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Son of God, Son of Man

by ann spangler Devotionals Daily
Son of God, Son of Man

υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ, υἱὸς

HUIOS TOU THEOU

τοῦ ἀνθρώπου

HUIOS TOU ANTHROPOU

Like the Father and the Holy Spirit, Jesus is God. He always was, always is, and always will be. But unlike the Father and the Spirit, Jesus is also a human being. Though charged with blasphemy and crucified for claiming to be one with the Father, Jesus’ resurrection validates His claim to be God’s Son in a unique way.

  • When we confess our belief that Jesus is the Son of God, we share in the love the Father has for the Son, becoming adopted children of God.

Though Jesus was the Son of God, he was also the Son of Man, a title that emphasizes both His lowliness and His eventual dominion. Near the end of His life, when the high priest asked Him whether He was the Son of God, Jesus no longer avoided the title but said that He would one day

see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of Heaven. — Matthew 26:64

When you pray to Jesus as Son of God and Son of Man, you are praying to the One who is your Brother and your Lord.

KEY SCRIPTURE

He asked them, “But who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God!” Yeshua replied, “Simon, son of Jonah, you are blessed! No human revealed this to you, but my Father in Heaven revealed it to you. — Matthew 16:15–17

CHRIST REVEALS HIS NAME IN SCRIPTURE

DANIEL 7:13–14; MATTHEW 16:13–21

Open your personal Bible translation and read the same passages. Make note where the SON OF GOD or the SON OF MAN is used as God’s name.

In my visions during the night, I saw among the clouds in Heaven someone like the Bar-Enash. He came to the Ancient One, who has lived for endless years, and was presented to Him. He was given power, honor, and a kingdom. People from every province, nation, and language were to serve Him. His power is an eternal power that will not be taken away. His Kingdom will never be destroyed.
When Yeshua came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
They answered, “Some say you are John the Baptizer, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
He asked them, “But who do you say I am?”
Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God!”
Yeshua replied, “Simon, son of Jonah, you are blessed! No human revealed this to you, but my Father in Heaven revealed it to you. You are Peter, and I can guarantee that on this rock I will build my church. And the gates of hell will not overpower it. I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. Whatever you imprison, God will imprison. And whatever you set free, God will set free.”
Then He strictly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.
From that time on Yeshua began to inform His disciples that he had to go to Jerusalem. There He would have to suffer a lot because of the leaders, the chief priests, and the experts in Moses’ Teachings. He would be killed, but on the third day He would be brought back to life.

υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ, υἱὸς

Understanding the Name

Though the phrase “sons of God” was occasionally used in the Hebrew Scriptures, the Greek phrase “Son of God,” Huios tou Theou (hui-OS tou the-OU) belongs to Jesus in a unique way. Jesus Himself indicates that He and the Father are one. He is the only man who could bear the title without dishonoring the Father.

But Jesus is God’s Son not in the sense that most Westerners think of sonship, as though the Father preexisted Him. Instead, Jesus is God’s Son in the sense that He shares His nature and represents His intentions. He is fully divine and therefore perfectly capable of representing the Father on earth. Twice in the Gospels — at Jesus’ baptism and at the transfiguration — a voice from Heaven announced:

This is My Son, whom I love.

During Jesus’ earthly ministry, even the demons recognized Christ as the “Son of God.” However, it was this politically charged title that led to Jesus’ death, which may be why He avoided it until the end of His life. Recognizing this as a primary title of Christ, the early church baptized those who confessed Jesus Christ as the Son of God. These early believers understood, as we do, that our relationship with Christ enables us to become adopted children of the Father.

Though Jesus was the Son of God, His favorite title for Himself was the “Son of Man,” Huios tou Anthropou (hui-OS tou an-THROW- pou). It’s a somewhat enigmatic title.

τοῦ ἀνθρώπου

But certainly one meaning of it is that Jesus is the perfect human being. He shows us through His life on earth what men and women were intended by God to be before we fell prey to sin. But the title also has messianic connotations and is closely connected with Jesus’ second coming. The passage from Daniel 7:13-14 is speaking of a powerful messianic king.

  • Together the titles Son of Man and Son of God express the incredible mystery of the incarnation — that the second person of the Trinity came down from Heaven to become one of us so that we could be one with Him.

When Jesus rose from the dead, He ascended into Heaven, not just as God but also as a man. C. S. Lewis remarked on this truth: “I seldom meet any strong or exultant sense of the continued, never-to-be-abandoned, Humanity of Christ in glory, in eternity. We stress the Humanity too exclusively at Christmas, and the Deity too exclusively after the Resurrection; almost as if Christ once became a man and then presently reverted to being simply God. We think of the Resurrection and Ascension (rightly) as great acts of God; less often as the triumph of Man.”

Connecting to the Name

  1. How did Jesus fulfill Daniel’s vision of “one like Bar-Erash, a son of man”?
  2. What do you think it means to say that Jesus is the Son of God?
  3. Why do you think Jesus cautioned His disciples against telling anyone that He was the Messiah?
  4. Describe your image of the ideal father. How does this compare with your image of who God is?
  5. Describe your image of the ideal son or daughter. How does this compare with your image of yourself in relationship to God?
  6. How does Jesus as the ideal human being reflect your understanding of God’s purpose for all human beings?

Praying a Passage with God’s Name

Thank God for revealing Jesus as His Son to you. Ask Him to deepen your own understanding of being His son or daughter. Focus on the name Huios Tou Theou, “Son of God” and Huios Tou Anthropou, “Son of Man,” as you read Matthew 27:50–54.

50 Then Yeshua loudly cried out once again and gave up His life.
51 Suddenly, the curtain in the temple was split in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, and the rocks were split open. 52 The tombs were opened, and the bodies of many holy people who had died came back to life. 53 They came out of the tombs after He had come back to life, and they went into the holy city where they appeared to many people.
54 An army officer and those watching Yeshua with Him saw the earthquake and the other things happening. They were terrified and said, “Certainly, this was the Son of God!”

Praying the Names Son of God and Son of Man for Myself

Look up and read: Matthew 16:13–16

Unbelievers are blinded to Jesus’ true identity. Pray and ask God to open the eyes of the blind. Ask Him to make you into a “little Christ” so that others may know Him.

Promises from the Son of God and Son of Man

4 But when the right time came, God sent His Son into the world. A woman gave birth to Him, and He came under the control of the laws given to Moses. 5 God sent Him to pay for the freedom of those who were controlled by these laws so that we would be adopted as His children. 6 Because you are God’s children, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into us to call out, “Abba! Father!” 7 So you are no longer slaves but God’s children. Since you are God’s children, God has also made you heirs. — Galatians 4:4–7

27 The Son of Man will come with His angels in His Father’s glory. Then He will pay back each person based on what that person has done. — Matthew 16:27

FOR DEEPER STUDY

Read the following passages, considering the names SON OF GOD and SON OF MAN and how their meanings relate to the context of the passage.

Matthew 12:38–42; 20:20–28; 25:31–33; 26:63–66

Mark 9:2–7

John 3:16–17; 14:12–14

Romans 8:14–17, 28–30

2 Corinthians 6:18

Hebrews 1:1–5

1 John 4:9–12

Revelation 1:12–18

Excerpted with permission from Praying the Names of God for 52 Weeks by Ann Spangler, copyright Ann Spangler.

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Your Turn

Jesus, the Baby King, is both the Son of Man and the Son of God. He came to be with us! In person! God in the flesh. What an amazing truth to dwell on during Advent as we wait for the day we celebrate His birth! ~ Devotionals Daily

 

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