Why Jesus Christ (and John) Said He Came to this Earth

 "It was becoming clearer and clearer that if I wanted to come to the end of my life and not say, "I've wasted it" then I would need to press all the way in, and all the way up, to the ultimate purpose of God and join him in it. If my life was to have a single, all-satisfying, unifying passion, it would have to be God's passion." John Piper

The greatest privilege and joy we will ever have on this earth and throughout eternity is knowing our great Savior and Master – Jesus Christ. Most of us have barely touched the tip of the iceberg in our knowledge of Him. There is so much more to know and understand and experience of Him who is infinite in wisdom, love, grace, etc.

One of the ways we can get to know Him better is by studying and meditating on why He came to this earth. He spoke to this often in different ways. Over time I’ve noted as many of these purpose statements as I could and finally put them together in recent days. Some are clearer than others. But all are important.

May the Holy Spirit give us all greater revelation and understanding of these things so that we can know what was in His heart and mind when He considered and agreed to leave the eternal bliss of His heavenly fellowship with Father and Holy Spirit in heaven and to be sent to sojourn in the darkness and corruption of planet earth for 33 years.

1.        To fulfill everything in the Law and everything the prophets prophesied: “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.” Matthew 5:17  

“I delight to do Your will, O my God; Your Law is within my heart.” Psalm 40:8

We have a tendency in the body of Christ when we learn we are no longer under the law but under grace to look down our noses at the Law. Jesus who was “full of grace and truth” loved every letter of the Law and came to fulfill its intended purpose along with fulfilling every prophecy made about Him in all of the prophets (including the Psalms).

2.        To Expose Unrighteousness and to Establish Righteousness in Marriages, Families & Extended Families. “Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to Set A Man Against His Father, And A Daughter Against Her Mother, And A Daughter-In-Law Against Her Mother-In-Law; and A Man’s Enemies Will Be The Members Of His Household.” Matthew 10:34-36

 “Do you suppose that I came to grant peace on earth? I tell you, no, but rather division; for from now on five members in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three.” Luke 12:51,52

The context of both of these Scriptures is families and extended families. Obviously Jesus is not anti peace. Otherwise He would not have had the angels say – praising God – to the Shepherds, “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.” Luke 2:14; Nor would He have blessed His disciples often with peace (see John 14:27, 20:19, etc.); Nor would He have had the apostle Paul pen these foundational words about the kingdom of God on the earth, “for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” Romans 14:17 unless His will for all of His disciples was to walk in and to experience His soul satisfying peace as a way of life.

But He never intended for His followers to so exalt and prize peace (or better) lack of dissension and strife in our families and extended families to the extent that we would sacrifice our devotion and obedience to Him to try to avoid said family tensions and dissension. Jesus knew as His disciples then and today grew serious about following Him (whether they be children, youth or adults) their relatives who were not serious about following Him and obeying Him would rise up in protest. Jesus knew that harmony and “peace” in families could easily become an idol. And surely one of Satan’s most effective schemes is to cause us to so cherish this so called harmony and peace to the sad extent that we are then willing to compromise our devotion to Christ and His high call to holiness. Untold thousands have discontinued following Christ to preserve this false “peace” in their families and extended families.

So Jesus just wants His disciples to know on the front end that the more we seek to know and follow Him the more we should expect resistance and even violent persecution from those we once thought were our closest allies and supporters.

3.        To Preach/Proclaim the Gospel of the Kingdom everywhere the Father led Him. “He said to them, “Let us go somewhere else to the towns nearby, so that I may preach there also; for that is what I came for.” Mark 1:38                                                                        “But He said to them, “I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, for I was sent for this purpose.” Luke 4:43

It would have been very easy for Jesus to stay in one or more of the places where the crowds most adored Him and were responsive to Him. But He was on assignment and He lived to do the will of the Father. So every day and every hour He looked to the Father for His next assignment regardless of circumstances and regardless of what His well meaning followers might have felt was strategic for His success.

4.        To Call, Seek and Save Sinners and Enable them to Repent. “And hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick; I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Mark 2:17

 “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.” Luke 5:32

Praise God Jesus expressly came to rescue sinners like you and me! He came to show each of us the way of repentance – the way out of our misery.

5.        To Serve and to Give His Life as a Ransom for Many. “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”  Mark 10:45

Thankfully Jesus Christ while on earth never once gave in to any vestige of entitlement. He gladly humbled Himself to serve those around Him and ultimately to give Himself over to violent, hate filled, wicked men so that He could satisfy divine wrath and divine justice by shedding His blood as the necessary and only satisfactory sacrifice for our sins.

6.         To Preach the Gospel to the Poor; to Set the Captives Free; to Give Physical and Spiritual Sight to the Blind; to Set Free Those Who are Oppressed; and to Proclaim the Favorable Year of the Lord.”  “The Spirit Of The Lord Is Upon Me, Because He Anointed Me To Preach The Gospel To The Poor. He Has Sent Me To Proclaim Release TO THE CAPTIVES, AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND, TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED, TO PROCLAIM THE FAVORABLE YEAR OF THE LORD.” Luke 4:18,19

Our Savior had a special place in His heart for all of the people that the religious system prevalent among the Jews had no place for; and that religious spirits active today in and around His church tend to ignore or feel uncomfortable around. He longed to see the downtrodden poor uplifted with the good news of His glorious kingdom; He longed to see people set free from their bondage to sin and Satan; He longed to see sight restored to the physically blind; He longed to bring spiritual sight to the spiritually blind; He longed to see those long oppressed by sin and Satan set free by His power and grace; and He longed to proclaim everywhere He went that all of the spiritual blessings promised in the Old Testament in the coming kingdom of God were fulfilled in Him.

7.        To Cast Fire upon the Earth & to Undergo a Baptism: “I have come to cast fire upon the earth; and how I wish it were already kindled! But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is accomplished!” Luke 12:49,50  

Jesus came to burn up everything that was not of Him in all of the false religious systems and to light a fire under all of those who would respond to Him in faith and repentance. He came to birth a church that would spread to the ends of the earth and would bring abundant life to every tribe, tongue, people and nation. But before that could happen He had to go to the cross, and the grief and sadness He had to experience until it was all over was sometimes very distressing – but never disabling.

8.         To Seek and Save Those who are Lost: “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Luke 19:10

How thankful I am that He didn’t just come to save the lost, but to seek them and hunt them and pursue them until we finally are ready to place our hope and trust in Him.

9.        To Save the World: “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.” John 3:17

It was not in the Father’s heart or the Son’s to rain judgment upon the earth, but rather salvation on all of those who would believe.

10.  To do the Will of the Father, which is Saving those the Father gave Him or Chose: “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.” John 6:38-40

Jesus Christ came to do and to accomplish the Father’s will and lived every moment of His earthly life to that end. The Father was intent on saving many from their sins and bringing them into relationship with the Godhead and Jesus did what had to be done to make that possible and actual. Thank God He was not self willed! May we all be ever more like Him in this regard.

We will continue this study in a Part II soon. God bless you and reveal to you the knowledge of His will and ways and intentions in the days ahead.