S4 E18: Jesus is the God-Man

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Season 4 of Spirit-Led Hope covers the Doctrine of God, or theology, from a Spirit-led perspective. In this episode, Glenn looks in more detail at Jesus and explains that Jesus is fully God, and fully man. Glenn looks at how the divinity and humanity of Jesus are important for our salvation, and for our relationship with God.

This episode has a transcript. If your podcast player does not support transcripts, please go to the Transcripts section of https://spiritledhope.com/ . These transcripts have been edited for accuracy and are typically of higher quality than those produced automatically by many podcast apps.

Season 4 is part of a long term goal to study systematic theology from a Spirit-led perspective. If you want to know more about systematic theology, or expand your study, Glenn is using the following text as a helpful framework to make sure the main topics are covered:  Foundations of Pentecostal Theology, by Guy P. Duffield and Nathaniel M. Van Cleave.  The book is published by Foursquare Media and Glenn is using the Second Edition published in 2016.

Transcript

S4 E18 TRANSCRIPT 

JESUS IS THE GOD-MAN

INTRODUCTION

Hello everyone and welcome to Spirit-Led Hope. My name is Glenn Erichsen, and in this episode, we are discussing:

     JESUS IS THE GOD-MAN

We have one more episode to go this season, and in this episode, we will focus on Jesus. As I mentioned last episode, we could easily continue to talk about the doctrine of God for a long, long time. For example, we could dedicate a few episodes talking only about God the Father, and a few more about Jesus, and then a few more about God the Holy Spirit. Then we could discuss many more attributes of God than we already have. And we have not even looked at the providence of God and the debate between Calvinism and Arminianism. We could go on and on.

But I think at this point, we have hit many of the main topics about God, and I am sure we will look at more as we discuss other topics in future episodes. This is an area ripe for self-study, and I encourage you to do that. God always reveals himself to us as we pursue him, and study is part of that. You can study about God to increase your knowledge, but the real benefit comes from a deeper relationship with him.

Now, since this is Spirit-Led Hope, it may seem that we should end the Season by talking about the Holy Spirit. But remember, the Holy Spirit always points to the Father and the Son, and I think it is fitting that we end by pointing to Jesus. Also, if you want to know more about the Holy Spirit and what the Holy Spirit does, there is a lot of material in Season One.

JESUS THE GOD-MAN

What do we mean when we say that Jesus is the God-Man? Simply put, we are saying that Jesus is fully God, and yet fully human. He is not a god who gave up his divinity to become a man, and he is not a man who became a god. And Jesus is not half-god and half-human. He is simultaneously God and man. Another way to say this is that Jesus is one divine Person who has a divine nature, and a human nature.

If that does not mess with your brain, then you are way beyond me.  Because I cannot think of anything in the human experience that would allow us to grasp this anymore than we can grasp the Trinity. And yet, this is what Scripture teaches.

The closest thing I can think of that sort of seems like Jesus, is what in physics is called wave-particle duality. This is where individual electrons or photons can appear sometimes as waves or sometimes as particles, depending on the test. It makes you wonder how something can act like either a wave or a particle.

 But this analogy, or comparison, falls far, far short. And so, this is going to be another mystery of the Christian faith, because Scripture clearly teaches that Jesus is both God and man. In fact, in Scripture, we see Jesus referred to as both “The Son of Man” and “The Son of God.” 

As far as the humanity of Jesus, every Christmas we celebrate his birth (or incarnation) where he took on human flesh. And Scripture affirms that baby Jesus grew up and developed as a human, just like we did.  In Luke 2:52 we read:

And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and with people.

Luke 2:52 CSB

Jesus grew from a baby to a mature man. That is a very human thing to do.

But as we have discussed in other Episodes, Scripture affirms over and over that Jesus is God. Jesus did not shy away from declaring himself to be God. One of the more famous verses in the Bible is John 10:30 where Jesus says:

I and the Father are one.

John 10:30 CSB

And so just like the Trinity, we accept that Jesus is fully God and fully man, because this is what Scripture teaches. We are unable to fully wrap our brains around this, but there is nothing illogical or impossible in this teaching.

For those who want to go deeper, the technical term describing this joining of human and divine natures, is the “hypostatic union.” In case you wanted a special word, now you know it!

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT

Why is it important that Jesus is the God-Man? 

First, we see that only God can save us. No human has what it takes to collectively bear the sins of the world. Our Savior is the Son of God. Here is what we read in Titus 2:11-14.

For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, instructing us to deny godlessness and worldly lusts and to live in a sensible, righteous, and godly way in the present age, while we wait for the blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. He gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to cleanse for himself a people for his own possession, eager to do good works.

Titus 2:11-14 CSB

God has what it takes to redeem us and call us as his own. We become one in Christ because he is God.

But equally important, it required a perfect man to undo the sin committed by Adam, the first man. I am going to read a lengthy section out of Romans. Listen for the comparison and contrast of Jesus to Adam.

Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, in this way death spread to all people, because all sinned. In fact, sin was in the world before the law, but sin is not charged to a person’s account when there is no law. Nevertheless, death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who did not sin in the likeness of Adam’s transgression. He is a type of the Coming One. But the gift is not like the trespass. For if by the one man’s trespass the many died, how much more have the grace of God and the gift which comes through the grace of the one man Jesus Christ overflowed to the many. And the gift is not like the one man’s sin, because from one sin came the judgment, resulting in condemnation, but from many trespasses came the gift, resulting in justification. If by the one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive the overflow of grace and the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ.

Romans 5:12-17 CSB

When you look at the New Testament, it is fascinating to see how sometimes Jesus is referred to as God, or the Son of God, and sometimes as man, or the Son of man. But as you look, you see this amazing coherent picture of how both the divine nature and human nature were required for our salvation.

When I look at this, I realize how brilliant God is. Jesus, taking on flesh for us, was so clever that no one understood that his death would ultimately result in our freedom. 

Paul even says this when he was talking to the Corinthians. He says:

We do, however, speak a wisdom among the mature, but not a wisdom of this age, or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. On the contrary, we speak God’s hidden wisdom in a mystery, a wisdom God predestined before the ages for our glory. None of the rulers of this age knew this wisdom, because if they had known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

1 Corinthians 2:6-8 CSB

God’s plan was not only clever, but it was also thought out “before the ages.” No human understood God’s plan. No demon or angel or any other being, understood what God planned in Jesus because the plan pre-dated them or was hidden. So cool. And God did that in his foreknowledge, for us.

JESUS IS FOREVER THE GOD-MAN

Another thing we need to understand is that ever since the incarnation, or the birth of Jesus, Jesus has never given up his human nature. Right now, Jesus is fully God and fully Man.

And this is good news for us. Because as the God-Man, Jesus is fully able to facilitate our relationship with God. In 1 Timothy 2:5,6 we read:

For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, a testimony at the proper time.

1 Timothy 2:5-6 CSB

Because Jesus lived as a human, he understands us. He knows what it is like to grow up in a world that has good and bad things happen. He knows the pain of rejection and physical abuse, and the joys of friendship and love. He took on the same nature as us. The difference is that his human nature was in perfect submission to his divine nature and so he did not sin. But he saw sin and its effects. And he knows how badly we need his help to overcome it.

Now because Jesus is God, he allows us access to God the Father and opens the door for new life through the indwelling Presence of the Holy Spirit. There is no one remotely like Jesus. And to worship him fully means you believe he came in the flesh, but that he is, and always has been, God.

JESUS IS OUR EXAMPLE FOR A SPIRIT-LED LIFE

We have looked at how the humanity and divinity of Jesus was necessary for our salvation, but there is something else that is very important. Because Jesus lived life as a human, he is our example of how we should live our lives.

Now, right away, I can hear someone saying, “That is not fair! Jesus is God so there is no way we can live like him!” And yes, there is some truth to that. But it is also, if I can be so bold, a bit of a cop out. 

It is our faith and trust in Jesus that allows the Holy Spirit to live within us. Now, as we have pointed out this Season many, many times, the Holy Spirit is God. So, while we may not be fully human and fully God, we have God living in us. And we have access to God through Jesus.

And this is more than enough, to set us on the path of transformation where we become more and more like Jesus over time. The catch is that we must want this. If we do not, then we become stagnant and we stay looking more like we did before we met Jesus. This is the human dilemma.

I wish I could tell you that in all circumstances I want to live a sin-free life like Jesus did. But the reality is that I do not. Well, part of me does, but part of me does not. Every Christian has this experience. Just read Romans 8 and you will see what I mean. Just like Paul describes in Romans 8, there are times when the things I want to do, I do not do them. And the things I do not want to do, that is what I end up doing. And you are no different. We all struggle with this.

In verses 5 and 6 of Chapter 8, Paul writes about the battle between the flesh and the mind. He wrote:

For those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit have their minds set on the things of the Spirit. Now the mindset of the flesh is death, but the mindset of the Spirit is life and peace.

Romans 8:5,6 CSB

This becomes our solution. We turn our thoughts towards the things of the Holy Spirit, and we yield to the work of the Holy Spirit who renewed our spirit, our inner being. When we yield to the Holy Spirit, our inner being is Spirit-led and now we are open to so many things…like transformation, and peace, and a renewed mind. This following of the Spirit is what allows us to become more like Jesus, who is our example. 

As we wrap up this episode, let me give you one more fact about Jesus as the God-Man. We know that after the resurrection, Jesus appeared in bodily form…fully God and fully man. In fact, on his human body, he showed the disciples the scars from the crucifixion. Yet, his body is also called “glorified.” Scripture does not give many details, but in this glorified state Jesus could apparently do some wild things…like walk through closed doors and elevate into the sky.

Here is where it gets really wild. Listen to this verse Paul wrote in Philippians 3:20,21:

Our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly wait for a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will transform the body of our humble condition into the likeness of his glorious body, by the power that enables him to subject everything to himself.

Philippians 3:20,21 CSB

Now I do not really know what that all means. But it sounds pretty promising, does it not? And this is something I love about Jesus. Not only does he set an example for us on how to live our lives on Earth. But when the day comes and we are in heaven, he will enable us to be even more like him. 

It is easy to get lost in speculation of what heaven will be like and what we are going to do. But let us not lose sight that the glorious part of heaven is that we will have a relationship with our Creator, this God we have been studying, the way it was meant to be. And we will do that because Jesus is the God-Man, and he loves us.

CLOSING

We have one more episode to go in this Season and then we will take a break. I will talk about that in our next episode. And that episode will finish Season Four by discussing the wonders of God.

As always, you can send me comments, suggestions, or questions, by email at glenn@spiritledhope.com, or simply use the Contact Form at spiritledhope.com. That is spiritLEDhope.com. You can also send me a one-way text message by going to the episode show notes and clicking on the link with your smart phone. This is one of the ways you can encourage me and thank you to all who have sent me a text.

If you find these episodes useful, please share them with your friends, leave a good review on your podcast app, post them to social media, and make sure to follow the podcast so that you are notified when the next episode is published.

As you set your mind on the things of the Spirit…

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope, by the power of the Holy Spirit.  

Until the next episode, take care.

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