The Reasons Why Jesus Came

The Reasons Why Jesus Came

Note: For this devotional, I quote the lyrics of a song that I really appreciate (as performed by The Sons Of Tennessee), though this is not an endorsement of the songwriters, or any specific musical group that has performed the song.

When you read and study the Word of God or hear it being taught, do you meditate on it, treasure it? When you learn something new about the Lord Jesus Christ, do you ponder it in your heart? Mary, the mother of Jesus, did.

Luke 2:19, 51b But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart. ...but His mother kept all these sayings in her heart.

I am sure some things puzzled her about why Jesus came to earth as a baby, but there were some things she did understand.

Mary, Did You Know?
(Mark Lowry , Buddy Greene / 1991 Word Music)

Mary, did you know that your baby boy
Would someday walk on water?
Mary, did you know that your baby boy
Would save our sons and daughters?
Did you know that your baby boy
Has come to make you new?
This child that you delivered,
Will soon deliver you?

Mary, did you know that your baby boy
Will give sight to a blind man?
Mary, did you know that your baby boy
Will calm the storm with His hand?
Did you know that your baby boy
Has walked where angels trod?
When you've kissed your little baby
You've kissed the face of God?

The blind will see, the deaf will hear,
The dead will live again,
The lame will leap, the dumb will speak,
The praises of the Lamb.

Mary, did you know that your baby boy
Is Lord of all creation?
Mary, did you know that your baby boy
Will one day rule the nations?
Did you know that your baby boy
Is heaven's perfect Lamb?
This sleeping child you're holding
Is the Great I Am?

Mary, did you know? She did know who Jesus was - that He was the Son of God and that He was her Saviour. She stated joyfully in Luke 1:46-47, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. My friend, do you know Jesus? Not, do you know about Him, but do you know Him personally? Is He your Saviour too?

Mary knew why Jesus came. Do you?

1 Timothy 3:16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

Let me give you eleven reasons that the Bible gives for Jesus, the second person of the Trinity, being virgin born and dwelling among us, reasons why God took on our human nature and was manifest in the flesh. I have chosen simply to quote the following main passages in the order they appear in the New Testament.

1) Matthew 1:21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call His name Jesus: for He shall save His people from their sins.

Jesus came to save us from our sins - not to leave us in them. He came to save us from the penalty (death and punishment in Hell for eternity - He offers us grace and eternal life in Heaven), the power (the dominion that sin has over us - He gives us strength on a daily basis to overcome as we walk with Him), and the presence of sin (what a day that will be in Heaven when sin is forever taken away and we are given our new immortal, sinless bodies!).

Hebrews 9:26 For then must He often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath He appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.

1 John 3:5 And ye know that He was manifested to take away our sins; and in Him is no sin.

2) Matthew 5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.

There is no other person that has ever done so - in fact, we are all guilty before the Lord for the many times that we have disobeyed His commandments. Praise the Lord that Jesus fulfilled the Law completely! While He was on Earth, He was an example to us; an example of the love, mercy, compassion, holiness, and righteousness of God. Because He completely fulfilled God's righteous requirements, He was the perfect sinless sacrifice. All who believe in and have received Jesus as their Saviour have His perfect righteousness credited to their account. (See Romans 4:22-25; 10:4)

Hebrews 10:7, 10 Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of Me,) to do Thy will, O God. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

3) Mark 2:17 When Jesus heard it, He saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

Jesus did not come to call those who were self-righteous, who were satisfied with their own "goodness" before God (which none of us have by the way! - see Isaiah 64:6 and Romans 3:10), but those who realized that they were unrighteous sinners in need of a Saviour. None of us can reach the righteous requirements of the Law; we have all missed the mark, and thereby fallen short of God's glory (Heaven). It is only through the righteousness of Christ credited to our account (through personal faith in His finished work on the cross) that we will be enabled to enter Heaven and dwell in God's holy presence forever.

1 Timothy 1:15 This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.

4) Luke 19:10 For the Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.

All of us are like sheep that have gone astray. We have all turned and gone our own way, and we needed a Shepherd to look for us and to bring us home. (Isaiah 53:6) The Good Shepherd came to seek, die for, and save those lost sheep. (John 10:11, 15)

5) John 3:17 For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved.

Luke 9:56 For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them. And they went to another village.

Jesus Christ came to Earth to provide salvation for fallen man. He did not come specifically to condemn us, but to save us; however, all who reject His free gift of eternal life will be condemned for refusing to believe in the only Saviour who can save them! (See John 3:18-21, 36; 2 Thessalonians 1:8-9) If we reject the only provision God has provided for our salvation, then we have condemned ourselves, and have no one else to blame!

John 12:47-48 And if any man hear My words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. He that rejecteth Me, and receiveth not My words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day.

6) John 12:46 I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on Me should not abide in darkness.

Jesus is the Light of the world, and He came to clearly show us the way to the Heavenly Father and to reveal Him to us. (John 1:14-18; 14:4-9; Hebrews 1:1-3) We do not need to walk in the darkness of superstition, paganism, religion, ignorance, or any other philosophies of man, but can walk in the light of the knowledge of the Word of God, as revealed by Jesus Christ.

Colossians 2:9 For in Him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.

2 Corinthians 4:4-6 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

2 Timothy 1:9-10 Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel:

7) John 18:37 Pilate therefore said unto Him, Art Thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth My voice.

Jesus came to bear witness of the truth (God's Word - John 17:17); He is the faithful and true witness (Revelation 3:14); He is Faithful and True (Revelation 19:11); and, in fact, He is the truth (John 14:6)! Not only did Jesus fully bear witness to the Word of God while He was dwelling among us, all Scripture is a testimony (witness) about Him! (Revelation 19:10 - the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy; the heartbeat of the whole Bible is its witness of the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ!)

8) 1 Timothy 2:5-6 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

Matthew 20:28 Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give His life a ransom for many.

We can all understand what a ransom is. Webster's 1828 Dictionary gives this definition: "The money or price paid for the redemption of a prisoner or slave, or for goods captured by an enemy; that which procures the release of a prisoner or captive, or of captured property, and restores the one to liberty and the other to the original owner." Jesus came to "to redeem from the bondage of sin, and from the punishment to which sinners are subjected by the divine law." Jesus came to "to rescue and deliver from the bondage of sin and the penalties of God's violated law, by obedience and suffering in the place of the sinner."

Titus 2:11, 14 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men... Who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.

We were all slaves to sin, death, and Satan, but Jesus came to redeem us, to ransom us, with His precious blood. 1 Peter 1:18-20 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.

Hosea 13:14 I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction: repentance shall be hid from Mine eyes. In other words, nothing would hinder Him from completing the plan of salvation He had set in motion, and He would not change His mind - repent - concerning this! (For some other references regarding redeem, redemption, and ransom, see: Job 19:25; Psalm 49:7-8, 15; 103:4; Isaiah 43:1; 44:6, 22; 51:11; 63:9; Luke 2:38; Romans 3:24-25; Galatians 3:13; Hebrews 9:12)

Ephesians 1:7 In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace;

Revelation 5:9 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for Thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by Thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;

9) Hebrews 2:9, 14-15 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that He by the grace of God should taste death for every man. Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, He also Himself likewise took part of the same; that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

Here we see that Jesus came to overcome death, to destroy its power, and destroy the devil who would enslave people through their fear of death and dying. Many will not come to the Saviour because of this fear and the power that the devil has over them - yet, all it takes is simple faith in the Saviour and His gift of eternal life to remove this fear and the power it holds over our lives. Now with that fear removed, we can confidently serve the Lord in peace of mind and hope of a future resurrection and eternity in Heaven.

10) 1 John 3:8b For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.

Jesus came to overcome the devil and destroy the works he has done upon this Earth - to destroy the work he has done in fallen man, to destroy the work he has done in our lives. Jesus came to restore the work of God in your hearts and lives, to restore the image of God that sin has marred. Will you turn to Him and let Him have His perfect way in your life?

John 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

What a contrast! The devil came to destroy and damage our lives, but Jesus came to give us a life that was so much more abundant, a life of purpose and fulfillment, a life of contentment and peace, a life of joy and hope. After reading Ecclesiastes, about the vanity of life lived under the sun, and personally experiencing the abundant life Jesus offers, I can testify that fulfillment is not found in anything the world offers, but only in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ and in a life lived for His glory.

11) 1 John 4:9-10 In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

In this last reference, we see that one reason that Jesus Christ came to dwell among us was to clearly show us the love of God, in person, in action, in a way that we could relate to. The next time someone wonders whether God really loves them, remind them that He proved His love for them already! He did this by shedding His blood and dying for our sins on Calvary, then arising victorious over the grave three days and three nights later.

Romans 5:6-8 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Now we know why Jesus came, was it all truly necessary?

In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus was overwhelmed with exceeding sorrow (Matthew 26:38) at what He was soon about to face in a matter of hours - drinking the cup of the wrath of God for our sins. He who knew perfect fellowship for all eternity past with the Father and the Holy Spirit would now be separated from them for three hours while hanging on the cross (see Matthew 27:45-46). He who was holy and righteous, who knew no sin whatsoever, would bear the sin of the world, would take that sin upon Himself (see 2 Corinthians 5:21 and 1 Peter 2:24). No wonder He shrank from this! Maybe in eternity we will be able to understand the awful price He bore for us on the cross when He died in our place, suffering the penalty that we deserved. In His agony and heaviness of spirit (Mark 14:33), sweating drops of blood (Luke 22:44), He prayed to His Heavenly Father, asking if there was any other way. Matthew 26:39 And He went a little farther, and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, O My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me: nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt.

His Heavenly Father's answer was for Him to go to the cross. If there was any other way for you to be saved, Jesus would not have had to die for your sins and suffer in your place. But there was no other way, so Jesus humbly submitted to that death on the cross, shed His blood, died and was buried, and arose again on the third day. One of the last statements He triumphantly cried just before He died was, It is finished! (John 19:30) My friend, the penalty for sin has been paid. It is finished. Jesus paid it all when He bore the wrath of God in our place.

1 John 4:14 And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.

This is the whole reason Jesus came: to be the Saviour of the world. Mary knew Jesus was the only Saviour. Now you know. What will you do with that knowledge? Will you repent of (turn from) your sins and receive Jesus as your Saviour? If you already know Jesus, will you tell others about Him?

Written October 9th, 2004
Jerry Bouey