Humanity of Christ in the Gospels, Part 2

Jesus pictures the men of his generation as children in a marketplace who can't agree on a game — first wanting to play happy time, then wanting to play funeral. Indisposed to cooperate, they reject both John's asceticism and Jesus' ordinary table fellowship.

Luke chapter 7 and verse 31. Wherefore then shall I liken the men of this generation? And to what are they like? They are like unto children that sit in the marketplace and call one to another who say, we piped unto you and you did not dance.

13:13 - 13:29 Read in full sermon

John is careful: 'Jesus, therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well.' Not feigning weariness — really weary, lips parched, allowing his weary frame to rest where it could.

Now will you let something of the force of this break in upon you? Jesus, therefore, not feigning weariness, so that somehow we might think he's something like us, it says, Jesus, therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus by the well. Physical weariness so overtakes him that he says, I must have a breather. I can't continue in the journey.

15:40 - 16:07 Read in full sermon

Pastor Martin says — almost apologetically — that there is never a record of Jesus 'dipping into the infinite reserves' of his deity to bypass his humanity's needs. He met physical necessities through ordinary human means.

But there is never a record that our Lord sustains Himself in physical necessities by some kind, I don't know how else to say it and I hope I'm not irreverent, dipping into the infinite resources of His omnipotence as God. When He's tired and weary, He is strengthened by rest. Granted, in this very passage, he knew the physical invigoration that came from the service of God, but that was nothing that is strange to his servants. Many of us can testify to that.

17:21 - 17:55 Read in full sermon

On the lake, water is splashing over the sides and the boat is about to capsize — and Jesus is still sound asleep, 'held by a sleep that bordered on coma' from the drain on his humanity. Real human exhaustion.

Still sound asleep. So weary under the drain upon his humanity that once he went into the jaws of sleep, it was as though nothing would bring him out. He's held by a sleep that borders on a stupor. So weary was our blessed Lord.

20:16 - 20:34 Read in full sermon

Driving home: Without a real body there is no real humanity, and without a real humanity there is no real Savior.

After the resurrection, Jesus asks for fish and chews, masticates, and swallows it — not because he was hungry, but to demonstrate that even in his glorified body He is still truly man.

And some of them are still there scratching his head. He says, Give me a piece of fish. And so he chews, he masticates, he swallows a piece of fish. Why? Not particularly because he was probably hungry.

24:11 - 24:21 Read in full sermon

Driving home: God would not have subjected his son to one iota of humiliation beyond what was necessary to accomplish his mission.

A car can lose its tinted windshield, racing stripes, and spoked wheel covers and still function as a car — but it must have an engine, drivetrain, and steering. Christ has only the bare bones of true humanity necessary to function as our Savior; nothing extraneous.

The only illustration that came to mind this morning, and though it's rather crude for the subject, I hope God will use it. you see Christ is just this kind of Christ because no other Christ could have suited our need this is the time of year when all the car manufacturers are coming out with their new models there's a great brainwashing job going on to try to get you dissatisfied with that set of wheels that's been just fine until the new cars came out and if you're sucked in by the brainwashing job you'll end up down at the car dealers and you're going to see a sticker on the window that say...

45:02 - 45:48 Read in full sermon

The point: Look for sympathy in Christ as one who knows your humanity from conception forward — angels cannot help you the way He can.

Fellow believers can weep with me but they have no arm of omnipotence to succor me. Only Christ as God-man can both feel my weakness and act with divine power to help.

They can weep with me, but they have no arm of omnipotence to succor me. Thank God you see here The two natures in the one person Becomes a glorious truth For my Lord can not only weep with me He can console me And undertake for me With the arm of omnipotence Finally Where shall I look for a true example Thank God for those fellow mortals Who in some measure are so conformed to Christ that I may obey what Paul says. Mark those, he says, which so walk as ye have had us for an example. Thank God for those fellow human beings in whom the work of grace is so advanced

49:53 - 50:39 Read in full sermon