SESSION ONE:

Introduction
I. LONGING FOR JESUS

A. Several years ago I found my heart longing, lonely, and hungry for something authentic.
In the depths of my soul something was awakening and being stirred by an unknown
hand, an unseen Helper. My heart could barely stand the thought of another “unique
teaching” or “keen insight” from one more “anointed” vessel. I was aching for Jesus,
wanting Him and Him alone, undone by the piercing depths of His heart, life, and love.

B. For years in ministry I fed on many other things, setting my hand to various missions.
I have run enough leadership gauntlets surrounding the latest church growth fads and
have had quite enough of three-year cycles of implementing the latest relevant approach
to ministry. Enormous amounts of time, energy, and resources were spent on methods,
applications, and “how-to’s.” During those years our churches grew by the twenties
and fifties, but our people remained plundered by disease, debt, despair, doubt, and
deception. In the midst of it all I ached for what the apostle Paul called “the simplicity
that is in Christ” (2 Cor. 11:3), wondering if somehow the Serpent had deceived me, just
as he had Eve (2 Cor. 11:2–4).

C. Endless debates on methodology and incessant emphasis on practical preaching, with

its how-to’s and down-to-earth applications, have swept us into the seduction of com-
pelling need and the enticement to be “unique.” However, little mystery and majesty
concerning the person of Jesus is preached. Our taste for the eternal and the glorious
fades as we exchange the burning gaze of the seraphim for the unyielding boredom
of Dr. Phils dressed in preachers’ garb. O God, save us from the insightful sages of our
day, and give us the ancient once again. Give us that which, throughout the ages, has
mystified the saints and terrorized devils.

II. CHRIST, THE LONGING OF ALL THE BIBLICAL SAINTS

A. Could it be that we have lost sight of the one thing needed, the one thing that fulfills all
godly and noble desires—Jesus Christ?

B. Christ was the longing of all the Old Testament saints. Adam and Eve yearned for the
promise of a coming Seed, a coming ruler who would triumph over all the works of the
Evil One. “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed
THE EXCELLENCIES OF CHRIST

and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel” (Gen. 3:15). The
lineage of this coming Anointed One would be traced from one generation to another
and carefully recorded. The hope of all humanity was to be fulfilled in this promised
Seed. Abraham beheld His glory, saw Christ’s day, and was glad (Jn. 8:56). He then left
everything for the promise of bringing forth the Seed, One who would bless all the
nations of the earth (Gen. 12:1–8; 15:1–7; 17:1–19; Jn. 8:52–58).

C. Moses foresaw Jesus as the coming prophetic king (Deut. 18:15–19) and esteemed the
reproach of Christ to be greater riches than the treasures of Egypt (Heb. 11:26). Balaam,
hired to curse the children of Israel, was preempted by the terror of the Lord and trem-
bled before the vision of the coming Star who would destroy all the sons of tumult.

“The utterance of Balaam the son of Beor . . . 16who sees the vision of
15

the Almighty, who falls down, with eyes wide open: 17I see Him, but not
now; I behold Him, but not near; a Star shall come out of Jacob; a Scepter
shall rise out of Israel, and batter the brow of Moab, and destroy all the
sons of tumult.” (Num. 24:15–17)

D. Joshua fell before the majesty of the Commander of heaven’s armies (Josh. 5), and
Samson’s parents pondered their encounter with the beautiful Man whose name was
wonderful (Judg. 13:18).

E. David sang of the glories of the coming Messiah even before this Child was born through
his lineage. In fact, the hand of the Lord rested heavily upon David as he viewed the
heavenly order of worship where the angelic creatures gazed upon the glory of God in
the heavenly sanctuary (1 Chr. 28:19; Ps. 110). Upon witnessing such splendor, David, as
his first act as king over all Israel, gave the nation an earthly reflection of the worship
of heaven by placing the ark of the covenant in a tent with the veil removed.

F. For thirty-three years David funded Levitical singers and musicians to stare at God’s
manifest glory resting over the mercy seat between the two cherubim and commanded
the Levites to worship the Lord in the beauty of His holiness (1 Chr. 16:28–30). Many
times, when God’s glory rested over the mercy seat, David peered into the future and
prophesied of his coming son, who was also his Lord before time began (Ps. 110:1).
Prophetic traces of a coming ruler who would suffer, die, and rise to rule over all things
were revealed in that tent (Ps. 2; 8; 16; 22; 24; 40; 45; 68–69; 72; 102; 109; 110; 118). So
awesome were those traces of the Messiah that David summed up his life vision in one,
holy longing:
4
One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek: that I may dwell
in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of
the Lord, and to inquire in His temple. (Ps. 27:4)

G. David declared, “You can strip me of my kingdom and remove my military might, but
this one thing I seek. My greatest desire is to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to
commune with Him in His temple. Oh God, if I could be like the sparrow that nests in
Your tabernacle, I would perpetually remain in Your presence.”

6
 Session One: Introduction

H. Other prophets after David also experienced Christ’s fascinating effect. Isaiah saw the
glory of the Lord, high and lifted up, seated on His throne. He heard the burning sera-
phim crying out to one another, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth
is full of His glory!” (Isa. 6:3; cf. Jn. 12:41). Soon after, Isaiah discovered that the same
King of glory, seen high and lifted up, was to come as an infant and grow up before the
people as a “tender shoot” (Isa. 53:2, NIV). The root of Jesse would also be the offspring
of David (Isa. 11:1; Rev. 22:16).

I. Isaiah foretold the coming of Immanuel, meaning “God with us.” This One from all
eternity would take up flesh and blood. How could this be? The Seed promised from
the first moment of humanity’s fall would also be the Lord of heaven. The Child to be
born and the Son to be given to establish the throne of David would be “Wonderful,
Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isa. 9:6). What is even more
astounding is that God would not only come to humanity in human form, but that He
would then serve the nations by giving His life as an offering for sin.
5
He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniqui-
ties; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes
we are healed. 6 . . . The Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. (Isa.
53:5–6)

J. Though the Servant’s labor would appear to be in vain, Yahweh would make Him ruler
over all things (Isa. 49:1–8). The Servant of rulers would establish the kingdom of God,
rule on behalf of the poor, bring justice and peace to the whole earth, and even restore
all of creation from the curse of sin. Isaiah testified that one day the knowledge of His
glory would be revealed to all flesh as beautiful and glorious (Isa. 40:5; cf. 4:2–6). The
earth will be in agreement concerning His stunning splendor and awesome power. In
the day of His might, Jesus “will be for a crown of glory and a diadem of beauty to the
remnant of His people” (Isa. 28:5; cf. 40:5).

K. The captivation of the prophets continued as Micah declared that this One would be
Israel’s peace, turning the nations’ swords into plowshares (Mic. 4:1–3; 5:4–5). Jeremiah
prophetically saw Christ as the Branch of the Lord, the king from David’s household,
who would also be “THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS” (Jer. 33:15–16). Ezekiel braved
the whirlwind of glory and beheld Him as the image of the “likeness of the glory of the
Lord” (Ezek. 1:26–28). Daniel saw the Christ coming as the Son of Man on the clouds
of heaven (Dan. 7:13–14), and Haggai called Him the “Desire of All Nations” (Hag. 2:7).

L. The prophet Habakkuk declared that God’s glory would cover the earth like the wa-
ters cover the sea (Hab. 2:14). Zechariah joined the witness, exclaiming that Messiah
would be the Branch of the Lord that bears the glory, and that as a priest on His throne
He would build the temple of the living God (Zech. 6:12–13). Malachi closed the Old
Testament with the promise that Christ would come as a “refiner’s fire” to cleanse the
priesthood (Mal. 3:1–3), and that as the “Sun of Righteousness” He would rise with
healing in His wings to vanquish all the enemies of love (Mal. 4:2–3).

7
THE EXCELLENCIES OF CHRIST

III. BEHOLDING THE GLORY OF CHRIST IS THE FULFILLMENT OF ALL GODLY DESIRES

A. Christ was the longing of all the Old and New Testament saints. The awaited One was
the great anticipation of Israel. I often ponder the feelings of Simeon, tears streaming,
as he held baby Jesus up before God. Years of waiting and longing turned to holy words
as he said, “Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, according to Your
word; for my eyes have seen Your salvation which You have prepared before the face
of all peoples, a light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people
Israel” (Lk. 2:29–32). “The Consolation of Israel” (Lk. 2:25) has come, yet today we must
ask ourselves if we, with our own eyes and in our own generation, have looked upon
the very One whom Israel had waited for.

B. The apostles were set on keeping Christ central in both doctrine and church life. Corinth
was divided, with factions following the personality cult of the day. Some were exalting
Paul, some Cephas, and others Apollos. Paul responded to their disputes by displaying
the greatness of Christ compared to His servants, saying,
5
Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you
believed, as the Lord gave to each one? . . . 11For no other foundation can
anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ . . . 18Let no one
deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let
him become a fool that he may become wise. 19For the wisdom of this
world is foolishness with God . . . 21Therefore let no one boast in men. (1
Cor. 3:5, 11, 18–19, 21)

C. No one compares to Christ, because He is the fullness of God in bodily form, and in Him
we live, move, and have our being (Acts 17:28). Ministers of the gospel are workers in
God’s field, but Jesus Christ is the very image of God’s radiance. In Him are hidden all
the riches and wisdom of God. Paul continuously cautioned the churches throughout
Asia Minor, Macedonia, and Greece to keep Jesus central. He charged the believers in
the church at Colossae:
6
As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him,
7
rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been
taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving. 8Beware lest anyone cheat
you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of
men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according
to Christ. 9For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; 10and
you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.
(Col. 2:6–10)

D. Paul counted all things as dung compared to the experiential knowledge of Christ. In
fact, Paul stated, “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Phil. 1:21). He charged
the Philippians to remember the centrality of Christ over all other forms of religion:
8
Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowl-
edge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all

8
 Session One: Introduction

things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9and be found
in Him, not having my own righteousness. (Phil. 3:8–9)

E. The revelation of Jesus Christ birthed a cry in the hearts of the apostles Paul and John,
“Maranatha! O Lord, come!” (cf. 1 Cor. 16:22; Rev. 22:20). Jesus was revealed to the apos-
tles in such a way that their one insatiable desire was to labor for His return and to see
His kingdom set up on earth as it is in heaven. Peter pled with Jerusalem to repent, so
that the Father might send Jesus back from heaven for the restoration of all things; the
love of Christ compelled Paul to preach the gospel to the nations (Acts 3:19–21; 21:13).
Such was the glory of Jesus that His brother James would call himself Jesus’ bondservant
(Jas. 1:1) and become known as “camel knees” due to his praying to his older brother for
long periods of time.

F. Have you beheld the glory of the one and only begotten of the Father, full of grace and
truth? Has your heart experienced the wounding of desire because you have seen His
splendor and tasted of His love? Until you have personally encountered the indomitable
force of His life and personality, you have yet to brave the true meaning of your created
purpose, which is to commune in love with the God of pleasure, light, and power. You
were not created for religious forms and duty. You were created for loving communion
with the Maker of the universe, who has forever joined Himself to you in the person
of His Son Jesus.

IV. THE SEDUCTION OF COMPELLING NEEDS

A. Though the meaning of life is found in the beauty of Christ Jesus, we are so easily
distracted by this fallen world. We have been offered the embrace of the perfect One;
however, the enemy of our souls continually directs us away from beholding Christ.
Being swept up into the seduction of the latest compelling need, we are left with nothing
more than a yearning for practical teachings that anesthetize us with pastoral applica-
tions. Oh, what damage has been done to the Body of Christ in the name of the practical
and the pastoral!

B. Consumed with “fixing” ourselves, we ignore the deeper answer to all our desires—the
knowledge of God in Christ Jesus. Our sermon and discipleship materials are riddled
with how to deal with depression, anxiety, addictions, loneliness, overeating, unhealthy
diets, unhealthy marriages, insecurity, fear, rejection, dejection, and, the giant of our
day—overcoming stress. Sermons on timely political issues and human need abound,
but scarcely a sermon is uttered on the person of Jesus, the Father’s answer for every
human condition.

C. Rarely do I hear preaching on the glory of Christ and the wonder of His excellencies.
The Father knows His glory, the angels see His beauty, and even the stones are willing
to cry out on His behalf. But how quickly He is forgotten by the very ones whom He
purchased with His own blood! Often I find myself weeping over the present preaching
of the Church. In those moments all I can say to Him is, “I’m so sorry, Jesus; I am so
sorry.” How far we have fallen from the apostolic doctrine of the early church. How far
we have fallen from the unsearchable riches of Christ!

9
THE EXCELLENCIES OF CHRIST

D. Jesus knows mankind’s propensity to live out of their most basic needs, never lifting
their gaze past the crisis of survival. In Matthew 4:23–25 Jesus took notice of the multi-
tudes. The sick and oppressed came to His preaching to receive healing and deliverance.
They were like sheep without a shepherd, in touch with their basest needs but having
no idea of God’s greatness and their created destiny in Christ. Steeped in affliction, they
failed to realize they were the image bearers. They were the ones made for God Himself,
to rule the created order through intimate communion and designed to be the very
reflection of the Most High God. How far they had fallen! How sin had reduced them.
“Seeing the multitudes,” Jesus gave them a higher vision and laid forth the Beatitudes,
proclaiming, “This is who you are! This is what I have come to give you.”

E. Not many people, including Christians, are in touch with their created purpose. In fact,
most live well below the “poverty line” of the kingdom. God designed us as the only
creatures made for Himself, to be filled with His presence and power. Yet most live out
of their basic need, never lifting their gaze past the crisis of survival. Praise God that
Jesus still sees. Looking on the crowds, Jesus still calls us up higher. He invites us into
our most fundamental need—everlasting life and communion with God through Him.
“And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ
whom You have sent” (Jn. 17:3).

V. THE SCANDAL OF CHRISTOLOGY

A. In John 6 Jesus did something that would seem scandalous to the modern Christian. The
previous day He had fed the multitudes by multiplying the loaves and fish. The crowds,
satisfied by His feeding, desired to make Him their king. However, Jesus discerned that
their interest lay more in receiving their daily needs than in discovering His true identity
and what His life meant for their salvation. Thus He refused to feed them again.

B. For one moment, imagine Jesus’ refusal. Israel was under foreign domination, stripped
of her resources and experiencing the horrid effect of poverty. Jesus not only refused
political reform, but also closed down the “social welfare program.” In effect He shut
down the soup kitchen and challenged them to seek the bread that comes down from
heaven, that in the eating of it they would never die. Jesus would go no further in meet-
ing their daily food supply until they understood that their most fundamental need was
not bread that perishes, but the knowledge of God found only in Him.

C. Jesus remembered the first and most prominent temptation of the Evil One—getting
humanity to prioritize all of life around their basic survival. In Matthew 4:3–4 Satan at-
tempted to get Jesus caught up in such need: “If You are the Son of God, command that
these stones become bread.” Jesus countered, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread
alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’”

D. The people came for food that spoils, but Jesus pointed them to the heavenly bread that
never perishes and mandated them to eat it. He pressed them further to eat His body
and drink His blood: “For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He who
eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. As the living Father sent
Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me” (Jn.

10
 Session One: Introduction

6:55–57). Just as Jesus was sustained by intimate communion with and knowledge of
the Father, so we are sustained by intimate communion with and knowledge of Jesus.

E. Life is to be found in a living encounter with the Lord of glory and His work of redemp-
tion. Beware, follower of the gospel: the seductress of compelling need comes to lure
you away from the chief desire of both God and man—the knowledge of God in the
person of Christ Jesus. Christology will never be secondary to the abyss of human need,
and Jesus will not be reduced to our social justice fix. Jesus will not be our king on any
terms other than the complete giving of our hearts to Him, as we commune with Him
and behold His excellencies. In fact, the highest honor and joy God could give us is
that we would base our relationship around the subject matter of His Son, for He is the
highest, who was, who is, and who is to come.

F. To test their hearts and see if they were truly seeking Him, Jesus directly offended the
multitudes over the subject matter of Christology. Exodus 20:5 and 34:14 tells us that
God is a jealous God. He will not share us with another. The idea that God would end
the social welfare program to the poor to ensure the crowd’s pursuit of the knowledge of
Jesus is offensive to our modern sentimentality. How dare Jesus shut down the feeding
program for an oppressed people in order that they should understand Him properly!
However, God knows we are prone to receive His blessings detached from a heart of
covenantal love.

G. The testimony of the prophets declares our innate tendency to forget the Lord. In Deu-
teronomy Jeshurun (another name for Israel) is described as riding the heights of the
earth, drawing honey from the rock, and partaking of the choicest of wheat.
15
“But Jeshurun grew fat and kicked; you grew fat, you grew thick, you are
obese! Then he forsook God who made him, and scornfully esteemed the
Rock of his salvation. 16They provoked Him to jealousy with foreign gods.
. . . 18Of the Rock who begot you, you are unmindful, and have forgotten
the God who fathered you.” (Deut. 32:15–18)

H. Throughout Scripture we can trace all the ways in which God was forgotten during times
of blessing. After the mighty miracles worked through Moses, the people “forgot God
their Savior, who had done great things in Egypt” (Ps. 106:21). The children of Ephraim
“forgot His works and His wonders that He had shown them” (Ps. 78:11).
8
“For she did not know that I gave her grain, new wine, and oil, and
multiplied her silver and gold—which they prepared for Baal. 9Therefore
I will return and take away My grain in its time and My new wine in its
season, and will take back My wool and My linen, given to cover her
nakedness.”

“And I will destroy her vines and her fig trees, of which she has said,
12

‘These are my wages that my lovers have given me.’ . . . 13She decked
herself with her earrings and jewelry, and went after her lovers; but Me
she forgot,” says the Lord. (Hos. 2:8–9, 12–13; cf. 13:4–6)

11
THE EXCELLENCIES OF CHRIST

The words of Jeremiah (2:2–13) are particularly heart-wrenching:

2
“Go and cry in the hearing of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord: “I
remember you, the kindness of your youth, the love of your betrothal,
when you went after Me in the wilderness, in a land not sown. 3Israel
was holiness to the Lord, the firstfruits of His increase”’” . . . 5 . . . “What
injustice have your fathers found in Me, that they have gone far from Me,
have followed idols, and have become idolaters?” (vv. 2–5)
7
“I brought you into a bountiful country, to eat its fruit and its goodness.
But when you entered, you defiled My land and made My heritage an
abomination. 8The priests did not say, ‘Where is the Lord?’ And those
who handle the law did not know Me.” (vv. 7–8)

“And see if there has been such a thing. 11Has a nation changed its
10

gods, which are not gods? But My people have changed their Glory for
what does not profit. 12Be astonished, O heavens, at this, and be horribly
afraid; be very desolate,” says the Lord. 13“For My people have committed
two evils: they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, and hewn
themselves cisterns—broken cisterns that can hold no water.” (vv. 10–13)

I. Jesus’ difficult command to eat of His body and drink of His blood drove away both
the crowds and many of His disciples. John 6:66 explains: “From that time many of
His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.” Picture this: Jesus empowered
these disciples to cast out devils, heal the sick, raise the dead, and preach the kingdom
of God for Him. Yet He was willing to drive them away over this issue. Jesus was to be all,
or He was to be nothing! The knowledge of God in Christ Jesus was the greatest human
need—and still is. Unfortunately, from that moment forward many disciples left Him.

J. One has to wrestle with the offensive nature of God revealed in this passage where He
calls them to eat His body and drink His blood. God would rather have you leave Him
than stay on the periphery forever, ignorant of who He is and who you are created to be.
Why? Because you were made for intimate communion. Looking at His twelve, Jesus
asked them if they too wanted to leave. Peter then gives the famous response: “Where
else would we go? You alone have the words of eternal life” (see Jn. 6:68–69). Peter nails
the crucial issue. Who or what are we feeding upon? Are we feeding our souls upon the
One who has the words of eternal life?

K. Jesus pressed the offense even further by calling one of His disciples, Judas, a devil. Later
Judas would betray Jesus. In fact, Mary’s extravagance in breaking the alabaster jar of
perfume over Jesus helped drive Judas into allowing Satan to enter him and arrange for
the betrayal. “What a waste,” Judas complained. “That money could have been given to
the poor.” Could it be that Judas’ offense was related to Jesus’ demand that the knowl-
edge of God was supreme, even over the immediate compelling social need?
Now, once again, Jesus points out the greater need for communion with God around the
subject matter of Himself: “But Jesus said, ‘Let her alone. Why do you trouble her? She

12
 Session One: Introduction

has done a good work for Me. For you have the poor with you always, and whenever
you wish you may do them good; but Me you do not have always’” (Mk. 14:6–7).

L. In the midst of the disciples, busy arguing over who was going to be the greatest, Mary
was the only one who heard the Savior. She alone was listening to Him prophesy con-
cerning His coming death. As she listened, Mary was moved to pour out everything
upon Him. While no one else seemed to hear, she communed, listened, and responded
in love. By giving away all, she gained everything. Jesus was her life. Mary did a good
work for Him that no one could take from her.

VI. CHRIST, OUR CHIEF JOY!

A. Our vision statements, methodologies, and discipleship materials must once again be
yoked to the chief cornerstone. We must build upon one foundation alone—Christ!
Our greatest need and highest joys are found in Him. The knowledge of God in the
face of Christ Jesus is our daily bread. It is our sustenance. Until our lives are rooted in
the experiential knowledge of Him, we remain scavenging after food that perishes and
drink that never satisfies.

B. Much of the Church is presently consumed with many things other than Jesus. Scur-
rying around to address the needs of our day and expending great energy to build our
visions, we forget the one thing necessary—sitting at the feet of the One who has the
words of eternal life and contains all the mysteries of both God and man. We, however,
should not lose hope because the Scriptures are filled with the good news of Christ.
Our present disinterest with Jesus is passing away, for the prophets through the ages
have declared a change is coming. The knowledge of the glory of God will be revealed
and all flesh will see it (Isa. 40:5). His glory will cover the earth like the waters cover
the sea (Hab. 2:14). God has something very practical and pastoral in store for us that
will answer every ache in our hearts; He has planned intimate communion with you
through His beautiful Son Jesus around the subject matter of Himself.

C. Even now the Lord is raising up forerunners, who, like the prophet John from the wilder-
ness, are preparing themselves and others for the coming King: “Prepare the way of the
Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God . . . The glory of the Lord shall
be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken”
(Isa. 40:3–5).

D. In this course I want to address that which remains, that which saves, cleanses, heals,
fascinates, and transforms us into the very image of the One who created us. I want to
ponder and proclaim Jesus as the Messiah, the One who has dwelt from everlasting to
everlasting and was sent by the Father to display both the dream of God’s heart and the
dream of our heart. I want to peer into a mystery so deep that it has caused seraphim
to cry, “Holy,” and Jesus’ disciple Thomas to shout, “My Lord and my God!” I want to
examine the beauty of Christ in all His glory and all His wonder, to discover again the
truth behind the Man who calls us to Himself in order that we may have life and have
it more abundantly!

13