My Own Personal Jesus

Identity“My Own Personal Jesus”-11CCC, 3-25-18Jeff Wells

Good Morning, my name is Jeff Wells and I’m the Connections Pastor here at CCC.I’d like to welcome all of our guests here today!And I’d like to say hello to everyone watching online.  -we know most people will check us out online before they ever visit-so, we look forward to seeing you soon…

INTRODUCTION Jab 1:  White Chocolate vs. Real ChocolateI’d like to start today by telling you about one of the longest, ongoing, disputes in our 27 year marriage.  It always comes up, especially this time of year.  To be honest, it has caused quite a bit of discussion, and tension over the years, and unfortunately, Kristine has co-opted our oldest daughter, Bethany, into the debate. It’s really simple - is white chocolate “real” chocolate? Stores are full of Easter candy and the classic is the Chocolate Easter Bunny, right? So why is it that my wife insists that white chocolate isn’t “real” chocolate?Well, to be honest, she doesn’t play fair because, being the scientist that she is, she insists on looking at the ingredients to make her point.  And, to her credit, there is no chocolate, in white chocolate. Really, going to go there are we?  Using facts to prove your point?  That hardly seems fair! So, why would they call white chocolate if it isn’t chocolate?  I’m not a multinational candy company so I don’t know the official answer, but I think it has something to do with the fact that white chocolate contains cocoa butter which is “part of chocolate”.   Here’s the point, there is real chocolate - it’s main ingredient is chocolate! Then there is white chocolate which is not real chocolate no matter how much it reminds us of the real thing. Does it really matter what’s real or not?TRANSITION STATEMENT:  When it comes to chocolate vs. white chocolate, no it really doesn’t matter.  I don’t care what you call it, I just like it! But what about when it comes to Jesus? Does it really matter if we are worshiping the real Jesus or not?

Jab 2:  Augustine Quote:“If you believe what you like in the Gospel, and reject what you don’t like, it’s not the Gospel you believe, but yourself.” I’d like to adjust that just slightly this morning: “If you believe what you like about Jesus and reject what you don’t like, it’s not the real Jesus you believe, but yourself.”

TRANSITION STATEMENT:

As we prepare for Easter this week, I want to make sure we are worshiping the real Jesus. Jab 3: The Real Face of JesusDid you know that Jesus probably did not look like this: SHOW PIC OF CLASSIC JESUS I have a personal dislike for any depiction of what Jesus looked like.My distaste for supposed images of Jesus is that it is based entirely on supposition.The artist “thinks” this is what Jesus looked like “to him.” We have no idea what Jesus Christ really looked like. However, thanks to a new field of science, forensic anthropology, we may have a better idea of what the real Jesus may have looked like.  In a 2002 edition of Popular Mechanics, the cover story was “The Real Face of Jesus”. Using methods similar to those police have developed to solve crimes, British scientists, assisted by Israeli archeologists, have recreated what they believe is the most accurate image of the most famous face in human history. SHOW IMAGE OF “REAL FACE OF JESUS” Very different look indeed.Here’s the problem:  it’s still supposition based on slightly more information on what “most” people looked like from that part of the world at the time Jesus lived.

TRANSITION STATEMENT: As much as I dislike the portraits of Jesus, I can not deny that there is a desire, a deep desire, in the hearts of people to discover the “real” Jesus.

Right Hook:  The Search for the “real” Jesus SHOW EASTER MAGAZINE EXAMPLESThe Resurrecton of Jesus (An Easter Miracle)Jesus: His Life & Story History Channel & Time Inc.Jesus: Who Do You Say That I Am? TRANSITION STATEMENT:There is a quest to know the “real” Jesus.It is alive and well over 2,000 years after His birth, life, death and resurrection. I’d suggest we look not to popular magazines, convient cable networks, pop culture or to what our grandparents told us about Jesus. Rather, let’s turn to the most reliable testimony, based on eyewitness accounts, about Jesus, the Bible, to get an accurate understanding of who the real Jesus is. It’s a matter of life or death that we make sure we are worshiping the real Jesus this Easter. Jesus said:READ “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ It’s a matter of life or death that we make sure we are worshiping the real Jesus this Easter. EXPLANATION Turn in your Bibles or click on your Bible App to  (p. 697 in Bibles under the chairs in front of you) READ -11Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” 4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying,5 “Say to the daughter of Zion,‘Behold, your king is coming to you,    humble, and mounted on a donkey,    on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’”6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. 8 Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” 10 And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.” The Background:Palm Sunday, as we have come to know it, was a day of celebration. Jesus, the one who was the promised King from the line of David, the man who had demonstrated that He was a mighty man of God, a prophet, was entering Jerusalem for the final time. The crowd that was with Jesus that day went all out.Some took of their outer garments, their cloaks, and laid them on the donkey that Jesus sat upon.Most of the crowd used their cloaks to lay on the ground for the animal to walk on.And still others cut palms from nearby trees and spread them on the road.All this in an effort to celebrate Jesus!He was here to save His people. But how? What did Jesus’ kingdom look like? Who was this man? That’s what many in Jerusalem were asking when this noisy, celebratory crowd with a man on a donkey entered into the city that day. READ -119 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” 10 And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.” That’s the question for us today as well, isn’t it? Who is this? Notice the answer from the crowd with Jesus that day: “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.” That’s it! He’s here!Let’s get free from whatever we feel is oppressing us. Here’s the problem, though:On Sunday they celebrate Jesus as King, the promised Messiah, but by Friday they wanted to crucify Him.   What happened? How did the crowd go from loving Jesus to hating Jesus? Jesus had:Healed the sick, restored sight to the blind, made the lame to walk again, feed thousands, cured leprosy, and raised the dead to life again.He had also affirmed that He was the son of God.

Simply, Jesus had gone from who they wanted Him to be to who He really was (all along).   They had their limited, partial, and therefore, wrong ideal of who the “real” Jesus was. He wasn’t just a prophet, a great man of God - He was God!He wasn’t just a king who would rescue God’s people from oppression from the Roman empire - He was the King of Kings who would rescue God’s people from the oppression of their sin empire. For the people, this was too much.  This was too hard. This was too demanding.  This was too risky.   Unfortunately, like us today, they had their own ideas about who Jesus was and what He had come to do. There are a lot of misconceptions about Jesus.There is a real Jesus, and unfortunately, there are a lot of fake Jesuses.   I am amazed at the number of ways people want to see Jesus. QUOTE: Pastor J.D. Grear“You don’t get your own, personal Jesus” We don’t get to pick and choose the Jesus we want and erase, ignore or minimize, the real Jesus who is. QUOTE: J.D. Grear“God is not “ours.” He is his own. He’s not a salad bar where we take the items we have an appetite for and leave the others. He’s not the Burger King God, where you “have him your way,” or a Build-A-Bear God, where you assemble the deity you like best.” Rather, we must accept Jesus for who He really is. This Easter, I want to make sure we are worshiping the “real” Jesus. How Can I Know I’m Worshiping the Real Jesus? Is the real Jesus worthy of worship? Many will say “Jesus never said He was God.”  Well, no, not using those exact words in that exact manner. However, the evidence from Scripture is overwhelming that time and time again Jesus affirmed that He was God. Today I want us to look at just a few examples of Jesus own words about who He, the “real” Jesus, was. So who did Jesus say He was? 1.  Jesus said He was the son of God In , we read about the time Jesus was confronted by Jewish religious leaders for healing a lame man by the Sheep Gate pool on the Sabbath: “But Jesus answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.”This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God. ()  Here Jesus demonstrated that He was of God by healing the lame man.In addition to this demonstration, Jesus referred to God as His Father, thereby claiming deity as being the Son of God. Evidence of this is the way the Jews responded to His claim: They wanted to kill him because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was “making himself equal with God.” Jesus said He was the Son of God

2.  Jesus applied the name of God to Himself In , we read about an exchange Jesus had with the Phrases after the woman who was caught in adultery was brought before Him.   The Jewish religious leaders had argued that they were godly because they were descendants of Abraham.  In response,  Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” () “I am” was the title God gave Himself when asked by Moses who He was. In using this title, Jesus is clearly communicating to the Jewish leaders in front of Him, and to us today, that He was God. We see that confirmed in their response to Jesus claim to be “I am”. So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple. () Again, they wanted to kill Jesus because blasphemy was punishable by death.   They believed Jesus had blasphemed God by making Himself equal with God, thus deserving of death.Jesus said He was the Son of GodJesus applied the name of God to Himself 3.  Jesus called Himself “Son of Man” Son of Man was Jesus’ favorite way to speak about Himself.The term “Son of Man” is recorded 80 times in the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John). Son of Man is a reference to , which referenced the promised Messiah who would one day save God’s people.  READ -1413 “I saw in the night visions,and behold, with the clouds of heaven    there came one like a son of man,and he came to the Ancient of Days    and was presented before him.14 And to him was given dominion    and glory and a kingdom,that all peoples, nations, and languages    should serve him;his dominion is an everlasting dominion,    which shall not pass away,and his kingdom one    that shall not be destroyed. In calling Himself Son of man, Jesus connected with His Jewish community and made it clear that He was special. QUOTE: John Piper “He was a son of man, that is, a human being. And he is the Son of God, in that he has always existed as the Eternally Begotten One who comes forth from the Father forever. He always has, and he always will. He is the Second Person of the Trinity with all of the divine nature fully in him.” Jesus said He was the Son of GodJesus applied the name of God to HimselfJesus called Himself “Son of Man” 4.  Jesus affirmed Peter when he recognized Jesus for who He really was. READ -1713 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.  Notice, Jesus did not affirm the false identities that people wanted to give Him. Jesus did not accept anything but the truth about who He really was. Being John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah or, don’t miss this, or even a prophet, was not sufficient. Only when Simon Peter acknowledged that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the living God did Jesus agree and then bless Peter.   Notice, the people on that first Palm Sunday were celebrating who?  The man Jesus, whom they thought was a prophet.   While it is true Jesus was a prophet, that was not all He was nor was it a sufficient way to see Him.   Jesus would not let it stand that people thought of Him as only a prophet.No, He was much more than that and that is what led the crowd that week to go from celebrating Him as a prophet to seeking to have Him crucified. They didn’t want Him, nor would they allow Him, to be who He really was, and is, and that is the Christ, the Son of God, God Himself.   This is what Peter saw and this was and is the real Jesus.  

APPLICATION We are tempted to want the Jesus who said to the woman caught in adultery: “Neither do I condemn you” (),but not the same Jesus who said “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (). But both these statements are true and both were said by the real Jesus. It is a matter of life or death that we make sure we are worshiping the “real” Jesus this Easter. Why?  Because if we are worshiping the wrong Jesus, than we are worshiping an idol of our own making and that will only lead to an eternal separation from the real Jesus, the only way to God.   We must take the real Jesus at His own words. There is only one way to God, but it is an offer that is made to all. QUOTE: Daniel Darling, “The Original Jesus”“Jesus offers an exclusive path but an inclusive offer- one way to God offered to all who believe.” How Can I Know I’m Worshiping the Real Jesus this Easter? 3 Truths to Keep in Mind: 1.  Be aware of the impostors Jesus Impostors Include: 1.  Self-help Jesus Guru Jesus Macho Jesus Dr. Phil Jesus Prosperity Jesus BFF Jesus 2.  Political Jesus Left wing Jesus Right wing Jesus 3.  Misunderstood Jesus “Other” Gospels JesusPost-Church Jesus Red Letter Jesus Legalist Jesus

2.  Get to know the real Jesus ILLUS. Counterfeit agents with the Secret Service. A. Read What Jesus said about Himself.  Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.  Surrender your ideas and preferences about who Jesus is to who Jesus said He is.  B. Make sure you’re not just “following the crowd” in your reaction to Jesus.  Some want to pit the words of Jesus against the rest of Scripture.  Don’t fall into that trap.  Read what others in Scripture say about who Jesus is. All of Scripture is trustworthy and reliableREAD :16All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. 3.  Pray for God’s discernment Jesus prayed as He was preparing to go to the cross. In we read that Jesus is about to be arrested, interrogated, beaten within a breath of death, forced to carry his own cross, and then nailed to that cross.  What was He doing in this most stressful, uneasy, excruciating time? He was spending intense time in prayer with His Heavenly Father. READ -4639 And he came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him. 40 And when he came to the place, he said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” 41 And he withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed, 42 saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” 43 And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. 44 And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. 45 And when he rose from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow, 46 and he said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation.” We implore God in prayer to avoid the temptation of worshiping the wrong Jesus this Easter. 3 Truths for your journey with the Real Jesus: 1.  Beware of jesus impostors2.  Get to know the Real Jesus3.  Pray for God’s Discernment

CONCLUSIONChocolate bunnies ILLUS. They may look identical, down to the wrapping and the colored details, but make no mistake about it, there is a difference between fake “white” chocolate and “real” chocolate. Even more so, no matter how “your own personal Jesus” may look like the “real” Jesus, don’t be deceived.  Seek the Real Jesus this Easter so can worship Him, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.  The Son of Man and the Son of God.  The Resurrected Savior. There is only one real Jesus. Make sure you are worshiping the real Jesus this Easter.