Series:
Romans
Title: The Son
Made, the Son Declared
Text: Romans
1: 3-5
Date: April
29, 2018
Place: SGBC, NJ
The
apostle Paul said the gospel of God is: Romans
1: 3: Concerning his Son Jesus
Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; 4: And declared to be the Son
of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection
from the dead:
Subject:
The Son Made, the Son Declared
Proposition: The Lord Jesus Christ was made the Son of man but he was
always the Son of God.
You hear
me call Christ the GodMan. That is who God’s
Son Jesus Christ our Lord is. He is both God and Man in one person. But be sure to make this distinction, he is “made” of the seed of David according to the
flesh; and “declared” the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of
holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.
THE SON MADE
Romans 1: 3: Concerning his Son Jesus Christ
our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh
Here, we
are talking about the Son of God, coming down and taking a human, fleshly
nature—“he was made of the seed of David
according to the flesh”
My son
has often asked me, and other young people have said, “I don’t understand. I am
confused when you speak of Christ appearing in the old testament when he was
not born until years later.” So I want
to be as clear as possible. It will take the Holy Spirit of God to make any
sinner receive the things of God. But I want to be crystal clear.
Jesus
Christ our Lord is God—the gospel is “the
gospel of God,…Concerning his Son.” From
eternity, before he ever made the world, Christ is the second person in the
trinity, the Son of God. But he could
never redeem and save fallen, sinful, guilty, condemned men unless he became a
man capable of laying down his life, shedding his own blood and dying. Therefore,
the Son of God became the Son of man.
As the
Son of man he was “made.” God prepared a body for his Son. Christ said
that. He said, “a body hast thou prepared
me.” (Heb 10: 5) That is what the
Holy Ghost declared to Joseph, when Mary was found with child having never
known a man. Notice, Joseph was the son
of David so that just as our text says, Jesus Christ our Lord was “made of the seed of David.”
Matthew 1: 20…behold,
the angel of the Lord…said [unto], Joseph, thou SON OF DAVID, fear not to take
unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is OF THE HOLY
GHOST. 21: And she shall bring
forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people
from their sins. 22: Now all
this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the
prophet, saying, 23: Behold, a
virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call
his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
Christ is
the Word who is the eternal Son of God.
He is the eternal Lord who said of himself through Isaiah, “Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and
shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being
interpreted is, God with us.” Then
in the fullness of time,
John 1:14: The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us….
Galatians 4: 4: But when the fulness of the time was
come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
As the
Son of man, he was “made of the seed of
David according to the flesh.” It means he was born of the house and
lineage of David. God promised King
David that according to the flesh, the Christ would be his Son.
2 Samuel 7: 12: And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt
sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed
out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.
Notice
the wording of Psalm 132: 11:
Psalm 132: 11: The LORD hath sworn in truth unto
David; he will not turn from it; Of the fruit of thy body WILL I set upon thy
throne.
The
LORD—the Son of God—was the fruit of David’s body. He was the Son of God who
was made flesh and now sets upon the throne of David in heavenly Jerusalem
ruling his kingdom in heaven and in earth. The Holy Spirit used the apostle
Peter to tell us David spoke of Christ.
Acts 2: 29 Men and brethren, let me freely speak
unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his
sepulchre is with us unto this day. 30:
Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him,
that OF THE FRUIT OF HIS LOINS, ACCORDING TO THE FLESH, he would raise up CHRIST
TO SIT ON HIS THRONE; 31: He
seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not
left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption.
Therefore
in Matthew 1, we read the genealogy of our Lord Jesus Christ and we see he is
the Son of David as God declared,
Matthew 1: 1: The book of the generation of Jesus Christ,
THE SON OF DAVID, the son of Abraham…6: And Jesse begat David the king; and
David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias; 7: And Solomon begat Roboam;…16: And Jacob begat Joseph the husband
of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.
So the Lord Jesus Christ was “made of the seed
of David according to the flesh.” He was the Son of God from eternity. But
he was made the Son of man. In the
flesh, as the Son of man, he was from the house and lineage of David, the heir of David’s throne. So he is
David’s son and David’s Lord.
THE SON DECLARED
Romans 1: 4: And declared to be the Son of God with power, according
to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:
Christ
was made the Son of man but he was not made the Son of God. He was “declared
to be the Son of God.” This is because he is and always was the Son of God
without beginning or ending. He is God,
he said, “I and my Father are one.”
(Jn 10: 30) This is why Isaiah makes the
distinction, “For unto us a child is
born, unto us a son is given.” (Is 9: 6)
He is the Son that God gave to lay down his life for his people.
This
distinction is important because he was always God. He was always the second
person in the trinity. He was always the Son of God. God gave his only begotten
Son. But he was God before he came. He made the world, he made the woman in
whose womb he took flesh, he made David. He often appeared in the old testament
as he did to Moses in the burning bush.
It was he who wrestled Jacob and gave his life and faith and a new name.
This distinction is so important because as Christ said “before Abraham was I AM”
Therefore, he was “declared to be the Son
of God with power”. What does it
mean “with power?” The gospel is the power of God. (Rom 1: 16; 1
Cor 1: 18) We see why. Through the
gospel, Christ himself preaches to us and declares that he himself is the Power
of God.
1 Corinthians 1: 24: But unto them which are called, both
Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.
Hebrews 1: 2: [God] Hath in these last days spoken unto
us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also
he made the worlds
The Son
of God spoke to us when he walked this earth as the Son of man preaching the
gospel to us. He speaks to us now from
his throne in glory as the gospel is preached unto us. And what does he declare?
Matthew 28: 18: And Jesus came and spake unto them,
saying, ALL POWER is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
Isaiah 9:6: For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is
given: and THE GOVERNMENT SHALL BE UPON HIS SHOULDER
Matthew 11:27: ALL THINGS are delivered unto me of my
Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the
Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever THE SON WILL REVEAL HIM.
John 5: 25:
Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead
shall hear THE VOICE OF THE SON OF GOD: and they that hear shall live. 26: For as the Father hath life in
himself; SO HATH HE GIVEN TO THE SON TO HAVE LIFE IN HIMSELF; 27: And hath GIVEN HIM AUTHORITY TO
EXECUTE JUDGMENT ALSO, BECAUSE HE IS THE SON OF MAN
What does
it mean when it says all authority was given to him because he is the Son of
man?
As the Son of God he had all power always. He is God. But now he has all authority to execute
judgment and give life as the Son of Man, as the GodMan, Mediator.
Then
notice, the works he did when he walked this earth declared him “the Son of God with power, according to the
spirit of holiness.” The Father gave
the Spirit unto the GodMan without measure.
This is how he was able to finish the works God gave him to do. And those works declared him to be “the Son of God with power, according to the
spirit of holiness.” He said,
John 5: 36: I have greater witness than that of
John: for the works which the Father hath given me to finish, the same works
that I do, bear witness of me, that THE FATHER HATH SENT ME.
John 17: 1:
These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father,
the hour is come; glorify THY SON, that THY SON also may glorify thee: 2: As thou hast given him POWER OVER
ALL FLESH, that HE should GIVE ETERNAL LIFE to as many as thou hast given him.
Also,
Christ’s resurrection declared him the Son of God—he was “declared to be the Son
of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection
from the dead:”
According to or by the Spirit of holiness he was justified in all his claims to be the Son of God when
the Spirit raised him from the dead.
1 Timothy 3: 16: And without controversy great is the
mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit,…
Not only
that, he was declared to be the Son of God because he raised himself from the
dead
John 10:17:
Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I MIGHT TAKE
IT AGAIN. 18: No man taketh it
from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, AND I HAVE
POWER TO TAKE IT AGAIN. This commandment have I received of my Father.
So all
these things is what is meant when it says “he
was declared the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness by
the resurrection from the dead.”
WHY THE GODMAN?
Why is it
so important that he be both God and Man?
He must be God and Man in order to obtain salvation for his people as
our great High Priest and that he might be able to comfort us since he has
suffered as we suffer.
Hebrews 2: 9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower
than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that
he by the grace of God should taste death for every man. [that the Father gave
to him] 10: For it became him,
for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing
many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through
sufferings. 11: For both he that
sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause
he is not ashamed to call them brethren, 12: Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst
of the church will I sing praise unto thee. 13: And again, I will put my trust in him. And again, Behold I and
the children which God hath given me. 14:
Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also
himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him
that had the power of death, that is, the devil; 15: And deliver them who through fear of death were all their
lifetime subject to bondage. 16:
For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him
the seed of Abraham. 17: Wherefore
in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he
might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to
God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. 18: For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able
to succour them that are tempted.
Hebrews 5: 1: For
every high priest taken from among men is ordained for men in things pertaining
to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins: 2: Who can have compassion on the
ignorant, and on them that are out of the way; for that he himself also is
compassed with infirmity. 3: And
by reason hereof he ought, as for the people, so also for himself, to offer for
sins. 4: And no man taketh this
honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron. 5: So also Christ glorified not
himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son,
to day have I begotten thee. 6: As
he saith also in another place, Thou art a priest for ever after
the order of Melchisedec. 7: Who
in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with
strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was
heard in that he feared; 8: Though
he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; 9: And being made perfect, he became
the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;
As the
GodMan he was able to lay down his life and suffer and die in place of his
people.
As the
GodMan—because he is God eternal—the redemption he accomplished for his people
is eternal. Our redemption can never be undone.
He creates his people anew better than we were created in Adam. We could
fall in Adam but Christ brought in everlasting
righteousness, eternal redemption
for his people so that we can never again be lost.
As the
GodMan he has been touched with all the same infirmities that we suffer, so he
able to succor- or comfort us—and because he has all power he is able to make
sure we are comforted.
As the
GodMan he everlives to make intercession for us with God.
Hebrews 4: 14:
Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens,
Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. 15: For we have not an high priest
which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all
points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. 16: Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we
may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.
Amen!