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UNION GROVE CHURCH OF CHRIST, CLEVELAND TN.
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JESUS – WHOSE SON IS HE?
"What think ye of Christ? Whose son is he?" Those were questions that Jesus asked some Pharisees during the last week of His life. Their answer to Him was, "The son of David" (Matthew 22:42). Jesus and others often referred to Him as "the Son" of someone. Perhaps a brief look at some of those Bible descriptions of the Christ as "the Son" will be helpful.
Jesus – the Son of Mary. Before Mary had physical relations with Joseph, she conceived a child by the Holy Spirit (Matthew 1:18,20,25). Before she conceived, God sent the angel Gabriel to her with this message: "And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS" (Luke 1:31). Since Jesus was the Son of Mary, then we understand why the Bible identifies her as "Mary the mother of Jesus" (Acts 1:14). Mary was the chosen vessel, the virgin, through whom the Messiah came into the world (Isaiah 7:14; Galatians 4:4).
Jesus – the Son of Man. Jesus once asked His disciples, "Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?" (Matthew 16:13). Since in this instance Jesus called Himself "the Son of man," then that is just Whom He was. To say that He was "the Son of man," which is a term that the Master often used for Himself, is simply to point out Jesus’ humanity. Since He had an earthly mother, then there was a human side to Him. He became flesh and dwelt among men (John 1:14), and in so doing He "was made in the likeness of men" (Philippians 2:7). Since the ones whom He came to redeem (humans) "are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same" (Hebrews 2:14). He temporarily became a man, a sinless one, in order to offer an unblemished sacrifice to save sinners.
Jesus – the Son of God. Gabriel not only told Mary that she would have a Son (making her the mother), but he also informed her, ". . . that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God" (Luke 1:35). The opening words of the Book of Mark are so plain: "The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God" (Mark 1:1). How did Jesus respond when the high priest asked Him point blank, "Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?" (Mark 14:61). He said, "I am" (14:62). In the same way that the term "Son of man" points to and emphasizes Jesus’ humanity, so the expression "Son of God" points out His deity. Jesus possessed (and possesses) the nature of God – He is part of what the Bible calls "the Godhead": "For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily" (Colossians 2:9). On numerous occasions the Bible even refers to Jesus as "God" (John 1:1; Hebrews 1:8). That does not mean, of course, that Jesus is God the Father, but He does possess the divine nature.
Jesus – the Son of David. We earlier quoted from Matthew 22:42, in which we are told that the Jews referred to the Messiah as "the Son of David." Would that be King David? Yes, indeed. The very first verse in the New Testament states, "The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David . . ." (Matthew 1:1). In Romans 1:3 it is written, "Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh." In 2 Timothy 2:8, He is again identified as "Jesus Christ of the seed of David." To say that Jesus was "the Son of" David simply points out that He was David’s offspring. The prophecies of the Old Testament made it clear that the Messiah would be the descendant of David (2 Samuel 7:12-14; Psalm 132:11; Isaiah 11:1). Peter’s proclamation on Pentecost is helpful in understanding this: "Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David . . . Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne" (Acts 2:29,30). Prophecy made, prophecy fulfilled – the promised Messiah must be an offspring of David and sit on David’s throne. Jesus came as the descendant of King David, and He now sits on his throne, ruling over spiritual Israel, the church (Luke 1:31-33).
Jesus – the Son of Abraham. Back to Matthew 1:1 – "The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham." The Lord God promised Abraham that in him all families of the earth would be blessed (Genesis 12:3). God later told him, "And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed" (Genesis 22:18). This was nothing less than a promise that through his offspring the Messiah would come into the world. To say that Jesus was "the Son of Abraham" simply points out that He was Abraham’s descendant and the fulfillment of the Old Testament promises. Galatians 3:16 makes this plain: "Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as on one, And to thy seed, which is Christ."
Jesus – whose Son is He? The Bible refers to Him as the Son of Mary, Son of Man, Son of God, Son of David, and Son of Abraham. These are not contradictory terms one to another, but rather complimentary. Each of those five expressions is unique, pointing out some special aspect of the Christ, in Whom we trust and to Whom we owe our salvation. -- Roger D. Campbell
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