The Two Natures of Jesus

Other characteristics include being in agony or being self-sacrificing (Foster 126). Although these are characteristics of a Christ figure, the character is not required to have all of these aspects in order to be considered a Christ figure (Foster 127). Jesus Christ chose to be crucified rather than falsely confess to accusation made against him. Although some believed him, many were against

The same is true for Christ’s humanity. Everything that it means to be a human is true of Christ, with the exception of sin. The two natures of Christ remain distinct and maintain their own nature. The two natures do not change one another and they do not combine to make a third kind of being. Christ has two natures, but is still one person. The Chalcedonian Creed explains this concept best when it

The Bible points to proof that Jesus was fully human. Throughout scripture we see evidence of him sharing the same characteristics of other humans. For example, although his conception was rather miraculous (Matthew 1:18 ESV) he was born into the world the same way as any other human has been (Luke 2:4-7 ESV). Once he was born Jesus was physically the same as any other human, he grew as others, he suffered pain (1 Peter 4:1 ESV), hunger (Matthew 4:2 ESV) and sorrow as others (Mark 3:5 ESV). Jesus was tempted by sin just as any other human (Luke 4:2 ESV). Jesus even died in the same way that others would die if they were crucified (Luke 23:44-46 ESV). He was even seen through the eyes of most people as fully human, being referred to as Jesus of Nazareth indicating that he was raised from that town (John 18:5 ESV).

Huston Smith brought up a thought that had never crossed my mind before, “What did Jesus think of himself?” Huston Smith said that it was impossible to find out or ever to know Jesus’ thoughts or personal feelings about himself. Then Smith also brought up the fact that Jesus may not have ever found out what he was, who he was, or what to think about himself. Huston Smith revealed that the importance of Jesus’ human needs should be defined as well as his divine needs. He stated that by considering both human and divine needs one can better understand who Jesus really was and what he was meant to do. Some things in this world could have also been a mystery to Jesus during his life though, just as it is in our lifetime. Huston Smith believed that when Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist and he saw the angel that it could have been the first time he came to the realization of who he was and what his significance to the world was. This idea was supported when Huston Smith went on to explain that the forty days and nights Jesus spent in the woods were spent to discover who he really was. This part of the video really made me think of my opinion of Jesus and whether I thought he knew who he was and who he was going to be.

Jesus demonstrated character even when it was not popular. Life is not going always going to leave in a favorable position. He preached on his power to forgive sins and to heal the sick.

raises the issues of Jesus simply as a man who was good or that it

As creatures created by God and who share in His life, we all have “inestimable value” (JP II 2). By virtue of the fact that He sent His Son to die for us on the cross in order to bridge what was broken in the Garden, God shows how much He really loves humanity. The Incarnation is proof positive how important human life is in the eyes of the Trinity. Jesus Christ could have taken on any form, yet as Philippians 2:7 teaches us, He took the form of a human servant and died a human death on the cross in order to provide salvation for humankind. Because of this relationship, all humans are valuable and share a divine dignity with one another and with God.

Although we were granted great gifts from God, such as mercy, our selfishness caused us to disobey and turn away from God. This was through sinning, worshipping false gods and idols, and not following God’s Word. All of this contributed to the corruption and destruction of humanity, leading to our ultimate condemnation. In order to save humanity, the Father created the Son, hence Jesus as the incarnation of God. Jesus was completely human, as well as completely divine, and “took our body, and not only so, but took it directly from a spotless, stainless virgin” (8).

No matter how one refers to Him, He is fully God and fully human. Because of humanity’s departure from wisdom, God decided to become man as a last ditch effort to save His people. This is best demonstrated in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life”. Jesus lived among His followers teaching them about the good news of the Bible and when it was time, He willing sacrificed Himself in order to forgive the sins of those who believed and guaranteed his/her salvation. Once He ascended into heaven, the Holy Spirit remained, filling those who believed with the eternal love and guidance so that he/she may now spread the good news, just as His disciples did. Jesus’ identity and work is significant to the Christian worldview because they are the very core of this faith-based belief system. One learns from the Bible that one does not have to witness these works, just by merely believing will lead one to salvation. According to Merrick (2014), “Jesus Christ represents all humanity and offers to God a sacrifice that reconciles humanity and God” (final

The purpose of the paper is to differentiate between Christ of faith and Jesus of history. New Testament biblical scholars from the 19th Century have been preoccupied by the notion of Christ of faith versus Jesus of History. Jesus of history can be described as the quest for historical Jesus, while the Christ of Faith is the Christ of Christian belief either through the Church or historically. Some traditions even went ahead to argue that the Jesus of History could never be found and therefore the Christ of faith is the only way forward for Christians. On the other hand, those who have been promoting the Jesus of History have often assumed that the historical Jesus is much superior as compared to the Christ of Faith. Despite the key differences between Christ of faith and the historical Jesus, both these aspect have an implication for Western Christianity.

When exploring the concept of ‘God the Son’, the incarnation and attributes of God as seen in Christ enter the picture. In order for human sin to be covered, a human sacrifice is all that could meet the requirement ordained by God, yet, they had to be sinless. Only the incarnate God could fulfill this role, exhibiting qualities of God Himself, such as selflessness, unconditional love, and purity. Another core trait was humbleness, although Jesus held the highest status in all the world, which shone brightly in His ministry, as He also served the children of God. Paul captured the essence of Jesus as God and the reality of the incarnation in these verses, “let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God…made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men” (Philippians 2:5-7, NKJV).

Christ is part of the Trinity and is recognized as God in creation-John 1:3, judge of all things in the future-john 5:27, and he has omniscience-Matthew 9:4. Charles Ryre proves Christ's deity and involvement in the Trinity in Basic Theology, as he writes,

The two natures of Jesus refers to the doctrine that the one person Jesus has two natures, (Divine and Human). In theology this is called “the doctrine of the hypostatic union. ” it derives its meaning from the Greek word hypostasis (which is also

To start off, I will say a very simple fact, Jesus is everything and everyone. Jesus is all that is around us. When I say this I mean that Jesus is the reason we are where we are, He made everything possible for us and we don’t understand that. Jesus is a symbol of strength, Saving grace, human weakness, hope, life, love, understanding, knowledge, wisdom and almost any other intangible definition of humanity that we could think of. The reason I say this is because Jesus of scripture was everything good in the world and also he highlighted humanity as we are. Jesus in scripture is shown in every situation and can be applied to our world as a symbol. He is in all that is good and also in any situation that is bad. I don’t mean bad as in he is the creator of evil because that would be a complete religious contradiction. I mean that Jesus is the hope in any bad situation. He is what makes evil turn out good. Jesus makes anything bad become understandable through all that He means.

Throughout the history of mankind, there have been many great men who have left an impact on today’s world. Some of these men may have changed a certain system was run or established a better community for other people. While doing these things is certainly commendable, there is one man who stands above the rest. This man is unique in every way from His conception to His death. In addition, this man made astonishing claims and performed many great miracles. While there were many that embraced this man, there were many that called him foolish and a sinner. This man was Jesus Christ. Through the use of Old Testament prophets, various New Testament testimonies, and certain divine attributes, it is proven that Jesus Christ is unique in that He and God are one.