Luke: Jesus Is The Son Of Man
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PREACHING CHRIST THROUGH THE BIBLE |
Luke: Jesus Is The Son Of Man
Luke 19:1-10 (ESV)
1 He entered Jericho and was passing through.
2 And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a chief tax collector and was rich.
3 And he was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was small in stature.
4 So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was about to pass that way.
5 And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.”
6 So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully.
7 And when they saw it, they all grumbled, “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.”
8 And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.”
9 And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham.
10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
In the Old Testament, you will find some Bible heroes who were privileged to have personal encounters with God. These encounters were so powerful that they came out of it radically changed. I can name at least some of them:
Jacob personally wrestled with God and came out of it conscious that He needed God in his life to have a blessed future (Genesis 32).
In the year King Uzziah died, Isaiah saw a vision of God's majestic glory and came out surrendering to God's calling for his life (Isaiah 6).
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego experienced His presence while they were in their fiery furnace, and they came out of it without a scratch by the flames of fire (Daniel 3).
Without a doubt, these encounters made a big difference in the lives of these men. Of course, they were not the same after meeting God. However, during those times, they were still very few people who were honored to experience Him.
Praise God, when you come to the New Testament, to fulfill so many prophecies, Jesus the Messiah finally came and lived here on earth. So, instead of only one or two people meeting Him, it became possible for many more people to meet and know Him personally. And as we all know, after living here for almost thirty-three years, He allowed four men to document His life, teachings, and ministries. We refer to them as the Gospels of Jesus – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Why do we call them the Gospels? Because Jesus is the ultimate good news for the entire human race, He is the only One who can save us from hell and give us the gift of eternal life.
For the past two Sundays, we have already covered the first two books. Today, we come to the Gospel according to Luke. The primary portrayal of Jesus here is that He is the Son of Man. Of course, among the Jews, this title, Son of Man, is quite common because the books of Ezekiel and Daniel used it for God. So, it is safe to say that when Jesus used it, He was directly referring to Himself as the Almighty God, but at the same time possessing the human flesh. We will explore this further in the Book of Luke after sharing with you some background information:
1. The Author of the Book is Dr. Luke.
He was not part of the 12 disciples of Jesus Christ but was a medical doctor by profession. He joined the apostle Paul's team during his second missionary journey in Troas (Acts. 16:10). He became a loyal friend to Paul and remained with him until he was executed in Rome in 67 AD (2 Tim. 4:11). So, we can assume that he acquired all the necessary information to write about the life of Jesus through Paul and his close companions. He was probably the only Gentile who wrote two books in the Bible.
2. The Main Recipient of the Book is Theophilus (Lk 1:3)
Theophilus is referred to in the verse as "most excellent," which gives us a hint that he was probably a well-educated, high-ranking government official. Also, based on the words in verse 4, "that you may have certainty the things you have been taught," he was just a recent convert to Jesus Christ. Thus, in a way, Luke impresses that a more detailed knowledge of Christ's life will significantly help grow the faith of new believers.
3. The Book of Luke is the longest in the New Testament.
It is not only the longest among the four Gospels; it is the longest in the New Testament books. While the book of Matthew has 1,071 verses and Acts has 1,007, Luke has 1,151 verses. So, Luke provided us with a very detailed narrative of the life of Jesus Christ.
Now, as we begin to examine the book of Luke and highlight his portrayal of Jesus as the Son of Man, we will use the key verse in Luke 19:10 as the basis of our outline this morning. The verse says, "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost." Thus, we can divide this book into three major parts:
I THE COMING OF THE SON OF MAN
The key verse opens up with these words – "For the Son of Man came." If you step back and study the book of Luke, the first three chapters are all about the entrance of Jesus into the world and His ministry. Many of these verses are regularly used in our Christmas sermons, just like the announcement of the angel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary that she would be the mother of Jesus and how Mary would submit to God's will for her life (1:26-56).
I know how familiar we are with these verses. Still, I trust that we are not missing the main thing when we are talking about the coming of the Son of Man into our world – it is really an intentional attempt of God to be close to us so that He could be accessible to us in times of our needs.
This truth was communicated when God gave these words through Isaiah 7:14 (ESV):
14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
We need to highlight the name "Immanuel" in the verse. This name means "God with us." But, again, this establishes the truth that God is no longer distant from us; He is now living amongst us. Are you sensitive to His presence today? What are some of the things you do to stay close to Him?
To strengthen further the theme of Jesus being the Son of Man, Luke provided Christ's genealogy in Luke 3:23-38. If you examine this genealogy, instead of tracing the line of Jesus from Abraham and David as per Matthew, Luke goes all the way to Adam. The only reason why this approach was used is to show that Jesus is legitimately coming from the same human race as all of us.
Just in case you heard the criticism that the genealogy of Luke is different compared to the genealogy in Matthew. Bible scholars explain that Matthew's genealogy is based on Joseph's family, while Luke's genealogy is from Mary's family. As we said in the past two Sundays, the Gospels don't contradict; they complement to give us a more comprehensive knowledge of the Savior.
II THE COMPASSION OF THE SON OF MAN
Going back to the key verse, Luke 19:10, the next phrase is "to seek." I see this phrase as a perfect description of the compassion ministry of Jesus Christ. Beginning in chapters 4 to 21, we would find Jesus personally seeking the oppressed people and outcasts of the society. He ministered to them in tangible and compassionate ways. He deeply cared for them that He went out of His way to help them.
Luke introduces this second part in the life of Jesus by Jesus going to the synagogue and reading to the people the words from Isaiah 61:
Luke 4:18-19 (ESV)
18 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."
Undoubtedly, this Scripture passage embodies the earthly ministries of Jesus as the Son of Man. He did not come to inflict punishment on lost sinners; He came to the world and showed the love and compassion of God firsthand. Here are great examples of his ministries:
A. He Showed Compassion in His Healing
Luke 5:12-14 (ESV)
12 While he was in one of the cities, there came a man full of leprosy. And when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and begged him, "Lord, if you will, you can make me clean."
13 And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, "I will; be clean." And immediately the leprosy left him.
14 And he charged him to tell no one, but "go and show yourself to the priest, and make an offering for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, for a proof to them."
This passage is the first record of Jesus healing a sick person in Luke. Notice, even if the man was sick with leprosy (a very contagious disease during those days), Jesus never hesitated in touching him to demonstrate His compassion for Him. It is worth emphasizing that the phrase "full of leprosy" was to help us know that His leprosy was in an advanced stage and, for sure, was very much isolated from human contact. Yet, Jesus was willing and ready to minister to Him.
B. He Shared About Compassion in His Teachings
Luke 10:29-37 (ESV)
29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"
30 Jesus replied, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead.
31 Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side.
32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.
33 But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion.
34 He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him.
35 And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, 'Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.'
36 Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?"
37 He said, "The one who showed him mercy." And Jesus said to him, "You go, and do likewise."
This parable is genuinely shocking to Jesus' Jewish hearers because the outcast Samaritan was depicted as more compassionate than the religious priest and Levite. But the truth He was driving across was essential that God is more pleased with tangible gestures of love and compassion than the outward religiosity of so-called followers of God.
Today, if we are believers of Jesus Christ, we are also called to live out our faith by ministering to the oppressed and broken people. James reinforced this truth by saying in James 1:27 (ESV)
27 Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.
What are we doing today to demonstrate our faith to the world? Just like Jesus, are we engaging in tangible ways to show His love to others? Let's not forget that God wants to use us as His loving hands to touch the most desperate and broken people of the world.
C. He Sought Sinners with Compassion
Going back to our main text, we find Zacchaeus, the tax collector, as the primary recipient of this love and compassion from Jesus Christ. If you follow the story in the book, Jesus, en route to Jerusalem, made a side trip to Jericho to invite Himself into a dinner in the home of a known sinner. Notice, in verse 7, the people in the community were shocked that Jesus would even dine with him because they were well aware of his sinful lifestyle. Being a tax collector, he extorted money from people through the taxes he collected.
Unfortunately, everyone in the community gave attention to the sinfulness of Zacchaeus and neglected to see the compassion that Jesus was willing to show this man and the possibility of change that Jesus could bring into his life. Fast forward, Jesus left Zacchaeus a changed man. Not only did he stop defrauding other people, but he also restored what he had taken from them fourfold and generously gave half of his riches to the poor. Indeed, genuine encounters with Jesus always result in a godly change of life (2 Cor. 5:17).
III THE CROSS OF THE SON OF MAN
Lastly, as the last part of Luke 19:10 says, "to save the lost," the last section also of the book of Luke will be the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ (Luke 22-24). Both of these acts were necessary for accomplishing the work of saving the lost.
Although we won't be able to read these last three chapters together, I wanted to highlight a portion of the crucifixion story, which only Luke mentioned in so much detail because it capsulizes the theology for the cross.
Luke 23:39-43 (ESV)
39 One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, "Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!"
40 But the other rebuked him, saying, "Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?
41 And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong."
42 And he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."
43 And he said to him, "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise."
What are some of the essential doctrines that we should not miss out of this short story?
Jesus was identified with sinners, not because He sinned, but He took on Him the sins of the world (Isa.5312; John 1:29; 2 Cor. 5:12).
There are only two potential responses to Christ today (Unbelief, which leads to rejecting Him, or faith, which leads to receiving Him).
Faith without works alone is required to salvation (Eph. 2:8-9; Titus 3:5).
Jesus gives assurance of salvation to those who believe in Him (1 John 5:12-13)
Jesus as the Son of Man is a necessity in His work of salvation. Why? Jesus needed to become a human being because He represented the entire human race on the cross and died for our sins. There was no way He would die without becoming a man. After accomplishing this work, now, He can bestow forgiveness to everyone who will receive His gift of salvation. Yes, Jesus is all we need! As Charles H. Spurgeon said:
"I have a great need for Christ; I have a great Christ for my need."
-Bishop Jeremiah Lepasana