I went on a tour of Hollywood once, on my own, without the canned pitch and the $15 tariff, but it was frustrating,even
though you couldn't see much through the massive iron gates that barred the way to all those magnificent mansions. What
I could see made the trip worth the trouble though, manicured grounds, stately palms, and immaculate gardens. Then there
were the houses, man! "Some digs!", as the guys in the hood would have said.
At each gate I tried to appear unobtrusive, for I knew a camera had a fix on me, and some suited security guy was eyeballing
me, ready to leap if I made one false move. I didn't even touch the gates, but just stood and gazed across the green
contours of rolling grass and shrubs through the iron bars. I grew up in the Montana high country, 50 miles from a town,
without tv or even a radio, and by the time I had a drive in movie close by (when I boarded out to go to high school), I was
usually more interested in the action inside the car then on the screen. So, as a result, I didn't adopt a movie star as
a hero back then.
So standing there at those resplendent edifices wasn't motivated by my knowledge of some of the people, though I had
heard their names, ofcourse. My attention was on the grandeur of the estates themselves. I had never seen such coordinated
and beautiful landscaping, trimmed and mowed to create a panorama of shear lovliness. I remember I would have given $100, a
fortune in my youth, to walk around in one of them and admire the meticulous terrain.
So what is my point in relating this flash back to my younger days? Just this; As unbelievers, before we are saved, we are
in much the same boat as I was back in Hollywood in respect to God and His eternal kingdom. We had no means of access, no
entry, and, most important, not even an invitation!
It wasn't until we accepted Christ as our Savior that we realized that exquisite world even existed, and when we did find
out about it, we weren't left standing without, gawking through the bars. An invitation arrived in the perfect time in our
life, and at the top of the card, a solid gold crest....THE ETERNAL KINGDOM OF GOD.
Those massive gates were thrown wide and we were ushered inside.
My analogy here is to emphasize the entry into that kingdom, the warm welcome we received, for at one time we were without
God, and the spiked barrier between us was insurmountable...condemnation to the Lake of Fire by reason of our corruption.
We were dead to God, without spiritual life, and bound for hell.
But a marvelous event overtook us as we stood there, because the gates were moved aside to allow us inside. That "pass",
that welcome reception, was made possible by one man, a carpenter's son named Jesus of Nazareth. Until His victory over
sin, there was never a barrier in the Hollywood of my youth so formidable, so impassable, as the bulwark which barred our
way into heaven.
But Jesus Christ changed that forever. He is our portal into heaven, an everlasting gateway into which all men
may enter.
There is a critical body of doctrine which deals with this doorway, called in theology proper "The Hypostatic Union". In
simple terms, this doctrine explains that our own pathway into eternal glory is the result of this unique union, an
eternal "interface" bringing together, in one Person, humanity and God. Thus, Jesus Christ is The "God-Man", possessing
two natures, two sets of attributes, two personalities. It is His very intimate communion with Eternal God that makes it
possible for every human being ever born to pass that great frontier, when we depart this world.
What makes this doctrine, at the same time, critical to our comprehension of God and His grace work in our behalf, and
absolutely fascinating, is the one-of-a-kind relationship involved. No other man, nor The Persons of God for that matter,
has ever entered into so "up close and personal" a bond, and that being unbreakable, incorruptable, eternal in nature.
The principle that is foremost, most important for us to understand, in the hypostatic union is that of the exclusive
natures of Christ, refering to the function of both man and God in their individual roles, each unimpaired by the other.
Jesus Christ is both a real man, in every respect like as we are, and Almighty God. As God, His attributes are intact,
pure, unaffected by the presence of man. As man, He is weak, possessing a mortal body, and in mentality, had to develop
just as each of us do.
This important distinction must accompany the body of truth involved in the Hypostatic Union, for had the presence of
God impaired the volition and natural development of Jesus, in mentality or otherwise, the exercise would have been
pointless. The "Lamb of God" must be a genuine member of the species homosapien, for He was our substitute, and thus
had to be flesh and bone and human soul.
Just as important, it must be clear that the humanity of our Lord did not effect His divine self. It is impossible for
God to change, for any reason.
There is one principle, in the Doctrine of Kenosis, which explains that God the Son did restrict the function of His
divine power on earth, for the duration of the incarnation, and for good reason, but his information will be covered
later. This aspect of the incarnation will be discussed shortly.
Jesus Christ marks a juncture, the hub of history, from which the course of God's Plan is charted in it's many
diverse directions. He brings together God, man, and the solution to the barrier between us in one brief glimpse
at His effulgence, Christ...the visible member of the Holy Trinity. Like each of us, Jesus possesses a soul, the
invisible life force which is immortal, timeless. Like each of us, His soul was emmersed in a body of flesh.
When I look at my Mom, I see a familiar face, one I love more than my life. OK, so I can't see the ephemeral soul,
but by her "vessel", the one she came packaged in, I know her, recognize her. Just so, when we lay our eyes on Christ
we see Eternal God.
To better grasp the mechanics of this union let's look where all the answers are, though many of them require some
knowlegable background, familiarity with the scriptures and the translation in context. The most accurate rendering
of The Word is not the King James. This translation of scriptures came out of a politically charged environment, and
many of the scribes that translated from the Greek and Hebrew made small, obscure changes that reflected the politically
correct mores of that day. Further, many key words in The Word, like "hope", for example, have changed in inference
over the centuries ("hope" means "unshakable confidence").
I encourage any visitor that has not already done so to read Straight Scoop, a page which addresses
the erosion of accurate Bible teaching, and the solution.
So, back to our subject (I get to preaching sometimes!); The dual natures of Christ, The God-Man.
Now I'm going to throw a curve ball; so stay sharp!
The Word reveals Christ in each of the contexts; divine and human, but there is a third context; His standing as
the Unique Celebrity of all time, The God-Man. It is helpful to sort out the scriptures, and identify the Person
that they refer to. Keep in mind, As God-Man He is different that either God or Man, and the difference lies in the
status of the only changable member of that exclusive bond; Man. God doesn't change, but Man did! He was born a poor son
of a carpenter, and is exaulted to The Ruler of Heaven and Earth, The Righteous Judge, and many other honorable titles.
To add some significance to these three "images", demonstarte how primary they are in God's Plan, each Person has a Royal
Line, a Royal Family.
1. As man, Jesus is in the line of David, the great King of the Jews, and the man God promised to perpetuate his line
forever. This is the Royal Patent which define his titles as "Son of David" and "David's Greater Son". As the King of
the New Israel, His family will be the thousands of individuals in David's line.
2. As God, The Son is, obviously, Royalty. He is The Sovereign of The Universe. His family? Very exclusive little group,
just two Persons; The Father and Spirit.
3. But as God-Man He has a Royal Patent as well; King of Kings, Lord of Lords. But! He has no Royal Family! Thus, the Church
Age, of which we are part, is the "calling out" of The Royal Family of God. We are a new, unique people, higher than angels
and members of the Divine Household. Even the Old Testement heros, men like David, Moses, Daniel, Jeremiah...these are in
the "Family of God". This is a reference to "the meek", who will inherit the earth.
So, to narrow this down; There are passages which express His divine nature, passages which express His human nature, and
passages specific to His new throne, which incorporate both divine and human wills. Sorry of I hammer at this, but the
nuances involved here are far more critical, in terms of the flow of human history, that they seem.
His humanity is emphasized in this verse;
"And he said unto them, That the Son of Man is Lord also of the sabbath." (Luke:6:5)
While His diety is emphasized in this verse;
"And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is
true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life." (1John:5:20)
His new royalty is emphasized in this verse;
"And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this
world are become the Kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.." (Rev 11:15)
There are many verses which address all three "individuals" in Christ
But rather than cite a dozen passages, what I want to dwell on a moment is the remarkable compatibility of the natures
of Christ, and how effortlessly, and free of conflict, is the expression of both natures functioning together. This
speaks of the harmony God created us for, not strife and violence. These misadventures are products of a sin nature,
but when that disease is removed from us, and we sport a spectacular resurrection body, we will bask in the sheer
power, the nearness, of a Being who loves us with an infinite Love. How more relaxed can you be, feeling like 5 million
bucks, incapable of sinning, and His profound Love embracing us?
There is more to The Hypostatic Union, namely, it is a distinct dispensation. Let me explain; In God's arrangement of
time He has divided history into periods called "dispensations". These periods are identified by a more profound
marker than ice or stone. In each dispensation God has a unique relationship with man, so each is marked by a basic
change of contract, so to speak.
Dispensations are the broad parameters which unfold on a world scale, involving all mankind, as opposed to the intimate
relationship between each of us and God. He must monitor nations, and races, across the centuries and intervene on
appropriate ocassion. Each period is began with a significant milepost in God's design, and the advance of the of
His pupose is stepped up a notch as they unfold in chronilogical sequence.
Certain conditions also prevail in each dispensation. The Age of Israel, for example, is charactarized by the Levitical
Priesthood, the sacred offerings and rituals of the Mosaic Law. But the Age of Grace, aka
The Church Age, which is our present status, we have a Universal Priesthood. Every believer is a priest, with the
priviledge of representing ourselves before the Throne of Grace in person!. An important principle of dispensations
is that God never overlaps these periods.
The link, above, will take you to the Church Age page, and give you a broader perspective of this concept.
The Hypostatic Union qualifies as a dispensation of itself. It began with a unique event, and the event completely changed
the relationship between God and man. Jesus Christ fulfiled the law, fulfiled a hundred prophecies, and threw wide the way
into eternal bliss for we few blessed souls. I hasten to add, that all in attendance in Paradise are there because they
want to be there. They accepted Christ as their Savior.
The Hypostatic Union divides the two greatest (as far as we know) dispensations, The Jewish Age and The Church Age. Our age,
at present, will conclude at an unknown moment...perhaps a peaceful rainy night, or in the delicate mist of an early morn, one
twinkle of an eye, at the blast of the trumpet, and we will be taken up to be with Christ forever.