God’s own honour He conferred upon Jesus Christ has in every respect made him the cynosure of all eyes in matters of eternal salvation to all the ends of the earth. That he was counted worthy to be sent to this evil world on a mission of redemption involving his shedding of blood and that he, in obedience to his Father, accomplished it faithfully and creditably clearly vindicated God’s purpose and placed him (Jesus) in an exclusive class of honour among His creation.
Long before the human existence of Jesus Christ, God had made it a rule that to Him only every knee should bow. Said He: “I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear.” (Isa. 45:23) Among the Jews, the bowing of the knee was a symbol of worship exclusive to God alone. That was why Mordecai, a Jew in the Persian kingdom of king Ahasuerus, refused to bow to Haman, the second to the king in command. “It was not pride but faithfulness to God. Haman took offence as one whose pride was wounded, and then attempted to eliminate all the Jews in the empire. Because Mordecai was in favour with God, the attempt of Haman to get rid of the Jews boomeranged, his mischief returned upon his own head; for he was hanged on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai who instead gained promotion to great honour, and the Jews triumphed over their enemies and faired well. (Read Esther chapters 3-7). God’s word is always true. Whoever plots evil against the child of God will certainly fall into his own pit. -Psa. 7:15,16.
The core point in this matter is that the honour of worship in bowing the knee that was exclusive to God in ancient times, He has conferred upon His only begotten Son Jesus Christ, consequent upon his absolute obedience. Thus St. Paul wrote of Christ in this vein: “And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven; and things in the earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of the Father.”- Phil. 2:8-11.
Moreover, God Almighty in ancient times directed Israel and all nations of men for that matter, to look to Him for salvation. He declared: “Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.” (Isa. 45:22). It is a thing of tremendous delight for a father to have a faithful son who is ever consistent with him and acting for and on his behalf in a way that measures to his required standard always. This is the perfect relationship between God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son.
For the reason that the confidence of the Almighty Father in His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ, is unqualified and boundless, none of the angels is comparable with him. Here is Christ’s own testimony: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever He doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise. For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all things that Himself doeth: and He will shew him greater works than these that ye may marvel. For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them even so the Son quickeneth whom he will. For the Father judgeth no man but hath committed all Judgement unto the Son: that all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him… For as the Father hath life in Himself; so hath He given unto the Son to have life in himself.”-John 5: 19-26.
The serpent of brass God commanded Moses to set up when the Israelites in the wilderness were plagued with fiery serpents, and to which they looked to get healing (Num 21:1-6,8), typified Jesus Christ whom He had sent to the world for men to look to or believe in so as to be saved. As it is written: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up; that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.” John 3:14, 15.
That God Almighty has placed Jesus Christ in a unique position among and far above all His creation and had him steeped in pre-eminence, honour, glory and power, there can be no argument. The lesson we as Christians learn from the experience of Jesus Christ, is that it pays to be faithful and obedient to God, come what may. In suffering degradation his was the worst, and in upliftment he ranks the highest. And St. Paul wrote of him thus: “Now that he ascended what is it but that he also descended first into the lowest parts of the earth? He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.”-Eph.4:9,10.
Peter the apostle whose faith in our Saviour was unshaken, especially after he and others received the anointing of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, spoke to the Council of the Jews concerning the greatness of Jesus Christ in spite of their efforts to restrain him and others from preaching in his name. About Jesus Christ, he, filled with the Holy Spirit, declared to the rulers and elders of Israel: “This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is no other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.- Acts4:11,12.
The work of God that Christians the world over have set for themselves as a matter of faith to do was likened by St. Paul to a race that must be run in accordance with the divine rules laid down in the Scriptures. Sin, he said, is an obstacle. In order to succeed in this race of life, the apostle directed one and all to focus on Jesus Christ. Said he: “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight (i.e. load of worldly cares), and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, LOOKING UNTO JESUS(our emphasis) the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”-Heb. 12:1,2.
The enthralling term in the foregoing text that is, the very core of our treatise is looking unto Jesus. To look to Jesus in the context means to devote one’s mind or thought to Jesus for an example of faith, love, hope, obedience, holiness, a principled style of life, and so on. It is important to fix all eyes of faith upon him in that he is the one appointed by God to give His children deliverance and salvation in this time of the end.
Not only did Jacob predict that the Messiah Would come from the tribe of his son, Judah, but he also indicated that the children of God Would be gathered to him. He was blessing his sons one by one, and when it was the turn of Judah, he said; “The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.”(Gen. 49:10) The expectation of Israel for Shiloh, the Messiah, was based on this and other prophecies concerning him.
One of such prophecies was uttered by Isaiah the prophet. As it is written: “And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ENSIGN of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious. And He (God) shall set up an ENSIGN for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.”- Isa. 11:10,12
That the ENSIGN (a beacon or banner) set up by God for the gathering of His children all over the world is Jesus Christ there can be no dispute, and that he began the work of gathering the people since his first advent and has continued it through his ambassadors till this end-time is a fact. This he is still doing through the preaching of the gospel of the kingdom of God otherwise known as the “gospel of peace” or “everlasting gospel”.- Matt. 24:14; Eph. 6:15; Rev. 14:6,7.
The climax of the gathering work comes up in this age of the end of the world. The period of the stoppage of the preaching of the gospel is described in the Scriptures as a time of famine of the word of God. Thus it is written: “Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread (food), nor a thirst for water, but of hearing of the word of the LORD..”(Amos 8:11,12) Jesus said the gospel should be preached now as a witness against the nations, “and then shall the end Come.”(Matt. 24:14) This is to ensure that no one has excuse for not believing or accepting the truth when Jesus Christ will wreak the vengeance of God upon the wicked at the forthcoming Great Tribulation and Battle of the Great Day of God Almighty. – Isa. 26:21; Zeph. 1:14-18; Matt. 24:21; Luke 21:22; 2 Thess. 1:7-9; Rev. 16:13- 16. Some Christians so-called who thought that the Great Tribulation and Battle of Armageddon would be fought in this second Millenium after Christ, were proved false and wrong when they fixed dates such as 1914; 1939-45 and 1975 respectively. They ought to be ashamed of themselves for having lied in the name of God. (Deut. 18:20-22; Prov. 14:5,25) Jesus said: “But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.”- Matt. 24:36.
All we can say now is that going into the next millenium is getting nearer that terrible day of the LORD God Almighty. Jesus Christ admonished: “Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come pass.”(Luke 21:36) If there is any time ever when people should repent of their sins and look unto Jesus” for salvation, IT IS NOW! God’s protection, guidance and abundant blessings I wish y all through Jesus Christ our Redeemer. Amen.
HAPPY FREEDOM DAY!
(Being full text of the Freedom Day Message, 1999 by Archmininster B. 0. Tietie, on Sunday 3 October, 1999 in commemoration of Christ’s Birth Anniversary.)