Pastor Rushing greets seniors.
By Emmett Rushing
1900 years ago something happened in Jerusalem that affects every human being who ever or will ever live. Jesus Christ, beaten, buried and laid in a tomb came back to life as a new kind of creation, a glorified human being.
This had never happened before, not even to Jesus’ friend Lazarus who was raised back to physical life.
Peter and the disciples had thought the jig was up – “I go back fishing,” Peter said.
But it wasn’t over at all. We are all affected by Jesus’s life and death, even those who reject him fall under his judgment.
I think that question summarizes the most misunderstood part of the Gospel. One dear lady I have sold millions of dollars of products to where I work is a good friend. She belongs to a group that downplays the Godhead of Jesus Christ. I had to ask her about Hebrews 1:8 and she said, “I knew you’d be going there. That is hard for us to square.”
Jesus Christ’s two natures – fully God and fully man – yes that is hard to understand.
People come to me afraid of dying, afraid of what lies after, afraid of Christ. I tell them as I tell our Senior’s Church in San Dimas, “If you trust God as he is in Jesus, you’re in good hands. If you have Jesus you have the Lord of life and death.”
In John 17:22 Jesus prayed for us and asked his father to give us the glory that he had in his pre-existent life as the Word (John 1:1). Imagine that. The glory of the Godhead. Romans 8:17-18 says if we are God’s children we are co-heirs with Christ. Jesus was the first human being to transcend mortal existence but he will not be the last. Hebrews 2:11 says he is not ashamed to call us brethren. The book of Hebrews brings out a lot of where we stand in relation to Jesus.
Hebrews 2:9-10 proclaims that God’s purpose is to bring many sons to glory. Hebrews 2:18 says he is able to aid those of us who are being tempted. Yes, Jesus is the first of the New Creation God is aiming at, and 1 John 3:2 says we will be like him.
In John 5:22 it says the Father has given all judgment to the Son. So if you are on his side you don’t have to worry. I tell the Seniors that – you can sleep as calmly as a baby knowing that. Jesus is our Judge and Colossians 2:9 says he is clothed with the fullness of Deity. “Before Abraham was I am” Jesus said in John 8:58-59, claiming Deity again and the religious leaders of the day tried to stone him.
When we believe the Scriptures a beautiful future begins to unfold. Luke 24:35-43 says Jesus could enter buildings, walk through walls and still eat and drink. That’s the way we will be when we are given glorified bodies. Philippians 3:21 says God is even now at work transforming us so that we will be given glorified bodies that will be like his.
There’s a formula I like to use to discuss Jesus as God with the people I come across. When we read terms such as Alpha and Omega, First and last, Beginning and the End we know these are all titles that apply to God. Well, Isaiah 44:6 uses the First and Last as a title of the Yahweh God of the Old Testament. Jesus is consistently called “Lord” in the New Testament which shows something – the Lord God of the Old is the Jesus of Nazareth of the Gospels.
Alpha and Omega is found describing Jesus in Revelation 1:8 where it says he has the keys of life and death. Just think of that. If you are one of his you already enjoy his triumph over death. Death holds no terror as it says in Hebrews 2:15.
The Beginning and the End is used of Jesus in Revelation 22:13. He will rule this world eventually. He will rule over all things on this earth just like he rules the universe now. The only question is, Is He ruling us?