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| FROM B SMITH'S KITCHEN WINDOW |
637-1 SOMEBODY'S PERFECT
Pastor Henry F. Kulp
October 11, 1981
John 1: 1 - 3 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made.
As we have studied the last two Sunday mornings we have seen that Jesus Christ is Very God. It is clear, that if you want to be saved, if you are trusting Jesus Christ you must believe that he is God.
As we have studied the last two Sunday mornings we have seen that Jesus Christ is Very God. It is clear, that if you want to be saved, if you are trusting Jesus Christ you must believe that he is God.
John 8: 24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am He, ye shall die in your sins.
2/ The Jews who listened to Him, knew quite well that I AM was Jehovah God, and Jesus Christ is saying I AM Jehovah.
When Moses asked the Name of God, I AM that I AM was the mysterious answer. Then He says at the end of the 14th vs. You say unto the children of Israel, I AM has sent me unto you, and in vs. 15 He says, you tell the children of Israel, the Lord God of your fathers--the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob has sent me unto you.
So, I AM is the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob. So Jesus Christ is taking that Name.
4/ But now we have another problem that we must face. How can this God be a real man? Certain questions force themselves upon us. Was He really a man? Was He a real man? Being a man did He cease to be God? These are questions all of us must answer. Then another important question, Is it necessary that we believe that Jesus Christ was a real man? So we will search the Scriptures this morning to find the answer to these questions.
5/ John 8: 39 - 40 They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our father. Jesus saith unto them, If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham. But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham.
4/ But now we have another problem that we must face. How can this God be a real man? Certain questions force themselves upon us. Was He really a man? Was He a real man? Being a man did He cease to be God? These are questions all of us must answer. Then another important question, Is it necessary that we believe that Jesus Christ was a real man? So we will search the Scriptures this morning to find the answer to these questions.
5/ John 8: 39 - 40 They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our father. Jesus saith unto them, If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham. But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham.
Here He was debating with the Jews as to whether, or not they were the children of Abraham. He said, If you were Abraham’s children, you would do the works of Abraham, but now ye seek to kill me--a Man who has told you the truth which I have heard of God. So there is no question--He calls Himself a man.
6/ Acts 2: 22 Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know:
6/ Acts 2: 22 Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know:
In Peter’s famous sermon on the day of Pentecost, he said to the nation, Ye men of Israel, hear these words. Jesus of Nazareth, a Man approved unto God among you by miracles and wonders and signs. So you see that Peter does not hesitate to say that Jesus Christ is a Man. In the following verses Peter hastened to announce also the preexistence and the deity of this man. But, he does not scorn to use the term that tells us there was humanity in Jesus Christ.
7/ Whether Jesus Christ was Man was debated in the early church. In those early days they never had a question as to His deity. But, it was hard for them to understand how God could also be a man. But, the leaders of the early church were very dogmatic as to the manhood of Jesus Christ. So here we have what theologians call the hypostatic union, the humanity and the deity of Jesus Christ.
8/ Paul was sure of the real humanity of Jesus Christ. Romans 5: 15 But not as the offense, so also is the free gift. For if through the offense of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. And the gift of grace which is by one man, Jesus Christ, has abounded unto many, so that also is clear.
9/ I Corinthians 15: 21 For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. He writes to the church at Corinth, for since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.
10/ I Timothy 2: 5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Again, he calls Jesus a man when he writes to Timothy, for there is one God and one Mediator between God and man, the Man Christ Jesus. Believe me, anyone who reads the Scriptures with honesty in his heart will soon be convinced that Jesus Christ was god and that Jesus Christ was a real, or true man.
11/ To show also that Jesus Christ was a real or true Man, we read in Matthew 4: 2 That when He had fasted 40 days and nights He was desperately hungry. So the human nature of Jesus Christ knew the weakness and suffering that comes from the lack of food. And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungered. Any person upon this earth who cries to God that he is hungry, will know that God is conscious of what it is like to be hungry.
12/ John 4: 7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. His body experienced a great and overpowering weariness. Notice in the 6th verse. It says, He, being wearied with His journey sat by the well. You have to realize they were within a few hundred yards of Sychar, and He sat on the curb of the well to rest and recover His strength, while His disciples went on into the village in pursuit of food. Tired by the long jorney, worn by the heat of the day, the Man, Jesus Christ, said to the woman of Samaria, I thirst, give Me a drink. So He was tired and He was thirsty.
13/ Matthew 8: 20 And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head. Being a real man, He had a need of sleep. Perhaps the saddest words that ever came from His lips were spoken when He stood in the gathering dusk and said, "The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man hath not where to lay His head." Many were the weary nights that He wrapped Himself in His mantle and lay under the canopy of the stars to refresh His weary body.
14/ Mark 10: 21 Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go they way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. Here we have the case of the rich, young ruler. He came to Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ, beholding him, loved him. He loved.
15/ John 11: 5 Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. Here we have that Jesus loved Martha and her sister, Mary, and Lazarus. It was a home where they entertained Him often, and whenever He had time, He turned to the shelter of their home in Bethany and refreshed His spirit with companionship and communion with other human beings whom He had loved.
16/ Matthew 9: 36 But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd. Here we see a real human instinct. Here we read, but when He saw the multitude, He was moved with compassion on them. Why? Because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no Shepherd.
17/ What was the purpose of the incarnation? Why did God, Why did Deity become humanity? He become a real man?
18/ The God-man is the answer to man's unceasing search for God. Man has a natural instinct to worship, and man has tried to satisfy that instinct by making idols, and we have in Romans 1: idols of wood, gold and stone. Man as wanted to see God, that's why he paints pictures of God. He wants to know what God looks like--he tries to form in his mind an image of God. So God put Himself in the place where man could see Him.
7/ Whether Jesus Christ was Man was debated in the early church. In those early days they never had a question as to His deity. But, it was hard for them to understand how God could also be a man. But, the leaders of the early church were very dogmatic as to the manhood of Jesus Christ. So here we have what theologians call the hypostatic union, the humanity and the deity of Jesus Christ.
8/ Paul was sure of the real humanity of Jesus Christ. Romans 5: 15 But not as the offense, so also is the free gift. For if through the offense of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. And the gift of grace which is by one man, Jesus Christ, has abounded unto many, so that also is clear.
9/ I Corinthians 15: 21 For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. He writes to the church at Corinth, for since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.
10/ I Timothy 2: 5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Again, he calls Jesus a man when he writes to Timothy, for there is one God and one Mediator between God and man, the Man Christ Jesus. Believe me, anyone who reads the Scriptures with honesty in his heart will soon be convinced that Jesus Christ was god and that Jesus Christ was a real, or true man.
11/ To show also that Jesus Christ was a real or true Man, we read in Matthew 4: 2 That when He had fasted 40 days and nights He was desperately hungry. So the human nature of Jesus Christ knew the weakness and suffering that comes from the lack of food. And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungered. Any person upon this earth who cries to God that he is hungry, will know that God is conscious of what it is like to be hungry.
12/ John 4: 7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. His body experienced a great and overpowering weariness. Notice in the 6th verse. It says, He, being wearied with His journey sat by the well. You have to realize they were within a few hundred yards of Sychar, and He sat on the curb of the well to rest and recover His strength, while His disciples went on into the village in pursuit of food. Tired by the long jorney, worn by the heat of the day, the Man, Jesus Christ, said to the woman of Samaria, I thirst, give Me a drink. So He was tired and He was thirsty.
13/ Matthew 8: 20 And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head. Being a real man, He had a need of sleep. Perhaps the saddest words that ever came from His lips were spoken when He stood in the gathering dusk and said, "The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man hath not where to lay His head." Many were the weary nights that He wrapped Himself in His mantle and lay under the canopy of the stars to refresh His weary body.
14/ Mark 10: 21 Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go they way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. Here we have the case of the rich, young ruler. He came to Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ, beholding him, loved him. He loved.
15/ John 11: 5 Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. Here we have that Jesus loved Martha and her sister, Mary, and Lazarus. It was a home where they entertained Him often, and whenever He had time, He turned to the shelter of their home in Bethany and refreshed His spirit with companionship and communion with other human beings whom He had loved.
16/ Matthew 9: 36 But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd. Here we see a real human instinct. Here we read, but when He saw the multitude, He was moved with compassion on them. Why? Because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no Shepherd.
17/ What was the purpose of the incarnation? Why did God, Why did Deity become humanity? He become a real man?
18/ The God-man is the answer to man's unceasing search for God. Man has a natural instinct to worship, and man has tried to satisfy that instinct by making idols, and we have in Romans 1: idols of wood, gold and stone. Man as wanted to see God, that's why he paints pictures of God. He wants to know what God looks like--he tries to form in his mind an image of God. So God put Himself in the place where man could see Him.
John 1: 18 tells us that "no man has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him." That means a manifestation or a showing forth so that the only thing of God you will ever see is Jesus Christ’s humanity.
19/ This should be almost at the beginning John 1: 14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. Notice that this verse starts with the conjunction, And. Here, and, connects two thoughts, but I don't believe this means to connect verse 13 with 14, but rather verse 1 with verse 14. In the beginning was the Word, and now the Word became flesh. Between verses 1 and 14 we have a big parenthesis. We see that God became a man, a real man, a perfect man. You hear the phrase over, and over, again, "no one is perfect" but when we look in the Bible we see a man who was perfect in every way.
20/ John 1: 14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
19/ This should be almost at the beginning John 1: 14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. Notice that this verse starts with the conjunction, And. Here, and, connects two thoughts, but I don't believe this means to connect verse 13 with 14, but rather verse 1 with verse 14. In the beginning was the Word, and now the Word became flesh. Between verses 1 and 14 we have a big parenthesis. We see that God became a man, a real man, a perfect man. You hear the phrase over, and over, again, "no one is perfect" but when we look in the Bible we see a man who was perfect in every way.
20/ John 1: 14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
Here we read, and dwelt among us. This is a great key in the understanding of the humanity of Jesus Christ, or why He became true Man. His sojourn among us was supposed to be temporary, in order, that John might express the temporary aspect of the coming of the Logos, he used a Greek word which, rightly translated, is TENTED, OR PITCHED HIS TENT. A tent is a thing that is used for a temporary dwelling, either by Nomads, or by soldiers. It was not the purpose of Jesus Christ to come down here and live as long as He could. He could have lived much longer than the short span of His 33 years. We are born into this world to live, but he was born into this world to die.
21/ Now we must see when Jesus Christ arose from the tomb, He did not merely have a restoration, or a resuscitation of the old body. His old body was gloriously transformed. He took uponHimself a new resurrection body. Which was unique and immortal, it couldn't die. His body that died became a seed for a resurrection body, never again will He come back into the body He had then, in the body of His humiliation, but in the body of His resurrection, the body of His glorification. Never again was He to die. He is now to live forever as the King of kings and Lord of lords, the only Potentate.
22/ We entitled this message, "Somebody's Perfect". When Jesus Christ was on earth, He was the perfect Man. Let's look at some Scriptures that will prove this. I John 3: 5 And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin.
21/ Now we must see when Jesus Christ arose from the tomb, He did not merely have a restoration, or a resuscitation of the old body. His old body was gloriously transformed. He took uponHimself a new resurrection body. Which was unique and immortal, it couldn't die. His body that died became a seed for a resurrection body, never again will He come back into the body He had then, in the body of His humiliation, but in the body of His resurrection, the body of His glorification. Never again was He to die. He is now to live forever as the King of kings and Lord of lords, the only Potentate.
22/ We entitled this message, "Somebody's Perfect". When Jesus Christ was on earth, He was the perfect Man. Let's look at some Scriptures that will prove this. I John 3: 5 And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin.
Here we read, "and in Him is no sin." II Corinthians 5: 21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. He knew no sin.
Hebrews 4: 15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Yet without sin. So it is very clear that Jesus Christ was not a sinner. He did not have a sin nature, and He was the perfect Man in flesh.
23/ The question is often asked, could Jesus Christ have sinned? He was a perfect Man, but could He have sinned? I say absolutely not. This perfect man could never have sinned no matter what. Hebrews 7: 26 For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate fro sinners, and made higher than the heavens; Here we read He was holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners.
24/ It is ridiculous to teach that Jesus Christ could have sinned. It was absolutely impossible for this perfect Man to have an evil thought, to succumb to the devil.
25/ Could Jesus Christ have sinned when He was tempted there in Matthew 4? He was in the wilderness, facing that great tempter, Satan. Of course not. One Scripture will answer forever that proposition that He could have sinned when the devil tempted Him.
Hebrews 4: 15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Yet without sin. So it is very clear that Jesus Christ was not a sinner. He did not have a sin nature, and He was the perfect Man in flesh.
23/ The question is often asked, could Jesus Christ have sinned? He was a perfect Man, but could He have sinned? I say absolutely not. This perfect man could never have sinned no matter what. Hebrews 7: 26 For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate fro sinners, and made higher than the heavens; Here we read He was holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners.
24/ It is ridiculous to teach that Jesus Christ could have sinned. It was absolutely impossible for this perfect Man to have an evil thought, to succumb to the devil.
25/ Could Jesus Christ have sinned when He was tempted there in Matthew 4? He was in the wilderness, facing that great tempter, Satan. Of course not. One Scripture will answer forever that proposition that He could have sinned when the devil tempted Him.
John 14: 30 Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the Prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me. Here He says, the Prince of this world cometh and has nothing in Me. It is impossible that Satan could have caused that true Man to sin. There was nothing in Him that Satan could use--no old nature.
Ref: 10-11/1981 / 637-1 SOMEBODY'S PERFECT / 3/18/2020
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