Jesus Christ: The Eternal Son, True God and True Man, Crucified Savior, Risen Lord, and Coming King

Abstract

This chapter presents the doctrine of Jesus Christ as the living center of Christian faith, worship, salvation, mission, discipleship, and spiritual discernment. Scripture reveals Jesus Christ as the eternal Son of God, the Word who was with God and was God, and the Word who became flesh for the salvation of sinners. He is true God and true man, conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, without sin, obedient to the Father, crucified under human injustice and divine purpose, raised bodily from the dead, ascended to the right hand of the Father, and coming again in glory to judge the living and the dead. The chapter argues from Scripture alone that Christ is not merely a prophet, moral teacher, religious reformer, created being, angelic mediator, spiritual master, symbolic myth, or one path among many. He is the only Mediator between God and humanity, the Lamb of God who takes away sin, the risen Lord, and the coming King. The chapter develops a biblical Christology by tracing the promise of Christ in the Old Testament, His incarnation and public ministry in the Gospels, His saving work interpreted by the apostles, and His final victory revealed in the hope of His return. It explains the deity of Christ, the humanity of Christ, the hypostatic union, His sinless obedience, substitutionary atonement, bodily resurrection, ascension, intercession, lordship, exclusivity, and second coming. It also addresses historical errors and contemporary distortions, including Arianism, adoptionism, Docetism, Gnosticism, Ebionism, Apollinarianism, Nestorian distortion, Eutychian confusion, Socinianism, Unitarianism, modalistic confusion, liberal demythologizing, progressive reductions of Christ, prosperity distortions, universalism, religious pluralism, Christ consciousness, Cosmic Christ theories, ascended master teachings, channeling, self-deification, and technological messianism. The chapter concludes with pastoral application, reflection questions, and assessment materials for Bible College formation.