Title: Son of Man
Author: Gary Witcher
Company: none

Jesus: Son of Man

     In the past few weeks we have considered Jesus in many roles.  We have seen Him as God, Messiah, Great Physician, Prophet and Teacher, Priest and King.  In the weeks to come, Lord willing, we will examine other titles used to describe the Lord.
     Of all the terms applied to Jesus, however, there is one which stands out as the favorite of the Master Himself.
     The title, "Son of Man" points to the fact that Jesus was not only willing to put on a human body, but He was also willing to suffer and die in that same body.  This was unheard of in religious history.  Would someone of divine origin really be willing to take on flesh and blood in order to sacrifice Himself for the benefit of lowly humans?
     This title is used in the New Testament some 82 times.  With the exception of a statement by Stephen in Acts 7:56, it is found only in the Gospel accounts.  And in these accounts, it is used only by Jesus except for one instance in John 12:34 where it is quoted as something Jesus has said.
     "The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head," Jesus says in Matthew 8:20 to those who follow Him.  The Son of Man has not demanded a luxurious life for Himself.
     "But in order that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins," Jesus tells some skeptics in Matthew 9:6 before directing His comments to a paralytic, "Rise, take up your bed, and go home."
     Fulfilling His mission on earth provides the Son of Man with the opportunity to offer forgiveness of sins.
     "But whenever they persecute you in this city," Jesus advises His apostles in Matthew 10:23, "flee to the next; for truly I say to you, you shall not finish going through the cities of Israel, until the Son of Man comes."
     Putting on flesh and blood does not strip the Son of Man of His power to be victorious.
     "The Son of Man came eating and drinking," Jesus quotes in Matthew 11:19, " and they say, 'Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax-gatherers and sinners!'  Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds."
     People twist the actions of the Son of Man in an attempt to discredit Him, when His life and death are actually being offered for their salvation.  As we learn in the first chapter of 1 Corinthians, the wisdom of God is fortunately much greater than that of mankind.
     "For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath," Jesus claims in Matthew 12:8.  As the Son of Man states clearly in Matthew 5:17-18, He has come to fulfill and consequently put an end to the Old Law.
     "For just as Jonah was three days and nights in the belly of the sea-monster;" Jesus prophesies in Matthew 12:40, "so shall the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth."
     The Son of God must become the Son of Man in order to experience death for everyone and provide an avenue of victory over that death.
     "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" Jesus asks His disciples in Matthew 16:13.
     "Some say John the Baptist;" comes the reply, "some, Elijah; and others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets."
     "But who do you say that I am," the Lord continues in verse 15.
     "Thou art the Christ," Peter responds in verse 16, "the Son of the Living God."
     "The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men;" Jesus foretells in Matthew 17:22-23, "and they will kill Him, and He will be raised again on the third day."
     Once again, the title of "Son of Man" is associated with the Lord's death, burial and resurrection.  This is best summed up in Philippians 2:6-11.
     "Who, although He existed in the form of God," this passage states, "did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bondservant, and being made in the likeness of men.
     "And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by being obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
     "Therefore also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

     Although for some reason early Christians fail to apply the term, "Son of Man," to Jesus, they do speak of His humanity.  As might be expected, this is done in reference to what Jesus has provided through His death, burial and resurrection.
     "This Man," Peter says of Jesus in Acts 2:23-24, "delivered up by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death.
     "And God raised him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power."
     "For there is one God," Paul stresses in 1 Timothy 2:5, "and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus."
     The Hebrew writer explains why this is the case.
     "For since He Himself was tempted in that which He suffered," Hebrews 2:18 notes, "He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted."
     "For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses," Hebrews 4:15-16 adds, "but one who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.
     "Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need."
     You see, the role of Jesus as Son of Man is linked with His position as a servant.  He became one of us so He could serve and assist us.  We can never accuse Him of not caring or of not understanding what we are going through.  He has already been there.
     The book of Isaiah has much to say about a suffering servant.  This thought appears in chapters 42, 49, 50 and especially 53.  It is in this last chapter that we notice most strongly that this servant is Christ, especially since the first verse of the chapter is applied specifically to Jesus in John 12:38.
     It would take volumes to even begin to discuss the service of Jesus.  But, in a few words, we might point out that He served with His time and energy.  There were many times when He did not even stop to eat.
     And we might note that He served with His life and death.
     In John 13:12-17 the Master makes it very clear that Christians are to follow His example of service.  How well, we must ask ourselves, are we carrying out this charge?
     Are we really serving with our time and energy, or are we barely even giving a few scraps of what we have left over, as long as something "more important" doesn't come along?
     And are we willing to serve sacrificially?  Are we willing to really die to ourselves and dedicate our lives to His service?
     We should understand that the choice is not whether or not we will be servants.  Romans chapter six makes it clear that we are slaves either of God or of sin.  How sad it is that most people think they are choosing a life of freedom when they are actually opting for a life of slavery to death.
     If we decide to be servants of God, we must realize that we are obligated to know and obey our Master's will.  We must know that we must serve with humility, tears and trials as Paul says in Acts 20:18-21.  We must serve with love, as we learn from Galatians 5:13.  And we must serve in righteousness, peace and joy, as we are instructed in Romans 14:16-18.
     In addition to all this, we must be considerate of our fellow-servants.  Matthew 18:24-35 contains a story about an unforgiving servant.  This story is intended to be a grave warning against having this same attitude.
     Of course our attitude is usually the opposite of the right one, isn't it?  We want to be better than our fellow-servants.  In fact, we really want to be the master, don't we?
     It's strange, isn't it?  God wanted to become a man in order to serve.  And we want to be treated like gods.  Paul offers a stern warning about this in 1 Corinthians 4:1-7.
     But the really ironic thing is that the Son of Man really does offer us a way to be elevated if we follow His plan.   Remember from Philippians chapter two that, because of His service, the Son of Man has been returned to His high position.  And, through the Son of Man, we can become sons of God.  As we read in Romans 8:15-17, we can be children of God.  All we have to do is follow the example and teaching of Jesus.
     It is sad to think that most people will reject being the servants that God wants, especially when we realize that we have been bought and paid for by the blood of Jesus.  Revelation 5:9-10 says that Jesus has already paid the price to release us from our sins and to purchase us.
     All we have to do is serve the truth in order to be set free.

Unless otherwise noted, "Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE(R), (C) Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission." (www.lockman.org)