Both Lord And Christ

by G. Prasher, Manchester, U.K. | Category: Never Man So Spake - Great Truths From The Lord's Min | Feb 1985

TURNING THINGS UPSIDE DOWN!

In the prophet Isaiah's generation there were those who "put darkness for light, and light for darkness" (5:20). who turned things upside down (29:16). We hear the same order of reasoning today regarding the Person of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Himself did not claim ~o be God, the argument runs; this idea was developed later among His disciples who attributed to Him more than He claimed for Himself. Turning things upside down indeed! For the truth of the Deity and Messiahship of the Lord Jesus was declared through the prophets of the Old Testament, and He endorsed the application of those prophecies to Himself as related in the gospels. Moreover, His ministry confirmed from other viewpoints that He was both Lord and Christ.

"THE SCRIPTURES... BEAR WITNESS OF ME"

Let us first consider three Old Testament prophecies to which the Lord Jesus referred in such a way that they confirm His Deity and Messiahship.

When discussing the quality of John the Baptist's character and ministry in Luke 7, the Lord asked,

"What went ye out into the wilderness to behold? ... a prophet? Yea, I say unto you, and much more than a prophet. This is he of whom it is written, Behold, I send My messenger before Thy face, who shall prepare Thy way before Thee" (Luke 7:24,26,27; cf. Mal. 3:1).

The verse in Malachi makes clear that the messenger was to prepare the way before the Lord. By applying Malachi's words to John the Baptist the Lord Jesus was confirming that He was the divine Person who would come suddenly to His temple. There is a parallel in Isaiah's description of John the Baptist's ministry - "The voice of one that crieth, Prepare ye in the wilderness the way of the LORD (Jehovah), make straight in the desert a highway for our God" (El9him). Although the gospel writers do not record the Lord Jesus as applying these prophetic words to the Baptist, the Holy Spirit moved the three synoptic gospel writers to apply the prophecy in this way. If we accept Scripture to be God's inspired word, it follows that Isaiah ascribes to the Lord Jesus both the name Jehovah and the name Elohim.

As the Lord was giving instruction to two of His disciples about the colt on which He would ride into Jerusalem, we are told in Matthew's gospel that He added "Now this is come to pass, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by

the prophet, saying, Tell ye the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass" (21:5).

Who was this King of whom Zechariah prophesied? (Zech. 9:9).

"He shall speak peace unto the nations: and His dominion shall be from sea to sea, and from the River unto the ends of the earth" (verse 10).

Only one King can be identified to answer to this description - "the LORD of hosts", who "shall reign in Mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before His ancients gloriously" (Is. 24:23). In applying Zechariah's prophecy to Himself, the Lord Jesus was again declaring both His Deity and Messiahship.

Question after question had been devised by Pharisee, Sadducee and scribe in their efforts to gain advantage over the Lord Jesus. But on every occasion His answers silenced them, for "never man so spake". Mat. 22:42 records that He asked the Pharisees what they thought of the Christ, and they replied that He was the son of David. "He saith unto them, How then doth David in the Spirit call Him Lord, saying, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit Thou on My right hand till I put Thine enemies under Thy feet? If David then calleth Him Lord, how is He his son?" No one was able to answer this question, and from that day no one dared again to ask Him any more questions. However, the Lord's use of this quote from Ps.110 is explained by the Holy Spirit in Heb. 1:13. There David's Lord is identified as the Lord Jesus Christ, to whom God has said, "Sit Thou on My right hand, till I make Thine enemies the footstool of Thy feet". The Lord Jesus was David's son in that He was born of the seed of David according to the flesh; but He was also David's Lord as the Son of God from everlasting. He was both the Root and the Offspring of David. His question from Ps. 110 resounds with the truth of His Deity.

POWER ON EARTH TO FORGWE SINS

"He blasphemeth; who can forgive sins but one, even God?" (Mark 2:7). This was the indignant response of certain of the scribes when the Lord said to a palsied man, "Thy sins are forgiven". The man had been lowered through the roof of the house in which the Lord was teaching. Dealing with the patient's deepest need first, the Saviour assured him of forgiveness of sins. Immediately this was challenged, because only God can forgive sins. The Lord deliberately took up the challenge: "Why reason ye these things in your hearts?" He asked. "But that ye may know that the Son of Man hath power on earth to forgive sins (He saith to the sick of the palsy), Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thy house". The divine power which immediately healed the paralysed man demonstrated the Lord's authority to forgive sins. Little wonder "they were all amazed, and glorified God, saying, We never saw it on this fashion". For ourselves we see in His authority to forgive sins the Lord's further confirmation of His Deity. His exercise of this divine prerogative was seen again in His dealings with the sinner woman of Luke 7: "Thy sins are forgiven ... thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace" (verses 48-50).

I AND THE FATHER ARE ONE

Many of the Jews who listened to the ministry of the Lord Jesus took strong exception to His references to God as His Father. As explained in John 5:18: "For this cause therefore the Jews sought the more to kill Him, because He not only brake the sabbath, but also called God His own Father, making Himself equal with God". Were they simply misunderstanding what the Lord Jesus meant by calling God His own Father? If that had been so, the Lord would have corrected them and denied any claim to equality with God. Far from doing this He emphasized time and again the uniqueness of His relationship with the Father:

"The Father loveth the Son, and showeth Him all things that Himself doeth".

"As the Father raiseth the dead ... even so the Son also quickeneth

whom He will".

"He hath given all judgement unto the Son; that all may honour the Son, even as they honour the Father".

(John 5: 20 - 23).

It was at the feast of the dedication at Jerusalem that He declared: "I and the Father are one". This prompted the Jews to take up stones again to stone Him. Asked for which of the good works shown from the Father they wished to stone Him, they answered: "For a good work we stone Thee not, but for

blasphemy; and because that Thou, being a man, makest Thyself God" (John 10: 30 - 33). Again on this occasion there was no withdrawal by the Lord Jesus of what He had said. Rather He reminded them that even men (the elders of Israel) to whom God's word came were described as "gods" (Ps. 82:6). How much more should He, whom the Father had sanctified and sent into the world, be called "the Son of God"? Again He appealed to the works given Him by the Father as evidence that He was in the Father and the Father in Him (John 10:38).

"TELL NO MAN

It seems remarkable that when Peter so clearly confessed the Lord Jesus to be "the Christ, the Son of the living God", the disciples were charged that they should tell no man who He was (Mat. 16:16,20). Nor were Peter, James and John to tell anyone about their experience on the Mount of Transfiguration until the Son of Man had been raised from the dead. The truth of the Lord's Deity and Messiahship pervaded His ministry, but could only be understood by those with earnest spiritual concern, to whom the Father in heaven would reveal it. It could not be humanly apprehended. The natural mind tended to view the hope of Messiah's earthly kingdom as the answer to the political situation of that time. A Christ of earthly glory and worldwide power was their expectation. They remained blind to the fulfilment in the Lord Jesus of the prophetic truth regarding Jehovah's Servant, the suffering Christ. They saw in Him no beauty that they should desire Him. "Shall their want of faith make of none effect the faithfulness of God? God forbid!" In His earthly ministry the Faithful Witness left no doubt that He was "both Lord and Christ".

G. Prasher, Manchester, U.K. | Feb 1985
Never Man So Spake - Great Truths From The Lord's Min