Question: I am very confused about something, and hope you can explain. In the Old Testament was the God who spoke to Adam, Noah, the old prophets, Abraham, the one who called himself YHWH, I AM, the God of Israel, etc. the one who was called the Father by Jesus, or was this the one who was born of flesh (Jesus) or was this both the same one, or something different? Please help me understand clearly.

God bless!

Terry

Answer: Dear Terry,

The first thing we need is a definition of terms – God, as the word is used by Christians, can mean the Godhead (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) or God the Father, the first person of the triune Godhead. The Bible tells us that God, that is the Godhead, is one, yet exists eternally as three distinct persons. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are separate, distinct personalities, yet one in essence and nature. They are separate and distinct in a way that we humans don’t mirror in our relationships, and they are one in essence and nature in a way that we humans don’t mirror in our relationships.

God, the Godhead, has revealed himself to us in human terms, using the human limitations of our minds and our language to help us understand him, not to give us a precise definition and description of God, for that is beyond human understanding and capabilities.

The New Testament tells us that God came to us in the person of Jesus to save us from our sin. Further, Jesus, the second person of the triune Godhead, existed eternally as the Son, and among other things was the Creator of our world and universe (Ephesians and Colossians speak to this topic).

Jesus became incarnate – that is he added humanity to his divinity – he never stopped being God, but became something that he had not been – human. In some way that we will not understand on this side of eternity, he was 100% human and 100% divine. The early Christians said that he was "very man and very God" – that he was not some mixture of both, but he was fully both, at the same time. His divinity was not diminished, although it was "veiled" – that is, he voluntarily laid aside specific attributes of his divinity in order to be human. Philippians, chapter two, says it this way – "he humbled himself" – all of this because he loved us.

So that was our creator who was born of the virgin Mary – who died on that cross, and who rose from the dead, and who lives today as the risen Lord. I highly recommend the book, "Christ Before the Manger – the life and times of the pre-incarnate Christ" by Ron Rhodes, published by Baker Books for a detailed study of this topic.

Hope this help, Terry. May God bless you.

In Christ,

Greg Albrecht