Q&A on the Godhead
|
Is there such a thing as eternal sonship?Every son has a beginning. Jesus could not be a son without being born, just as he could not be a saviour without dying. A son has no knowledge of his father's experiences, and Jesus had no understanding of God at his birth, but "increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man." (Luke 2:52) Why did Jesus say "before Abraham was, I am", if he was not the eternal son?God made Jesus "both Lord and Christ" (Acts 2:36). "Lord" refers to the word "Jehovah", which is the self-existent one. Jesus was Jehovah in flesh, born of a woman. "Christ" is the Greek word for Messiah, which means "anointed" Messiah by God. There are examples in the Bible of when God had entered flesh before, but never as the son of God. Here are two examples:
When Jesus said "before Abraham was, I am" (John 8:58) and referred to the glory he had with the Father "before the world was" (John 17:5), he was revealing that he was the possessor of the soul and spirit of God. Jesus' body was the temple of God (John 2:19) made of a woman, but inside he was the invisible God, Jehovah, of the Old Testament. His body was irrelevant to his existence, but relevant to the process of our redemption. Those who believe are also called the temple of the living God (II Corinthians 6:16). Just as the Woman was from the flesh of Man, those who believe are from the Spirit of God, and are eternal.
How could God speak from heaven, if he was not another "person"?Jesus, born of a woman, was subject to gravity, death, and time. God is not subject to any of these things. If the Spirit of God can continue to work outside of your frame of existence, and you are a son of God, then there is no reason why the Spirit of God would be restricted from working outside of Jesus' body while Jesus was on earth. If the Son had a beginning, does he also have an end?The body of Jesus was formed in Mary's womb, and the body of Jesus died on a cross and was placed in a tomb. The Son of man was born, and the Son of Man died. The Spirit of Jesus, however, is the eternal Holy Spirit, also known as the Word, which was with God and was God in the beginning (John 1:1). When Jesus rose from the dead he proved that God's life in the Spirit of his Son is eternal, and is not subject to death. Jesus then ascended into heaven, was glorified, and returned to the earth to minister to his disciples (John 20:16-17, John 20:27). When Jesus returned he was no longer confined to the laws of nature, but was able to appear and disappear at will as the Son of God. All of the functions of his natural body - memory, sight, taste, mass, etc... - existed and restricted only on command. Jesus prophesied that he had come from the Father and would go back to the Father (John 16:28). Paul writes that "when all things shall be subdued unto him," (including death) "then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him , that God may be all in all." (I Corinthians 15:28). Jesus became the Saviour by submitting his spirit into the hands of the Father (Luke 23:46) - and Paul's writing prophecies of another submission which will produce an even greater result. What does "adoption" mean in the Bible?In Western society, adoption is the process of legally claiming an orphan or another person's child as your own child. In Eastern society, adoption also means the process whereby a son comes to power with his father over his inheritance (Galatians 4:1-2). If a son did not prove himself to be of sound judgment, his inheritance was instead given to a faithful servant (Proverbs 17:2).
Because Jesus was the adopted Son of God, he also gave us the right to be adopted into the inheritance of God through our obedience to his Word.
ConclusionIn spite of this explanation, the mystery of the Godhead will only be "known" to those who are elected and predestined by God. You may not like the fact that God has control over your eternal destination, but Jesus said "neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him." (Matthew 11:27) However, God gave instruction for those wanting to know him and have not received the Holy Ghost, for the scriptures say that "no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost." (I Corinthians 12:3) The instructions God gave to receive the Holy Spirit are:
For more on receiving the Holy Spirit, click here
Further Studies
|