Who is Jesus?

This question came up for discussion at a discipleship course in church last night. Here are my thoughts on the question of who Jesus is.

The Perfect Sacrifice

Jesus is the perfect sacrifice, the true and only sacrifice of God.

"The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!"" - John 1:29 (NIV)

"Get rid of the old yeast that you may be a new batch without yeast - as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed." - 1 Corinthians 5:7 (NIV)

"Since you call on a Father who judges each man's work impartially, live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear. For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect." - 1 Peter 1:17-19 (NIV)

The Perfect Priest

*Without a perfect priest to offer the perfect sacrifice to God, the perfect sacrifice is useless.*

Jesus is not only the perfect sacrifice, but also the perfect priest.

"Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathise with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are - yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." - Hebrews 4:14-16 (NIV)

"Now there have been many of those priests, since death prevented them from continuing in office; but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.

"Such a high priest meets our need - one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself. For the law appoints as high priests men who are weak; but the oath, which came after the law, appointed the Son, who has been made perfect forever." - Hebrews 7:23-28 (NIV)

"My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defence - Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world." - 1 John 2:1-2 (NIV)

The perfect priest who speaks to the Father in our defence is also the perfect sacrifice for our sins!

The Perfect Temple

*Without a perfect temple for the perfect priest to offer the perfect sacrifice to God in, the perfect sacrifice is still useless.*

Jesus is not only the perfect sacrifice and the perfect priest, but also the perfect temple.

"Then the Jews demanded of him, "What miraculous sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?"

"Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days."

"The Jews replied, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?" But the temple he had spoken of was his body. After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the Scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken."" - John 2:18-22 (NIV)

Temporal vs Eternal

Under the Old Covenant, the people of God were reconciled to Him by a temporal sacrifice offered by a temporal priest in a temporal temple.

Under the New Covenant, the people of God are reconciled to Him by an eternal sacrifice (Jesus) offered by an eternal priest (Jesus) in an eternal temple (Jesus).

The Perfect Temple

"It was necessary, then, for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God's presence." - Hebrews 9:23-24 (NIV)

The Perfect Priest

"Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself." - Hebrews 9:25-26 (NIV)

The Perfect Sacrifice

"Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him." - Hebrews 9:27-28 (NIV)

The perfect temple, the perfect priest and the perfect sacrifice - Jesus is all three (in one)!

Before the throne of God above
I have a strong, a perfect plea
A great high priest whose name is Love
Who ever lives and pleads for me

My name is written on His hands
My name is hidden in His heart
I know that while in heaven He stands
No power can force me to depart
No power can force me to depart

Link: Who is God (to you)? (12 Sep 10)