Page 16 - Back to Bethlehem

world might be saved. John 6:39, “And this is the will of Him
who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me, I lose nothing, but
raise it up on the last day.” Luke 19:10, “For the Son of Man has
come to seek and to save that which was lost.” 1 John 4:10, “In
this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent
His son to be the propitiation for our sins.” 1 John 4:14, “And
we have beheld and bear witness that the Father has sent the Son
to be the Savior of the world.” That’s the goal; to be the Savior
of the world. That’s the end; that’s the destiny.

But what about His journey? We say in Micah 5:2, that
it’s Bethlehem, “But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrata, too little to
be among the clans of Judah, from you One will go forth for Me
to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, from the
days of eternity.” He went to Bethlehem but that wasn’t His goal.
That’s part of the journey. He was nine months in Mary’s womb
but he didn’t stay there. He went to Bethlehem but he didn’t stay
there. You might say his goal was Nazareth. That was his
boyhood town, “That’s His destiny.” He didn’t stay there very
long. Remember how they tried to throw Him over the cliff?

The Father sent the Son into the wilderness to be tempted.
That was only forty days. That’s part of the journey but it’s not
the goal. That’s where He went and He stopped there. Luke
4:14&15, “And Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the
Spirit; and news about Him spread through all the surrounding
district. And He began teaching in their synagogues and was
praised by all.” You might say that His goal was Galilee. That’s
where He did His teaching and where He let the Father do His
miracles. That wasn’t His destination. That was three and a half
years. Well, you might say that His destination was the cross.
He came to save the world.

Listen to Luke 19:10, “For the Son of Man has come to
seek and to save that which was lost.” When we talk about His
goal, I don’t want to take the cross, His death, His resurrection
and just say, “That’s part of the journey.” In Gethsemane He
sweat drops of blood. There I think He became sin for us. On
the cross He shed His life’s blood. He took what we deserved.