JESUS CHRIST: GOD-MAN - Vital Christianity

179
"God exalted . . . to His own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might
give repentance and forgiveness of sins to Israel" (Ac 5:31).
His Work Testifies to His Divine Nature
"Do not believe Me unless I do what My Father does. But if I do it, even though
you do not believe Me, believe the miracles, that you may learn and understand
that the Father is in Me, and I in the Father" (Jn 10:37-38).
At the Feast of Dedication at Jerusalem the Jews gathered around Jesus in the temple area
of Solomon's Colonnade and impatiently asked Him:
"How long will You keep us in suspense? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly" (v. 24).
At this point Jesus makes His work the issue of His identity. He goes so far as to say that
unless people see Him do the work of God they have no business believing in Him. After all, If
He is divine, then He will evidence divine work (vv. 37-38).
To such a challenge the Jews "again tried to seize Him" (v. 39). Why? Because He
claimed to do the work of God Almighty!
The most pronounced declaration of the divine nature of His ministry is seen in His
reading of the scroll of the prophet Isaiah (61:1-2) and His claim that the prophet was
prophesying not only about God's ministry, but about His own ministry:
"He went to Nazareth, where He had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day He
went into the synagogue, as was His custom. And He stood up to read. The scroll
of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. Unrolling it, He found the place where it
is written:
'The Spirit of the Lord is on Me, because he has anointed Me to preach good
news to the poor.
He has sent Me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight
for the blind,
to release the oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor'" (Lk 4:16-19).
Luke continues to tell us what happened:
"Then He rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The
eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on Him, and He said to them,
'Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing'" (Lk 4:20-21).