Who Is He? Why Did He Die?

Q: What does the Bible say about who Jesus is?

The Bible affirms that Jesus is both fully man and fully God, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. The identity of Jesus is multifaceted, as He is described in the Scriptures as both the carpenter’s son and the Son of God. In Matthew 1:21, the angel tells Joseph that Mary will give birth to Jesus, who will save His people from their sins. Furthermore, Scripture presents Him as Immanuel, meaning 'God with us' (Matthew 1:23). Thus, Jesus is not merely a historic figure, but God incarnate, fully divine and fully human, representing humanity while also being its Redeemer.

Q: Why is the death of Jesus important for Christians?

The death of Jesus is crucial as it provides the means for redemption, satisfying God's justice and reconciling believers to Him. Jesus' death on the cross is central to Christian faith because it serves multiple purposes. Firstly, it was a necessary sacrifice that paid the penalty for sin, allowing God to be just while justifying the sinner (Romans 3:25). Secondly, He died under the law to redeem those who were under it (Galatians 4:4-5), thus fulfilling the requirements of the law on behalf of humanity. His death not only atones for sin but also provides a means for believers to be brought to God (1 Peter 3:18). Hence, the death of Christ is foundational for the Christian understanding of salvation and reconciliation with God.

Q: How do we know the resurrection of Jesus is true?

The resurrection of Jesus is confirmed by multiple eyewitness accounts and its foundations in prophecy, as discussed in the New Testament. The truth of the resurrection is foundational to Christian theology and is supported by numerous witnesses. In Luke 24, Jesus explains to His disciples how His suffering and resurrection were prophesied in the Scriptures. Apostolic witnesses, including the disciples, experienced the resurrected Christ firsthand and boldly proclaimed this truth (1 Corinthians 15:6). Furthermore, fulfilled prophecy regarding His death and resurrection serve as evidence of God's sovereign plan. Thus, the resurrection is not just an isolated event but is embedded within the narrative of salvation history as revealed in Scripture.

Q: What does Jesus' role as the Christ mean?

Jesus as the Christ refers to His role as the anointed one, the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies of the Messiah. The term 'Christ' signifies Jesus' anointed status as the promised Messiah sent to fulfill God's covenantal promises. As depicted in Luke 24:26, Jesus Himself refers to the necessity of His suffering and resurrection as outlined in the scriptures. The Old Testament anticipated a coming Savior, one who would liberate and redeem His people as foretold by the prophets. Thus, Jesus stands not only as the fulfillment of this promise but as the ultimate prophet, priest, and king, embodying all that the term 'Christ' represents within the biblical narrative.

and how totally dependent you
are upon the grace and mercy of our Lord. And the more you feel the need
of prayer, the more you feel the need of
calling upon God, I want you to especially remember
Amanda Marks. This little girl is a very precious
little girl. She's had a tough beginning.
She's about three, Doris, two and a half or three. They're
flying her to Lexington even at this moment, I suppose. She's
a very sick little girl. Joy Marks, brother Marks' little
daughter. And of course, John Parker, John
Henry, such a beautiful child. You wouldn't know he had a problem
in this world, but he's had a lot of them. God's able. God's able. And we need to pray for these
little ones and their parents. It's Tom mentioned in the study. We take for granted the health
of our children, don't we, until we come face to face with our brothers
and sisters whose children are not healthy. And I want very
much to feel the burden as if it were my own. God tells us
to weep with those that weep and rejoice with those that rejoice.
And I'd like to feel that, wouldn't you? And be able to intercede
on behalf of another as I intercede on behalf of myself." Oh, for
that kind of grace, that kind of grace. And we need to pray much for
Brother Gary Shepherd. I think all of you know Gary
has resigned as pastor at Pipeville, effective in the middle of June.
He'll be leaving. Let's pray for Gary. Let's pray
for the people at Pipe. The responsibility of helping
them may fall upon my shoulders. You pray for me that God will
give us his leadership and wisdom. I feel a very strong tie and
attachment and affection for those people up there, very strong,
many of whom were converted and brought their knowledge of Christ
under this ministry, television ministry, tape ministry. Oh, for wisdom. You know, I'm kind
of understanding a little bit more about Solomon's request,
aren't you? The Lord said, what do you want?
What do you want? What under heaven do you want? And that man said, wisdom, wisdom,
wisdom. Now tonight I'm speaking on the
subject, who is he, why did he die? Who is he, why did he die? Now the whole world knows that
Jesus of Nazareth died on a cross. The whole world knows that. It
was during a special season that he was crucified and people were
there. God brought people there from
all over the world. And as Ronnie read for us over
here in Matthew 27, when they crucified him and put him on
that cross, it says in verse 36, and sitting down, they watched
him there. This event occurred. Jesus of
Nazareth was crucified. And the whole world knows that.
In fact, I asked them down in Mexico last week. I said, is their calendar regarded
like ours, B.C. before Christ and A.D. and O.D. in the year of our Lord?
The missionary told me yes. They divide their calendar just
like we do, before Christ. Before Jesus Christ and after
Jesus Christ. And you know, we live in a country
where things are considered old if they're 100 or 200 years old.
And maybe when we talk about something that happened 2,000
years ago, like the death of Christ, That just seems beyond
our understanding or comprehension. 2,000 years? 2,000 years ago? Did it actually
occur? Well, you know, when I was in
Spain back in 1968, Brother Bill Clark, Brother Bill Griswold, the missionary to Spain, David
Estrada and I were driving. You'll get there someday. We
were driving from Marseilles, France, down to Spain, down to
Barcelona, where we was going to preach. We came to a town
called Tarragona, Spain. T-A-R-R-A-G-O-N-A, Tarragona,
Spain. You never heard of it? I never
heard of it. And we drove down the street,
we parked to go get something to eat, and lo and behold, there
was a house, a stone house on the corner in Tarragona, Spain,
with the bust of a man out front on a pillar. And we stopped,
and David Estrada said, that's where Pontius Pilate lived before
he moved to Jerusalem. to take over as a governor in
that area. I'm standing there. It's like
Walter drove me over to show me the house where he lived when
he first came to Mexico. That's 27 years ago. That seems
like a long time. We stood there and said, oh,
remember when, remember when. But here I was standing by the
Pilate's house. I mean, this man we just read
about, this man here that you read about, Pilate, I visited
his house. That's where he lived. That's
where he and his wife live before he got orders from Rome to go
to Jerusalem. Now that makes it a little more real. And I don't mean Christ, I mean
the fact that these things, these events in history occur. And
they occur. Jesus, everybody knows Jesus
of Nazareth died on the cross. Pilate's wife called him a just
man. Pilate called him the king of
the Jews. The Pharisees called him an imposter, a winebibber,
a gluttonous man. The people called him the cartender.
They knew him when he worked down in a cartender shop. The
thief called him Lord. The centurion called him the
Son of God. But the world has always been, is now, and always
will be, divided over two things regarding that man on the cross. The fact that he died is not
for question. He did die. Jesus of Nazareth
died. Pilate was a man who tried this
man who died on that cross. That's so. You don't even doubt
that. But the whole world then and
now and always will be divided over two things. Who is he? And why did he die? Is that correct? Would you agree with that? That's
what the division is all about. It's not, did he die? He did
die. But the two questions is, who
is he? And secondly, why did he die?
Well, let's find out who he is. Let's find out who he is. First
of all, Matthew chapter 1. Matthew chapter 1. The angel
came to Joseph. Now, Mary and Joseph were engaged. Now, listen to me. And I brought
this point out down in Mexico, and people who are given the
Mary idolatry are shocked by what
I'm fixing to tell you. But here was a Jewish maiden
by the name of Mary. She's a descendant of the house
of David, who is engaged to a much older man named Joseph, who also
is a descendant of the house of David. You'll find in Matthew
1, Joseph's lineage. You'll find that in Matthew 1.
In Luke, you'll find Mary's lineage from David. But they were engaged. He hadn't known her. She was
a young Jewish girl. But they were engaged to be married.
And the Lord came to Joseph and told Joseph that Mary was expecting
a child. It says in verse 18 of Matthew
1, Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise, when as his
mother Mary was a spouse to Joseph, before they came together, She was found with child of the
Holy Spirit. And Joseph, her husband, her
future husband, being a just man, not willing to make her
a public example, was minded. He thought about putting her
away privately, hiding her. But while he thought on these
things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream,
saying, Joseph, thy son of David. Fear not to take unto thee Mary
thy wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she'll bring forth a son,
and you call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people
from their sin." Now, you call his name Jesus, which is the
Old Testament word Joshua. Jesus is his earthly name, his
human name, his name of humiliation, Jesus. Well, we know that Jesus
was born of Mary. And Joseph didn't know her, didn't
have relations with her until after he was born. Turn over
to verse 25 of Matthew 1. Verse 24, Matthew 1, 24. Then
Joseph, being raised from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord
had bidden him, and took unto him his wife, and did not know
her. Until she had brought forth her
firstborn son, she called his name Jesus. Now, I don't know
why, but a lot of people try to deify Mary. And I think the
reason they do that, to talk about she was a virgin, she was
when Christ was conceived. But she didn't remain a virgin.
To talk about, Jean Joseph never knew one, she remained a virgin,
she bodily ascended to heaven. What they're trying to do, I
think, is take away the fact that Jesus Christ was a man just
like you and me. He was conceived, the only difference
in Jesus Christ's manhood and yours is that he was conceived
by the Holy Ghost. But he was born just like you
were. His mother was a woman just like these women sitting
here. And after he was born, Mary wasn't deified and worshipped
and held up to be worshipped by people. Turn to Luke chapter
1. I want you to listen to her own testimony. Luke chapter 1. She was highly favoured of God
and blessed of God. I wouldn't take anything away
from that. But in Luke 1 verse 46, I want you to listen to her
own testimony. She said in Luke 1 verse 46,
and Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord. Don't magnify me, magnify
the Lord. And my spirit hath rejoiced in
God my Savior. Who is she talking about? Her
Son! Jesus Christ, her Savior. Her soul rejoices in Christ,
and what a fool I'd be to worship her, or seek her help, or seek
her intercession. Jesus, she's talking as a sinner
rejoicing herself in the Savior. For he hath regarded the low
estate of his handmaiden. From his fourth generation shall
rise, shall call me blessed, blessed, he, she was blessed.
But in like manner, we are blessed to know Christ. He that is mighty
hath done great things, and holy is his name. All right, turn
to Matthew 13. Now Mary had other children,
she and Joseph, after Jesus Christ was born. Jesus is a man, fully
a man, who was born of a woman, conceived in the womb, not by
another man but by the Holy Ghost. And here's what I told those
dear people in Mexico who worship Mary and call her Queen of Heaven
and all that they do. Hail Mary, Mother of God, pray
for us poor sinners. In Matthew 13 verse 54, listen
to this. And when he was come into his
own country, in Matthew 13, 54, he taught them in their synagogue
in so much that they were astonished. And they said, whence hath this
man this wisdom and these mighty works? He was just a man. They
knew the carpenter. They often said, well, listen,
is not this the carpenter's son? Is not his mother called Mary
and his brothers? Mary had several children after
Jesus was born. One of them was named James. There he is right there. One
of them was named Josie. One of them was named Simon. One was named Judas. She had
five sons. Jesus was born of the Holy Ghost,
of the Virgin Mary. And then she had four sons. There's
their names right there. And it tells you over in the
book of John, and we'll read another verse in a minute, but
it tells us in the book of John, chapter 7, that these brothers
didn't believe on him. They didn't believe on him. He
must have lived like any ordinary boy, because he was perfect without
sin, but these brothers didn't see anything unusual in him.
You see, Jesus of Nazareth is bone of our bone and flesh of
our flesh. He's our representative. He's
the second Adam. He can't be a heavenly being
floating around up here with unusual mystic powers and be
our representative. He's got to be a man. He's got
to grow up like these boys and girls out here. And his brothers,
they didn't believe on him. Listen to verse 26. And his sisters? I mean, children may have. I
know she had four boys besides Jesus and sisters, and these
fellows said, are they not all with us? What's half this man
all these things? And they were offended in him,
just flat offended. So who is he? He's Jesus, the
man, tempted in all points as we are yet without sin. Secondly,
he's the Lord Jesus, the Lord Jesus. Back to Matthew 1. I didn't
read the rest of that angel's prophecy to Joseph, Matthew 1.21.
Let's read it again, Matthew 1.21. And she shall bring forth
a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall save
his people from their sin. Now all this was done that it
might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet,
saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring
forth a son. And thou shalt call his name
Immanuel, Immanuel, which being interpreted is God with us. Who is this man? Yeah, he's the
carpenter. He's Jesus of Nazareth. He's
bone of our bone, flesh of our flesh. He's numbered with the
transgressors. But in that tabernacle of flesh dwells God Almighty. I would not lessen the fact of his manhood, his
flesh, and I would not be guilty of lessening the fact of his
deity, his God. I don't understand that. Two
natures in one man, the nature of flesh and the nature of heaven. That's inconceivable, but nevertheless,
that's true. He said, I and my Father want
2 Corinthians 5 says this, God
was in Christ. Paul, speaking to the elders,
said, Feed the church of God, which he purchased with his own
blood, God's own blood. In Hebrews, the writer said,
Unto the Son, he said, Thy throne, O God, is forever. Let all the
angels of God worship him. Who is he? He's a man. Well, the man. Secondly, who
is he? The living God. Under us a son
is given, a child is born. His name called Wonderful Counselor,
the mighty God. But thirdly, he's the Christ. Now if you'll turn with me to
Luke 24, and this is so vital. You see, the word Christ is an
office. The Messiah, the woman at the
well says the Messiah's coming. And all the way through the Old
Testament there's one, there's one whom God promised and prophesied
and pictured. There's one coming. That's what
the Old Testament's all about. Someone's coming, someone's coming,
someone's coming. The Messiah, the Christ, the
liberator, the emancipator, the redeemer. He's called, that prophet,
called the cedar woman as the first mention of the virgin birth.
He's called the son of Abraham, seed of Abraham. He's called
the son of David. He's called Melchizedek. He's
called by all these names in the Old
Testament. He's called the Christ. And here in Luke 24, he's talking
to his disciples. And they, verse 25 of Luke 24,
he said to them, O fools and slow of heart to believe all
that the prophets have spoken. Ought not Christ, he didn't say
ought not I, though he is the Christ, he said ought not Christ,
the Christ, to have suffered these things? Is this not prophesied? Is this not typified? Is this
not he had to die for our sins according to the scriptures?
He had to be buried and rise again according to the scriptures.
Ought not Christ to have suffered these things and entered into
his glory? And beginning at Moses, beginning
at Genesis 1-1, and all the prophets, he expounded to them, he taught
them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. Well,
Jesus Christ just started here at Bethlehem. Oh, no. He's from
everlasting to everlasting. Now look at verse 44. And he said to them, Now these
are the words that I spake unto you while I was yet with you,
that all things must be fulfilled which are written in the law
of Moses, and the prophets, and the Psalms concerning me. Then
opened he their understanding that they might understand the
scriptures, and said to them, Thus it is written, thus it behooved
the Christ to suffer to rise from the dead the third day,
that repentance and remission of sin should be preached in
his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem." Who's on that
cross? The Lord Jesus the Christ. And like I say, everybody knows
that Jesus of Nazareth died on the cross, but everybody doesn't
know who that Jesus of Nazareth is. Yes, he is Jesus of Nazareth,
but that's just the beginning. He's the prophet, priest, and
king. He's the Lord Jesus, and he's the Christ. He's God in
human flesh. He's the smitten rock He's the
Passover lamb, he's the brazen serpent lifted up, he is the
great high priest, he's the mercy seed, he's all those things in
one. Now, why did he die? Well, there
are seven scriptures, and I'm going to give you these. If you
want to write them down, I'd be happy for you to do so. But
there are seven scriptures that definitely state this very thing. This is why he died. The first
one is found in Romans 14. Romans chapter 14. Why did he
die? Romans 14 verse 7. Let's look
at this. You know, the charge is brought against
preachers who preach particular redemption, limited atonement. effectual salvation, that we
diminish or take away something from the sacrifice of Christ. But I'm telling you this, who
is he and why did he die? He said, I'm the good shepherd,
I lay down my life for the sheep. But our Lord Jesus not only died
to redeem his sheep, he died and purchased this whole universe. It belongs to him. He bought
it with his blood. He's Lord not only by God's decree and
design, but by his death. It's his, he bought it. Look
at Romans 14 verse 7. None of us liveth to himself,
no man dieth to himself, for whether we live, we live unto
the Lord, and whether we die, we die unto the Lord, and whether
we live, therefore die, we are his. For to this end Christ both
died and rose and revived, that he might be Lord of the dead
and the living. Now, I know he's Lord of people
who believe on him and have ascended to heaven, the Lord of the dead
who've died already, and the Lord of the living who haven't
died. But he's the Lord of heaven, earth, and hell. He bought that
right. He said in Matthew 28, all authority
is given unto me in heaven and earth. He said in John 17, Thou
hast given me power, authority over all flesh. Jesus Christ
is Lord, not only by decree, not only by design, but he is
Lord by death. And God hath highly exalted him,
and given him a name above every name, that at the name of Jesus
every believer should bow and confess. No, at the name of Jesus
every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that he is
I hear preachers tell sinners to make Jesus your Lord. That's
too late. God's already made him your Lord.
The matter is, when are you going to bow to him now or bow to him
in eternity? But he is Lord. He's Lord by
day. He's Lord. Look at 1 Corinthians. Let me show you that again, 1
Corinthians 15. Jesus Christ is Lord. He reigns. He reigns. He's the sovereign
ruler in 1 Corinthians 15, 24. Then cometh the end, when he
shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father, when
he shall have put down all rule and all authority and all power.
Now, this is principalities and powers and rulers of the darkness.
I don't care what power it is. He's going to put down all power
and all authority, for he must reign till he hath put all enemies
under his feet, and the last enemy that shall be destroyed
is death. For he hath put all things under
his feet. When he says all things are put
under him, it's manifest that he's accepted which did put all
things under him. The Father is the only one that's
not under him. Is that what that's saying? The Father is the only
one that's not put under the Lord Jesus Christ. But I guarantee
you, everyone else and everything else is already on this. Satan's
already defeated by Christ. And what's he doing? Why did
he die on that cross? He died that he might be supreme,
sovereign Lord of heaven and earth. Secondly, turn with me
to Romans 3. Now, one does not comprehend
the death of Christ unless he can understand that that death,
first of all, was toward God. I know nearly all preaching we
hear, and I hope you boys and girls can understand, there's
one thing I don't want to do is get deep, because I believe
truth If you've got eyes to see, it's simple. Ears to hear, it's
simple. If you don't have eyes to see and ears to hear, it's
impossible. The simplicity of Christ is called.
But here's the thing. Back in the Old Testament, when
those lambs and bullocks were slain and the blood shed, the
priest slew the lamb, burned its body, and brought the blood,
and the scripture says no other person was on the ground. Nobody. He didn't do it in front of a
bunch of people. When he brought the blood, he didn't take it
and ceremoniously pour it out in front of multitudes and they
were all awed by the blood and taken back by the blood. He said
not a soul was on the ground, not a soul was in the tabernacle,
not a soul was in the holy place, and not a soul was in the holy
hood but that priest with that blood and that censure of incense. And that sacrifice and blood
was poured out before the Lord. I wish you knew how many times
those three words are in the Old Testament, before the Lord.
So the death of the Lamb was not to impress the people or
to rally them under a common cause. That blood was before
the Lord. See, we sinned against Him. It's
his law and his justice that's got to be satisfied, so before
God can do anything for you, he's got to do something for
himself. So Romans 3 tells us why. Romans 3.25 talks about Christ
here in Romans 3. Let's read verse 24. Romans 3.24. "...being justified freely by
his grace through the redemption to send Christ Jesus." whom God
has set forth, openly set forth, to be a perpetuation, a mercy
seat, through faith in his blood, to declare God's righteousness. Jesus Christ is declaring God's
righteousness, he's declaring God's justice, he's declaring
God's holiness. When God sent the flood and destroyed
the world, he's declaring he's holy. When God set fire and burned
up the sodomites and the homosexuals in that area and destroyed them
and left not a trace of them, he's saying, I'm holy. I'm holy. I'll not tolerate this sort of
thing. And when Jesus Christ died on that cross, God's justice
and judgment and wrath fell on him. And God's saying, who spared
not his own soul, I'm holy. I'll not clear the guilty. And
Christ was guilty. He bore our sins in his body,
that made him guilty. He was numbered with the transgressors,
that made him guilty. And that's when he's declaring
that God will punish sin. You see that? To declare God's
righteousness, God's justice. That's the word they use in Mexico
for righteousness, justice. For the remission of sins and
of pangs, that's the sins of Old Testament saints, through
the patience of God. To declare, I say it this time,
right now, God's righteousness, in order of that, while he crossed
down, in order of that, God may be just, and the justifier of
that person who believes in Jesus. Christ Jesus had to die on the
cross. It was imperative, it was necessary,
inescapable, had to be for God's sake. Not only redeem you, but
in order that God may be just and save you. God couldn't save
you, even being God, without satisfaction for your sins. That's
why he died. Thirdly, turn Galatians 4. Galatians
4, why did he die? Galatians 4, listen. Verse 4, But when the fullness
of time was come, God sent forth his Son. I told you about this,
made of a woman, made under the law. What for? He died under
the law. He lived under the law and died
under the law, to redeem. to redeem them that were under
the law. That's why he died, to redeem
them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption
of son. Now, go back to Adam. God said,
Adam, eat the fruit, eat the tree, die. That's God's law.
Adam despised it. Go back to Sinai. God gave the
law. People despised it. Our Lord
Jesus interpreted the law. He said, this is the law. This
sums up the whole law. Love your neighbors as yourself,
and God with all your heart. And we despise that. On every
hand, we despise God's law. It's His way or our way. We choose
our way. It's His will or our will. We
choose our will. It's His law or our law, and
we choose our law. So I'm telling you this. If you're
going to be redeemed, you've got to keep that law. You say,
I can't keep that law. Then you've got to have a Savior
that will, and has kept that law. And that's why he was born
of a woman. You see, that's why he was born
of a woman just like you are. Christ is identified with this. You know all the miracles he
ever did? Now you check me on this. All
the miracles. He fed, he fed the hungry. But he never turned a piece of
stone into bread for himself. Satan told him to do that. If
he had dared done that, that would have ended his representation,
because I can't turn stone into brick. That's right. He smote a rock in the Old Testament
and gave people a drink. Why did he hang on that cross
and say, I thirst? Why did he walk up to that woman
at the well and say, would you give me a drink of water? Because
he was thirsty. Well, he's the one that put the
well there, but I can't make water come out of a rock, and
he didn't either. He never performed a miracle
to relieve his own distress. He did for others, but he stayed,
as my representative, limited in human flesh. That's exactly
right. And he kept God's law under every
circumstance, under every condition, under every temptation, yet without
sin. And that's why when he went to
that cross, my sin demanded death, and he went to the pool, he became
obedient, he became obedient in the likeness of flesh, in
the form of a servant, he became obedient, he learned obedience
by the things he suffered, obedient even unto death. He accomplished, like you read
tonight, where's my adversary? Who's going to accuse me? Christ
said I'm perfect, and in him I'm perfect. There's my righteousness.
There's my holiness in him. Fourthly, I'll move along. I
know you say, well, he'll never get through. Yeah, he will, too. Sometime. All right, 1 Peter 3. But no, you'll never get through
with this gospel. If I push, I'll push twice tomorrow
night and I'll do it again. All right, 1 Peter 3, 18, listen,
For Christ also hath once suffered for sin, the just for the unjust,
in order that, read it with me, everybody, here we go now, read
it, that he might bring us to God. What'd that say? Christ
suffered the just for the unjust, he suffered that he might make
it possible for us to come to God? That's not what that said.
That he could fix up a way so we could come to God if we chose
to? That's not what that said. He died and opened the way for
men to come to God? No, that's not what that said. He died and did all he could
do, and now it's up to you to come to God? That's not what
it says. It says he suffered just for the unjust that he himself
might bring us to God. You know when that shepherd went
out, now you listen to me, when that shepherd, that sheep was
lost and he went after it, he didn't go out there and say,
now I've gone through this place and left you a path. Now I'm
going back, it's up to you. Kiddo, we've got plenty to eat
back home. Now you come on, follow me. Now
sir, what I read is, he picked it up, put it on his shoulders,
and brought it home. And he said to everybody there,
rejoice with me. My sheep was lost, and I found
him, and I brought him back. And I really, honestly, my friends,
this is what I believe about. I'm the good shepherd. I know
my sheep. I'm known of mine. Other sheep
I have, which are not of this foe, them also I, what, must,
what Tom? Bring. I'll bring them. Them
also I must bring, and they're going to hear my voice, and they're
going to be one foe. I'm going to bring them to God.
I tell you, if he leaves anything for me to do, I'm a goner. I
mean, if he just leaves, this, I tell you, like you prayed a
while ago, we're a mess. And the mess don't get any better.
By nature, we grow in grace, I believe, but if he leaves anything
for us, now we're done for. But he did it all, paid it off,
and he brings us to God. Fifthly, Galatians 1, 4. Galatians 1, 4. Verse 3, Galatians 1 says, Grace
be to you, and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord
Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins, that he, in order
that he, might deliver us from this present evil world, according
to whose will? The will of God our Father. That's
why he gave himself. You see, there are two kingdoms.
There's a kingdom of this world. It's made up of this world. It's
dominated by the principalities and the principles and the powers
and the people. of evil. It's made up of old
heaven and old earth, and all that is in it is opposed to the
glory of God. It's under the judgment and wrath
of God, and that's the Adamic world, the Adamic sin, the Adamic
race. There it all is, the kingdom
of this world, the kingdom of darkness, the kingdom of death,
sin, and evil. And Christ came and died to redeem
us from that kingdom. and translate us into another
kingdom. This kingdom of darkness, this
is light. This is death, this is light. This is evil, this
is holiness. This is the kingdom of this world,
this is the kingdom of God. Call it the kingdom of God, call
it the kingdom of heaven, call it the kingdom of his dear son,
call it what you want to. That's the kingdom of our Lord
Jesus Christ. And he says he has translated
us from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God's dear
Son, and that's why he died. And we're not even a part of
this. We're living here for a while, but we're part of this kingdom,
because Christ reigns in our hearts. All right. Sixth, turn
to Titus. Hope you're getting all this,
because I think this just sums the thing up. Titus 2.14. Titus 2, verse 13, looking for
that blessed hope and glorious appearing of the great God and
our Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us, that he
might redeem us from all iniquity, all sin. That's what he did. That's what I just told you about.
Also, to purify unto himself a peculiar, a separated, a different,
a people zealous of good works. Now this is one of the problems
at a certain church, with one of the men that's causing so
much trouble. He says that if you're one of
God's elect, and Christ died for you, and you're saved, how
you live doesn't matter. How you walk, how you talk doesn't
matter. My friends, it does matter. It matters a whole lot. Our Lord
died, sure, to purge us from sin and to put away all our iniquity
and redeem us from all iniquity, but he died to purify to himself
a people, a people with a new heart and a new nature and a
new tongue and a new direction and a new nature, a new grace
put within. Is that right? You're not your own, you're bought
with a price. If any man be in Christ, he's
a new creature. He's got a new walk, got a new
talk, he's got new principles. He's different. The grace of
God is manifest in his life. He's gracious and generous and
kind and loving and thoughtful. That's right. That's what Christ
died to do, make you different, make me different. And we will
be, but we don't know him. All right, last of all, turn
to Ephesians 2. Who is he? I dealt with that.
Why did he die? Here's the last one. In Ephesians 2, verse 4, But
God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved
us, even when we were dead in sin, hath quickened us together
with Christ, by grace you are saved, and hath raised us up
together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ
Jesus." Watch it. Why? Why has God done this for
you and me? That in the ages to come, throughout
all the eons of eternity, he might show your faithfulness and your dedication
and your sacrifice, no sir, listen, that in the ages to come he might
show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward
us through Christ Jesus our Lord. I never did have much use for
that doctrine of rewards in heaven. degrees of glory, and God bringing
people there and giving some a big house and some a little
house and some a big crown and some no crown and this, that,
the other. Distinguishing among the people.
You know what distinguishes us in glory is Christ our hand. You know what our reward is,
and you know what my reward is? Christ is my reward. And I tell
you that's the most indescribable, unspeakable, Reward that you
can think of. I'm complete in Him. And we're
not going to show off our trophies. He's going to show off His trophies
in glory. And you know what His trophies
are? You are His trophies. He's going to show you off through
the ages to come. He might show to the whole universe
the riches of His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. It's all in Christ Jesus. Who
is He? The Lord Jesus Christ. Why did
he die? Well, that's why he died. All
right, let's sing a closing hymn. Mike, come and announce our hymn.

Who Is He? Why Did He Die?

What does the Bible say about who Jesus is?

Why is the death of Jesus important for Christians?

How do we know the resurrection of Jesus is true?

What does Jesus' role as the Christ mean?

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Who Is He? Why Did He Die?

What does the Bible say about who Jesus is?

Why is the death of Jesus important for Christians?

How do we know the resurrection of Jesus is true?

What does Jesus' role as the Christ mean?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

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