2024 Baptist Faith and Message God the Son

2024 Baptist Faith and Message

God the Son

Article 2B

John 1:1-2; 3:16; John 8:56; John 8:58; John 10:30; John 17:5; Revelation 22:13

“Christ is the eternal Son of God. In His incarnation as Jesus Christ, He was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. Jesus perfectly revealed and did the will of God, taking upon Himself human nature with its demands and necessities and identifying Himself completely with mankind yet without sin.

He honored the divine law by His personal obedience, and in His substitutionary death on the cross He made provision for the redemption of men from sin. He was raised from the dead with a glorified body and appeared to His disciples as the person who was with them before His crucifixion.

He ascended into heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God where He is the One Mediator, fully God, fully man, in whose Person is effected the reconciliation between God and man. He will return in power and glory to judge the world and to consummate His redemptive mission. He now dwells in all believers as the living and ever-present Lord.”

1. The Full deity and full humanity of Christ are fundamental to true Christianity.

John 1; John 8; John 17:5; Colossians 1:16-17 – Eternal Word – This is what John calls Him in John 1.

a. God the Son has always existed. God the Son has always existed and will always exist. All things were created through Him, by Him and for Him. He holds all things together.

The Birth of Christ: Incarnation (Read Luke 1:37 – Nothing will be impossible with God)

If we can believe Genesis 1:1… We can believe in a virgin birth, or in the Incarnation.

As Christians, we are we saying? God came to earth and took on humanity. This is the greatest event in our history. To tell about Jesus is to tell about God coming to earth through a virgin, named Mary. Jesus is literally God in human flesh, the image of the invisible God.

What did the Son of God Do? Philippians 2:7 – He emptied Himself, took the form of a servant, made Himself of no reputation, and came in the likeness of man. He dwelt/tabernacled/lived among us.

As a man, He got tired, He got hungry, got thirsty, He prayed, was tempted, was limited. As God, He gave rest to others, healed the sick, raised the dead, drove out demons, turned water into wine, walked on water, calm the seas, and raised Himself up from the dead.

Christ perfectly identified with us, and yet did not sin. He was perfectly obedient to the point of death. He was tested in every way as we are, yet without sin (Hebrews 4:15).

To believe in the virgin birth is to believe in God coming to us, it is to believe in the supernatural. To say, “I believe in the virgin birth is to say, Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit.” This is central to Christianity.

To be clear: No virgin birth equals no Christianity. If Jesus is not God, the Son… No Christianity. If Jesus was not virgin born, we have no Savior. Jesus is not credible and does not have authority over us. We should not follow Him. If Jesus was only a man, He was a liar and a lunatic possessed by demons, and we are still in our sins, without hope.

We should not believe the New Testament if Jesus is not virgin born, and is not the Son of God.

Therefore, since He is God, He is perfect, sinless and is able and capable of saving a world filled with sinners.

Hebrews 9:22 – According to the law, almost everything is purified with blood and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. 1 Peter 1:18-19 – You were redeemed with the precious blood of Christ. Ephesians 1:7 – In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses…

Blood represents life. A life is given for a life. Jesus’ life was given for our lives.

Acts 2:23 – And this was according to God’s determined plan and foreknowledge…

*Why did Jesus have to die? Because of the Holiness, Justice, Mercy, Goodness, and Love of God.

God could not allow sinners to go unpunished. With the breaking of the law, there is the penalty of that crime… and that penalty is death. God’s Holy standards must be met, and God’s justice must be satisfied.

Romans 3:25 – God presented Christ as a propitiation (the one who will take away God’s righteous anger/wrath toward the sinner) through faith in His blood, to demonstrate His righteousness. Christ work on the Cross settles this: It satisfies the requirements of the law and the person can be forgiven.

Atonement – God’s overcoming sin through Christ’s obedience and death to restore believers to a right relationship with God.

Propitiation – Jesus’ work on the Cross to satisfy God’s righteous demand against sin.

Substitutionary Death – Jesus died in our place, paying the price for our sin. Jesus’ work was a vicarious work – He suffered and died so that we do not have to.

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Case for Historical Jesus Beyond the Bible, from secular and Jewish Sources:

1. Cornelius Tacitus (A.D. 55- 120) – Roman Historian – Writes of Christ, who was put to death by Pontius Pilate, and of the Christians that lived in Rome. 2. Lucian, a Greek, wrote in the latter half of the second century of Christ and the Christians; the Christians worshiped Christ Who was crucified. 3. Suetonius, a Roman historian,wrote in about A.D. 64, about a certain class of men (Christians) who believed in a new and mischievous superstition.

2. The Babylonian Talmud – Teaches that Yeshua was hung on the Eve of Passover. (This is another way of saying Jesus was crucified). Josephus, a Jewish historian, speaks of Jesus being the so-called Christ and Pilate condemning Him to the cross.

The Historical Jesus is undeniable. This Jesus was born, lived, was crucified under Pontius Pilate, and Christians were followers of this Jesus who claimed that He was God the Son, and that He came back from the dead.

How could there be such a following of people who would endure great suffering and who would survive generations of persecution?

These followers said, “We saw Him live, do all these miracles and signs, and we saw Him die and come back from the dead.”

Christianity stands or falls with the Resurrection.

The Resurrection and the Ascension of Christ

*Some have said, “Even if you find Jesus’ bones… it shall not affect my faith.” Some have said, “Even if we are wrong about Jeus and resurrection… we have lost nothing, and it is still the best or safest choice we have.”

Paul would not agree with this. Read 1 Corinthians 15:13-19 – If Christ is not alive: There is no resurrection for anyone, our preaching is a lie, our faith is a lie, we are liars, empty liars, and we are still in our sin… and those who have died have perished forever. You only have hope in this life, and that is it…

How do we know Jesus was God and that everything He said was true? How do we know God approved the work of Christ on our behalf? What is the basis of our hope and the proof of Christ’s victory over sin and death?

*The Resurrection – There is no Christianity without Resurrection. Christ is revealed as Savior and Lord. 1 Cor. 15:14-17 – Faith is without a foundation, it is worthless, and we are still in our sins.

This is a real resurrection of His body. Other religions would teach otherwise. Muslims believe that Jesus did not die on the cross. Some Hindus would say Jesus was a holy man/a guru. Some Buddhists would see Jesus as an enlightened spirit. Jesus is not God and was not resurrected. Some say He was resurrected spiritually but not physically...

The Bible teaches a physical resurrection: Jesus ate, was touched, could be hugged… After the resurrection, Thomas could see and feel Him… and Thomas declared Jesus as Lord and My God! (John 20:28) Christ has a resurrected body; He was fully alive and not perishable. Jesus was seen by hundreds of people (1 Cor. 15:1-8). And these people testified to the Risen Christ.

We are told that we will have resurrected bodies as well.

(Read 1 Cor. 15:42-46; 1 Thess. 4:14-18; 1 John 3:2)

The Ascension of Christ: Read Acts 1:9-11

40 days after resurrection, Jesus goes back into heaven.

1. This marks the end of His earthly work. His work is finished. He accomplished all that He came to do, and the Father has accepted it. He is about to go back where He was, in all His glory, prior to the earth being created. The Father is exalting Him and all things are given to Him. Jesus is the Savior, the Master, the Ruler, the Judge and the Jury.

2. I believe this fulfills Daniel 7:13-14.

3. He is now going to prepare a place for all His people (John 14:2).

4. He is going to pray for His people (Hebrews 4:14-16 and Hebrews 9:15).

5. This also sets a pattern for His return. He will return the same way.

The Return of Christ

The Bible has this summary: Jesus is coming. Jesus has come. Jesus is coming again. The return of the Lord is the great hope of the people of God, and it will be the consummation of all things.

Read Hebrews 9:28; 1 Thess. 4:16; 2 Peter 3:10

This is referred to more than 380 times in the New Testament. Christ is coming in power and in glory.

When He returns, He will claim His church, complete His mission, bring all things to consummation, judge the world, and be revealed as the Lord of all creation.

The return will be bodily, visible, glorious, and triumphant.

1. 1 Thess. 4:17 -The Dead in Christ will rise first. Then the ones who are alive will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.

2. There will be the judgement of the wicked and of the righteous.

3. There will be a new heavens and a new earth.

What do we do? We look forward to this with anticipation and hope.

God will accomplish His purposes.

As a church, we practice the Lord’s Supper: We partake of the bread and wine/juice, which represents His Body; we remember Him; we remember what He has done for us; we proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.

As we wait… Jesus prays for us (Romans 8:34). He is our Mediator at the Right hand of the Father.

We are safe and secure under His care, as His people, and nothing can ever take away the Love that He has for us.

**We must believe in this Jesus. Heretics and false teachers have come and are coming… and we must confront them and all the world with this faith that we hold so dear and with great conviction.

**Jesus was born through the virgin, He is fully God, fully man; He performed miracles; He suffered and died for sinners… He was raised on the third day… and He is coming again to Judge the Living and the Dead.

Do not compromise on these.

Contend for the faith that was once and for delivered to the saints.