Did Christ Have To Be God So He Can Pay ForOur Sins?
SOME DETRACTORS of the Iglesia Ni Cristo (Church of Christ) use the subject matter “Salvation” to establish that something is amiss in this Church’s belief that Christ is not God.
“If Jesus was just a man and not God,” they argue, “then why would His death be sufficient to forgive the sins of many people in the entire world?” Believing that only God can pay such an enormous penalty, they conclude that “Jesus had to be God so He can pay our debt” and that “Jesus had to be a man so that He could die.”
However, is this contention of theirs in consonance with the biblical teachings about salvation and Jesus Christ?
UNSCRIPTURAL
The question at hand revolves around the assumption that the only way for Christ’s death to be enough to pay for many people’s sins is if He were God. But not only does such assumption fall short of biblical substantiation, it also utterly contradicts the very teachings of the Holy Scriptures regarding salvation, God, and the God-appointed Savior.
According to the Bible, God is immortal (I Tim. 1:17), and thus, He can never die for whatever reason or purpose. And to suggest that Jesus was God who underwent incarnation or willfully became a man so that He could die is to further promote an idea which is self-evidently opposed to the will of God Who said, “I am God, and not man” (Hos. 11:9 New King James Version) and “I do not change” (Mal. 3:6 NKJV), not even a “variation or shadow of turning” (James 1:17 NKJV), or as the Weymouth New Testament translation puts it, “In Him there is no variation nor the slightest suggestion of change.”
Beyond doubt, God does not consent to becoming flesh or turning Himself into a man for “God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man” (Num. 23:19), or further clarified by the International Standard Version, “God is not a human male — he doesn’t lie, nor is he a human being…” we must take note, God clearly declared He is not the Son of man while Christ is the Son of man and said so Himself:
“Jesus went to the area of Caesarea Philippi. He said to his followers, ‘I am the Son of Man. Who do the people say I am’?”
(Reference: Matt. 16:13 ICB, Emphasis Mine)
In fact, the apostles called the idea of gods coming down to us in human form as useless (Acts 14:11, 15) and thus told people to “turn from these vain things” (Acts 14:15 World English Bible).
THE BIBLICAL TEACHING ON SALVATION
Concerning salvation, this is the teaching of the Bible:
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
(Reference: John 3:16 NKJV, Emphasis Mine)
So that people would have the opportunity to attain everlasting life, the Bible says, “He [God] gave His only begotten Son.” Notice that it does not say, “God gave Himself.” Clearly, therefore, the one given as the sacrifice for people’s redemption is not God Himself but His Son, Jesus Christ.
CHRIST'S STATE OF BEING
As regards the state of being of the Son, Jesus Himself declared that He is “a Man who has told you the truth” (John 8:40 NKJV). And the apostles noticeably concurred that the one who was put to death on the cross is not God, like what others claim, but is definitely “a Man”:
“Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death.”
(Reference: Acts 2:22-23 NKJV, Emphasis Mine)
The biblical truth that Jesus Christ died (John 19:30, 33) all the more proves that He is man and not God for God, unlike man, “never dies” (Heb. 9:27; I Tim. 1:17 New Living Translation).
Take note also that if the Son were also God, together with His Father, then there would be more than one God, and that would obviously contradict the very teaching of Christ Himself that there is only one true God, the Father (John 17:3, 1). God Himself declared that there is no other God besides Him (Isa. 45:21); He also declared, “I alone am God!” (Isaiah 46:9 CEV), which apostles also confirmed God’s words that there is only one God, the Father (I Cor. 8:6).
A CHEAP SACRIFICE?
Some, nonetheless, further argue that if Christ were just a man and not God, then His death for mankind’s salvation would have been just a cheap sacrifice. They reason that if Christ were purely human, kept free from sin by God, and then sent to His death on the cross, then that would not have cost God much, for He could have created a million such men.
Such an argument, however, fails to stand biblical scrutiny on two accounts: First, to suggest that God’s sacrificing of His beloved Son did not cost Him (God) much just because Christ is a man is highly subjective and disputable. Second, to go to such an extent as calling God’s plan of salvation as cheap, if He Who died on the cross were not God, is in fact to question God’s will and His goodness. For as the Bible points out, the manifestation of God’s great love for mankind is that “He gave His only begotten Son,” not Himself or “another God,” for man’s salvation (John 3:16 NKJV).
It must be taken into account, too, that Christ’s being man does not mean that He is just an “ordinary man” like us. For Christ is far greater than all of us — He is the only man Who was exalted to be Prince and Savior (Acts 5:31), made Lord (Acts 2:36), Mediator (I Tim. 2:5), and to Whom all authority in heaven and on earth was given (Matt. 28:18). Yet, despite these honors and powers given to Him, He remained humble and completely obedient to His Father (Phil. 2:8). Christ is indeed God’s “only begotten Son” Whom He loved so much and in Whom He is well pleased (Matt. 3:17).
Considering all of these, plus the fact that Jesus committed no sin and has never transgressed any of His Father’s will (I Pet. 2:21-22), only the heartless and callous would say that subjecting Him to harsh death by crucifixion does not cost His loving Father much.
'ENOUGH FOR ALL TIME'
The truth is, behind Christ’s sacrificial death for those who will be saved is the unquestionable and priceless love of God for mankind:
“In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”
(Reference: I John 4:9-10 NKJV)
Yes, being Omnipotent, God could have created a million Jesus Christ; the truth, however, is that He created only one Christ (Col. 1:15), and this is according to His divine plan or wisdom (I Cor. 2:7, 2). The assertion that the death of the “Man Christ Jesus” (I Tim. 2:5 NKJV) is not enough manifestation of God’s great love for mankind is, besides unscriptural, an affront to the sacrifices both God and Jesus Christ made for mankind:
“God will do anything for us. God even let his own Son suffer for us. God gave his Son for us all…
“Jesus Christ did the things God wanted him to do. And because of that, we are made holy through the sacrifice of Christ’s body. Christ made that sacrifice one time — enough for all time.”
(Reference: Rom. 8:32; Heb. 10:10 Easy-to-Read Version, Emphasis Mine)
Playing down the magnitude of God’s way of saving people also amounts to disgracing the “precious blood of Christ” with which His true followers were redeemed:
You know that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your fathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.”
(Reference: I Pet. 1:18-19 RSV, Emphasis Mine)
“Take heed therefore to yourselves and to all the flock over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you overseers, to feed the church of Christ which he has purchased with his blood.”
(Reference: Acts 20:28 Lamsa Translation, Emphasis Mine)
IN CONCLUSION
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WE KINDLY EXTEND our visitors an invitation to explore the pristine, unadulterated teachings of Christ and His apostles as they were taught in the first-century Church Of Christ. These teachings presented here is the path that leads to eternal life for all on that appointed day of Judgment:
The Truth About Salvation
CHRISTIANITY IS A RELIGION with over 2.4 billion followers worldwide. It is composed of diverse faiths with thousands of denominations, such as Pentecostal, Presbyterian, Lutheran, Baptist, Methodist, Adventist—the list goes on. The Center for the Study of Global Christianity estimates that there are over 45,000 denominations globally, with more than 200 in the United States alone. Each denomination has its own unique set of beliefs and doctrines, especially when it comes to how one can achieve salvation. Do any of these religions truly teach the proper way of salvation?
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(Eph. 4:29, Amplified Bible)
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(1 Corinthians 13:4-5, Amplified Bible)