Why Did My Savior Come to Earth?

The main points for this sermon come from Joel Stephen Williams. Brother Steve was one of my professors at Heritage Christian University, and he taught an excellent class in Christology. This outline originated in that class.

INTRODUCTION
A. 	"Why did my Savior come to earth, / And to the humble go? / Why did he choose a lowly birth?"
B. 	The incarnation has been a focal point for many.
	1. 	Gregory of Nazianzus wrote, "The One without flesh has assumed flesh; / The word has taken 
		on materiality / The Invisible has become visible; / The Untouchable is able to be touched; / The
		Timeless takes on a beginning; / The Son of God becomes Son of Man, / Jesus Christ, / He who 
		is yesterday, today and forever."
	2. 	Let's look at some reasons for the incarnation.

FULFILLMENT OF PROPHECY
A. 	The OT taught that a Messiah was coming.
	1. 	Moses said that God would raise up another prophet (Dt. 18:15).
	2. 	Isaiah wrote about a Suffering Servant (Is. 53).
B. 	Jesus taught that he came to fulfill the OT.
	1. 	Mt. 5:17.
	2. 	Lk. 24:44.

REQUIREMENT OF A SYMPATHETIC HIGH PRIEST
A. 	God knows everything we go through, but before Jesus he had not experienced it first-hand.
B. 	Jesus experienced first-hand the difficulties in our lives.
	1. 	Heb. 2:14, 17.
	2. 	1 Tim. 2:5.

FOR THE PURPOSE OF REVELATION
A. 	Some want us to believe that God is so far off that we cannot know anything about him.
B. 	In the incarnation, Jesus revealed God to mankind.
	1. 	The name "Immanuel" means "God with us" (Mt. 1:23).
	2. 	God has spoken to us through Christ (Heb. 1:1-2).
	3. 	Jesus said the one who had seen him had seen the Father (Jn. 14:8-9).

AFFIRMS SOMETHING POSITIVE ABOUT HUMANITY
A. 	We often hear about how evil mankind is.
B. 	The Scriptures teach that man is made in the image of God.
	1. 	Gen. 1:26-27.
	2. 	Ps. 8:5--Hebrew "little lower than God."
C. 	The fact that Jesus became flesh and dwelt among people shows mankind is valuable (Jn. 1:14).

FOR OUR REDEMPTION
A. 	Jesus became flesh to redeem mankind.
	1. 	2 Cor. 8:9.
	2. 	Gal. 4:4-5.
	3. 	Heb. 9:26.
	4. 	Mk. 10:45.
B. 	The idea of redemption is that Jesus came to "buy" humanity from sin.
C. 	Athanasius said, "What God has not become, he has not redeemed."

TO GIVE US A EXAMPLE OF A HOLY LIFE
A. 	Jesus came and set the supreme example of a holy life.
B. 	1 Pet. 2:21.