Who was and is Jesus?

While He Tarries Ministries
Who was is Jesus

Based on some comments that I have heard recently, and some suggestions that I elaborate on some previous teachings, I am going to repeat and elaborate on a series called foundational doctrines. The topic for this article is:
WHO WAS JESUS?
You wouldn't think that a teaching would be necessary on this topic, but in these last days, cults, splinter groups, apostate churches, and heretical teachers have brought doctrines of demons into church on this topic and others.
For this reason we will spend this entire lesson on this topic to clear the air and find out exactly Who Jesus was! This is THE most important question in our foundational series on Bible truths!

Some say Jesus was a great teacher.
Some say he was a great moral example.
Some say he was a great prophet.
Some say he was a historical figure.
Some say he was a man.
John 10:31 Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him.
Did Jesus lay aside his divinity when he was born on earth?
Is Jesus exactly as Adam, as a fallen creature, except without sin?
Was Jesus both God and man at one time, in one person?

But what does the Bible say?

John 10:30 I and my Father are one. [The Jews knew what he meant, because look at the next verse.]
John 10:33 The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.
Deuteronomy 6:4 Hear O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord.
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:3 All things were made by him: and without him was not any thing made that was made.
John 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) of grace and truth.
Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Christ Jesus:
Colossians 1:15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
Colossians 1:16 for by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him;
Colossians 1:17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
Colossians 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He might have pre-eminance.
Colossians 1:19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell.

Let's look at the word firstborn and see what it means.

Some people say: that Jesus was the "first born again" man. Now that is about the dumbest thing I have ever heard in my life. Why would Jesus, who is God Himself in the flesh, need to be born again; that is, unless that person has believed the satanic lie and doesn't believe that Jesus is God, or doesn't know what being born again means. Let's see what firstborn really means!
firstborn:: Strong's 4416 prototokos - from protos foremost in time, place, order of importance. an alt of Strong's 5088 tikto; to produce from a seed; firstborn of God is symbolic. Strong's 4413

Firstborn to the Jews meant that to the first born son belonged the birthright, which included the headship of the family or tribe.

Firstborn in regards to Christ is a title given Him with various attributes, including primacy (being first), headship, and pre-eminance.

Colossians 1:17 above talks about being first. He is first from the position standpoint, in that He always existed, so obviously He was first.
Colossians 1:18 talks about having pre-eminace. This means first in rank or influence. He was the first to raise from the dead, not subject to death again, first from the standpoint that he is the head of the church, etc.
Colossians 1:19 talks about in Him (Christ) (of God) dwell. The Greek word "pleroma" (Strong's 4138) talks about "of being full" and means a fullness of the Godhead in Christ. This means that Christ was fully God and fully man.
1 Timothy 3:16 "And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory".
1 John 1:3 "--and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ".
John 5:18 "Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God."
John 8:58 "I tell you the truth... before Abraham was born, I am". [By using the phrase "I am" Jesus very plainly identifies Himself as the everlasting God.]
Exodus 3:14 "And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you".
Exodus 9:14 "...that thou mayest know that there is none like me in all the earth".
Isaiah 43:10 "...before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me. I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no savior".
Isaiah 9:6 "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace".
Matthew 1:21 "And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins".
Matthew 1:23 "Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us".
John 17:5 "And now O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was".
He laid aside His prerogatives as God to act as God.
Micah 5:2 "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting". (from the days of eternity)

False concepts

He emptied himself of deity (would not be God anymore).
He emptied Himself of the possession of divine attributes (Would have ceased to be God).
He emptied Himself of the apparent possession of divine attributes. (acted as though he didn't have them) (This would be a falsehood.)
He emptied Himself of the use of divine attributes. (would not be God).

The Bible says that He was GOD manifest (Strong's 5319=revealed or made visible) in the flesh. 1 Timothy 3:16

Proper Concepts

Christ did not cease to be God in becoming man (Hebrews 13:8 Same yesterday...).
Christ did not give up the possession of divine attributes (would cease to be God).
God was not changed into a man.
God assumed the nature of man without ceasing to be God.

What did this self-emptying consist of?

He surrendered the independent exercise of divine attributes. (He still had them).
He became dependent upon Father's will for any exercise of, manifestation of these attributes.

Christ was always God
In Philippians 2: 6-8 Jesus set aside only his glory as God.

Philippians 2:6. "Who being in the form (Strong's 3444) of God, thought it not robbery (Strong's 725) to be equal with God:"
Philippians 2:7. "But made himself of no reputation (Strong's 2758), and took upon him the form (Strong's 3444) of a servant, and was made in the likeness (Strong's 3667) of men".

Strong's 3444= Morphe: The reality that can be externalized. None could be in the form of God who was not God. He took upon Himself the form of a servant, which is an inner attitude by taking upon Himself the shape of men. The shape (schema) is the outward form having to do not with its essential being, but with His appearance.

Strong's 725=harpagmos: Jesus continued to be in the flesh what He was before He became man. He has always been God. In schema (Strong's 4976), outer appearance, Jesus was man; in morphe (Strong's 3444), reality, He was God. To not be who He claimed to be would be, in a sense, robbery.

Strong's 2758 = kenoo: To empty. This is the beginning of His self humiliation by becoming in the form of a servant in the likeness of man. In spite of his voluntary humiliation, He was still in the form of God. But in spite of His essence of deity, He took upon Himself the true essence of a servant.

When he became man, he emptied Himself of the proper recognition that he had with the Father and entered into the world of men who failed to properly recognize Him as God. He voluntarily took upon Himself something in addition to what He was which caused His improper recognition by men.

Strong's 3667 = homoioma: likeness, resemblance. While there is resemblance, it by no means follows that one thing has been derived from the other.

He could not cease to be God in becoming man.
He is eternally God, but now He has taken humanity upon himself.
In taking humanity, He did not empty himself of deity.
To deny this is to fall into the heresies of the early centuries.

In Philippians 2:6-8 when Jesus made himself of no reputation and took the form of servant, did he lose his divinity?

Was Jesus exactly like Adam after he sinned? The Bible doesn't say that. It says that He was conceived of the Holy Spirit, not man, utterly without sin, and without the stain of original sin that taints every human being.

The body that was created by God in the womb of a virgin was a perfect creation, befitting the divine son of God.

Adam's taint of sin was not in the human nature of Jesus. Only a totally pure unblemished and perfect sacrifice could take away the sins of the world.

There had to come one who lives outside of that sin nature in order to rescue us.
Jesus was fully God and fully man, right from his birth.
Colossians 2:9 "For in Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily."

Christ always possessed Divine Attributes.
He did not empty himself of any of his essential or moral attributes.

Omnipresence (everywhere): John 3:13; Matthew 28:19-20; Matthew 18:20
Omnipotence (all-powerful): John 6:36; John 14:11; John 10:25, 37-38; John 15:24
Omniscience (all-knowing): John 2:24-25; John 18:4
Immutable (same): Hebrews 1:12; Hebrews 13:8
Self-existence: John 8:58; John 1:4; John 5:26; 1 John 5:11-13

Summary:

He said that he was equal to God
All things were made by him
He was before all things
He is God manifested in the flesh
He existed before the world was.
He existed from the days of eternity.
He has the fullness of God in himself.

So since Jesus is God in the flesh, this is why we can cast our cares on Him. 1 Peter 5:7.
And, of course, our first care is our salvation. Right, all our other cares don't matter.

And then, once we meet Jesus, we need to talk to Him in prayer.
We let go by admitting that we can not be acceptable to God on our own.
We admit to God that we are not perfect, which is His standard; that we are sinful in His eyes.
Only through the shed blood of Jesus can we approach God in prayer.
We have to be converted (born again) by repenting of our sins, be willing to forsake them, and receiving Jesus as our Savior.
You have to believe that Jesus died on the cross for you, shed his blood to atone for your sins, rose from the dead and by His own blood he entered into the Holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. Hebrews 9:12
Just saying a prayer will not get you saved unless you meant it in your heart. Simply quoting a Bible verse will not force God to save you. God is looking at your heart to see what you are thinking when you pray.
Acts 3:19 says "Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out..."

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While He Tarries Ministries Who was is Jesus

While He Tarries Ministries
Who was is Jesus