## Five Reasons Jesus Came

## I John 4:11-16

Five times in this epistle the apostle John emphasizes in very clear language the fact and purpose of the Lord's incarnation.

1. His coming was prophetically anticipated.

A star and scepter out of Israel

. (Num 24:17) "I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth."

(Mat 2:1-2) "Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, {2} Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him."

A virgin birth of Immanuel

(Isa 7:14) "Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel."

(Mat 1:22-23) "Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, {23} Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us."

Born in Bethlehem

(Micah 5:2) "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting."

(Mat 2:1) "Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,"

2. His coming was historically authenticated.

In the four Gospels, In the epistles, By secular historians. His coming was prophetically anticipated. His coming was historically authenticated. Now we want to consider the reasons for His coming.

I. He Came To Be Our Sin Bearer.

(1 John 3:5) "And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin."

A. The word "manifested" infers the Lord's preexistence.

B. His birth in Bethlehem was not His origin.

(John 1:1-3) "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. {2} The same was in the beginning with God. {3} All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made."

(1 John 1:1-2) "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; {2} (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and show unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;)"

C. He was manifested to take away our sins, which means He became our sin bearer.

D. Why was it necessary for Jesus to come and die on the cross for the sins of man?

1. He was the only "perfect sacrifice"

2. "In him was no sin"

3. Has He taken your sins away?

4. The provision was made on our behalf.

II. He Came To Destroy The Works Of The Devil.

(1 John 3:8) "He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil."

A. Satan is the originator of all sin.

1. All suffering, sickness, and sorrow are because of his presence in the world.

2. Note, I didn't say that sickness was sinful, only that it is a result of sin!

B. By Jesus' incarnation He came to destroy Satan and to restore to us all that was lost through sin.

C. He did this by His death an Calvary.

1. Satan was defeated once and for all.

(Heb 2:14) "Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;"

2. On the cross He did this potentially, and at His Second Coming He will do it actually.

(Rev 20:10) "And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever."

3. We see this illustrated in Scripture.

(John 10:10) "The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."

4. Satan is a thief; Jesus come to give us "eternal life, and victory over Satan.

5. Satan is doing his utmost to keep men and women in the dark concerning the Person and the work of Jesus Christ.

(2 Cor 4:4) "In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them."

6. He attacks and accuses Gods children, but his defeat has already been announced.

(Rom 16:20) "And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen."

III. He Came To Give Us Eternal Life

(1 John 4:9) "In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him."

A. Eternal life is man's greatest need. Without eternal life man is faced with eternal separation from God, or eternal death.

B. Because of this great need God manifested His love for us in that He sent His only begotten Son that we might have eternal life.

C. How do we acquire eternal life?

(1 John 5:11-12) "And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. {12} He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life."

D. Do you know that you have eternal life?

IV. He Came To Be Propitiation For Our Sins.

(1 John 4:10) "Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins."

A. Propitiation means: To atone for.

1. He became the sacrificial lamb to take away our sins.

2. His sacrificial offering appeased God's demand for holiness and righteousness.

B. Sin is contrary to the nature of God.

1. Sin must be punished.

2. God's nature demands punishment of sin.

3. Sin must be punished by God's method.

(1 Pet 2:24) "Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed."

4. His only means for dealing with sin is through His Son's death on the cross.

5. No other measure can propitiate for sin.

6. Sin was dealt with once and for all by Christ on the cross.

V. He Came To Be The Savior Of The World

(1 John 4:14) "And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world."

A. Because of God's foreordained plan, Jesus is the Savior of the world.

B. The atoning work He accomplished on the cross is adequate for all people, everywhere.

C. Does this mean that because of the cross that everyone is saved? No.

1. It means that salvation is available and provided for all that believe on His name.

2. He is able to save all that come to Him.

(Heb 7:25) "Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them."

3. Salvation takes action from the sinner.

(Acts 16:31) "And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house."

(Rom 10:13) "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

(Luke 13:3) "I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish."

4. We see three great truths concerning salvation.

a. Believe

b. Call upon the Lord

c. Repent

We know that Jesus came into this world. We celebrate His coming every year at Christmas time, but why did He come? What was the purpose God had in mind when He sent Jesus into this world to be born of a virgin?

- He Came To Be Our Sin Bearer.
- He Came To Destroy The Works Of The Devil.
- He Came To Give Us Eternal Life
- He Came To Be Propitiation For Our Sins.
- He Came To Be The Savior Of The World

Why not come to Him today?