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ATHANASIUS CONTENDS FOR THE DEITY OF CHRIST
If Jesus is something less than God, he has no right and no power to forgive our sins. If Jesus can’t forgive our sins, we have no hope.
Yes, the doctrine of the deity of Christ is worth contending for. And there is nobody God used more to contend for this biblical truth than Athanasius.
Athanasius was born in the year 298AD in Egypt. In his early twenties he was a deacon in the church in Alexandria (North Africa). During that time, the doctrine of the deity of Christ came under attack by a highly influential pastor named Arius. Arius taught that Jesus was a created being, that he had a beginning, and there was a time when Jesus was not. Therefore, according to Arius, Jesus is the son of God, but not God the son. His heresy was later known as the Arian heresy (named after Arius). It sparked a flame throughout the empire, that would dominate the church for 60 years. It was a 20 year old young man by the name of Athanasius, 40 years younger than Arius, that God would use to contend for the doctrine of the deity of Christ (good word to 20 year olds here today, you don’t need to wait to have a huge impact in the kingdom. God can use you now).
Athanasius would endure decades of persecution, banished from the church, sent into exile five times, framed for murder, threatened with death, slandered by emperors and bishops, all for standing firm to the doctrine of the deity of Christ. In the end he prevailed, truth was preserved, and the church has stood on his shoulders ever since.
(From a sermon by Mark Connelly, The Deity of Christ, 8/24/2011)
George Hunter contends that the first characteristic of a secular person in the modern world is that he or she is ignorant of basic Christianity. It has been said of the Baby Busters, those born between 1963 and 1977 and the first generation to grow up in a postmodern context, that they lack even the memory of a hope-giving gospel. Today many people outside of the church struggle with the concept of Christ’s deity. They think he was a good man, perhaps even a prophet, but not God in human form. Further, 72 percent of Americans now deny the existence of absolute truth, and few have confidence in the historical accuracy or ethical authority of the Bible. Two-thirds of the population does not know what John 3:16 refers to, and less than four out of every ten Americans have any idea what the term gospel means. Ten percent believe that the name of Noah’s wife was Joan of Arc.
James White, Rethinking the Church, p. 41
In 1957, Lieutenant David Steeves walked out of the California Sierras 54 days after his Air Force trainer jet had disappeared. He related an unbelievable tale of how he had lived in a snowy wilderness after parachuting from his disabled plane. By the time he showed up alive, he had already been declared officially dead. When further search failed to turn up the wreckage, a hoax was suspected and Steeves was forced to resign under a cloud of doubt. His story was confirmed, however, more than 20 years later when a troop of Boy Scouts discovered the wreckage of his plane.
Another “survival story” from centuries ago is still controversial. A man by the name of Jesus Christ walked out of the wilderness making claims a lot of people found difficult to believe. he was later executed and pronounced dead. But 3 days later, He showed up alive. And there have been skeptics ever since.
But consider the facts of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. His integrity is well-founded.
▸ Prophets foretold His coming.
▸ Miracles supported His deity.
▸ Eyewitnesses verified His resurrection.
▸ And today the Holy Spirit confirms that Jesus is alive to anyone who is seeking to know the truth.
Yes, you can believe it! Do you? THE RESURRECTION IS A FACT OF HISTORY
THAT DEMANDS A RESPONSE OF FAITH
--Daily Bread
A friend of mine pastors in the Bloor West village in Toronto and runs a "God at the Pub" where he holds open discussions on the Christian faith in a bar setting. He told me the other day that he has all sorts of people there who are not people of faith, but who have told him they want to model their lives on Jesus.
They find in Him the highest good, the most perfect relating to others, the noblest and most admirable kind of existence they can imagine for themselves. They are perhaps finding their way to faith in Jesus without knowing it.
But what about us...do we see Jesus as He is in the Scriptures? Do we appreciate the beauty of His humanity?
We focus a lot, rightfully, on His deity...the fact that He is God in the flesh. Nothing wrong with that. But what do we do, really...with His humanity.
Clearly, others...others even who are lacking in their unde...
Listen to this song of praise about the incarnation written by Graham Kendrick:
Meekness and majesty, human and deity, in
perfect harmony the one who is God.
Lord of eternity dwells in humanity, kneels in
humility and washes our feet.
Wisdom unsearchable, God the invisible, love
indestructible in frailty appears,
Lord of infinity, stooping so tenderly lifts our
humanity to the heights of his throne.
O what a mystery. Meekness and majesty. Bow
down and worship, for this is your God.
(Graham Kendrick, "Meekness and Majesty" found in Seasoning the Season, Mainstay Church Resources, p. B.146)
Because Jesus was God, He could not sin. He could sin as a man, but He could not as God. It would be like taking a hollow cane pole and a steel rod that is small enough in diameter to fit through the pole. The cane pole represents Jesus’ humanity; the steel rod represents His deity. If you took just the cane pole and tried to break it over your knee, you would eventually break it. Jesus the man could eventually be broken by sin---give in to temptation. However, if you put the steel rod through the cane pole, you could not break it. Similarly, the steel rod represents the divine nature of Jesus. Consequently, because Jesus, the human, was also divine, He could not break and commit sin.
STRONG EVIDENCE
There is evidence for the deity of Jesus -- good, strong, historical , cumulative evidence; evidence to which an honest person can subscribe without committing intellectual suicide.
SOURCE: -- John Stott
One day I received a telephone call from a friend. He was working for his doctorate in one of the most prestigious theological seminaries in America. He asked if I would go with him to call on the head of the seminary, who was also his professor. He explained to me that hisprofessor was a good man, a wonderful person and a brilliant scholar, but that he denied the deity of Christ.
This professor was one of the great church historians of this century. He was a famous theologian who had helped to train many thousands of young men to become pastors and other Christian leaders.
When we arrived and I was introduced, his immediate response was: "Mr. Bright, when you talk to college students about becoming a Christian, what do you tell them?" I was skeptical of his sincerity and weighed my words carefully.
He then asked a second question, "Better still, what would you tell me? I would like to become a Christian?" He added that his father was a great scholar who had greatly influenced his own views. The father did not believe in the deity of Christ. He believed Jesus was a good man who had a profound influence upon the world, but was not God.
The professor continued, "About five years ago I began to reevaluate my personal beliefs and I began to study in earnest the writings of the church fathers and the original manuscripts concerning Jesus. The more I studied, the more convinced I became that Jesus is the Son of God." And when he asked, "Will you help me" (and I shall never forget this phrase) "know Him as my personal Savior?" I was deeply moved.
He also made a profound stat...
JOHN PIPER ON MINIMIZING DOCTRINE
I think John Piper put it best in his book, Contending For Our All. He wrote:
"To the emerging church that would like to minimize doctrine, Athanasius would say, 'Our young people in Alexandria die for doctrine about Christ. What do your young people die for?' Athanasius would have grieved over statements like 'It is Christ who unites us; it is doctrine that divides.' He would have grieved because he knew this is the very tactic used by Arian bishops to cover the councils with fog so that the word Christ could mean anything. They think they have done something profound and fresh, when they call us away from doctrine. In fact, they have done something very old and worn and deadly."
(John Piper. From a sermon by Mark Connelly, The Deity of Christ, 8/24/2011)
The word impenitent means without repentance, without remorse. In one of my favorite movies, Indiana Jones is looking for the Holy Grail. He has certain clues that will take him through the deadly traps that lay ahead. The first clue is this: “The Breath of God. Only the penitent man will pass.” Jones begins to repeat the phrase under his breath searching for its meaning, “Penitent man, penitent man, penitent, penitent. The penitent man is humble before God, He kneels before God. Kneel!” At that moment, as Dr. Jones falls to his knees, a giant blade swoops through where his neck was just a second before. Because of haughtiness and pride the impenitent man refuses to bend a knee. Refuses humble himself before the mighty hand of God. Proverbs 16:18 Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. Does this not sound like man in our world today, that shake their insignificant fist in the face of an all powerful God: A world that mocks and laughs at the testimony of scripture; that blasphemes Jehovah, and spits upon the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ? They are unrepentant in their violation of God’s law.
