Divinity & Humility: Jesus Talked with Abraham and Wept with Lazarus’ Sisters
Today I want to build on the last two posts. Two weeks ago, we reviewed Jesus’ statement in John 8:58 where He declares that He existed and was alive before Abraham was even born! (Wow, what a declaration!) Last week we looked at Jesus’ statement that He is the One who has been sending all the wise men and prophets into Jewish history (King David, Solomon, Isaiah, Jeremiah and John the Baptist Mat 23:34)! We also reviewed 1 Peter 1:20 where Peter says that Jesus was chosen before the creation of the world. It becomes clear that Jesus had a life before He became a human baby and before the world was even made.
Since this is true, let’s look for Him elsewhere.
To do this, we first need to set the stage by looking at a number of statements from Jesus and others:
- John 1:18 “No one has ever seen God…”
- John 6:46 “No one has seen the Father…”
- I Timothy 6:16 “… God … whom no one has seen or can see.”
- I John 4:12 “No one has ever seen God…”
- Colossians 1:15 “He [Jesus] is the image of the invisible God…” (i.e. God is invisible & cannot be seen)
These verses and many others clearly lay down the reality that God cannot be seen. Fix that in your mind.
Now, let’s flip to Genesis 17 & 18. Consider these verses:
“When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, ‘I am God Almighty; walk before Me and be blameless.’ “ Genesis 17:1
“The LORD appeared to Abraham near the great trees of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day.” Genesis 18:1
When the word LORD is capitalized in the Bible it represents the Jewish name for God, “YHVH” or Yahweh. These verses make it extremely clear that Abraham saw God. It wasn’t a vision like in Genesis 15:1. God actually appeared to Abraham. However, Jesus and others clearly indicate that God can never been seen. The second verse listed in the bullet point list from John 6:46 puts a finer point on this statement, “No one has seen the Father… “
Well, if God cannot be seen or more explicitly, if the Father cannot be seen, who then is appearing to Abraham? In the Godhead there exists the Father, the Son and the Spirit. Presumably all these verses in the bullet point list are referring to the Father. In addition to that we know of no scripture that indicates that the Holy Spirit appears in a human form. That only leaves One.
Jesus is called, “Emmanuel,” or “God with us.” What if this is not only true in the incarnation, but true regarding Jesus being with the human race leading and guiding our leaders at critical times?
We know that Jesus was alive before Abraham was even born (John 8:58). It seems that He was the One appearing to Abraham on multiple occasions.
You might say, “Hey, it could have been an angel that was talking to Abraham.” That is a very plausible possibility. Consider these verses:
“Then the LORD said, ‘I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.’” Genesis 18:10
“Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?” Genesis 18:17
This “angel” has a strange way of talking about Himself in the 1st person as if He were God.
Consider also that 2 of the 3 turn away and begin moving towards Sodom. But the text is very clear about the 3rd One
“The men turned away and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the LORD.” Genesis 18:22
In fact, Abraham begins dialoguing with the 3rd One as if He were God! Abraham begins pleading with Him for mercy for the righteous. Abraham is appealing to the One who is making the decision. An angel merely carries out God’s decision. Abraham is talking to the One who makes the decision
The more that we study these passages and many others, it becomes clear that God appears to many people in the Old Testament. Later we will see that this Angel of the Lord even receives worship (which no true angel would permit – See Revelation 19:10, 22:9). The mystery man of the Old Testament comes into clear focus as Jesus before He becomes a human baby.
Why is this important? It drives deep the reality of Jesus’ divinity in detail. It is one thing to say, “Oh, yes, I think Jesus is God.” But it is another to think and pray through the realities of that statement. If Jesus is God, He has always existed and was, in fact, interacting with the human race in the Old Testament.
Let’s contrast that with a fascinating passage where Jesus talks about Himself. If you were to give a one line description of yourself for a historical document, what would you say? How would you describe yourself? What would be important to highlight and disclose? Matt 11:29 reveals what Jesus, the God-man said about Himself:
“Take my yoke upon you and learn from Me for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”
When the God-man self describes, He uses the word “humble” as a primary description!
Fascinating!
How does Jesus walk this out in daily life? There are numerable examples. Consider John 11. Lazarus, the brother of Mary and Martha gets sick and eventually dies. Jesus purposely delays going to him and healing him so that the disciples and many others will witness a much greater miracles. Jesus will actually raise Lazarus from the dead.
However, during the process, Jesus appears on the scene after Lazarus has been in the tomb for four days. Martha and then Mary run out to meet Jesus and they pour out their pain and grief before the Master. Jesus does an amazing thing. He weeps.
“Jesus wept.” John 11:35
Jesus knows that He will raise Lazarus from the dead. However, this does not prevent Him from fully entering into the families’ deep grief. He has vast empathy. In radical humility He feels the human condition. He feels the loss and devastation that we call death. It penetrates His heart and the Almighty One… weeps!
To really understand the depth of Jesus’ humility you have to understand the heights from which He has descended from to become a human. Jesus has always been alive. Colossians 1:16 says, “… all things were created by Him and for Him.” Jesus was there when the earth was created. He was there talking to Abraham when the 2 angels walked into Sodom. He was there when Lazarus died. He allows Himself to be gripped with the sadness and grief that we face when someone dies, because He descends in humility to the lowest places to live with us and be with us – forever (Matt 28:20).
1st Commandment Prayer
Jesus, you are the most wonderful combination of the strength and power of a Lion and the tenderness and humility of a Lamb! Your eternal life inspires the deepest amazement and awe! However, your breath taking humility is a delight beyond words! You are the most glorious and honorable being ever to exist! You are completely powerful yet tenderly humble! Therefore You delight to command us to worship You because of the richness of who you are1! Utterly unique! Utterly transcendent! Utterly amazing! That is why the angles cry, “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God almighty!” Revelation 4:8 and Isaiah 6:3)
Footnote 1 – God commands us to worship Him for many reasons. One reason is contained in 2 Cor 3:18. He knows that we become like whatever we are focused on or fascinated by. “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness…” As we look at the Lord’s glory we become like Him! Fascination is one of the keys to growth. That is why we are gazing on His life before He was a human and contrasting that to His humility.