The Faith of Jesus

The Faith of Jesus The Pioneer and Perfecter of Faith Fred Bischoff

Key Text Heb. 12:2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Overview of Studies 1. "endured the cross" = gospel 2. "looking unto Jesus" = seeing 3. "for the joy set before" = future 4. "finisher of faith" = end-time 5. "endured the cross" = endurance

Review of Study #1 Bible evidence for this phrase as a description of the gospel: Paul and John used the phrase "the faith of Jesus" to describe the faith Jesus had in giving Himself to save sinners. The key passages of Paul's where we examined this phrase are Rom. 3:21-26 and Gal. 2:16-20.

Review of Study #1 As the Son of God, this faith is the faith of God. As the Son of Man, this faith is the faith man was designed in the beginning to have. Jesus revealed this faith all His life, and especially on the cross. This faith "works by love." (Gal. 5:6)

Review of Study #1 As the faith of God, this faith can be described as God laying down His life for sinners. We need this faith, to treat sinners in the same way. As the faith of man, this faith can be described as total dependence on the Father, not on self, to the point of death. We need this faith, to be faithful unto death.

Summary of Study #1 The faith of Jesus = The Gospel, The Cross

Overview of Studies 1. "endured the cross" = gospel 2. "looking unto Jesus" = seeing 3. "for the joy set before" = future 4. "finisher of faith" = end-time 5. "endured the cross" = endurance

The Faith of Jesus 2. Seeing What God Sees

Purpose of Study #2 In what sense does Jesus author/pioneer faith? A major component of the answer to that will be found by answering another question. When we "look unto Jesus" what will we find Him looking at? And how does that relate to the faith He pioneers? The faith of Jesus is seeing what God sees.

Introductory Story Intense Battle Between Faith and Unbelief Mark 11 and Luke 19 Sunday through Tuesday of Passion Week Sabbath: home of Lazarus, Martha, Mary Sunday: to Jerusalem on a young donkey Pick up the story there--

The Weeping King Luke 19:41 "when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it" Why did He weep? What did He see? What did He feel? Look at portions of DA576-578--

Not Why Jesus Wept "The tears of Jesus were not in anticipation of His own suffering.... Near by was Calvary, the scene of His approaching agony. Yet it was not because of these reminders of His cruel death that the Redeemer wept and groaned in anguish of spirit. His was no selfish sorrow. The thought of His own agony did not intimidate that noble, self-sacrificing soul.

Why Jesus Wept "It was the sight of Jerusalem that pierced the heart of Jesus--Jerusalem that had rejected the Son of God and scorned His love, that refused to be convinced by His mighty miracles, and was about to take His life. He saw what she was in her guilt of rejecting her Redeemer, and what she might have been had she accepted Him ..."

Why Jesus Wept "He saw Jerusalem encompassed with armies.... "He saw that the stubbornness of the Jews, as evinced in their rejection of His salvation, would also lead them to refuse submission to the invading armies. "He beheld Calvary, on which He was to be lifted up, set with crosses as thickly as forest trees.

Why Jesus Wept "He saw the wretched inhabitants suffering torture on the rack and by crucifixion, the beautiful palaces destroyed, the temple in ruins, and of its massive walls not one stone left upon another, while the city was plowed like a field. Well might the Saviour weep in agony in view of that fearful scene....

Why Jesus Wept "How can I see thee devoted to destruction?" Did you notice the theme? "It was the sight..." "He saw..." x4 "He beheld..." "in view" "How can I see..."

The Intense Conflict • between faith ("what she might have been") and unbelief ("rejected the Son of God and scorned His love, ... refused to be convinced by His mighty miracles, and was about to take His life") • between faith ("what she might have been") and foreknowledge ("the invading armies", "the wretched inhabitants suffering", "the temple in ruins")

The Intense Conflict God His grace offered He saw What she might have been The faith of Jesus His love bestowed Rejected, scorned, refused Israel Between faith and unbelief.

The Intense Conflict God His grace offered He saw What she might have been The faith of Jesus His love bestowed Armies, suffering, ruins. Israel Between faith and foreknowledge.

The Time of Thy Visitation Luke 19:42, 44 "If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.... Thou knewest not the time of thy visitation." "Visitation" = episkopos = look upon

The Time of Thy Visitation From the aborted procession, He had gone quietly and directly to the temple, and according to Mark's record, "looked round about upon all things" (11:11), and then left for Bethany again.

The Time of Thy Visitation The final week of inspection had begun--with weeping, and the penetrating gaze of infinite faith and love. What was He looking for? The same that He found early in His ministry: faith! Matt. 8:10 "I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel."

The Time of Thy Visitation What did He see as He inspected the temple? Did He find faith? What do you think He did that night? What would you have done?

God's Pain What does God do when we are caught in unbelief? He reaches out to us in faith and love. What happens when we, in rejecting His faith and love, persist in unbelief to the end? He has to honor our choice.

God's Pain He let's us reap what we have sown. (Gal. 6:7) He measures us according to our measure. (Matt. 7:2) Can you image the pain to the infinite heart of faith and love to let us go finally into unbelief and selfishness?

After Visiting the Temple "The entire night Jesus spent in prayer, and in the morning He came again to the temple." (DA581) And apparently fasting. The next morning on the way back to the city, "He was hungry." (Mark 11:12)

The Fig Tree Mark 11:13 "And seeing a fig tree afar off having leaves, he came, if haply he might find any thing thereon: and when he came to it, he found nothing but leaves; for the time of figs was not yet." Physical hunger only? Or still hungry for faith? He turns a fruitless fig tree into a parable of a faithless people.

The Tree Parable The voice that was heard just a few days earlier at the tomb of Lazarus, as in faith it "quickens the dead, and calls those things which be not asthough they were" (Rom. 4:17), is heard now withdrawing life. "No man eat fruit of thee hereafter for ever." (Mark 11:14) The disciples heard it and were astonished!

The Tree Parable The battle between faith and unbelief has reached a crisis. By faith God "quickens the dead, and calls those things which be not as though they were." But the tree becomes a symbol of what happens when there is no faith.

Appeal in the Temple "Is it not written, 'My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer?'" He added in lamentation, "But ye have made it a den of thieves." (Mark 11:17) Thieves--taking, not giving. Would they understand their day of visitation?

The Withered Fig Tree The next day--"Master, behold [look, see], the fig tree which thou cursedst is withered away." (Mark 11:21) But did Peter and the others really see what had happened?

Christ's Response What Jesus says in reply to Peter is of awesome significance to us, who have similar privileges to the Jews, but have the same fallen human nature as they, and lacking an essential element for our condition, are following in their tracks. The question is, what do we need to see? That is what we will now consider in the Word.

Seeing as God Sees In the beginning man was made in God's image. In many ways man reflected God. When sin came, that reflection was almost totally destroyed. God's plan is to restore that which was lost in us that is like Him. One way this is described is to learn again to see as God sees.

Hebrews 11 The faith demonstrated in the lives of the "witnesses" of Heb. 11 can be understood as seeing the unseen things revealed by God's word. Heb 11:1 "Now faith is the substance of things hopedfor, the evidence of things notseen." We sometimes speak of "the eye of faith."

Hebrews 11 Heb 11:3 "Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear." Heb 11:6 "But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."

Hebrews 11 Noah Heb 11:7 "By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith."

Hebrews 11 Heb 11:13 "These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth."

Hebrews 11 Moses Heb 11:26 "Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward." "had respect" = only occurrence; translated also "looked"

Hebrews 11 Moses 11:27 "By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible."

What God Sees We understand that God can see the past and future as He does the present. But is there something else He sees? Faith is in a sense learning to see what God sees. He gives us a window into what He sees. That window is His word. Rom. 10:17 "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."

What God Hopes But remember Heb. 11:1 also says faith is "the substance of things hoped for." Are there things God hopes for? We know God knows the future, and because of sin and freedom of choice, He knows many will reject Him. We call that His foreknowledge.

What God Hopes But is that what He is hoping? Is that what He sees when He looks through the eyes of faith at any of His creatures? What He hopes He can also see. And that vision He has is faith, "the substance of things hoped for." Sometimes we call it seeing our potential in His plan.

The Law of Faith and Love God His grace offered God hopes God's faith, the substance of Every heart may respond The faith of Jesus God knows His love bestowed Not every heart responds We Faith--the substance of things hoped for.

Believeth All Things Love "beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things." (1Cor. 13:7). This verb translated "hopeth" is the same as Heb. 11:1 "hoped for". "God is love." (1 John 4:8, 16) His faith sees the circuit complete! He treats us in a way to accomplish that.

Example of Seeing Ellen White and John Radley of Castle Hill, New South Wales, Australia in 1894-- He was a farmer with 5 young children; his wife had accepted the Advent message; "he came along more slowly. He was very cautious in regard to committing himself." {1MR 146.2} What did Ellen White do? (I have underlined the key thoughts.)

Example of Seeing "I talked with him as though he was fully with us, presenting before him his responsibilities.... "Brother Starr was with me. After we left he said, 'I was surprised to hear you talk to him as though he were fully with us. If he himself does not work on the Sabbath, his hired help works.' I answered, 'I talked to him just in the right way....'

Example of Seeing "He felt himself far from deserving the confidence I placed in him.... Thus from time to time we visited him, and he always treated us courteously, but did not fully identify himself with us. Yet I always talked with him as one who knew and loved the truth, always laying out plans with him whereby he might be a laborer together with God....

Example of Seeing "I said to him, 'Brother Radley, the Lord wants you to cooperate with Him.... You are God's husbandry; you are God's building, and He looks to you to be His human agent, through whom He can communicate truth to others. He will use you, through the strongest principles of your mental and moral capabilities, to reach other minds....'

Example of Seeing "One night the Lord gave me a message for him, and I arose at midnight and wrote out page after page. I knew the Lord was calling for him. I sent the message to him, to be read to him and his neighbor.... [A] brother ... read the matter to him, and he said, 'Why did she write such a communication to me? I am not a believer....'

The Faith of Jesus