Show A seasonable ARTICLE for unto you is born bom this day in the city of david a savior which is christ the lord luke II 11 ii humanity the world all over is celebrating this day the birth in the flesh of the savior and the redeemer of mankind the exact date of this glorious occurrence has occasioned casio ned much dispute dionysius Exi gons a syrian monk of great learning in the sixth century published as the result of his researches the opinion that christ was born years after the founding of rome or of as will sometimes be seen in thi the books A U C anno urbe con condita mitt As no one could then prove to the contrary that year was after a time generally adopted by the nations of europe as the year i of the christian era but within the last two hundred years biblical scholars have discovered by comparing the death of herod the date of which is known absolutely and the data when certain roman governors ruled in judea that the data of dionysius aal was several years too late it is now generally believed that christ was biorn in A U C or four years before our era though lewin and borne bome others say it was six years V V V the object of this article will not be a christmas story but the setting forth of one great idea namely christ in his permanent humanity in both worlds and to the study of this idea I 1 respectfully invite the kind sa attention of the readers of the christmas issue of the DESERET NEWS the doctrine of incarnation as taught in the bible is that christ contemplated in his higher or divine nature as existing before the world was for the purpose of affording salvation perso personally bally entered into the domain of humanity as to both body and soul and that on the or purely human side of his being he became a man this doctrine supposes a local and personal residence of divinity in humanity pauls statement of the idea is that christ who was in the form of god gocr I 1 and who thought it not robbery to be equal with god actually took upon him the form of a servant and was made in ih the likeness of men philip ii 6 7 johns statement is that the personal and divine word of logos who was in the beginning who was with god I 1 and who was god was made flesh and that Is to th the flesh or in human nature this word dwelt among men aha ana was seen and heard by them john i 1 14 and john iv 2 3 human nature according to both of these statements became the special tabernacle of divinity the incarnation thus taught is limited to the human nature of jesus of nazareth who was born of the virgin mary and as human had at the attributes of our common humanity as really as paul or any other I 1 man christ thus considered was simply a man without any displace ment or suspension of his humanity by the incarnation of divinity therein hence lie he wits was the godman god man as really divine as lie he was am human and as really human as he was divine no other being that ever trod the earth presents the parallel of this fact or even the remotest analogy to it the fact as to its mode is a great mystery and yet as a fi fact to be believed no mystery at all since it is clearly taught in the word of god the doctrine of the bible is that jesus while on earth was per perfect act as a man and hence that he eahl exhibited in his own life to the fullest le st extent all that is contained in the ideal man and in this respect differed from the race with which he was was by nature nature allied this doctrine is presented to us in two forms the first of ifil which ch is that of general state ment cor ii 21 heb iv 15 acts iii 14 and john viii 29 the other form is that of the record given by the evangelists who in telling the story of christs earthly life have drawn the picture of a perfect character lived and acted out under conditions common to humanity the picture is artless and simple in the language used yet the absolute tn moral ral beauty and perfection of jesus shine out in every part of it we see him under a great viLrie variety ty of circumstances ces and in the midst of num numerous r trials and provocations pro vocations but we see nothing and hear nothing anywhere suggestive of sin or any bad passion no one taking jesus upon the showing of his recorded acts and words and judging of him thereby can find a single point in his whole i c career are e r f for or the slightest criticism no other charac character tei was ever so carefully studied and no other ever commanded such a universal tribute of homage from human thought scoffing infidelity in the presence of this chara character ctet forgets its sneer here then in this human jesus of nazareth as we trace him through his public ministry to his death we find these two facts first that in him divinity was incarnated ed without any suspension of his essential and complete humanity that teat as a man he was perfect alike in in his relations to god and man this is the jesus christ the godman god man that for sope some three years and a half conducted a public ministry among the jews that as never man before that wrote miracles in proof of his words and that was at last put to death in the flesh on the cross no other humanity was ever the in carna ting tabernacle of divinity jesus of nazareth the sinless man was in the councils of heaven selected for this purpose and consecrated to the ends sought thereby hereby in this respect he stands peerless and alone in the history of the world behold the mani the incarnation of christ in hu manity was not terminated by the death of jesus op on the cross this death was not his annihilation as to either body or soul and was not their permanent separation the crucified and buried body rose from the dead on the third day without any corruption or deday decay and the soul which at death temporarily passed into hades or the invisible world came bachand back bac kand and re inhabited that body as it was after the resurrection the severed humanity of jesus in its entirety of bf body and soul was speedily restored and in that restored humanity the incarnation was continued this is the doctrine which peter in expounding a prophecy in regard to christ made by david both assumed and preached in his address to fhe lews jews on the day of pentecost acts ii 2528 25 28 peter told th them em that god had made that same same jesus whom they had crucified both lord and christ acts ii 36 1 this christ jesus in his rien body met his disciples at different times after his resurrection and identified himself to them by many infallible proofs as the same christ who had died on the cross acts i 3 there were no such changes in his body or in him or in his man ner of intercourse with them as to exclude their perfect recognition of kim him he was not de by his death or his resurrection and was not so changed as to imply that he had laid aside any part of his humanity he was still the godman god man as really as he was before death and as such appeared at sundry times to his disciples for forty days and spoke to them of the things pertaining to the kingdom of god acts i 3 the ascension of christ into heaven did not terminate his incarnation in humanity the fact as shown in the record is that he left neither his body nor his soul in this world but carried both with him as part of his own personality when he ascended into Hea heaven verr and sat down on the right band of the majesty on n high acts i io 10 ii heb dieb i k 3 it was the god godman man the christ who had appeared in tha thresh illesh who had died in the flesh and who in the flesh had risen from the dead that carried his human nature with him when he went back to heaven and that now there exists and acts as the godman god man this same jesus said the angels to the wondering disciples which is taken up from you into heaven shall so come in like mannerns man maur ye have seen him go into heaven acts i ii he is the same alike in his departure and return peter speaks of this same jesus as being received into heaven and as there remaining until the fulfilment fulfillment of the whole scheme of prophecy in regard q him acts iii 21 paul in his epistle to the philip pians fians refers to christ as raving having a glorious body in heaven and to i this body as the model after which the bodies of his redeemed people will be fashioned when he comes to raise the dead and judge the world then what the apostle calls our vile body better translated as the body of our humiliation will be fashioned like unto his glorious body philip iii 20 21 this language clearly implies that christs body in heaven is a human body in that body he will make his second advent and hence will come as the son of man as well as the son of god paul speaks of him as that man by whom god will judge the world in righteousness applying to him the term man after his resurrection and ascension into heaven acts 3 what the bible says about the priestly office of christ in heaven supposes his humanity in the world we are told that jesus the son of god has passed into heaven itself as the high priest of our profession and with reference to his humanity he is set before us as a high priest who can be touched with the feeling of our infirmities the reason assigned for this fact is that chat he was once in all points tempted like as we are and that having been thus tempted he is able to succor them that are tempted heb ii 18 and iv 15 there is neither nor force in this reason eason r I 1 except upon the supposition of christs humanity in heaven withdraw this element from his heavenly life and he ceases to be the high priest described in the epistle to the hebrews christ in a word having dwelt on earth in human nature in that nature died on the cross rose from the dead and ascended into heaven and in heaven he still retains the some same nature and in it acts as really as he did on earth his incarnation in humanity was not for time merely but for eternity and not for this world simply simple but 46 for heaven his abiding humanity is the conclusion conc lu slon to be drawn from the facts and the teachings of the bible what paw paual s says ays in his first epistle to the corinthians with regard to the resurrection of the dead sheds important light on the doctrine of christs humanity alike on earth and in heaven take th the e following points first the apostle autv affef adae adverting arting to the effect that christ rose from the dead to the evidence of this fac tand also to the theoretical consequences resulting from its denial proceeds to say but now is christ risen from the dead and become the first fruits of them that slept for since by man came caine death by man also came the resurrection of the dead for as in adam all die even so in christ shall all be made alive but every man in his own order christ the first fruits afterwards they that are christs at his coming 1 I cor xv 2023 20 23 the resurrection of christ and that of his people are here connected the former being regarded as the guaranty and model of the latter their humanity participating in the fate of his humanity in the factor fact of death will also participate in the destiny of his humanity in the fact of resurrection his rb resurrection as the first fruits is already an accomplished complis hed fact and theirs will be such at his coning 11 his was a bodily resurrection and so will theirs be his humanity and their humanity are allied in death and in the resurrection ur and hence participant in in essentially the same facts acts f such is the import of the above passage second this however is not all that paul says on the subject he further remarks the first man adam is of the earth earthy the second man christ is the lord from I leaven heaven As he is the earthy such are they also that are earthy and as is the heavenly such are they also that are heavenly and as we have borne the image of the earthy we shall also bear the image of the heavenly 1 I cor xv 47 49 it is important to observe that the apostle is here sp speaking Taking simply of the body or corporeal part of human nature alike with reference to christ and to christians here they bear the image of the earthy and in this respect are like adam as he was when on earth but in heaven they will bear the image of the heavenly and in this respect be like christ as he is in heaven having bodies fashioned like unto his glorious body phillip iii 21 community of nature with mankind will according to pauls concept conception iok be as trite te of christ in heaven as it was on earth the amazing wonder hohder of providence and revelation involved in the doc trine of the godman god man as established n the historic christ than which nothing can be more wonderful has as already intimated for its object the restoration pardon justification exaltation glorification and eternal salvation of the human race whether god would do anything for the attainment tain ment of this end and if so what it would be are questions in respect i to which except as informed by his action I 1 am neither a competent judge j not nor a competent objector the case however in its relation to human thought is most materially altered when god himself has acted and given us such a system as that contained in the christology of the bible we are competent to apprehend ind and believe this system as true and thus see the divine christ in his humanity and work on earth and in his humanity and work in heaven this is the one great idea christ in his permanent humanity in both worlds and essentially the same in both which it has been the object of this article to set before the reader such a christ exalts and glorifies j humanity in the very act of taking it upon himself and therein showing i the high spiritual elevation which is possible to it such a christ offers to humanity its clearest simplest and best facility for becoming acquainted I 1 with the invisible god especially I 1 in in relation the affections of his infinite heart such a christ in himself having tasted death and also risen from the dead and ascended into heaven guarantees a like resurrection to all his people and in his own history opens the gate of immortality to human hope he puts the stamp of immortality on humanity and brings immortality to light in his own record such a christ in what he was and what he did when in the flesh on earth supplies historical materials that enable us to follow him into heaven to identify him as a personal reality there to think of him as he is there and in what he is doing there therel therein l in human behalf in a word to make him the most familiar and best known object presented to thought in the spirit realm such a christ possessing our nature alike on earth and in heaven invested with human thies bestowing these sympathies on all who seek his help and once in all things tempted like as we are is eminently adapted to inspire the heart with comfort and hope in the great struggle of life such a christ in a nature and under conditions common to him and the race teaching us by his own living example as well as by his words presents to us a lovely and beautiful life to imitate a life not foreign to our nature not out of harmony with our relations not above our apprehension a life that speaks to the heart and with the warm and eloquent affections of the heart as no were mere words can speak such a christ by his own life simplifies the idea of perfect virtue and gives it a sweetness and charm that cannot be found in the technicalities of formulated dogma the life of such a christ in the person who lived it brings before the eye of thought an object to love a friend to trust and a hallowed companionship panion ship to bless us forever the existence of such a christ declared to be real and on earth believed to be real enriches our existence here and clears away all doubt as to our more glorious existence hereafter it is well known to every careful reader of the bible that the second coming of christ was to the apostles a cherished and delightful thought while not informed |