This scripture is often presented by trinitarians and some others as proof that Jesus is still a man; and many also have offered this scripture as proof of the claim that Jesus now has two "natures", one nature alleged to be that of the Supreme Being, and another nature being that of a human being.
We should first note that "he" who appointed the day, ordained Jesus, and raised Jesus from the dead, is identified in context as being "God" -- only one person -- in harmony with John 17:1,3 and 1 Corinthians 8:6. The Greek words meaning God and "Godhead" (King James Version - Acts 17:29) of Acts 17 are therefore referring to only one person, and it is this same unipersonal "God" who has appointed a day in which the world is to judged, and who gives that guarantee to all men of that judgment by raising the one whom He ordained out of death.
Jesus, of course, sacrificed his body of flesh to pay for our sins. (Luke 22:19; John 6:51; Hebrews 10:10) The scriptures thus speak of the days of his flesh as being in the past. (Hebrews 5:7) He is no longer a human being (man) which is defined in the Bible as being "a little lower than the angels." (Psalm 8:4,5; Hebrews 2:6-8) Jesus, however, has been exalted far above the angels; he is no longer "a little lower than the angels". (Hebrews 2:9) If Jesus still has his body of flesh and bones in heaven, then Jesus never completed his sacrifice for our sins, or else he took back his sacrifice, and we have no redeemer.
Since a man, as meaning a human being, is a little lower than the angels (Psalm 8:4,5; Hebrews 2:5-8), this does not describe Jesus as he is now, for he has been highly exalted far above all dominion, including that of the angels. (Ephesians 1:3,17-23; 1 Corinthians 15:27; Colossians 2:9,10; 1 Peter 3:22) Furthermore, Hebrews 5:7 lets us know that Jesus is no longer in the days of his flesh. Indeed, since Jesus came to give his flesh for the life of the world (John 6:51), he no longer has any need to be a human being of flesh. Furthermore, since the condemnation upon Adam would have been eternal had it not been for Jesus' sacrifice, Jesus, as a human being must remain dead for all eternity in order to be the satisfaction of paying the wages of sin. (1 Corinthians 15:21,22; Romans 5:12-19; 6:23) Thus, Peter wrote: "Christ also suffered for sins once, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring you to God." (1 Peter 3:18) And then Peter says that Jesus had been "put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit." Jesus did indeed give his body of flesh and its blood on our behalf (Luke 22:19; Hebrews 10:10). Since there is no more sacrifice for sin, as we said, Jesus has no need now to be a man, flesh, earthly, with a body which is sustained by blood. (Leviticus 17:11,14) It was not just Jesus' blood that was sacrificed, but it also his body of flesh.
Thus, whatever Paul meant by the word "man" as applied to Jesus in Acts 17:31, we can be certain that Paul was not saying that Jesus is still a human being in heaven. Indeed, elsewhere, Paul kept the glory of a celestial body and the glory of a terrestrial body separate from each other (1 Corinthians 15:35-41); the glory of the fleshly body he associated only with the terrestrial glory. He never associated the glory of the fleshly body with the celestial glory, which he obviously corresponds to the glory of a spiritual body; thus the crown of glory (Psalm 8:5; Hebrews 2:7) that belongs to "man" is the terrestrial glory, not the celestial glory. This was indeed the crown of glory that Jesus had when he became flesh (John 1:14; Hebrews 2:9), which fleshly glory Jesus sacrificed in death so that he "tasted death for every man".
The word "man" [Greek transliterated, Aner, Strong's #435] does not always mean human being. In Luke 24:4, two angels are referred to as "men". This word also describes the church as becoming a "full grown man". (Ephesians 4:13) Thus, some claim that by "man" in Acts 17:31, Paul was referring to the whole man of Jesus as Paul later described, that is, Jesus as head and the church as a body. While this may be, more than likely, however, in view of the reference Jesus' resurrection from the dead, Paul was simply being accommodating in Acts 17:31, using "man" in the sense of a person, not that he had meant to say that Jesus is still a human being, with some kind spiritualized, invisible, body of flesh in heaven. The Bible never speaks of such.
See links to relate studies at:
Is Jesus Now Flesh?
Comments
Post a Comment