He who was God “became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). The eternal entered time. The equal companion of the Father and the Holy Spirit stooped to reside “among us”. He who was fully God became truly human.
But why did He come? What were His goals? Thankfully Jesus Himself has not left us in the dark. Time and again, when He was here, He gave reasons for His incarnation. And, in the interests of clarity, He often stated these in the form of a contrast: He did not come for one reason but He did come for another. In my next few blogposts I want to consider some of the ambitions He gave for His arrival in this world. Before I do that I’ve listed His statements below:
- “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfil” (Matthew 5:17).
- “I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance” (Matthew 9:13; Mark 2:17; cp. Luke 5:32).
- “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword” (Matthew 10:34; cp. Luke 12:51).
- “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28; Mark 10:45).
- “For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them” (Luke 9:56).
- “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved” (John 3:17).
- “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me” (John 6:38).
These seven statements of the Lord Jesus show that His coming had definite purpose. He came to fulfil Scripture, to call Sinners to repentance, to bring a Sword, to Serve and Sacrifice, to Save, and to Submit to the will of His Father.
As we consider, in future blogposts, the goals of the greatest life ever lived, may it increase our appreciation of the Lord Jesus and His grace: “He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9).
