JESUS IS THE UNIQUE SON OF GOD
remnant
by Silas
INTRODUCTION
The term "Son of God" appears many times in the Bible. It is related
to various people or peoples. However when this term relates to Jesus
Christ it has a unique meaning. This term is an analogy that describes who
Christ is uniquely, and, His relation to the Father.
Many Muslims assert that since there are many people referred to
as 'sons of God' in the Bible, then Jesus was only speaking metaphorically
when He called Himself the 'Son of God'. In other words, Jesus was the Son
of God by doing good works, glorifying God, being humble, etc. But Muslims
and the teaching of Islam state that He was not the One and Only Son of God
in any special unique sense.
One Muslim polemicist commenting on John 10 said that, "It is
thus clear that even in the mouth of Jesus the term 'son of god' was a
metaphorical expression, and by taking it literally the church has destroyed
the very foundations of religion." [Ali, "The Religion of Islam", p40]
Before we examine a number of biblical passages, it must be
established that frequently the context of a word determines its meaning. If
I say, "Okay, it's time for me to hit the road", what does that mean? Or if
I were in Egypt, and I said "I'm on a piece of iron", what would that mean?
If I were talking basketball and I say Michael Jordan is "BAD", what would
that imply? Therefore in many cases context influences or determines the
meaning of a word.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
PROOF THAT JESUS WAS THE UNIQUE 'SON' OF GOD.
Do the New Testament (N.T.) texts describe Jesus as a unique
'Son' of God or just another "son" of God, amongst many, in a metaphorical
sense?
Probably the most famous N.T. scripture is John 3:16. Here,
Jesus refers to Himself as the Son of God:
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son
that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
The Greek word translated "one and only" is "monogenes". It
means "only born", or "sole". Vine's Expository Dictionary of N.T. Words
adds that "the term is one of endearment as well as singleness."
Strong's concordance says that it is a combination of the word
"monos" meaning "only", and "ginomai" meaning to "to cause to be, generate,
become, or come into being".
This word is also used in referring to a boy in Luke 7:12- "As
he (Jesus) approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out -
the only son of his mother, and she was a widow."
The Greek word 'monogenes' is used here and translated as
'only'.
It is used likewise in Luke 9:38- "A man in the crowd called
out, "Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, for he is my only child."
"Monogenes" is applied to Jesus in:
John 1:14- "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have
seen his glory, the glory of the "One and Only", who came from the Father,
full of grace and truth."
Take a minute to understand what John is saying. Look at the
glory and majesty John attributes to Jesus. Adam never had that praise,
David was praised, but never at that level. Only Jesus received that
recognition. Vine's further elaborates that the passage in the Greek here
illustrates that the glory attributed to Jesus was a glory found only in a
unique relationship with God.
John 1:18- "No one has ever seen God, but God, the "One and Only", who is
at the Father's side has made him known."
Here, Jesus as the unique Son of God is revealed to be at the
Father's side. No other person who is called "son of God" has ever been
revealed to be at the Father's side.
John 3:18, and 1 John 4:9 are other verses where "monogenes" is used in
reference to Jesus.
The N.T. scriptures show that when Jesus is referred to as the
only "Son" of God it means Jesus is the unique "Son" of God. With respect
to being a "Son of God", "monogenes" is only used for Jesus.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2) Hebrews chapter 1 elaborates on who Jesus really is. The whole
chapter shows clearly the Divinity of Christ. Of note is vs. 3:
"The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact
representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.
After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand
of the Majesty in heaven."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3) When Jesus was brought before Pilate the Jews said, "We have a
law, and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to be the Son
of God." [John 19:7]
If Jesus were only speaking metaphorically the Jews would not
have brought him to trial on such a charge as blasphemy. [Death was the
penalty for blasphemy - ref. Lev. 24:16]. The Jews knew and understood
Psalms 82:6, and they had no problem with a metaphorical statement. The
Jews objected to Jesus claiming to be the unique, the eternal, "Son" of
God.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
4) Jesus again calls Himself the Son of God and elaborates on His
unique Sonship in Matt 11:27-
"All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one
knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son
and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him."
And in John 5:22 Christ again calls Himself the Son of God, and
elaborates:
"Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all
judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son just they honor the Father.
He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him."
5) Jesus' parable of the tenants in Matt 21:33-43 ends with the
landowner sending his son to collect a vineyard's fruit. The workers had
attacked and even killed some of the landowner's servants. When the son
came they killed him also. The interpretation of the parable is that God
has sent prophets to the people of Israel to call them to produce the fruits
of righteousness, but they rejected and mistreated them. Last of all God
sent Christ and the Jews killed him also. This also predicts Christ's
future crucifixion.
Note that in this parable, Jesus distinguishes himself as the
"Son" in contrast with the prophets who had come as servants.
There are other N.T. scriptures supporting Jesus as the unique
Son of God: these sample texts from the Bible are sufficient to prove that
Jesus was the unique Son of God.