Q: Was Jesus a man? Is Jesus Christ God in human form? What is the incarnation of Christ?
16-Dec-09
These are particularly daunting questions as the Scriptures that deal with them are vast & the doctrine surrounding them is immense. However, I will attempt to cover them to some degree & I pray that I can do at least a small degree of justice, at least giving enough support to answer the questions.
Previously, we addressed the question “Is Jesus God?” & reaffirmed that He is indeed. During Christmas time we commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ. This is important for many reasons, but one of the most profound is the fact that God chose to take the form of a man – even a baby. This is what Christians refer to as the incarnation – God becoming a man. Therefore, Christmas can be thought of as the “incarnation celebration”.
Approximately 700 years before Christ’s birth, the Prophet Isaiah said “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” (Isa 7.14). We’ve learned that Immanuel means “God with us” in Hebrew. Then, along with many other prophesies, we have that precise fulfillment in Jesus’ birth to the Virgin Mary (Lk 1.30-34, Mt 1.23, 24-25). As far as I know, there have never been any other people born to a virgin. However, this is not at all an impossibility for God to do, seeing that He created the entire universe out of nothing, let alone the first man (Gen 1.1, Jer 32.27, Lk 1.37).
“God, who is a personal spirit being (Jn 4.24) & outside of His creation & all physical matter (Jer 32.17), penetrated the physical world in the human form of Jesus Christ when He put on flesh (Jn 1.14). He did this by the prophesied means of a virgin birth (Isa 7.14) where He supernaturally seeded the womb of Mary (Mt. 1.23, Lk 1.30-34) to provide a human nature while preventing that seed from inheriting a sinful nature (Lk 1.35, 37, Rom 1.2-4, Heb 4.15).” – Taken from “Is Jesus God?”
The Apostle John says that Christ “became flesh and made His dwelling among us” (Jn 1.14). At the doubting of Thomas after the resurrection, Jesus said “Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have” (Lk 24.39).
A strict religious sect in Jesus’ day, the Sadducees, didn’t believe in the resurrection of the dead, immortality of the soul or eternal reward or punishment. Jesus spoke regularly & authoritatively about these things confirming their reality & rivaling the validity of the Sadducees. One day, after Jesus astonished them with an answer to a question they tried to trap Him with (Lk 20.27-39, 40), Jesus made a statement that confirmed their struggle with the idea of His incarnation:
Then Jesus said to them, "How is it that they say the Christ is the Son of David? David himself declares in the Book of Psalms:
" 'The Lord said to my Lord:
"Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet." ' David calls him 'Lord.' How then can he be his son?" – Lk 20.41-44
Jesus points out this reference to Ps 110.1 that confirms the Messiah’s human lineage from King David (Lk 3.31-32) – another prophecy fulfilled.
This idea of God having a body troubled many in Jesus’ day & as it still does today. In fact, the Bible tells us that to deny the incarnation of Christ is to have the “spirit of the antichrist” & is “not from God” (1 Jn 4.2-3). It indeed is a great mystery to our finite, fallible human minds as to how this union of God & flesh can be (1 Tim 3.16, Php 2.5-6). Fortunately for us, God is far more than we can imagine (Eph 3.20-21) & knows things beyond our comprehension (Isa 55.8-9, Dt 29.29). Otherwise, He wouldn’t really be God, would He?
Now, let’s turn our attention to why Jesus came in a physical body & what that means for us.
Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil - and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. – Heb 2.14-15
He (Jesus) told them, "This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.” – Lk 24.46-47
Previously, we addressed the question “Is Jesus God?” & reaffirmed that He is indeed. During Christmas time we commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ. This is important for many reasons, but one of the most profound is the fact that God chose to take the form of a man – even a baby. This is what Christians refer to as the incarnation – God becoming a man. Therefore, Christmas can be thought of as the “incarnation celebration”.
Approximately 700 years before Christ’s birth, the Prophet Isaiah said “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” (Isa 7.14). We’ve learned that Immanuel means “God with us” in Hebrew. Then, along with many other prophesies, we have that precise fulfillment in Jesus’ birth to the Virgin Mary (Lk 1.30-34, Mt 1.23, 24-25). As far as I know, there have never been any other people born to a virgin. However, this is not at all an impossibility for God to do, seeing that He created the entire universe out of nothing, let alone the first man (Gen 1.1, Jer 32.27, Lk 1.37).
“God, who is a personal spirit being (Jn 4.24) & outside of His creation & all physical matter (Jer 32.17), penetrated the physical world in the human form of Jesus Christ when He put on flesh (Jn 1.14). He did this by the prophesied means of a virgin birth (Isa 7.14) where He supernaturally seeded the womb of Mary (Mt. 1.23, Lk 1.30-34) to provide a human nature while preventing that seed from inheriting a sinful nature (Lk 1.35, 37, Rom 1.2-4, Heb 4.15).” – Taken from “Is Jesus God?”
The Apostle John says that Christ “became flesh and made His dwelling among us” (Jn 1.14). At the doubting of Thomas after the resurrection, Jesus said “Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have” (Lk 24.39).
A strict religious sect in Jesus’ day, the Sadducees, didn’t believe in the resurrection of the dead, immortality of the soul or eternal reward or punishment. Jesus spoke regularly & authoritatively about these things confirming their reality & rivaling the validity of the Sadducees. One day, after Jesus astonished them with an answer to a question they tried to trap Him with (Lk 20.27-39, 40), Jesus made a statement that confirmed their struggle with the idea of His incarnation:
Then Jesus said to them, "How is it that they say the Christ is the Son of David? David himself declares in the Book of Psalms:
" 'The Lord said to my Lord:
"Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet." ' David calls him 'Lord.' How then can he be his son?" – Lk 20.41-44
Jesus points out this reference to Ps 110.1 that confirms the Messiah’s human lineage from King David (Lk 3.31-32) – another prophecy fulfilled.
This idea of God having a body troubled many in Jesus’ day & as it still does today. In fact, the Bible tells us that to deny the incarnation of Christ is to have the “spirit of the antichrist” & is “not from God” (1 Jn 4.2-3). It indeed is a great mystery to our finite, fallible human minds as to how this union of God & flesh can be (1 Tim 3.16, Php 2.5-6). Fortunately for us, God is far more than we can imagine (Eph 3.20-21) & knows things beyond our comprehension (Isa 55.8-9, Dt 29.29). Otherwise, He wouldn’t really be God, would He?
Now, let’s turn our attention to why Jesus came in a physical body & what that means for us.
- Christ came to fulfill the requirements of God’s moral law (Rom 8.3-4, Eph 2.15). We know that it is impossible for any other person to do this because we have all sinned (Rom 3.23, Gal 2.16, 3.10, Jas 2.10, 1 Jn 3.4). Jesus, however, never sinned because He lived perfectly with a fully human nature, but was without a sin nature (2 Cor 5.21, Heb 4.15,1 Pt 2.22,1 Jn 3.5).
- Christ came to be punished, cursed & killed for our sin by being sacrificed on the cross (Isa 53.5, 10, Mt 27.46, Rom 8.3-4, 2 Cor 5.21, Gal 3.13). Since God is spirit, He had to take on flesh in order to be physically punished & killed (Jn 4.24). Consequently, if we don’t trust in what He’s done, we will have to face God’s eternal punishment ourselves (Mt 25.41, Jn 3.18, 2 Thes 1.8-9, Heb 10.31).
- Christ came to forgive our sins (Mt 1.21, Col 1.13-14). This is achieved through the shedding of Jesus’ blood (Eph 1.6-8, Heb 9.12, 22, 28, 10.10). He had to have a physical body to shed physical blood.
- Christ came for our atonement (at-one-ment) & reconciliation (Rom 3.25, Heb 2.17). This is the idea of restoring our relationship with God. Our sins separate us from God, making us His enemies & invoking His wrath (Isa 59.2, Jn 3.36, Rom 5.10, Eph 2.3, Col 1.21). Trusting that Jesus did the above things for us satisfies God’s justice & makes peace between us & Him (Rom 5.1, 9, Eph 2.14-15, Col 1.19-20, 1 Thes 1.10, 5.9).
- Christ came to defeat death (Rom 6.9, 1 Cor 15.55-57, 2 Tim 1.10, Heb 2.9, 14-15). Because Jesus died a physical death (Lk 23.46, Jn 19.30, 33-35), when He was resurrected, He proved that He had power over death & power to give eternal life (Jn 3.16, 5.24, 26, 17.2, Ac 2.24).
- Christ came to give us eternal life (Rom 8.11, 1 Cor 6.14, 2 Cor 4.14). If God is the One who gives all life in the first place (Neh 9.6, Isa 42.5), then He can sustain it. If God created our physical bodies (Ac 17.26), then He can create a resurrected body (1 Cor 15.35, 38).
Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil - and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. – Heb 2.14-15
He (Jesus) told them, "This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.” – Lk 24.46-47