When belief takes a wrong turn Jesus in the crosswalk RUMC February 7, 2016

When belief takes a wrong turn

Jesus in the crosswalk

RUMC February 7, 2016

 We used this sign last week because sometimes driving is just complicated. So is theology.

Three famous theologians named Karl Barth, Paul Tillich, and Reinhold Niebuhr found themselves at Caesarea Philippi all at the same time. Who should come along but Jesus. He asks the three very wise men the famous Christological question, “Who do you say that I am?”

Karl Barth goes first saying: “You are the totaliter aliter, the vestigious trinitatum who speaks to us in the modality of Christomonism.”

Not prepared for Barth's brevity, Paul Tillich stumbles out: “You are he who heals our ambiguities and overcomes the split of angst and existential estrangement; you are he who speaks of the theonomous viewpoint of the analogia entis, the analogy of our being and the ground of all possibilities.”

Reinhold Niebuhr gives a cough for effect and says, in one breath: “You are the impossible possibility who brings to us, your children of light and children of darkness, the overwhelming oughtness in the midst of our fraught condition of estrangement and brokenness in the contiguity and existential anxieties of our ontological relationships.”

 Jesus knelt down and wrote in the sand… “Huh?”

Just like driving, theology can be complicated, so complicated that we want to scratch our heads and say, “Huh?”

But also, just like driving, if you stay focused on doing one thing …if you just keep it basic, it really is not so hard. In driving, all you have to do is stay on the road, follow the law, and don’t hit anything. In theology, all we have to do is keep on eyes on Jesus.

 Today I want to ask the question, “Was Jesus human, divine or both?” In trying to answer this question, theologians have come up with some virtually incomprehensible understandings of Jesus. I hear them and I just want to say “Huh?”

There is a very good reason for that. They are trying to avoid making all the mistakes that have been made before. You see, Christology, or how we understand Jesus Christ, has historically been the most hotly debated doctrine in all of Christianity. There has been more written on Christology than any other doctrine. There have been more arguments over Christology than any other doctrine. And there have been more wrong turns in Christology than any other doctrine in history. There are six main Christological wrong turns, or heresies.

1.         On one end, there are the Ebionites, who said that Jesus is just human. Jesus was just a good man; one prophet, one holy man, or one good religious teacher among many. That is a wrong turn in belief.

2.         There were folks who believed Jesus was related to God, but not divine.

3.         The Adoptionists said, that the Ebionites were right, Jesus was just human, except God adopted him at his baptism and confirmed it at the transfiguration saying, “This is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased.”

4.         There was a group who said that Jesus was born human, and God took over his body. Kind of like a spiritual possession.

5.         There were folks who claimed Jesus was completely divine, and his humanity was an illusion.

6.         Finally, on the other extreme end of the spectrum, there were the Nestorians, who said that Jesus was divine. God completely consumed all of his humanity until there was none left, “like a drop of honey in the ocean,” They said. 

 Eventually, because they shortchanged either the human side, or the divine side... Every one of those ideas was condemned as a heresy… as a wrong belief. Because people could not strike that balance, there were councils, and creeds, and condemnations, and wars of words, and schisms in the church until we settled on the right language to describe Jesus as equally, completely, and simultaneously human and divine.

 The Chalcedon creed from 541 AD says,

•           “Lord Jesus Christ, the same perfect in Godhead and also perfect in manhood;

•           truly God and truly man;

•           consubstantial [coessential] with the Father according to the Godhead, and consubstantial with us according to the Manhood; …

**How many ways can you say equally, completely, and simultaneously human and divine?

 The Nicene creed says, “We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,

the only Son of God,

eternally begotten of the Father,

God from God, Light from Light,

true God from true God,

begotten, not made,

of one Being with the Father.

Through him, all things were made.

**How many ways can you say equally, completely, and simultaneously human and divine?

Today’s scripture says the same thing;

Though he was in the form of God,

 he did not regard equality with God

 as something to be exploited,

but emptied himself,

 taking the form of a slave,

 being born in human likeness.

And being found in human form,

he humbled himself

 and became obedient to the point of death—

 even death on a cross.

Therefore God also highly exalted him

 and gave him the name

 that is above every name,

so that at the name of Jesus

 every knee should bend,

 in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

 and every tongue should confess

 that Jesus Christ is Lord,

 to the glory of God the Father.

**How many ways can you say equally, completely, and simultaneously human and divine?

A quick look at the Gospel of Mark tells us that

•           When he was tempted…Jesus was human. (Mark 1:1213)

•           When he was misunderstood….Jesus was human. (Mark 3:2027)

•           When he had family problems…Jesus was human. (Mark 3:3133)

•           When he was rejected….he was human. (Mark 6:16)

•           When Jesus lost people close to him…he was human. (Mark 6:1429)

•           When his friends betrayed him…he was human (Mark 14:1011,50)

•           When he had doubts and fears…he was human. (Mark 14:3536)

•           When he was mocked by the world…he was human. (Mark 15:1619)

But even being human he was equally, completely, and simultaneously divine.

•           In today’s scripture, we read, “he did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited.” See, he was divine. Philippians 2:58

•           “He was the word made flesh, the Word was with God, and the word was God.” He was divine. … John

•           In Colossians, “He is the image of the invisible God.” Divine.

•           And Jesus knew he was God…that’s why he went around making the “I AM” statements irritating the religious leaders of his day… Because he was divine.

•           That’s why he forgave the sins of the paralytic before he healed him… Because he was divine.

•           That’s why he allowed himself to be crucified… Because he was divine.

•           That’s why he told his disciples that on the third day that grave would be empty… Because he was divine.

•           That’s why he now sits at the right hand of the father waiting to judge the living and dead. … Because he is divine.

 But even being divine he was equally, completely, and simultaneously human. Take a look at this chart.

MAN   GOD

He worshipped the Father (John 17)  He is worshipped (Matt. 2:2, 11, 14:33)

He was called man (Mark 15:39, John 19:5)

He was called God (John 20:28, Heb. 1:8)

He was called Son of Man (John 9:3537)

He was called Son of God (Mark 1:1)

He prayed to the Father (John 17)

He is prayed to (Acts 7:59)

He was tempted (Matt. 4:1)

He is sinless (1 Pet. 2:22, Heb. 4:15)

He grew in wisdom (Luke 2:52)

He knows all things (John 21:17)

He died (Rom. 5:8)

He gives eternal life (John 10:28)

He has a body of flesh and bones (Luke 24:39)

All the fullness of deity dwells in Him (Col. 2:9)

**How many ways can you say equally, completely, and simultaneously human and divine.

 Do not… as so many have before us. And as so many do today, make the wrong turn in your belief about who Jesus was and is.

•           In spite of the common secularist… and even extremely liberal Christian view that Jesus was just a man like us…He is NOT. Because he is equally, completely, and simultaneously human and divine.

•           In spite of hearing that Jesus is just another prophet like all the others including Mohamed. Jesus is not. He is unique because he is equally, completely, and simultaneously human and divine.

•           In spite of the popular belief that he was just a good man, or a good teacher or anything else. Jesus was more than good. He is equally, completely, and simultaneously human and divine.

 Even though it can be confusing, stay the course and hold both his divinity and his humanity, both his humanity and his divinity, in balance and in tension.

•           Holding that human/divine balance is the only way we have a real savior, if God experienced the fullness of sinful humanity and loved us enough to die and be resurrected for our salvation.

"For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost." Luke 19:10

•           Holding that human/divine balance is the only way we have one who can comfort us because there is none other who brings the peace of God to our hurting world.

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world

gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not let them be afraid.”

•           Holding that human/divine balance is the only way we have one who can bring us eternal life.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. .”

 Even though there are many conflicting opinions about who Jesus Christ is, and what his nature is… our belief is very clear. Jesus is the one and only God in real human skin, who came to walk among us, teach us, heal us, love us. Die for us, and be raised for us.

 There is only one God who dares to step into the crosswalk of our crazy and sinful world to walk with us, love us, and save us.

 He is the one and only, who is equally, completely, and simultaneously human and divine.