Who is Jesus – Part Four

Who is Jesus, according to Jesus? Or asked another way, what does Jesus have to say about Himself? I would like us to consider those questions today. Let me remind you, when asking and answering, “who is Jesus?” we have been limiting ourselves to the first chapter of John’s Gospel. So far, we have noted what John the Apostle explained, what John the Baptist proclaimed, and what the first followers of Christ declared about Jesus. In this last article in our series, I would like to us to think on the claims Jesus made of Himself. While still limiting the scope of our inquiry to John’s opening chapter.

In John 1:51 we read these words, “Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.” Candidly, many of us reading that statement do not fully appreciate what Jesus is saying about Himself. Further still, that claim is a little foreign to most of us, and the reference is likely unfamiliar. Therefore, let me give some background information to what Jesus is saying.

All the way back in Genesis chapter 28, we are told about a man named Jacob and a unique dream he had. In this dream, God spoke to Jacob and renewed several covenant commitments made with his grandfather Abraham and his father Isaac. This is the same Jacob who’s named would be changed to Israel, and father 12 sons who would become the 12 tribes of Israel. But years before the birth of his many children, God gave Jacob a night-time glimpse into glory. He dreamed about a ladder that stretched all the way from heaven down to earth. On this ladder, he could see angels ascending and descending between the heavenly realm and earthly. At the top of the ladder Jacob saw the LORD.

When Jacob woke from his dream, he said “Surely Yahweh (the LORD) is in this place. This is the very house of God and the gate of heaven.” (Genesis 28:16-17). So Jacob named that place Bethel, which means – House or dwelling place of God.

So, if we go back to John chapter one and the statement that Jesus made, we can discern several claims Jesus is making about Himself. Remember, Jesus told those first followers, “you will see heaven open and the angels ascending and descending on the Son of man.” Make no mistake, those Jews who heard Jesus say this would have instantly connected His claim to that Old Testament event. We may not immediately see that parallel, but those Israelites who heard Jesus say that, absolutely would have. By saying what He did, Jesus is definitively claiming to be the true fulfillment of what Jacob saw hundreds of years earlier.

Hence, the first truth we learn about who Jesus is, from Jesus; is that He is claiming deity. Let me say that again, Christ is claiming to be God. Remember, Jacob said, “surely Yahweh (the LORD) is in this place.” Jesus is telling His hearers; God is in this place – and I AM Him. This is no minor assertion friends. Both the original hearers and us readers are forced to decide whether we are going to believe this claim Jesus is making. Either they (and we) take Jesus at His word, and believe He is Yahweh God incarnate, or we reject this claim and consider Christ a liar and a fraud.

Secondly, Jesus is not only saying He is God, but that in His flesh, He is the dwelling place of God. Let me remind you, Jacob named that place Bethel, which means House of God. Folks, much could be said this time of year about the Christmas Holiday, but this much must be clear – Jesus is Emmanuel, or God with us. Jesus is God robed (housed) in human flesh.

Next, from this ancient vision given to the patriarch we learn; Jesus is the only way to enter heaven. Did you notice, Jacob in his dream said this was the very “gate of heaven.” Regardless of what our pluralistic society teaches us, there are not many ways to heaven, there is only One. Jesus is THE way, THE truth, and THE life; and no one comes to the Father, but by Him (John 14:6). Jesus is not a way, or one of many ways, but He is the only way. Or as Jacob dreamed and Jesus claimed, Christ alone is THE gate of heaven.

Finally, from that Old Testament reference one last truth about who Jesus is can be learned. Let me remind you, in his dream, Jacob saw a ladder that stretched from heaven to earth. By stating this ancient vision was fulfilled in Him, Jesus is declaring that He is the ladder that extends from the heavenly realm down to earth. Think on that dear reader. Jesus is using vivid imagery to make clear what He was doing by condescending to this earth. He came to span the gap between holy God and fallen men. Or, simply stated Jesus is God come down to men and only He can bring men back to God. You can’t get to God without coming to Christ.

In closing, if you want to know who Jesus is, I encourage you to read the first chapter of John. Many people had much to say about who He is and was … including Jesus Himself. Do you know Him?

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