The Person of Christ Series
By Jerry Batson, Th.D.
Special to The Alabama Baptist
The purpose for Christ’s coming into the world was set before the creation of the world. Revelation 13:8 refers to Him as “the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world.” We might say that Christ was born to die. Or, to use the title of a book by L.E. Maxwell, we could say that Christ was “Born Crucified.” When Christ rode into Jerusalem at the beginning of the week that would see Him crucified, He referred to that event, saying, “Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour?’ But for this purpose I came to this hour” (John 12:27). Throughout His days on earth Christ never lost sight of the purpose for which He came. He lived a focused and purposeful life that pointed always toward the cross.
As early as the age of 12, Christ replied to Mary when she found Him in the temple, “Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” Whether or not He had any inkling as a pre-teen that His destiny was to be the sin-bearing Lamb, He was aware that the Father’s business was His business.
Different kind of Messiah
After appointing the 12 disciples, Christ began teaching them about His purpose in the world as the promised Messiah. Along the way they got the message that He was indeed “the Christ” or promised Messiah, as attested in their response to His question, “Who do you say that I am?” Peter voiced their answer, “You are the Christ” (Mark 8:29). From that point, Christ began to teach them the kind of Messiah He had come to be.
Like most others in their day, they envisioned a Messiah who would be a political or military leader who would establish Israel as an earthly kingdom. However, Christ began to speak of Himself as a suffering, dying and redeeming Messiah (Mark 8:31). He did this through what is commonly termed His Passion Announcements, the first one being that just cited in Chapter 8.
Then in Mark 9:31, Christ gave the disciples a second announcement that added the fact that a betrayal would set in motion His suffering and death.
A third announcement is in Mark 10:33–34. It added that all this would take place in Jerusalem and would involve mockery and scourging. Knowing that His purpose was to die for the sins of humankind, Christ held fast to His purpose, as described in Luke 9:51, “Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem.”
Final meal
We recall that on the night before His crucifixion, Christ purposed to eat a final Passover meal with the disciples. In doing so, He established for them and for us a memorial supper, which at its heart would be a reminder of His purpose to offer His body and shed His blood for our redemption.
We are Christlike when we live purposeful lives, provided our purpose is to honor God and fulfill His purposes. Speaking of God’s purpose for all believers, Ephesians 2:10 puts it like this, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
In a way similar to the Father’s purpose for His Son being determined before the creation of the world, we might think of ourselves as God’s children for whom He purposed before our Christian conversion. And that we should live purposefully. God describes it as walking in good works.
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