THE NATURE OF JESUS

CHRIST
By
Pastor John Appiah, PhD
OUTLINE OF PRESENTATION
Introduction
Evidence that Jesus Christ is Truly God
Significance of Jesus as Truly God
Evidence that Jesus Christ, when on earth,
was Truly Man
Significance of Jesus as Truly Man
Significance of Jesus as Truly God and Truly
Man
Summary and Conclusion
 INTRODUCTION
The question over the nature of
Jesus Christ has been one of the
debated issues since the New
Testament times
For example, Ignatius considered
Docetism, a theory that rejected the
full humanity of Jesus Christ, as the
greatest threat facing the church
during the late 1st Century and
early 2nd Century AD.
INTRODUCTION CONT’D
Was Jesus Christ really flesh and
blood, or did he only appear to have a
body?
To understand and confess that Jesus
Christ was truly human became so
important to John that he declared
it to be a test of a true prophet
(1John 4:1-2)
INTRODUCTION CONT’D
From the earliest times Jesus Christ
was always seen as both human and
divine.
The Bible presents Jesus Christ as
both truly Man and truly God.
EVIDENCE THAT JESUS CHRIST
WAS FULLY GOD
1. His preexistence-John 1:1; 8:58
2. His miraculous birth-Matt 1:18-23
3. His vicarious death-Mark 10:45
4. He forgave sin-Matt 9:2; Luke 7:48
EVIDENCE THAT JESUS CHRIST
WAS FULLY GOD
5. He had power over nature-Matt 14:25;
Mark 4:39;
6. He performed miracles-Matt 14:13-21;
15:32-39: John 2:1-9
7. He resurrected from death-Mark 28; Mark
16:9; Luke 24; John 20
8. He accepted worship-Matt 8:2, cf. 4:10
 THE WORSHIP OF JESUS
“The Gospel of Matthew can be characterized by its
special emphasis on the worship of Jesus. In the scenes
where Jesus is worshiped, Jesus was depicted as the king
of the Jews, Christ/Messiah, the «I am» (ego eimi), and the
Divine Being holding authority both in heaven and on
earth, thus being worthy of worship.
Matthew employed both Jewish and Gentile traditions in
abundance so that both Jews and Gentiles of the Greco-
Roman world might understand the religious and
sociopolitical implications of the worship of Jesus.
The worship of Jesus, practiced by the Matthean
community, led to the community’s isolation from
formative Judaism centered in the synagogues and
facilitated the community’s position in relation to Roman
imperial propaganda. (Kim, 2012, p. 227)
Worship in Matthew’s Gospel:
Christological Implications
Worship constitute a major theological
theme in Matthew’s Gospel (Kim, 2012:227).
Matt 2:8-King Herod promises to worship
(proskyneõ) baby Jesus.
2:11 (cf. 2:2)-The magi worship (proskyneõ)
Jesus as one born King of Jews.
Worship in Matthew’s Gospel:
Christological Implications
Matthew 4:9- Satan asks Jesus to worship
(proskyneõ) him, promising to give him the
world.
4:10-Jesus insists that God alone should be
worshiped (proskyneõ) and served (latreuõ)
(Jesus quotes Scripture to Satan).
8:2-A leper worships (proskyneõ) Jesus,
desiring to be cleansed.
Worship in Matthew’s Gospel:
Christological Implications
Matthew 9:18-A ruler worships (proskyneõ)
Jesus, wanting him to restore his daughter to
life.
14:33-Jesus’ disciples worship (proskyneõ)
him as the Son of God.
15:9-Jesus quotes Scripture: “This people
honors me with their lips, but their hearts
are far from me; in vain do they worship
(sebomai) me, teaching human precepts as
doctrine.”
Worship in Matthew’s Gospel:
Christological Implications
Matthew 15:25-A Canaanite woman worships
(proskyneõ) Jesus and asks him to heal her
daughter.
20:20-The mother of James and John
worships (proskyneõ) Jesus, requesting a
special position for her sons.
28:9-Two women worship (proskyneõ) the
risen Jesus.
28:17- Jesus’ disciples worship (proskyneõ)
the risen Jesus.
JESUS CHRIST WAS FULLY
GOD
With the doctrine of the Trinity, God
is conceived as one God, yet within
the Godhead there are three distinct
Persons, God the Father, God the Son
(Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit
JESUS CHRIST WAS FULLY GOD-
SIGNIFICANCE
He came to reveal to us the love of
God (i.e. to show us the true nature of
God)
He came to die for our sins (that we
may have eternal life)
He came to redeem the world from
Satan’s dominion
EVIDENCE THAT JESUS CHRIST
WAS FULLY MAN
1. He was born-Matt 1:18-25; Luke
2:6-7.
2. He grew up-Luke 2:40, 52
3. He was baptized-Matt 3:13; Mark
1:9; Luke 3:21; John 3:22
4. He was tempted-Matt 4:1-11; Mark
1:12-13; Luke 4:1 -13.
EVIDENCE THAT JESUS CHRIST
WAS FULLY MAN
5. He was hungry-Matt 4:2; Mark 11:12;
Luke 4:2; John 4
6. He was angry-Mark 3:5
7. He worked as a carpenter-Mark 6:3
8. He wept-John 11:35
9. He died-Matt 27:27; Mark 15:37; Luke
23:46; John 19:30-33.
JESUS CHRIST WAS FULLY MAN-
SIGNIFICANCE
He came to conquer where Adam and
Eve fell.
He came to show us how to live (that
it is possible to live in this world
without sinning).
 JESUS CHRIST AS FULLY GOD
AND FULLY MAN: SIGNIFICANCE
Because he was a human being, he lived at
a particular place and time and shared in
human limitations
At the same time he is the divine Son of
God whose death has cosmic significance
for all of humankind
 JESUS CHRIST AS FULLY GOD
AND FULLY MAN: SIGNIFICANCE
To qualify as mankind’s Redeemer and
Savior, Jesus Christ needed to be truly God
and truly Man
As truly God, Jesus Christ has life in himself
As truly Man, he has experienced human
nature
 CONCLUSION
The Bible presents Jesus as both
human and divine
As a human being, he lived at a
particular place and time and shared
in human limitations
As God, his death has cosmic
significance for all of humankind
 END

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