Why Did Jesus Come To Earth ? - Part 4 - Pursuing Intimacy With God
Why Did Jesus Come ? – Part 4
In Parts 1 and 2 of Why Did Jesus Come To Earth ? we looked at the first reason Jesus came to save us. Because of His great love for us, Jesus has a strong desire to have the closest possible fellowship with us. Once we are saved and have a restored relationship with God, He wants us to grow closer to Him. And He wants to have the closest possible fellowship with us.
In Part 3 of Why Did Jesus Come To Earth ? we began to look at the 2nd reason Jesus came. While Jesus was on earth He was on a mission from God. To seek and save the lost. And to teach His disciples and followers, who would later become the teachers and apostles of the church.
In this final part we will continue to look at the second reason Jesus came to save us.
Why Did Jesus Come To Earth ?
The 2nd Key To Being The Christian & Church That God Wants
We continue to look into the early church in Acts. God placed this church in the Bible, in the book of Acts, to be our example to follow. They were passionately devoted to Jesus. And they followed and obeyed all that He commanded, no matter the cost.
They lived in dangerous times for Christians. The same people that killed Jesus were still around. And many of them would sacrifice a lot, suffer, and even die for Jesus. All of the apostles except John died for doing what Jesus told them to do. And others died too, like Stephen, Paul…
Their passionate devotion to Jesus was the 1st key to being all that God wanted them to be (Acts 2:42). Now we will see the 2nd key. And this key is tied into the 2nd reason Jesus came to earth to save us.
Acts 2:47a – “praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people (good reputation).”
Another sign of God’s presence – sincere heart-felt worship, and all were in awe of God.
Acts 2:47b – “and the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
The Lord added daily those who were being saved. Daily is an important word in this verse, and we will look at this in a moment.
Notice it doesn’t say “The Lord added to their number daily those who became members of the church. Many churches today have a mission of attracting as many members as possible. Which leads to more resources. Which leads to more programs that appeal to more people, which leads to a larger church. And a larger campus.
How God Measures Success In A Church
God measures success differently than we do. His ways are not our ways. So how should we measure the success of our churches ?
Number of members ? Attendance ? How many programs we have ? How big the campus is ? These are all measures of success for many of today’s modern churches. But they are not necessarily true signs of success.
God’s measure of success is different. The main measurement of success that God uses is based on what is in our hearts. Love and devotion to Him is first. Which leads to obedience. Which leads to God being able to produce true success in a church.
God measures success in terms of spiritual and eternal fruit being produced. Only God can produce spiritual and eternal fruit. Which is salvations, and spiritual growth/transformation, which leads to people becoming true & faithful & obedient disciples. This can only happen when the people in the church do what God wants us to do.
Being A Witness For Jesus Is Not The Same As Occasionally Doing Witnessing
In Acts 2:47b God added daily to the church. This can only happen because the Christians in the church were doing their part. They were obeying what Jesus had commanded them to do.
Paul says it best in Romans 10:13-14:
“Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them ?”
God touched and saved a great number of lost people through the early church in Acts. Daily. This could not have happened if the people in the church were not doing their part.
They were actively participating in God’s mission work, and were daily sharing the Good News of Jesus with others. They lived a lifestyle of passionately being devoted to Jesus, and passionately sharing the Gospel with others.
Acts 1:8 says “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will BE my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
We usually focus on the receiving of power from the Holy Spirit to do witnessing and evangelism in this verse. But it also says “and you will BE my witnesses…”
Not “you will do witnessing or evangelism once in awhile when the church has an outreach event.” It means you will be filled with Jesus’ love & passion for the lost, and this will drive you to “seek and save the lost”
And you will be praying for and looking for opportunities to share Jesus and the Gospel with people wherever you go in your Daily Life. Driven by Jesus’ own love and passion in your heart, you will have a lifestyle of seeking to share the Gospel with lost people.
What Is The 2nd Key To Being All That God Wants You To Be ?
What Is The 2nd Reason Jesus Came To Save Us ?
The 2nd key to being the Christian and church that God wants is to faithfully participate and join Jesus in His mission. We must be on mission with God in order to experience God’s presence in our church, and to see Him doing what only He can do.
And that is the 2nd reason Jesus came to save us. To continue the work and mission that Jesus started when He was here on earth.
God does not need us to fulfill His mission. But He loves us and values us so much, that He gives us the privilege of joining Him in what He is doing. And God does this to give our lives meaning and purpose. It is a great honor and privilege to join Jesus in His kingdom work and mission.
“We were not saved from our sin simply so that we would qualify for heaven. God delivered us so we would have a relationship with Him through which He could carry out His mission to redeem a lost world.” – Henry Blackaby – Experiencing God
What Is God’s Mission ?
If joining God and actively participating in His mission in our daily lives is the 2nd reason Jesus came, then we need to understand what exactly is God’s mission. God is actively working all around the world today, and He wants us to join Him so that He can accomplish all that He wants to.
God is actively working in the hearts of lives of lost people, trying to bring them back into a restored relationship with Him. That is the 1st part of God’s mission.
And God is actively working in the hearts and lives of Christians, wanting to bring them into a deeper fellowship with Him. And to help them to grow to be faithful and devoted followers and disciples.
1 Timothy 2:4 “God wants all men to be saved, and to come to a knowledge of the truth.”
Jesus has a great love and passion to save all people. And He wants to fill us with His love and passion for the lost. So we will be driven by Jesus’ love and passion to actively pursue the lost.
Jesus defined very well the 1st part of God’s mission in Luke 19:10 – “I came to seek and save the lost. To actively seek out opportunities to share the Gospel with the lost. Even when they were not seeking God. Most lost people are not seeking God. They are lost. Only when God begins to touch their hearts and work in their lives will they start to be open in their hearts to seek and desire God.
Jesus was on a mission – of seeking and saving the lost. Jesus never sat around in the synagogue waiting for people to come to Him. He knew most lost people would not. So because He loved them so much, Jesus was always going out to seek them. So He could share the Good News of salvation with them.
Jesus was passionate about saving the lost, helping them to have a restored relationship with God. His great love and passion drove Him to sacrifice all, to suffer, and die a horrible death. All so we can have a restored relationship with Him.
The 2nd Part Of God’s Mission
After the 1st part of God’s mission, seeking and saving the lost, comes the 2nd part. We will find this 2nd part of God’s mission in Matthew 28:18-20.
v. 18 – “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” It is clear that Jesus is saying that He is The Lord. He is The Boss.
v.19 – “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Jesus is saying that because He is The Lord, therefore go… The word go here means “as you are going”. Jesus is not telling everyone they need to go to Africa. Or China. He is saying as you are going about in your daily life. If you do not hear and sense God leading you to go to another country, then your mission field is where you are. Your mission is to reach the lost where you are, and then help them to become true disciples.
Again, sharing the Gospel with others is about having the same heart and love and passion for the lost as Jesus. And this will drive you to seek out opportunities to share the Gospel with others – in your daily life. As a lifestyle of love and passion for the lost. Not just doing evangelism occasionally.
The 2nd part of God’s mission is to make disciples. Once people are reached for Jesus by sharing the Gospel, they are baby Christians. God wants them to grow closer to Him, and more like Jesus. He wants them to become faithful, passionate, devoted followers of Jesus. And He wants them to actively participate in His mission too.
Who Would Continue To Do God’s Mission After Jesus ?
Jesus faithfully started the mission of seeking and saving the lost. And then making disciples. But He knew that He was going to die on the cross to pay the price for all of our sins, and to save us. And He knew that He would return to be at His Father’s side.
So who was going to continue with the all important God’s mission work ? God had a plan.
Matthew 4:19 – “Jesus said follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.
What is a “fisher of men” ? A devoted follower of Jesus who obediently shares the Good News of Jesus with others in their daily life.
What does Jesus mean when He said “I will make you fishers of men” ? Jesus is promising that He will empower us to be able to fulfill His mission. It is the same as in Acts 1:8 when Jesus promised “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
To “be” a witness means that you too will be willing to sacrifice and even suffer & die for the sake of Jesus and His mission. Out of love and passion of God, and love and passion for others.
Back to Matthew 4:19 “Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men.” Jesus is not asking – He is calling and commanding us to be fishers of men.
Who Is Called To Be On Mission With God
Who is Jesus calling and commanding ? Who is Jesus speaking to in Matthew 4:19 and Matthew 28:18-20 ? Is this call and command only for Pastors, Missionaries, and the leaders of the church ? Or is it for all Christians ?
In many many churches today only a small number of people and maybe the pastor, if anyone at all, shares the Gospel with others.
Campus Crusade For Christ (CRU) did some research around 15-20 years ago about how many Christians were actively sharing the Gospel. The results showed that only 2% of Christians actively share the Gospel.
Where do we need to go to find the answer about who Jesus is calling and commanding in Matthew 4:19 and Matthew 28:18-20 ? We will find the answer in God’s word.
Acts 8:1 – On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria…
This is right after Stephen was stoned to death for being a follower of Jesus. And then a great persecution of the church started. The early church was in Jerusalem. Acts 8:1 says that all of the regular people in the church, except the apostles were scattered. The apostles, or leaders of the church, stayed in Jerusalem.
Acts 8:4 – “Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.”
All the regular people of the church preached the Good News of Jesus wherever they went. In the midst of a great persecution and difficult circumstances. Remember, it was a very dangerous time for Christians. Their love and passion for Jesus, and their love and passion for the lost drove them to obediently and passionately share the Gospel with the lost.
They clearly understood that Jesus called and commanded all of His followers to be fishers of men, and to make disciples of all nations.
God Can Greatly Use People Who Are Passionately Devoted To Him
We see the results of the faithful obedience and devotion of the early church in Acts 2:47, and also in Acts 11:19-20.
Acts 11:19-20 – Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, spreading the word only among Jews. 20 Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus.
Acts 11:21 – The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.
What does “the Lord’s hand was with them” mean ? The Lord’s hand means His presence, His glory, His power working thru them, His favor, and even His resources.
God will equip us, and empower us, and provide all resources and anything else we need to fulfill His Kingdom work and mission. We are all called and commanded to be “fishers of men” or missionaries – wherever we are.
All Of Us Have The Responsibility & Privilege To Be On Mission With God
Being called by God to be on mission with Him is a great privilege and honor. And a great joy. We all have the responsibility to carry on the mission that Jesus began. If we will not do it, no one will. If we do not fulfill our part of Jesus’ mission, then many many people will die with Jesus and spend an eternity suffering and paying the price for their sins.
2 Corinthians 5:18-19 “All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.”
v.18 – “and gave us the ministry of reconciliation” – Who is “us” ? Only pastors, missionaries, and church leaders ? No, all Christians.
v.19 – “and he has committed to us the message of reconciliation” – Who is “us” ? All of us.
What is the message of reconciliation ? The Gospel
2 Corinthians 5:20 “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.”
Paul calls us “Christ’s ambassadors” God has given us the extremely important job or task of taking the Good News of Jesus out to the lost. This is a great honor and privilege that God has given us.
Koiania Fellowship With God
In Part 1 we studied 1 Corinthians 1:9 and saw that God’s main call for us is to have fellowship with Jesus. This is not a verse about salvation. It is for Christians.
The Greek word “koinania” is used for fellowship. The definition of koinania fellowship wtih Jesus means:
1) Closest possible fellowship with God
2) Unity or Being One with God
3) A partnership with God where you join Him in His Kingdom Work and Mission
Being on mission with God in our daily lives is very important. It is the 2nd reason why Jesus came to save us.
The Most Important Things In Our Walk With God
How important does our fellowship with Jesus need to be ? And how important does actively being on mission with God in our daily lives need to be ?
Matthew 6:33 – “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
What do you think seek first means ? It means to make these things your Top Priority, or the Most Important things in your life.
1 Corinthians 15:3 – “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures”
Knowing Jesus and sharing the Gospel were Paul’s top priorities in his life. Because they are God’s top priorities. Paul was filled with Jesus’ love and devotion for God. And he was also filled with Jesus’ love and passion for the lost. And for helping believers grow.
Are these things naturally our top priority or most important to us ? No not naturally. We need God to touch and change our hearts, and our priorities and passions. So they will be the same as His.
What does seek first His kingdom mean ? Being on mission with God, and reaching the lost and making disciples needs to be our Top Priority
What does seek first His righteousness mean ? A right relationship with God, which leads to the closest possible fellowship with Jesus.
These 2 things in Matthew 6:33 are the same as the 2 Reason why Jesus came to save us. And they need to be our top priorities and most important things in our hearts and lives.
Pursuing Intimacy With God
Pursuing Intimacy With God is committed to helping you with the most important thing in your life… your intimacy with God , your fellowship with Him, and your partnership with God in His Kingdom work & mission.
There is much more information on Intimacy With God, Prayer, Praise & Worship, Hearing God’s Voice,… and hundreds of great Biblical truths and promises in the Pursuing Intimacy With God Bible studies.
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Other Links
Religion vs Relationship With God
Faith Is Vital to Intimacy With God
Part 2 – Faith Is Vital To Intimacy With God
Faith Is Vital To Intimacy With God Part 3
Praise God: To Place A High Value On Him
Hear God’s Voice: Vital To Have Intimacy With God
What Is God’s Call For Your Life ?
The Kind of Christian & Church God Wants
Paul’s Passion & Commitment To Jesus
Paul’s Passion to Preach The Gospel
Inspirational Bible Verses & Quotes
Inspirational Bible Verses & Quotes Part 2
The Lord’s Prayer – Prayer In The Bible
Jesus’ Teaching On Prayer In Luke 11
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