The foundation Christianity is based on the knowledge of who Christ is, and the claims that He made. The Bible makes some very specific claims on the deity of Christ, and His relationship with the Father. These points of doctrine have also been a major source of contention ever since His earthly ministry. Understanding what the Bible says about Christ is a pillar Christianity, and should be understood by every believer.
To understand Christ, one must understand His composition: He, while fully human, was at the same time fully God. Reading through the Gospels it becomes clear that the authors thought the humanity of Jesus was “taken for granted...as if it could not possibly occur to anyone to question it.”1 These authors described Jesus as if they were describing the feelings and actions of any other man. For example: Mark 15:33 describes Jesus as being “greatly distressed and troubled.” Luke describes Jesus as a child, who “grew and became strong”. (Luke 2:40) John 11:35 further shows the fullness of Christ's human emotions, simply declaring that “Jesus wept.” The title “Son of Man” also further demonstrates His being fully human, while at the same time attesting His being one with the father. Jews during Jesus' time would have understood what Jesus meant when He used the term, noting that He was calling Himself the “Messiah”.2
While Jesus was fully human, He was also fully God, and there is Biblical evidence to show that “the language and formulas which are used of God Himself”3 are also applied to Jesus. The titles of Jesus, for instance, are ones that are usually referred to God. Throughout the book of John, Jesus consistently uses the phrase “I am”, which is “derived from the Hebrew word 'to be' and was the name God used most often when relating to man, especially in covenant.”4 In John 6:35 Jesus says “I am the bread of life”. In John 8:12 Jesus says “I am the light of the world”, etc. The title “Son of God” is also a title used to show Christs deity. When “the expression 'Son of God' is used by and of Christ, it is obviously a reference to His divine relationship to God the Father.”5
While it may be confusing to hear about Jesus being both the “Father” and the “Son”, it is an important concept to grasp. If either His humanity or His deity were diminished in any way, then He would cease to be the perfect sacrifice for the sins of mankind. The term “hypostatic union” offers the best explanation of how these two things may coexist at the same time: “In the incarnation of the Son of God, a human nature was inseparably united forever with the divine nature in the one person of Jesus Christ, yet with two natures remaining distinct, whole, and unchanged, without mixture or confusion, so that the on person, Jesus Christ, is truly God and truly man.” 6 This declaration was set for by the Council of Chalcedon (451) in an effort to combat some of the theology that was dividing the Church at the time.
The Council of Chalcedon was one of the many attempts by Christians to solve some of the conflicting viewpoints on who Jesus really was. One such view was that of Origen. Origen had “a view of Christ as an intermediate being, spanning the distance between the utterly transcendent being of God and this created world.”7 The problem though is that this goes against the nature of God, and creates a division where none exists. This is why an understanding of the trinity is needed, for doctrine goes to the extremeness of Jesus' humanity, or demeans His unity with the Father, then what exists is a false doctrine, and can cause believers to go astray.
After the fall of man, God had set up a temporary system through the Law to allow for the atonement of sin. No matter how hard the prophets, kings, or priests tried, they could never make good what had turned evil. But God, in His infinite love and mercy, promised that “One would rise up in their midst who would yet make good what all of them had utterly failed to make good.”8 Only a perfect sacrifice could atone for the sins of the whole world, and God is the only one capable of such a sacrifice. Because He sent His Son to die on a cross for my sins, I at least owe Him my complete worship. His interactions with people and His love for them show me how I am to treat others, and His sin-free life shows me that I can lean on the Father for anything, and He will not abandon me. Only a fully God-man could provide such an example, and it is just a testament to His perfect love.
Bibliography
Elwell, Walter A., Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Second Ed.. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House Company, 2001.
Towns, Elmer L., Theology for Today, Mason, OH: Cengage Learning, 2008.
1 Walter A. Elwell, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Second Ed.. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House Company (2001) 259.
2 Elmer L. Towns, Theology for Today, Mason, OH: Cengage Learning (2008) 163.
3 Walter A. Elwell, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Second Ed.. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House Company (2001) 241.
4 Elmer L. Towns, Theology for Today, Mason, OH: Cengage Learning (2008) 160.
5 Elmer L Towns., Theology for Today, Mason, OH: Cengage Learning (2008) 161.
6 Walter A. Elwell, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Second Ed.. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House Company (2001) 583.
7 Walter A. Elwell, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Second Ed.. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House Company (2001) 243.
8 Walter A. Elwell, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Second Ed.. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House Company (2001) 239
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