God as Man

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. ( John 1:14 )

The bible tells us that God became flesh and came to this earth to author our salvation in he form of a Man. We know this means that He took a bodily form as Jesus Christ and suffered for our sins, but do we really understand the depth of His mortality? I like to read through the Gospel accounts and look on the miracles of Jesus. I like to how He calmed a storm in an instant ( Luke 8:25 ) and gave a blind man sight by rubbing mud in his eyes ( John 9:6 ). When I think of Jesus, it often does not occur to me that while he was fully God, he was also fully man.

When I get into this mindset, where I see Jesus only as God and not as man, I often find it difficult to relate to Him. This might even minimize the pain and difficulties Jesus endured, because we might think, "He is God. God can handle it." This is a somewhat dangerous and inaccurate place to be. Let us briefly examine the life of Jesus focusing on His humanity.

The Birth of a Savior

If I were Jesus, I would have been born in the best hospital of the time. Before my birth, trumpets would have sounded throughout the world and an angel with a nice radio voice would have made the announcement for the whole world to hear. I would also appear with a halo above my head, just as our Savior is often depicted in artwork. We should all be thankful that I am not Jesus, and that Jesus does not work in such ways.

Understanding human nature to follow people who are rich and good looking, Jesus came in the most plain possible way so that we would follow Him for who He is was rather than what He had. Isaiah tell us, "...And when we see Him, There is no beauty that we should desire Him." ( Isaiah 53:2 ) When Jesus was born, it was in a manger, and the birth was announced to a few shepards in the fields. ( Luke 2:6-12 ) This is the modern day equivalent of being born in someone's garage or alley and placed in a cardboard box, then sending out birth announcements to a few fast food workers and janitors. Jesus was born in a dirty barn with nothing more than local poor village folk as His visitors. Somehow our Christmas nativity scenes don't quite express the reality of the situation.

The Temptation of Christ

Jesus gets an interesting start to His ministry. Before things get underway He is tempted by Satan. We know the story well, but we may not comprehend that each temptation, by nature of the word, appealed to Jesus' flesh. He never let it lead to sin, but Jesus suffered temptation just as we do.

"Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time."  ( Luke 4:13 ) Luke gives us some interesting details about the temptation of Christ. First, the phrase "every temptation" implies that there was much more temptation going on than what was recorded. Jesus was tempted in every way. Any temptation you have been faced with, Jesus has also been faced with. This is one of the reasons He is worthy to take our punishment.

Another interesting part of Luke 4:13 is that Satan "departed from Him until an opportune time." His temptation wasn't over right then and there. Like us, Jesus would continue to face temptation. Like us, Satan would be at the ready as soon as he saw a weakness.

Jesus the Comedian?

If a child cracks a rather inappropriate joke, my wife's response is often, "Do you think God thinks that is funny?" She may be right, but there is evidence that Jesus had a sense of humor. It is hard to imagine, but being that Jesus was a man and humor is one of our gifts, it would seem fitting that Jesus cracked a good joke every now and then. Does the scripture support this?

In Matthew 16:18, Jesus says to Peter, "And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it." This is a great verse to look further into. It is often pointed out that the original Greek word for Peter (Petros) means "rock." What is often overlooked is that the second occurrence of "rock," (ho ho) differs from the first. Scholars will point out that this is evidence that the rock on which the church would be built was Jesus, not Peter. Looking closer to the meaning of Petros, we find that it is actually a piece of rock, or a pebble.

"The Pebble" suits Peter quite well is a light hearted sense. Peter was a rock in that his heart was in the right place and he lived for the Lord, but Peter was all over the map. He even denied the Lord three times, but he came back. He was still a rock. He was a pebble.

Another great example of Jesus' humor can be found starting in Luke 9:51-54:

"Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem, and sent messengers before His face. And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him. But they did not receive Him, because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem.  And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?”"

By this time, James and John are starting to get used to the perks of being a follower of Jesus. They have witnessed many miracles and learned to cast out demons from the possessed. They are sure of themselves, and angry at the way the Samaritans are treating Jesus. I imagine Jesus almost had to stifle a smile when James and John looked at Him and asked to rain fire down on the village. While Jesus rightfully rebuked James and John, we find evidence of his humor in Mark 3:17 where we learn of Jesus that "...He gave the name Boanerges, that is, “Sons of Thunder”" to James and John.

Jesus Wept

In Luke 19:41, the bible describes Jesus weeping about the future destruction of Jerusalem. John 11:35 is even more well known as the shortest verse in the bible. Lazarus died and his friends and family were deep in grief.

"Then, when Mary came where Jesus was, and saw Him, she fell down at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.” Therefore, when Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her weeping, He  groaned in the spirit and was troubled. And He said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to Him, “Lord, come and see.” Jesus wept." ( John 11:32-35 )

In the case of Lazarus, we know Jesus knows that He will bring him back from the dead. Those around him mistook his weeping as a sign of grieving for Lazarus. When we grieve, we usually grieve over a person's absence from our live, not for the person. Jesus wept over the grief of his friends over the death of Lazarus. In spite of being all knowing, Jesus still experiences sorrow as any other man.

The Garden of Gethsemane

The account of Jesus and his disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane is rich in important information about the nature of Jesus. The accounts can be found in: Matthew 26:36-46, Mark 14:32-42, and Luke 22:39-46. Words describing Jesus state in the garden from the New King James version of the bible include: deeply distressed, exceedingly sorrowful, agony, and finally betrayal. We think of the events in Gethsemane as divine (which they are), but often overlook the human aspects. Three aspects of humanity can be seen in Jesus here:

Sorrow

The effects of sin are already present in the garden, as Jesus tells Peter, James, and John, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death." ( Mark 14:34 ) Isaiah 53:4 says of Jesus, "Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows..." One of the natural penalties for sin is sorrow. Jesus never sinned, yet he took upon himself the sorrow that was to belong to each of us. He knows our guilt and shame better than we do. Luke 22:44 tells us that Jesus was so troubled that "His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground." With a physician's eye, Luke describes a rare medical condition known as hematohidrosis. When the human body is under enough emotional stress, capillaries and blood vessels under the skin begin to burst, leaking blood into the sweat ducts. The result is the person literally sweating blood as Luke describes.

Fear

I believe there is even evidence that Jesus experienced fear. We are told that three times he prayed, "O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will." (Matthew 26:39 ) Skeptics often use this prayer as evidence that Jesus was not God or that he was being forced. The reality is that we see Jesus' humanity in this prayer. Being God, He knows what is coming. He knows the physical, emotional, and spiritual pain he is about to go through, and like any man, He would rather avoid such torment. Even the Son was able to go before the Father in a time of need. As we would expect of Jesus, and as an example to us, He yields His will to that of the father at the end of his prayer. It is in this way that we often pray "in the name of Jesus." While we see fear in His prayer, Jesus does not let it lead to selfishness and does not back down from the sacrifice He is about to give us.

Betrayal

Shortly before they leave the garden, Jesus says, "Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand." ( Matthew 46:26 ) Mark 14:10-11 describes the situation as it happened before the Passover feast: "Then Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went to the chief priests to betray Him to them. And when they heard it, they were glad, and promised to give him money. So he sought how he might conveniently betray Him." The twelve apostles were hand chose by Jesus to be His closest followers. When someone spoke of Jesus' mother, He made it a point to deny the blood bonds and point at his disciples as His family. ( Matthew 12:46-49 ) Even Jesus knows intimately the sting of betrayal by a loved one.

The Cross

Jesus' death on the cross proved his mortality. He bled like we do and He died like we do. On the cross, Jesus said, "I thirst." He also said something very interesting. Mark 15:34 says, "And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, 'Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachtani?' which is translated, 'My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?'" We often think of Jesus speaking in a sure and calm manner, but Mark says he cried this in a loud voice. Jesus was full of torment and pain, and I'm sure his voice reflected that.

These words from the cross puzzled me for a long time. The word "forsaken" more accurately means to abandon. Why did Jesus think that God had abandoned him? Let us not forget that Jesus was doing on the cross. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." Jesus did not excuse our sin debt, he paid it. I believe this means that Jesus suffered the penalty for the sins He took on. Isaiah 59:2 says, "But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you." Our sins separate us from God, just as they separated the Son from the Father on the cross.

We get thrown off by an all knowing God who asks questions; a sign of not knowing. Why did Jesus ask the Father why he had forsaken (abandoned) Him? I believe that when God asks a question He is usually making a statement in the form of a question. In Genesis 3:9, after Adam and Eve had eaten of the forbidden fruit and hid themselves, God asked Adam, "Where are you?" Assuming this was a statement rather than a question, God would have been stating, "Adam, I am giving you a chance to confess your sin before me." When Jesus was out with His disciples, an unclean woman touched His cloths (traditionally, making Him unclean) on the faith that she might be healed. Jesus responded by asking "Who touched My clothes? ( Mark 5:30 ) I think Jesus knew who had done it and why. This was another statement. He was saying, "someone unclean has touched Me and I am giving you a chance to confess your sin." The woman did indeed confess her sin before Jesus and was forgiven and healed.

I think we can apply the same idea to Jesus' statement on the cross, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" Jesus was announcing for those witnessing the even that He had become separated by God the Father because of the sin He had taken on. Jesus Himself experienced the full penalty suffered by man due to our fallen state.

Jesus the Man

Jesus could have come to earth under great prestiege. He could have made Himself comfortable, rich, good looking, and more. He could have chosen not to suffer. Jesus, however, chose to relate to us. He died for our sins, suffering the full penalty. He took on our agony. In adition to the salvation that Jesus gave us, He also came as a roll model. Jesus never lost His divinity, but because He was fully man, he showed us our full potential. Jesus demonstrated the life we were meant to live, and He did it by becoming one of us.