-THE LIFE OF CHRIST -     Jesus' Eternal Existence

-Some have tried to indicate that Jesus is a created being.  Some say that God the Father

created Jesus first and foremost and then continued the creation process.  This is

simply a violation of the truth of the scriptures.

-John 1:1-3, Col 1:16, 1 Cor 8:6, Heb 1:1-2, John 17:5, Phil 2:5-8

-“Only Begotten”

-Perhaps some of the confusion has come from the phrase “only begotten Son”.

            -John 3:16-18; John 1:14,18, Heb 1:5, 5:5 (Acts 13:33, Ps 2:6-7), 1 John 4:9

-Basically, we find two Greek words being translated “only begotten”.

            -gennao – “…It is used of the act of God in the birth of Christ, Acts 13:33, Heb 1:5, 5:5

 quoted from Ps 2:7, none of which indicate that Christ became the Son of God at

 His birth.” (Vines)   [This is also the word used in 1 John 5:1.]

            -monogenes – “With reference to Christ, the phrase ‘the only begotten from the Father’, John

                                   1:14, RV, indicates that as the Son of God He was the sole representative of

                                   the Being and character of the One who sent Him…the word ‘begotten’ does

                                   not imply a beginning of His Sonship.  It suggests relationship indeed, but

                                   must be distinguished from generation as applied to man” (Vines)

                                   [This is the word used in John 3:16,18; John 1:14,18; 1 John 4:9]

-Guy N. Woods made the following comments in regards to 1 John 4:9:

            -“Of vital significance here is the phrase…’his only begotten Son’…literally, ‘His Son, the

               only-begotten.’  Monogene, the word translated ‘only begotten,’ signifies the-only-one-of-

               its-kind…” (p296).

            -In other words, “only begotten” does not indicate origination but uniqueness.

            -Obviously, Jesus is unique, one-of-a-kind.

-With this in mind, consider Heb 11:17.  Here we are told that Isaac was Abraham’s “only

begotten son”.  However, we know that Abraham had other children including his son, Ishmael.

Obviously, Isaac wasn’t Abraham’s “only” son, but his “unique” son. 

          -Isaac was unique in the fact that God had designated him as the one through which the

           promises would continue.

          -See Gen 21:1-13

-Jesus’ description as “the only begotten Son” does not indicate that He was created.  It simply

  shows that Jesus is unique and was sent forth by the Father. (see John 5:30, 1 John 4:14)

-The scriptures reveal that Jesus is an eternal being who became flesh in order to give Himself as

a perfect sacrifice for our sins.  (Phil 2:5-8, John 1:1-4,14)

-Throughout this entire study, it is important to remember that Jesus is eternal – part of the

Godhead – Deity – our Creator.  Then, as we progress through our study and see what Jesus

endured and did for us, let us stand in awe of Him – our High Priest, our Perfect Sacrifice,

our Mediator – our Saviour!