Why Did Jesus Come to Earth?
“She will bear a son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” Matthew 1:21
There seems to be great confusion in our culture and even in many churches today as to why Jesus came to earth. Some (wrongly) believe it was to make us moral people, a bunch of do-gooders doing good deeds. Or, that He came to make us happy people by keeping us from car accidents, dog bites, pain, sorrow, or disappointment. Or, that maybe He came to make us socially sensitive, to bring equity and consciousness to the social ills in the world today? (BTW, this social gospel is no Gospel at all and yet it’s making huge inroads into the church by replacing the true Gospel.) Did Jesus come to bring us physical health? Financial wealth? Social status and standing? No, He didn’t come for any of these reasons.
What we find when we read the Word of God without earthly, agenda lenses, is that within the incarnation of the Lord Jesus Christ, man’s most dire and significant needs would be met, namely, the payment for our sins and the provision for our lack of righteousness. The Word of God puts it perfectly when it says in 2nd Corinthians 5:21 “For our sake He (God the Father) made Him (Jesus) to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him (Jesus) we might become the righteousness of God.”
The baby in the manger became a man and lived a perfect life, fulfilling all the requirements of the law, on behalf of everyone who would ever repent and place their faith in Him. Our sin is placed upon Jesus and His righteousness is imputed onto those who place their faith in Him. His perfect life is exchanged for our sinfulness. His flawless righteousness is traded for our depravity.
This is the true meaning of Christmas. It’s about so much more than our temporal, superficial habits and hangups. It’s about being reconciled to God for time and for eternity. “Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!” 2 Corinthians 9:15.
-Pastor Craig