Philippians 2, 1 Corinthians 15, John 1.
Welcome to a new series!
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Many times I have found myself coming to paradoxes in the Bible. Questions such as "How can God be both fully loving and fully just", and "Why does God allow evil to exist?" have always perplexed my mind, and in my inevitable hunger for God and these types of truths, I felt it most appropriate to let people in on my own journey of discovery with God .
To make myself clear, I will not always be answering these questions, because some of them aren't meant to be answered, and you'll see how as the series plays out. I'll still be writing other series, and possibly start a couple more soon, but that's for another time.
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Okay, this is the question that has pestered for me for a while, and this is where we'll stay for this post:
Is Jesus actually fully God and fully man? And if so, how?
I'm sure this is a question that many people have asked themselves, but to even set out to start this question, I have to (at least what it feels like to me) state the obvious.
And the obvious question is, is that where does the idea come from that Jesus is fully God and fully man.
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Chapter 1 : Is Jesus God?
In John Chapter 1, John outlines for the reader Jesus' identity, of which has many Old testament scriptural ties. It's a beautiful chapter that of course I recommend you read, but today we shall focus on on verses 1-3, 14, & 17-18, and I'll give you the verses first, and then explain them after.
John 1:1-3 reads:
'In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.'All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. (NKJV)'
We're told later in the chapter in John 1:14:
'So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son. (NLT)'
Finally, John 1:17-18 says:
'For the law was given through Moses, but God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. But the unique One, who is himself God, is near to the Father’s heart. He has revealed God to us. (NLT)'
Okay, so that's quite a bit of Bible, so what can we make of this?
1a) Jesus is Distinct from God, but also God.
Let me walk you through this, because this is so beautiful.
John says in John 1:1 the Word was with God (So separate from God), but also... Was God (The same as God).
This is crazy! How can something be the same and separate!
Jesus says as much in John's gospel, saying in John 10:30:
"I and My Father are one. (NKJV)”
But how can this be? How can Jesus be separate from God but also God? well, Jesus indirectly answers this himself, saying in Matthew 19:26:
"But Jesus looked at them and said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.(NKJV)”
God is... God (Surprise!) Jesus shares in the identity of God. Therefore God is not limited by our ability to understand who he is. So how can Jesus be distinct from God and also God? Because God has no limits to his power. Just because it's a hard concept to wrap our minds around (if we can at all), does not mean it is nullified as The Truth, as Jesus is “.. the Way, the Truth, and the Life. [John 14:6a, NKJV]"
1b) Jesus IS the Word of God.
Okay, seemingly weird claim here. Before I explain the implications of this, let's first prove Jesus is the Word of God.
John 1:14 Says:
'And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.(NKJV)'
John in turn says that the only begotten [son] of the father was the Word become flesh. He says this Son was full of grace and truth, and reveals that identity in John 1:17:
'For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.(NKJV)'
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'Alright, Jesus is God's word. But what does that even mean, what ramifications are there?'
Im glad you asked 😂
John says in John 1:1-3 :
''In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. (NKJV) '
Thinking logically, the story of creation sequentially in the Bible is found in Genesis 1, of which in Genesis 1:1-3 we find the following:
'In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. (NKJV)'
Furthermore, God is wise, and therefore it must have been by his wisdom that he created all things, as it says in Proverbs 3:19:
'The Lord by wisdom founded the earth; By understanding He established the heavens; (NKJV)'
How does this relate to Jesus being the word of God?
Paul says as such in 1 Corinthians 1:24:
'but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. (NKJV)'
Therefore the claim John is making in John 1 is that the Words that spoke creation into existence embodied God's own mind and will. For example, when we speak, our words represent our mind and will. It also points towards the power of the Word, as it was powerful enough to create everything in existence in the first place. therefore we find in The Word of God, and therefore in Jesus God's very power, wisdom, mind, and will.
Got it? 👍🏾
Jesus is God's word, and through him everything was created (including you!). As he is God's wisdom and power, he initiated all things into existence, of which has massive implications towards his divine identity.
Alright, Point 3...
1c) Jesus IS eternal
This one is pretty simply awesome. As we have established that Jesus is the Word of God, look at what 1 Peter 1:24-25 says (Of which is a Quote of Isaiah 40:8):
'As the Scriptures say, “People are like grass; their beauty is like a flower in the field. The grass withers and the flower fades. But the word of the Lord remains forever.” And that word is the Good News that was preached to you. (NLT)'
(I'm going to clear up, The Word of God is Jesus, and in Jesus we find the revealed revelation of the gospel. Jesus is the word he preached, as he preached the truth, of which he is The Truth. Pressing forward!)
The real point be made here is that if Jesus is the Word of God, and the Word of God remains for ever, then he is eternal. John 1:2 says as such:
'He was in the beginning with God. (NKJV) '
Jesus furthermore says in John 17:2 in reference to himself:
'For you have given him authority over everyone. He gives eternal life to each one you have given him. (NKJV)'
Jesus is life and gives eternal life. Jesus can't give away something he doesn't have for himself. As Jesus Shares in God's identity, and the Father is eternal, as is the Son. The obvious question therefore lies is, "If God is eternal, and Jesus shares in God's identity, how come he died? Surely the eternal life that lives in him would nullify the sacrifice he made on the cross."
Dont worry, you're in Good company - the Crowd in John 12:34 asked the exact same:
"The crowd responded, “We understood from Scripture[a] that the Messiah would live forever. How can you say the Son of Man will die? Just who is this Son of Man, anyway?(NLT)”
Look at Philippians 2:7-8:
'Instead, he [Jesus] gave up his divine privileges ; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.'
When "The Word became flesh", it was not without sacrifice. Jesus gave up his divine privileges to be able to interact with us as a human being. This is why he was able to die, and why people didn't die when they looked at him [In the Old Testament, people often died when they saw God as the wonder of his glory killed them. Jesus gave up his glory to interact with us. This is why Jesus prays in John 17:1b: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son so he can give glory back to you. (NLT) ']
So how is Jesus eternal if he was stripped of his divine privileges? Well, after his resurrection, these privileges were returned to him, as Peter and the Apostles denoted in Acts 5:30-31a:
"The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead after you killed him by hanging him on a cross. Then God put him in the place of honor at his right hand as Prince and Saviour. (NLT)"
Jesus was returned his divine privileges by the father after his ascension.
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Chapter 2 : Is Jesus Man?
So to recap, from all these verses, We find in Jesus God, though he is distinct from God simultaneously. We find the Word of God, as well as God's Wisdom, Truth and Power, by which all of creation came into existence. We Finally find the eternal Life of God in Jesus, by which he forsook to die on everyone's behalf. Jesus and the Father are one.
Now we have covered Jesus' divinity (his status as part of the trinity), how is he a man?
2a) He was Born as a human
When Jesus was Born, The Angel Gabriel ministered to Mary.This is recorded in Luke 1, as Gabriel says to Mary in Luke 1:31:
"And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.(NKJV)"
Now you may ask, how do I know that Jesus was a human like I, rather than some superhuman? Well...
2b) Scriptural Prophecy/ Referencing
In Genesis, after Adam and Eve sinned, we find a promise of God. In Genesis 3:15, it says:
''And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.NIV)”
In short, God promised Eve that one of her descendants would crush the serpents head, and be bitten by it. The only way to crush the serpents' head is by being a [grand]Son of Adam (Adam means humanity) without sin and confronting evil.
Jesus is the only person who was. How does this prove he was a man? Well because the whole narrative of the Bible leaves us trying to find one sinless person, and if Jesus were not fully man, he could not fulfil the promise of God. This is why in Luke 3, there is a genealogy that starts with Jesus...
[ Jesus was known as the son of Joseph. Joseph was the son of Heli. (Luke 3:23b,NLT)']
...and end's with Adam, Eve's wife of which he is the prophesied seed.
["Seth was the son of Adam. Adam was the son of God."(Luke 3:38c,d; NLT)]
This is also why Jesus refers to himself as the Son Of Man; Adam comes from the Hebrew הָֽאָדָ֛ם (hā·’ā·ḏām), of which means humanity or Human being. So when Jesus is calling himself the Son of Man, he's referring to himself as the Son of Adam, as for example in Matthew 20:28:
"just as the Son of Man [Adam] did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.(NKJV)”
(there's a lot more theological backing, but this does the trick😇)
So what does this all mean? Well God promised Adam a human being would bruise Satan's head, and Jesus is presented as that human being in the Gospels. Therefore Jesus must be an actual human, not just God.
Just to really drive this home...
2c) Jesus was Tempted & tested
In order for Jesus to disarm spiritual evil as it were, One of the key moments was Jesus' testing in the wilderness (theologians don't @ me, give me a sec😌)
In the Garden of Eden, the original covenant God offered to Adam was to rule with humanity; Psalm 8:5-8 says as much in reference to Adam and Eve:
5 Yet you made them only a little lower than God[d] and crowned them[e] with glory and honor. 6 You gave them charge of everything you made, putting all things under their authority— 7 the flocks and the herds and all the wild animals, 8 the birds in the sky, the fish in the sea, and everything that swims the ocean currents.
Adam and Eve however vacated their royal gifting through their rebellion in the Garden when God tested them and they were deceived. Jesus however was tempted as a human being in the same way Adam was tested, as Paul the apostle says in 1 Corinthians 15:21-22:
" For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.(NKJV)"
As Jesus resisted satan in the garden, the Royal Convenant was first restored to Jesus...
"But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone. [Hebrews 2:9 (NIV)]"
... And then to his people as his Royal Servants under his authority:
"But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvellous light; [1 Peter 2:9 (NKJV)]"
So Jesus was tempted by satan, but resisted satan's schemes. Therefore he restored the Royal Covenant to all who have faith in him, rather than just the priesthoods of the old testament. This proves his humanity as a part of his purpose to defeat spiritual evil, once again Jesus had to survive this testing as a human being for the curse of the power of sin to be broken.
The last way i'll mention today of which Jesus is a Man is...
2d) Jesus died.
shocker.
It may or may not be news to you that Jesus died. He was crucified for all of our sins. And here lies the last Christ paradox of this post.
1 Timothy 1:18 says:
'Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. (NKJV)'
Now if God is immortal, How can Christ, the one who is The life, and who is God and separate from God, Die?
It doesn't make natural, sense, but that's kind of the point. In some way, Jesus gave his life in order to conquer sin and death. That's why Colossians 2:15 says:
"In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.(NLT)"
How did Jesus shame the spiritual rulers and authorities? because he willingly died. Firstly as God, Jesus wasn't subjected to the will of the people; He didn't have to die because they wanted him dead, it was God's will so that all may have the choice to have freedom in Christ.
That's why Jesus prays to the Father in the Garden of Gethsemane in Luke 22:42b:
“Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.(NLT)”
Furthermore, the Apostles in the Gospels all give an impression of Jesus giving his life over at the moment of his death, suggesting his ultimate control of his own physical life, as Matthew 27:50 reads:
'And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.(NLT)'
Rather than Jesus' using his power to hold onto his physical life and keep all of us imprisoned by sin, he voluntarily let go of it in order for our freedom.
Jesus literally traded his life as a perfect sacrifice for all of our sakes. This proves his humanity as he set aside his divine identity in order to die a slaves' death.
This may still beg the question, how can God actually physically die? Well, Peter explains that Jesus' Body died, not his Spirit in 1 Peter 3:18:
'Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.(NLT) '
We are also additionally told that Jesus was raised back to life by the Holy Spirit by Paul in Romans 8:11:
'The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.(NLT)'
So how does all of this translate, and can we answer the original question,
is Jesus actually fully God and fully man? And if so, how?
Well, Jesus has to be both Fully God and Fully man for the reasons i've stated and many more. He's is part of God as the Living Word, Wisdom and Power of God, with many more claims to his person such as The Life and Truth of God. Furthermore he preexisted with God before creation itself as part of God, and everything we inhabit exists through him.
Simultaneously, Jesus has to be a man, due to his messianic call as the prophesied call as Adam's descendent, of which has to be a human. Jesus also refers to himself the most in the new testament as the Son of Man, of which translated means Son of Adam. Adam's lineage can also be traced to Jesus in Luke 3. Jesus was born of a woman by the Holy spirit, and Jesus' physical body died for our salvation, of which would not be possible for Jesus' Spirit.
How is this possible? because nothing is impossible for God. But I don't even think that's the biggest takeaway, nor the most beautiful thing.
I think the most beautiful thing is Jesus' Humility. Paul describes it best in Philippians 2:6-9:
'Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges ; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names,(NLT)'
Jesus was willing to come to earth and give up his glory and honor for us. this is God were talking about; he has the highest glory and honor there is. I know we will never know the scope of God's love for us, but Jesus gave up his glory and majesty to be told that he was a. counterfeit; that he didn't represent God when he was God. Do you know how crazy that is?!
God's love is shown perfectly in Christ, and is a great demonstration of how humility and sacrifice is the key to God elevating you, as James 4:6 says:
'But He gives more grace. Therefore He says:
“God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.”(NLT)'
God loves us so much, and Jesus' sacrifices are a large testament towards that. For the ways we distort God's will, we don't deserve the amount of love he offers, and therefore all we can do in return is worship him, thank him for simply being, and living a life therefore that brings glory to his name. Great blessings are in store for those who have faith in him, and 1 Peter 1:4 describes this perfectly: 'and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. (NLT)'
Imma share a bunch of stuff that at least helped me wrap my head around this, and a sermon that prompted me to live like Christ.
God Bless ❤️
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