Jesus Is the Chosen One!

Jesus Is the Chosen One!
I. To proclaim God’s word
II. To reveal God’s glory
III. To enlighten all God’s people


Only the very young among us may have missed them. The rest of us have likely seen and heard enough already even though they just started. I’m talking about the Republican primaries. The reports literally have flooded the news for nearly two weeks now. Which candidate did well in this state and which one in that state? Which candidates have already thrown in the towel and which ones are likely to soon? And it will continue until the Republican National Convention at the end of August. That’s when the delegates at that convention will cast their votes and choose the Republican candidate for the presidential election this November. One will be chosen.

I don’t know about you, but I’m overjoyed that our God didn’t rely on any such thing when choosing the One to be our Savior. There were no opinion polls, no debates, no campaigning, no editorials and no endorsements. He didn’t even spend a red cent. As our text from Isaiah makes clear, the Lord in eternity chose Jesus to be the One. And his anointing with the Holy Spirit at his baptism was the outward sign for all the world to see. Jesus is the One!

He even announced ahead of time what Jesus was chosen to do. And he shares those details this morning with us through these words of Isaiah.

While we might wonder whether we choose the right individuals to serve us in so many ways, there’s absolutely no doubt that Jesus is the one chosen to serve us as the world’s Savior. Jesus is the chosen One. That’s our comfort and our confidence on this Sunday in which we celebrate his baptism.

Part I.

I began a few minutes ago by speaking about the primaries. The amount of rhetoric amazes me. All of the candidates always have something to say about whatever subject is being discussed, whether it’s the economy or the military or the national debt or the budget or entitlements. And each of them has a very strong opinion on all those subjects and more. And then you throw in the rhetoric from another political party or more and the amount of verbiage is overwhelming. We’re left to determine what’s the truth and what’s the best course of action.

Imagine if there were ever a candidate who always spoke the truth and had the best answer to every issue every person ever faced.

That person is none other than God’s chosen One, your Savior and mine, Jesus Christ. Listen to our Savior speak about himself, “Before I was born the LORD called me; from my birth he has made mention of my name. He made my mouth like a sharpened sword, in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me into a polished arrow and concealed me in his quiver.” He uses the pictures of a sword and an arrow to represent his word. Jesus was chosen to proclaim God’s word. Think about it. Every day of his ministry here on earth which began right after his baptism, Jesus proclaimed himself to be the promised Savior. In other words, he preached the gospel.

And the pictures of a sword and an arrow are a perfect way of describing how that word slices right to our hearts. The good news of Jesus as our Savior is the power of God to work saving faith in our hearts. It announces to us that our God loves us so much he willingly sacrificed his Son for us. That love of God for us fills us with love for him and others.

In a very real sense the word of God that Jesus proclaims changes us forever. There are no other words that have ever been spoken or will ever be spoken that can do that. The gospel that Jesus was sent here to proclaim gives us peace with the holy God and makes us heirs of eternal life with him in heaven. And that’s not some human opinion; that’s divine fact.

Jesus is the chosen One, chosen to proclaim God’s word.

I’m not telling you anything you don’t already know when I say that there are more messages, more words, more opinions out there than you can possibly read, hear, absorb and apply to your life. The topics range from health to finances to relationships to every facet of life imaginable. So that means you’re going to have to be selective. What will you listen to? What will you take to heart? What will you believe? Doesn’t your first choice—your highest choice—have to be the words of your Savior, Jesus Christ? Who could tell you anything more important, more truthful, more beneficial, more critical than God himself? Every day of your life your Savior wants you to take to heart the word of your salvation, the message of your forgiveness through the blood that he shed for you on Calvary’s cross. That’s the only message that saves you, the only message that gives you life with him. Jesus was the One chosen by God to proclaim that message to you. Listen to it!

Part II.

From little on we have this glorious impression of the people of Israel. We think of their hardships as slaves in Egypt and the glorious and powerful way that the Lord rescued them. We think of mighty King David and the glorious kingdom that he established and of Solomon and the glorious temple that he built for the Lord in Jerusalem. We easily get an overly positive view of Israel.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Israel as God’s people had failed miserably. During Isaiah’s time, Israel was on a sharp decline in almost every regard, especially spiritually. The people worshipped idols and refused to stop. They weren’t the people God intended them to be.

But where Israel failed, our Savior, God’s Servant, succeeded. Our Savior spoke these words about himself, “He said to me, ‘You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will display my splendor.’” Jesus would perfectly carry out God’s plans for him to the glory of God.

But that plan’s details were hardly glorious in the eyes of the world. He was rejected, even by his own people who had watched for centuries for his coming to this earth. They wanted nothing to do with him and it weighed heavily on him. That Savior said, “I have labored to no purpose; I have spent my strength in vain and for nothing.” His worked appeared to be a failure. There’s nothing glorious in that.

In fact, his own people hated him so much that they crucified him. In spite of the fact that Pilate tried to release him, their thirst for his blood wouldn’t be quenched until they had him nailed to the cross, crucified like the worst of criminals. There’s nothing glorious in that.

But through it all he trusted that his Father’s will was the best will for our salvation. He placed himself in his Father’s hands and stated, “Yet what is due me is in the Lord’s hand, and my reward is with my God.” Even in his death he placed his spirit into the hands of his loving heavenly Father. There was nothing glorious in that.

But in that death, ironically, was our life. He died so that we might live, live with our God forever. And in his sufferings and death, Jesus accomplished eternal glory for himself and for us.

Jesus is the chosen One, the One to reveal God’s glory.

Like Israel of old, we, too, have failed to be God’s people. Our daily lives are not the pristine record of goodness that our God demands. Instead our sins stretch behind and in front of us as far as we can see. And there’s no glory in that. But there is in a Savior who lived a perfect life for us and in a Savior who suffered our curse and shame on Calvary’s cross. If you see Jesus as that Savior, then you have seen and are seeing God’s glory. If you see Jesus as that Savior, you will see his eternal glory and your eternal glory in heaven. God chose Jesus to suffer and die for you. Jesus is the chosen One, chosen to reveal God’s glory.

Part III.

We often wonder about our eligibility. Is this treatment included in this plan or not? Are we eligible to take advantage of this offer or not? Does this stipulation apply to us or not?

But what about the greatest plan ever, God’s plan of salvation? Questions about our inclusion might haunt us if God had ever intended for that plan to be limited. But Isaiah helps us understand and believe that was never the case. It was always universal. God says about our Savior, “It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth.” His salvation was meant for Jew and Gentile alike.

But that’s something God’s people lost sight of. In fact, by the time Jesus appeared on earth, the Jews largely held the opinion that the Gentiles were outside of God’s grace and excluded from his plan of salvation. They completely misunderstood that plan. Instead of being by grace for all sinners, they viewed salvation as accomplished by works for just one people.

In doing so, they failed to take to heart these words of Isaiah. Just save one nation of people? That’s too small a thing for the Lord. He would include all. He would save all.

Jesus was chosen to enlighten all God’s people and we are the fulfillment of it. Last Sunday we celebrated the Epiphany of our Lord. Gentiles came to worship Jesus as their Savior, too. We are another generation of Gentiles who have come to see the light of our salvation in the world’s only Savior, Jesus Christ.

And now we live to share that truth. One of the emphases of the season of Epiphany is sharing Jesus with our world. That’s one of the reasons Jesus brought you into his kingdom—to share his saving truths with others. It’s one of the reasons we exist as a congregation of Christians. Yes, Jesus is the chosen One, chosen by God to be our Savior. But God has chosen you and me, too. We have been chosen to enlighten our world with the saving light of Christ. May our Lord strengthen you so that in word and deed we accomplish his purposes for our lives. Amen.