More of the TSGers

Introduction
The study of the person of Christ is an immense privilege.  There are few subjects so profound or so close to our hearts than his person and yet for that very reason there exists the danger of over familiarity; that somehow there is little of Christ’s person that we haven’t explored.  I hope that this study will prove that idea to be false and force us to think in fresh ways concerning his innermost being and the unique glory of the incarnation.

This study falls into four sections.  The first explores the truly human nature of Jesus.  We shall not spend much time demonstrating this, as our focus will be on some of the errors and controversies that have grown up around the “edges.”  The second section briefly demonstrates Jesus’ deity and looks at the texts that appear to contradict this.  We shall then examine how theologians over the centuries have sought to comprehend how a person could possess full humanity and divinity.  To do so we shall consider the great Church councils that followed the conversion of Constantine and their very careful formulation of words. Finally, we shall consider whether his incarnate deity was limited in some way and the degree of his self consciousness.   If by the end you are no more inspired to worship, I’ll eat my Grudem!

For the first part of this study I have found Grudem to be at his best and have followed the structure he has set out in chapter 26, supplemented by other specialist works that I have listed in the bibliography.

Part 1  The Humanity of Christ
There is no reason to suggest Jesus did not have a normal physical body and this doctrine is rarely attacked today.  A more common weakness is an undue emphasis upon Christ’s deity at the expense of his humanity which detract from the glory of his incarnation. 

i) Evidence for Christ’s humanity.
a) His physical body.  Dr Luke has most to say about Jesus’ early years and he records a normal human birth (Luke 2:7).  He also notes Jesus went through a period of physical and spiritual development (Luke 2:40, 52).  Luke demonstrates the reality of this development by recounting Jesus’ scriptural prowess and growing sense of calling demonstrated at his first visit to the temple, to the surprise of his parents.
The Gospel writers record many occasions where Jesus’ appears vulnerable.  He became tired (John 4:6), thirsty (John 19:28) and hungry (Matthew 4:2).  We can also infer that he was so exhausted that he could sleep through a storm (Luke 8:22-24) and fail to carry his cross (Luke 23:26).  Above all his humanity was demonstrated in his mortality (Luke 23:46).  His vulnerability to harm (not propensity) led to the preserving work of angels (Luke 4:10).  You may recall that at an earlier study there was a debate over whether or not Christ could have caught a cold.
Scripture indicates that Jesus’ body remained the same after his resurrection.  He was able to demonstrate his physical resurrection to sceptical disciples by allowing them to touch his “flesh and bones”[1], observe his scar tissue and eat with them (Luke 24:39-43).  Jesus’ resurrection body (not a “new” body) enjoyed additional qualities such as the ability to vanish (Luke 24:31) and enter a locked room (John 20:26).

The question then arises as to the nature of Christ’s ascension body.  Dr Luke also records Jesus’ resurrection (Acts 1:9) and there is nothing in his account to suggest any change of state.  True, Jesus now exists in a state of glory (Matthew 28:18, John 1:14, Hebrews 1:3) but he revealed this glory in the transfiguration (Luke 9:30-31).  Finally if Jesus’ ascension led to his receiving a kingdom (Matthew 28:18 – note the past, pre ascension tense[2]; a probably allusion to Daniel 7:14) this had left his physical state unaltered.  To put it starkly Jesus still possesses a human brain that can be weighed.
b) Human emotions.  Jesus fully possessed human passions and emotions and it is this reality that led to his ability to understand the fears and suffering of his brothers and sisters (Hebrews 4:15).  He grieved over the death of a good friend (John 11:35), and although it is possible this was over the result of sin (v33), it is not impossible that this was because of a genuine sense of loss (v38).  It was Christ’s ability to remain trusting and faithful despite these sorrows that makes his example so powerful.  His soul could be troubled (John 12:27) and full of sorrow (Matthew 26:38), but he also rejoiced at God’s purposes (Luke 10:21) and marvelled at another’s faith (Matthew 8:10).
c) Human mind.  There was nothing obviously abnormal about Jesus’ human development.  He must have learned to eat, speak and read as any other little boy in Palestine.  It is also likely that his mind had physical limitations.  He did not know of every event in the future (Mark 13:32) although he did seem to have greater knowledge than his contemporaries (Mark 2:8).  More on this later.
One of the most difficult texts to understand in this context is Hebrews 5:8 where it is said of Christ “Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered.”  Even though he was the Son of God with the right to command total obedience he too learned obedience, and that through suffering.  He did not have to be taught to obey, for Christ’s delight was to do the Father’s will but if he had stayed in heaven he might never have learned the cost of obedience.  The experience brought him to loud crying and tears.[3]  It is possible Isaiah 50:5 was in view.  Grudem takes this to be of general application to Christ’s growth, and although the principle of gentle maturing may be correct, the context (Hebrews 5:3, 7) suggests the cross is in view.
d) The witness of those who knew him.  Grudem points to the offended and unbelieving response of Christ’s neighbours as evidence of their inability to distinguish him from other men (Matthew 13:53-57).  In Luke 4:16-29 Luke records that the carpenter was nearly lynched by his contemporaries for claiming that the Spirit of God was upon him.

[1] Today we might want to use the English idiom “flesh and blood,” as a rough (and probably inferior) approximation.
[2] evdo,qh moi pa/sa evxousi,a evn ouvranw “All authority has been given to Me in heaven” (NAS) VEdo,qh verb indicative aorist passive 3rd person singular from di,dwmi.
[3] See David Gooding, An Unshakeable Kingdom, (Leicester, IVP. 1989), 133-4.

The background text is the introduction to TSG17, The Unique Person of Christ, presented by Keith