Dennis Pumford’s Revelation Decoded Weekly – He Had to be Pointed Out

He had to be pointed out

God came to this earth and He had to be pointed out.  Have you ever wondered what it would have been like if no one pointed Christ out?  An angel told Mary she was carrying the Messiah.  What if the angel had not?  Angels told the shepherds where to find Him.  What if the angels had not?  Angels in the appearance of a star led the wise men to Bethlehem.  What if they had not?  The Holy Spirit nudged Anna and Simeon to recognize the baby as the promised One.  What if He had not?  The Holy Spirit pointed out Christ to John the Baptist, and in the form of a dove, descended on Christ’s head.

What if the Holy Spirit had not?  

Would anyone have noticed God if angels and the Holy Spirit had not gotten involved in the process?  Perhaps not.  During Christ’s 3 1/2 year ministry, He revealed Himself as the Promised One to the women at the well and others.  What if He had not?  In other words, God became so much like us that He could not be discerned as God without being pointed out in the crowd!  

One of the purposes of Christ’s coming to earth was to reveal God.  In fact, one could argue that that was His primary purpose.  Before His death on the cross, He prayed to His Father in heaven, “I glorified You on earth, having accomplished the work that You have given Me to do,” John 17:4.  

I am not minimizing the importance of His substitutionary death for our sins and to secure our salvation.  Four thousand years of animal sacrifices had daily forecast that coming event.  But, Christ had accomplished what His Father wanted Him to accomplish before His death—the revelation of what God was like.  And, while doing that, He had to be pointed out.  

A favorite theme of many movies is the prince or king who dresses like his subjects and mingles among them without their knowledge.  It makes a great plot and often leads to unforeseen consequences.  Another common theme is the taking of an “ordinary” person and elevating them to mingle among nobility undetected.  There is always the intensive training in how to walk, talk, smile, stand, and what to say—or not to say.  Clothes, jewels and surroundings are of utmost importance.  In fact, one might come to the conclusion that royalty consists entirely of the externals: how to dress, walk, talk, pose and react.    Both movie plots mentioned above were designed to fool people by disguise.  Christ came not to fool or disguise, but to reveal God.  Yet, He had to be pointed out!  

There is a reason.  The only thing that set Jesus apart from those around Him was His character.  While we appreciate good character, it is not sought out like it should be.  Every day, new talent is discovered around the globe.  A new actor is found.  A budding country singer is surfaced.  A child prodigy at the piano is broadcast on The Today Show.  Talent is ferreted out as unique abilities are noticed, and the word spreads.  Jesus lived about 31 years on earth before His public ministry.  As far as we know, no one said: You ought to run for mayor!  We need You to sing at the New Year’s festival!  Could You come and do Your juggling act for the convention in Jerusalem?  Apparently, there was nothing that Jesus did or possessed that people sought after and elevated.  Had He not been pointed, no one would have known.  True, when He performed miracles, many followed.  But, His disciples performed miracles also.  

That brings us to a scary conclusion.  Human beings don’t seek out people of outstanding character.  God did not display any unusual talents or abilities to be discovered as the Creator of the mind.  He didn’t walk, talk, and pose to be proclaimed as nobility.  He didn’t dress and surround Himself in such a way so as to be discovered as the owner of the universe.  All He did was come and bring the character of God to the earth—and He would have been unnoticed, had He not been pointed out.    

Perhaps, during this holiday season, we need to do some reflecting on what we value.  It is easy to be influenced by what the world values.  It takes a deliberate decision on our part to value what heaven values—character.  Character is the only thing we will take with us out of this world.  Character is the sum total of who we are.  We cannot change our character by learning to walk, talk, stand, pose and react in specific ways.  Character is completely internal.  But while character is internal, it changes everything we do externally.  Jesus lived to serve others because of His character.  Jesus gave hope to the hopeless because of His internal character.  Jesus suffered and died for those who didn’t deserve the pardon because of Who He was on the inside.    

Most people living in the first century never knew God came and went.  Those who did know had to be shown.  

Jesus is coming soon, and when He does, most will not be looking for Him and will not be ready to receive salvation.  This time, no one will miss Him.  His coming will be a spectacular event, and no one will be “left behind.”  All will be affected, either for salvation or eternal loss.  If we don’t value character any more than those of the first century, we will miss out on the greatest opportunity ever offered—eternal salvation.  It’s still all about character.    

No, we are not talking about obtaining salvation by being good.  A person with a bad character can go through life and never steal.  But a person with a transformed character will never want to steal.  God does not expect our characters to change overnight.  He does ask that we let Him change our characters and “become partakers of the divine nature.”  Meanwhile, He is happy to cover our faulty characters with His own perfect character, and instantly qualify us for heaven.  That love, that generosity is the character of God!  Character matters  

Dennis 
dennispumford.com

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