A.To this point in our study of Deity, we have examined the Trinity collectively and the Father individually.
B.Presently, we will consider a second member of the Trinity – Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God.
II.THE SON OF GOD IS THE SAME AS GOD
A.Scripture uses the terms “son,” “child,” “father,” etc., to connect persons to their likenesses.
1.For example, presumably because of their hot tempers, Jesus gave James and John the name Boanerges, which means “Sons of Thunder” (Mark 3:17; Luke 9:51-56).
2.Another example is in John 8:38-44, where Jesus told the Jews that they were sons of the devil because they did the deeds of the devil.
3.Also consider Joseph of Cyprus who gave a generous gift for the saints and was therefore called Barnabas, which means “Son of Encouragement” (Acts 4:36-37).
B.Likewise, the term “Son of God” connects Jesus to God, His Father in heaven.It implies that Jesus has sameness with God.
1.When the virgin Mary was told that she would bear a child, it was explained to her that He would be called the Son of God because He would be conceived by the Holy Spirit and “the power of the Most High” (Luke 1:35).
2.Notice Matthew 1:23, where Joseph was told that Jesus would fulfill the prophecy of Isaiah 7:14 – “’Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel,’ which translated means, ‘God with us.’”
3.Although Jesus was miraculously conceived, His relationship with God did not depend on birth.Instead, He is connected with God by sharing all of the attributes of God in nature, character, wisdom, glory, and power.
a.Notice that John 1 explicitly describes Jesus as the pre-incarnate Word and God who put on flesh, dwelt among us, and thus explained God to us (vv. 1, 14, 18).
b.Christ was already the Son of God before God sent Him into the world (John 3:16; 17:5; Phil. 2:6-7; 1John 4:9).
c.Colossians 2:9 states that “in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form” (more on this later).
d.Hebrews 1:3 describes the Son of God as “the exact representation of [God’s] nature.”Similarly, Colossians 1:15 describes Jesus as “the image of the invisible God” (see also 2Cor. 4:4).
4.Many came to understand that Jesus is the Son of God by observing His works and listening to His words.
a.Peter declared, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:16).Jesus said it was the Father who revealed this to him.
b.Martha said, “I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, even He who comes into the world” (John 11:27).
c.When Thomas saw the risen Jesus, he declared, “My Lord and My God!” (John 20:28).Jesus said, “Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.”
C.Jesus gave a great discourse on the meaning of His Sonship in John 5:17-47.
1.After the Jews took issue with Jesus for healing on the Sabbath, He said, “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working” (v. 17).The Jews then understood that Jesus had implied that He was equal with God by calling God His Father (v. 18).
2.Jesus took this occasion to explain His relationship with God (He used the name “Father” fourteen times in vv. 19-47).Notice the equality and sameness of the Son and the Father.
a.Jesus and the Father are equal in action (vv. 19-20).
b.Jesus and the Father are equal in giving life (vv. 21, 26).
c.Jesus is endowed by the Father with all judgment (vv. 22, 27, 30).
d.Jesus is equal in honor with the Father (v. 23).
e.Belief in Jesus is equal to belief in the Father (vv. 24, 38).
f.Jesus equated Himself to God by calling Himself “Son of God” in verse 25.
3.To prove the truth of these words, Jesus cited the witnesses of John, His miraculous works, His Father, and the Scriptures (vv. 31-47).
III.JESUS IS THE ONLY BEGOTTEN SON OF GOD
A.Others are collectively called “sons of God” in the Scriptures.
1.It appears that angels are called “sons of God” in Genesis 6:2,4 and Job 1:6; 2:1; 38:7.
2.Faithful Christians are also described as “sons of God” and “children of God” (Matt. 5:9; Jn. 1:12; Lk. 20:36; Rom. 8:14, 16, 19; 9:8; Gal. 3:26; Phil. 2:15; 1Jn. 3:1-2, 10: 5:2).
B.However, Jesus is separated and exalted as the only begotten Son of God.
1.The phrase “only begotten” is accurately translated from a single Greek word monogenēs.
a.This word is used in the New Testament to describe children who had no biological brothers or sisters (Luke 7:12; 8:42; 9:38).It is also used to describe Jesus’ relationship to the Father (John 1:14, 18; 3:16, 18; 1John 4:9) and Isaac’s relationship to Abraham (Heb. 11:17).
b.Regarding Christ’s relationship to the Father, monogenēs describes a spiritual relationship rather than a generational relationship.Christ was already the only begotten Son of God before He was conceived and born in the flesh.
c.Notice how monogenēs in Hebrews 11:17 shows how Isaac’s relationship to Abraham foreshadowed Jesus Christ’s relationship to God the Father.
i.In similarity to Jesus, monogenēs pertained primarily to Isaac’s spiritual position as the single child of promise (Rom. 9:6-9) rather than his biological relationship to Abraham, for Abraham begat other sons (Gen. 16:15; 25:1-2).
ii.As a foreshadow of Christ, Abraham was willing to sacrifice his only begotten son just as the Father would sacrifice His only begotten Son (notice Gen. 22:8 – “God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering”).
2.In Jesus’ relationship to the Father, God’s “only begotten” indicates the unique position of Jesus as the Son of God.
a.Jesus is the sole embodiment of the person and character of God the Father (2Cor. 4:4; Col. 1:15; Heb. 1:3).To see and hear Jesus is to see and hear the Father (John 14:9-10).
b.There is no other being that could hold this position.Only Jesus, the only begotten Son of God, is exceedingly qualified above angels (Heb. 1-2), Moses (Heb. 3:1-6), Aaron (Heb. 4:14-5:10), and all others.
IV.THE FULLNESS OF CHRIST
A.Let us notice again Colossians 2:9 – “For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form…”
1.Christ is presented in this passage as a contrast to the vanity of man’s knowledge, which Paul described in the previous verse as “empty deception” and “elementary principles of the world.”
2.“The fullness of Deity” means that Christ is complete as a member of the Godhead and lacks nothing.In Him the fullness of God abides forever.Consider some of the qualities of Christ in the fullness of God:
a.Christ has all authority on heaven and on earth (Matt. 28:18; Col. 2:10).
b.He is the Creator and Sustainer of all things (Col. 1: 15-17; Heb. 1:3).
c.He is the Head of the church, which is His body (Eph. 1:22-23; Col. 1: 18).
d.In Him are found all spiritual blessings (Eph. 1:3).
e.In Him is light just as in the Father (John 1:4,9; 1John 1:5).
f.In Him is salvation for those who obey Him as He obeyed the Father (Heb. 5:8-9).
B.The practical point of this passage in Colossians is stated in Colossians 2:10 – “…and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority.”
1.Everything that man needs to know about God can be known through Christ.
2.Just as Christ is complete as Deity, so also Christians are complete in Him as children of God.
V.CONCLUSION – ARE YOU MADE COMPLETE IN CHRIST?
A.In Christ, and only in Christ, man is made full or complete in salvation from sins (Acts 4:12).
B.Only through Christ does man have the knowledge of what he must do in order to be made perfect or complete (2Pet. 1:2-3).
C.Have you obeyed Christ so that you may be made complete as a child of God?
1.You need nothing else but Christ in order to become complete, and to seek anything more is vain.
2.By entering into Christ through faith and baptism (Gal. 3:26-27), you can become like Him and be made complete, just as He is complete in the fullness of Deity.
