I believe in Jesus Christ, His OnlySon, Our lord
When our children were born, it was abundantly clear to my wife and me that they possessed the same human nature as we did. Of course, there was nothing surprising or unexpected in that. The children ate, slept (though, in the early days after birth, not at the times when mom and dad wished they had), communicated with others, and did all of the normal functions common to humans. They possessed the characteristics which define all humans; clearly they were human. (Fortunately, for the children they appear to have inherited many more of their mother’s valued talents rather than the not so valued characteristics of their father.) Similarly, the offspring of other creatures contain the nature and characteristics of the nature of the parents of the created. One would not expect it to be any other way.
“I believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son, Our Lord.” The church believes and accepts Jesus’ divinity and thus expects him to possess the nature and principal attributes of his father – God. Jesus claimed to be divine and with authority taught, “I and the Father are one.” On another occasion He emphasized his eternal nature when he stated, “Before Abraham was, I am.” How could he possess existence prior to Abraham if he was not God? Clearly Jesus claimed to be the Son of God, thus possessing the nature and capabilities of the divine. During his life, Jesus demonstrated his divinity through the numerous miracles and other supernatural actions. His healings of the sicknesses of countless numbers of people are too numerous to be identified as mere accidents. The events of his life clearly point to his divinity ….the possession of which is part of his nature as the Son of God.
As born of a woman, Jesus is also truly human, possessing all the attributes of a human. Jesus Christ, truly divine and truly human, offers the perfect sacrifice to God for man’s rejection of God. It is the mysterious and truly redemptive union of the human and the divine. One prayer that succinctly and simply captures the unity of Christ’s divinity and humanity with His role as Redeemer is offered to Christ’s Divine Mercy. “Eternal Father I offer you the body and blood, soul and divinity, of your dearly beloved Son, Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world.” All we have to do is Trust Jesus
Jesus can be interpreted to mean “Yahweh is salvation.” Jesus’ mission was that as the Savior of mankind. One of his last utterings as he suffered ignominiously on the cross was, “It is achieved.” Jesus had opened the gates of heaven for mankind; man now can seek eternal salvation with the hope of fulfillment. Through His teachings and the creation of His Church, he taught us and continues to teach us about God and our purpose in life. Christ is the “anointed one.” He is the Messiah.
Suggested Reading:
“Handbook of Christian Apologetics” by Peter Kreeft and Ronald K. Tacelli, published Intervarsity Press, Note chapter 7, “The Divinity of Christ”. Available on Amazon