12/09/07 – 49LAW - “Christ’s Human Nature“– Part 2
 
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Hello!  This is Richard Vaughn

Today’s message is “Christ’s Human Nature” Part 2

Before we begin, let us seek God’s guidance. “Heavenly Father, as we 
continue on this important study pertaining to the human nature of Christ when He was here on earth; I pray that You bless those listening today with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, so that we may understand how Satan has deceived the Christian world into believing this lie regarding the human nature of Jesus; leading to many other critical deceptions. We pray for wisdom, knowledge and understanding so that we may live in the center of Your revealed will, as we ask in Jesus Name, Amen.”

Right now, I continue to keep my pledge, to cry aloud and spare not, to lift up my voice like a trumpet and to show God’s people where they are transgressing God’s law.
Last week we began our study on the human nature of Christ. Although the matter may seem insignificant to some, it is a matter with far reaching consequences that has caused many Christians to be chained to deceptions. An incorrect understanding of the nature of Christ caused Augustine to invent the false doctrine of “original sin.” That gave rise to subsequent false doctrines of “infant baptism;” and “the immaculate conception of Mary.” Then Catholic Church also introduced the illegitimate system of human priesthood. A mediatorial role was claimed for those who had dwelled in sinful flesh but had been canonized by the Catholic Church as saints in heaven. Finally, angels and the mother of Jesus were accorded intercessory status between man and God. All resulting from the deviation from truth that Augustine took regarding his heresy, “original sin.” Today much of the Protestant world is steeped in errors springing from these erroneous doctrines. 
Last week we also read some scriptures which showed that Jesus came with the flesh and nature that you and I have. Why was He born in the same flesh and nature we have? So that He could be understanding of our weaknesses and inclinations toward sin, and be a merciful High Priest for us. 
Hebrews 2:17 said "Wherefore in all things it behooved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God."  Do the words "in all things" really mean "in all things?” Of course.

    Paul declared in Romans 1:3. “Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;” It would be contrary to reason for these words to be interpreted to mean that Christ inherited a holy, un-fallen nature from Mary. Whatever David's seed was like after the flesh, our Lord partook of the same. All of those descendants of David, except one, yielded to their hereditary inclinations and committed personal sins. Jesus, like all others, inherited the nature of David after the flesh, but He did not yield to the inherent weaknesses of that nature. Although tempted in all points like we are, He did not respond by a single degree of indulgence to any of those temptations. His life was a constant fortress of invincible spiritual power against the tempter.
 
    By relying wholly upon His Father's ever-present strength, He demonstrated the victory that is possible for all of David's seed after the flesh to experience. 

    We read in Hebrews 2:14, "Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same". Notice how the inspired writer emphasized the sameness of the body of Christ with man. HE—ALSO—HIMSELF—LIKEWISE. These four words are used consecutively even though they are repetitive and redundant. WHY? In order to impress us that Jesus really did enter into the SAME nature man possessed. Just like children partake of the same flesh and blood, HE ALSO HIMSELF LIKEWISE took the SAME! How can this unambiguous language confuse anyone 
Make no mistake as it is a fact that Jesus had hereditary weaknesses.
Incidentally, these inspired words in Hebrews 2:14 definitely tell us that Christ took part of the same nature as the children who "are partakers of flesh and blood." Doesn't this tell us without question the kind of nature Christ possessed? Did Adam have any children born before he sinned? Not a one! The fact is that all the children who have ever been born in the world have inherited the same fallen nature of Adam, because they were all born after Adam sinned. The book of Hebrews declares that Jesus "himself likewise took part of the same." The same what? The same flesh and blood as children inherit from their parents. What kind of flesh do children inherit from their parents? Only sinful flesh. Has any other kind of flesh except sinful flesh ever been known among the descendants of Adam? None whatsoever. If Jesus partook of the same flesh and blood as the children, it had to be sinful flesh and blood. There is no other conclusion to be drawn. Yet, He Himself was sinless! Now understand, sinful flesh does not mean full of sin; it only means that a person has inherited weaknesses and could choose to sin. One writer, recognizing this clear Bible position, described it very succinctly in these words: 

"It would have been an almost infinite humiliation for the Son of God to take man's nature, even when Adam stood in his innocence in Eden. But Jesus accepted humanity when the race had been weakened by four thousand years of sin. Like every child of Adam He accepted the results of the working of the great law of heredity. What these results were is shown in the history of His earthly ancestors. He came with such a heredity to share our sorrows and temptations, and to give us the example of a sinless life." (The Desire of Ages, page 48). 

    This statement described the working of hereditary laws and is in perfect support of Paul's declaration that Jesus partook of the same flesh and blood as children receive from their parents. That is referring to heredity also. If Christ had been born with Adam's unfallen nature, the very suggestion of hereditary influence would be ridiculous in the extreme. There could be no place for any kind of inherited tendencies in a holy Adamic nature that had never known either birth or ancestry. If He had no inherited weaknesses, why would the writer of Hebrews say that He partook of the same flesh and blood that children receive from parents? Certain it is that the Creator did not incorporate any inherent weaknesses into the original creation. Adam had no battles to fight against hereditary tendencies. He had the power in himself to choose always not to sin.

    Did Jesus as a man claim to have that kind of power? No. He said, "I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things" (John 8:28). Repeatedly, Christ spoke of being dependent on His Father for what He said and what He did. 

    Does this mean that He possessed no deity and omnipotence as the Son of God? On the contrary, He was truly and wholly divine, just as He was truly and wholly man. But those two natures apparently were not amalgamated into some hybrid personality that stood apart from either God or man. He was fully God and He was fully man. He could draw upon either of these distinct natures while living here in the flesh. 

But the really important thing for us to remember is that He did not exercise His divine power for His own benefit or to save Himself from the weaknesses and temptations inherited from His human ancestry. He chose to live His life here as a man in the same way we have to live it. To save Himself from sin and the perils of the flesh, He did what we must do, He depended constantly and solely upon the power of His Father. It was in this way that He overcame the devil, closed every avenue of temptation, and lived a life of perfect obedience. 

By never yielding to the inherent appeal of the flesh, He set an example of the kind of victory that may come to every child of Adam through dependence on the Father. 

    Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness to use His divine power to satisfy His agonizing hunger. Satan knew that Jesus had the power of deity to work that miracle. His hope was that he could provoke Christ to draw upon His divinity for relief. Why would that have been such a triumph for Satan? He could have used that to sustain his charges that God required an obedience that no man in the flesh could produce. 

If Jesus had failed to overcome the tempter in the same nature we have, and by the same means available to us, the devil would have proven that obedience is indeed an impossible requirement. Satan understood very well that Jesus could not use His divine power to save Himself and to save man at the same time. This is what made the test such a severe and agonizing experience for Christ. 

    If Jesus actually inherited the compromised nature of Adam, then why didn't He sin like the rest of Adam's descendants? Because He was filled with the Holy Spirit from the womb and possessed a fully surrendered will and sanctified human nature. Can we partake of that same power to keep us from sinning? Yes. Jesus, in living His life of victory over sin, did not utilize His divinity but confined Himself to the same power available to each and everyone of us, through conversion and sanctification. 

Had Jesus not won the victory over Satan in the same nature we have, what encouragement could we draw from His victory? I did not need to be shown that it was possible for Adam not to yield to sin; I already knew that. What I need to know is that I can overcome sin, my nature being what it is. 

Well time is up for this week. Next week we will continue our study in God’s Word regarding “Christ’s Human Nature“– Part 3. I hope you are aware that week after week I have been exposing the many deceptions that Satan holds Christendom captive with. Why; simply because Satan wants you to be lost. 4 Times in Matthew 24, Jesus said that in the time of the end that deception will be rampant in the Christian world. My dear brothers and sisters, are you aware that deception has a stranglehold on the Christian church today and that Christianity is in a most serious apostasy? Keep listening each week and the truth can set you free if you are open to hearing and responding to those truths. 
If you would like to worship with seventh day Sabbath-keepers, come to the Victory Everlasting Gospel Church at our new location at the Hampton Inn Conference suite in South Hill, VA at the exit 12 interchange of Interstate 85. We meet at 9:15 am each Saturday the Lord’s Day and we will be meeting there until out new building has been completed. 
Look, if you have been listening to these broadcasts for any length of time, you know Saturday is God’s Sabbath and He’s calling you to start keeping it holy. Why not begin this week?
Until next week, Jesus said in John 5:39, “Search the Scriptures, for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me”. Even so, come Lord Jesus.