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Q&A on the Godhead: Difference between revisions
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:''...but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of God’s unique Son.<ref>International Standard Version, Jn 3:18 (Yorba Linda, CA: ISV Foundation, 2011).</ref> | :''...but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of God’s unique Son.<ref>International Standard Version, Jn 3:18 (Yorba Linda, CA: ISV Foundation, 2011).</ref> | ||
=The Son in the Old Testament= | |||
'''Question''': Why, in the Old Testament is the existence of a Son not even mentioned in the same context as is in the New Testament? | |||
There are many references to Christ in the Old Testament. | |||
A CHILD BORN/A SON GIVEN/WONDERFUL/COUNSELOR/MIGHTY GOD/EVERLASTING FATHER/PRINCE OF PEACE | |||
:Isaiah has been called the evangelist of the Old Testament. This is due in part to the second half of Isaiah’s prophecy, which emphasizes salvation rather than judgment. But the primary reason Isaiah is called the evangelist of the Old Testament is that his book is filled with images and prophecies concerning the coming Savior. One of the clearest and most powerful of these prophecies is found in Isaiah 9:6 and 7. | |||
:The Savior, while born into this world as a child, was more than that. Isaiah 9:6 titles Him a “Son… given.” This title clearly calls to mind John 3:16: | |||
::''For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. | |||
ANOINTED ONE (MESSIAH) | |||
:As noted above, individuals were anointed with oil to commission them for some special service to God and His people. In a stunning prophecy specifying “seventy weeks” from a command to restore and build Jerusalem, the prophet Daniel announces the coming of Messiah the Prince, who will “make an end of sins,” make “reconciliation for iniquity,” and “bring in everlasting righteousness” (Dan. 9:24). Daniel also predicts the death (cutting off) of the Messiah, “but not for Himself” (v. 26), a subsequent destruction of Jerusalem, and the appearance of an enemy who will desecrate the holy place until he is put down (v. 27). In this prophecy, which blends the priestly and kingly aspects of the Messiah’s ministry, He is also give the divine title, “the Most Holy” (v. 24) | |||
:Daniel’s prediction concerning the Messiah is not the only place where His deity is affirmed. Psalm 2, recognized by ancient Jewish commentators as well as by Christians as a messianic psalm, speaks of the “nations” (v. 1) raging against “the Lord and… His Anointed” (v. 3). | |||
:The Scriptures presenting the Messiah (the Christ) as the Anointed One clearly establish the fact that the Person who will come to deal with sin and establish His righteous rule is indeed God Himself. | |||
BRANCH | |||
:The term “branch” is a common metaphor for family relationships. As a branch grows from a tree, so metaphorically the Messiah is said in Scripture to be David’s “Branch of Righteousness” (in other words, a descendant of that king; Jer. 23:5). Similarly, Isaiah 11:1 predicts that “a shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse [David’s father], and from his roots a Branch will bear fruit” (NIV). Jeremiah 33:15 quotes the Lord as saying, “I will cause to grow up to David a Branch of righteousness.” But the Messiah is more than a descendant of David. He is also called the “Branch of the LORD” (Is. 4:2). Jeremiah is even more clear in giving the Messiah a divine title, Yahweh sidkenu. Zechariah, however, emphasizes the priestly ministry of the Branch. In 3:9 we learn that the Lord, through His Servant the Branch, “will remove the iniquity of that land in one day.” In 6:12 and 13 we read that “the Man whose name is the BRANCH” is to “sit and rule on His throne; so He shall be a priest on His throne.” | |||
IMMANUEL | |||
:This name is associated with perhaps the most famous prophecy in the Bible. The prophet Isaiah declares, “the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel” (Is. 7:14). The promised child was not simply to be miraculously conceived, but also was given a name that in Hebrew means “God with us.” In fact, the way the name is constructed gives it a slightly different emphasis: “WITH US is God!” God is not just to be “with us”in the traditional sense, but is to be WITH US in a unique sense. The One who is to be born of a virgin is God, come to earth as a true human being! He is to be with us in our humanity, born into the world as an infant as we are, and yet at the same time fully God. | |||
GOD’S SERVANT | |||
:A number of chapters in Isaiah are dedicated to the description of a person called the Lord’s Servant. It is clear from these passages, called “servant songs,” that God had chosen Israel to be His servant, charged with glorifying Him among the nations. But Israel failed in this mission. So Isaiah introduces God’s coming individual who will serve Him as a Servant and who will accomplish the mission God gives to Him. These scriptures include Isaiah 42:1–13; Isaiah 42:14–25; 43:1–28; Isaiah 49; Isaiah 50; Isaiah 52:13–53:12. | |||
Robert T. France has summarized the servanthood of Jesus, as revealed in Isaiah. | |||
:The Servant was chosen by the Lord (42:1; 49:1) and endowed with the Spirit (42:1). He was taught by the Lord (50:4), and found his strength in him (49:2, 5). It was the Lord’s will that he should suffer (53:10); He was weak, unimpressive, and scorned by men (52:14; 53:1–3, 7–9); meek (42:2), gentle (42:3), and uncomplaining (50:6; 53:7). Despite his innocence (53:9), he was subjected to constant suffering (50:6; 53:3, 8–10), so as to be reduced to near despair (49:4). But his trust was in the Lord (49:4; 50:7–9); he obeyed him (50:4–5), and persevered (50:7) until he was victorious (42:4; 50:8, 9). | |||
The many chapters in Isaiah devoted to Jesus as God’s Servant make the title “Servant” one of the most significant of the names and titles of Jesus in the Old Testament. | |||
HOLY ONE | |||
:“Holy One” is one of the exalted titles of God Himself (p. 49). Yet the same title is given to the Messiah in Psalm 22:3 (NIV) and in Psalm 89:18. Perhaps the most striking application of this title to Christ is seen in Psalm 16:10 - ''For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.'' In the first recorded sermon in the Book of Acts, the apostle Peter quoted Psalm 16:10 as evidence that Christ’s resurrection was in full harmony with the Old Testament. | |||
KING OF GLORY | |||
:The title “King of glory” occurs only in Psalm 24, a psalm that is clearly messianic. | |||
MAN OF SORROWS | |||
:''This familiar title is found in Isaiah 53:3, the prophet’s powerful preview containing many details of the death and resurrection of God’s Servant, Jesus. The title reflects the fact that all during Jesus’ earthly ministry as God’s Servant, | |||
PRECIOUS CORNERSTONE/THE STONE THE BUILDER’S REJECTED/SURE FOUNDATION | |||
:These distinctive titles of the Messiah are found in Isaiah and the Psalms. The title “sure foundation” is found in Isaiah 28:16. A parallel title, “the stone which the builders rejected,” comes from Psalm 118:22. | |||
PRINCE OF PRINCES | |||
:The Hebrew phrase rendered “Prince of princes” (Dan. 8:25) means “Leader of leaders” or “supreme Leader.” | |||
REPROACH OF MEN | |||
:Psalm 22:6 is the source of this title of the Messiah. It echoes the theme of Isaiah 53, namely, that people will reject the Messiah before He accomplishes His mission and opens the door for all to a saving relationship with God. Psalm 22 not only describes the Messiah in these painful terms, but also predicts the same words spoken to Jesus on the cross by enemies who ridiculed Him in His time of suffering (Matt. 27:39–44; Luke 23:35, 36). | |||
RULER | |||
:Micah 5:2 predicts, “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from old, from everlasting.” | |||
SEED | |||
:The Hebrew word rendered “seed” means “offspring” or “descendant.” This name or title is found in Genesis 3:15, which is the Bible’s first prophecy concerning the Messiah. | |||
STAR OUT OF JACOB | |||
:The messianic title “a Star shall come out of Jacob” (Num. 24:17) was uttered by a pagan prophet, Balaam.<ref>Larry Richards, Every Name of God in the Bible, Everything in the Bible series, 94 (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2001).</ref> | |||
=References= | =References= | ||