4. He forgives sin, as only God can:
• The scribes said: "Who can forgive sins but God alone?" (Mark 2:7).
• Jesus said: ". . . but that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins" (Matthew 9:6; see also John 8:11).
• Peter wrote: ". . . who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed" (1 Peter 2:24).
5. He performed miraculous works:
• He healed the sick (Matthew 8:9–13; Luke 4:31–41; 5:12–15; John 4:43 to 5:16; and other references).
• He fed the hungry (Mark 8; John 6).
• He raised the dead (Luke 7:11–18; John 11:1–46). Jesus Christ, Who Is God, Became a Man
"And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us . . . full of grace and truth" (John 1:14; see also Philippians 2:7–8).
1. His miraculous birth was prophesied 800 years before His coming: "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel" (Isaiah 7:14).
2. The prophecy was fulfilled to the letter: "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus" (Luke 1:30–31).
3. While on earth as a man, Jesus demonstrated human characteristics: He became tired (John 4:6), He thirsted (John 19:28), He ate food (Luke 24:40–43), He showed feelings (Mark 6:34; John 11:35), He knew temptation (Hebrews 4:15), and He died (John 19:30). Jesus Christ Accomplished the Work His Father Had Sent Him to Earth to Accomplish:
1. He died on the cross. This is the fundamental theme of the Gospel:
A. The fact of His death: One-fourth of the material in the four gospels
relates to Christ's death and resurrection:
(1) The cross was the purpose for which He came into the world (John
12:27).
(2) His death was prophesied hundreds of years before He came
(Isaiah 53:3–8).