Your New Identity (Victory Series Book #2): A Transforming Union with God (6 page)

Acts 2:32–36

Key Point

The Bible teaches that there is one God who exists in three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Key Verse

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Matthew 28:19

H
ear O Israel: The L
ORD
our God, the L
ORD
is one” (Deuteronomy 6:4). Old Testament Judaism and New Testament Christianity both stress monotheism (one God) as opposed to polytheism (many gods), pantheism (all is God), or atheism (no god or gods). Only Christianity recognizes the divine three-in-oneness—the eternal coexistence of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in the inner personal life of the Godhead.

The plural nature of the Godhead is revealed in the first chapter of Genesis through the use of the plural pronoun: “Then God said, ‘Let us make
mankind in our image, in our likeness’” (1:26). Jesus explicitly revealed the doctrine of the Trinity in the baptismal formula: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). The Epistles are saturated with the revelation of the triune Godhead, uniting all three as the agents of our salvation and sanctification: “You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ” (Romans 8:9).

Although the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit work in unity, everything flows from the Father. Jesus said He could do nothing on His own initiative (see John 5:30; 8:42) and modeled a life that was totally dependent on the Father (see John 17:7). In this way, He left us an example that we ought to follow in His steps (see 1 Peter 2:21), for we too are called to live dependently on God. Likewise, the Holy Spirit comes from the Father (see John 15:26), and He will not speak on His own (see John 16:13). As we approach the Father, we do so in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ as led by the Holy Spirit. The sacrificial death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ are the only basis by which we can approach our heavenly Father, and it is the unique work of the Holy Spirit to bear witness with our spirit that we are children of God (see Romans 8:16) and to lead us into all truth (see John 16:13).

After Pentecost, Peter’s message brought together the finished work of Christ and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The coming of the Holy Spirit was the evidence that Jesus has been exalted to the right hand of the heavenly Father. During the three-year public ministry of Jesus, “the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified” (John 7:39). “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord [
kurios
] and Messiah” (Acts 2:36).
Kurios
(Lord) is used to refer to Jesus in Jude 1:4 and is used to refer to God the Father in Jude 1:5.

The Athanasian Creed, which was formulated by the Early Church, affirmed the triune nature of God: “We worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity, neither confounding the Persons, nor dividing the substance, for there is one Person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of
the Holy Ghost; but the godhead of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Ghost is one, the glory equal, the majesty co-eternal.”

What evidence do we have from the Bible that God exists as three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit?

Why is it so important that we believe that Jesus is fully God and was fully man?

How did the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost reveal that Jesus had been “exalted to the right hand of God”?

To whom are you praying when you pray to God? How does prayer involve the Trinity?

Who are you serving when you serve God? How does serving God employ the Trinity?

We . . . believe that there is only one God, but under the following dispensation or “economy,” as it is called. We believe that this one only God has also a Son, His Word, who proceeded from Himself, by whom all things were made, and without whom nothing was made. Him we believe to have been sent by the Father into the virgin, and to have been born of her—being both man and God, the son of man and the Son of God. . . . And the Son also sent from heaven from the Father, according to His own promise, the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, the sanctifier of the faith of those who believe in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Tertullian (AD 160–220)

Exodus 3:1–15

Key Point

God revealed Himself as the great “I
AM
,” meaning that what He was in the past is who He is in the present and will be in the future.

Key Verse

I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am he, you will indeed die in your sins.

John 8:24

G
od called Moses to deliver the Israelites out of bondage in Egypt and lead them to the Promised Land. When Moses asked how he was going to tell the people that God had sent him, the Lord responded by saying, “I
AM
WHO
I
AM
. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I
AM
has sent me to you’” (Exodus 3:14). God also said, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The L
ORD
, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’ This is my
name forever, the name you shall call me from generation to generation” (verse 15).

The name “I
AM
” means that what God was in the past He is in the present and will be in the future. The most distinctive name the Israelites had for God was Yahweh (Jehovah), which comes from the same root as “I
AM
.” This name was given to Moses to convince the children of Israel that God was faithful to His covenant and that He would lead them out of bondage. The name does not disclose who He is in Himself; rather, it discloses who He is, was, and will be in relationship to the people of God.

The name is mentioned in the New Testament when Jesus responded to the Jews, “Very truly I tell you . . . before Abraham was born,
I am
!” (John 8:58, emphasis added). Whereas Moses was the lawgiver who led God’s people from slavery in Egypt to the Promised Land, Jesus fulfilled the Law and led God’s people from slavery to sin to freedom in Christ and eternal life. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is the same God who delivers us from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of His beloved Son (see Colossians 1:13). Jesus said, “Unless you believe that
I
AM
who I claim to be, you will die in your sins” (John 8:24
NLT
, emphasis added).

John records a number of other “I am” statements made by Jesus. To the crowds He said, “
I
am
the bread of life” (John 6:48, emphasis added). Like the manna from heaven that sustained the physical life of the Israelites, Jesus also came from heaven to give us spiritual life. To Mary and Martha, He said, “
I am
the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die” (John 11:25–26, emphasis added). In other words, if we believe in Jesus, we will continue to live spiritually even when we die physically.

On other occasions, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth,
I am
the gate for the sheep” (John 10:7, emphasis added), and “
I am
the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6, emphasis added). Finally, Jesus said, “
I am
the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (John 10:11, emphasis added). “We are his people, the sheep of his pasture” (Psalm 100:3). “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

What does the name “I
AM
” imply?

What kinds of similar statements did Jesus make about His nature? How do these statements show that He and the Father are one?

What does the statement “unless you believe that I am He, you shall die in your sins” say about cults and salvation?

How does knowing that “I
AM
” is an all-encompassing concept (time and space) affect you personally?

How should you live knowing that your soul is in union with I
AM
?

Analyze the idea of mutability and you will find was and will be: contemplate God, and you will find the is where was and will be cannot exist. . . . And so, by these words, “If you do not believe that I am,” I think our Lord meant nothing else than this, “If you do not believe that I am” God, “you shall die in your sins.” Well, God be thanked that He said, “If you do not believe” and did not say: If you do not comprehend. For who can comprehend this?

Augustine of Hippo (AD 354–430)

1 Corinthians 15:45–54

Key Point

Jesus not only came to give us life; He is our life.

Key Verse

In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.

John 1:4

T
he first Adam was born both physically and spiritually alive. Because Adam sinned, he died spiritually and was separated from God. Physical death was also a consequence of sin, although Adam did not physically die until many years after the Fall. From that time on, every descendant of Adam and Eve has been born physically alive but spiritually dead (see Ephesians 2:1).

Yet God had a plan for restoring life and giving His people a new identity and position in Christ. He promised that redemption would come through the seed of a woman (see Genesis 3:15; 17:19; Galatians 3:16). As the years
passed, the Israelites became impatient and wondered how they would know the Messiah when He finally did come. “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14).

The last book of the Old Testament was written 400 years before “the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (John 1:14). The prophecy was fulfilled concerning Immanuel, which means “God is with us,” and the Virgin Mary was greatly amazed (see Luke 1:34–35).

Nobody can fully explain the mystery of the Incarnation, but Scripture clearly teaches that the eternal Son became flesh. So critical is the doctrine of the Incarnation that Scripture makes it a primary test of orthodoxy (core Christian doctrine): “This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world” (1 John 4:2–3).

The Incarnation is what sets Christianity apart from the cults and all the other religions of the world. They may believe in the historical Jesus, but they do not believe that God became man. They believe that God could appear as a man—like an apparition—and suffer in appearance only, but unless they have the Holy Spirit they will not say that Jesus was fully God while also fully human.

This union between divinity and humanity was necessary in order to bring us spiritual life. “In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind” (John 1:4). Notice that light does not produce life. The light of believers is the radiation of the eternal life of God. The last Adam—Jesus—like the first Adam, was also born physically and spiritually alive. But unlike the first Adam, Jesus never sinned, even though He was tempted in every way (see Hebrews 4:15).

The virgin birth was necessary because Jesus came to give us life. Jesus said, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10). What Adam and Eve lost in the Fall was eternal life, and that is what Jesus came to restore. He did not come to give us a more fulfilling physical life with material blessings. Rather, He came to give us a fulfilling spiritual life filled with spiritual blessings, which are love, joy, peace, patience,
kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control—the fruit of the Spirit (see Galatians 5:22–23). Jesus didn’t just come to give us life. He is our life (see Colossians 3:4).

Review 1 Corinthians 15:45–54. What does Paul mean when he says that the first Adam became a “living being” but the last Adam a “life-giving spirit”?

Why is the virgin birth so critical to Christian doctrine?

How does the Incarnation of Christ set Christianity apart from other religions? Why is it critical for us that Jesus was human while also divine?

Can you defend from Scripture the orthodox teaching that Christ had two natures (fully God and fully man), while being one person (no split personality)? Explain.

How is Jesus your life?

Christ could not be described as being man without flesh, nor the Son of man without any human parent. Just as He is not God without the Spirit of God, nor the Son of God without having God for His Father. Thus the origin of the two substances displayed Him as man and God. In one respect, He was born; in the other respect, He was unborn. In one respect, fleshly; in the other, spiritual. In one sense, weak; in the other, exceedingly strong. In one sense, dying; in the other sense, living. This property of the two states—the divine and the human—is distinctly asserted with equal truth of both natures alike.

Tertullian (AD 160–220)