“For this is how God loved the world: He gave* his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16, New Living Translation)
For the first several years of church history theologians wrestled with the truth they saw in scripture, about Jesus Christ. One of His names. Emmanuel, means God with us. When the angel, Gabriel, appeared to Mary, predicting Jesus' birth, he said, "He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High," and, "the holy Child shall be called the Son of God" (Luke 1). Jesus, Himself, did such a good job of claiming Divinity that the religious leaders of His day were prepared to stone Him. He said, "if you knew Me, you would know My Father also.” When He said, "I am He." literally, "I am." He was equating Himself with God, using Judaism's most revered name for Diety (Exodus 3:13-15). Here are Jesus concluding words, and His opponents reaction, from John 8, a Theologically rich chapter. “Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.” Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple.” (John 8:58–59, NASB95). As these early church leaders wrestled with these, and other Scriptural statements about Jesus, and laid them down side-by-side with the clearly presented truth that Jesus was fully human, they scratched their heads in holy wonder. The bottom line is that God did not send someone to save us. God came Himself.
It's Something to Think About..
(The theme of today's STTA was also part of yesterday's article.)
Find out more about this greatest of all gifts, here.
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