Sunday, April 23, 2017
Fundamentally, God as God is never born and has never been born. Rather, what is referred to as being born of Mary is only the humanity of Jesus, which was born to cover the divinity whose existence is from eternity. Therefore, Mary did not give birth to Divinity but gave birth to the humanity that carried Divinity, because to say that Mary gave birth to Divinity itself is to say that God has a beginning to His existence—that He began to exist only after being born of Mary, and in that case, God would have a specific age and beginning to His existence, something that contradicts the teachings of the Holy Scriptures:
Psalm 102:24-27
I say, "O my God, do not take me away in the midst of my days; Your years are throughout all generations.
In the beginning You laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands.
They will perish, but You will remain; yes, they will all wear out like a garment; Like clothing You will change them, and they will be changed.
But You are the same, and Your years will have no end."
To reinforce this understanding, we can observe the words of Jesus Himself regarding this matter during His discussion with the Jews when they challenged Jesus’ claim of relationship to Abraham, reminding Him of His age since He was born of Mary and using this as a criterion to criticize His claim of connection to Abraham. Let us read Jesus’ response:
John 8:55-58
"Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad."
Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?"
Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."
This is the declaration of the Lord Jesus, indicating that His existence in the divine realm should not be measured by human years, because in reality, He existed even before Abraham.
Thus, in this context, it would not be correct to say that Mary is the mother of God, since the word "mother" itself means a biological parent (caregiver), so to say that Mary is the parent or caregiver of God is blasphemous and a clear error in interpreting the Holy Scriptures.
Examples of the Possibility of God Assuming Humanity
It surprises me greatly when I see such opposition to this truth while there are various stories that could be used as important illustrations to help understand this matter. For example, there is a famous story told by many in Dar es Salaam:
A young man was walking along the road when he met a beautiful girl whom he fell in love with. After a conversation, the girl agreed to visit the young man’s home. While sitting in the living room, the young man asked the girl to hand him the TV remote that was just a little distance away from her. Shockingly, instead of getting up and walking to fetch the remote, the girl simply stretched out her hand, which seemed to extend abnormally, and picked up the remote. At that moment, the love affair ended abruptly, with the young man bolting out of the house in terror, eventually fainting at the doorway.
Many who narrate this story genuinely believe the girl was a demon (jini) in human form.
What surprises me is how people can so easily believe that Satan can transform to torment people, yet vigorously oppose the idea that God could take on human form to save us. Rethink and change your perspective.
The Lord Jesus took on humanity to draw near to mankind and ultimately to help us receive salvation. The Apostle John declared:
John 1:14
"And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth."
Therefore, the purpose of Jesus becoming flesh and dwelling among us should be received with great gratitude, for it brought glory to humanity—unlike the stories we enjoy about evil creatures. The act of Jesus dwelling among us (after taking on that body) is described in Greek as eskenosen, meaning "to pitch a tent" (English: "dwelt among us").
Besides the biblical analysis, it delighted me to see that other religious books highly regarded in the world of faith—especially the Quran—contain an important illustration of the whole concept of one form changing into another for a significant purpose. For example, consider the story of the angel who appeared to Mary; to avoid frightening her, he changed his form before appearing. Let us read the account:
Qur’an 19:17
"So she screened herself from them; then We sent to her Our Spirit, and he appeared before her as a man in all respects."
As I previously explained, this story concerns the angel Jibril (Gabriel), who appeared to Mary as described and believed by our Muslim brethren—as an angel appearing in human form. Therefore, the question to ponder is: If even an angel could change form and come in that way, how could God be unable to do so?
The truth is, the Lord Jesus took on that human form to veil His glory, which mankind could not bear to face directly. The Apostle Paul concludes this analysis:
2 Corinthians 5:18-19
"Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation:
that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation."
Thus, understand that the human form of Jesus carried the full authority of Divinity, an authority that existed from eternity, even before the humanity of Jesus and Mary.
If He Is God, Why Did He Say He Was Going to His Father?
This is one of the challenging questions in the world of faith. The issue questioned here is Jesus frequently speaking about the Father in different contexts, raising the issue: If Jesus is God, why does He refer to going to His Father, and what is the relationship between Jesus and the Father?
The fundamental answer:
As I have already explained in depth regarding the Holy Trinity, we have seen the existence of three Persons in the one God, where the Father is one of those Persons. The main issue here is simply to examine why Jesus refers to the Person of the Father as a separate authority at times and then to consider the relationship between the Father and the Word—Jesus.
John 16:25
"These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; but the time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but I will tell you plainly about the Father."
In this statement, the Lord Jesus explains that at times He has used parables (figures of speech) to explain matters concerning the Father, but now promises that there will come a time when He will speak plainly about the Father.
This statement provides a general principle to consider in discussing the words of the Lord Jesus, where He Himself makes it clear that His statements may at times be difficult to understand until He chooses to reveal them. Most importantly, Jesus mentions that among these veiled statements is that concerning the Father, and He promises that a time will come when He will unveil this mystery about His relationship with the Father.
Now let us see how Jesus explained His relationship with the Father:
John 10:30-33
"I and the Father are one."
Then the Jews took up stones again to stone Him.
Jesus answered them, "Many good works I have shown you from My Father. For which of those works do you stone Me?"
The Jews answered Him, saying, "For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a man, make Yourself God."
This is one of the scriptures where the Lord Jesus plainly reveals His nature and unity of authority with the Father by saying clearly that He and the Father are one. The Jews immediately understood this statement as Jesus affirming His Divinity.
And in another statement, Jesus made it clear that there is no difference between Himself and the Person of the Father. Let us read:
John 14:7-9
"If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him."
Philip said to Him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us."
Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?"
In this passage, the Lord Jesus clarifies and unveils the mystery to His disciples, who asked Him to show them the Father. In a surprising response, Jesus tells them plainly that knowing Him is the same as knowing the Father Himself, and that by seeing Him, they have already seen the Father. Therefore, they had no need to ask to see the Father.
Here, Jesus shows that He is God from the unity of the three Persons in one God, and there is no difference in authority among those Persons, for it is the same God working in fullness through the three Persons: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit, as discussed earlier in detail.
Therefore, the important thing is to remain calm in reading the Holy Scriptures, because fundamentally those Scriptures provide answers to every question that troubles us in this world of faith filled with many teachers and religious philosophies.
Why Did He Cry Out, "My God, My God, Why Have You Forsaken Me?"
In various faith discussions, this question has been raised by many religious teachers and analysts. The main confusion here is the statement of the Lord Jesus on the cross in Matthew 27:46:
"And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, 'Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?' that is, 'My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?'"
So the question here is: Who was Jesus praying to if He Himself is God?
The fundamental answer:
If you take Jesus' statement on the cross at face value without seeking its deeper meaning, you might be tempted to think that the Lord Jesus was only a human being in every sense.
But the basis of biblical teaching associates this event with the other side of the Lord Jesus’ work—His assumption of human nature, placing Himself in the position of humanity to serve as an example and ultimately to redeem us. This situation sometimes led Him to speak and act as a human, though His nature was not merely human. The Apostle Paul clarifies this principle:
Philippians 2:7-8
"But made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a servant, and coming in the likeness of men.
And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross."
The Bible clarifies that after Jesus took on the form of humanity, this caused Him to at times operate only in the ordinary human way, not using His divine (power, authority). That is why He uttered those words as a true human, though this statement in no way diminishes His inherent divine authority, as it was all part of His redemptive mission, "walking in our shoes."
Jesus Was Also Fulfilling Prophecy
On the other hand, the Bible makes it clear that this statement was also to fulfill prophecies, as Jesus Himself lays this foundation by saying:
Luke 24:44
"Then He said to them, 'These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me.'"
In this statement, the Lord Jesus explains that there are things written about Him in those prophetic books that He must fulfill during His ministry—prophecies which were already written in the books of the prophets, including the Psalms of David.
If you read Psalm 22:1, you will see that it contains the same phrase Jesus spoke on the cross:
"My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"
Thus, from this perspective, you will realize that the Lord Jesus’ statement on the cross was also meant to fulfill that prophecy of David, as Jesus Himself indicated He must fulfill what was written in the Psalms. Therefore, this matter does not in any way diminish His divine authority.
Jesus Fulfilled the Biblical Principle of Facing Troubles by Praying and Singing Psalms
In addition to the above explanation, the Bible continues to expand the idea on this point, as we read in another passage by Apostle James:
James 5:13
"Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms."
Apostle James in his letter sets forth two heavenly principles for facing trouble: first, anyone suffering should pray, and also sing psalms.
Thus, in reality, we must agree that, in His humanity, Jesus was facing the suffering of the cross, and with that statement, He was fulfilling those principles—by praying and by singing, since His statement was a psalm (Psalm 22:1) of David. This in no way affects the divine authority of the Lord Jesus.
Let me invite you once again as we proceed to analyze another important question about the Divinity of Jesus.
Shalom.
Dr. Maxwell Shimba from Shimba Theological Institute
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