JESUS THE GOD-MAN
Last week we began to consider the concept of Jesus being both God and man simultaneously. We, as humans, have a difficult time with this because only God can is capable of such a form of existence. He isn’t bound by the strictures of time and place that order our mortal lives.
He is God, and His ways are far higher than ours and so are His thoughts.
The Bible tells us “Concerning His Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by His resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 1:3-4).
First, we see that Jesus was born of David according to the flesh. God’s Son, has a mortal lineage. Another translation of the original language puts it this way: “who being born of the seed of David according to the flesh.”
So Jesus, the Son of God was born just as we were. No gimmicks, simply God becoming man the way a man becomes a man.
Job speaks of this in Job 19:25; “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will stand upon the earth.” Job knew that only God could redeem him as he is confronted by God, and that one day God would physically walk upon the earth. He didn’t know when, but he was certain of it. This is what we’re taught in Hebrews 11.
Donald Grey Barnhouse reminds us; “He was and is the God-man; in Him is absolute humanity and absolute deity.”
Galatians 3:16 states: “Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, ‘And to offsprings,’ referring to many, but referring to one, ‘And to your offspring,’ who is Christ.”
Paul is referencing Genesis 12:7 and God’s promise to Abraham that he would have a son. God was not looking simply at Isaac, but all the way down to Jesus! He would be fully human.
The prophet Isaiah also foretells of the Savior’s coming into the world in 7:14; “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel.” This is repeated in Matthew 1:23 at the birth of the God-man.
Another story of Jesus being fully human mentioned by Barnhouse in his commentary is Matthew 17:24-27 and the paying of taxes. Peter is approached by tax-collectors and asked if Jesus pays taxes. Peter being Peter, answered in the affirmative.
Jesus already knows this when Peter returns to where they’re staying and asks Jesus about who is to pay taxes and who is not. Jesus tells Peter to go catch a fish and to get the tax money from it.
Barnhouse shares it this way: “Go down to My Sea of Galilee, which I created. I have had one of My creatures lose a coin in the water, and My law of gravity carried it down where I had one of My fish take it into his mouth. You go fishing and I will have that fish come to your hook. You take the fish and take the coin out of its mouth, and it will be a coin of sufficient value to pay your taxes and Mine.” (p. 43)
What aspect of human existence is more mundane than paying taxes? Jesus paid taxes and yet we know He was much more than human.
Jesus also had a human lineage. In the gospel of Matthew we have one account of Jesus’ human lineage and in the gospel of Luke we have another. Jesus was from the tribe of Judah as were his human parents Joseph and Mary. This fulfilled the promises of God to Judah.
Through Solomon came Joseph, and through Nathan came Mary. Solomon and Nathan were brothers, but we know that Solomon become king in David’s place. Both were of the royal blood but only one can become king and it was handed to Solomon’s lineage. Since Mary came through the lineage of Nathan and Joseph through the lineage of Solomon it all works out. Joseph adopts Jesus as his own son thus making Jesus the oldest and the One who would take precedence.
Why go through all these gyrations? Why bother to ensure that Jesus was both man and God at once? So we, God’s children, would know that our God understands us as one of us, not only as our Lord.
Hebrews 4:15-16 says “for we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
Magnificent!