What if Jesus, in one sentence, could tell us why he was born? Wouldn’t that be valuable to know? What if it all could be boiled down into just one sentence, in Jesus’ own words? What if you didn’t have to be a descendant of Abraham with deep knowledge of the Old Testament in order to begin to unpack that one sentence mission statement? Can you imagine what that bit of insight could mean for us today?
In fact, we have been gifted that one sentence. Jesus himself said it to Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea.
“For this purpose I was born…”
What do you think Jesus said next?
“…to fulfill everyone’s wildest dreams”?
“…to offer some heartwarming self-help suggestions you can take or leave as you see fit”?
“…to call everybody to relax and get along, because we’re all okay, just the way we are”?
“…to share the good news that God just wants you to be happy”?
“…to cheer you on in doing your thing–whatever you want–because life is short and this is all there is”?
“…to serve as one of many equally valid paths toward a better life and more fulfilling existence”?
What if Jesus, in just one sentence, could tell us for all time why he was born? He has. If we’ll listen carefully and receive humbly what God has preserved for us in John 18:37, we can know.
“For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world–to bear witness to the truth.”
Truth is. For thousands of years, people have asked themselves and wondered aloud, “What is truth?” creating a multiverse of conflicting conclusions in the process. But truth is whether I’m interested in the question or not. For thousands of years, people have turned to voice after voice after voice as worthy of attention, submission, and devotion. But Jesus put it plainly: “Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice” (18:37). For centuries, people have fashioned Jesuses in their own image, crafting their own Messiah mission statements, adding to and subtracting from his words to makeover a Christ for the current cultural moment.
But Jesus told us himself.
“For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world–to bear witness to the truth.”
If I’m really interested in honoring him, I’ll listen to the words of the Savior who quickly outgrew the manger and build the house of my life on the rock of truth he has revealed.