The Father is the only God!

There are many verses in the Bible which state very clearly the nature of the relationship between God and Jesus. They tell us that Jesus is the son of God and that God is the father of Jesus. There is a sense in which you could say that Jesus was there from the beginning, because God had planned right from the beginning to have a Son. Now, if God plans anything, we know with absolute certainty that it will come to pass. Jesus Christ is at the centre of God’s purpose, so when God told faithful people in the Old Testament about His purpose, He told them about Christ.

In Luke 1:30-32 the angel told Mary:

And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David.

Jesus is the very image of his father reflecting Gods character to men as we are told in Hebrews 1:1-3:

God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophet, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.

Just as God called Jesus his son so also Jesus called God his father as in John 14:28:

Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.

The apostle Paul and John understood the relationship between God and Jesus. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 11:3:

But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.

At this time Jesus was immortal and in heaven yet still not equal with God.

Paul also told us in 1 Timothy 2:5:

For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.

Jesus was never called “God the Son” – they are different.

John told us in 1 John 4:15:

Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.

Jesus is the Son of God.

God could not sin or die so He brought salvation through Jesus Christ who died for us. If Jesus could not have sinned then his victory over sin would have had no meaning. In short, Jesus, in order to carry out his great work of sacrifice for sin, had to be of the same nature as those he came to save; and in order to be a merciful high priest, he had to have experience of all their temptations. The point is put equally clearly in Hebrews 4:15:

For we have not a high priest that cannot be touched with the feelings of our infirmities, but one has been in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.

Although Jesus is now immortal his role is still different from that of God. God will send his son back to the earth to establish His kingdom where Jesus will reign, until he hands the kingdom to God as we read in 1 Corinthians 15:23-28:

But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming. Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him. And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.

In conclusion Jesus said himself in John 17:3:

Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.

We need to remember that God sent his Son Jesus into the world to save sinners, first Israel and then anyone who would listen. He is the most awesome Father and He loves us — his wayward, unpredictable,wavering children — despite all our imperfections!!

Photo by Joshua Earle on Unsplash.