The Eternal Christ
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Key Verse: “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.” Selected Scripture: |
WHAT A TRULY BLESSED expression! In our present-day world when the only thing certain is change, how comforting it is to know this truth. This is the basis for which we can have “full assurance of faith.” (Heb. 10:22) One of the important aspects of this statement involves an earlier verse, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” (chap. 13:5) Our Master is with us, and we have the same watch care over us that is provided by our Heavenly Father. The unchangeableness on the part of the Father and his dear Son is a guarantee that the blessings to be bestowed under this arrangement will be everlasting, unending blessings. Apostle Paul is writing to encourage us to have confidence and trust in God, the secret of which lies in having confidence and strength in the Lord. “No good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.” (Ps. 84:11) We are promised “grace to help in time of need.”—Heb. 4:16
God’s qualities and attributes were the same in the beginning of Creation as they are now. When God created his Son, he gave him the same attributes that he possessed. We know these to be wisdom, justice, mercy, love, and power. Our Lord Jesus spoke these words in affirmation of this, “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father.” (John 14:9) We further read, “The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” (chap. 1:14) “Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.” (I Cor. 1:24) Our Lord has continued to be an example to us of God’s love.—John 3:16; Eph. 3:19
We should also be reminded of the verse, “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending.” (Rev. 1:8) He was the first and only begotten Son of God. By him all the Divine purpose would be accomplished including the redemption of the fallen race of mankind. He has the same office, authority, and relationship to mankind, and the same character, sympathy, and perfect love all of the way. Jesus is referred to as “the lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” (chap. 13:8) God’s plans from the beginning recognized that there would be the need for his Son to lay down his life, which he willingly did. The best evidence of true faith, continuous confidence in God, and heart harmony is found in the Lord’s experiences and their narratives. This is further evidence that these words are true—“His mercy endureth for ever.”—Jer. 33:11
Our Lord’s statement, “Before Abraham was, I am” (John 8:58), serves to identify the man Jesus with his previous condition before he was made flesh and dwelt among us. He is the same today, although he has been received to the Spirit plane. He says, “I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen.” (Rev. 1:18) As a man he lived, and he died. At his resurrection, he was made alive on the Spirit plane, far above all beings, angels, principalities and powers, but his identity—the personality—is the same. “God … Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.”—Heb. 1:1-3