the jesus

• jesus' authority as god's authority

  • the gospels contain multiple statements taken to mean that jesus IS god (in human form). Christianity is based on the belief the historical figure of jesus led a normal human life and has authority from god.
  • this is expressed in the term "son of god" in the nicene creed, even during jesus' lifetime some people believed he spoke and acted with god's authority
  • jesus has full authority as god, including all the magic powers like the healaing from a distance in mathew 8:5-13
• scriptural support for the authority of jesus

  • after jesus' resurrection, matthew shows jesus claiming total authority when he says "all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me"
  • and then "go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit"
  • these extracts suggest jesus' authority as part of the trinity
• the trinity


  • all mainstream christian churches believe in the concept, one god who is indivisible but that oneness of the GODHEAD is understood in three "persons" (from the greek for theatrical mask/persona)
  • so god is understood in three roles: the father, creator and sustainer of existence; the holy spirit, an ongoing presence in the world which is the source and force of life; and the god incarnate (enfleshed) jesus/ the son
• the nicene creed states


  • "we believe in one god, the father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible; and in one lord, jesus christ, the only begotten son of god."
  • jesus has direct authority from god as his son and also being a part of the trinity. jesus IS god innit la'
• son of god vs son of man


  • the expression is used sometimes in the old testament as a special title, not claiming someone has a divine nature, but they act as god's representative or are human with godly authority
  • its given to david in 2 samuel 7:14-16 "i will be his father, and he will be my son... your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever"
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  son of god



  • in the new testament, during jesus' baptism mark describes a voice from heaven "thou art my beloved son; with thee i am well pleased" and during j's transfiguration: "that is my beloved son; listen to him"
  • jesus is literally the son of god, vincent taylor describes "behind a fully human life, deity is concealed, but is visible to those who have eyes to see, in his personality, teachings and deeds"
  • mark thinks jesus has a fatherly, intimate relationship with god, inheriting his powers and qualities, also in matthew j says "all things have been delivered to me by my father"
• son of god


  • mattews account of jesus' trial before jewish authorities, the high priest says "i charge you uner oath by the living god: tell us if you are the messiah, the son of god". j says "from now on you will see the son of man sitting at the right hand of the mighty one and coming on the clouds of heaven"
  • most christians understand son of god to mean jesus has god's authority
• son of man


  • j is recorded having used the title in all four gospels and it is used to emphasise his humanity
  • luke 9:58 "foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the son of man has nowhere to lay his head" hes open to the same human hardships as anyone else
  • alternatively it can be viewed through the messianic secret, jesus avoiding explicit claims of divinity seen in mark's gospel. those who closely encountered j knew him to be the messiah but he urged them to conceal this
• messianic secret


  • mark 8:29-30 "'who do you say i am?' Peter anwered, 'you are the messiah.' jesus warned them not to tell anyone about him"
  • the secret is only revealed after j's death when the centurion watching the crucifixion says "truly this man was the son of god!"
  • so many christian theologians conclude jesus was both fully divine and fully human
• jesus' authority as only human

  • in general, theres two types of chrisitan who hold j's authority as human:

  1. members of sects in which its believed j wasn't divine
  2. those who take a liberal approach to scripture

  • since mainstream christianity believes in the trinity, ideas of jesus being only human are not the normal chrisitan understanding. but there are historic examples
• jesus' authority as only human- sect examples

  • adoptionism- taught jesus was born human but was adopted by god via his baptism. accordingly, jesus authority was acquired from god, not something he had as a right from being his son. they base their view on gospel accounts of the baptism. it was rejected as heresy by the church towards the end of third century CE, at the synod of antioch
  • the cathars- known as catharism, taught created matter was too corrupt for the perfect god to become incarnate as j, so he couldnt be god in human form. similar to arianism and condemned by the pope in 1184
• jesus' authority as only human- sect examples

  • arianism- taught jesus wasnt truly divine, but created by god to fulfill a role. the title SoG was bestowed by god. in 325 CE the council of nicea ruled arius was wrong and exiled him
  • unitarianism- (only current one) rejects trinity. has a deistic understanding of god, once creation completed god ceased to act within. j was a great man and prophet of god, but only human with no divine authority. some believe adopted which gave him special status. his authority is spiritual but human reason and experience are the final judge on morality
• liberal approach- scriptural reasons

  • to understand the title SoG liberal christians might look at how its used in the old testament in connection with being who represent god's authority like angels (genesis 6:1-4); israel (hosea 11:1) and the king (2 samuel 7:14, psalm 2:7). so the general sense means someone close to god
  • if we apply this to j, then it mighte been used to express the idea he was close to god as a great teacher, healer and spiritual leader- not literally god
• scriptural reasons


  • in marks gospel (considered the first, written 70CE, 40 years after j's death) early chrisitans reflecting on who he was, may have come wrongly to the conclusion he was the literal SoG
  • evidemced with the first line of mark "the beginning of the gospel of jesus christ, son of god", older manuscripts omit the title. but that language occurs more by John (around 90-110 CE), especially with j being portayed as the preexistent word of god in the prologue
  • he bible is inspiring, not inspired- so j could be an exceptional human who could be called son of god figuratively
• liberal approach- scientific reasons

  • christians who accept that science gives us an accurate picture of nature often apply this to belief. while many accept a creator god is the best explanation for the universe, they might reject the supernatural (miracles, like jesus' resurrection. it could be non literal, a metaphor for accepting him brings new life or what he stood for can never die)
  • the implications to his authority are clear, when he pronounces how christians should behave conservatives follow it closely, where liberals interpret context and meaning