His words still hang in the air, timelessly pointing to the God who yearns to be in relationship with people. "I have not come on my own initiative; but God sent me." John 8:42 To understand the story of Jesus is to comprehend the story of God's love toward humanity.
One of the questions which humanity has longed to resolve is "what really lies on the other side?" The fact that as Jesus walked upon this tired sod, he repeatedly claimed to know the answer to this question does not by itself reveal God's love for us, but it does point to his uniqueness. What makes Jesus so different from others? He unequivocally proclaimed that God had sent him from heaven. Jesus was God's word to us.
As someone who had personally experienced the other side and who knew what God wants us to know, Jesus' words rang out in dusty streets, in quiet corners and upon rocky hillsides: "I am from above. ... I am not of this world." John 8:23 "My teaching is not my own but comes from the one who sent me." John 7:16 "If I have spoken to you about earthly things and you have not believed, how will you believe if I speak to about heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven except the one who came down from heaven &endash; the Son of Man." John 3:12-13
What is it that God was seeking to communicate to us through Jesus? Why was Jesus sent? John the baptizer summed it up when he described Jesus with "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." John 1:29 Jesus himself announced, "I came that they might have life and have it to the full." John 10:10 Both of these statements point to the great truth of John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, in order that everyone who believes in him might not be destroyed but would have eternal life."
God sent Jesus into a dark world to make an eternal relationship possible with people - people, whose lives have been marred with sin and rebellion. This is the story of a God who loves all the peoples of the world and who has sought to reunite us with Himself.
As we gather each Lord's day, let's come before God with praise and thanksgiving for God's resolution to send Christ to heal our fatal self-inflicted wounds. Christians have a reason to rejoice. By the way, let's not keep the good news to ourselves!
Barry Newton, Copyright © 2001
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