#22 On the Nature of God: His ONLY BEGOTTEN and perfect SON

Confused about Christianity and other world religions? A little research will show that there are major differences between Christianity and other religions. Christianity is the only religion where God’s Son came to the earth, took on the form of a man, and died to be a sacrifice for man’s sins, none of which were His own.

For most religions, salvation depends on being earned through works. In Christianity, salvation depends on the sacrifice of the perfect Son.

In fact, God knew in advance of creation about man’s future need for salvation and planned to redeem mankind, Ephesians 1:4-5:

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ… even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will,”

This does not mean that God predestined individuals for salvation. Instead, He predestined a group of people –the faithful and the obedient—to be adopted as sons.

Thus, the church—the saved group—was not an afterthought. It was all planned before creation.

Another passage that makes the same point is Romans 8:29-30:

“For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.”

This verse says that God called and justified the predestined group—the church—to become brothers to Jesus Christ.

Something to know about Jesus is that as part of the Godhead, He was present in creation, John 1:1-4; 14:

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made…

…And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us,”

These words indicate that when God spoke, Jesus was the power that went forth and accomplished the action.

Jesus came in the form of a man, was anointed by the Holy Spirit, preached the gospel, did miracles, and selected 12 men to serve as apostles to form the church.

Jesus was intimately entwined with the gospel He taught. He told Thomas that He was the way, the truth, and the life, John 14:6:

“Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

This means that Jesus is the only way to get sins forgiven. This underscores the fact that Jesus is the truth about how to get eternal life in heaven.

At birth, man is faced with mortality. Apart from Jesus’ teachings, man is ignorant of where mankind came from, where men are going, and how to live on this earth. Jesus and His teachings are the only source for mankind

After preaching the gospel, Jesus offered Himself as a sacrifice for our sins. The Hebrews writer contrasted Christ’s sacrifice with those of the Old Testament, Hebrews 9:13-14:

“For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.

Jesus was resurrected and proven to be alive by witnesses, 1 Corinthians 15:3-6:

“Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time,”

On the day of Pentecost, He ascended back to the Father, Acts 1:9:

“…as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.”

Hebrews 1:3-4:

“After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.”

Before Jesus ascended, He explained His vast authority to the apostles, Matt 28:18:

“And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”

Although He has ascended back to the Father, He continues to help the prayers of Christians, Hebrews 7:25:

“… he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.”

Jesus will come again, not as the savior, but as our judge, Matthew 25:31-34; 41:

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world…

…Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.’”

It is the nature of God to have a perfect Son who was a perfect sacrifice for mankind’s sins.

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