Tuesday Conference: To Make Humanity United in Worshipping God

Tuesday Conference
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Theology e-weekly
To make humanity united in worshipping God
Doctrine of Incarnation
Dear Father,
Tuesday
conference
Our Heavenly Patron
shares
the
joy
of
Christmas. Rather than a Reflection we thought of bringing an

issue on the doctrine of incarnation in this week. The idea of a
God involving himself in the affairs of men by coming to the
earth is not a novel one. In the Greek culture of New Testament
times there were numerous instances in which the gods were said
to have manifested themselves in human flesh.
However nothing in the history matches the mystery of the
incarnation of our Lord. No one anticipated Gods intervention into
human history by the birth of a child, in a manger. Not even
Judaism was looking for Messiah to come in this way.
The doctrine of the incarnation should be the

focus of a Christian celebration of Christmas.
Page - 02
The doctrine
of the
incarnation
informs us of
the depravity
of man and
of his
The doctrine of the incarnation is frequently

the point of departure for those who reject the
Christian faith.
Historic Christian Doctrine of the Incarnation
The most important creedal statement concerning the
Incarnation is the Creed of Chalcedon. It was the Council of
Chalcedon in A.D. 451 that laid down the basic boundaries
concerning the orthodox view of Christs person and nature. All
of Christendom (Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and
Protestant) affirms the Chalcedonian formula that Jesus Christ is
both God and man.
desperate
condition
apart from
divine
intervention.
Importance of the Principle of Incarnation

Incarnation is not just a debate about something which took
place 2,000 years ago in history. The issues at hand in the
incarnation of our Lord are matters of principle which have very
practical ramifications.
To deny the incarnation is to deny the deity or the
humanity (or both) of our Lord. Such a denial is to conclude
that it is impossible for our Lord to be both undiminished deity
and sinless humanity at the same time.
The doctrine of the incarnation is Not Only Neglected by

Christians today, it is Under Attack by those who would call
themselves Christians.
The doctrine of the incarnation warns us of

Page - 03
the folly of rejecting Salvation in Christ and

substituting our own efforts.
It is little
Eight Essential Points about the Incarnation
wonder
1. Jesus Christ is one person possessing two distinct natures.
that those
who reject
the biblical
teaching of
2. While Christ has two natures, He nevertheless remains a

single unified person. Christs human nature subsists only
for the purpose of this union; it has no independent
personal subsistence of its own.
3. Through His divine nature, Jesus Christ is God the Son,
the
second person of the Trinity, who shares the one divine
incarnatio
essence fully and equally with the Father and the Holy
n also
reject the
authority
of the
Spirit.
4. Through His human nature, Jesus Christ is fully human,
possessing all the essential attributes of a true human
being.
5. The union of the two natures is not an indwelling, nor a
Scriptures
mere contact or occupancy of space, but a personal union.
which so
6. The two natures coinhere or interpenetrate in perfect union
emphatical
so that the human is never without the divine or the divine
ly teach
without the human, but the natures do not mix or mingle.
this
7. The two natures, divine and human, are distinct, but
doctrine.
inseparably united in the one person. The two natures

retain their own attributes or qualities and are thus not
mixed together.
8. The human nature is not deified, and the divine
nature does not suffer human limitation.
The doctrine of the

incarnation informs us of
Gods desire and His ability to
save fallen man.
Biblical Support ...
Page - 04
The
term
incarnation is of
Latin origin, and
literally
means
becoming in flesh
While the term is
not contained in
Scripture per se,
the
Actions of Yahweh attributed to Jesus Christ

Worship
45:23 / Phil. 2:10-11)

Salvation of Yahweh applied to Jesus Christ (Joel
2:32 / Rom. 10:13)

Judgment of Yahweh applied to Jesus Christ (Isa.
:10 / John 12:41)

Nature of Yahweh applied to Jesus Christ (Exod. 3:14 /
8:58)
Greek
Triumph of Yahweh applied to Jesus Christ (Ps.
equivalent is (John
1:14: Kai ho logos
sarx
egeneto
And
the
--
of Yahweh applied to Jesus Christ (Isa.
68:18 / Eph. 4:8)

Divine attributes attributed to Jesus Christ
Word
became flesh).
Eternal existence (John 1:1; 8:58; 17:5; 1 Cor. 10:4;
Col. 1:17; Heb. 13:8)

Self-existence (John 1:3; 5:26; Col. 1:16; Heb. 1:2)
Immutability (Heb. 1:10-12; 13:8)
Omnipresence (Matt. 18:20; 28:20; Eph. 1:23; 4:10;
Col. 3:11)
Omniscience (Mark 2:8; Luke 9:47; John 2:25; 4:18;
16:30; Col. 2:3)

Omnipotence (John 1:3; 2:19; Col. 1:16-17; Heb. 1:2)
Sovereignty (Phil. 2:9-11; 1 Pet. 3:22; Rev. 19:16)
Authority (Matt. 28:18; Eph. 1:22)
Fo r the True Humanity of Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ calls Himself or others call Him a man
Jesus Christ was born naturally
Jesus Christ had ancestors
Jesus Christ experienced normal growth and development
Jesus Christ was subject to real physical limitations
Jesus Christ experienced physical pain and death
Jesus Christ exhibited the full range of human emotions
Page - 05
Why is the doctrine of the Incarnation important?

It has been said that Christianity is Christ. The meaning behind this
statement is, of course, that Christ is the center and heart of historic Christian
truth.
Gods existence and characteristics: While one
may know many
important things about God via general revelation, without the Incarnation, talking
about God is highly speculative and knowing God personally is virtually
impossible.
The Trinity: The two other persons of the Godhead, the Father and the Holy
Spirit, are uniquely understood in light of the revealed person and nature of
Christ.
The Atonement: Only Jesus Christ, who is both God and man, is able to offer
Himself as a sacrifice that reconciles a holy God with sinful mankind.
Resurrection: A bodily resurrection that conquers death is only possible for the
God-man.
Justification: The basis of humanitys acquittal before the Father is directly tied
to the actions of the divine-human Savior on the cross.
This is the real stumbling-block in Christianity. It is here that Jews,

Moslems, Unitarians, Jehovahs Witnesses, and many of those who feel the
difficulties above mentioned (about the virgin birth, the miracles, the
atonement, and the resurrection), have come to grief.
Ancient Christological Heresies
Page - 06
1. Docetism: Jesus only seemed to be human (Gk. Dokeo to seem), even

asserting that Jesus had a phantom-like body. Docetism denied the true
humanity of Christ.
2. Ebionism: Jesus is a mere man, a prophet but the natural son of Joseph and
Mary (no virgin birth). Ebionism denied the true deity of Christ.
3. Arianism: Jesus was of like substance with the Father, but not the same
substance. Jesus was viewed as the first and greatest creation of God, thus
denying the true deity of Christ. This influential heresy was first condemned at
the Council of Nicea (A.D. 325).
4. Apollinarianism: In the Incarnation the divine Logos took the place of the
human soul and psyche of Christ. Jesus' humanity was restricted to his physical
body, thus reducing his humanity. Apollinarianism denied the true humanity of
Christ and was condemned at the Council of Constantinople (A.D. 381).
5. Nestorianism: This view affirmed both Christs deity and humanity, but saw
the union between the natures as only a moral and/or sympathetic union, not a
real personal union. As a result, Jesus became two persons in two natures,
rather than the orthodox position of one person in two natures. This heresy was
condemned at the Council of Ephesus (A.D. 431).
6. Eutychianism: Christ had one mixed or compound nature. The two natures
merged to form a single nature that was neither divine nor human (a third
substance). This heresy was condemned at the Council of Chalcedon (A.D. 451).
7. Monophysitism: Christ had only one nature. It was argued that the human
nature was absorbed into the divine nature. This heresy was condemned at the
third Council of Constantinople (A.D. 680).
8. Monothelitism: Christ had only one will. The orthodox position is that if
Christ had two natures He must have had two wills, though the human will
conforms in every way to the divine will. Monothelitism was also condemned at
the third Council of Constantinople.
Page - 07
It is probably not necessary to remind you

that December 25th is hardly to be considered the time
when our Lord was actually born. No one really knows the
exact date of our Lords birth. We do know that by the end
of the fourth century Christs birth was celebrated on
January 6th, and then later on, celebration was divided
between January 6th and December 25th. In early Rome
the Feast of Saturnalia was celebrated for seven days from
the 17th of December to the 24th. This festive week was
marked by a spirit of merriment, gift giving to children
and other forms of entertainment.
Dear father,
Tuesday conference sends you the kisses of love. Wishing
you the festal greetings and praying for your joyous dreams to
come true...
If Christianity has a center, it is

Jesus Christ. It is impossible
for the Christian to talk about
God, salvation, or worship
without bringing Jesus into the
discussion, whether explicitly
or implicitly.

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Tuesday Conference

To make humanity united in worshipping God

Our Heavenly Patron

Christmas. Rather than a Reflection we thought of bringing an

The doctrine of the incarnation should be the

The doctrine of the incarnation is frequently

Importance of the Principle of Incarnation

The doctrine of the incarnation is Not Only Neglected by

The doctrine of the incarnation warns us of

the folly of rejecting Salvation in Christ and

Eight Essential Points about the Incarnation

1. Jesus Christ is one person possessing two distinct natures.

2. While Christ has two natures, He nevertheless remains a

second person of the Trinity, who shares the one divine

mere contact or occupancy of space, but a personal union.

6. The two natures coinhere or interpenetrate in perfect union

so that the human is never without the divine or the divine

without the human, but the natures do not mix or mingle.

7. The two natures, divine and human, are distinct, but

inseparably united in the one person. The two natures

The doctrine of the

Biblical Support ...

Actions of Yahweh attributed to Jesus Christ

45:23 / Phil. 2:10-11)

2:32 / Rom. 10:13)

:10 / John 12:41)

Triumph of Yahweh applied to Jesus Christ (Ps.

of Yahweh applied to Jesus Christ (Isa.

68:18 / Eph. 4:8)

Eternal existence (John 1:1; 8:58; 17:5; 1 Cor. 10:4;

Col. 1:17; Heb. 13:8)

16:30; Col. 2:3)

Fo r the True Humanity of Jesus Christ

Why is the doctrine of the Incarnation important?

may know many

This is the real stumbling-block in Christianity. It is here that Jews,

Ancient Christological Heresies

1. Docetism: Jesus only seemed to be human (Gk. Dokeo to seem), even

It is probably not necessary to remind you

If Christianity has a center, it is

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