Subject: Mat. 24:36 |
Bible Note: Hi, Jehonadab... What you are suggesting is actually a repudiation of the orthodox understanding of the Trinity as stated in the Nicene creed. It also has to do with what theologians call the "hypostatic union." This is the doctrine that the one person Christ has both a human nature and a divine nature: He is fully God and fully man. In the incarnation, the Son of God was born as a man, permanently uniting a with human body (John 1:14) and soul. (Note that Matthew 27:50; "soul" is synonymous with "spirit"). John 1:1-18 is also a very good passage to demonstrate the hypostatic union. "The Word was God" (John 1:1), and "the Word became flesh and dwelt among men" (John 1:14). When the Word became flesh, He did not cease to be God, but added "flesh" to His being. We know from other passages that Jesus' flesh included a soul/spirit (Matthew 27:50; Mark 2:8; Luke 23:46; John 11:33; 13;21; 19:30). Jesus was both man (1 Timothy 2:5) and God (John 1:1; Titus 2:13; 2 Peter 1:1). (Please note that the doctrine of the hypostatic union is like the doctrine of the Trinity: it is just a way to fully express all that Scripture reveals about a particular subject.) Therefore, when Jesus expressed a lack of knowledge, He was speaking as a man. Now before you point it out, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" is a special case! Even as a man Jesus knew why God had forsaken Him: because Christ was stained with the guilt of all our sin. He knew that He was an atoning sacrifice for our sin, and this meant God would forsake Him. Thus, it was a rhetorical exclamation expressing grief. It was also a reference to Psalm 22. He cried out the "title" of that psalm, making reference to the fact that He was fulfilling its prophecy. Please note that this forum strongly supports the truths expressed in the Nicene creed. In Him, Doc PS Parts of the above were culled from a paper on this topic by Dr. Joel Beeke. |