Would You Recognise Jesus?

[R. A. Anderson]

Yes, just think about it, and try to put yourself back 2,000 years. Imagine being an ordinary Jewish believer, living an ordinary life somewhere in or near Jerusalem.

One day you hear gossip about yet another wandering Jew claiming to be sent by God to save humanity (or some such rumours). What are the chances of you even believing the possibility of such claims, or of actually putting yourself out to go (perhaps many hours of walking) to listen to this man?

Even if you did listen to this man speaking, how would you know he was genuine? He apparently refused to do miracles in the presence of skeptics who needed such physical signs! I doubt if by looking at him one would see anything other than another very ordinary looking man, dressed in very ordinary clothes!

So - be quite open, frank, and honest - do you really think YOU would have recognised Jesus 2,000 years ago? And do you think you will recognise him when he returns to earth?

 

[stephen]

See that young man walking down the road, in long Jewish dress, long flowing hair. Thats Jesus

That man taking children and sitting them upon His knee....blessing them.....smiling with them........thats Jesus.

A young man, seeing the grief of a mother, as her son is taken to his grave, touches the coffin and he comes to life......Thats Jesus.

See him looking up into a tree and saying to a fellow perched up there, "Come down I want to go to your house for tea"

Most did not recognise Him.........

But some were waiting. Simeon in Luke ch 2 an ordinary man, but he had a word from God. The Holy Spirit prompted him one day to go to the temple...............I am so thrilled that he obeyed.....otherwise he would have missed it. He went and was able to say "Lord let me die in peace....."

We all, can only recognise Jesus as we see Him in the holy scriptures. And yes we will know Him in the future.........we will know Him by the nailprints in His hands.

There are signs which we can follow to recognise Jesus....they are written down in that 'book of books' ....that God of books indeed......The Bible.

 

[R. A. Anderson]

Stephen,

You write only with hindsight; you did not answer the question. Would you place yourself amongst those few who recognised the Lord? Please also tell us the reasons for your thinking.

 

[jculver]

Stephen,

You write only with hindsight; you did not answer the question. Would you place yourself amongst those few who recognised the Lord? Please also tell us the reasons for your thinking.

I would if God allowed me to see Christ for what he is. The pharisees had many opportunities, and some did believe in the end.

The pharisees did not see first hand, that is true. However, they did witness many after effects such as blind men gaining sight. In Matt 12 they witnessed a mans hand healed (possibly first hand), and instead of recognizing it as a sign they accused him of healing (working) on the sabbath! This indicates they believed that he healed the man, and somehow still refused to recognize him as savior and Lord.

A quicker answer would be:

Yes I would recognize Jesus as the savior 2000 years ago because I recognize him today. I'm a Calvinist so to me, you will see if Gods allows it regardless of time and place.

 

[stephen]

I doubt if by looking at him one would see anything other than another very ordinary looking man, dressed in very ordinary clothes!

The point which I was emphasizing! He was in appearance an ordinary man. Maybe why so many could not accept His teaching. On one occasion Jesus said "I am alone, yet not alone, the Father is with me" Not many understood. Not many were really close. The same would apply today.

Regarding the question! The question is a hypothesis, we cannot give a certain reply. I am not writing with hindsight. I am writing with a knowledge of the scriptures

 

[faithworks]

Praise Jesus!

To answer the first part of this question. i honestly don't know. i do know that most of the first century Jews were watching quite closely for the Messaiah yet they missed Him. They were watching for a deliverer from Roman oppression. They had been taught to expect such a savior who would be the physical earthly ruler of an earthly kingdom. Jesus came to save them from their sins and the wrath to come. Thus most were deceived.

When Christ returns :
Mt 24:30 "Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

So yes i will recognize Him everyone on the planet will recognize Him. The real question is: Will i be ready???? Will i be like the 5 wise virgins? Will my house be built on the solid rock? will i be bride without SPOT OR BLEMISH?

Or will i mourn the return of the one whom i pierced?

In Matthew 24 Jesus CLEARLY warns us three times to not be DECEIVED. We must watch for the true Bridegroom and be the bride HE is coming for. An ever watchful, spirit filled, Holy and spotless bride. Then will we rejoice.

i am watching for the soon return of the Lion of Judah. He will not be coming back as the Lamb of God. i pray i can be ready.

Blessings Hisservant rich

Matthew 4:17

 

[BecuzHeLives]

I believe I would. I have to same chance of not believe him right now, but I believe in him and I know for sure he is God the Almighty one, and Christ. Jesus once blessed those who do not see but believe. Which tell you, that it is easier to believe when you see him than right now because know you can't see him but you can feel his presence. I believe God show himself to those who seek him with all your heart. So like Jculver say, no matter time or the place God will have his way of letting you know he is God. And He is Alpha and Omega.

 

[faithworks]

Yes, I pray I am ready that is the point I am making is we are to be a spotless bride. Jesus said, "He is coming back for a spotless bride." I know the only way I can be ready is to stay abiding in Him and obeying Him in all things. I know in my heart if I do these things I will see Him and know Him, but only if I do these things.

John 14:15 "If you love Me,obey My commands."

That sums it up for me. He is my rock on which I bulid my house.


debbi

 

[MaxSeven]

Praise Jesus!

To answer the first part of this question. i honestly don't know. i do know that most of the first century Jews were watching quite closely for the Messaiah yet they missed Him. They were watching for a deliverer from Roman oppression. They had been taught to expect such a savior who would be the physical earthly ruler of an earthly kingdom. Jesus came to save them from their sins and the wrath to come. Thus most were deceived.

When Christ returns :
Mt 24:30 "Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

So yes i will recognize Him everyone on the planet will recognize Him. The real question is: Will i be ready???? Will i be like the 5 wise virgins? Will my house be built on the solid rock? will i be bride without SPOT OR BLEMISH?

Or will i mourn the return of the one whom i pierced?

In Matthew 24 Jesus CLEARLY warns us three times to not be DECEIVED. We must watch for the true Bridegroom and be the bride HE is coming for. An ever watchful, spirit filled, Holy and spotless bride. Then will we rejoice.

i am watching for the soon return of the Lion of Judah. He will not be coming back as the Lamb of God. i pray i can be ready.

Blessings Hisservant rich

Matthew 4:17

FaithWorks, could you please elavorate a bit more regarding what do you pray specifically to be ready for?? Thanks.

 

[hisservant]

Praise Jesus!!!

Dear maxseven the post that you question was written by me under my wifes faithworks (debbi) nickname.

As to what i pray for i pray to speak, seek and know the Lords truth. To walk spotless and holy before my King. I pray for the strength to endure the tribulation to come that i might endure to the end, as Jesus speaks in Matthew 24. And to be an instrument of HIS will in seeking and saving that which was lost. Hope this helps.

Blessings Hisservant rich

Matthew 4:17

 

[MaxSeven]

Praise Jesus!!!

Dear maxseven the post that you question was written by me under my wifes faithworks (debbi) nickname.

As to what i pray for i pray to speak, seek and know the Lords truth. To walk spotless and holy before my King. I pray for the strength to endure the tribulation to come that i might endure to the end, as Jesus speaks in Matthew 24. And to be an instrument of HIS will in seeking and saving that which was lost. Hope this helps.

Blessings Hisservant rich

Matthew 4:17

Thanks Rich,
I too pray..."let your Kingdome come, your will be done...."

 

[SpiritLedEd]

Re: Would You Recognize Jesus?

"At this the Jews began to grumble about him because he said, ' I am the bread that came down from heaven.' They said, 'Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he say, 'I came down from heaven?'

'Stop grumbling among yourselves,' Jesus answered. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him and I will raise him up on the last day. It is written in the in the Prophets: 'They will all be taught by God.' Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from him comes to me." (John 6:41-45).

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those whom God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified." (Ro 8:28-30)

I presume that when you ask if I would have recognized Jesus 2000 years ago, you are assuming that my heart toward God then would have been the same as it was in 1983 when I asked Jesus to be my Lord and Savior.

I believe I would have come to him by a path similar to the paths the disciples took. Jesus started his public ministry a year or more before he called the first disciples to him; they had heard him preach, hung around him, and, perhaps, witnessed some of the miracles. These people had a real heart for God when Jesus called them together (I think even Judas Iscariot had a heart for God in the beginning) and, as the Scripture says in Romans 8, God predestined them, called them, justified them, and glorified them. Its a process he follows with all those who truly commit their lives to him.

Please do not hear me blowing my own horn (When I blow my own horn, every note is off key and sour).However, I know that I have a heart for the Lord. My longing for him grows and grows and, like Peter and the rest of those original disciples, I would have recognized Jesus eventually and, though I may not been called to be an apostle, I would have been a faithful follower because God working in me is making me that now.

SLE

 

[pixie]

I pray that I would recognize my best Friend

Jesus is my Brother and I love Him. I speak to Him daily and He answers me. I know His voice and if He came up to my door and said "hello", I really think that I would welcome Him in. I love Jesus so much. Yes, I think I would recognize Him, by His voice alone and by His beautiful and Holy stature. We all have a Friend in Jesus.
Pixie:rose:

 

[RJ88]

my opinion

I think if He could pass through the midst of those who would throw Him off a cliff (Luke 4:30) or talk to His disciples without them recognizing who He was, (John 21:4) then I think we would only recognize Him if He wanted us to.

 

[Chad]

Forgive me for saying this and I do not mean to crush the thread conversation but isn't this a rather a question that no longer matters in our present time? Reason why I say this is because we live in the present time, Jesus already walked the earth 2,000 years ago and we are in faith expecting His glorious undeniable return soon. So in other words, this question whether we would recongize Him or not really does not matter now. When He returns, ALL will recognize Him believers and unbelievers.

If you want to pretend and go back in time, my answer would simply be "I would hope so". I am a sinner as we all are and I cannot assume anything no matter how much I love Jesus. Peter for example loved Jesus so much but denied Him 3 times prior to his ministry taking off [after Jesus' resurrection]. That's just a small example.

 

[faithworks]

Yes Chad you are right. But, when you said I am a sinner I disgree. I always say I was a sinner saved by grace not I am. I am washed in His blood that makes me clean. I am to be Holy just as He is Holy. I can not do that, only He can through me. AMEN Yes I can walk Holy everyday though Him that lives in me. I beleive the scripture that says when you say you have no sin the truth is not in you. To means it means before I came to the Lord. Now He has made me clean. I did alot of study into this. Just my two cents.

love ya Chad.


debbi

 

[Chad]

Yes Chad you are right. But, when you said I am a sinner I disgree. I always say I was a sinner saved by grace not I am. I am washed in His blood that makes me clean. I am to be Holy just as He is Holy. I can not do that, only He can through me. AMEN Yes I can walk Holy everyday though Him that lives in me. I beleive the scripture that says when you say you have no sin the truth is not in you. To means it means before I came to the Lord. Now He has made me clean. I did alot of study into this. Just my two cents.

love ya Chad.


debbi

How could you possibly even say you were a sinner and now you are not? Scripture entirely disagrees with your statement. To be forgiven of our sins in Jesus' name does not suddenly make us sinless. It washes away our sins, but is that to say we are now sinless forever on earth and never sin again? No way. I sin every day even without realizing it. You need to dig deep and do not fool yourself.

Proverbs 20:8-10

8 When a king sits on his throne to judge,
he winnows out all evil with his eyes.
9 Who can say, "I have kept my heart pure;
I am clean and without sin"?
10 Differing weights and differing measures—
the LORD detests them both.

1 John 1:7-9

7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.
8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.
9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

 

[maciek]

Jesus walks even today

I saw this discussion. Let me share my humble opinion Jesus walked among us 2000 years ago historically, Today He walks among us spiritually through the word of God and then He will come in glory to judge the living and the dead to take us to live with Him. If we can not love our brother whom we can see how can we love Jesus whom we have never seen. If we could see the living Jesus in each other what wonderful gift to Jesus will be? Yes Jesus lives in you, with you and through you. Jesus is not dead, He is alive and He walks among us to speak like Him and to be like Him.

 

[Chad]

Excellent point made maciek. Jesus lives in us and walks Spiritually with us. So therefore we do not see Him face to face but in the Spiritual realm we feel His presence with us.

 

[pixie]

The Vine

I still think that I would know Jesus. I pray and pray and pray to know our dear Lord. I am a sinner too and will always sin, until sin is done away with. But I am dead to my sin, I would be terrified if I was alive in my sin. I don't mean to sin and God knows this and still loves me as His. He made me and understands me perfectly. I have gone through great trials, to reach my Brother Jesus.

I love the Lord and He understands my weaknesses and helps me one day at a time, overcome them. Praise the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank You Father, for giving us Your Son, to understand with wisdom and walk our walk with us.

Amen: Pixie:rose: