Who is Jesus? The Incarnation

Who is Jesus? The Incarnation What does the Bible say about Jesus identity? Jesus is the realization of the OT promises of a: King/Messiah (Gen 49; Num 24; 2 Sam 7; Psa 2, 110) Prophet (Deut 18:15-19) Servant (Isa 53) Jesus is human Born of the virgin Mary (Matt 1:18) Grew and became strong (Luke 2:40) Increased in wisdom and stature (Luke 2:52) Wearied from journey (John 4:6) Hungry (Matt 4:2) Thirsty (John 19:28) Born in the likeness of man and found in human flesh (Phil 2:7-8) Manifested in the flesh (1 Tim 3:16) Jesus is resurrected and remains in human body (Luke 24:39) Did not know the day of his return (Mark 13:32) Emotions Marveled at faith of centurion (Matt 8:10) Wept at the death of Lazarus (John 11:35) Prayed with loud cries and tears (Heb 5:7) Soul was sorrowful (Matt 26:38) and troubled (John 12:27) Jesus is divine New Testament explicitly speaks to Jesus divinity Whole fullness of deity dwells bodily (Col 2:9) Lord (YHWH) from birth (Luke 2:11) The Word became flesh in Jesus (John 1:14) New Testament indirectly speaks to Jesus divinity Jesus is the Son of God, 1 and the Son of God is God With God, becomes man, ascends to God and is given glory (Phil 2:5-11) Word was God and is agent of creation (John 1) Before Abraham was, I AM (John 8:58) By Him all things were made and in Him all things hold together (Col 1) Agent of creation, radiance of God s glory and exact imprint of His nature, who upholds the universe by the word of His power (Heb 1) 1Matt 4:3, 6; 8:29; 14:33; 26:63; 27:40; Mark 1:1; 3:11; Luke 1:35; 3:38; 4:3, 9, 41; 22:70; John 1:34, 49; 3:18; 5:25; 10:36; 11:4, 27; 19:7; 20:31; Acts 8:37; 9:20; Rom 1:4; 2 Cor 1:19; Gal 2:20; Heb 4:14; 6:6; 7:3; 10:29; 1 John 3:8; 4:15; 5:5, 10, 12f, 20; Rev 2:18. 1

Jesus did not sin Kept the Father s commandments (John 15:10) He who knew no sin (2 Cor 5:21) Committed no sin (1 Pet 2:22) In him there is no sin (1 John 3:5) Tempted like us but without sin (Heb 4:15) Why must Jesus be divine and human? Jesus must be human in order to: Live perfectly obedient representative in contrast to Adam (Rom 5:12-21) Die only a human could make sacrifice for sin (Heb 2:17) Mediate 1 Tim 2:5; Heb 2:18; Heb 4:15 Jesus must be divine in order to: Live perfect Die blameless, bearing the full penalty for sin of the whole world Mediate the mediator between God and Man is and must be a God-Man Redeem mankind Regarding redemption, St. Anselm writes: Since no one save God can make it and no one save man ought to make it, it is necessary for a God-Man to make it. 2 What is the Incarnation? Definition and Explanation Incarnation is literally in the flesh or becoming flesh The doctrine of the incarnation is the belief that the eternal Son of God, the second person of the Trinity, took on human flesh in the person of Jesus Christ. The central statement, and also the most important difficulty to resolve, of the incarnation is that Jesus is both fully God and fully man. Though some have claimed this teaching an impossibility, it was the understanding and conclusion of the Council of Chalcedon, and the Symbol of Chalcedon (or, Chalcedonian Creed) became and has remained the standard, orthodox statement of the doctrine of the incarnation. Though the word incarnation is not found anywhere in the Bible, nevertheless it conveys the idea that in Jesus we see the perfect and permanent union of humanity and deity without either of these natures being impaired. 3 2Anselm, Christ s Atonement for Sin, in Readings in Christian Thought, Second Edition, ed. Hugh T. Kerr (Nashville: Abingdon, 1990), 89. 3 David K. Naugle, Philosophy: A Student s Guide, Reclaiming the Christian Intellectual Tradition (Wheaton: Crossway, 2012), 55. 2

What are the difficulties associated with the incarnation? How can Jesus suffer and die if he is God? Two common assumptions connected with the concept of deity in the ancient world Divine being is not susceptible to suffering (cf. 1 Cor 1:23) Divine being is immortal To claim that Jesus is God, and yet that he suffered and died, did not make sense of the concept of deity in the ancient world How is it possible to unite the divine and the human nature into one human being, as the prologue of John says they were, and what are the implications of doing this? How did the church respond to such difficulties? Responses to avoid Heresy Arianism He is a kind of Superman He is a super angelic being; not merely human, but not fully God Still with us today in form of Jehovah s Witnesses Summary: Not fully God due to creation Apollinarianism Each human being consists of a body (soma), an animal soul (psyche), and a rational soul (nous). The nous was the seat of sinful instincts, thus the divine logos took the place of the human nous Completely and truly human, but he can t have a human mind A divine being taking the place of a human mind Zombie analogy animate entity without a human mind; not a true incarnation Problematic because one is denying the full humanity of Christ Problematic also because if Christ didn t assume a human mind, he could not redeem it (what is not assumed is not redeemed) Summary: Not fully human Nestorianism Denied theotokos (Mary as God-bearer) Makes a distinction between divine and human in Christ since a mixture of the two would have created a third kind of being Each nature partook of the experiences that characterized either humanity or deity but did not cross over to experiences proper only to the other We do want to affirm his full humanity and divinity, but if we really believe that, then he must be a human person and a divine person This leads to two persons inhabiting same space More like divine possession rather than orthodox Christianity Summary: Not fully united 3

Kenotic Christology Summary of Kenotic Christology: In order to be human, God must give up certain divine qualities. Ontological Kenosis: incarnation requires 2 nd person of Trinity to abdicate/set aside certain divine qualities (divine power and knowledge omnipotence, omniscience, omnipresence) either temporarily or permanently. Either way, it is a change in his being. Would require a loss of divine simplicity and immutability. 4 Augustine s response to positions like this: Christ added to himself which he was not, he did not lose what he was. 5 Summary: Not fully God due to loss Responses to consider Orthodoxy Cyril Emphasized unity of person of Christ In Mary s womb, logos took on flesh (body and soul) Divine and human nature were one, yet distinct, similar to the body and soul of a human Following Athanasius, purpose of incarnation was to undo the work of the devil and free humanity from grip of death. The biggest problem is not sin, but its consequence death and only a divine Christ can overcome the problem of death Communicatio idiomatum (communication of attributes) one can speak of features that belong properly to one party as belonging equally to the other, although in fact they continue to be distinct features. Things happening to one nature can be said to happen to both in the one person of Christ. Human nature:jesus suffers (in his human nature) Divine nature: Jesus is all-powerful (in his divine nature) Leo the Great 4Attempts have been made to rehabilitate kenotic Christology by speaking of functional rather than ontological kenosis. Functional Kenosis says God the Son does not abdicate divine qualities, but there are ways in which he does not utilize certain qualities. Related to this idea is that of divine hiddenness, which argues that through his human nature Christ restricts exercise of certain divine qualities so that he does not utilize his omniscience, though he has not given it up. This explanation may fit with Philippians 2 in agreement that he humbles himself to become human by not causing his divine nature to shine forth. 94. 5G.C. Berkouwer, The Person of Christ, trans. John Vriend (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1954), 4

[In the incarnation] the properties of each nature and substance were preserved entire, and came together to form one person. Humility was assumed by majesty, weakness by strength, mortality by eternity; and to pay the debt that we had incurred, an inviolable nature was united to a nature that can suffer. And so, to fulfill the conditions necessary for our healing, the man Jesus Christ was able to die in respect of the one, unable to die in respect of the other.[ ]Each nature preserves its own characteristics without diminution, so that that form of a servant does not detract from the form of God (from Leo the Great, Letter 28.3). 6 Council of Chalcedon How can we articulate the incarnation? Two Natures Doctrine Jesus is one person who exists with two natures fully divine and fully human Jesus is the second person of the Trinity become incarnate the Son has a life before incarnation Two natures find their union in the person. What we want to avoid/exclude Arianism Apollinarianism Nestorianism Kenotic Christology What we want to include Person of Christ must be articulated in such a way that we are clear that He is second person of Trinity who takes on full humanity He does not give up divinity to become human He does not merely appear to be human Divine-human nature: His divine and human natures are forever distinct and retain their own properties even though they are eternally and inseparably united together in one person. 7 Christological Axiom and Diotheletism (Two wills of Christ) 8 Whatever Christ has one of, goes with the person. Whatever Christ has two of, goes with the natures. 6Ronald E. Heine, Classical Christian Doctrine: Introducing the Essentials of the Ancient Faith (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2013), 87. 7Wayne A. Grudem, Christian Beliefs: Twenty Basics Every Christian Should Know (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2005), 70. 8Garrett J. DeWeese, One Person, Two Natures: Two Metaphysical Models of the Incarnation, in Jesus in Trinitarian Perspective: An Introductory Christology, eds. Fred Sanders and Klaus Issler (Nashville: B&H Academic, 2007), 114-155. 5

Mono vs diotheletism (one vs. two wills) his willing some things belongs to the two natures that he has, not the one person that he is. Diothelites won at Constantinople (AD 680-681) Two wills are in the two natures divine will and human will Example: Garden of Gethsemane not my will (human) but yours (divine) be done Some therefore suggest that Christ can will some things by means of his divine consciousness (mind/will) and others by his human consciousness (mind/will) Potential benefit is that it may give answers to the apparent ignorance of Christ on the day of the coming. Models for the Hypostatic Union Summarizing the hypostatic union Christ has two distinct natures: human and divine Although he has two natures, Christ is one person Definition of a person: Person is an individual substance of a rational nature (Boethius) Definition of nature: Some say a collection of attributes that distinguish us from non-rational substances Some say something more specific to our individual qualities that distinguishes us from other human beings Oliver Crisp s explanation Divine nature of Christ possesses the qualities that distinguish God as God Human nature of Christ possesses the qualities that distinguish humans as humans as well as those that make him the individual he is At the incarnation, a divine person (2 nd person of Trinity) takes on human attributes of Jesus of Nazareth. What does this entail? Incarnation must take place at first moment of conception (human from conception) Human nature is not part and parcel of who he is as his divine nature is; he takes on something additionally. Composite Christology human part and divine part How is this different from divine possession? Must introduce a distinction between human nature and human person. Oliver Crisp s analogy of USB port God could upload himself into our human nature but he just lets us happen. With the incarnation, God does upload himself into the human nature of Jesus at conception. The human nature never existed apart 6

from the divine, thus the human person never existed as an individual substance and thus not a person. Odd consequence is that I am a human because God fails to do something. Modified Apollinarianism (monotheletism) William Lane Craig s explanation The logos possessed perfect human personhood archetypically in his own nature. 9 Thus, in assuming a human body, the logos brought to Christ s animal nature just those properties that would serve to make it a complete human nature. How does this work in practice? The logos was the subliminal self, but Jesus had a normal, human conscious experience. The subliminal, subconscious can exercise control over the conscious mind (e.g. hypnosis) During the state of humiliation the Logos typically allowed only those facets of his person to be part of Christ s conscious experience that were compatible with normal human experience. 10 The knowledge of the divine logos was always present subconsciously (he was omniscient), but Jesus conscious mind was not typically privy to this. This means Jesus conscious mind would have genuine struggles with temptation, weakness, etc. Nevertheless, the divine subconscious would 1)ensure that he did not fail and 2)provide occasional illumination from the divine subliminal Concluding thoughts Similar to the Trinity, we cannot be 100% certain how the incarnation works, but we must affirm that it works. Moreover, whether or not Crisp or Craig s explanations represent how it actually works, both are plausible explanations that demonstrate the coherence of the doctrine. Thus, Christians have good arguments against the claim that the incarnation is incoherent. 9This has some similarities to the USB analogy. That which Crisp says God uploads at the moment of conception would be similar. If the human nature of Jesus were also a human person prior to the upload, then there would be two persons in one (Nestorianism). Yet if the human nature plus the divine upload leads to a human being that is not a human person, then in order to assume a human body and soul rightly configured, there must be an essential aspect of personhood in the divine nature. 10J.P. Moreland and William Lane Craig, Philosophical Foundations for a Christian Worldview (Downers Grove: IVP, 2003), 606-613. 7

As with the Trinity, we should do our best to understand as much as we can about the how, but most important is what it teaches us about who Jesus is, what he did, and how it should impact how we live. Purposes of the incarnation 11 For us and for our salvation Inaugurates the completion of the God with humanity project that began in the garden but was derailed by sin. Shows us what God is like (John 1:18) Shows us what humanity is like. He instantiates a true humanity that Christians are to emulate. 12 Valorizes human nature and the physical creation. Christ s incarnation declares our worth and that of the whole created world. Reverses a multitude of deficient dualisms Soul and body are united, establishing human wholeness (anthropology) Faith and reason are reconciled, making knowledge a seamless robe (epistemology) Reunited heaven and earth, reenchanting the world with God s presence and glory (metaphysics) Connected values and facts, generating an integral moral vision (ethics) In him, grace restores nature, making all things new (soteriology, eschatology) Why is this important? Theological Issues How can Christ be impeccable and yet tempted as we are? Sinlessness view: Some say he could have sinned, he may have sinned, but did not sin. Support Jesus really is tempted Jesus really does seem to have struggles Thus, he could actually have succumbed to these temptations. If not, he is not really like us at all and his temptation is a charade. Critique God cannot sin, but this view says the God-Man could have sinned incoherent In this view, God s plan could have failed Impeccability view: Someone who is impeccable is not only without sin, but is incapable of sinning. 11Naugle, Philosophy, 55-57. 12Ibid., 56. 8

Illustration: Boxing match with invincible pugilist. You cannot win; the outcome is secure. But that doesn t mean you can t harm him, land a few punches, and make him work hard. Similarly, Christ can have a real struggle with temptation, and yet the outcome is secure he cannot sin. Human nature of Christ is like ours but without sin (like Adam and Eve) Human nature of Christ is, like Adam and Eve, capable of sinning Because he is human, he can feel the gravitational pull of temptations without himself being in a state of sin. (Contravening a divine command does not require you to already be in a state of sin ex. Adam and Eve; Murder follows from a previous act in the heart that is already sinful) Interestingly, these are exactly the types of temptations that Satan uses Divine nature of Christ, however, is impeccable Two options Human nature of Christ was never in a spot where he felt temptation to sin and divine nature had to step in and stop it Human nature is in a spot where he nears point of succumbing to sin, but divine nature steps in and stops it Either way, the end is the same Able to explain how a divine person incapable of sinning is able to take on a human nature that does feel gravitational pull of sin. There is no change in the divine nature in taking on human nature. Why is this important? Practical Issues Abortion At what point is an embryo a person? Most Christians would like to say that humans are persons from the moment of conception. One approach is a benefit of the doubt approach. We can t know, but better to treat embryo as person than not. This can be a useful approach with unbelievers, but Crisp argues we can go further. But what if we could use a Christological model to shore up the traditional view? Christological answer When does God upload or fail to upload himself, because failure to upload himself makes us human persons? If human nature is at conception, but personhood is later, then the human nature would be incomplete. Then we would have a break in which temporary Apollonarianism would have taken place. 9

Thomas Aquinas argues that because the incarnation requires the human nature from the get-go, then Christ must be a fully formed embryo at conception (a 40-day embryo from the beginning). It seems the only thing supernatural about the conception is that it does not need two human gametes. But gestational period and normal birth is the same. Thus, we have: Complete human being from get-go Christological reason for human person from the get-go What is the difference between human being and human person? In technical sense, Jesus is a human being and not a human person Questions? Are we merely human beings early on and then later a human person? Do we lose personhood if we are in a vegetative or dementia state? Answer: Yes, they are still a person. We should resist a separation between human being and human person, though some do so. Points for Discussion 13 Define, in your own words, the problem concerning Christ faced by the Christian thinkers of the fourth century. State your own understanding of the deity and humanity of Christ. Why is it important that Christ is understood as both human and divine? Read and answer discussion questions on Global Gospel Project articles: The Good God Who Came Down by Michael Horton The Human Prototype by Veli-Matti Karkkainen The Purpose Driven Cosmos by Russell Moore By His Birth We Are Healed by Oliver Crisp 13Heine, Classical Christian Doctrine, 88. 10