Summary

Jesus Christ was fully God and fully man in one person, and will be so forever.

( A study from Wayne Grudems Systematic Theology )

A. The humanity of Christ

1. Virgin Birth

i. It shows that salvation ultimately must come from the Lord (Gal. 4:4-5)

ii. It made possible the uniting of full deity and full humanity in one person

iii. It also makes possible Christs true humanity

iv. The child was to be called holy Luke 1:35)

B. Human weakness and limitation

1. Jesus had a human body

i. He was born (Luke 2:7)

ii. He grew (Luke 2:40)

iii. He became tired (John 4:6)

iv. He became thirsty (John 19:28)

v. He was hungry (Mat 4:2)

vi. He became physically weak (Mat 4:11) (Luke 23:46)

vii. His resurrected body (Luke 24:39, 42, John 20:17, 20, 27, 21:9, 13)

viii. Bodily ascension (John 16:28)

2. Jesus had a human mind

i. Increased in wisdom

3. Jesus had a soul and human emotions

i. His soul was troubled (John 12:27)

ii. His spirit was troubled (John 13:21)

iii. His soul was sorrowful (Matthew 26:38)

iv. He marveled (Matthew 8:10)

v. He wept (John 11:35)

vi. He prayed emotionally (Hebrews 5:7)

vii. He learned obedience through suffering (Hebrews 5:8-9)

4. People near Jesus saw Him only as a man

i. The carpenters son (Matt 13:55)

ii. The carpenter ( Mark 6:3)

C. Sinlessness

1. He had no sin (Note: Human beings are now in an abnormal state. God did not create us as sinful, but holy and righteous.

i. Early in His life ( Luke 2:40)

ii. Satan was unable to tempt ( Luke 4:13 )

iii. No evidence of wrong doing ( John 8:46 )

iv. Light of the world ( John 8:12 )

v. Obedience to His father ( John 8:29 )

vi. He was tempted as we are ( Hebrews 4:15-16 )

D. Could Jesus have sinned?

1. 3 facts stated in scripture

i. Scripture affirms Christ’s sinlessness

ii. It also clearly affirms He was tempted ( Hebrews 4:15-16 )

iii. It also affirms, “God cannot be tempted with evil.” ( James 1:13 )

E. Jesus two natures. Why was Jesus full humanity necessary?

1. For representative obedience

i. Jesus was our representative and obeyed for us where Adam had failed and disobeyed

· “The last Adam” ( 1 Corinthians 15:45 )

· Adam the “first man” and Christ “second man” ( 1 Corinthians 15:47 )

2. To be a substitute sacrifice

i. If Jesus had not been a man, He could not have died in our place and paid the penalty that was due to us. ( Hebrews 2:16-17 0

ii. …unless Christ was fully man, He could not have died to pay the penalty for man`s sins. ( A substitute sacrifice )

3. To be the one mediator between God and man

i. Jesus had to be fully man and fully God to fulfill this role of mediator ( 1 Timothy 2:5)

4. To fulfill God`s original purpose for man to rule over creation

i. When Jesus came as a man, He was able to obey God and thereby have the right to rule over creation as a man, thus fulfilling Gods original purpose in putting man on the earth ( 1 Corinthians 6:3 )

5. To be our example and pattern in life

i. “walk in the same way in which He walked” ( 1 John 2:6 )

ii. Jesus had to become a man like us in order to live as our example and pattern in life

6. To be the pattern for our redeemed bodies

i. Imperishable ( 1 Corinthians 15: 42-44 )

ii. The first fruits ( 1 Corinthians 15:23 )

iii. “ first born from the dead” ( Colossians 1:18 ), the pattern for the bodies that we would later have

7. To sympathize as High Priest

i. If Jesus had not been a man, He would not have been able to know by experience what we go through in our temptations and struggles in this life ( Hebrews 2:18; cf. 4:15-16 )

8. Jesus will be man forever

i. John 20:25-27, Luke 24:39, Luke 24:41-42, Acts 1:11, Acts 7:56, Acts 9:5, 1 Cor. 9:1, 15:8, Rev. 1:13-17, Matt. 26:29, Rev. 19:9. All of these texts indicate that Jesus did not temporarily become man, but that His divine nature was permanently united to His human nature, and He lives forever not just as the eternal Son of God, the second person of the Trinity, but also as Jesus… (Wayne Grudem Systematic Theology)

ii. Jesus will remain fully God and fully man, yet one person, forever

Jesus Deity

A. Direct Spiritual claims

1. The word God (Theos) used of Christ

i. Though it is commonly used for God the Father, there are several passages where it is also used for Jesus. John 1:1, 1:18, 20:28, Romans 9:5; Titus 2:13; Hebrews 1:8 and 2 Peter 1:1. Old Testament example: Isaiah 9:6

2. The word Lord (Kyrios) used of Christ

i. Used in the Old Testament (Septuagint) as a translation for the Hebrew yhwh. Used 6814 times in the Greek Old Testament.

ii. Many instances in the New Testament that the word is used for Christ. Luke 2:11; 2:18; 1:43; Matthew 3:3 (Isaiah 40:3);

iii. Jesus also identifies Himself as the sovereign Lord of the Old Testament. Psalm 110:1; (Matthew 22:44)

iv. Jesus “I am” statements.

v. Alpha and Omega Revelation 22:13

vi. Logos (Word)

vii. The Son of Man. Origin in Daniel 7:13-14

viii. Son of God

B. Evidence that Jesus possessed attributes of deity.

1. Omnipotence

i. Calming the storm (Matthew 8: 26-27)

ii. Multiplied the loaves and fish (Matthew 14:19)

iii. Changed water to wine (John 2: 1-11)

iv. Knowing peoples thoughts (Mark 2:8; John 1:48; John 6:64; John 21:17)

2. Omniscience

i. Knowing peoples thoughts (Mark 2:8; John 1:48; John 6:64; John 21:17)

3. Omnipresence – Note: Not directly affirmed to be true of Jesus during His earthly ministry

i. Looking forward to the time that the church would be established. (Matthew 18:20; Matthew 28:20)

4. Divine Sovereignty

i. He could forgive sins (Mark 2:5-7)

ii. Rather than “thus says the Lord,” He could preface His statements with, “but I say to you.” An amazing claim to His own authority

iii. He could speak with the authority of God himself because He was fully God.

5. Immortality

i. “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.” (John 2:19)

ii. Jesus has an active role in His own resurrection.

iii. The power to lay down His life and take it up again. (John 10:17-18)

iv. An indestructible life (Hebrews 7:16)

v. The one who alone has immortality (1 Timothy 6:16)

6. Worthy to be worshipped

i. Scripture speaks of Christ, “God has highly exalted Him that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:9-11)

ii. God commands the angels to worship Christ. (Hebrews 1:6)

C. Did Jesus give up some of His Divine attributes while on earth? (The kenosis theory)

1. Kenosis Theory

i. The text: “Have this in mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.” (Philippians 2:5-7)

ii. German Theologians 1860-1880 and English Theologians 1890-1910 advocated the view of kenotic theology

iii. According to the theory, Christ emptied Himself of some of His divine attributes such as omniscience, omnipotence and omnipresence, while He was on earth as a man.

iv. Prior to this theory no recognized teacher in the first 1,800 years of church history thought that “emptied Himself” meant that the Son of God gave up some of His divine attributes.

v. We must recognize that the text does not say that Christ emptied Himself of divine attributes or of divine powers

vi. The text describes the meaning to be “taking the form of a servant.”

vii. The context itself interprets this emptying as equivalent to humbling Himself.

viii. Paul uses this for the purpose of instructing the Philippians to be imitators of Christ. It is not saying the Philippians should empty themselves of their own attributes, yet humble themselves as Christ has.

ix. Lastly, the scripture must be interpreted in light of other scripture and its doctrinal teachings.

x. Therefore the teaching must be rejected.

D. Conclusion: Christ is fully Divine

1. The New Testament affirms the full and absolute deity of Jesus Christ

i. In light of all the scripture references that have been viewed we conclude that not only is Jesus fully man, but that He is fully God as well.

The Incarnation: Deity and Humanity in the one person of Christ

A. Three inadequate views of the Person of Christ

1. Apollinarianism

i. Bishop in Laodicea in A.D. 361 taught that the one person of Christ had a human body but not a human mind or spirit.. He taught that the mind and spirit of Christ were from the divine nature of the Son of God.

ii. The views were rejected by the leaders of the church at that time which recognized that it was not just our human bodies that needed to to be redeemed by Christ but our minds and spirits as well.

iii. The Council of Alexandria in A.D. 362 and the Council of Constantinople in A.D. 381 rejected this teaching.

2. Nestorianism

i. The doctrine that there are two separate persons in Christ.

ii. Nestorius was a preacher from Antioch in A.D. 428 and was Bishop of Constantinople. The heresy of this teaching was probably never taught by Nestorius but goes by his name and were condemned.

iii. Scripture nowhere teaches that Christ’s human nature ever did anything contrary to His divine nature.

iv. The scriptures affirm a single person acting in unity and in wholeness.

3. Monophysitism (Eutychianism)

i. The view that Christ had one nature only

ii. Eutyches, the leader of a monastery in Constanstinople

iii. Taught that the human and divine natures morphed into one new nature

iv. By this doctrine Christ was neither fully God nor fully man

B. The solution to the controversy: The Chalcedonian definition of A.D. 451

1. The standard orthodox definition of the biblical teaching on the person of Christ.

The Statement:

Council of Chalcedon (451 A.D)

Therefore, following the holy fathers, we all with one accord teach men to acknowledge one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, at once complete in Godhead and complete in manhood, truly God and truly man, consisting also of a reasonable soul and body; of one substance with the Father as regards his Godhead, and at the same time of one substance with us as regards his manhood; like us in all respects, apart from sin; as regards his Godhead, begotten of the Father before the ages, but yet as regards his manhood begotten, for us men and for our salvation, of Mary the Virgin, the God-bearer; one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, Only-begotten, recognized in two natures, without confusion, without change, without division, without separation; the distinction of natures being in no way annulled by the union, but rather the characteristics of each nature being preserved and coming together to form one person and subsistence, not as parted or separated into two persons, but one and the same Son and Only-begotten God the Word, Lord Jesus Christ; even as the prophets from earliest times spoke of him, and our Lord Jesus Christ himself taught us, and the creed of the fathers has handed down to us.