This Article: (12 Pages)
- 1. The Son of God
- 2. The Son of Man
- 3. The Special Birth of the Son of God
- 4. Paul's ideas regarding God and the... Son of God
- 5. What is meant by Jesus being Sent?
- 6. God's Character Shown to the World
- 7. There is no power but that of Yahweh
- 8. Jesus as the Man
- 9. In the Beginning was the Word... (John 1)
- 10. The Title 'God'
- 11. Could Christ have Pre-existed?
- 12. Our future as Sons of God
1) The Son of God
Some historical figures have had a great influence. There is one whose influence is so great that most of the world numbers the years from that of his birth. He is known as Jesus the Christ.
Recently many acknowldege that the name Jesus is best rendered Y'shua, or (Yeshua)
His followers have left accounts of his life which are still in print and which have been translated into nearly every modern language. In those records he is called the Son of God.
Called the Son of God
The celebration of Christmas around the world, has unfortunately given rise to many legends of the birth. Jesus's origin is explained very simply in the Bible.
According to the Bible an angel comes to his mother and says,
“And, behold, you shall conceive in your womb, and bring forth a son, and shall call his name Jesus (Hebrew: Yah shall save). 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: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.”
Then said Mary unto the angel, “How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?”
And the angel answered and said unto her, “The Holy Spirit shall come upon you, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow you: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.” (Luke 1:32-34)
Mary's reproductive system is used by the power of the Holy Spirit to make an embryo. To ask how is like asking how bones grow in a baby, or how DNA works. However, since invitro-fertilization (IVF) and cloning, this process has no mystery. From this point this baby grows, just as any other.
Adam is a son of God
The record of Jesus birth by Luke continues with a genealogy ending with Adam as the son of God (Luke 3:38). Adam was made from the dust of the ground and the spirit (breath) of the LORD God makes him live (Genesis 2:7). With no human parents, Adam is the son of God. Luke is telling us that Jesus is like Adam, a special creation, but human.
Are the records reliable?
The gospel records are either eyewitness accounts or another's record of their experience. They are either a truthful account, such as honest people would give in a courtroom, or nonsense. The argument for their truth is the fact that the earliest texts we have now indicate that the originals must have been in existence while people who were alive could verify many of the accounts. Luke confirms this by beginning,
Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word; It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto you in order... (Luke 1:2-3).
When Luke records the conversation Mary has with the angel, it is likely the account came originally from Mary. There are two points that suggest this. Firstly, Mary's reply is pragmatic, as she points out the lack of a male. Secondly, with a bit of thought we realise this reply, which rejects a miracle in favour of a natural event, and the fact that later Luke shows she needs to be further convinced by Elizabeth, indicates that she doubts the angel's words. This is not flattering. It is likely the record of a person simply telling it the way it was.
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