The heavenly body of the Lord Jesus Christ
Notes
Transcript
18 knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers,
19 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.
20 He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you
21 who through Him believe in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.
22 Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart,
23 having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever,
24 because “All flesh is as grass, And all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, And its flower falls away,
25 But the word of the Lord endures forever.” Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you.
We were not redeemed of corruptible things, including the corruptable seed of Adam, but the incorrubtible seed of God, which is the Word of God.
There is a difference between the flesh and blood of Jesus and the flesh and blood of human beings.
There is danger in not discerning the difference between the Lord’s body and the human body.
27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.
28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.
29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.
If you don’t discern the Lord’s body, you will be prone to regards the body and blood of Jesus as common thing
29 Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace?
30 For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. And again, “The Lord will judge His people.”
The Testimony of Jesus and the Apostles about his flesh and blood
The Testimony of Jesus and the Apostles about his flesh and blood
John 6:31–56 (NKJV)
31 Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ”
32 Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven.
33 For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
34 Then they said to Him, “Lord, give us this bread always.”
35 And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.
36 But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe.
37 All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.
38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.
39 This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day.
40 And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.”
41 The Jews then complained about Him, because He said, “I am the bread which came down from heaven.”
42 And they said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that He says, ‘I have come down from heaven’?”
43 Jesus therefore answered and said to them, “Do not murmur among yourselves.
44 No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.
45 It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.
46 Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He who is from God; He has seen the Father.
47 Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.
48 I am the bread of life.
49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead.
50 This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die.
51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.”
52 The Jews therefore quarreled among themselves, saying, “How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?”
53 Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you.
54 Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.
55 For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed.
56 He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him.
Jesus said that his flesh and blood came from heaven, and that Joseph and Mary had no contribution to his flesh and blood. It was purely, hundred persent from heaven.
22 So the Jews said, “Will He kill Himself, because He says, ‘Where I go you cannot come’?”
23 And He said to them, “You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world.
24 Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.”
the human body is from beneath, the body of Christ is from above.
The Apostles testimony
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 The same was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.
7 The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.
8 He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.
9 That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
10 He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.
11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not.
12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
14 And the Word was made 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.
The source of the flesh (body) of Jesus is the Word of God. Before the Word became flesh it existed as the spoken Word of God by which God created the whole universe.
1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life—
2 the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us—
3 that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.
What John handled was the Word of God not the dust of the ground
The Apostle Paul’s Testimony.
1 Corinthians 15:35–49 (NKJV)
35 But someone will say, “How are the dead raised up? And with what body do they come?”
36 Foolish one, what you sow is not made alive unless it dies.
37 And what you sow, you do not sow that body that shall be, but mere grain—perhaps wheat or some other grain.
38 But God gives it a body as He pleases, and to each seed its own body.
39 All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of animals, another of fish, and another of birds.
40 There are also celestial bodies and terrestrial bodies; but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another.
1 John 4:3 “and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.”
Some have accused and labeled us as those who have an anti Christ spirit. This is because they don’t understand that all flesh is not the same flesh.
Jesus did come in the flesh , but it was not human flesh (the flesh from the dust) it was heavenly flesh ( the Word of God)
41 There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differs from another star in glory.
42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption.
43 It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power.
44 It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
45 And so it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.
46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual.
47 The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven.
48 As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly.
49 And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man.
The difference between the First man (human) and the second man (Christ) is the fleshof Christ was from heaven and the flesh of Adam was from the earth
This is why when Paul talks about the coming of Christ, he never says he came in human flesh , Adamic flesh
1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.
2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.
3 For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh,
Christ flesh was the Likeness of sinful flesh (human flesh0 the body of sin and death,
Philippians 2:5–11 (NKJV)
5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,
6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God,
7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.
8 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.
9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth,
11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
His body looked like human body but it was not of the same source.
1 For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven,
Jesus Christ and the Apostles did not believe that Jesus flesh and blood was human and that it came from Adam or from Mary.
The Obstacle to the belief in the heavenly body of Jesus Christ
The Obstacle to the belief in the heavenly body of Jesus Christ
1. The teaching that Jesus Christ was fully human and fully God, or 100% God and 100% human
1. The teaching that Jesus Christ was fully human and fully God, or 100% God and 100% human
All trinitarians and some oneness denomination hold to the belief that Jesus was fully human and fully God.
"The Scriptures proclaim the genuine and complete humanity of Jesus. (See Romans 1:3; Hebrews 2:14-17; 5:7-8.) “The Word was made flesh” (John 1:14). Here, “flesh” does not merely mean a physical body but true and complete human identity. In whatever way that we define the essential components of humanity, Christ had them. He was human in body, soul, spirit, mind, and will. (See Matthew 26:38-39; Luke 23:46; Acts 2:27-31.) Jesus was both the Son of God and the Son of man (Son of humanity). God’s Spirit caused a virgin to conceive; therefore, the holy child to whom she gave birth is the Son of God (Luke 1:35). Because “that holy thing” which was born of her was God manifest in the flesh, He is also the Son of man. "
Therefore Jesus had a human blood and he had a human body
Scriptures used to support this belief
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."
The "flesh" literary means body and that's all that it means. However this belief sees this flesh as encompassing all humanity, that is it includes human will, human mind, human soul, human spirit.
Therefore the Word became flesh becomes "God incarnate or God embodying a human being" (instead of a human body). Therefore Jesus was fully God and Fully man. This is where two wills (Divine and human) and two natures (divine and human) come from.
Flesh in the Bible means body, it never include the human soul or Spirit
In Galatians 5:19-21 reveal to us the work of the flesh, if we say that the word flesh include the human spirit, will, soul and mind. Then this means that the works revealed in this verses are the works of the human body, human will, human spirit which came from God), and human mind. This is not biblical.
Colossians 2:5 "For though I am absent in the flesh, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ."
we see flesh and the human spirit are separated, this show us that the word 'flesh' always means body.
Romans 7:25 "5 I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin."
we see the Human mind and the "flesh" used separately, because flesh always means body.
Human blood and Human Body
If Jesus had a human blood (soul) and human body then the sacrifice given for the sins of the world and the universe was a human sacrifice. In the Old Testament is was abomination to God for people to Sacrifice humans, it was done in worship of idols and demon. This believe contradicts the teachings of scriptures for .e.g.
A human sacrifice is not even sufficient for one soul
6 Those who trust in their wealth And boast in the multitude of their riches,
7 None of them can by any means redeem his brother, Nor give to God a ransom for him—
8 For the redemption of their souls is costly, And it shall cease forever—
9 That he should continue to live eternally, And not see the Pit.
The blood of Jesus is God's blood therefore was divine
28 Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.
That is why it was able to be sufficient for the reconcile every created things in the earth and in the heaven to God
The body of Jesus was divine/heavenly : John 8: 22 -24 ( he is form above),John 6:41-51 ( his flesh is the bread that came from heaven) ,1 Corinthians 15: 35-50 ( he is the heavenly man), 2 Corinthians 5:1-8 ( his flesh is the house that is from heaven)
Scripture's used to support Jesus was Human
The belief states that "The genetic (Biological) relationship of Christ to humanity was inherited through His mother, Mary. He is thereby part of the human race; the biological descendant of Adam and Eve, Abraham, and David;
Scripture used:
4 But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law,
5 to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.
This verse in KJV instead of born states 'made' which is a wrong translation, however this is used to support the belief that Jesus partook of biological nature of Mary.
The greek word is “genomenon” literally means born, and all english translation except the KJV have it made whic is a mistranslation.
If Jesus had a biological mother and we take the word "made" literally , and therefore Jesus had human body, human spirit, human will, human mind, then he was created in the womb and therefore had a beginning .
Those who Believe that Jesus was human being, believe that he had a begining in the womb of Mary. The son of God had a begining.
This goes against the scriptures , as the scripture in
1 For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him,
2 to whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated “king of righteousness,” and then also king of Salem, meaning “king of peace,”
3 without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually.
Melchizedek who was a shadow of the Son of God, just like Jesus Christ he had no father or mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days or end of life.
Therefore Jesus cannot related to Mary biologically, if he does which goes against the scripture.
We know that before the manifestation the Body (son) of God was with God as the form of the Word form eternity but when the fullness of time came the 'the Word became Flesh'
61 When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples complained about this, He said to them, “Does this offend you?
62 What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before?
5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,
6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God,
The Son of God (the Body of Jesus) pre-existed as the Word. The spoken word of God by whcih everything was created.
The second Scripture used
3 concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh,
4 and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.
If we take verse 3 literary, that is Jesus Christ flesh was from the descendent (seed) of David through Birth. This would NOT be true according to the Genealogy in Matthew 1:1-16 and Luke 3:23-38 which show us that joseph was the one that was descendent of David and not Mary. We know Joseph was not the Father of Jesus so he cannot be a descendant of David literary through biological connection
Therefore Jesus was the descendant of David only through adoption. Therefore when Paul said Romans 1:3 Jesus was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, he meant through adoption or else this verse would not be true.
The same way we cannot take the below verse to mean a literal biological descendant of David.
16 “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star.”
literary, as it's already revealed to us it is referring to the adoption and not literal biological connection.
Jesus Himself rejected the idea that he was biological descendent of david.
41 While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them,
42 saying, “What do you think about the Christ? Whose Son is He?” They said to Him, “The Son of David.”
43 He said to them, “How then does David in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying:
44 ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool” ’?
45 If David then calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his Son?”
46 And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore.
They could not answer him because the foundation upon which their whole messaic theology was established upon was completley shattered with one scripture.
Jesus's saying used to support that he was fully human
Jesus referred may times to himself as the Son of Man when he talked to his disciples or to people. This belief hold this saying as evidence that he testified he was a literal son of human hence, the human body, human soul, human will and human mind.
If we take the term "Son of Man" literary to mean Jesus was son of a human and had the nature of human then we will have to take other term that use the "son of" literary.
12 Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial; they knew not the Lord.
17 James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, to whom He gave the name Boanerges, that is, “Sons of Thunder”;
10 and said, “O full of all deceit and all fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord?
This would be very absurd, this terms are not literal but are designated to mean that the person behaves or acts like belial or thunder. The same way Jesus being called the Son of Man does not mean he was literary a son of a human but that he acted and behaved like a son of Man which he did.
He used such term so that he can communicate to them in a way that they were able to bear it, because if he called himself the son of God instead of the Son of Man when he spoke to them they would have quickly stoned him (John 10:36)
Note that also it will contradict bothe the teaching of Jesus and the Apostles about thesource of his body and blood.
2. The Glorified Body
2. The Glorified Body
This is the belief that after Jesus resurrection that his human body was changed to an immortal and incorruptible (undecaying) body .
37 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.
38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”
39 But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
They take the word "glorified" to mean the change of Jesus body after the resurrection. Hence, “the glorified body”
Question raised
8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
How can Jesus be the same yesterday, today, and forever if his body was changed after the resurrection?.
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.
If the flesh is the Glory of the Father, he was full of glory even in conception, so in what way the is body glorified
8 which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
Jesus was the Lord of Glory before the crucifixtion, so in what way is his body glorified
22 Then they said to him, “Who are you, that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?”
23 He said: “I am ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Make straight the way of the Lord,” ’ as the prophet Isaiah said.”
3 The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord; Make straight in the desert A highway for our God.
4 Every valley shall be exalted And every mountain and hill brought low; The crooked places shall be made straight And the rough places smooth;
5 The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, And all flesh shall see it together; For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
That body was "the glory of the Lord" that was revealed.
If the word Glorified means the changing of Jesus body after the resurrection, then we will have several problems
4 When Jesus heard that, He said, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”
Was Jesus body changed after he raised Lazarus up?
31 Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.
does this mean that Jesus Body was changed at that very moment? Or God was changed at that very moment?
So what does John refer to when he said in John7:39"But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified."
One must ask when was the Holy Ghost given to those who believe?,
it was after the ascension of Jesus Christ to heaven. Jesus was glorified when he ascended into his Throne.
25 Then He said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!
26 Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?”
Jesus left his throne and glory and came in the likeness of men and died the humiliating death of the cross and now when he ascended into his glorious throne, he was glorified.
It has nothing to do with the body of Jesus Christ.
Concluding scripture
11 Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh—who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands—
12 that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
14 For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation,
15 having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace,
16 and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.
17 And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near.
18 For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.
Without the heavenly flesh and blood of Jesus, we Gentiles had no hope.
Give God glory for his flesh and blood.