more startling. Let’s look at the wide variety of opinions about Jesus.

· For not even his brothers believed in him. (Jn.7:5)

· And there was much muttering about him among the people. While some said, “He is a good man,” others said, “No, he is leading the people astray.” (Jn.7:12)

· The crowd answered, “You have a demon! (Jn.7:20)

· Can it be that the authorities really know that this is the Christ?” (Jn.7:26)

· Yet many of the people believed in him. They said, “When the Christ appears, will he do more signs than this man has done?” (Jn.7:31)

· Some of the people said, “This really is the Prophet.” Others said, “This is the Christ.” But some said, “Is the Christ to come from Galilee? (Jn.7:40-41)

· The officers answered, “No one ever spoke like this man!” (Jn.7:46)

· So there was a division among the people over him. Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him. (Jn.7:43-44)

E. Now let’s look at the inspired position. There will be much repetition in the records, so we will not cover every aspect of every introduction.

1. The first thing we will do is look at the introductions found by the gospel writers.

2. Then we will focus on various introductions found within the gospel accounts.

F. Purposes:

· Hermeneutic Lesson – How the writers introduced Jesus to people not only is determined by Whom Jesus is, but who they were introducing Jesus to.

· Evangelistic Lesson – How I introduce Jesus to people not only is determined by Who Jesus is, but who I am introducing Jesus to.

· Individualistic Lesson – How I understand Jesus should change my life because of where I am in life. I am hoping that through these lessons we will all appreciate all the different nuances of Jesus even more deeply.

BODY:

I. MATTHEW INTRODUCING JESUS TO THE JEWS

A. Text: Matthew 1:1 - The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham:

B. The gospel of Matthew is written to a Jewish audience (possibly Jewish Christians). The audience will dictate how the introduction is made.

C. Connection to Genesis:

1. We are all probably familiar with the gospel of John and its connection to Genesis 1:1 – both begin with “In the beginning….”

2. We might not be as familiar with Matthew’s possible connection also to the book of Genesis:

· Matthew 1:1 - The record [i.e., book/biblos] of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham:

· Genesis 2:4 – This is the account [lit., These are the generations;LXX biblos] of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made earth and heaven.

· Genesis 5:1 – This is the book [LXX biblos] of the generations of Adam. In the day when God created man, He made him in the likeness of God.

3. Point – The same God responsible for the generation of earth and man is responsible for the generation of Jesus.

D. Description of Jesus:

1. Messiah means, “the Anointed One.” In Hebrew history, prophets, priests and kings were anointed.

2. David – prophet and king.

3. Abraham – prophet and priest

· “Abraham and David are the two Old Testament men with whom God made the most important covenants of all time, so far as the coming Messiah was concerned.” (www.bible.org)

· Abraham – Genesis 12:3 NASB And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”

· David – 2 Samuel 7:12-14a NASB “When your days are complete and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come forth from you, and I will establish his kingdom. (13) “He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. (14) “I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; ….

E. The purposes in this introduction:

· To connect Jesus to His roots – both Jewish and royal.

· To connect the Jews to Jesus – following Jesus is very Jewish.

· To connect the Jewish people to their past and future.

o Jesus is who you have been waiting for!

o I doubt that we can fathom what this opening line meant to the Jewish people. Can you imagine waiting for something all your life, waiting for the same fulfillment that your parents, grandparents, great grandparents, great great grandparents, going back two thousand years, and seeing it fulfilled in your life? Is there anything in your life that can compare? NO!

o Luke 2:25-32 NASB And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him. (26) And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. (27) And he came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to carry out for Him the custom of the Law, (28) then he took Him into his arms, and blessed God, and said, (29) “Now Lord, You are releasing Your bond-servant to depart in peace, According to Your word; (30) For my eyes have seen Your salvation, (31) Which You have prepared in the presence of all peoples, (32) A LIGHT OF REVELATION TO THE GENTILES, And the glory of Your people Israel.”

F. Overall theme – the Kingdom of Heaven and fulfilled fits in well with the introduction. Jesus is prophet, priest and the king of the kingdom of heaven fulfilling all prophecies. Jesus is the fulfillment to the Abrahamic promise. Jesus is the fulfillment to the Davidic promise. Jesus is who you have been waiting for, says Matthew to his Jewish audience.

II. MARK INTRODUCING JESUS TO THE ROMANS

A. Text: Mark 1:1 – The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

B. The gospel of Mark is written to a Roman audience, and that will dictate how Mark introduces Jesus.

C. Let’s look at two very common conclusions on the theme of Mark

1. “Although Mark is ostensibly interested in the teaching of Jesus, he is most concerned with Jesus’ actions. The lack of a genealogy and the lack of much teaching material, coupled with the frequent use of “immediately” have been seen as sufficient indicators that Mark’s Gospel presents Jesus preeminently as the Servant. We might modify this slightly: the heart of this gospel can be seen in 8:27-33 where Peter wants to affirm that Jesus is the Christ without the necessity of the cross. In his stern rebuke of Peter, the servant-attitude of Jesus is thus seen to be intrinsically related to his own suffering. The verse which capsulizes this is 10:45 (“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many”): Jesus is portrayed then as “The Suffering Servant.”³⁹

2. Could I disagree at least partially? I do not doubt that Mark paints Jesus as a servant. But I do doubt that the whole emphasis of Jesus’ actions is on Him being a servant. I will also not disagree that Mark shows that Jesus suffered. However, let’s investigate to see if there is something more.

D. Mark 1:1 – The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

1. From Matthew’s son of Abraham, son of David to Son of God. That’s quite a promotion! Can we see how the audience, direction and impact of the introduction have changed?

2. If the purpose of the first introduction was to connect Jesus to His Jewish audience, we should assume that same purpose of identification is possible for this introduction.

E. If the audience is Roman, why this introduction? The Romans believed their king, their ruler, their Caesars to be divine!

F. Divine Julius Caesar – God and Son of God

1. In 42 BC, Julius Caesar was formally deified as “the divine Julius” (divus Iulius). Caesar was also divi filius, which in Latin means the “Son of God.” Roman coins from the same time period in which Jesus lived were plentiful. On one side of the coin was a picture of Julius Caesar, who had been deified by the Roman Senate.

G. Divine Augustus Caesar – Son of God and Savior.

1. Quote – “When Atia had come in the middle of the night to the solemn service of Apollo, she had her litter set down in the temple and fell asleep, while the rest of the matrons also slept. On a sudden a serpent glided up to her and shortly went away. When she awoke, she purified herself, as if after the embraces of her husband, and at once there appeared on her body a mark in colors like a serpent, and she could never get rid of it; so that presently she ceased ever to go to the public baths. In the tenth month after that Augustus was born and was therefore regarded as the son of Apollo.” [Suetonius, Life of the Deified Augustus, Chapter 94]

2. Julius Caesar’s adopted son, Octavian (better known by the title “Augustus” given to him 15 years later, in 27 BC) thus became known as “divi Iuli filius” (son of the divine Julius)[17] or simply “divi filius” (son of the god). As son of Julius Caesar, Augustus was referred to as the son of a god, not as the son of God, which was how the monotheistic Christians referred to Jesus.

3. On coins with Julius Caesar on one side claiming deity, the other side of the coin would have a picture of Caesar Augustus, with an inscription that read divi filius, the Son of God.

4. In modern day Ephesus, that great city where St. Paul founded the Ephesian Church, there still stands an example of one of many signs which proclaim “Caesar Augustus: Son of God and high priest.”

5. When Augustus defeat Mark Antony and brought an end to 20 years of civil war, the Roman Senate celebrates the occasion. It officially confers upon Gaius Octavius the titles Savior and God. He is declared to be Caesar Augustus, the ultimate ruler in the world. Every city builds a shrine in his honor, and lifts up this banner to his name: THE SAVIOR OF THE WHOLE WORLD!

6. Quote – As ancient Roman poet Horace mourned the slaughter of the decades long civil wars that Augustus finally ended, he asked, “whom shall Jupiter (the great God) assign the task of atoning for our sin?”

a. He suggested several divine candidates, but ended up with Augustus as the incarnated God who would do so. And why not Augustus? After all, Romans celebrated him as four ways divine: by ancestral descent from Venus and Anchises, by miraculous virgin birth from Apollo and Atia, by paternal adoption from the deified Julius Caesar, and by official decree from the Roman Senate. One inscription from Egypt calls Augustus heaven’s shining star. He is described as the divine father and the heavenly Savior. New Testament scholar Dom Crossan says that archeological finds in the Roman world testify to Augustus’s stature as nothing less than Lord, Savior, Redeemer, Liberator, Divine, Son of God, God, and God from God.” Do any of these sound familiar? (www.bible.org)

7. If Mark was written during the Neronic persecution, then this description to apply to Nero as well. There is a Roman coin showing Nero wearing a radiate crown, the headdress of divinity. Nero was the first living Roman to wear this crown on coin types. Before this, only men who had been deified after death, such as Julius Caesar and Augustus, were given this honor. This could possibly be due to the fact that he was often referred to as Apollo, and lest we forget, Apollo was the son of Zeus according to Mythology.

8. If you were in the ancient world, and you wanted to locate God’s presence, you wanted to know where God dwelled, you wanted to know how God worked, you didn’t need to look any further than Caesar. Caesar was Son of God, God, and God from God. He had the will to proclaim it, the symbols to show it, the power to enforce it. Where is God, one might’ve asked? Easy: In the power and rule and way of Caesar. That is where God’s presence is located.

H. Mark 1:1 – The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

1. I believe the theme of Mark is more than Jesus as servant, and more than Jesus as the suffering servant. I think He is being compared and contrasted to the Roman Caesars who did not serve and did not suffer for their people. The theme of Mark is Jesus is the Son of God who served and suffered for His people.

2. Quote – Peter Leithart

· “Mark is known for the understated irony of his gospel, but there is a large-scale irony overarching the book that is worthy of Sophocles. Readers know from the first verse of the gospel that Jesus is Son of God, and that title is used periodically through the gospel by the Father and by demons. But no human beings recognize Jesus as Son until the centurion at the cross.”

o And do I need to point out that the centurion was Roman?

· “There is the ironic distance between our knowledge and the knowledge of the characters in the story. But that irony is eventually doubled back on the reader: Would we recognize Jesus as Son of God while He’s dying in anguish?”

I. Wait! There is more!! There is more evidence that Mark is portraying Jesus as a King worth serving because He serving His people; contrasted to the way the Caesars ruled. Immediately after stating, The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the author states,

Mark 1:2-3 NASB As it is written in Isaiah the prophet: “BEHOLD, I SEND MY MESSENGER AHEAD OF YOU, WHO WILL PREPARE YOUR WAY; (3) THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS, ‘MAKE READY THE WAY OF THE LORD, MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT.’”

1. This is a quote from Isaiah, but so much more.

J. Isaiah 40

Isaiah 40:3-5 NASB A voice is calling, “Clear the way for the LORD in the wilderness; Make smooth in the desert a highway for our God. (4) “Let every valley be lifted up, And every mountain and hill be made low; And let the rough ground become a plain, And the rugged terrain a broad valley; (5) Then the glory of the LORD will be revealed, And all flesh will see it together; For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”

1. Historical Reference – “This idea is taken from the practice of eastern Monarchs who, when they entered on a journey or expedition through lands that weren’t frequently traveled, they sent men ahead to prepare the way. These men may have to provide supplies, build bridges, cut roads through forests, etc. In order to make a way for the expedition to travel.”^[1]

2. Theological Reference – Who is the messenger preparing the way for? YAHWEH. Who did John prepare the way for? Jesus. Jesus is not only YAHWEH, but also the glory of YAHWEH.

K. Introducing Jesus to the Romans – Jesus is your King who serves and suffers for you.

III. LUKE INTRODUCING JESUS TO THE GENTILES

A. Strangely, there is no introduction of Jesus from Luke to his gentile reader(s). Instead there is an introduction to the history of the Movement Jesus started which included His followers. This introduction includes the methodology for proving who Jesus is. Jesus is not mentioned by name until v.31. Contrast that to Matthew, Mark, and John.

Luke 1:1-4 NASB Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile an account of the things accomplished among us, (2) just as they were handed down to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, (3) it seemed fitting for me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in consecutive order, most excellent Theophilus; (4) so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been taught.

Luke being the historian fills the beginning of his gospel with historical introductions. Luke, doesn’t give His introduction – all the mentioning before are from a historical perspective of others – until

B. Since Luke is interested in presenting the historical evidence of the movement and for Jesus, his introduction is lengthy, personal and historical. In fact, almost as if in the interest of saying who Jesus was, Luke points out who He was not.

B. When Luke gets around to finally introducing Jesus, he introduces Him not as to who Jesus was, but who He wasn’t.

1. Luke 3:23 – When He began His ministry, Jesus Himself was about thirty years of age, being, as was supposed, the son of Joseph, the son of Eli,

2. This concludes with Adam being called, “the son of God” (Lk.3:38).

3. Here we have an interesting connection. In Matthew, the connection was Jesus to the Jewish founder and king. In Mark, the connection was to God Himself. Here the connection is to all of us – as humanity is connected to God. And therefore we are connected to Jesus.

C. Introducing Jesus to the Gentiles – Jesus is someone like you.

IV. JOHN INTRODUCING JESUS TO THE WORLD

A. Text: John 1:1-5 – In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (2) He was in the beginning with God. (3) All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. (4) In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. (5) The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

B.

C. Introducing Jesus to the World – Jesus is the Creator of the World.

I. WHY FOUR “GOSPELS” (Biographies)?

A. A precursory observation of the introductions to each of the four gospels shows four quite distinct beginnings:

· Matthew 1:1 – The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham:

· Mark 1:1 – The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

· John 1:1 – In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

o Notice the progression – from son of David and son of Abraham to Son of God to God.

o Also notice that I left out Luke. Luke’s gospel departs from the other three by not giving an introduction to Jesus.

§ Luke 1:1-4 – Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile an account of the things accomplished among us, (2) just as they were handed down to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, (3) it seemed fitting for me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in consecutive order, most excellent Theophilus; (4) so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been taught.

B. Again we ask, why four gospels? Each presents the same Jesus but from a different angle. Why? Because the message is designed to fit the needs of the audience. That doesn’t mean the message was changed to fit the audience, but rather that the message was fitted to the audience. Think of how Peter and Paul’s introductions of Jesus differed in Acts 2 and 17.

· Matthew wrote to a Jewish audience.

· Mark wrote to a Roman audience.

· Luke wrote to a Greek audience.

· John wrote to a universal audience.

C. There is a valuable lesson – before I preach Jesus to someone, it is important to discover what their needs are, and how Jesus can answer those needs.

· Matthew’s Jewish audience needed to know that Jesus is the rightful heir of David and the fulfillment of the promise made to Abraham. What need would the Gentiles and Romans have of that?

· Mark’s Roman audience needed to see that this new king is vastly different than their Roman king – this king is not only powerful but serves the people. The Jews did not need convincing that their King was different than Caesar!

· Luke’s Gentile audience needed to understand that Jesus, although divine, was somehow connected to who they were – hence the humanity of Jesus is emphasized.

· John’s audience was the last group to receive his unique gospel which emphasizes the deity of Jesus.

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^[1]James Montgomery, Isaiah, volume II, p.5.