I write this on 1 January 2021 AD. Anno Domini (“AD”) is Latin for “the year of the Lord”. The Lord to which the year refers is Jesus Christ. Each time we quote the year on the calendar, it is a reminder to all of the birth of Christ. Since there is no escaping reference to him in our lives, it would make sense for us to learn something about Jesus.
Let’s start at the very beginning. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. (Genesis 1:1) The world as we know it has a beginning. Some people choose to believe in a theory of the beginning called The Big Bang. The Bible simply tells us that in the beginning, God existed, and he created. Our very existence owes to God.
The Bible was written to inform us about what God did, what God does and what God will do. That is, the Bible presents history, prophecy and God’s activity therein. The Bible says: For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. (1 Peter 1:21) Theology was once called the queen of the sciences — it was the foundation and the epitome of human knowledge.
Genesis 1 tells us that God made mankind, male and female, in the image of God (Genesis 1:26–27). God fashioned the first man from the dust of the ground, and breathed life into him, making him a living being (Genesis 2:7). The Bible says that God gave man dominion over all the creatures of the earth (Genesis 1:26–28). Mankind was made a little lower than angels, and put in charge of everything God made (Psalm 8:5–6).
We are all descendants of Adam and Eve. Some wonder how this could be, and some smart people insist that they are descendants of apes. Pop science tells us that the earth is billions of years old — is this an argument against the account of creation in the Bible? We see in Genesis that God created the first man and woman as fully grown persons — they did not begin life as babies, but began life with the appearance of age. Given this, would it be at all surprising that God created the universe with the appearance that it might be billions of years old?
Adam and Eve were to have lived forever. You and I were to be alive forever in this world. What happened?
We are told in Genesis 3 that Adam and Eve were tempted by a serpent, in the Garden of Eden. There was a tree in the middle of the garden that they must not eat from, or else die (Genesis 2:17) — this was a clear command of God to them which they were able to repeat to the serpent (Genesis 3:2). The crafty serpent contradicted God that eating from the tree would cause death, and lied to them that they would become like God if they ate from it. Believing the serpent instead of God, our first parents took the fruit from the tree and ate — this was the beginning of sin that would stain all of humankind. The ability to live forever was taken away from us (Genesis 3:22).
We are told in Revelation 12:9 that that ancient serpent called the devil or Satan, who leads the whole world astray, was hurled to the earth along with his angels. The devil was created good, but fell when he elevated himself above God, his Creator (Isaiah 14:12–15). If some people in this world would like to believe that the devil does not exist, he would be happy to oblige by staying out of sight — it is true that we tend to see what we choose to see. The Bible however informs that not only does the devil exist, there exists along with him a host of demons adversarial to mankind: wicked principalities and powers that are invisible to the human eye (Ephesians 6:12).
After the serpent deceived Adam and Eve, God cursed the serpent and announced his plan to make things right: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” (Genesis 3:15) The birth of Jesus Christ was thus foretold at the very beginning of mankind, before there was much of human history. Jesus would be born in the fullness of time (Galatians 4:4), and when he comes, he would take on the devil:
The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work. (1 John 3:8)
Jesus made his first public appearance by coming forth to be baptised in public. Something supernatural happened as Jesus came up out of the water: Heaven tore open and the Spirit of God descended on Jesus like a dove and a voice from heaven proclaimed, “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” (Mark 1:10–11) Immediately after this, the Spirit sent Jesus out to the wilderness to be tempted by Satan for forty days (Matthew 4:1, Mark 1:12–13, Luke 4:1–2). When the devil had finished (and failed at) all his tempting, he left Jesus until an opportune time (Luke 4:13).
Jesus preached the good news of the kingdom of God. Going from place to place, he healed every disease and sickness among the people. Matthew records: News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed; and he healed them. (Matthew 4:24) Jesus performed his healings in public, withnessed by multitudes of people.
Jesus assembled disciples, and at one time sent 72 disciples two-by-two to various towns to preach and to heal the sick. The 72 returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.” Jesus replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.” (Luke 10:17-18) How could Jesus have seen that? Satan had fallen from heaven long before Jesus was born into the world. Satan had fallen before he tempted the Adam, the first man. Jesus’ reply to the 72 was significant, for it indicated that he existed before the world began.
The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. (Colossians 1:15-17)
Adam was created in the image of God. The Bible calls Jesus “the last Adam”.
- The first man Adam became a living being; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. (1 Corinthians 15:45)
- The first man was of the dust of the earth; the second man is of heaven. (1 Corinthians 15:47)
The last Adam triumphantly faced the devil, staring him down and prevailing. The author of Hebrews says:
Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are — yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. (Hebrews 4:14–16)
Jesus lived a life of sinless perfection, the only man who ever did. He dealt a final blow to Satan by dying on the cross. The apostle Paul wrote: “[But] we declare God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” (1 Corinthians 2:7–8) On the cross, Satan struck the heel of Jesus, but Jesus crushed Satan’s head. Paul declares: “And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” (Colossians 2:15)
The triumph of Jesus over Satan is a triumph that he achieves for humanity. We now have a way of escape from the power of the devil, which includes death. The author of Hebrews says:
[Jesus] too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death — that is, the devil — and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. (Hebrews 2:14–15)
This is why Jesus Christ matters to the world, and why it is apt that the calender the world uses makes reference to his birth. The birth, death and resurrection of Jesus provide a new beginning for every person who would accept that new beginning. It is the beginning of a new life, lived not in the fear of death, but in the hope of eternal life. Jesus says to John who wrote the book of Revelation:
“It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life.” (Revelation 21:6)
Jesus says: “Whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (John 4:14) All who are thirsty may ask Jesus for the water of life. It not only refreshes us; it rejuvenates us and regenerates us. The Lord Jesus Christ provides an awesome new beginning for anyone willing, to enter into eternal life with him.