What Jesus Claimed For Himself

A. The heart of Christianity is bound up in the claims Jesus made for Himself.
1. One of the most important questions to confront mankind is found in Matt. 22:42, “What think you of the Christ, whose son is He?” Why is that question important to us?
a. Because Christianity is bound up in the Person of Jesus and His claims for Himself.
When it comes to believing in Him, He left us no middle ground. Either you believe or you don’t.
You accept His claims or reject them all together. It’s just that simple.
(a) He is not the Christ the Son of God. He is misguided and deluded or an
outright liar and fraud.
Those are the only choices you have in regard to Jesus and His claims.
(2) What then were the claims Jesus made about Himself and our relationship to Him?
Matt. 11: 27-30. Jesus makes two important claims.
No middle ground. You must accept or reject every claim He makes.
(B) He claims exclusive knowledge about God. You cannot learn about God from no one
but Jesus.
But not only do we learn about God from Jesus exclusively. But, Jesus offers something beyond that.
He says, “Come to Me and i will give you rest....take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, and by taking My yoke and in learning from me, you will find rest for your souls.”
Then He states that His yoke is easy. Instead of being a burdensome yoke, it is a light yoke.
I know of no one who can make that claim and then make good on it.
I can’t do it. You can’t do it. But, I can point you to one who can make good.
He can make good on every claim because He is the Son of God.
He has placed Himself in the center of our lives and offered us the perfect, easy, light yoke of salvation from our sins.
b. He makes the exclusive claim that He and He alone can forgive our sins.
(1) There is no yoke that we can create, devise by our own efforts that can take away sin.
(1) Mk, 2:1-12. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralized man, “Your sins are forgiven.” They pronounced Jesus as a heretic “Who do you think you are, only God can forgive sins.” Jesus answered, “Which is easier to say? “Your sins are forgiven or take up your bed and walk?”
(1) “If I have the power to heal, from where, from whom, does that power come?”
(2) If I have the power of God which is easier, to heal physical afflictions or to heal spiritual afflictions?
(2) Jesus is not laying down terms by which God forgives sin. All He is doing is proving His claim.
(1) He claimed He had authority to forgive sins and proved it by healing the man.
(2) His critics were right. No man can forgive sin. Only God can do that.
(3) Their criticism was based on the presupposition that Jesus was just a mere man.
(1) He proved He was deity by a mighty miracle that healed a paralyzed man.
(2) The purpose of the miracle was to prove that Jesus was deity. That’s the same process that proved the apostles to be spokesmen from God. That’s what Mk.16:20, states.
(2) Jesus claimed the exclusive right to be the object of our love, devotion, dedication.

(1) Of all Christ’s claims, none is more absolute in it’s demands than this one.
(1) Matt. 10:37-39. We must love Him supremely. What proves His right to make that claim? He is deity. He is the Son of God.
(2) What proves Him to be the Son of God? The miracles He performed.
(3) Our loyalty to Him must surpass all other loyalties. His deity gives Him the right to make that demand.
(4) The same demand is made on another occasion, Lk. 9:57-62.
(5) Jesus is saying, “Put Him above the most sacred obligations on earth.” Every commitment of life, even life itself, must take 2nd place to this one.
(2) Finally, Jesus tells us that He is the object of our faith.
(1) Yes, our faith is in His teaching and His commandments. But, it goes much father than that.
(2) Our faith must be in Him and His promises and His ability to fulfill every promise He has made to us.
(3) Jno. 13:1.
(3) Jno. 3:16.
(1) That’s God’s promise to you. Do you believe God’s promises? Jesus asks you to put the same trust and faith in Him.
(2) Will you do that? If so eternal life will be your personal possession.
(3) Jno. 14:6.
(4) Acts 20:32.

Spur - 09/09/2001 pm