· Christology ·

Lecture Thirty Four:  The Divinity of Christ II

The Incarnation

TH330 Systematic Theology I · Moody Bible Institute · Dr. Richard M. Weber

I. The Definition of “Incarnation”

A. The Lexical Definition

John 1:14.  “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.  We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

1 John 4:2.  “This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God:  Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, . . .”

Cf. 2 John 7

B. The Theological Definition

“...the church has used the term incarnation to refer to the fact that Jesus was God in human flesh.  The incarnation was the act of God the Son whereby he took to himself a human nature.”  (Grudem, Systematic Theology, 543).

“Fundamentally, incarnation is a theological assertion that in Jesus the eternal Word of God appeared in human form (Jn 1).  Many theologians picture the incarnation as the voluntary and humble act of the second person of the Trinity, God the Son, in taking upon himself full humanity and living a truly human life.  The orthodox doctrine of the incarnation asserts that in taking humanity upon himself, Christ did not experience a loss of his divine nature in any way but continued to be fully God.”  (Grenz, Stanley J., David Guretzki, and Cherith Fee Nordling, Pocket Dictionary of Theological Terms, Downers Grove, Ill.:  InterVarsity, 1999).

John 1:1.  “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

John 1:14.  “The Word became flesh...”

Someone who is like us, to plead our case. “We need to affirm that He is fully human as our intercessor.”

II. Old Testament Prophecy Regarding the Incarnation

Isa 9:6.  “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.  And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

III. The Means of the Incarnation:  The Virgin Birth

“The doctrine that holds that the Holy Spirit without the participation of a human father conceived Jesus in the womb of Mary.”  (“Virgin Birth” in Stanley J. Grenz, David Guretzki, and Cherith Fee Nordling, Pocket Dictionary of Theological Terms, Downers Grove, Ill.:  InterVarsity, 1999).

“Anyone who affirms that a virgin birth is ‘impossible’ is just confessing his or her own unbelief in the God of the Bible.” (Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology, 532)

A. The Old Testament Prophecy Regarding the Virgin Birth

Almah – Virgin, young woman

Bethulah – Virgin (esther 2 :17; Ezek 23:3, Joel 1:8) LXX

Parthenos – (virgin; Cf, Matt 1:23)

Isa 7:14.  “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign:  The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.”

B. The Fulfillment of Old Testament Prophecy Regarding the Virgin Birth

1. Evidence From Luke

Luke 1:35.  “The angel answered, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.  So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.’”

2. Evidence From Matthew

Matt 1:16.  “Jacob, the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.”

Matt 1:18.  “This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about:  his mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.”

Matt 1:20.  “‘Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary for your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.’”

C. The Purpose of the Virgin Birth

1. To Avoid Christ’s Association with Original Sin?

2. To Serve as a Sign of the Uniqueness of Christ

“[The Virgin Birth] served as a sign of the uniqueness of the person who was born.”  (Charles C. Ryrie, Basic Theology)

3. To Demonstrate the Union Between Deity and Humanity

4. To Demonstrate That Salvation Must Come From the Lord

Jon 2:9.  “...Salvation comes from the Lord.”

Gen 22:8.  Abraham says to Isaac, “God Himself will provide the lamb...”

IV. The Purpose of the Incarnation

A. To Provide a Revelation of God

John 1:18.  “No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known.”

John 14:7-10.  Jesus says to Philip, “‘Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.  . . . I am in the Father, and the Father is in me.  The words I say to you are not just my own.  Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work.”

B. To Provide an Example

1 Pet 2:21.  “To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.”

1 John 2:6.  “Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.”

C. To Provide an Effective Sacrifice For Sin

D. To Provide a Sympathetic High Priest

Heb 4:14-16.  “Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.  For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are – yet was without sin.  Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

E. To Provide a Qualified Judge

John 5:22, 27.  “...the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, ... And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.”

Ministries of the God-Man

Charles C. Ryrie, Basic Theology, 2d ed., Chicago: Moody Press, 1999, page 283. (Modified)