Tag: Jesus

Yesterday was Christmas. Many people went to church to acknowledge the Christ behind Christmas and even more celebrated Jesus in other ways. For my family, the day marked the last of four celebrations.

Now Christmas is over; we put it behind us for another year.

Yet long ago, Isaiah looked forward to Christmas, anticipating what was to come with these familiar words:

“For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

Christmas may be over, but the celebration of Jesus continues.

Thank you Jesus for who you are and what you did.

[Isaiah 9:6]

A lifelong student of the Bible, Peter DeHaan, PhD, wrote the 1,000-page website ABibleADay.com to encourage people to explore the Bible. His main blog and many books urge Christians to push past the status quo and reconsider how they practice their faith in every area of their lives.

The phrase “son of man” occurs in 178 verses in the Bible. Sometimes it’s written as “son of man” and other times, as “Son of man.”

When used as Son of man, the references are to Jesus, as seen in all four gospels (28 times in Matthew; 13 times in Mark; 25 times in Luke; and 12 times in John). It’s also written this way in Psalm 80:17, Daniel 7:13, and Acts 7:56, again implying Jesus.

Additionally, I understand “Son of man” as a euphemism for Son of God, which occurs 41 times throughout the New Testament and is in all four Gospels, all referencing Jesus.

What’s really interesting is the use of son of man. It’s used 93 times in the book of Ezekiel as God’s pet name for his prophet. But God also uses this as a name for Daniel (Daniel 8:17).

Three other mentions of son of man are in Hebrews 2:6, Revelation 1:13, and Revelation 14:14, which somewhat seems to straddle these two understandings of the phrase.

So, how can the Son of man refer to Jesus, while son of man refer to people?

Here are my thoughts: Jesus is the only son of God. We, as his church, are his bride. Therefore, through this spiritual marriage, we also become children of God, that is, sons of God, or to slide back into the euphemism, sons of man.

A lifelong student of the Bible, Peter DeHaan, PhD, wrote the 1,000-page website ABibleADay.com to encourage people to explore the Bible. His main blog and many books urge Christians to push past the status quo and reconsider how they practice their faith in every area of their lives.

The phrase “an eye for an eye” occurs four times in the Bible.

The first three are in the Old Testament, in the Law of Moses. In these verses it seems that Moses grants us permission to seek revenge.

However, putting it into an historical context, some scholars say it was actually a command for moderation, to have the response match the injury.

An excessive reaction to you stole my sheep is I’ll take all your animals and burn down your barn. Or you broke my arm, so I’ll kill you and your family. No, an eye for an eye may mean that the punishment must be proportional to the offense.

Regardless of the interpretation, Jesus dismisses the concept entirely. Instead he offers a curious replacement. He says to go the extra mile, turn the other cheek, and give more than required.

It’s hard to know, however, exactly what he means by all this. Is this a passive-aggressive response, a prohibition against retaliation, a command for generosity, a ploy to embarrass your enemies, or a lesson to let people take advantage of you?

There’s much to consider. But the one thing for sure is that Jesus dismisses the idea of an eye for an eye. It’s old school and he has a better way.

[Exodus 21:22-25, Leviticus 24:17-22, Deuteronomy 19:16-21, and Matthew 5:38-42.]

A lifelong student of the Bible, Peter DeHaan, PhD, wrote the 1,000-page website ABibleADay.com to encourage people to explore the Bible. His main blog and many books urge Christians to push past the status quo and reconsider how they practice their faith in every area of their lives.

In Doctor Luke’s biography of Jesus, he shares some of the things Jesus said. Two accounts appear to contradict each other.

One time Jesus says the master will have his servants sit at his table and he will wait on them.

Another time Jesus said to not expect any such treatment; the servants will not be served or thanked for merely doing their jobs. After a hard day’s work, they can’t rest but need to prepare their master’s meal.

Assuming these illustrations have application for us – and since Jesus said them, I believe they do – which is it, to be served by our master or to serve him some more?

That’s a great question.

While we all desire to receive a reward, it seems silly to expect recognition from an almighty, all-powerful God. (Set aside our culture’s practice of rewarding every child for simply showing up.)

Although I’m not ready to turn this into a principle, I do see one difference between the two accounts.

In the first instance (where the master served the servants) he found them watching for him, waiting and ready. In the second account (where the master wanted to be served), the servants were working, doing what they were supposed to do, performing their assigned tasks.

Could it be that Jesus elevates watching over working? Perhaps expectancy is more important than action.

Furthermore, is there a parallel here to the debate over faith versus works (good deeds)?

[Luke 12:37-38, Luke 17:7-10, and James 2:14-26]

A lifelong student of the Bible, Peter DeHaan, PhD, wrote the 1,000-page website ABibleADay.com to encourage people to explore the Bible. His main blog and many books urge Christians to push past the status quo and reconsider how they practice their faith in every area of their lives.