by Bill Moseley

Did we see that title right? Sonships? Plural? Let it never be doubted that Jesus Christ was precisely who he claimed to be – the Son of God. Too many things attest to this for it to be seriously doubted. His own claims, the miracles he performed, the testimony of God himself to the effect that Christ was his Son are too strong to ignore. Please consider with us that there are at least four different aspects of the "sonships of Christ."

First, he is the Son of God, and that made him deity. He was with God in the beginning (John 1:1-2). He was in heaven with God, for in his great prayer, he said: "Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was" (John 17:5). There is a sense in which all men are "sons of God," and that is by creation. But Christ was the Son of God in a very special sense, and honest men have recognized this through the centuries. Even at his death a Roman Centurion said, "surely, this was the Son of God" (Matt. 27:54). Paul wrote to Timothy with the amazing affirmation that Christ was "God manifest in the flesh" (1 Tim. 3:16). The miracles he performed spoke loudly that "here is the Son of God." As God’s Son, his authority is complete (Matt. 28:18-20). Men therefore are subject to him and are called upon to hear him (Matt. 17:5; Heb. 1:1). Upon one occasion when several others turned from Jesus to walk no more with him, he turned to his disciples and asked, "will you also go away" (John 6:67). One who had been with him for over three years and saw all the evidence to his Sonship, Simon Peter, responded, "we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God" (John 6:67-69). The fact that Jesus was the Son of God is the foundation upon which the church is built (Matt. 16:18). Here then was one who could truly claim to be the Son of God in a sense that no other being ever could.

But Jesus was also the son of Adam, and that made him human (Lk. 3:23-38) . The hope of the human race is bound up in his humanity. Over 700 years before he was born the prophet said that a virgin would conceive and bring forth a son (Isa. 7:14). Matthew tells us that this was fulfilled in Christ (1:23). Let it be said at the outset of this point that frail man cannot grasp the being of one who was entirely deity and human and the same time! But over and over again the scripture calls him "the son of man." Yet this does not mean that he ceased to be God (Phil. 2:5-11). Some have mistakenly said that when Jesus was born as a man that he divested himself of deity. Nothing could be further from the truth. This is probably at attempt by mortal men to explain that which they cannot understand. Such explanations do nothing but rob Jesus of his deity. The humanity of Jesus is seen in his subjection to temptations (Matt. 4:1-11). He was even subject to human frailties, and was "touched with our infirmities" (Heb. 4:15) – yet he did not sin. Without this human nature, Christ could not be our high priest. To this end he was made "like unto his brethren" (Heb. 2:17-18). Therefore, when our trials, persecutions and temptations come, he knows about them, for he also tasted them. And so God, clothed in human flesh, came among men in the person of his Son in order to ultimately die as the perfect sacrifice for a sinful human race; only a man could do this.

Next, Jesus was the son of Abraham, and that made him a Jew. We note his genealogy as recorded in Matthew 1:1-16; a genealogy that traces him directly back to Abraham. But why is this important? In Genesis chapter 12 God made a great promise to Abraham which was composed of three parts. There was the promise of a "great nation" that came to pass even while they were in Egypt (Exo. 1:7). This nation descended through Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and his 12 sons. The great spiritual blessings of God would come through this nation, and one particular man, Jesus Christ. But second, there was a "land promise" which was fulfilled in the days of Joshua (Josh. 21:43-45). The modern day religious belief that the Jews will one day return to Palestine and inherit it is thoroughly defeated by this passage. Third, there was the promise that through Abraham and his seed all nations would be blessed. Paul makes it clear beyond any doubt that this seed of Abraham was none other than Jesus Christ (Gal. 3:15ff). In his discussion with the woman of Samaria at Jacob’s well, Jesus said, "you worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews" (John 4:22). This salvation was not a national promise, but was rather universal in scope; it applied to all men who would come to God through Christ. One should read carefully the interaction between the unbelieving Jews and Jesus regarding their relationship to Abraham (John 8). It was not they, but Jesus, who could rightly claim to being a son of Abraham.

Last, Jesus was the son of David and that made him a king. He stood in the lineal descent of David (Matt. 1:1), the greatest king the Jews had in their eyes. Therefore, he has a legitimate right to the sovereignty of David’s throne. The literal throne of David became extinct with Coniah some 600 years before Christ. But the throne that Jesus would occupy was not that physical throne. It would be a throne of rulership over a spiritual kingdom rooted in the hearts of men. Because men thought Jesus would claim to be a physical king, all sorts of wicked things happened. At his birth, Herod tried to kill Jesus, thinking he had designs on his kingdom. He was charged with claiming to usurp Caesar’s rulership. But Jesus was not interested in such paltry kingdoms as these! He told Pilate, "my kingdom is not of this world …"(John 18:36). Men today make the same mistakes about him, teaching that he will assume his kingship at his second kingdom, and rule for 1,000 years upon the earth over an earthly kingdom. History has not taught them (nor have the scriptures) a thing! We confidently affirm that Jesus is king now – in fact and in act. On the first Pentecost after the resurrection of Christ, Peter preached that Jesus was indeed king in Acts chapter two. Let us paraphrase what Peter said: "Let me tell you about David – he is dead and buried; you even know where his grave is. But I am not talking about the physical David, but rather one who would come from his seed. It is this one that God would raise up to reign on David’s throne. Jesus Christ and no other would do this. That great coronation took place at the resurrection of Jesus from the dead (and not at his second coming!)." Peter went on to say that this Jesus was exalted to the right hand of God, and called upon the people to understand that "God made this Jesus, whom you have crucified, both Lord and Christ." Let it never be doubted that Christ is indeed a king!

Yes, this Jesus the Son of God, also was a "son" in several other ways, each of them having a bearing upon our salvation and relationship with God.

- Bill Moseley, 124 Cornelson Dr., Greer, SC 29651