16. THE SON OF GOD
While many people in this day and age will shy away from the deity of Christ, Brunner hits the nail on the head when he states that Jesus “is not simply a man like us, but he is God Himself” (73). Christ is the God incarnate, worthy of our worship and praise, and even while He was on earth He still deserved this praise given to Him by His followers and disciples. I like that Brunner talks about this because it gives the reader a good perspective of how we should view Jesus.
When Brunner compares a man with a “1000 dollars” thinking it is not real to the gospel of Christ, He vastly underestimates the worth of the Kingdom of God. While Brunner’s point comes across well enough, he should have said a 1,000,000-dollar bill, or
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Everything that people do on earth, much like a speedometer, is “somehow “registered” in eternity, to appear for the fist time on the Judgment Day” (81). Recent scientific breakthroughs now suggest that the human brain records everything that happens throughout the course of life, but only certain and specific instances can be physically recalled into the memory at any given time. If someone, say God for example, were to trigger our brains to “play” this memory from start to finish, humans would essentially be able to see their entire lives before their eyes in amazing detail. While this theory is speculative, what is not a mystery is that before God, every human will stand and be declared guilty, because no human being can or will be perfect except for Christ alone. This is a beautiful picture of the gospel, because Christians and all humans stand guilty before God, but instead of condemning us, Jesus Christ became man to save humans from their own …show more content…
Many people who are not Christians read the Bible and can understand it without the Holy Spirit. More convincing is the fact that Jewish people, before Christ, regularly read the Bible without the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. When God dwelled in the tabernacle His spirit was not with people until the day of Pentecost, yet miraculously people understood God’s word without it, poking holes in the argument that Brunner
Howard Thurman in his book, “Jesus and the Disinherited” presented Jesus as a role model for the oppressed on how to find strength, freedom and peace within God and oneself. Thurman shares the story of how Jesus offered an alternative to accepting the Roman rules, like the Sadducees did in hope of being allowed to maintain their Jewish traditions; A solution to remaining silently obedient, like the Pharisees, as hatred and resentment destroyed them from within. Jesus provided an alternative solution to the Zealots of his day who resorted to physical force to advance their justified cause, often paying the ultimate cost, their life. Jesus taught love. Love of God, self, neighbor and especially your enemy. Thurman stresses that Jesus know that “it is man’s reaction to things that determines their ability to exercise power over them”.(Thurman, 18) Jesus taught and modeled the art of strength through humility. He
New International Version. [Colorado Springs]: Biblica, 2011. BibleGateway.com. Web. 3 Mar 2011. Accessed 22 April 2014.
Wright, N. T. Simply Jesus: A New Vision of Who He Was, What He Did, and Why He Matters. New York: HarperOne, 2011. Print.
b) Biblical Foundation Many question if Jesus ever claimed to be God. First, Jesus claimed to be the unique Son of God, resulting in the Jewish leaders stoning Him ‘because you,’ the leaders said, ‘a mere man, claim to be God’ (John 10:33). On another occasion, a High Priest asked him: ‘Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?’ to which Jesus replied ‘I am, and you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven’ (Mark 14:61-62). Jesus also claimed to possess the same attributes of God. In the Bible, Jesus has never been recorded saying the exact words, “I am God.” However, Jesus’ original spectators seemed to think He said “I am the Father.” They were even ready to kill Him right there. The controversy is: Jesus didn’t have to say the specific words “I am God,” to claim this. Jesus did, however,...
14 Jonathan T. Pennington. Heaven and Earth in the Gospel of Matthew. (Baker Academic: Grand Rapids, 2009), 214.15 Dale C. Allison, Jr. Studies in Matthew: Interpretation Past and Present. (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2005), 101.16 Frank J. Matera. Passion Narratives and Gospel Theologies: Interpreting the Synoptics Through Their Passion Stories. (New York: Paulist Press, 1986), 115.17 Dale C. Allison, Jr. Studies in Matthew: Interpretation Past and Present. (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2005), 229.
Benchmark Assignment: Gospel Essentials There are several aspects to consider when exploring the Christian worldview. There are many facets and denominations and they each have their own distinct beliefs and practices, but they all share the same fundamental beliefs. In this paper we will explore the character of God, His creation, humanity and its nature, Jesus’ significance to the world, and the restoration of humanity, as well as my beliefs and the way that I interact with Christianity and my personal worldview. God In the Christian worldview, God is the one and only God. He is the sovereign creator of everything.
Of all the debates that concern the Christian faith, the most important lies in the understanding of the very one whom the faith professes to follow: Jesus Christ. Who was Jesus Christ, and what did He do here on this earth? In noting the importance of these issues the apostle Paul goes so far as to make the startling claim that the Christian faith is useless if predicated on a false assumption of Christ’s saving work (1 Cor. 15:14). Indeed, there are no truths more central to our faith than the personhood and work of Jesus Christ, and yet serious disagreements exist regarding the nature of these tenets. Jesus lived here on earth as fully divine and yet fully human in one and the same person, and His death on the cross served as a perfect sacrifice and substitute for the necessary punishment of death that all sinners deserve.
Whenever one thinks of Christianity and the Christian church, one cannot avoid Jesus Christ. This is understandable because, for without Jesus, Christianity would not exist; Christianity is based on Jesus. Jesus has become so well associated with Christianity that it is assumed and widely accepted that Jesus was a Christian. Followers of Christianity often use the reference “being Christ-like” as a model for ideal human behavior (meaning to use the life of Jesus as a blueprint).
Jesus Christ or the professed Jewish Messiah was tried for terrible blasphemy. It was a great catastrophe. Had Jesus given a fair trial then His claim for divine Messiahship would have been established. Unfortunately the laws were bent and the eyes were closed and thus a fair judgment was prevented. There is no doubt that this was the most terrible miscarriage of justice ever experienced by the mankind. In open court it was admitted by Jesus Christ that He was God in human flesh. What ever would happen one day He would appear as the King of the most sacred place that is Israel and finally of all the universe. It was surprising that His trial ended abruptly and a decision of guilt was announced unanimously. Blasphemy was the main charge, which was leveled against Him. It was claimed that He presented Himself with the characteristics of Jehovah. Now the question arises if Jesus Christ was really the Messiah as was declared in the Old Testament. If this statement was true, then the Jews had no right to have a trial of Jesus Christ and give Him the verdict. If this was not proved than the Jews had no other alternative but to follow their Scriptures and impose death on Jesus Christ. It is estimated that about 30 points of Jewish civil rights came under violation while the trial of Jesus was conducted. It seems very strange that people of that caliber in learning and legal experts could blunder so badly. It has been happening from centuries that the Jews have been accused for killing Jesus. The Christians have been using this accusation to persecute and murder innocent Jews. Jews were driven out of Flanders, which is a part of Belgium now, in 1121. Jews were told to convert to Christianity or die during the conquer of Spain. The bi...
One may notice his divinity by the simplicity of Jesus’ birth in the infancy narrative. The King of Kings was humbly born in a manger where the shepherds flocked to admire him. The angel said to them, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased!" (Luke 2:14) One sees Jesus’ humanity through his innocence and grace at the beginning of his life. The reader may connect with the humanly tasks that Mary and Joseph must attend to before the birth of Jesus. Jesus was not born in a castle or elaborate setting, but a simple manger in the small town of Bethlehem. The modesty of Jesus’ birth is a source that anyone can identify with. Another example of his humanity occurs in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus prays to his Father and says, "Father, if thou art willing, remove this cup from me; nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done" (Luke 22:42). One can sympathize with Jesus because of the physical pain he knows is about to unfold. The grief that Jesus speaks of is a sorrow that the reader can feel within their heart. Jesus’ humanity acts as the most intimate form of theology that people can connect with. His divinity reveals a different element to Jesus’ character which creates a type of awe that is a necessity in Catholicism
The best words to describe God, are words that describe how he is beyond description. he is explainable, incomprehensible but yet he is personal. He desires a relationship with the human beings he created. He knew that when he gave humans free will that there would be setbacks. But he wanted them to love him out of a choice and not because that 's what they were programs in a sense to do.
human, suffering, and dying for the sake of Adam and his descendants. “ ‘Where shall we find such love,’” he wonders,“ ‘[where] in all heaven charity so dear?’” (3.213-6) The
"Son of Man", "Son of David" and "Son of God". In the end Son of God
One of the greatest debates that continues to rage on amongst theologians, as well as others, is in regards to the balance between the humanity and the divinity of the person of Jesus Christ (also known as Christology). This debate can be especially challenging in the Scripture passage of Matthew 26:36-46 where the reader finds Jesus praying in the Garden of Gethsemane. Many of the ancient and medieval theologians worked to explain away apparent humanistic characteristics seen in this section of the text, while more modern theologians seem to be more open to embracing these characteristics. While the ancient and medieval theologians may not have embraced the humanity of Jesus, the translations and backgrounds of the words “cup”, “grieved”, and “agitated”, along with the translation of the passage itself, the humanity of Jesus is not only present in the passage but also a necessity to the salvation of humanity through the sacrifice of Jesus. Simply put, for the salvation through death to be relatable for humanity, Jesus had to also be, at least in part, fully human as well as being fully divine.
Throughout history, relatively few humans have claimed kingship, many have taken up the mission of priesthood, and a select amount have claimed to be prophets. One person however claimed to be all three and God. He came with goods news, laughter, tears, pain, salvation, healing, and justice. Jesus Christ, the Messiah, is the only person in history, who in my and many people’s opinion truly fit the definition of priest, prophet, and king.