WHAT DID THE MESSIAH JESUS DO FOR YOU?

Luke 16:13-16: When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, who do men say that I the Son of man am? And they said; some say that you are John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets. He said unto them, but who do you say that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, you are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.

John 6: 67-69: Then Jesus said to the twelve, will you also go away? Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. And we believe and are sure that you are that Messiah, the Son of the living God.

This man who Peter and the disciples realized was the Messiah, the son of the living God was brought into this world by a special creation of Yehovah, his God, and His Father.

As it says in Luke 1: 30-35: And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for you have found favor with God. And, behold, you shall conceive in your womb, and bring forth a son, and shall call his name Jesus – Yehoshua – Yehovah saves. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and Yehovah - God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom, there shall be no end.

Note: Luke 1: 67-79: And his (John the Baptist’s father) Zachariah was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying, blessed be Yehovah God of Israel; for he has visited and redeemed His people, and has raised up a Horn of Salvation for us in the house of his servant David; as He Spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets, which have been since the world began: That we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all those that hate us; to perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember is Holy covenant; the oath which He swore to our father Abraham, that He would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve Him without fear, In Holiness and righteousness before Him, all the days of our lives.

And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Highest: for you shall go before the face of Yehovah to Prepare His ways; to give knowledge of Salvation unto His People by the remission of their sins, through the tender mercy of our God; because of whom the Dayspring from on high has visited us, to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the Shadow of Death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Continue Luke 1:30-35: Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, the Holy Spirit shall come upon you, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow you: therefore that holy one which shall be born of you shall be called the Son of God.

Notice: In the genealogy of the lord Jesus in Luke 3:23-38, that Adam is called the son of God, vs. 38: “Who was the son of Enos, who was the son of Seth, who was the son of Adam, who was the son of God."

Now, look at what the apostle Paul says: “1Corithians 15:47: The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the lord from heaven. Paul calls the lord Jesus the second man.

What Paul is referring to is that Jesus was the second man specially created of God, Adam being the first.

Note: Ephesians 1:3-11: Blessed be the God and Father of our lord Jesus the Messiah, who has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in the Messiah: According as He [Yehovah] has chosen us in him [Jesus] before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having marked us out beforehand unto the adoption of children because of Jesus the Messiah to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, In whom [Jesus] we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace; wherein He has abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence; having made known unto us the mystery of His [Yehovah] will, according to His good pleasure which He has purposed in Himself: That in the dispensation of the fullness of times He might gather together in one all things in the Messiah, both of which are in heaven, and which are in earth; even in him [Jesus]: In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being marked out beforehand according to the purpose of Him [Yehovah] who works all things after the counsel of His own will:

Jesus as the lord Messiah that Yehovah has placed at His right-hand carries out  the functions that benefit those who are his.

Peter speaking on the day of Pentecost says to Israel in Acts 2:33: Therefore being exalted at the right hand of God, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he [Jesus] has shed forth this, which you now see and hear. The great outpouring of the Spirit was sent down by the lord Messiah Jesus.

Acts 5:31: Him [Jesus] has God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Savior, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. That includes all who have been grafted into Israel by the power of God’s Spirit [Romans 11:24-28]

Jesus became a sin-offering sacrifice on the stake in order that His God and Father Yehovah could reconcile all humanity to Himself. Those who will complete this reconciliation will come to believe in the one true God Yehovah and in the one whom He sent to bring that message of salvation to the world, the lord Jesus. For as many as receive him [Jesus], to them he gives the power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: [John 1:12] That my friend is the epitome of what the lord Messiah Jesus has done for us.

To realize that we are the sons of the living God Yehovah because of what Jesus has done for us is far above anything this world has to offer.

As sons of the living God, we will get to co-rule and co-inherit with the lord Messiah Jesus, our elder brother, when he returns to sit on the throne of David at Zion and establish his 1,000-year rule. At that time all the blessing of our God and Father has promised Abraham, will be his as the “seed” of Abraham [Galatians 3:16].

How do we receive all these blessings that the lord Jesus has made possible for us to receive? We have to repent and be baptized in his name. Repentance means to be willing to die to self and to walk into the water as crucified with the Messiah Jesus and as such realize that we are bought and paid for, becoming the slaves of our master Jesus. Then when we rise up out of the water we become new creations in the lord Jesus, receiving the power of God’s Spirit which will enable us to keep the creed of the lord Jesus which is to love Yehovah God with all our heart, mind, and being and to learn to love our neighbor as ourselves, doing so as servants - slaves of righteousness. [Mark 12:28-34; Romans 6:18]

God our Father Yehovah is looking for people who will walk in obedience to the faith as members of His called-out Assembly, which is the body of the lord Messiah Jesus. Our God and Father's desire is that His sons and daughters walk before Him in total commitment in accordance to His will which is, to obey the words He gave the lord Jesus to give to us that will enable us to enter into the coming Kingdom of God. He expects us to love our neighbors as ourselves, for in doing so we are loving people who have been created in His image. In loving our neighbors as ourselves we indirectly love God!

One of the great opportunities our God and Father Yehovah has given us because of His beloved uniquely begotten son Jesus is when we were baptized we received the power of His Spirit, His indwelling presence and when that happened we became anointed one's [messiah's] and as anointed one's we become the agents of our God Yehovah and His son the lord Messiah Jesus. As agents of Yehovah and the lord Messiah Jesus, we need to walk worthy of our calling! [Ephesians 4:1; Colossians 1:10; 1 Thessalonians 2:4] As the agents of the lord Jesus we are his ambassadors [2 Corinthians 5:20] As Jesus ambassadors we are to take the good news God gave to him to give to us in order that we can individually and collectively take that message to the world. It is a life giving message for all who receive it!

It would take volumes to write about all that the lord Jesus has done for us. All of us can look for all he has freely given to us as it is all revealed in the word – revelation of God. It’s a lifetime study that will have amazing rewards for all who do so! That study will draw your hearts and minds to be closer to our God and Father Yehovah and His uniquely begotten son Jesus – Yehoshua – Yehovah Delivers.

THE JEWISH LAW OF AGENCY

Jesus said to the Pharisee’s “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30). What was he indicating to the Pharisees?

If we read what he said to them in the previous verses (vs. 24-25) we will see Jesus referring to himself as acting under the Jewish Law of Agency regarding his words and work.

John 10:24-25: Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto him, how long do you make us to doubt? If you be the Messiah, tell us plainly. Jesus answered them, I told you, and you believed not: the works that I do in my Father’s name, they bear witness of me.

Now we hear from Jesus' own mouth that the works he does is in the Father’s name. In other words, he is acting as the agent sent by his God and his Father.

Notice: John 14:10: Believe you not that I am in the Father and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwells in me, he does the works.

Again, we see that the words that he speaks are not of himself, but the Father that indwells him; He does the works – working through His chosen agent, the Messiah Jesus.

More: Whoever believes in me does not believe in me only, but in the One who sent me. The one who looks at me is seeing the One who sent me… whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say. (John 12:44-45, 50)

Now according to the Jewish Law of Agency, the agent fully represents the one on whose behalf they are acting, so that the two are identified as one and the same person.

The Jewish Law of Agency is expressed by these words, “a person’s agent is regarded as the person himself.” And that is why Jesus told the Pharisees, “I and the Father are one”.

The reason they started to throw rocks at him for saying that is because they rejected any idea of him being the Messiah.

Now the question that we as disciples of the lord Messiah should ask ourselves is when we go forth preaching and publishing the message Yehovah our God gave to Jesus to give to us are we acting as his agents? The answer is yes!

Notice: 2 Corinthians 5:20: Now then we are ambassadors for the Messiah, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in the Messiah’s stead, be you reconciled to God.

Here Paul is saying that we as ambassadors of the Messiah are also acting on behalf of our God in beseeching people to be reconciled to God! So when we are acting as one’s who have been sent forth as ambassadors of the Messiah Jesus we are also acting not only as his agents but also as agents of his Father and our Father Yehovah.

So that being said do we truly realize that when we speak forth the good news (gospel) message that our God Yehovah gave to Jesus to be preached to the world, we are acting as agents of the lord Jesus, so that what we say, is as if he were saying it, according to the Jewish Law of Agency!

Now we all understand that we cannot properly act as the agents of the lord Messiah properly without being enabled to do so by the indwelling power of the Spirit of our God and Father and of the lord Jesus in us.

We draw upon the indwelling power of our God Yehovah and our Messiah Jesus to carry out what they have commissioned us to do.

Note: John 14:20: At that day you shall know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. That day began on the day of Pentecost for Jesus disciples, and for all that are in him to this day! 

Note: John 14:23: If a man loves me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

What an awesome responsibility has been given to us to act as the agents of our God and Father Yehovah and the lord Messiah Jesus.

Now the words that Paul spoke have deep meaning for us now:

1 Thessalonians 2:2: That you would walk worthy of God, who has called you unto His kingdom and glory.

Indeed, and to walk worthy of our calling requires the enabling power of our God Yehovah working in us and through us.

YEHOVAH RAISES UP HIS PEOPLE

One of God’s names in scripture is Yehovah-Nissi. It means the God who provides, who is a banner, who lifts ups, who exalts. It’s an interesting combination of meanings all together in one word.

This Hebrew word "nissi" is used in Jewish weddings. When the bride and groom are at their wedding party, all of the guests make the couple sit in two chairs; then they lift the chairs up and walk around the room, carrying the bride and groom. That action of lifting up was called nissi.

I think it’s a powerful picture because marriage is a kind of lifting up and great exaltation. I [Bruce Lyon] have been married 38 years, and it’s a wonderful blessing, but it’s also a test.

We don’t really want God to test us; we don’t want to go through dry seasons where we feel alone and away from his presence. We don’t want to go through the test of having to move to difficult places, the test of friends hurting our hearts, the test of family difficulties, the test of financial difficulties, the tests in church or ministry.

When Paul was talking about some of the tests in his life, he said:

“Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles… danger from false brothers. And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches” (2 Corinthians 11:24-26,28, ESV).

Why is he saying this? What’s the point of this?

Paul provides the answer in the next chapter:

“For the sake of the Messiah, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10).

There’s a reason for God’s tests. He tests us in the area we love most. Every test you’re going through is not God’s desire to push you back or keep you in your place; it’s God’s desire to bring you "nissi," to bring you to a new place, to elevate your faith, and have you worship him as Yehovah Elohim, the God who lifts us up.

Written by Gary Wilkerson, and edited by Bruce Lyon

THE EIGHT ATTRIBUTES OF YEHOVAH

Exodus 34:5-7: Yehovah descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of Yehovah. Yehovah passed before him and proclaimed, “Yehovah, Yehovah, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.”

Moses had asked God, “Please show me your glory” (Exodus 33:18). Yehovah replied that although Moses could not see His face, He would have His glory pass by him and proclaim His name [Yehovah]. When the time came, Yehovah proclaimed His name twice and then listed out His eight attributes.

1. Merciful
2. Gracious
3. Slow to anger
4. Abounding in steadfast love
5. Abounding in faithfulness
6. Keeping steadfast love
7. Forgiving
8. Punishing the guilty

This list is heavily weighted towards kindness and love. Some have said the God of the Old Testament is vengeful and violent, whereas the God of the New Testament is forgiving and kind. Based on that way of thinking, the eight attributes belong in the New Testament; yet, here they are listed in Exodus 34:5-7. Furthermore, we can find plenty of divine judgment in the New Testament from Ananias and Saphira (Acts 5:5, 10) to Herod (Acts 12:23) and to the wrath of God prophesied in Revelation.

When I read Exodus 34:5-7 I read about a God who is merciful, slow to anger, and willing to forgive. A God who is above all loyal for He abounds in steadfast love and faithfulness; two qualities associated with His covenant relationships with His people. He is patient in maintaining His steadfast love through thick and thin towards those who love Him. However, He will not however allow the guilty to go unpunished. In reading Exodus 34:5-7, we learn about who Yehovah is. What a wonderful revelation He has given to us!

Notice: In Exodus 34:5-7; Yehovah begins with His name. In fact, He says it twice before listing out His attributes (Exodus 34:6). These two facts demonstrate the importance of His name. Saying it first and repeating it marks it out from all the attributes that follow. Yehovah is God’s name. The importance Yehovah places on His own name makes me all the more zealous to tell people about who my God and Father is in full detail.

Something for us to consider is how often we find echoes of the eight attributes throughout the OT. Rarely are they all listed, but often two or more get mentioned. Moses himself later quoted God’s attributes back to Him in prayer.

Numbers 14:17-20: And now, please let the power of Yehovah be great as you have promised, saying, ‘Yehovah is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and transgression, but he will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, to the third and the fourth generation.’ Please pardon the iniquity of this people, according to the greatness of your steadfast love, just as you have forgiven these people, from Egypt until now.” Then Yehovah said, “I have pardoned, according to your word.”

The people rebelled again, and God decided He would destroy them all and start over with Moses. In response, Moses stood in the gap between the people and God and boldly petitioned Yehovah to forgive his undeserving people. In the course of praying, Moses mentioned the following attributes:

3 (slow to anger),
4 (abounding in steadfast love),
7 (forgiving),
8 (punishment).

And it worked! Quoting God’s attributes back to God resulted in Him pardoning the people. Now that’s a powerful prayer!

For a similar example, see Nehemiah’s prayer in Nehemiah 9:13-21: You came down also upon mount Sinai, and spoke with them from heaven, and gave them right judgments, and true laws, good statutes, and commandments: And made known unto them your holy Sabbath, and commanded them precepts, statutes, and laws, by the hand of Moses thy servant: And gave them bread from heaven for their hunger, and brought forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and promised them that they should go in to possess the land which you had sworn to give them. But they and our fathers dealt proudly, and hardened their necks, and hearkened not to thy commandments, And refused to obey, neither were mindful of your wonders that you did among them; but hardened their necks, and in their rebellion appointed a captain to return to their bondage: but you are a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and forsook them not. Yea, when they had made them a molten calf, and said, This is you God that brought you up out of Egypt, and had wrought great provocations; Yet thou in thy manifold mercies forsook them not in the wilderness: the pillar of the cloud departed not from them by day, to lead them in the way; neither the pillar of fire by night, to show them light, and the way wherein they should go. You gave also your good spirit to instruct them, and withheld not your manna from their mouth, and gave them water for their thirst. Yea, forty years did you sustain them in the wilderness, so that they lacked nothing; their clothes waxed not old, and their feet did not swell.

The psalmists likewise lean on God’s unchanging attributes when they cry out to Him for help (Psalm 86:15; 103:8). We encounter one of the most beautiful elaborations on God’s seventh attribute of forgiveness in the following psalm.

Psalm 103:7-13: He made known His ways to Moses, His acts to the people of Israel. Yehovah is merciful and gracious slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. He will not always chide, nor will He keep his anger forever. He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us as a father shows compassion to his children, so Yehovah shows compassion to those who fear him.

What an amazing God Yehovah is! Yehovah’s steadfast love stretches to the heavens, and His forgiveness is so thorough that He removes our sins as far as the east is from the west! Yehovah is a compassionate Father who cares for those who fear Him. How can we not love our God Yehovah with all our hearts, minds, strength, with all our being?

Another way we see God’s attributes used is when the prophet Joel invoked them as the reason for the people to repent.

Joel 2:12-14: “Yet even now,” declares Yehovah, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.” Return to Yehovah your God, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and He relents over disaster. Who knows whether He will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind Him, a grain offering, and a drink offering for Yehovah your God?

This is a lesson for all of us. No matter how much we may have sinned and fallen away from Yehovah, there’s still hope because Yehovah is merciful, gracious, abundant in love, and very forgiving. His kind nature is reason alone for us to come to Him, especially when we are totally helpless we are to overcome sinfulness without His abounding grace and steadfast love, without His indwelling presence!

Lastly, some thoughts on the eighth attribute: God punishing the wicked to the third and fourth generation. Is this one like a bone caught in your throat? We can easily swallow the other seven, but when we get to the eighth, we cry out, “That’s not fair! How can you punish people’s grandkids for what they did?” Is this really what God is saying here? Is He saying He will punish someone’s innocent grandchildren for what he or she did? Actually, what He said was, “who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation” (Exodus 34:7). Desmond Alexander offers the following insight, which is very helpful.

Because God displays remarkable tolerance towards wrongdoers, divine punishment is only rarely administered immediately after an offense has been committed. Those who are guilty are frequently given an opportunity to repent. However, such patients may be wrongly interpreted as indicating indifference on the part of God. This is clearly not the case, for those who set themselves at odds with God will ultimately reap what they have sown. Although God’s patience may extend for several generations, in the end, his judgment will fall justly upon those who remain intransigent. In such instances, when they have walked in their fathers’ footsteps, the accumulated guilt of a family will fall on later generations.

An important example of this comes in the book of Kings, where the sins of Manasseh are included with those of his descendants when God punishes the people of Judah at the time of the Babylonian exile (cf. 2 Kings 23:26; 24:3). While righteous children are not held accountable for the sins of their parents, there may well be a corporate aspect to the whole process of punishment. In the context of a society that consists largely of multi-generational families, it should be recognized that the beneficiaries of parental wrongdoing are almost always their children. As T. F. Williams suggests, ‘The children are punished according to their solidarity with and participation in the misconduct of their parents (1996: 660).

So, God does not punish the innocent for the guilty. In fact, He made a law against that. Deuteronomy 24:16: Fathers shall not be put to death because of their children, nor shall children be put to death because of their fathers. Each one shall be put to death for his own sin.

What we have in the eighth attribute is the outworking of God’s patience in how He administers justice toward the wicked. If He were quick to anger, He would just take the breath away from the unrighteous when they sinned; an outcome I would not wish for since I’ve sometimes have been unrighteous. So, if He is slow to anger, how can He bring about His judgment? He mercifully waits for a couple of generations to see if a family turns around, but then eventually His cup of wrath fills up, and He pours it out. Still, if some descendant repents and pursues righteousness, “he shall not die for his father’s iniquity” (Ezekiel 18:17). God is both merciful and just, and His way of governing combines both.

We should memorize God’s eight attributes, so we will always have in our minds that Yehovah is merciful, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love, abounding in faithfulness, keeping love, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin; yet, He will by no means clear the guilty. This is Yehovah’s self-disclosure. The saints of old acknowledged these attributes and used them in their prayers and in their preaching.

Let us follow the example of the lord Messiah Jesus who was the outshining of Yehovah’s glory and attributes. He showed to all the people he met an example of how they were to love their neighbors as themselves and in doing so loving Yehovah. He was commissioned by his God and Father Yehovah to show all people the way, the truth, the life, and the wisdom of Yehovah’s plan for our salvation. He is now seated at the right hand of his God and Father Yehovahm a light that leads us to become totally committed to loving Yehovah will all our heart, mind, and strength and to submit to Yehovah’s Kingship in our lives.

That’s what Matthew means what he says in Matthew 6:33: … seek you first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

It is because of the lord Jesus' sin-offering sacrifice on the stake that we have been reconciled to his God and Father Yehovah. Realizing all that the lord Jesus has done for us as the greatest servant of all, should we not do all we can to follow in his steps according to the godly example he has given us to follow! If we do the rewards will be amazing indeed, now and in the future.