I. The Natures of Christ.
A. What these are:
1. The Divine Nature.
a. It is that which God is.
b. The Divine Nature includes possession of all the attributes of God: eternity; onmnipotence; wisdom; etc.
2. The human nature.
a. Though it is difficult to separate the human nature and person, this nature of man is that which he is.
1) It is that he is creature with all the limitations this implies.
2) And includes the human body and human soul.
b. This also did the Mediator possess.
B. These two are united in the Divine Person.
1. The Mediator could not have had a human person.
a. A human person would have been responsible for the sin of Adam.
b. A human person could not have performed that which was required of the Mediator.
2. But He must be the Divine Person:
a. Through the Divine Person He consciously acts in each nature.
1) That is true for the Divine Nature.
2) But also that the Divine Person acts through the human nature.
b. The Divine Person inseparably unites the two natures of Christ.
II. The union of these two natures.
A. As such.
1. They were united in His conception and birth.
2. They remain united in His suffering and death.
a. He suffers as the Son of God in our flesh.
b. Only thus does His suffering have infinite merit.
3. United in His resurrection and glory.
a. His human nature will eternally be in heaven–now perfected and heavenly.
b. Through that human nature, He will reveal His Godhead.
B. The confession of the church:
1. This was confessionally stated by the Council of Chalcedon in 451 A.D.
a. This opposed some of the following heresies:
1) Apollinarianism: Christ had a human body, animal soul, but not human reason; the divine Logos took the place of the rational soul.
2) Nestorianism: admitted both the humanity and deity of Christ–but not united in a vital, personal union.
3) Eutychianism: the absorption of the human nature by the divine.
b. The Council declared that these two natures exist: 1)inconfusedly, 2) unchangeably, 3) indivisibly, 4) inseparably.
2. That union we must maintain faithfully.
III. The necessity of the united natures.
A. The Mediator must be very God.
1. To bear the infinite wrath of the eternal God–no mere creature could do that.
2. To confer life–for only God can do this.
B. The Mediator must be very really man.
1. To bear justly the wrath of God.
a. God will not punish another for the sins of man.
b. Man must bear the sentence of death–or one who can legally represent him must bear it.
2. To merit for us human life.
Worksheet
A. Supplementary reading:
1. Scripture: John 1;
2. Other references: same as for Article 18.
B. Proof-text: (Divinity of Christ) “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
C. Questions for study and consideration:
1. What is the Lutheran view of ubiquity? How would this conflict with the confession of the church?
2. Did Christ in His human nature know all things? Prove your answer.
3. Why is it essential that the two natures be united in Christ’s suffering?
4. What would be the error in maintaining that Christ had no human soul?