Introducing Jesus
By Grant Gaines
An introduction is one of the-if not the-most important parts of any speech, movie, or essay. In an introduction the author needs to successfully capture the audience’s attention, create a “felt need” that gives the reader no choice but to continue reading, and lay out what will be discussed throughout the remainder of the speech or paper. If the author blows the introduction the rest of the discussion is useless. On the flip side, if the author nails the introduction there’s no telling how much potential impact their work could have.
The introduction holds the power to make or break a paper or speech. Knowing this, a good author or communicator will spend an unproportionately large amount of time crafting and preparing their introduction in comparison with the rest of the outline.
With this in mind, I want to look back at what words Jesus used as He opened up His public ministry. The four Gospel accounts-Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John-give us four different statements that Christ specifically chose as He introduced Himself to the world, and I believe they all give us important insights to how Jesus wanted us to live. Let’s check them out.
The first red letters we see in the book of Matthew are recorded in Matthew 3:15 (NIV) when Jesus was talking to John the Baptist about John baptizing Him in the Jordan River. Jesus said of His baptism, “…it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness….”
In order to understand why Jesus would make these His first words in the book of Matthew, it’s important to understand that the book of Matthew was originally written as a loooonnggg letter by a Jewish-tax-collector-turned-disciple named Matthew (obviously). Matthew’s target audience was his fellow Jews who were concerned with one thing-obtaining righteousness before God by following the Law of the Old Testament.
Knowing this, the Holy Spirit strategically used these words of Christ in Matthew 3:15 to capture the Jewish audience’s attention and let them know that Jesus’ purpose was not to abolish their sacred Old Testament Law but rather to fulfill it by perfectly and righteously following every single law down to the very letter (Matthew 5:17). In other words, Jesus captured the Jewish audience’s attention by telling them that He was the promised Messiah who would fulfill the requirements of their Law…just as the prophecies in their Law promised.
The author of the second Gospel, Mark, chose to start his letter by recording Jesus saying, “The time has come…The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the Good News!” (Mark 1:15, NIV). You’ve got to love Mark’s eagerness to make the main thing the main thing. He didn’t want his audience to doze off or lose focus without hearing the Gospel at least one time. Repent from your sins and believe in the Good News that Jesus is the Savior of our souls. Talk about a powerful introduction!
And by the way, Mark’s audience was a group of Christians who were suffering massive persecution in Rome. How encouraging is it, then, to be reminded of the hope of the Gospel and the promise that the kingdom of God is near when struggling through difficult times!
Luke, the third Gospel author, first quoted Jesus in Luke 2:49 (NIV) when Christ was still just 12 years old (Luke 2:42). After traveling to Jerusalem as a family for the Passover Feast, Mary, Joseph, and the rest of the family began the long journey back home only to realize that after three days they had forgot to grab Jesus! Sounds a lot like the plot of the Home Alone movies to me!
The family quickly scurried back to Jerusalem and found Jesus, “…in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone who heard Him was amazed at His understanding and His answers” (Luke 2:46-47, NIV). Upon finding Him, Mary was apparently not as impressed with her Son’s actions as the crowds was as could be seen through her response to finding Jesus-“Son, why have You treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for You” (Luke 2:48, NIV).
But Jesus, in His typical cool, calm, and collective demeanor responded to His mother by saying, “Why were you searching for Me? Didn’t you know I had to be in My Father’s house?” (Luke 2:49, NIV).
Right there, in Christ’s first words recorded in this particular Gospel, Luke wanted his audience (which was predominantly Gentile believers) to know that Jesus was about one thing while He was on earth-His Father’s business. From the early age of 12, Jesus made it known to the whole world that money, jobs, families, or even personal pleasure would not get in the way of pleasing His Father. No wonder one of the last things Jesus is recorded as saying in Luke is, “…Not My will but Yours be done” as He submitted Himself to the Father’s will of the cross (Luke 22:42, NIV).
Finally, the Gospel of John records Jesus’ first words in John 1:38 (NIV) when Christ looked at a group of people who just started following Him and asked them, “…What do you want?” I love that! Jesus began His ministry by asking those who wanted to follow Him a simple but deep question-what do you want. And I don’t believe Jesus was seeking a shallow “what-do-you-want-right-now” response that could have easily been answered by the people with a response such as, “food,” “sleep,” or “some extra cash.” Rather, I believe Jesus was sincerely asking the people to look into the depths of their heart and answer the question, “What do you really want more than anything in the entire world?”
That’s a question we all must honestly and opening answer every day of our lives-what do we really want. Do you want to make money more than anything? Do you want to marry a good looking spouse more than anything? Do you want to get into a good college more than anything? Do you want to get out of debt more than anything? What is it that you really want?
If it’s not Jesus, He doesn’t want you following Him. Sounds pretty harsh, doesn’t it? But don’t kill the messenger, I’m just repeating what Jesus said in John 6:60-66 when Jesus drove away many half-hearted followers because of His “you’re either for Me or against Me” type teaching, and again in Revelation 3:16 (NIV) when He said, “…because you are lukewarm-neither hot nor cold-I am about to spit you out of My mouth.”
Jesus wants you to be all in. Following Him isn’t a buffet where you get to pick and choose what you like and what you don’t like. It’s a package deal. It’s everything or it’s nothing.
From all of those different introductions, let me ask you the same question that Jesus asked His followers at the beginning of John-what do you really want? Do you want the One who fulfilled all the righteousness requirements of the Law so that you could live abundantly in eternal life, immeasurable blessings, and unquenchable joy through faith in Christ (Matthew)? Do you want the One who made the Good News which promises freedom from sin, victory over death, and an intimate relationship with God possible (Mark)? Do you want the One who was all about doing the will of the Father which was to bring you into His family (Luke)?
What do you really want?
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©Grant Gaines 2013
