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Jesus was drawn toward the needy, actually preferring to spend time with those aware of their own needs. When the messiah came to town, the outcasts were welcomed, and the sick were healed, and the repentant sinners were forgiven. Everything Jesus did fulfilled his heaven-sent mission "to proclaim good news to the poor to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set a liberty those who are oppressed" (Luke 4:18-19; cf. Isaiah 61). By meeting physical needs, Jesus revealed himself as the great physician who wantes to heal our sin-sick hearts.

Jesus was a man on a mission-a mission to "testify to the truth" and "save the lost? (John 18:37; Luke 19:10). Our Savior proclaimed the good news of God's kingdom in every place he traveled, from Jewish synagogues to rural hillsides to fishing boats. He offered the good news to Jews, Gentiles, tax collectors, and the rich and poor alike: Just like Jesus invited his disciples into his missionary work, he asks the entire church to carry on his Great Commission work today: "As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you" (John 20:21).

Despite the public nature of his ministry, Jesus always found time to privately seek his Father in prayer, solitude, and self-denial. Many of these virtuous habits were also adopted by religious leaders and secular philosophers of the day, but Jesus had a different motivation for his private disciplines. He sought silence, solitude, and hunger not to find internal freedom or master his own ambitions, but to find God. The goal of Jesus' discipline was not self-actualization but worship. IN the same way, Jesus invites us to a life of discipline so that we know and worship him.

Our perfect God chose to spend his days on the earth with the imperfect people. In fact, Jesus made friendship the foundation of his ministry, selecting twelve ordinary men to be his closest friends and evangelistic partners. These friendships were certainly rocky—one would betray him, another would deny him, and the rest would flee in his final hours. But still, at the end of the day, Jesus chose to lay down his life for the sake of his friends. If the perfect Son of God chose to live his life in the context of community, who are we to think we can do otherwise?

Jesus was confident in his identity. Even as a child, he demonstrated this in ways that surprised even his own family. But what was the basis of his confidence? Jesus trusted what his Father said about him: "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:17). Having studied and memorized the promises of God in the Old Testament, Jesus was convinced of his sonship, and he rested in the assurance that God never leaves nor forsakes his children. Because Jesus knew his Father and knew his Word, Jesus could be meek, not insecure; confident, not cocky. From start to finish, Jesus knew exactly who he was and what he was meant to do. His confidence is an example for how we are to walk in the freedom of our own God-given identity.

When Jesus ascended to heaven, he didn't leave his followers without direction, but offered his own life as the standard and example of the good life. Jesus approached every habit, choice, and relationship with the goal of worshipping the Father and revealing his heart to a watching··world. So, the fundamental question of our lives:theri becomes: "What would Jesus do?" If Jesus were in my shoes, facing my own circumstances, how would he live? From now on, every choice we make should reveal the answer to that question.

The good news of the gospel is spelled out in the most well-known verse in the Bible, John 3:16: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." Jesus, the Son of God in the flesh, spent his earthly life declaring this good news and demonstrating it-by healing the sick, casting out demons with divine authority, and showing the world what it means to live rightly as a human being. Ultimately, however, that earthly life ended in death on a Roman cross. But that was not the end of his message; it was the vindication of it. Jesus died in full knowledge that three days later he would pass through death and back to life, offering all who believe in him the offer of redemption and eternal life. Now, through his power and example, we can begin living the lives God purposed for us from the very beginning.