09/22/2023
Who is Jesus in relation to God? Is He a servant, a slave, a son, a prophet, a high priest, a tool, or all of these things? If you are having trouble answering this question then perhaps you can more easily answer the same question regarding yourself and your relationship to Jesus... No? Jesus is before all else the Son of God. We read the account of Mary and the birth of Jesus, but then at His baptism God Himself speaks and calls Him Son in proclamation to all in attendance...
“and behold, a voice from heaven said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased."”
Matthew 3:17 ESV
Interestingly the Gospel of Mark has God making this statement, not to everyone, but to Jesus Himself. Truly, He was speaking to all of creation that day, and as a man Jesus had become part and parcel of God's creation. Listen to the words written in Mark...
“And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, "You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased."”
Mark 1:10-11 ESV
What I find most interesting is that later in scripture Jesus asks His disciples two questions... the answer to these questions reveals that the people and the disciples (all but Peter) are still trying to decide who Jesus really is; let's read this account..,
“Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.”
Matthew 16:13-17 ESV
So when Jesus obeys God He doesn't do so as a house servant or a slave, but as God's own Son, and as such, God teaches Him about obedience and perfection... then, makes Him even more as He declares Him to be our Savior, and High Priest.
“So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him, "You are my Son, today I have begotten you"; as he says also in another place, "You are a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek." In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek.”
Hebrews 5:5-10 ESV
In His life Jesus did nothing that wasn't under the auspices of God Himself. As God's Son He spoke with the authority of His Father.
“So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise. For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing. And greater works than these will he show him, so that you may marvel.”
John 5:19-20 ESV
In this way Jesus is serving the Father, not as a slave, but as His Son; an extension of Himself. So we know That Jesus is the Son of God, our Savior, a High Priest, a Servant, God's tool for accomplishing His will, and the Son of Man. These are some of the things He is in relation to God, but He is not a slave.
Jesus has a relationship to God, and He also has one to us; let's look at a couple of the roles among the many He fills in our lives...
“For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!" The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.”
Romans 8:15-17 ESV
We are above all else brothers and sisters to Jesus Christ. In this way we suffer as He suffers, and we rise to glory as He does. The same Father that teaches Jesus obedience and perfection likewise teaches us, but He has also designated Jesus as our surrogate teacher.
“You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am.”
John 13:13 ESV
Jesus called Himself our teacher and Lord. In the King James Version this is "master and lord", and He also made it clear that we are not teachers, when He said...
“But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ. The greatest among you shall be your servant.”
Matthew 23:8-11 ESV
Jesus teaches us, and the way He serves His Father ought to teach us about how we should serve Him, and one another. As Jesus serves as Son, we should serve each other as brothers and sisters. We are not slaves or house servants, but family. We serve one another out of love and because of our divine pedigree. In this way we are servants to one another; we place the needs of our brothers and sisters before our own... not out of duty, but out of love.
Through our relationship We will weep before our father as Jesus did, we will suffer through instruction like Jesus, we will be resurrected one day as Jesus was, and we will come into our Father's presence as Jesus did. Will we also hear our Father say..."You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased."?
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for adopting me into your family. I thank you for making me your son as Jesus is your Son. Teach me Father so that I can represent you faithfully to the world. Let me become the Son in whom you can trust much, and who you send to do your bidding... your will. Though I may weep Lord and ask that certain cups pass from me, may I have the strength and determination to persevere, and serve your will through the love I have for you. I thank you for Jesus Christ who instructs me, and has indeed redeemed me from sin. Praised be His name Father, and in His many roles and His relationship to you, bless Him above all others. I praise you Father because you are my Mighty and Holy Father, my God, and my Creator. You are great beyond measure and though I might suffer through lessons, you also make me to lie down in green pastures, and lead me by the still waters... you restore my soul for your own pleasure. I love you Father in the full knowledge of your love and care for me. Praised be your Holy Name!
Rich Forbes