Weekly Ministry Tip #14 Fall 2013
Jesus – The Greatest Person In History
In Matthew 11:11 Jesus called “John the Baptist” “…among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist.” I believe He said this because he served as the immediate forerunner of the Messiah. Not only did John foretell the coming Messiah but he also physically saw and spoke with Him. This was a ministry no other prophet enjoyed. All the Old Testament prophets could only speak about Him as coming in the future. John saw Him.
I believe that the greatest person to walk the face of the earth was Jesus Christ our Messiah. The only person to be born of a virgin and the Holy Spirit was Jesus. As we have seen this fall while looking at the early parts of the Gospel, there is no one who compares to Jesus. He is without equal.
Jesus fulfilled a number of prophecies at his birth as well as during His lifetime – Check out these prophecies about Jesus. I also enjoyed reading first hand in the gospels the events surrounding the birth of Christ.
In Luke 1:31-33 The angel Gabriel says to Mary…
“31And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.
In Matthew 1:20–23 An angel appears to Joseph …
“20…an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”
In Luke 2:10-11, 13, the angels approached the shepherds in the field.
“10And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord…13And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God…”
In Luke 2:25-32 Simeon desperately wanted to see the Messiah before he died.
29“Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; 30for my eyes have seen your salvation 31that you have prepared in the presence of all people, 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.”
In Matthew 2:1-12 When Jesus was a toddler, the wise men from the east came seeking the “king of the Jews.” They followed the star in the heavens until it shone down in Bethlehem, resting over the place where Jesus was. They fell down and worshipped Him, bringing their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.
Is there anyone in the history of the world who came into the world in this way? He not only fulfilled Old Testament prophecy at His birth, but he proved to be God in the flesh, the Messiah who would die for the sins of the world. This is the best birthday celebration ever that we should remember.
The celebration of Christmas is rooted in the birth of Christ. He is the central figure of all of human history and the one who can affect real change in people’s lives. Use this occasion to tell people all around you about Jesus. Just yesterday I had an opportunity to help a neighbor put up Christmas lights on his house. I shared with him all the points mentioned above about the true meaning of Christmas.
Christmas/Winter Conference Fund Raising Idea
I received a recent email from staff member Eric Hiett of the Pacific Southwest Region. He shared about one campus who placed a request with the university to receive funding for the Christmas conference and had great success. The campus requested $100 for all 37 students attending and the campus granted them $3,700! If you go to this link, you’ll see the full application and all that the campus included in their request:
http://www.benrivera.org/cat/additional-linked-ministry-articlestools/
I blanked out the names of the students and the campus but you will get the idea.
Keep this idea in mind for future events. Have a wonderful holiday season. Talk to you again in January.
Ben with Cru
Orlando, FL