Reality of Who Jesus Christ Is (Part 1)

Jesus Christ the Last Adam - The Reality of Who Jesus Christ Is (Part 1)

The topic covered here has been a subject of controversy in the Body of Christ since the First Century Church times. There has been more division created because of this subject than any other. Yet, this subject is of more importance to the Body of Christ than any other, it is the basis (foundation) of the faith of the Church. What we believe about Jesus (his ministry on earth) and our risen Lord and Savior Christ Jesus (his ministry as head of the Body of Christ, the Church - seated at the right hand of God) will determine what we will see manifested in our lives. It will determine our outcome when he returns to claim his body prior to the beginning of the brunt of the Tribulation. As the Word of God says, Jesus was a person with two distinct natures. Taking into account the incarnation (the union of man and God in the person of Jesus Christ) and the position he was given when he ascended to be with the Father after his resurrection, what we believe about him effects the power available to us through his name and the new birth, Christ in you.

When you build a brick wall, it is necessary to lay a foundation layer of brick before you can progress upward to put down the third, fifth, and seventh row of bricks. It is impossible to start out on the third row up and expect to be able to lay that row of brick without the first and second already in place. The Word of God is just as laying brick. In order to understand the deeper things of God, one must have the foundation, the milk of God's Word in them. We study the Word of God, the Bible, in order to be able to progress from the milk (foundational understanding) of the scripture to the point where we can begin to understand the meat (deeper knowledge) of God's Word. Just as our understanding of God's Word is the result of our studying it, laying brick upon brick, the knowledge of God in the Bible progresses from "milk scripture" to "meat scripture" as precept builds upon precept. In the book of Isaiah God revealed through the prophet Isaiah this very thing.
“Isaiah 28:9 Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts. 10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:"

Understanding of God's Word comes from seeing and understanding the buildup of scripture, from the point a subject is established by God, through the culminating conclusive verse in relation to that subject. In order to gain a fuller understanding of Jesus who became the Christ (we will not have a full understanding until he returns; "1 John 3:2 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."), we need to start at the point in the scriptures that is the most foundational precept toward this understanding.
“Genesis 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.”

God created man in His image. In order to understand the Son, we of necessity have to have an understanding of what God is first. There was not a clear explanation given to man as to the nature of God until His son, Jesus, revealed the Father to us. Jesus told Samaritan woman at the well the very nature of God his Father. Jesus told her that God is a Spirit and that He sought true worshipers who would worship Him in spirit and in truth.
“John 4:23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. 25 The woman saith unto him, I know that Messiah cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. 26 Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he."

The basis of this truth is that God is Spirit. When He created man and woman in the beginning it says that He created them "in His Image." To be created in the image of God would to be created a spirit possessing being. Just a few verses on after the creation of spirit for man is the record in Genesis 2: 7 where it says, "And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." God had already created His image portion of man (spirit) and here He forms man out of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living soul (physical being). We see the proof of this within the record of the account of Eve's encounter with the serpent in Genesis chapter three.
“Genesis 3:3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." The serpent (the Devil) knew what would happen to man if he ate of the tree and lied to Eve. God had told them that if they ate of the tree "they would die." Well let us look at another aspect of God, God does nor can lie.
“Numbers 23:19 God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?"
“Titus 1:1 Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness; 2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;"

Since God does not "lie" and the Devil is the "Father of lying", it is a certainty that something died here. The question to be answered at this point is "What Died?" Since the physical body of man God had made from the dust of the earth was still going alive and strong, it was not the physical body of man that died as a result of eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Man did "die" that day and what died was what God had created in His image, the spirit He had created in man. This is why Jesus said that God sought worshippers who would worship Him in spirit. Paul acknowledged that the hope of eternal life was God's promise He had promised before the world began. This hope was one of the main subjects of the scriptures from the fall of Adam up until the death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Christ Jesus. When the spirit God had created in man died, man lost his ability to communicate with God directly. From this point on we see only two means God used to communicate His will, His Word to man. One was the angels who revealed His Word to His servants and God putting His Spirit conditionally upon His servants, the prophets, who were able to communicate with God so long as His Spirit was upon them. Examples of God's Spirit upon His servants in the Old Testament are numerous and here are a few.
“Numbers 11:29 And Moses said unto him, Enviest thou for my sake? would God that all the LORD'S people were prophets, and that the LORD would put his spirit upon them!"
“Numbers 24:2 And Balaam lifted up his eyes, and he saw Israel abiding in his tents according to their tribes; and the spirit of God came upon him."
“1 Samuel 10:10 And when they came thither to the hill, behold, a company of prophets met him; and the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied among them."
“1 Samuel 19:20 And Saul sent messengers to take David: and when they saw the company of the prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as appointed over them, the Spirit of God was upon the messengers of Saul, and they also prophesied."
“2 Chronicles 24:20 And the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, which stood above the people, and said unto them, Thus saith God, Why transgress ye the commandments of the LORD, that ye cannot prosper? because ye have forsaken the LORD, he hath also forsaken you."
“Isaiah 61:1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;"

The next aspect of God is that He is one God and that God's people were to put no other gods in preference of worship before Him.
“Exodus 20:1 And God spake all these words, saying, 2 I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. 3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me."

The last aspect of God that needs to be taken into account concerns His Word. David in Psalm 138 tells us the importance of God's Word to Himself.
"Psalms 138:2 I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name."
God's Word was creative power as witnessed in the creation. God spoke and it happened. God said let "us" create man in our image. The real and ultimate manifestation of God's Word was a thing hidden from His servants and prophets in the Old Testament times.

God's plan for the reconciliation of man to himself went into effect immediately after Adam's sin. It was God's desire to reconcile mankind from the sin of Adam and restore that which had died in order to have spiritual children who would be capable of once again worshipping Him in spirit and truth. God's plan to reconcile man was first told to Eve by God.
"Genesis 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."

At this point all humanity was divided into two groups, the seed of the Devil (those men who oppose God) and the seed of the woman (those men who stayed faithful to God). The culminating seed of woman (Eve) was Jesus Christ who would be made to suffer by the Devil's affliction before his glorious victory and in his victory would strike the final blow at the seed of the devil by destroying the head of the unbelievers, the Devil.

The next main revelation of God's plan to redeem mankind was given to Abraham when God established His covenant with him.
"Genesis 22:17 That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; 18 And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice."

God then reaffirmed the promise He had made to Abraham by transferring it to Isaac, Abraham's son.
"Genesis 26:3 Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father; 4 And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed;".

Continuing on through the generations God renewed His promise to Jacob, Isaac's son.
"Genesis 28:14 And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed."

As the promise, given to Eve by God after man's fall, was revealed to Isaiah the following prophecy was written. This prophecy concerned Jesus, the coming Messiah. It was revealed that he would be afflicted, oppressed, taken and killed without resistance (like a sacrificial lamb), and that "by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities."
“Isaiah 53:7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. 8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. 9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. 10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. 11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities."_
Jesus was the promised seed as Paul had stated in his letter to Titus, "In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;". Needless to say, the children of Israel were well aware that a savior was coming to redeem them. The prophets of the Old Testament searched the scripture in hope of knowing how soon the promised seed, Jesus Christ would come; "1 Peter 1:10 Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: 11 Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow."

Jesus made the same statement to the disciples when he said:
"Matthew 13:17 For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them."

Now we come to the appointed time that God's promised seed, Jesus, was made manifest on the earth. The final statement of the promise was made to Mary, the mother of Jesus before her conception of Jesus. We can not doubt that Jesus Christ was the Son of God if we are to inherit the promises that he would bring into fruition through his life, ministry, death, and resurrection.
“Luke 1:26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, 27 To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. 28 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. 29 And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. 30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. 31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. 32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: 33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. 34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? 35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. 36 And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. 37 For with God nothing shall be impossible. 38 And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her."

God sent the angel Gabriel to tell Mary that she had been chosen above all women to be the mother of the savior of all mankind, the promised Messiah Jesus. The name Jesus meant literally in Hebrew, "Jehovah is salvation." This conception with no human father involved (Virgin birth) began the presence of Jesus the promised and developed into his ministry to Israel. In the book of Hebrews, in the second chapter we have an explanation of what factors were involved that made Jesus being the son of God. In the natural union of a man and woman, the resulting child has the inherited attributes of both father and mother included in it's forming in the womb and carries them throughout life. The egg in Mary's womb was the human factor passed on down from Adam and Eve and the sperm which caused the conception of the child was created by God and the factor of the divine was blended with the factor of humanity to produce the one true son of God. Jesus did not take on the nature of angels (which are spirit as God is Spirit), he took on the nature of the seed of Abraham (true humanity) in order that he would be a merciful and faithful high priest and be able to reconcile man to God.
“Hebrews 2:14 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; 15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. 16 For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham. 17 Wherefore in all things it behoved 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."

While Jesus was fully human in every aspect he was also truly divine. As one man, Adam, had put all of mankind in a state of sin and separation from God, it was necessary for one man to walk perfectly before God to redeem man from sin, defeat death, and conclusively defeat the Devil in the End. The denial of Jesus' ministry to Israel as a human being, a man, was the prevalent doctrinal error that had crept into the Church in the First Century. This error continued on until 325 A.D. when the Church came together to correct the doctrinal division in the body of Christ. The persistence of the idea that the divine nature of Jesus was the dominant trait over the full ministry of Jesus and had replaced his humanity as he performed his ministry on earth, was the error propounded that denied that Jesus had come in the flesh. This error, according to the scriptures recorded in the books of First & Second John were the doctrinal mark of an Antichrist (and ultimately, The Antichrist) and was the same message preached by false prophets and deceiving teachers that were appearing in large numbers even in the time of the First Century Church. To deny the that the two natures of Jesus are united in him without mixture, separation, or division, is the taking up of the doctrine of the Antichrist. The early church expressed and affirmed at the Council of Chalcedon in 451 A.D., that Jesus was one person in two natures and strongly affirmed the full humanity of Jesus Christ during his ministry on earth.
“1 John 2:18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. 19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us. 20 But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things. 21 I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth. 22 Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son."
“1 John 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. 2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: 3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world."
“2 John 1:7 For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist. 8 Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward. 9 Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. 10 If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: 11 For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds."