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“He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him” (John 1:11).
The Lord Jesus lived on the earth for about 34 years in the first-century Israel. He came to preach the gospel of the kingdom of heaven and eventually die in order to save His people.
“She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).
The angel Gabriel who announced this did not say that Jesus would save His people from their poverty or unemployment, but from their sins.
Christ Jesus’ people in the context of the verse above referred primarily to the people of the congregation of Israel. The Lord would save them when they received or believed in Him.
Before Jesus was born, the people of Israel, the Jews, were waiting for the coming of a promised Messiah foretold in the Scriptures.
Jesus was that Messiah as He fulfilled the messianic prophesies stated in Scripture with mind-boggling miracles, signs and wonders.
Besides, words from His lips dropped like bomb so that some of the Jews remarked, “no one ever spoke like this man!” (John 7:46)
However, the greater majority of His own people doubted Him, calling Him names and despising even His place of birth (John 7:25-27).
In fact, the people of Israel rejected Jesus so much so that one day nearly all His followers left Him after He had preached a message that irritated their ears (John 6:66).
Only His 12 disciples decided to follow Him, considering that He alone had words of eternal life (John 6:68). You see, they followed Him not because of His miracles, but His words of eternal life.”
This clearly tells us that there were other Jews who believed in Him. They wondered whether the Christ (Messiah) would do great works than what Jesus had done.
“…They said, “When the Christ appears, will he do more signs than this man has done?” (John 7:31)
Considering the great number of Jews that rejected Jesus, can we say, then, that Jesus failed in His earthly ministry?
No. Rather, it is His people who failed to receive the salvation He had to offer them.
Does it then mean that Jesus with all His measureless anointing could not persuade them? He did but the people hardened their hearts.
“…the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.”
“Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me” (John 10:22-26).
One thing we must understand is that God respects the will of people. He does not force people to accept or do anything against their free will.
Moreover, we should also realize that when the angel said Jesus would save His people from their sins, he knew that numerous people in the Gentile world were His.
Thus, through the ministry of the few Jewish disciples of Jesus, hundreds, thousands and millions of people in various nations of the world have been saved.
This is why John wrote, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12).
Today, about 2.38 billion out of about 8.025 billion people in the world, including Jews are Jesus Christ’s people, having received Him as their Lord and Saviour.
This implies that 29.7 per cent of the world’s population is Christian while 70.3 per cent is non-Christian.
This means that 5.645 billion people in the world are unsaved which demands that the Church avails itself for Christ to use to save them.
It can safely be stated in conclusion that the Lord Jesus succeeded in His earthly ministry, achieving His aim of saving His people foreknown before the foundation of the world.
By James Quansah
