Luke 9:42-43a (ESV)
[42] While he was coming, the
demon threw him to the ground and convulsed him. But Jesus rebuked the unclean
spirit and healed the boy, and gave him back to his father. [43] And all were
astonished at the majesty of God.
Jesus had just come down from the
mountain with Peter, James, and John where they had witnessed his
transfiguration. Coming down the mountain he was met by a man begging him to
cast a demon out of his son. The disciples he had left behind when he went up
the mountain had been unable to cast out the demon. Jesus rebuked the unclean
spirit and healed the boy. But I missed the first part of verse 43, “And all
were astonished at the majesty of God.”
The word majesty is defined by Strongs
Lexicon as the “awe-inspiring magnificence” of God. It is sometimes translated
as greatness, magnificence, or majesty. But notice that it is not the magnificence
of Jesus that they are astonished by, nor by his power and authority, but by
the magnificence or majesty of God.
There are at least two
implications here, both of which are true. The first is that Jesus is God. What
Jesus did, God did because he is God. The deity of Jesus shines through in this
act. Second, when people saw Jesus, they saw God. By this I mean something
slightly different than the first implication. I mean that Jesus not only is God,
but that he reveals God. This is not unlike what he told his disciples in
Matthew 5:16, “let your light shine before others, so that they may see your
good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”
Christians, believers in Jesus
Christ, are not deity in the sense that Jesus is deity, but we do represent the
God we serve. Our acts reveal our God. Unfortunately, often our acts reveal a
very distorted view of God. What people see in us they assume about our God.
Jesus’ acts caused people to be astonished at the magnificence and majesty of
God. What do our acts reveal?
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