WHO IS JESUS?

Over the last two-thousand years, there have been countless views as to who the person of Jesus was. Some have claimed and believed that Jesus was a prophet of God. Others have said that he was a good teacher, still, others say that he was nothing other than a historical figure; a man, a first-century carpenter from the city of Nazareth. There have been many others who have gone so far as to argue that Jesus never existed and is simply a myth. 

As we can see, there is a wide range in thought when it comes to the person of Jesus: who he was and what he’s done. This is a question that every individual must ask themselves in their lifetime. Jesus himself demonstrates the importance of this question in Matthew 16: 15 when he asks Peter,“who do you say that I am?”

In the Scriptures, we find two foundational and essential truths as to who Jesus was and is in what is referred to as the “doctrine of the hypostatic union.” Now, for the person who is new to the Christian faith, a term such as “hypostatic union” can come off as quite intimidating. However, this should not be of any concern to the new Christian. What is important is not that we can know and recognize the term, but that we can know and recognize the two foundational and essential truths found within the term itself. Those two truths being that one: Jesus is truly human, and two: Jesus is truly God.

Let us look at three reasons why we can know biblically that Jesus is truly human.

• JESUS HAD A HUMAN BODY

1 John 4:2 says “By this, you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God.” You cannot read through the scriptures and deny that Jesus lived in bodily form. In the gospel accounts, we see the story of his birth (Matthew 1-2; Luke 2; John 1). We see that this Jesus who was born also aged (Luke 2:40). We read that Jesus became hungry and thirsty (Mark 11:12; John 19:28). Jesus, like all men, died (Matthew 27; Luke 23; Mark 15; John 19). Finally, we see that after three days in the tomb, Jesus conquers sin, death, and the grave by rising to life in bodily form (Matthew 28; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24; John 20). These things cannot be true of one who is not truly human. 

• JESUS HAD A HUMAN MIND

Mark 13:32 “But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” As controversial and provocative as it may be to say, in the gospels, it seems as if there is a limit to that which is known by Christ in his humanity. Although Christ has a divine mind and is omniscient, knowing all things in his deity, like us, Christ in his humanity grew in knowledge and wisdom as he aged (Luke 2:52). This fact alone should prove to us that Jesus is truly human. 

• JESUS HAD A HUMAN WILL

Luke 2:51 “And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was submissive to them. And his mother treasured up all these things in her heart.” Similar to what we see in the previous point, while Jesus has a divine will, he also had a human will that submits to his earthly parents. Jesus in his humanity sets an example for us in his submission to the will of his parents (Luke 2:51) and does not act independently to his heavenly Father (John 6:38) which both are acts of love and fulfillment of God’s law.

Now let us look at three reasons why we can know biblically that Jesus was truly God.

• JESUS IS THE ETERNAL CREATOR

Genesis 1:1 “in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” From the very beginning of the Bible, we find that it is God and God alone who is the creator of all things seen and unseen. However, while the Bible tells us the former, it also tells us that Christ is the creator of all things seen and unseen (John 1; Colossians 1). Now, if the scriptures states that the eternal God created all things and it also states that Christ is the creator of all things, what does that tell us? Jesus is the eternal creator God. 

• JESUS HAS AUTHORITY TO FORGIVE SIN

Mark 2:5-7 When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, “Friend, your sins are forgiven”. Some experts in Moses’ Teachings were sitting there. They thought, “Why does he talk this way? He’s dishonoring God. Who besides God can forgive sins?” The Experts in Moses’ teachings (the Pharisees) rightfully recognized that is would be blasphemous for anyone who is nothing other than a man to blot out one's transgressions against God. While they rightfully recognized this, they missed that Jesus was not only a man but God himself, who has the authority to forgive, pardon, and blot out sin. (Mark 2:10-11).

• JESUS IS YAHWEH

Exodus 3:13-14 “Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, ‘I AM who I AM.’ And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” In Exodus 3, God gives Himself the name “I AM”. The name “I AM” is translated from the Hebrew phrase Ehyeh asher Ehyeh. For God to say “I AM” is for God to declare Himself to be fully self-sufficient and self-existent. For God to say “ehyeh asher ehyeh” is for God to declare, “I was, I am, and I will be”. This is the name for God in the first person. When referring to God in the third person, the name God has given himself is Yahweh which means “He was, He is, and He will be”. Yahweh (LORD, Adonai) is a sacred name God has given to Himself that He shares with no other (Isaiah 42:8). While the name Yahweh (LORD, Adonai) is a name given to God alone, it is the very name Jesus ascribes to Himself in John 8:58 when telling the Pharisees “before Abraham was, I AM”. Not only does Jesus claim to be the “I AM” of Exodus 3, He also claims that one must believe He is the I AM to be saved (John 8:24).

WHY DOES THIS MATTER?

While there is much more that could be said about the person of Jesus; who he was and what he has done, it is important to recognize these two foundational and essential truths about Him. Why is this?

First, for one to reject that Jesus was truly human, is for one to reject the very gospel itself. In 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, Paul identifies the gospel as the good news that 1. Christ died 2. Christ was buried 3. Christ rose on the third day. These core truths of the message of the gospel cannot exist if Jesus was not truly man. Therefore, without the physical and bodily birth, life, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus, there is no gospel. 

Secondly, for one to reject that Jesus was truly God is for one to reject the only true and living God. In the same way that a false gospel cannot save, a false god is equally powerless to save a sinner which is precisely what one is left with when they reject that Jesus Himself was, is, and will always be the eternal creator God. This is why it is so crucial that we recognize that Jesus is truly God.

FURTHER RESOURCES:

Athanasian Creed

Nicene Creed

Manual of Christian Doctrine: Louis Berkhof 

Who is Jesus: R.C. Sproul

Seeking and Savouring Jesus: John Piper

Hypostatic Union: Shai Linne (for fun)