The Sonship of Christ

THAT our Lord Jesus Christ who is now man's Mediator with the Father—that this person did actually create all things that exist, the worlds on high, the sun and the moon, and this earth of ours, and man upon it, and all the angels in glory—that all these were made by his hands, is a sublime truth which is most clearly stated in the Bible. We do well to keep this fact before us in order that we may appreciate what a glorious Redeemer we have; and that he is truly able to save to the uttermost all who come unto him. He lacks no power. In a previous paragraph we have commented upon this fact so extensively that we only recur to it here again, and refer the reader to the plain scriptures bearing upon the point. We will only give a few quotations: "God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made worlds."

"And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands." Heb. 1:1, 2, 10. "In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: Who is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of every creature. For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers; all things were created by him, and for him; and he is before all things, and by him all things consist." Col. 1:14-17. See also John1:1-10; Eph. 3:9; 1 Cor. 8:6.

THE LORD JESUS CHRIST HUMBLED HIMSELF, AND TOOK MAN'S NATURE.

This fact is so plainly stated in the Bible that we need not dwell long upon it. "Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and deliver them, who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed Abraham. Wherefore in all things it behooved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted." Heb. 2:14-18.

Here the apostle argues that in order to reach man, it became necessary for Christ to assume man's nature to enter right into his condition, to suffer with man, to endure the same trials, temptations, and struggles with the adversary with which we have to contend. Hence he says that he took not on him the nature of angels, but he took on him the nature of Abraham. He took man's nature, became a man subject to temptation and death.

The apostle John sets forth this doctrine in the clearest manner. "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. All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made." "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth." John 1:1-3, 14. What a wonderful truth we have here stated! This glorious Word of God, who was in the beginning with the Father, who made all things, God's own Son,—this Being "was made flesh, and dwelt among us." Notice it does not state that he simply came into flesh, and dwelt there, but the Word itself was made flesh, became flesh, was mingled with the seed of Abraham, and inseparably united with it, so that he really became a man, with all the conditions of man's nature.

The apostle says, "We beheld his glory," and again he says, "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;" 1 John 1:1. It will be noticed that this Word of life which was once in heaven but came down from heaven, after he became flesh, was seen with eyes, and handled with hands. They did not simply look upon the body in which the Word dwelt; but they looked upon the word itself, they saw with their eyes, and their hands felt of this divine Word of God which came down from heaven.

We must get out of our minds that anti-scriptural and heathen fable that the real Christ was invisible all the time, as he simply dwelt in the body; that he was simply the spirit or soul of that body, and nothing more, so that when the body died he forsook it, and still existed as a conscious being. No, the truth is that the Son of God became flesh, bones, and blood, and was seen, and handled, and did die. This marvelous truth is thus plainly stated by Paul. "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God; but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men; and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." Phil. 2:6-8.

This Being, then, who was in the form of God humbled himself, and took upon himself the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. He was born as other children are born; he walked upon this earth, he breathed its air, he drank its waters, he lived upon its food as all other men have to do. The following eloquent words upon this subject from Liddon, the trinitarian, beautifully and truthfully set forth the humanity of our Saviour:-

"The great subject of the gospel narratives has a true human body. He is conceived in the womb of a human mother. He is by her brought forth into the world; he is fed at her breast during infancy. As an infant he is made to undergo the painful rite of circumcision. He is a babe in swaddling clothes lying in a manger. He is nursed in the arms of the aged Simeon. His bodily growth is traced up to his attaining the age of twelve and from that point to manhood. His presence at the marriage feast in Cana, at the great entertainment at the louse of Levi, and at the table of Simeon the Pharisee; the supper which he shared at Bethany with the friend whom he had raised from the grave, the Paschal festival which he desired so earnestly to eat before he suffered; the bread and fish of which he partook before the eyes of his disciples in the early dawn on the shore of the lake of Galilee, even after his resurrection, are witnesses that he came like one of ourselves 'eating and drinking.'

"When he is recorded to have taken no food during the forty days of the temptation, this implies the contrast presented by his ordinary habit. Indeed, he seemed to the men of his day much more dependent on the physical supports of life than the great ascetic who had preceded him. He knew by experience, what are the pangs of hunger, after the forty days fast in the wilderness, and in a lesser degree, as may be supposed, when walking into Jerusalem on the Monday before his passion. The profound spiritual sense of his redemption cry, 'I thirst,' uttered while he was hanging on the cross, is not obscured, when its primary literal meaning that while dying he actually endured that well nigh sharpest form of bodily suffering is explicitly recognized. His deep sleep on the sea of Galilee in a little bark which the waves threatned momentarily to engulf, and his sitting down at the well of Jacob, through great exhaustion produced by a long journey on foot from Judea, proved that he was subject at times to the depression of extreme fatigue. And not to dwell at length upon those particular references to the several parts of his bodily frame which occur in holy Scripture, it is obvious to note that the evangelical account of his physical sufferings, of his death, of his burial, and of the wounds in his hands and feet and side after his resurrection, are so many emphatic attestations to the fact of his true and full participation in the material side of our common nature." Liddon Bampton's Lectures, Lecture 1, pp 19, 20, 21.

Then the Son of God did actually and fully take our nature and has spent over thirty years of actual life upon this earth, feeling everything natural to humanity, tempted in all points like as we are yet without sin. Hence Paul can truly say, "For there is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus." While upon earth Jesus was neither king, nor priest. He was only God's prophet. Acts 3:22.