Jesus: Divine or human PERSON? (Philippians 2:4-7)

[AHJE]

Jesus is not a human Person. True or False?

I received a private message concerning this issue and Philippians 2 was cited as support for the claim that Jesus is a human person. I respectfully disagree. While Philippians 2 says that Jesus “emptied” Himself, this does not mean that Jesus stopped being a Divine Person (God the Son, The Eternal Logos, One of the Trinity, the Second Person of the Most Holy and Undivided Trinity).

Let us focus on these few verses *:

"For let this mind be in you, [a mind of humility not seeking vainglory]

which was also in Christ Jesus: [the PERSON Who was with the Father before the world began]

Who being in the form of God, [the PERSON being in the very Nature of God, being Truly Divine]

thought it not robbery to be equal to God: [the Son is already EQUAL to the Father in all things]

But emptied himself, [He Who had all the glory before all the angels in Heaven “became” as of no account on earth]

taking the form of a servant, [assuming (taking on) the Nature of a man subject to God]

being made in the likeness of men, [He looked like us human beings due to His Created Humanity, but is not a human PERSON]

and in habit found as a man." [The Son APPEARED to be a human person but was NOT IN REALITY a human PERSON.]

(Philippians 2:4-7)

The bottom line is that the 2 Natures of Christ (the Divine and the Human) have the DIVINE PERSON (of the Son) as their Subject or Personhood.

Praised be Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God.

A. H. J. E.
After the Heart of Jesus Evangelist*

 

[Julia_Mae]

There’s a reason the Church gave us the NAB:

Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves, each looking out not for his own interests, but [also] everyone for those of others. Have among yourselves the same attitude that is also yours in Christ Jesus, Who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross.

This is a relatively simple section that advocates for humility, to follow Jesus by being as Jesus showed us by His life: to live in humility for God and so be pleasing to God. Paul isn’t making a point about the Human/Divine natures, and it makes sense not to read into his thought more than he was saying.

God came to earth and lived as a true human among us. That’s what happened and what we believe and we would with or without this passage.

 

[AHJE]

There is much more to this passage than a mere moral edification to become humble as Jesus was humble. … It is also very Theological.

Please remember that the Holy Spirit is the Primary Author of Sacred Writing.

God bless you.

 

[tabycat]

The Lord Jesus was/is FULLY Man and FULLY God. Taking one or two passages to prove that He was ‘just’ One or the Other does not prove any thing.:knight1:

 

[Julia_Mae]

There is much more to this passage than a mere moral edification to become humble as Jesus was humble. … It is also very Theological…

Well, I think that humility is “very theologiucal.” But perhaps you could expand on the much more that you are reading on into it?

The HS is always present when we read Scripture, and we also need to understand what the intent of the Sacred writer was. Otherwise we might make exegesis a vain intellectual enterprise rather than a humble spiritual exercise.

 

[AHJE]

The Lord Jesus was/is FULLY Man and FULLY God. Taking one or two passages to prove that He was ‘just’ One or the Other does not prove any thing.:knight1:

I have not denied that Jesus is both Fully Human and Fully Divine. These are the Two Natures in the ONE PERSON of Jesus Christ.

Remember to make a distinction between the words “Nature” and “Person”.

Have you done so?

 

[grannymh]

Common sense and a bit of logic leads to the conclusion that Jesus Christ is *both * True God and True Man.