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PERSONAL FROM
Before his death on January 16, 1986, the editor
in chief planned this "Personal" and had the
entire copy of this issue read to him.
Is
JesusGod?
1
s
J
esus the same as
J
ehovah?
Is there more than one God? Startling as
it may seem, there is great
confusion
today
among religious leaders concerning the true
nature and office of Jesus Christ.
The Bible was divinely inspired to impart
truth to those who seek it with honest hearts
and minds. But even this all-important subject
has become jumbled.
Jesus Christ carne to pay the penalty for sin in
our stead. He gave of
himself.
that we might be
reconciled to God.
How was this made possible?
First, if Jesus had been
only
human, his death
could have paid the penalty for but
one
other
human who had incurred that penalty by
transgression of God's spiritual law (Rom. 6:23).
Since God the Father created all things by Jesus
Christ (Eph. 3:9), and since all things, including
man, were made by Jesus Christ, he is our Maker
and therefore God, and his life that he gave was of
greater value than the sum total of all human
beings. For we read, "In the beginning was the
Word, and the Word was with God, and the
Word
was God.
The same was in the beginning with
God.
Al/ things were made by him;
and without
him was not any thing made that was made" (John
1:1-3,
Authorized Version,
unless otherwise
Aprll 1986
designated). "And the Word became flesh and
dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have
beheld bis glory, glory as of the only Son from the
Father" (verse 14,
Revised Standard Version).
Also, "He was in the world, and the world
was
made through him,
yet the world knew him not"
(verse 10, RSV). Compare these scriptures with 1
Corinthians 8:6 and Colossians 1:12-19.
Life alone can beget life. This is the absolute
law of biogenesis. Since eterna! life is the gift of
God ( John 3:16), only a God possessing
immortality could give it.
If
Jesus were only
human, we could not receive eterna! life through
him and he could not be our Savior. Man
does not
have eterna] life inherent in himself. But, as God
"the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given
to the Son to have life in himself." And, "God
hath given to us eterna] life, and this life is in his
Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and be that
hath not the Son of God hath not life" (John 5:26
and 1 John 5:11-12).
On the other hand , Jesus was also human . Since it
is human life that has transgressed God's law, the
law claims human life as its penalty. Contrary to
popular present-day teaching, the Word of God states
that the wages-the penalty-of sin , is
death ,
not
eterna! life in a so-called " hell fire" (Rom. 6:23).
When we sin, we break God's perfect spiritual law,
"for sin is the transgression of the law" (I John 3:4).
The penalty for this sin is death. The penalty must
be paid. God the Father will not compromise. It
must be paid
by man.
Therefore, Jesus, who is and
was God, who has always existed (John 1:1 , 2) , was
actually
madeflesh
(verse 14).
He, who was God, actually
became
human flesh
because I John 4:2, 3 states, "By this you know
the Spirit of God: every spirit which confesses that
Jesus Christ
has come in the flesh
is of God, and
every spirit which does not confess Jesus is not of
God" (RSV). He was conceived in and born of the
human vi rgin, Mary. "Now the birth of Jesus
Christ took place in this way. When bis mother
Mary bad been betrothed to Joseph, before they
carne together she was found to be with child of
the Holy Spirit" (Matt. 1:18, RSV). He was made
not only flesh, but
human
flesh and blood. Notice,
in the
Revised Standard
(Continued on page 24)