The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority.
Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah. Christ is 100% man and 100% God. The difference between Jesus the man and “US,” is his sinlessness. He is the Messiah - a word which is synonymous with “the Christ” and means “chosen for the task.” The task for which he was chosen - his one singular primary purpose (despite all of the many other good things he did) was to take our sins upon himself at the cross. We un-deservingly received grace and forgiveness. When we accept this gift - when we choose to believe, we are given a new start. His mercy is new to us and the sins of our past are washed away - forgotten. This is what we believe. And Jesus Christ is the one - the ONLY one - who was capable, supernaturally able, to do this.
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”
What God has done by sending his son, well, it is almost unimaginable; seemingly beyond our realm of comprehension. But we believe. We can have confidence and know that we’ll spend eternity with him. It all depends on what we believe here. Now. Believe he rose from the dead and lives in us. And it is crucial for us to know who he IS, so we can be aware with absolute certainty when we encounter what he is NOT.
And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.
To Think About
Do you believe that Jesus Christ is the Lord, the perfect, sinless, son of God? God himself in human form? Do you think that Jesus was a liar when he claimed to be such? Or do you think he was a “lunatic?”
Do you occasionally question your beliefs, what you think, what you have been taught? Read the word of God. Know that what it contains is truth. Prayerfully ask God to show you - and have confidence and certainty that he is who he says he is. Know and receive the savior.
A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic - on the level with a man who says he is a poached egg - or he would be the devil of hell. You must take your choice. Either this was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us.
Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis
Prayer
Lord, where would I be without your perfect gift of salvation? I know I am a sinner and I am forever grateful for your sacrifice. When I think of the blood you shed, the pain and humiliation you endured, I can’t fathom that I could ever be worthy. But it absolutely blows me away to realize that you love me that much. May I never forget. May I never doubt or question your love. You have changed my life. I pray as I continue to learn and grow in your word, that I could progressively become a better reflection of your love.