But He answered and said, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'"
Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written:
' He shall give His angels charge over you,'
and,
' In their hands they shall bear you up,
Lest you dash your foot against a stone.'"
Jesus said to him, "It is written again, 'You shall not tempt the LORD your God.'"
Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him, "All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me."
Then Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan! For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'"
Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.
Matt. 4: 1-11
The Bible teaches us that Jesus was fully human and fully divine. Denying Jesus' true humanity undermines the Christian faith. The Apostle John said affirming the humanity of Christ was a sign of true Christianity.
By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God. . .
I John 4: 2
The mark of a false teacher was his denial of the humanity of Jesus.
For many deceivers have gone out into the world who do not confess Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.
II John 7
One of the earliest heresies was Docetism. The name comes from the Greek word, dokeo which means seem. Docetists taught that Jesus only seemed to be human. He was a prophet who never actually lived and died.
The Bible clearly refutes this teaching. Jesus was a man; He experienced hunger:
And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry.
He became tired:
Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour.
John 4: 6
He experienced human ignorance:
"But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
Mark
Jesus exhibited human emotions:
Therefore, when Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her weeping, He groaned in the spirit and was troubled. And He said, "Where have you laid him?"
They said to Him, "Lord, come and see."
Jesus wept. Then the Jews said, "See how He loved him!"
John 11: 33-35
Jesus became angry:
Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. "It is written," he said to them, " 'My house will be called a house of prayer,' but you are making it a 'den of robbers.'"
Matt. 21: 12-13
He experienced human agony:
But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is completed!
Luke 12: 50
Jesus experienced human suffering:
. . . who, in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers and supplications, with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, and was heard because of His godly fear, 8 though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. 9 And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him. . .
Heb. 5: 7-9
Having a divine nature enable Jesus to resist sin; but because He was truly human, He experienced real temptations.
For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.
Heb. 4: 15
From
Then Jesus came with them to a place called
He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, "O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will."
Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, "What! Could you not watch with Me one hour? Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."
Again, a second time, He went away and prayed, saying, "O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done." And He came and found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy.
So He left them, went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words.5 Then He came to His disciples and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46 Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand."
Matt. 26: 36-46
Docetists thought they were elevating Jesus when they denied His humanity; but in truth, as the Scriptures make clear, without being fully human, Jesus would not be qualified to help us with our human trials and temptations.
Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.
Heb. 2: 17-18
The doctrine of the Incarnation teaches us that Jesus lived His divine/human life in and through His humanity every moment He was here. This is what enables Him to understand and help us.
Some have suggested that He alternated between His two natures. While it is true that some of Jesus' actions can be attributed to His divine nature – His miracles, for example, He did not cease to be fully human at those times. At the Council of Chalcedon (AD 451), this doctrine was expressed as "the peculiar property of each nature being preserved and being united in one person and substance.
Believing in the full humanity of Jesus is essential for Christians because of the special role God gave the human race as His image bearers. It is through humanity that God determined to display His glory and extend His Kingdom. Even after the Fall, God promised that the seed of Eve would crush the seed of Satan.
And I will put enmity
Between you and the woman,
And between your seed and her Seed;
He shall bruise your head,
And you shall bruise His heel."
Gen. 3: 15
This promise was fulfilled in Jesus because He was fully human and served His Father faithfully, and received the reward of a name greater than any other. Through Jesus Christ, we are eternally secure.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow. . .
Phil. 2: 8-10
Almighty, and sovereign Father,
we confess ourselves unworthy of Thine unspeakable Gift.
We have not love Thee as we ought;
Nor have we always been loving and supportive of one another.
The blessings Thou hast bestowed on us we have not used to relieve the burdens of others.
Forgive us.
As we contemplate the Incarnate Life and willing sacrifice of Thy Son, Jesus,
make us ever mindful our place in Thy eternal Plan.
In Jesus' name we pray.
Amen
Blessed are the saints who are equipped with the sound doctrines of TULIP!
The Old Gray Dog
Jim Tuckett
PS If you need a Ponder fix before Tuesday, read the Dog's Blog on the Westminster Fellowship web site. I am continuing the study of Jesus' "Officer Training" course, the Sermon on the Mount.
The Westminster Fellowship
Clearly and Unequivocally Proclaiming What It Means To Be Reformed Christians http://www.westminsterfellowship.org
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