The Sonship of Christ

WE believe that the testimony already presented has abundantly proved the above proposition, as wonderful as it is. At first, man was only created in the image of God. He was simply formed of the dust, and made alive by the power of God. His greatest honor consisted in being in the image of God himself. This was a wonderful honor, but still there was an infinite chasm between man and his Creator. Man was only a creature. There was no spark of divinity in him. He was even lower than the angels. Satan came in designing to destroy man entirely and defeat the noble work of God; and he was in a fair way of succeeding. Now God interferes in man's behalf, not only to defeat the work of Satan and save man from his power, but to turn this event to the glory of God and the infinite exaltation of man himself. In his great love for man God sends his own Son (John 3:16), to take man's nature and thus link humanity with divinity, whereby divinity was inseparably connected with humanity, so that both became as it were one family. Heb. 2:14-16; Eph. 3:14, 15.

After thus taking man's nature, this person, who is now truly both the Son of God and the Son of man, is exalted to the right hand of God in the heavens where he sits upon a throne with his infinite Father, cherubin, seraphim, angels, dominions and all powers in heaven and earth being made subject to him. Eph. 1:20-23. Hence we truly have an elder brother, bone of our bone, flesh of our flesh, sitting at the right hand of God. This nature he will never give up. To all eternity he will remain the Son of God, the man Jesus of Nazareth. What a wonderful thought for poor, frail, suffering, sinning, dying man! He need no longer despair. How true it is that help has been laid upon one that is mighty, one who, is able to save to the uttermost all who come unto God by him!

Let us here briefly notice what an exalted nature the New Testament has given to Christ. It teaches that he has authority over all nature. Matt. 8:3. He has power to delegate this to others. Matt. 10:1. He has authority over men. John 5:21, 22. He is Lord of heaven, and the eternal worlds. Matt. 26:64. He is the world's King and Judge. Matt. 25:31-46. He is the searcher of hearts. Rev. 2:23. He has power to pardon sins. Matt. 9:26. Has delegated this power to others. He is the well-spring of life. John 4:13, 14. The author of salvation. Matt. 7:21. Will raise the dead. John 5:21, 25. Now has all power. Matt. 28:18. Is to be honored as the Father. John 5:25. We must have faith in him the same as in the Father. John 6:27, and trust him as we trust the Father, John 14:1, and must love him, 1 Cor. 16:22. He is the Creator of all things, Col. 1:16, upholds the world by his power. Heb. 1:3. Is Lord of lords, and King of kings. Rev. 19:16. Contains in himself the fullness of the godhead. Col. 2:9.

How exalted to be linked to the throne of God, to be adopted into the family of the infinite Creator! This is a higher honor than even the holy angels possess. How this thought ought to inspire our souls and nerve us for the conflict! God himself is now actually become our Father; not simply by creation as he is the Father of the angels, but by family relations, so that we can now cry, Abba Father. Truly may the apostle exclaim: "Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God; therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be but we know that when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure." 1 John 3:1-3. What manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called the sons of God! Love beyond all parallel; honor beyond all conception; Who can measure it?

Though we have virtually already proved all these points, yet we will briefly notice a few scriptures out of the many directly bearing on this proposition. That man at first was simply created in the image of God we learn from Gen. 1:26-27. That he apostatized and fell under the power of the enemy, we learn from Gen. 3. That God so loved the world as to give his only begotten Son for it, is stated in John 3:16. That when Christ came into the world, he took not the nature of angels, but the nature of man upon him, is stated by Paul in Heb. 2:14-16. That the Word of God, who was in the beginning with the Father, and who made all the world, that he actually become flesh is stated in John 1:1-14; 1 John 1:1. That he had flesh and bones after his resurrection is positively asserted by Christ himself in Luke 24:39-43. That this body of flesh and bones was actually translated to heaven, and there sits on the right hand of God is stated in Acts 2:29-36. Rev. 1:18; 5:5-14.

There the man Christ Jesus, our elder brother, bone of our bone, and flesh of our flesh, now officiates as our high priest our intercessor with God. "Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such a high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens; a minister of the sanctuary and the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched and not man." Heb. 8:1, 2. "For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus." 1 Tim. 2:5. Mark that it is the man Christ Jesus who is our mediator. There he sits as a man, as the representative of our race, to plead and intercede for us; and as he is God's own Son and partaker of his Father's divinity, holy, righteous and undefiled, he has the unlimited confidence of the Father. Hence John truly says, "If any man sin we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous."

At the close of his mediatorial work, this man Christ Jesus is to come in the clouds of heaven. He comes, not simply as the Son of God, but as he is in deed and in truth, the Son of man. This he himself said to the high priest: "Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: Nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven." Matt. 26:64. Christ is particular everywhere to keep this fact prominent, that in his very highest office and greatest glory he still retains the nature of man and is not ashamed of the relationship. He mediates before God as a man; he sits on the right hand of God as the Son of man, and as a man he comes in the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. When he thus comes, then we shall be made like him. 1 John 3:1, 2. These mortal bodies will then be purified, and made like his body. Thus the apostle says: "For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body." Phil. 3:20, 21. Then indeed and truly will men form a part of the family of God. "For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named." Eph. 3:14, 15.