Wednesday, October 11, 2006

He That Built All Things...is God

Heb.3:6 - For every house is built by some man, but he that built all things is God.
Heb.3:3 - For this man was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who hath built the house hath more honor than the house.

The world does not fully understand what we mean when we confess that Jesus was and is God. They process that as meaning He was divine, or that He was created special, or some other watered down version of their own making. Part of the misconception pertaining to the Incarnation is the misunderstanding of who God is. The average person imagines God as a universal overseer who is more new age than Bible reflected, and Jesus is from God trying to show us how to live, which usually means how to do what you want without hurting anyone else. But part of the reason the average person misunderstands who the Bible teaches that Jesus is centers around a major fact of His power that we fail to convey.

Jn.1:3 - All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made.

Jesus created everything. Yes, I cannot think of a single time in a public forum (talk show, etc.) where an evangelical minister has clearly represented Jesus as the Creator, because most people think of "God" as the Creator and Jesus as a divine messenger. But to comprehend that the New Testament identifies Jesus as the Creator of everything, well, that puts a new and Spiritually confrontational light on Him. Jesus is not just a good person, or a divine messenger, or even a teacher come from God, He is your Creator.

Matt.1:23 - Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

Not just from God, not just a god, and not just part of God. The Creator Himself came as a man. Most of us have been taught that and by the Spirit's revelation we fully embrace that, but it is still an imposing mystery. Even Paul observed, "Great is the mystery of godliness; God was manifest in the flesh...". And it is insufficient to just describe Jesus as "God", no, the carnal mind immediately separates Him from the overarching Creator God and it assigns Jesus to a subordinate status of the Divine. The teaching of Jesus must fully engage the reality that Jesus is the Creator God.

When in the company of lost people we sometimes look into the night sky and proclaim "God made those stars", and even an unregenerate person who is not an atheist will nod in agreement. But if you say, "Look at all those stars, Jesus made them all", you may well find that the Holy Spirit has used that to garner the attention of a sinner. Many people will credit Jesus with being a great teacher, a good example, and even a divine man, but when confronted with Him being the Creator they might have to stop and think about that one. From the smallest electron to the largest galaxy super cluster, Jesus created them all by His Word, which also in a mystery is Jesus.

Now since God made everything and Jesus is God, then explain the Trinity. That's right, no one can explain the Trinity. The Father and the Son and the Spirit are different and yet are one. But because the Lord Himself chose to reveal himself as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit the human mind again relegates the Son as subordinate to the Father and as we have seen in many of the cults they remove or cheapen the deity of Jesus. But when we preach and teach that the Creator of the universe is Jesus we remove all doubt as to who He is.

Col.1:16 - For by Him were all things created that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers, all things were created by Him and for Him.

So the next time you are granted the privilege of sharing Jesus with someone, represent Him not only as He came in earthly form, reveal Him as the Creator. And when they say I thought God the Father created everything you can answer "He did". And when they say "But I thought you just said that Jesus created everything" you can say, "He did". And when they say how can they both have created it you can say "Because they are one". Do you know what you have done? You have generated a discussion that revolves around who Jesus really is with the mind-boggling mystery that should accompany Him. Too often we have made Jesus a glorified man who fixes earthly problems, when in reality He is the Creator Lord of Glory.


Any representation less than that is another Jesus.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Well said. Good reminder. And good teaching of truth for any who may not have been taught that Jesus is the Creator. Thanks Rick. Especially thanks for the faithful quoting of and explaining of God's holy Word.