Who is Jesus?

[0:00] Good morning everybody. Welcome to this online service from Calvary Church here in Brighton.

[0:15] ! If you are visiting, you are very welcome. And I commend to you the series of five Easter questions, which is available separately,! and there will be a link available to take that to you as five introductory talks to Christian faith. But if you've got as far as this, maybe you'd like to join us for our online service, which is what I'm introducing just now. I'm speaking from Brighton, from Calvary Church, well actually from my study in Brighton, and we are an independent Baptist church that values Bible teaching and caring for one another. And we're usually, or we used to be, a congregation of 70 to 80 people meeting on a Sunday morning in the centre of Brighton.

[1:03] But as you can see, we're nowadays meeting by YouTube and Zoom, so you're very welcome. My name is Philip Wells. I work for the church as minister, elder, pastor, and I have done so for quite a number of years. So I'm leading this morning, and our subject is going to be, who is Jesus? It's a sort of Easter subject leading up to the great events of Easter, which we'll be commemorating in a few weeks' time. But leading up to that, who is Jesus?

[1:35] I've been reading in Mark's Gospel, and Mark tells us the story of Jesus. He presents us the person of Jesus. And you could even say that Jesus walks off the pages of Mark's Gospel as we read it and take note of it. In the incident where Jesus is in the boat, and there's a huge storm, and they think they're going to be drowned. Mark records for us how Jesus was awakened and spoke to the wind and the waves, and said, quiet, be still. And there was a huge calm. He said to his disciples, why were you so afraid?

[2:22] And having seen the huge calm, the disciples are terrified and ask each other, who is this that even the wind and waves obey him? So a good question, isn't it? Who is this? That's what we're looking at.

[2:36] When Mark gets to the end of his Gospel, he finds somebody who gives a decisive answer to this. At the death of Jesus, when he breathes his last, the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. And when the centurion, that is to say the Roman soldier, one of Jesus's executioners, who stood there in front of Jesus, heard his cry, and saw how he died, he said, surely this man was the Son of God. So who is Jesus? A question and an answer. The Son of God. Well that's what we're going to be thinking about as we continue. And we're going to sing a song to begin with, which is usually sung at Christmas, and it describes the coming of Jesus. Come all you faithful, joyful and triumphant. Come to Bethlehem. So we're starting with the birth of Jesus, and the song takes us there.

[3:41] 367, if you're interested in the number, O come all you faithful. 377, if you're interested in the number, O come all you faithful, joyful and triumphant. O come now, O come now, to Bethlehem. Come and behold him, for the Lord is the Son of God.

[4:22] 377, if you're interested in the number, O come now, to Bethlehem.

[4:52] 377, if you're interested in the number, O come now, to Bethlehem. 377, if you're interested in the number, of Bethlehem. 377, if you're interested in the number, of Bethlehem. 377, if you're interested in the number, of Bethlehem. 377, if you're interested in the number of Bethlehem. 377, if you're interested in the number of Bethlehem. 377, if you're interested in the number of Bethlehem. The Virgin's womb Very God Begotten Not created O come let us adore Him O come let us adore Him O come let us adore Him Christ the Lord Sing choirs of angels Sing in exultation Sing all you citizens Of heaven above

[5:52] Glory to God In the highest O come let us adore Him O come let us adore Him O come let us adore Him Christ the Lord Yes Lord we greet You Lord for our salvation Jesus to You Glory to You Glory to You Word of the Father Now in flesh appearing O come let us adore him, O come let us adore him, O come let us adore him, rise now.

[7:13] Now we've sung, let's pray together. Please, living God, take us in our mind's eye and in our thinking away from wherever we might be at this particular moment to the place where Jesus was born, to Bethlehem, to the scene there, to the time and place where Jesus grew up and walked the dusty roads of that faraway country.

[7:43] Take us, Lord, in our thoughts and in our thinking to the place where he died. And take us in our thoughts to the tomb which he left empty and from which in due course he ascended into heaven.

[8:00] Take our thoughts, we pray, to his heavenly seated session where he is now at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty.

[8:11] And as we locate our thoughts around Jesus Christ, we come to give you thanks because he is great and has achieved a great salvation.

[8:26] Thank you for the person of Jesus Christ, the Son through whom all things were made, the very radiance of your glory, the express image of your being.

[8:42] And thank you for the Son through whom all things that you have made, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit. Thank you that he walked and talked and did all the things that he did. Thank you for his resurrection and ascension.

[8:53] Thank you for his now being the redeeming Saviour with all power, all authority in heaven and on earth given to him.

[9:03] So we worship Jesus Christ and we lift our hearts to him in gratitude, in praise and in an appeal for help from heaven for us here on earth.

[9:16] Help each of us, Lord, we pray, to have our eyes open to see you, to be believers, to be disciples, to be followers, to turn to you in your holiness and ask that our lives might be worked through deeply with the same holiness that you have, that we might be like you.

[9:47] Help us to lift our eyes forward to the time when we will see you upon your return or if we die before that. And help us to have our thoughts in heavenly places and not confined to this earth.

[10:00] Help our thoughts not to be confined to the things that we've lost and missed and are wearied by, but the things that are in store, that are eternal, that are promised and that are unshaken.

[10:12] We do pray, Lord, for our world during this pandemic. And again and again, we pray for your mercy, that you will sustain people in loss, that you'll prevent loss of life, that you will sustain those who work in the NHS and similar causes across the world trying to save lives.

[10:36] Please protect such people.

[11:06] Please protect such people.

[11:36] Have mercy on our world. Have mercy on our nation. Have mercy on our city. Have mercy on our brothers and sisters in the churches that we think of.

[11:47] And please, Lord, please bless this time that we're having together this morning. And may we see who Jesus really is and thereby be greatly blessed. Amen.

[12:02] And now we've got something for the boys and girls. Hi, boys and girls. Here we go. I think we've got a couple of assistants to help me in the children's slot.

[12:13] Hello, everybody. This is something for Calvary Kids. And I've got here my friend Ludwig wants to say hello. Hello. OK, say hello. And Covey. And he wants to say hello as well. So hello to everybody.

[12:29] And a particular hello. Something's just fallen over. A particular hello to mums. Because today is usually seen to be Mothering Sunday, which gets moved to sort of thinking about mums.

[12:45] And we'll say, boys and girls, say thank you to your mums who've looked after you and very, very special people. So shall we say that? Yeah, we definitely will. Yeah. OK.

[12:57] So hello to mummy. And all of us have got a mum. Had a mum and we're grateful to God for them. So that's hello. And today we're going to look at Ludwig and Covey's favourite verse in the Bible. Is that right?

[13:15] It is. OK. But you're not going to tell me what it is. OK. Right. It's a favourite verse, but we'll find out what it is as we go through. And this verse explains about us. Is that right?

[13:29] Yeah. It explains about us. And it explains about Jesus. Yep. And it was written a long time before Jesus was born. And so it is a prophecy. And it's from the book of Isaiah.

[13:43] Chapter 53. And here's a picture. There's some of your friends on that picture, aren't there?

[13:55] Oh, yeah. OK. It's a picture. And we'll see it in a minute. That's a bit of a close-up. What is a picture of? Sheep. OK.

[14:08] And you recognise that sheep, do you? That's Siegfried, is it? Are you sure that's Siegfried the sheep? OK. And he's come along with you.

[14:20] So we've got Ludwig the Lamb and Siegfried the sheep. Yeah. It's no use waving to him because he can't wave back. OK. So it's about sheep. And these sheep, well, they're sort of going off in their own directions, aren't they?

[14:35] Going different directions. And that's part of what this verse is about that we're going to look at. So let's look at the verse. And you're going to help, aren't you? Yeah, you're going to help.

[14:46] And you're going to help as well. Yeah. And maybe this is something to do with what you're sitting in, which is rather strange. And what we put here, which I dropped earlier on, and this is something you've brought, isn't it?

[14:58] It's a fountain pen that used to work with ink in it. I'm not really quite sure how this is going to help us. But anyway, let's look at the verse.

[15:12] It says, We all, like sheep, have gone astray. Each of us has turned to his own way. And the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

[15:24] That's Isaiah 53, verse 6. We all, like sheep, have gone astray. Each of us has turned to his own way. And the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

[15:34] And you're going to help us on that. I'm not really quite sure what the help was. So what's your help going to be? It's what you're sitting in. Okay. What are you sitting in?

[15:46] Would you mind, Ludovic, if I just put you down for a minute so we can see what Kobe's got here. So he's got one of these. This is what you've brought to help, is it? Very helpful.

[15:58] Okay. What is it? It's an ashtray. Okay. Well, how does that help? It says, what? No, no, no. All we like sheep have gone ashtray.

[16:10] No, it doesn't say we all like sheep have gone ashtray. It says we've all gone astray. It does. It's all right. You don't have to be sad. But it, yeah, well, it's very nice to have the ashtray.

[16:22] It's a nice ashtray. But it doesn't say we all like sheep have gone ashtray. It says we all have gone astray. It means go off in different directions. If I just put you down for a minute.

[16:35] You were going to help Ludwig about something, weren't you? And that's why you brought this pen. So how does this pen help us? It's an ink pen. Okay.

[16:45] Oh, I don't understand how that helps us. The Lord has laid on him the inquity of his soul. No, it's not inquity. No, it's not inquity.

[16:57] No, it's iniquity. Yeah. Iniquity means being bad. It does. Yeah. It's not to do with ink. No, you don't have to feel sad because you've got it wrong.

[17:09] Don't worry. But it's helpful because it helps us remember anyway. The Lord has laid on him the iniquity. That's the bad things of us all. So thanks, guys, for trying to help.

[17:21] And let's just come back up here. So not ashtray and not ink, but the Lord, we all like sheep have gone astray. Each of us has turned his own way and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

[17:33] And it teaches about us that although God made us, we all go our own way. Yeah, we do. Don't be too sad about that. But that's the way, that's what our sin makes us do.

[17:45] We go our own way. And that's a wrong thing to do because God wants us to go his way. And it's very, very wrong. And that's what's called iniquity. But Jesus willingly took the punishment which the Lord laid on him instead of us.

[18:02] The Lord laid on him the iniquity of us all. And that's good, isn't it? Yeah, it's very good. So we don't have to bear the punishment for that ourselves.

[18:14] Jesus took that punishment for us. So that's the verse. And that's a good verse, isn't it? Yeah. See if you can remember it at home.

[18:24] Got a little activity and a song. So the activity is making pom-pom sheep. And if you look on YouTube how to make pom-pom sheep, you can see some details.

[18:48] And you need some white wool. No, you do need white wool. You don't need white wool. Sheep are all different colours.

[19:00] I don't think they are. You've got some pictures. Okay, so you've got some pictures to show that sheep are different colours. So here's a man wearing a woolly pullover from a sheep that is sky blue.

[19:12] And here's a woman wearing a pullover that's coral. Okay, so that comes from a coral sheep, does it? Yeah. Okay. And here's somebody wearing a stripy woolen pullover, which must have come from a stripy sheep.

[19:27] Is that what you're saying? Right. I'm not too convinced about that. I think white wool. But okay, you could have some other colours. Sky blue sheep, coral sheep or a stripy sheep.

[19:39] And you need something for a sheep's face. So some black paper and some sheep's legs. And send in some photos. And we'll put on the video any that we've made during the course of today.

[19:53] Any we've made at home here. And we can all look at them. So in a minute we'll sing that song. Well, you want to sing the song, do you? You want to sing the song but you can't read the words.

[20:07] Okay, but we can still sing the song. And we'll say a prayer. Thank you, Lord, for laying on Jesus our sin and iniquity. And that he took it for us. Amen. And here's the song about the old rugged cross.

[20:20] And Mark and Sammy are going to sing this to us. So we're going to say goodbye. Okay, okay, okay. Right, don't get carried away. So bye-bye, kids. And let us know how you get on with the pom-pom sheep.

[20:31] Bye. I will cling to the old rugged cross and exchange it someday for a crown.

[21:19] Oh, that old rugged cross, so despised by the world, has a wondrous attraction for me.

[21:29] For the dear Lamb of God left His glory above to bear into the Calvary.

[21:42] So I'll cherish the old rugged cross till my trophies at last are laden.

[21:52] I will cling to the old rugged cross and exchange it someday for a crown.

[22:04] In the old rugged cross, staying with blood so divine, a wondrous beauty I see.

[22:14] For it was all that old cross Jesus suffered and died to burden and sanctify me.

[22:27] So I'll cherish the old rugged cross till my trophies at last are laden. I will cling to the old rugged cross and exchange it someday for a crown.

[22:49] To the old rugged cross, I will ever be true, its shame and reproach gladly bear.

[22:59] Then you'll call me someday to my home far away, where His glory forever I'll share.

[23:12] So I'll cherish the old rugged cross till my trophies at last are laden. I will cling to the old rugged cross and exchange it someday for a crown.

[23:36] Well, as before, if you have any success with that activity, I'd love to see some photos or videos, but send those in. But just now we're going to continue thinking about who is Jesus.

[23:50] And we're going to have read to us from Mark's Gospel as Mark introduces the star of his Gospel with some really quick sort of snapshot pictures of Jesus in action.

[24:02] You notice the word immediately or quickly or then or something like that, depending on translation. So here's Ray going to read to us. Thank you very much, Ray, for reading from Mark's Gospel, chapter 1, verses 1 to 34.

[24:16] The reading is taken from Mark, chapter 1, verses 1 to 34. The beginning of the Gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God. It is written in Isaiah the prophet, And so John came, baptising in the desert region and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

[24:50] John came, the whole Judean countryside, and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptised by him in the Jordan River.

[25:04] John wore clothing made of camel's hair, with a leather belt round his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. And this was his message.

[25:14] At that time, Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee, and was baptised by John in the Jordan.

[25:39] As Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open, and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven.

[25:52] You are my Son, whom I love. With you I am well pleased. At once the Spirit sent him out into the desert, and he was in the desert for forty days, being tempted by Satan.

[26:07] He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him. After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God.

[26:21] The time has come, he said. The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news. As Jesus walked beside the sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen.

[26:41] Come, follow me, Jesus said, and I will make you fishers of men. At once they left their nets and followed him. When he had gone a little farther, he saw James, son of Zebedee, and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets.

[27:01] Without delay, he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat, with the hired men, and followed him. They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach.

[27:20] The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law. Just then, a man in their synagogue, who was possessed by an evil spirit, cried out, What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth?

[27:39] Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God. Be quiet, said Jesus sternly. Come out of him.

[27:51] The evil spirit shook the man violently, and came out of him with a shriek. The people were all so amazed, that they asked each other, What is this?

[28:04] A new teaching, and with authority. He even gives orders to evil spirits, and they obey him. News about him spread quickly, over the whole region of Galilee.

[28:18] As soon as they left the synagogue, they went with James and John, to the home of Simon and Andrew. Simon's mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told Jesus about her.

[28:31] So he went to her, took her hand, and helped her up. The fever left her, and she began to wait on them. That evening, after sunset, the people brought to Jesus all the sick and demon-possessed.

[28:48] The whole town gathered at the door, and Jesus healed many who had various diseases. He also drove out many demons, but he would not let the demons speak, because they knew who he was.

[29:04] And so says God's word. We've read from the opening of the story of Jesus. We're going to sing 396, from heaven you came, helpless babe.

[29:16] Entered our world, your glory veiled. Not to be served, but to serve, and give your life that we might live. So it's 396, if you want the number, and it traces from the birth of Jesus, through his prayer in the Garden of Tears, to his cross, where his hands and feet were scarred, and it invites us to learn from his example, and to serve one another.

[29:45] So that's 396, after which we'll go into the talk. From heaven you came, helpless babe.

[30:11] Entered our world, your glory veiled. Not to be served, but to serve, and give your life that we might live.

[30:34] This is our God, the servant King, He calls us now, to follow him, to bring our lives, as a daily offering, of worship to, the servant King.

[31:03] There in the Garden of Tears, my heavy load, he chose to bear, his heart with sorrow was torn, yet not my will, but yours, he said, this is our God, the servant King, He calls us now, to follow him, to bring our lives, as a daily offering, of worship to, the servant King.

[31:56] come see his hands, come see his hands, and his feet, the scars that speak, of sacrifice, hands that flung stars, into space, to cruel nails, to cruel nails, surrender.

[32:25] This is our God, the servant King, He calls us now, to follow him, to bring our lives, as a daily offering, of worship to, the servant King.

[32:51] King. So let us learn, how to serve, and in our lives, enthroning, each other's needs, to prefer, for it is Christ, we're serving, this is our God, the servant King, He calls us now, to follow him, to bring our lives, as a daily offering, of worship to, the servant King.

[33:56] Well again, we're looking to God, to help us, as we think about, approaching Easter, and that's what we're thinking about, this morning. Lord, we so much want, to know you ourselves, and be in living contact, with you, and we so much want, our neighbours, to encounter you, in this city, where so few people, seem to really know you.

[34:25] Please bless this word, that we're considering, so that there will be, deep spiritual effect. We can't do this ourselves, but we look to, the power of the Holy Spirit, to change us, and to bring, people into your kingdom, through, the grace, and mercy, of Jesus Christ, we pray.

[34:47] Amen. We've been through, virtually a year, of upheaval, and isolation, and mental, and emotional, pressure, and, either brushes, with death, or encounters, with death, and, to one extent, or another, continual, low level, or perhaps higher level, fear.

[35:12] These are, big things, that we've been through, some of us more than others, and as a church, certainly, we've been through, these things together. And what is this meant to do?

[35:24] It's meant, to turn us, to God, our maker. Return to me, and I will, return to you, says the Lord, in a number of different places, in the Bible.

[35:36] So, now, we're coming up to Easter, and, Easter is a time, to look back, and remember, Jesus, death, and resurrection.

[35:48] And, maybe some of you are looking, and for the first time, there's a certain, poignancy about this. The one man, who defeated death, through his resurrection, and gave us, forgiveness, and hope.

[36:04] Time to look back, to look up, to the realities, of God, and eternity. Perhaps we hadn't thought, about that, for a long, long time, but it's the right time, to be thinking, about that now. Maybe with a new relevance.

[36:17] And, even, now, to be looking forward, to this whole issue, of life, after death. Perhaps with a new, keenness, and interest.

[36:27] Anyway, that's the opportunity, we have, and, we have online services, leading up to Easter, a great opportunity, to explore, and appreciate, the meaning, of what's celebrated, at Easter.

[36:40] So not the bunny rabbits, and the, chicks, and eggs, but, Jesus Christ. We're going to look, at Bible texts, we're going to look, at big questions, in the mornings, we're going to be thinking, who is Jesus, what did he do?

[36:54] We're going to think, about Palm Sunday, we're going to think, about Easter Day, in the evenings, we've got, a similar, set of, talks, and thoughts, leading up to Easter.

[37:05] In addition to that, there are five, questions for newcomers, if you're a newcomer, take a look, at this, playlist, look at what, is Christian faith, the Easter fact, is it believable, Easter hope, is it good, Jesus and faith, is it necessary, Jesus, faith, and Easter, how does it all work?

[37:26] So, those are, that's what we have in store, and this morning, we're going to look at, who is Jesus, that large question, just who is Jesus? And first of all, let me encourage, every one of us, to bother with this, why bother with it?

[37:40] Because, Jesus Christ, has had this huge impact, on history, on the whole course, of Western civilization, the calendar, before Christ, and year of our Lord, he's big, isn't he?

[37:56] And, worth bothering with. And, we don't have, I want to say, I don't think we have, an answer to life, unless we've got, an answer regarding, who Jesus is.

[38:10] He's part of, this world's history, and if we haven't, worked out how, he fits into that, and we fit with him, we haven't understood. And because, Christianity is, Jesus Christ, it's not church, it's not morality, it's not culture, it is fundamentally, him.

[38:29] And God says, that each of our lives, here and hereafter, is pinned exactly, on our relationship, with Jesus. He's the, key, and centre, of our human existence.

[38:44] So, I'm a believer, in Jesus Christ, and I'm going to try, and be persuasive, in what I say, to be persuasive, with sound reasoning, but, conscious that, the very best reasoning, that I can bring, won't, be effective, without the supernatural, help of the Holy Spirit.

[39:01] So I'm counting, on supernatural help, as well as, hopeful, sorry, helpful words. So who is Jesus? I'd like to say, these things.

[39:12] Number one, he's a real person, not a figment, of imagination. Number two, he's an obscure person. Number three, a superb teacher. Number four, a miracle worker.

[39:25] Number five, a Jew. Number six, a man with colossal authority, such that the word, Lord, is attached to him, and we'll spend, a little time, thinking of how, big a meaning, is attached, to the word, Lord, when connected, with Jesus.

[39:42] So, let's go straight on, shall we? Number one, he's a real person. So he's recorded, in historical documents, I mean, there's imaginary Jesuses, like the ones that Leonard Cohen sings about, Jesus was a sailor, and, what does it say, he walked upon the water, or something like that.

[40:01] But he's, he's talking about an imaginary Jesus, although the real Jesus did walk on water. Listen to Leonard Cohen's song. But there is a real Jesus, recorded in historical documents.

[40:13] One of the proponents, of the Christian message, Dr Luke, says, that he's investigated thoroughly, before he writes down, his account of Jesus.

[40:25] John says, it's the things that we have heard, we have seen with our eyes, and touched with our hands. These are the things, that we're speaking about, or writing about, to our readers.

[40:38] The Apostle Paul, talked about the resurrection, and said, it has been seen by people. And if it's not real and true, then says, the Apostle Paul about himself, and his colleagues, we have all men, most to be pitted.

[40:56] The Guardian, on the 14th of April, 2017, Simon Gathercole, reader in New Testament Studies, at the University of Cambridge, wrote, these abundant historical references, leave us with little reasonable doubt, that Jesus lived and died.

[41:12] The more interesting question, which goes beyond history, and objective fact, is whether Jesus died and lived. So he's touching upon the resurrection, but Jesus being a historical person.

[41:23] C.S. Lewis, writer of the Narnia books, professor of medieval and renaissance literature, in Cambridge, said, Jesus is one of the few men of literature, who comes across as a real life figure.

[41:34] I think that's my paraphrase, of what he says, I don't think I could find the original reference. Rico Tice, the Anglican clergyman, says, that Jesus, steps off the pages of Mark's Gospel, there is something real, about him, as we encounter him, in the documents.

[41:54] So number one, he's a real historical person. Number two, he's an obscure person. So you don't get far, researching Jesus, without coming across this fact.

[42:05] There is nothing showy, and show offy, about Jesus. And it's a rather attractive characteristic. His family origins are small. I know he's traced back to the wonderful Jewish King David, the superstar, as it were, of their history.

[42:25] But his origins are really small. He's the son of a carpenter. He's born to a country girl, born in a stable, or depending on the translation, maybe in the, well, in a stable, because there was no room in the guest room.

[42:44] Located in a small town, in a small, distant country. So, he wasn't born in New York. He wasn't born in London, or Berlin, or any of the big, important capitals, as we would see, but, all those years ago, in that sort of place.

[43:03] The location of his, most of his ministry, was in Galilee, and even his fellow citizens, would have, slightly looked down on Galilee, as being up north, and, not very sophisticated, but that's where Jesus, decided he would do, most of his ministry.

[43:18] He never got married, never lived in a palace, never gained political power, never headed up an army, never got on the news, never wrote a book, and yet, his influence, is absolutely colossal.

[43:33] His death, was ignominious. He was crucified, and, that sort of death, was reserved, for, the lowest of the low, people who were, utterly despised, I guess in the way, that we would, despise, in our culture, we would despise, paedophiles, and, that was how he was treated, in his death.

[43:55] And yet, who, has had, who, has, such, a large, devoted following, as Jesus? righteousness. And, I just add, as a footnote, that God seemed to be so determined, to set the record straight, on Jesus' grandeur, and rightness, that, uniquely, God raised him, from the dead, as a sort of endorsement.

[44:20] So, that extraordinary humility, humility, the Apostle Paul comments on this, and says, it's a God-like humility. There's something, that reveals, the humility of God himself, in, the obscurity, of Jesus.

[44:37] So remarkable, as, in and of itself, almost, to provoke admiration, and worship. Number two, an obscure person. Number three, a superb, teacher.

[44:50] So, if the records, say anything, they say, he was, a teacher. He's called that, rabbi, teacher. Crowds, followed him. Crowds, listened to him.

[45:02] In the gospel accounts, they pushed so hard, to get near him, and hear him, that he, in the end, got into a boat, stood off away, from the shoreline, so that, he could actually, speak to them, without being, crushed, and, people, would be able, to hear him.

[45:21] It seems, that people listened to him, for hours on end, if not days on end. What a speaker, he must have been. You know, we have problems, listening, to 30 minutes or so, but, Jesus was such, a captivating speaker.

[45:34] He was the master, of a variety, of speaking styles. He used parables, the kingdom of heaven, is like, a farmer, and so on, and he added, private interpretation, to those parables.

[45:47] He gave, lengthy sermons, we have, the sermon on the mount, I mean, the word sermon is ours, not his, of which we have summaries, but, people listen, to those sermons.

[46:01] He, said remarkable things, I am the, I am statements, in John's gospel, I am the bread of life, I am the good shepherd, the way, the truth, and the life.

[46:13] These, remarkable, self-statements, which, come across, not as boasts, and, as, being puffed up, but as being simple, statements, of truth.

[46:25] Only Jesus, could do that. There are, mysterious meditations, where Jesus, says, no one knows the Father, except the Son, and those, to whom the Son, chooses, to reveal him.

[46:39] And the, sovereign, status, of the Son, as the one, who knows the Father, and the Father, knows him, and the Son, choosing to reveal, the Father, to people.

[46:52] And, by common consent, he taught with authority, not like the Jewish scribes. And the voice from heaven, said, this is my Son, listen to him. This is my Son, listen to him.

[47:04] Listen to those words. The one whom God has sent, speaks the very words of God, it says in John 3. The words I speak, says Jesus, are spirit and life.

[47:16] So, he was a superb teacher, and of course, the right thing to do with a teacher, is to listen. So, let's listen to Jesus. Number four, he was a miracle worker. Now, although in our, in our culture, we are sceptical about miracles, or perhaps we are, as part of our sort of science-based culture, that would be sceptical of this.

[47:39] That's still alive and well, isn't it? But his contemporary opponents did not, because they could not deny this. His opponents said, here's this man performing many miraculous signs, if we go on like this, many will believe in him.

[47:53] So, they had to do something about him. They did, he did miracles, the quantity of miracles. It isn't just that one or two things might have been done, that one or two people picked up on, and you're not quite sure, whether you can rely on them.

[48:11] Statements like this, the whole town gathered at the door, and Jesus healed many, who had various diseases. And like this, all over Syria, all who were ill with various diseases, came, and he healed them all.

[48:27] The hospitals would have been emptied. He, single-handedly, it seems, eradicated disease, from large swathes, of his country.

[48:40] And the quality, of his miracles. There were healings, of various sorts, exorcisms, the driving out of the devil. He did them in private, he did them in public.

[48:52] One of his, most remarkable miracles, the feeding of the 5,000, obviously in public. Crossing, water, walking on water, changing water into wine.

[49:05] And the quality, of these miracles, they're not self-serving. He doesn't make a quick buck out of them. It's not to do with money, but largely, to do with restoring, and preserving, human life, and dignity.

[49:18] And that's not, in the way, the nature miracles as well. But, they're human, very largely, to restoring, human, thriving, human dignity, human wholeness.

[49:31] and you could well see, that Jesus is in token, restoring Eden, and bringing, a new world order, in embryo.

[49:43] And these miracles, are referred to as signs. Now a sign points, to something, beyond itself. And these signs, point, to something.

[49:54] He opened eyes, perhaps pointing to the opening, of spiritual eyes. He got people back, on their feet, perhaps pointing to, Jesus, getting us back, on our spiritual legs.

[50:07] And all these, miracles, express, Jesus' own personal authority. As well as, depicting for us, the, depth, and, heartbreakingness, of human need.

[50:23] And Jesus, saw that, and responded to it. And maybe, we can be glad, to, identify ourselves, into this picture, and say, I need healing.

[50:35] I need help. I need strength. I need your touch, today, and every day, and indeed, every moment. I need your miracles, in my life.

[50:47] He was a miracle worker. Help me, and heal me, Lord. Number five, he was a Jew. I mentioned this, you might think it's obvious, or perhaps not, something to be stated, but it is important, because Jesus did not, operate in a religious, and spiritual vacuum.

[51:06] And he didn't operate, as I said earlier, in New York, he didn't operate, in modern Europe. He operated, in a particular place, and particular time, and being, a Jew, is crucial to this.

[51:24] Now, he's part of, the line, of Israel, and you might say, just putting it in a nutshell, Israel was God's, Petri dish. You know, you have a, a dish, a medical, people, to do medical, tests, and into this dish, you put, certain ingredients, and then you stand back, and see, how they grow, whether there's germs there, that are going to grow, or fungi, or whatever it is.

[51:48] And, into this Petri dish, God puts various ingredients, into this specific, people, to show, really, how all people are, but it's shown, in a specific way.

[52:00] And they're shown, the character, of the Creator God. God shows himself, to these people, as the Lord, or Yahweh, in Hebrew. And they experience, the power, of the Creator God.

[52:11] They experience, redemption, and deliverance. And they're commanded, with the ethical norms, of the Lord. He's the God, of, in Hebrew, Tzedek, or Tzedekah, Mishpat, and Chesed, of righteousness, justice, and steadfast love.

[52:29] And, these people, sort of, imbued with this. And, this is a part of the, ingredients, of their situation. And, it's this people, to whom the Lord, shows, his future plans, and promises, for the whole world.

[52:45] Through the seed of Abraham, all the nations, of the earth, will be blessed. And Jesus, stands in that, particular stream. And, not just stands, in the stream of it, but, radically interprets it.

[52:57] And, in a sense, makes himself, the focal point, of all this. He centres, the promises of God, upon himself. You remember those, I am statements.

[53:09] And, he has a profound, and scathing critique, of what the Jewish, establishment, has done, with those promises. He says, of the temple, you know, this was supposed, to be a house of prayer.

[53:21] You've made it, a den of thieves. And, he looks around, at them, at one occasion, angry, at the Jewish establishment, for their hardness of heart. And, how they have, resisted, and, diverted, and perhaps even, perverted, the purposes of God, which Jesus says, are, in his hands.

[53:43] And, he is the, the one, who will open up, those purposes, to the whole world. the, the Christmas carol, says, little town of Bethlehem, the hopes and fears, of all the years, are met, in thee tonight.

[53:59] And, Jesus' Jewish situation, indeed, makes the hopes, of all the years, and the fears, of all the years, meet, in him.

[54:13] There's a thing, called the scandal, of particularity. meaning to say, well, why, why does God, just work, in one country, and in one person?

[54:23] Why can't he just work, in all of us, equally? And, you know, why did he choose, Israel, and not Italy, or, Nigeria, or, Germany, or wherever?

[54:36] But, God did choose that, and that was, his choice, and we have to humble ourselves, and say, we need to learn, from the Jewish scriptures, we need to align ourselves, with the purposes of God, as, through Abraham, and his seed, and that is where, we will be blessed.

[54:56] God chose to show himself, to the world, in this way, and it's, our first lesson, in humility, to not argue with him, but to say, okay, show us how, that all works out, teach us, open our ears, so that we can learn, and humble us, so that we can follow, and meet with us, so that we can, meet with you.

[55:21] Number six, colossal, authority. Jesus is, a man of, colossal, authority. In, Mark's gospel, that we had read to us, we began to see, something of this, his lordly, authority, over, well, over Satan, he tells the demons, to get out, over disease, he heals diseases, with a touch, or with a word, over nature, he stills the storm, he has authority, on earth, to forgive sins, that's a huge authority, and, these, components, add up, to a very, very big picture, such that, in Luke's gospel, Jesus can say, why do you call me, Lord, Lord, and not do the things, that I say, and he can, hinge, life and death, on this, whoever comes to me, and hears my words, and puts them into practice, is like a man, who builds his house, upon the rock, to hear Jesus words, and, to, take them, as from the Lord, and obey them, is the rock, on which lives are built, or the sand, if, in case of, failing to do that, the sand, on which lives, collapse, irredeemably,

[56:43] Jesus can say, the son of man, meaning himself, is Lord, of the Sabbath, the Sabbath, is God's day, in the Hebrew scriptures, that's, God's timetable, and Jesus can say, I'm Lord of that, is a huge claim, whatever else it may mean, it's a huge claim, he can talk, about himself, as the son of David, and David's Lord, and propounding, to, the Jewish, teachers, how can David's Lord, be his son, it comes from Psalm 110, but without going into that, Jesus sees himself, as David's Lord, David being, the superstar king, as I mentioned before, and David being the, and Jesus being the Lord, of David, and Jesus had no problems, with his own lordship, he was humble, but he, he showed, his authority, he acted, without effort, or embarrassment, as Lord, of all, his colossal authority, so have we got, the right end of the stick, absolutely we have, this is a correct, and crucial, understanding of Jesus, and it comes from, the master's own lips, and it's followed on, by, what happened to him later,

[58:05] I mean, I know we're coming on, to what he did, but it speaks, to who he is, when he was raised, from the dead, the apostle Peter, could say, now, this is, helps us to understand, this, it, constrains us, to understand, who Jesus is, let all Israel, let all Israel, be assured of this, Jesus has made, sorry, God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord, and Christ, the resurrection, brings Jesus, into a new phase, of his work, as reigning king, rather than suffering servant, but that's him, the resurrection, demonstrates, who he is, as a ringing endorsement, from God, God, backs up, this man, by like, by raising him, from the dead, the apostle Paul, writing to the Romans, says, through the spirit, of holiness, he was declared, with power, to be son of God, by his resurrection, from the dead, there's something, enormously, confirming, and affirming, about his resurrection, and Paul goes on, later to say, about, that he suffered death, on the cross, therefore,

[59:17] God highly exalted him, and gave him, Hashem, the name, that is above every name, that at the name, of Jesus, every knee should bow, and every tongue confess, that in heaven, and on earth, and every tongue confess, that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God, the Father, God exalted him, and gave him, the name such that, everyone should bow, to Jesus Christ, such is the grandeur, of his lordship, and the, obvious, and simple statement, is, that if he is Lord, and I live in, the same world as him, then, if he is Lord of all, I need to be, his willing servant, I need to be saying, Lord, whatever you want me to do, wherever you want me to go, whoever you want me to be with, I will do that, that, is, me, being your, humble servant, and that's exactly, what I want to be,

[60:21] Lord, help me, so who is Jesus, we went through this, and he's number one, a real person, not a figment, not like Robin Hood, number two, he's an obscure person, well that obscurity, shows his, humility divine, and makes him, so admirable to worship, and follow, a superb teacher, to whom we should listen, this is my son, listen to him, a miracle worker, the signs of his power, the signs of the sort of person, he, is, and the program, that he came to follow, and really signs, of who we are, we need, the miraculous touch, of Jesus, on our lives, every day, number five, he's a Jew, the purposes of God, can't be understood, without seeing him, embedded in the purposes, of the Hebrew scriptures, to which, we must turn, and number six, a colossal, authority, in that simple word,

[61:25] Lord, in the simple confession, the, Christian confession, Jesus Christ, is Lord, and therefore, our part, to gladly, bow at his feet, that's where it leaves us, and that's where we, come to at the end of this, talk, who is Jesus, that's who he is, may we be found, worshippers, listeners, followers, disciples, lovers, of this Jesus Christ, Amen.

[61:58] Amen. Well, we've been thinking about, who is Jesus, and, seeing something, of the magnitude, of his greatness, and there's more to come, but, let's sing, this closing song, who has held the oceans, in his hands, it starts off, describing, the living God, the creator God, and then, it very boldly, moves to saying, this creator God, is the same person, that felt the nails, in his hands, and died, on the cross, and identifies Jesus, as none other than, Yahweh, the Lord, the creator, the son of God, who has held the oceans, in his hands.

[62:42] who has held, the oceans, in his hands, who has numbered, every grain of sand, beings, and nations, thankful, at his voice, all creation, rises to rejoice, Behold, our God, seated on his throne, come let us adore him, Behold, the king, nothing can compare, come let us adore him, who has given counsel, to the Lord, who can question, many of his words, who can teach, each, the one, who knows, all things, who can fathom, all his wondrous peace,

[64:31] Behold, our God, seated on his throne, come let us adore him, Behold, our king, nothing can compare, come let us adore him, who has felt, the nails upon his hands, bearing all the guilt, our sinful man, God eternal, humble to the grave, Jesus,

[65:31] Savior, Jesus, risen now to reign, behold, behold, the Lord, God, seated on his throne, come let us adore him, behold, our king, nothing can compare, come let us adore him, God let us adore him, who has felt, our king, nothing can compare, God let us adore him,

[66:33] So for our closing prayer, let me quote the ancient blessing in the book of Numbers chapter 6 and add a prayer to it as we close.

[66:53] The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord turn his face towards you and give you peace.

[67:07] May we know that blessing, Lord, and if there's anybody who's been watching who is outside of that blessing because they haven't quite got the idea of who Jesus is, then I would pray on their behalf.

[67:20] Open my eyes, let me understand, because I can't be satisfied until I get to know who Jesus is. and may that blessing belong to each one who watches this broadcast.

[67:37] Amen. Amen. That's the end. I again recommend to you the five Easter questions and the children's slot was available separately and we'll continue this next week and hope to see you then.

[67:51] Until then, it's bye-bye from me. Bye-bye. Bye-bye.