Preconceived Ideas

Preconceived ideas. These are ideas or opinions that are formed before having the evidence of their truthfulness. Such as, “This is not going to turn out well,” “I’ll never be able to …” These preconceived ideas often impact how we analyze situations. Prior to Jesus’ arrival, the Jews had a lot of preconceived ideas about the Messiah, and what he would do to deliver them from Roman oppression. However, once Jesus began His ministry, many people had trouble seeing Jesus’ plan as God’s plan.

In spite of people’s failure to see Jesus as a fulfillment of the Messiah prophesied about in Scripture, He was — and still is — the essence of God. John 1:1-4, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made. In Him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.” (Matthew 1:23; Isaiah 9:6)

Luke decided to help clear up some of the misunderstandings or the preconceived ideas about the Messiah by outlining the life of Christ (Luke 1:1-3). As Theophilus began to follow Luke’s detailed account about the life of the Messiah, it seemed clear how significant His life really was.

Jesus is the sum of all things, a phrase used multiple times (Matthew 11:27, Ephesians 1:22, Hebrews 1:3, Colossians 1:16…). Paul would later share his unashamed proclamation of the power and significance of the good news about Jesus, Romans 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.”

Jesus’ way of living revealed God’s desire for us and our purpose in Christ. Jesus said in John 15:8, “This is to My Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be My disciples.” There may be a lot that goes into “bearing fruit,” but at its core, it's following His pattern of making people’s lives better by being a blessing to them — loving your neighbor. Prior to Jesus’ arrival (even afterward), people didn’t have a true understanding of what the Messiah would be bringing to God’s creation. His life could sum up our purpose; Jesus’ life summed up powerfully the heart of God. He is truly “all things.” Other people claimed to be the messiah, but they didn’t bear fruit to confirm it (Matthew 7:15-20).

Know that Jesus is the sum of all things; He is the “way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). Jesus’ life brought clarity to the many preconceived ideas about God’s will, salvation, and our purpose. In John’s prolog, he describes Jesus, or the Word (logos), by saying, “grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is Himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made Him known.” (John 1:17-18)