Truth Magazine

By Bob Owen

By the standards of the world, my college professor was an unusually “nice guy.” Holding a Ph.D. in Theology from a major European university and being a licensed, ordained minister in a major denomination, and heading the Religion Department in a major state university, surely he is representative of mainstream attitudes for religious leaders. We had become mutually respectful friends from our many hours of after-class discussions. I was pleased when he asked me to accompany him to a nearby town and show his slides as he spoke to a civic club about the Dead Sea scrolls. Not surprisingly, he worked into the talk his view that “Jesus was not really born of a virgin. When they said he’s the Son of God, it was just the ancients’ way of saying, `He’s such a great man his father must have been a God! ‘

Nothing could be more critical to our personal salvation than his divinity. Satan recognized this when he asked, “If thou be the Son of God. . . ” (Matt. 4:1-11). The demons knew him and “cried out saying, what have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? Art thou come hither to torment us before the time?” (Matt. 8:29) Was he just a man? A good man? Or uniquely the Son of God?

The angel told Mary, “that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God” (Lk. 1:35). Almost a hundred names and titles are given to Jesus in Scripture and none with more significance than Son. Reflecting not only an intimate relationship, Sonship denotes identity in nature or character. This is explicitly claimed for him in Hebrews 1:3 as “the very image of his [God’s] substance.” Used here only in Scripture, this term presents Jesus as the exact representation of God’s nature (Arndt and Gingrich) and according to Vine, the phrase shows Jesus to be distinct from yet “literally equal to” the Father.

Word Became Flesh

The well known history in John 1 describes divinity becoming flesh. Devastating the Gnostics of the day and giving an anchor of faith for all times, John begins his gospel with three powerful and interrelated clauses:

In the beginning was the Word

And the Word was with God

And the Word was God!

The focus in this verse is obvious: the Word. The Word, without beginning was “in the beginning.” “The Word was God” emphasizes not the time element but the character or nature of God. Whatever God is, the Word is. Some religions today profess a “faith” in Jesus but teach he is a created being: “a god” but not “the God.”

John further relates “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us….” (1:14) The One who existed “in the form of God … emptied himself … being made in the likeness of men: and being found in fashion as a man, [obeyed] even unto death” (Phil. 2:6-8) Was he God or was he man? Clearly the Scripture claims both. He was God “manifested in the flesh” (1 Tim. 3:16).

This dual nature of the Christ has been questioned by men for ages. In 1950, discussing the Christology of the New Testament writings, Benjamin Warfield noted,

One of the most portentous symptoms of the decay of vital sympathy with historical Christianity which is observable in present-day academic circles is the wide-spread tendency in recent Christological discussion to revolt from the doctrine of the Two Natures in the Person of Christ . . . voices are raised all about us declaring the conception of two natures in Christ no longer admissible” (Person and Work of Christ, 211).

Some among us in an apparent attempt to answer a false position on the necessity of man sinning have denied the divinity of Jesus affirming him to be a man only like other men while on earth. He was “fully man” but not “just a man.” When some ask, “How could he be 100% divine and 100% man? That’s 200%!” they are limiting God to our standards. We cannot understand eternity, the resurrected body, or a host of other things but we accept them by faith.

“My Lord and My God”

How can we know he was God’s Son? First, of course, by what God says of him. At the baptism and at the transfiguration God proclaimed, “This is my beloved Son.” Repeatedly, Jesus claimed to be the Son and affirmed that he and the Father functioned as one. When Philip asked him to show them the Father, Jesus said, “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father” (Jn. 14:9).

The testimony of the disciples also confirms Sonship. Peter’s confession, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:16) was not of human wisdom. Jesus said, “My father” is the one who revealed it (Matt. 16:17).

The ultimate evidence for his divinity is the resurrection. Paul ties together his dual nature when he says of the Son, “. . .who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, who was declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead, even Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom. 1:3-4). God has left abundant evidence for the resurrection: the prophets, the empty tomb, the scores of eye witnesses, the remarkable change in the lives of the apostles. Yes, “.. . declared to be the Son of God with power.”

A conservative Presbyterian preacher in that civic club took exception publicly to my professor’s statement about the virgin birth. (I heard most of the members apologize for his actions after the meeting was over.) As we drove home, I asked the professor if he believed there would be a resurrection. After evading several times he finally said, “I just don’t know, but I don’t think it makes any difference.” No difference? God says it makes all the difference.

The book of Mark opens with the simple but powerful statement, “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God” (Mk. 1:1). After recounting (by inspiration) his life, Mark describes the death of our Lord and records the words of the centurion, “Truly this man was the Son of God” (Mk. 15:39). Do we dare say less?

Guardian of Truth XXXVIII, No. 23, p. 2
December 1, 1994

By Harold Fite

Did Jesus live on this earth without sin? Was he tempted as we are tempted? Was it possible for him to sin? These questions and their answers lie at the very heart of our salvation.

If Jesus had committed one sin, he could not have been the Saviour of the world! If it were impossible for him to sin, his perfect life lacks meaning.

The apostles and the early church never questioned the sinlessness of Christ. It was the consensus of the early ecclesiastical writers that Jesus lived a sinless life, yet there was disagreement among them whether it was possible for Christ to sin. Some believed that because of his deity, it was impossible for him to sin.

Tertullian inferred the sinlessness of Christ because of his divinity. Origen regarded his sinlessness as a peculiar property of the human soul of Christ, but produced by its union with the divine Logos. Apollinaris believed human nature implies limitations, mutability, conflict, sin, etc., that no man could be a perfect man without sin. He believed that the Logos replaced the human soul in Christ and imported to him an irresistible tendency to do good. Socinianism asserted the sinlessness of Christ, but denied he was really subject to temptation because of “supernatural generation.”

On the other hand, Athanasius affirmed his sinless perfect human nature. He correctly observed that sin does not belong to human nature, that man was originally pure and sinless. He concluded that Christ could thereby assume the nature of man without being made subject to sin. He did concede man’s liability to temptation. Council of Chalcedon (A.D. 451), expressed the doctrine in these words: “Truly, man with a rational soul and body of like essence with us as to his manhood and in all things like us, sin excepted.”

Jesus was God (Deity) and man (human). Deity cannot be tempted: “for God cannot be tempted with evil . . .” (James 1:13). If he were tempted it had to occur relative to his humanity. His reaction to that temptation, whether to resist or succumb, would be a human choice.

Jesus Was Man

The Word became flesh (John 1:14). His genealogy affirms his humanity (Matt. 1:1-17; Lk. 3). After his resurrection he appeared to his disciples saying, “See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as you behold me having” (Lk. 24:39). He was found in fashion as a man (Phil. 2:7,8). The apostles affirmed his human form as one whom they had seen, heard, and handled (1 Jn. 1:1-3). “Since children are sharers in flesh and blood, he also in like manner partook of the same . . .” (Heb. 2:14). As the Son of Man he was representative of all humanity.

Tempted As Man

He was led into the wilderness to be tempted of the Devil. The Devil appealed to the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life. Jesus deflected these thrusts with “it is written,” (Matt. 4:1-11). He proved himself to be the perfect Saviour. He was tempted in all like points as we are, “yet without sin” (Heb. 4:15). “Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth” (1 Pet. 2:22). “And you know that he was manifested to take away sins; and in him is no sin” (1 Jn. 3:5). For one to be able to raise others from the ruin of sin, he must be holy, undefiled and separate from sinners. Jesus was these and more. “Him who knew no sin he made to be sin on our behalf; that we might become the righteousness of God in him” (2 Cor. 5:21). As a man he was tempted, lived a sinless life, suffered, and died on the cross.

The Flawless Priest

Jesus’ sinlessness has a bearing on his sacrifice and priesthood. The High Priest of the Old Testament was appointed by God for men. He served as mediator between God and Israel. One who performed sacrificial rites had to be free from bodily defects to be able to do so. He entered the most holy place on the day of atonement to offer up sacrifices for the people, priests, and his house. Christ, our great high priest is the reality of that typified by the Aaronic priesthood. His priesthood is far superior to that of Aaron’s for two reasons: (1) Christ is priest forever after the order of Melchizedek, (2) He didn’t have to offer a sacrifice for his sins as did Aaron (Heb. 5:3). Jesus “needeth not daily, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people: for this he did once for all, when he offered by himself ” (Heb. 7:27). We therefore conclude with the Hebrew writer: “For we have not a high priest that cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but one that hath been in all like points tempted like as we are, yet without sin” (Heb. 4:15).

The Perfect Sacrifice

The sin offering under the Levitical economy was without blemish. Jesus, the High Priest of our confession, had somewhat to offer. He offered himself as the sacrifice for sin. “Who through the eternal spirit offered himself with-out blemish unto God . . .” (Heb. 9:14). “Without blemish” refers to Jesus’ sinless conduct. And “once at the end of the ages hath he been manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice to him-self’ (Heb. 9:26). If Jesus had committed one sin (blemish) he could not have put away sin.

He redeemed us with precious blood as of a lamb without spot or blemish (1 Pet. 1:18,19). Only by being sinless could he have redeemed us by his blood.

If Jesus had not been sinless, his Priesthood would have been no better than Aaron’s; his sacrifice would have been polluted; and his blood would not be efficacious. By living the perfect sinless life, he became the perfect Saviour. cr

Guardian of Truth XXXVIII No.23, p. 5-6
December 1, 1994

By Aude McKee

The theme for this series of lessons is “Our Lord Jesus Christ.” Our responsibility in this lesson is to look at Jesus, who is the Saviour of the world. This was his mission and he was named by his father so that every time we say his name we are reminded of his purpose in coming to the world. In Matthew 1 we are told that an angel appeared to Joseph to explain to him that the young lady he had planned to make his wife, had committed no sin even though she was expecting a child. “That which is conceived in her,” he was told, “is of the Holy Spirit.” The angel then went on to say, “thou shalt call his name Jesus for he shall save his people from their sins.” Jesus is the Grecianized form of Joshua and it was a common name. But its meaning had an altogether different emphasis when given to God’s Son. Those who wore the name before him were “saviours” from enemies and local or national upheavals (Neh. 9:27), but Jesus was in no way involved in matters of that kind. His purpose was not to deliver the Jews from Roman dominion. He did not come to put “two chickens in every pot and two cars in every garage.” He did not make the journey from heaven to earth to eliminate disease and give lectures on how to protect the environment. He stated his mission plainly in Luke 19:10: “The Son of man is come to seek and save the lost.” The Holy Spirit had Paul to say, “It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.”

For 1500 years prior to Jesus’ coming, the Law of Moses had been in force. That law demanded perfection on the part of those who lived under it, and the penalty for failure was separation from God (Isa. 59:1-2). The only remedy available to those people was animal sacrifices and they were incapable of meeting the demands of divine justice (Heb. 10:1-4). But the writer goes on to say that Jesus came to “take away the first, that he might establish the second. By the which will we are sanctified by the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” So Jesus accomplished two things: He took away the Old Testament law while establishing the New, and he offered himself as a sacrifice for sins. We sing an old song frequently: “What can wash away my sins?” Then the answer comes, “Nothing but the blood of Jesus.” It was John who wrote: “The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sins” (1 Jn. 1:7).

But as we look at the “world” Jesus came to save, we wonder what went wrong? This world is in a terrible condition! Violence and destruction, drugs and drunkenness, homosexuality and immorality, child abuse and neglect of the aged, and on and on. Even John (1 Jn. 5:19)said, “. . . the whole world lieth in wickedness.” Was Jesus’ visit to this world a failure? No one who has read the book of Acts would ever answer in the affirmative! A short time after the Lord’s death, burial, resurrection and ascension back to heaven, the gospel was preached for the first time (Acts 2), and 3,000 people were saved. In Acts 8, the eunuch from Ethiopia was baptized and “went on his way rejoicing.” In Acts 9, perhaps the most avid enemy the Lord’s church had in the first century was baptized in order to wash away his sins (22:16). In Acts 10 is the record of the first Gentiles becoming Christians, and in Acts 16 is the story of Lydia and the Philippian jailer’s being saved. The world being, for the most part, in a lost condition does not reflect on the mission of Jesus but rather on man’s lack of concern for salvation. Peter preached “save yourselves” (Acts 2:40), and this is what the majority of people refuse to do. Occasionally you hear of someone who goes on a hunger strike. There is ample food available, but they refuse to eat. The blood that Jesus shed on the cross can wash away sins, but rare is the individual who is concerned enough about his soul to avail himself of the remedy.

Unconcern must be one of the major reasons for so many in the world not taking advantage of Jesus’ remedy for sin, but there are other reasons. One of them involves the false doctrines being taught about how to be saved by Christ. Some teach the one searching for salvation that all the Lord requires is simply believe. “Faith only,” they say, “is a most wholesome doctrine and very full of comfort.” But Jesus, the one offering the salvation, said, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved” (Mk. 16:16). In Hebrews 5:9 we are told that Jesus “became the author of eternal salvation to all them that obey him.” Then there are those who teach that you “accept Jesus as your personal saviour and pray and he will save.” That is a strange teaching in view of Saul’s (Paul’s) experience in Damascus. He had seen Jesus on the road and became a believer, but he was still lost. So he asked Jesus what he had to do (Acts 9:6). The Lord told him to go to the city and he would be told what to do. He went to Damascus, refused to eat or drink, and was on his knees praying (v. 11). God then sent a preacher to instruct him, and Paul himself tells what Ananias taught him (Acts 22:12-16). Paul was told, “Arise and be baptized and wash away thy sins. . .”

But another reason the majority of people in the world are lost, is because the “saved” have failed to go into all the world and preach the gsopel! The gospel (the good news about Jesus and his saving blood) is the “power of God unto salvation” (Rom. 1:16). No wonder the Lord gave the command to “go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.” We need men, more men, who are willing to “go and preach.” And we need more Christians who are willing to “send once and again” to their necessities. The church in the early part of the first century had the awesome responsibility of the “great commission” on their shoulders, and they got the job done. In Colossians 1:6, Paul said that the gospel had “come in all the world,” and in verse 23 he said it had been “preached to every creature.” Without doubt they possessed first of all unshakeable faith in their commander. He said “go” and so they went. Second, they had vision. They “looked on the fields” and saw they were “white unto harvest.” Third, they possessed optimism. They were totally unlike the 10 spies who said, “we can’t.” Fourth, they were determined that the job be done! The fact that so many gave their lives in the effort is mute evidence to their total commitment.

Conclusion

Indeed, Jesus Christ is the saviour of the world. His part in the saving process is perfect. The part that falls on us is where the failures come in. May we each one obey from the heart and thus come into contact with his saving blood. May all of us make a determined effort to see that as many people as possible within the scope of our influence, learn the truth and have opportunity to obey. And may God help us to be impressed with our responsibility to see that every creature under heaven has the same opportunities to reach the cleansing blood of Christ that we have had.

Guardian of Truth XXXVIII No.23, p. 8-9
December 1, 1994

By Weldon E. Warnock

One of the greatest qualities in the life of Jesus was his willingness to enter into the human situation and to be deeply moved by tender compassion that compelled him to help and to heal. Jesus was never detached from, nor indifferent to human sorrow and suffering. People were never a nuisance to Jesus but an opportunity to serve.

According to Webster, compassion is “to suffer with another; hence, sympathy; sorrow for the distressed or unfortunate with the desire to help” (Webster’s New Twentieth Century Dictionary, Unabridged, Second Edition). Webster then gives a poignant statement from South, “There never was a heart truly great and generous, that was not also tender and compassionate.”

William Barclay wrote, “If there was one thing the ancient world needed it was compassion, pity and mercy.” There was no concern for the sick and feeble, no provision for the aged and no feeling for the mentally and emotion-ally disturbed. Christ, however, in his appearance brought love, affection and care to a world of apathy and complacency.

Jesus and Compassion

Compassion was an outstanding feature in the life of Jesus. He is spoken of several times as being moved with compassion. Actually, he is our perfect example of compassion. Let us notice:

1. He lived it. On various occasions he alleviated the suffering and pain of others. At Jericho he had compassion on two blind men sitting by the wayside, and touched their eyes, and immediately their eyes received sight (Matt. 20:30-34). Seeing a great multitude near the Sea of Galilee, Jesus was moved with compassion and healed their sick (Matt. 14:14).

When Jesus came nigh to the gate of the city Nain, He beheld the coffin which contained the body of the only son of a widow. When the Lord saw her he had compassion on her sorrow and said, “Weep not. And he came and touched her bier. . . . And he said, young man, I say unto thee, Arise” (Lk. 7:11-14). Seeing the hunger of the multitude Jesus said to his disciple, “I have compassion on the multitude, because they continue with me now three days, and they have nothing to eat, and I will not send them away fasting, lest they faint in their way” (Matt. 15:32).

The loneliness of being lepers moved Jesus to touch them and heal them (Mk. 1:41). On going through the cities and preaching and teaching in the synagogues, Jesus was moved with compassion when he saw the multitudes as sheep without a shepherd (Matt. 9:35-36). Is he any less compassionate today when he observes our bewilderment in so-called Christendom?

2. He taught it. All of us are familiar with the story of the Good Samaritan (Lk. 10:25-37). In response to a lawyer’s question, “Who is my neighbor?” Jesus answered by relating the story of a certain man who went down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell among thieves. Religious devotees, a Jewish priest and Levite, passed by with indifference, but an unknown Samaritan came by, and when he saw him he had compassion on him. At his own expense and effort, the Samaritan provided for his needs. Jesus then asked the lawyer, “Which now of these three thinketh thou, was neighbor unto him that fell among the thieves?” And the lawyer said, “He that showed mercy on him.” Then Jesus said unto him, “Go and do likewise.” Friend, let us be good neighbors! Also, compare the parables of lost things (Lk. 15).

3. He expects it. Through revelation (Gal. 1:12; Eph. 3:3) Jesus said to the apostles, “Be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted (compassionate, NIV), forgiving one an-other. . .” (Eph. 4:32). Again, “Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; he sympathetic, love as brothers, be compasssionate and humble” (1 Pet. 3:8). John says if we have this world’s goods, and shut up our bowels of compassion how dwelleth the love of God in us” (1 Jn. 3:17). Let us heed the teaching of Jesus.

Jesus Versus Stoicism

Characteristic of the world in which Jesus lived was a philosophy which was espoused by a great number of people not affected by passion, able to suppress feelings, manifesting or maintaining austere indifference to joy, grief, pleasure or pain. In this dearth of inhumanity of man toward man, Jesus came, bringing a fountain flowing with pity and compassion.

In fact, the Stoics were incapable of feeling. They reasoned that if a man could sorrow or joy it meant that someone else could affect him, alter his feelings, making him happy or sad. They erroneously surmised that if God could feel sorrow or joy at anything that happens to man, it would mean that man can affect God, and, therefore, man has power over God.But since it is impossible, they thought, for man to influence God, therefore he must be essentially without feeling. Hence, a divine Being would have no compassion.

Epictetus, a Stoic philosopher, wrote of how we should teach and train ourselves not to care when we lose some-thing. He said: “This should be our study from morning to night, beginning from the least and frailest things, from an earthen vessel, from a glass. Afterwards, proceed to a suit of clothes, a dog, a horse, an estate; from thence to yourselves, body, parts of the body, children, wife, brothers. Lose anything, see your nearest and dearest die, and say: `It doesn’t matter; I don’t care.’

Most of us often think that God is love and that the Christian’s life is love, but we would do well to remember that without Jesus’ entrance into the world, the feeling of compassion would have not been exemplified for us to fully learn. “The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger and of great mercy” (Psa. 145:8). It is comforting to know that Jesus is touched with the feeling of our infirmities (Heb. 4:15). We sing the beautiful hymn:

O yes, He cares, I know He cares,

His heart is touched with my grief;

When the days are weary, the longs nights dreary,

I know my Saviour cares.

Jesus and the Christian

Can we as followers of Jesus, be any less compassionate than he? No! We must show compassion toward the spiritual and physical needs of people. All of us should be ready to respond to human anguish and misery, not allowing our hearts to be hardened by selfish interests and materialistic goals.

Some practical suggestions to show compassion include: (1) Visit the sick and shut-ins. (2) Send cards to those who are ill and bereaved. (3) Notice the needs of those around about us, such as the distressed, the discouraged, the destitute, etc. (4) Encourage fellow-Christians, remember the difficulty and struggle in living the Christian life. (5) Remember when you were lost in sin, and what it means for someone to care and teach you the truth. Other points could be mentioned.

Let us be challenged to be like Christ! Let us be compassionate! One of the essential tasks of New Testament Christianity is to reappraise the meaning and application of compassion for today.

Guardian of Truth XXXVIII No.23, p. 11-12
December 1, 1994