GOD IS INCARNATE
The Son of God became the Son of Man and is therefore the “bridge” between God and man
· John 1:14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
· John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.
· 1 Timothy 2:5 For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,
To be incarnate is to have a fleshly body. It is defined as: “embodied in flesh; given a bodily, especially a human, form.”
Jesus was God incarnate, in that He was God in the flesh:
· “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
Jesus was fully man and fully God simultaneously. This is a mystery that requires faith to believe, but it must be confessed and believed in order to be in Christ
· John 14:11; Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me; otherwise believe because of the works themselves.
· 1 John 4:2; By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God;
· 2 John 1:7. For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist.
During His life, Jesus fulfilled Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah, starting with the virgin birth
· Isaiah 7:14; Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.
· Luke 1:26–38; (26) Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, (27) to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. (28) And coming in, he said to her, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” (29) But she was very perplexed at this statement, and kept pondering what kind of salutation this was. (30) The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God. (31) And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. (32) He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; (33) and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.” (34) Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” (35) The angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God. (36) And behold, even your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age; and she who was called barren is now in her sixth month. (37) For nothing will be impossible with God.” (38) And Mary said, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
· Matthew 1:18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit.
Jesus exists eternally
· John 1:1–3; In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.
· John 8:58 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.”
He performed miracles
· Matthew 9:24–25 He said, “Leave; for the girl has not died, but is asleep.” And they began laughing at Him. 25 But when the crowd had been sent out, He entered and took her by the hand, and the girl got up.
He forgave sins
· Matthew 9:6 But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”–then He said to the paralytic, “Get up, pick up your bed and go home.”
He resurrected from the dead
· Luke 24:36–39 While they were telling these things, He Himself stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be to you.” 37 But they were startled and frightened and thought that they were seeing a spirit. 38 And He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? (39) See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.”
These elements of Jesus’ life further prove that Jesus, the person, was indeed God in the flesh. Jesus is above angels and angels are commanded to worship Him
· Hebrews 1:4–6 having become as much better than the angels, as He has inherited a more excellent name than they. (5) For to which of the angels did He ever say, “YOU ARE MY SON, TODAY I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU”? And again, “I WILL BE A FATHER TO HIM AND HE SHALL BE A SON TO ME”? (6) And when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says, “AND LET ALL THE ANGELS OF GOD WORSHIP HIM.”
Jesus lived a normal human life in every aspect except one: He did it without sinning
· Hebrews 4:15 For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.
Jesus was born through a natural birth
· Luke 2:4–7 Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, (5) in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child. (6) While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. (7) And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
Jesus was raised by human parents according to their customs
· Luke 2:41–42 Now His parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. 42 And when He became twelve, they went up there according to the custom of the Feast;
Jesus learned and grew as a normal person
· Luke 2:52 And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
Jesus had physical needs
· John 4:6 and Jacob’s well was there. So Jesus, being wearied from His journey, was sitting thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour
Jesus had regular human emotions
· Matthew 26:38 Then He said to them, “My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch with Me.”
When Jesus was crucified, He physically died
· Luke 23:46 And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, “Father, INTO YOUR HANDS I COMMIT MY SPIRIT.” Having said this, He breathed His last.
Jesus was physically resurrected on the third day
· Luke 24:39 See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.”
By taking on human form, Christ humbled Himself. He was still God, but His position shifted; He no longer had the glory and benefits of heaven. He came to serve us and:
· Philippians 2:7–8 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. (8) Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
As the infinite God, Jesus was fully God the entire time He was on earth.
· Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
· Revelation 1:8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
The fact that Jesus is God at all times enables us and all living things to keep on living, for He is our source of life.
· Acts 17:28 for in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we also are His children.’