Why Jesus Came - Part 2

  In my last post on this topic I emphasized the importance of Christ's sacrifice from the angle of sin and restoring relations between God and Man. This time I would like to think about Jesus' ministry as a model for Christians to follow.

  When Jesus sent out the Twelve to preach the Kingdom of Heaven - I am referring to an occasion some time before His crucifixion - he gave them orders to do what He Himself had been doing: 'Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.' (Matthew 10:8, NKJV.) Some might say that this was a special occasion and does not serve as a model for subsequent generations to follow. Against this I would make two suggestions: 

a) What purpose does the passage serve, if it is not a model for Christians to follow?

b) The Book of Acts and Church tradition say that the Disciples/Apostles went on doing these after the Ascension.

  Often we want to discuss Jesus as a model for preaching or for reaching out to the marginalized in society. These are, of course, extremely important things and they speak of the Father's character. But we should not be afraid to say that Jesus is also our model for ministry according to the character, power, and grace of the Holy Spirit. Luke 5:17 (NKJV) says, 'Now it happened on a certain day, as He was teaching, that there were Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting by, who had come out of every town of Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was present to heal them.' In other words, Jesus healed by the Spirit of God. 

  Following his Resurrection, Jesus said, 'All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.' (Matthew 28:18, NKJV). His is the 'name that is above all other names' (Philippians 2:9); He has authority to drive out demons, to heal the sick, to raise the dead and forgive sins. He has entrusted His authority to the Church, which serves Him as His Body on earth: He said to Peter, 'And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven', (Matthew 16:19, NKJV), and following His Resurrection He said of his disciples: 'And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.' (Mark 16:17-18, NKJV.)

  Jesus is our model for so many things, but let us not forget that He is our model for ministering the miraculous grace of God to the oppressed in whatever form He sees fit. Remember, though, we must stick close to our model as Christ stuck close to His, the Father. Christ said: 'Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner."' (John 5:19, NKJV)

God bless.