The humanity of christ
From the moment of Jesus’ virginal conception in Mary’s womb, her divine nature has been permanently linked to her human nature in one person, the Son of God now embodied. The biblical test of Jesus’ humanity is strong, showing us that he had a human body, a human spirit, and an experienced human temptation.
- Jesus had a human birth and a human genealogy:?However.
- Coming from the fullness of time.
- God sent his Son.
- Born of woman.
- Born under the law.
- To save those under the law.
- So that we could receive the adoption of children?(Galatians 4.
- 4-5).
Jesus had a growing human body (Luke 2. 40, 52), as well as physical susceptibility, such as hunger (Matthew 4. 2), thirst (John 19. 28), fatigue (John 4. 6), and death (Luke 23. 46).
When he was an old man, the Apostle John was still astonished that he had been given to experience God the Son in the flesh; as an enchanted child, he continues to repeat himself by describing the incarnation:
What it was from the beginning, what we heard, what we saw with our own eyes, what we contemplated and our hands touched, in relation to the Word of life (and life manifested itself, and we have seen it, and we bear witness to it, and we proclaim to you eternal life, which was with the Father and manifested to us), what we have seen and heard , we also announce it to others, so that you too may remain in communion with us. our communion is with the Father and his Son Jesus Christ (John 1. 1-3)
Joo knew of the incarnation for more than 50 years when he wrote this letter, but still writes in amazement as he thinks of walking along the beaches of Galilee, fishing, eating, laughing and getting carried away by a carpenter who was God in the flesh!
Jesus still has a physical body in his resurrected state, and he worked hard to make sure his disciples understood this: “Look at my hands and feet, which is me; touch me and look, because a mind has no flesh or bones. , how do you see I have? (Luke 24:39; cf. Luke 24. 42; John 20:17, 25-27) After his Resurrection, Jesus returned to the Father, ascending into his divinely resurrected body before the astonished eyes of his disciples, thus testifying of his full and continuous physical humanity (Luke 24:50-51; Acts 1. 9-11). Ascension was included in every relevant creed of the Church because it teaches the complete and permanent humanity of Jesus as the only mediator between God and man.
Jesus had a human spirit that, according to the will of the Father, had limits on knowledge: “But no one knows this day or this hour; neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but the Father?”(Mark 13:32). The spirit grew and matured in wisdom (Luke 2. 52), and even learned obedience?(Hebrews 5: 8-9). Say that Jesus learned obedience? This does not mean that he has gone from disobedience to obedience, but has grown in his ability to obey by enduring suffering.
Jesus experienced human temptation: “For we have no high priest who cannot feel sorry for our weaknesses; Was he rather tempted in all things, in our image, but without sin?(Hebrews 4. 15; cf. Luke 4. 1-2). Although Jesus experienced all kinds of human temptations, He never succumbed to sin (John 8. 29, 46; 15. 10; 2 Corinthians 5. 21; Hebrews 7. 26; 1 Peter 2. 22; 1 John 3. 5).
Jesus practiced spiritual disciplines. He prayed regularly with passion (Mark 14. 36; Luke 10. 21; Hebrews 5. 7), he adored in the services of the synagogue (Luke 4:16), read and memorized the scriptures (Matthew 4. 4-10), practiced the discipline of loneliness (Mark 1. 35). ; 6. 46), observed Shabbat (Luke 4. 16), obeyed the ceremonial laws of the Old Testament (John 8. 29, 46; 15. 10; 2 Corinthians 5. 21; Hebrews 4. 15) and received the fulness of the Spirit (Luke 3. 22; 4. 1). These religious activities were carried out diligently (Hebrews 5. 7) and habit (Luke 4. 16) as a means of a truly human spiritual growth process.
Given the divine nature of Jesus, it surprises the normality of most of his earthly life, it seems that Jesus spent the first 30 years of his life in relative darkness, doing manual labor, caring for his family and being faithful in everything his Father called. In his public ministry, Jesus made miraculous signs and delivered an authoritative teaching that could only come from God, which surprised the people of his hometown, who saw the simplicity and humility of Jesus as incompatible with wisdom and power. Messianic:
And when he came to his country, he taught them in the synagogue, that they would be surprised and say, Where does this wisdom and these miraculous powers come from, isn’t that the carpenter’s son?Isn’t your mother Mary and your brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas?Don’t all your sisters live among us? So where does all this come from?And they were outraged at him. But Jesus said unto them, Is there no prophet without honor, but in his country and in his house?(Mt 13, 54-57).
Jesus did not cease to be completely human after the Resurrection; He will be a man forever, for he represents humanity redeemed for all eternity (Acts 1,11; 9. 5; 1 Corinthians 9. 1; 15. 8; 1 Timothy 2. 5; Hebrews 7. 25; Revelation 1,13).
It is obvious that men have continually been sinners since the fall. Therefore, it is easy to assume that being a sinner is an essential and necessary part of being a “human being”. But that’s not true. Jesus was human and yet did not sin. The fact that he has become a man reveals the nature of true humanity. His humanity gives us an idea of what our humanity would look like if it had not been contaminated by sin. He tells us that the problem of humanity is not to be human, but to fall. The human nature of Jesus shows the potential of humanity as God wanted. This demonstration of sinless humanity reaffirms God’s declaration that creation in all its original dimensions (material and spiritual), including humanity, is, by definition, divine, very good (Genesis 1:31).
The humanity of Jesus allows his representative obedience on our behalf. “For just as, for an offense, judgment came upon all men for condemnation, so also did an act of justice, and grace came upon all men for invigorating justification. , By the disobedience of one man, Did many become sinners and many would be righteous? (Romans 5. 18-19) Why is Jesus truly human, his perfect life of obedience and triumph over all temptations, resulting in your death as a perfect substitute, can replace the human rebellion and failure.
Because of Jesus’ humanity, it can really be a substitute sacrifice for the human race; for this very reason, it should be that in everything he becomes like his brethren, be a merciful and faithful high priest with regard to God, and make atonement for the sins of the people?(Hebrews 2:17). A man died on the cross when Jesus died, and his death is truly the atonement for the sin of human beings, of which he participated in nature.
Jesus’ humanity makes him the only effective mediator between God and man: “For is there one God and one mediator between God and men, Christ Jesus, man?(1 Timothy 2. 5). Jesus’ divine and human nature allows him to place himself in the gap between fallen men and a holy God.
Jesus’ humanity allowed him to become an empathetic high priest, who understands from experience the difficult condition of humanity in a fallen world: “For we do not have a high priest who cannot feel sorry for our weaknesses, but was tempted in all things, in our likeness, but without sin. So do we come confidently to the throne of grace to receive mercy and find grace for help at the right time?(Hebrews 4: 15-16; cf. Hebrews 2:18).
Jesus’ humanity means that it is a true example and model of the character and conduct of men. “For have you been called to this very thing, for Christ also suffered in your place, leaving you an example to follow in his footsteps?”(1 Peter 2. 21; see 1 John 2. 6).
A second century heresy called Docetism denied the true humanity of Christ. Docetism (from the Greek verb doke ?,? To appear, to resemble?) Was based on the assumptions of Gnosticism, which supported a radical dichotomy between the physical and spiritual realms, as well as a very negative view of the physical order as useless and despicable. . These beliefs led to denying that there was any real physical substance in the humanity of Jesus. Docetic Christology taught that the physical humanity of Jesus was only an illusion; one of his statements was that “when Jesus walked on the beach he left no footprints. ” Docetism has devastating effects on a correct view of Christ, salvation, revelation, and creation. From this perspective, Christ does not represent humanity in his atoning work, nor does he reveal God to us in human form. Such teaching also destroys a biblically positive view of creation, leading to a negative or indifferent view of life in the body. The NT refutes the seeds of what would become Gnosticism, with its doctrinal view of Christ. John severely condemns any view that denies the full physical humanity of Christ 😕 In this you recognize the Spirit of God: is any spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God? (1 John 4. 2).
Apolinarism was another primitive heresy that denied the full humanity of Christ. Apollinaris (fourth century AD) believed that humans possessed bodies, animal souls and rational spirits; taught that the divine logos in Christ occupied the place of the rational spirit present in men. This view was successfully refuted in the 4th century by Gregory of Nisa and Athanase, as well as rejected in the Council of Constantinople in 381. The Council showed that if Jesus was, say, only two-thirds of human beings, the total redemption of all human persons would not be possible. In Gregory’s famous quote, “what he did not assume did not cure him; but what is attached to His Divinity is also certain?Jesus should assume every element of human nature to completely redeem humanity.
These two heresies teach believers to appreciate the importance of Christ’s humanity, as well as a lesson on the theological method. These two views address the Bible with assumptions about humanity and conform to biblical teaching, rather than allowing the scriptures to govern all things. The evangelical theological method should always allow the teaching of Scripture to shape theological conclusions, rather than distorting its teaching on the basis of assumptions that are alien to it. Many theological errors have occurred due to the imposition of human Bible ideas.
Website: thegospelcoalition. org. Original: Biblical Doctrine: The Person of Christ. © 2001-2012 Crossway. All rights reserved.
Translation: www. voltemosaoevangelho. com
Authorizations: You are authorized and encouraged to reproduce and distribute this material in any format, provided that you add the above information, do not edit the original content, and do not use it for commercial purposes.