According to Spirit of Prophecy, “The humanity of the Son of God is everything to us. It is the golden chain that binds our souls to Christ and through Christ to God. This is to be our study. . . The study of the incarnation of Christ is a fruitful field, which will repay the searcher who digs deep for hidden truth.” –Selected Messages, bk. 1, p. 244. “When we want a deep problem to study, let us fix our minds on the most marvelous thing that ever took place in earth or heaven-the incarnation of the Son of God” Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Vol. 7, p 904
Yet the humanity of Christ is little studied. Theories abound. Protestant churches at large place it as highly improbable that Christ could be overcome by temptation. As early as in the 1850’s, one prominent church organization has actually put in place an official dogma—the “Immaculate Conception” that is, that Mary, the mother of Jesus our Saviour was preserved free from all stain of original sin. This renders Christ as inheriting a sinless nature.
Even the stance of the nominal Seventh-day Adventist Church seems to take a less decisive and pointed position from their 1914 edition, Bible Readings for the Home Circle, where the first sentence forthrightly states: “In His humanity Christ partook of our sinful, fallen nature.” However, in the 1949 edition it states: “Jesus Christ is both Son of God and Son of man. As a member of the human family ‘it behoved Him to be made like unto His brethren’—‘in the likeness of sinful flesh.’ Just how far that ‘likeness’ goes is a mystery of the incarnation which men have never been able to solve” (Bible Readings for the Home Circle, 1949 edition, p. 143–144)—ambiguous at best. It is either that in His humanity He took our fallen human nature with all its liabilities or came with purely and entirely a divine nature that does not enter into our realm. The 1914 edition rightly questions: “If not, then He was not ‘made like unto His brethren,’ was not ‘in all points tempted like as we are,’ did not overcome as we have to overcome, and is not, therefore, the complete and perfect Saviour man needs and must have to be saved. The idea that Christ was born of an immaculate or sinless mother, inherited no tendencies to sin, and for this reason did not sin, removes Him from the realm of a fallen world, and from the very place where help is needed. On His human side, Christ inherited just what every child of Adam inherits,—a sinful nature. On the divine side, from His very conception He was begotten and born of the Spirit. And all this was done to place mankind on vantage-ground, and to demonstrate that in the same way everyone who is ‘born of the Spirit’ may gain like victories over sin in his own sinful flesh. Thus each one is to overcome as Christ overcame. Revelation 3:21. Without this birth there can be no victory over temptation, and no salvation from sin. John 3:3–7.” –Bible Readings for the Home Circle, 1914 edition, p. 115–116. Says E.G. White “Many claim that it was impossible for Christ to be overcome by temptation. Then He could not have been placed in Adam’s position; He could not have gained the victory that Adam failed to gain. If we have in any sense a more trying conflict than had Christ, then He would not be able to succor us. But our Saviour took humanity, with all its liabilities. He took the nature of man, with the possibility of yielding to temptation. We have nothing to bear which He has not endured.” –The Desire of Ages, p. 117
When viewed in its beauty, in its excellence, the humanity of Christ is too much of an important matter to palliate with. It is high time these inconsistencies be laid aside. Since there are no Scriptures to support any of these theories, then let us go on with the study of this subject in the light of God’s unerring word.
To be sure, the Holy Bible holds for us the definitive answer: “Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of
flesh and blood, He also Himself likewise took part of the same; that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; . . . For verily He took not on Him the nature of angels; but He took on Him the seed of Abraham. Wherefore in all things it behoved Him to be made like unto His brethren.” Hebrews 2:14, 16–17. “For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh.” Romans 8:3
Affirms the Spirit of Prophecy: “For four thousand years the race had been decreasing in physical strength, in mental power, and in moral worth; and Christ took upon Him the infirmities of degenerate humanity. Only thus could He rescue man from the lowest depths of his degradation.” –Ibid., p. 117. “Through sin the whole human organism is deranged, the mind is perverted, the imagination corrupted. Sin has degraded the faculties of the soul. Temptations from without find an answering chord within the heart, and the feet turn imperceptibly toward evil.” –Testimonies for the Church, vol. 8, p. 312. But the real truth stands tall, “He was to take His position at the head of humanity by taking the nature but not the sinfulness of man.” –Signs of the Times, May 29, 1901. “He is a brother in our infirmities, but not in possessing like passions. As the sinless One, His nature recoiled from evil. He endured struggles and torture of soul in a world of sin.” –Testimonies for the Church, vol. 2, p. 202
It is clear. He took our fallen nature-“God . . . gave His Son to become bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh”. “The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us. Christ by His human relationship to men drew them close to God. He clothed His divine nature with the garb of humanity, and demonstrated before the heavenly universe, before the unfallen worlds, how much God loves the children of men.”–Sons and Daughters of God, p 11
Why? “. . . that He might know how to succor those that are tempted.” –Medical Ministry, p. 181. Christ is called the second Adam. Many confuse the mystery of His incarnation as they cannot fathom this reality. This aspect of it is of a truth a mystery. “The incarnation of Christ has ever been, and will ever remain a mystery. That which is revealed, is for us and for our children, but let every human being be warned from the ground of making Christ altogether human, such an one as ourselves; for it cannot be.” –The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 5, p. 1129
It is for this reason Spirit of Prophecy warns: “Be careful, exceedingly careful, as to how you dwell upon the human nature of Christ. Do not set Him before the people as a man with the propensities of sin. He is the second Adam. The first Adam was created a pure, sinless being, without a taint of sin upon him; he was in the image of God. He could fall, and he did fall through transgressing. Because of sin his posterity was born with inherent propensities of disobedience.” Here it is: “But Jesus was the only begotten Son of God. He took upon Himself human nature, and was tempted in all points as human nature is tempted. He could have sinned; He could have fallen, but not for one moment was there in Him an evil propensity. He was assailed with temptations in the wilderness as Adam was assailed with temptations in Eden.” –Ibid., p. 1128
This is the mystery. This is where many wrestle. This is where the enemy seeks to confuse the mind but when understood in the light of the cross we can clearly see that only then He who knew no sin became sin for us. In another profound statement she stated: “In His closing hours, while hanging on the cross, He experienced to the fullest extent what man must experience when striving against sin. He realized how bad a man may become by yielding to sin. He realized the terrible consequences of the transgression of God’s law; for the iniquity of the whole world was upon Him.” –Ibid., p. 1082
In closing, Christ condescended to be a man, yet He was God with us. His divinity was, however, veiled with his humanity; to be sure, He did no miraculous thing for Himself by using His veiled divinity. At the same time He was “deeply anxious for His disciples to understand for what purpose His divinity was united to humanity. He came to the world to display the glory of God, that man might be uplifted by its restoring power. God was manifested in Him that He might be manifested in them. Jesus revealed no qualities, and exercised no powers, that men may not have through faith in Him. His perfect humanity is that which all His followers may possess, if they will be in subjection to God as He was.” –The Desire of Ages, p. 664
Have we seriously pondered the humanity of Christ? We should. Truly the words, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son” takes on a whole new meaning. Really, what redeeming love, what humility, “He laid aside His glory and His majesty. He was God, but the glories of the form of God He for a while relinquished.” –The Review and Herald, July 5, 1887. Amazing! “He took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men.” Oh, redeeming love. Oh, mystery! It will be our theme throughout eternity, like that of the holy angels. Oh, “God’s wonderful purpose of grace, the mystery of redeeming love, is the theme into which ‘angels desire to look,’ and it will be their study throughout endless ages. Both the redeemed and the unfallen beings will find in the cross of Christ their science and their song.” –The Desire of Ages, p. 19
Rose Powell