144. What Does It Mean That Jesus is the Son of God?

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What does it truly mean that Jesus is the Son of God? Far more than a theological abstraction, this question strikes at the heart of Christian faith and transforms our understanding of who God is and how He relates to us.

Diving deep into scripture, we unpack the profound meaning behind Jesus' divine sonship. This isn't about biological creation but an eternal relationship that existed before time began. Through passages like John 1:1-3, we discover Jesus wasn't made by God—He is God, the second person of the Trinity who chose to enter our world.

The concept of the Trinity emerges naturally as we explore how Jesus can be distinct from the Father while remaining fully God. We witness this beautiful mystery at Jesus' baptism where all three persons of the Trinity appear simultaneously—Jesus in the water, the Spirit descending like a dove, and the Father speaking from heaven. Each person maintains distinct consciousness while sharing perfect unity in essence and purpose.

We also examine why this divine sonship was so controversial among first-century Jews, whose strict monotheism made Jesus' claims sound blasphemous. Yet their own scriptures contained prophecies pointing to a divine Messiah—prophecies Jesus fulfilled in unexpected ways.

Perhaps most remarkable is the reality that Jesus lived among us—experiencing hunger, fatigue, and temptation—yet remained perfectly sinless. He grew up with siblings who initially rejected his claims, only to become believers after witnessing his resurrection. This perfect life amidst imperfect people demonstrates his divine nature in compelling ways.

Understanding Jesus as the Son of God isn't just about correct theology—it transforms how we approach life, faith, and our relationship with God. It challenges us to move beyond simply respecting Jesus from a distance to surrendering completely to his lordship. Have you truly embraced Jesus as both fully God and fully man, the King who will return in glory? Your answer changes everything about how you live today.

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Episode Transcript

Rebecca Twomey (00:32):
Hello and welcome to the Radiant Mission
Podcast.
My name is Rebecca Twomey and Iwould love to welcome you back
to our Coffee Talk series wherewe are exploring deep spiritual
truths with an open Bible and anopen heart.
Today we are going to beanswering a powerful question

(00:53):
what does it mean that Jesus isthe Son of God?
Is it a title, a role or aliteral relationship?
Understanding this truth isn'tjust theological, it's
transformational.
So let's break it down and seewhat scripture really says.

(01:15):
First, the Son of God is adivine title, not a created role
.
Jesus is not God's son in abiological sense.
Right, he wasn't created by God.
He is God existing eternallybefore creation.

(01:42):
John 1, 1 through 3 says In thebeginning was the Word, and the
Word was with God and the Wordwas God.
Through Him, all things weremade.
John 1, 14,.
The Word became flesh and madeHis dwelling among us.
So Jesus is called the Son ofGod to express his unique

(02:06):
relationship with the Father.
Not origin, but oneness anddivine identity.
He is fully God.
Yet he is distinct from theFather, which of course leads us
to a discussion on the trinityand understanding the trinity

(02:27):
one god and three persons.
The trinity is one of the mostbeautiful and mysterious truths
of scripture one god in threeco-eternal persons father, son
and holy spirit.
In Matthew 3, 16 through 17,.
At Jesus's baptism, jesus is inthe water, the Spirit descends

(02:51):
like a dove and the Fatherspeaks from heaven.
Each person is distinct inconsciousness here.
Not one divine mind sharedthree ways.
One divine mind shared threeways, yet united in essence,

(03:12):
glory and purpose.
John 10 30 says I and theFather are one.
Jesus is not the Father, but heis fully God, the second person
of the Trinity who reveals theFather and accomplishes our
redemption.
And a question that you mightbe asking is then do Jesus and
the Father share the sameconsciousness?

(03:34):
And this is where it getsreally deep and beautiful too.
No, jesus doesn't share thesame consciousness as the Father
.
He is his own divine person.
He talks to the Father, obeyshim, submits to him, and yet

(03:54):
he's fully equal.
John 17 5 says Father, glorifyme in your presence with the
glory I had with you before theworld began.
So, yes, distinct consciousness, but perfect unity.
Something interesting to me iswhy many Jews struggle with the

(04:16):
Son of God language.
You know, jewish theology isbuilt on God being one,
invisible, eternal and holy, andto many, calling Jesus the son
of God sounds like blasphemy orpolytheism.
In fact, it was this claim thatled to Jesus's crucifixion John

(04:38):
5, 18,.
He was even calling God his ownfather, making himself equal
with God.
Also, the Jewish expectation ofthe Messiah was not a divine
figure but a human ruler whowould restore Israel's kingdom.
1 Corinthians 1.23,.
We preach Christ crucified, astumbling block to Jews, but

(05:02):
prophecies in their ownscriptures pointed to a divine
son Isaiah 9, 6,.
And he will be called mightyGod.
Psalm 2, 7,.
You are my son.
Today I have become your father.
Jesus fulfilled what they didn'tfully expect a Messiah who
would save, not just rule.
And that leads us to Jesusbeing fully God and fully man.

(05:26):
This is the heart of theincarnation.
Jesus didn't just represent God, he was God in human flesh.
Colossians 2, 9,.
For in Christ, all the fullnessof the deity lives in bodily
form.
He felt hunger, he felt fatigue, sadness and temptation, but he

(05:47):
never sinned.
Hebrews 4.15,.
Tempted in every way, just aswe are, yet he did not sin.
Only the Son of God could enterthe world and walk in our shoes
and still remain sinless.
Come on our shoes and stillremain sinless.

(06:10):
Come on.
It is absolutely one of themost challenging things that we
face, yet he did it, and onlyGod could do such a thing right.
Something that's interesting tome about Jesus is that he had
siblings, but he remained setapart.
In scripture it clearly saysthat Jesus had earthly siblings
through Mary and Joseph.
In Mark 6, 3,.

(06:30):
Isn't this the carpenter, thebrother of James, joseph, judas
and Simon?
Aren't his sisters here with us?
We know at least four brothersby name and multiple sisters,
though their names and numberaren't listed.
Some traditions suggest thatthese were cousins or Joseph's

(06:52):
children from a previousmarriage, but the plain reading
of the text supports them asMary's other children.
But here's what's remarkable tome Jesus grew up in a normal
household, yet remainedcompletely sinless.
How many of you have grown upwith siblings or are parents to

(07:13):
multiple children and experiencethe fighting and lying and
betrayal each and every day?
So if that is not an example ofGod, I don't know what else is.
1 Peter 2.22,.
He committed no sin and nodeceit was found in his mouth.
This means that he neverdisrespected his parents, he

(07:35):
never lied, he never mistreatedhis siblings.
Can you imagine growing up witha perfect older brother and
even more powerful.
Some of those siblings, likeJames, didn't believe in him
during his ministry but laterbecame leaders in the early
church after seeing theresurrected Christ.

(07:57):
So even his own siblings didn'tbelieve.
1 Corinthians 15.7,.
Then he appeared to James andit goes on to share that story.
James later wrote in the bookof James and called himself a
servant of Jesus Christ.
Pretty cool.
Jesus also revealed his sonshipin power and authority.

(08:18):
Jesus didn't just say he wasthe son of God, he proved it.
Matthew 16, 16 through 17,.
You are the Messiah, the son ofthe living God.
Jesus replied.
This was revealed to you by myfather.
He cast out demons, he calmedstorms, forgave sins, healed the

(08:41):
sick, raised the dead and thenfinally he rose from the dead
himself.
In Romans 1, 4, appointed theson of God in power by his
resurrection from the dead.
Next, jesus will return inglory as the Son of God.
He came first as a servant, buthe will return as king and

(09:03):
judge.
Revelation 1.13- 15,.
Eyes like blazing fire, hisface like the sun, shining in
all of its brilliance.
And then Revelation 19, 16,.
King of kings and Lord of lords, this is the son of God in full
authority, you guys, not justto teach or heal, but to rule

(09:26):
forever.
Before we close, I want to talkabout the roles of the Trinity
really quick.
All three persons of theTrinity are fully God, but they
serve distinct roles.
God the Father initiates, sendsand sustains.
God the Son, or Jesus, stains.

(09:47):
God the Son or Jesus reveals,condemns and mediates.
God the Holy Spirit empowers,convicts, guides and indwells.
1 Peter 1, 2,.
Chosen by the Father, sanctifiedby the Spirit, obedient to

(10:11):
Jesus Christ, the Trinity is oneGod working together in unity,
never in conflict and always inlove.
So what does it mean that Jesusis the Son of God?
It means that he's not just aman, he's not just a teacher.
He is God in the flesh, the onewho came to save us and who
will one day return in power.
John 3, 18,.
Whoever believes in him is notcondemned, but whoever does not

(10:35):
believe stands condemned already.
Romans 10, 9,.
If you declare Jesus is Lordand believe God raised him from
the dead, you will be saved.
So some reflection questions aswe close today.
Have I truly surrendered toJesus as Lord or just respected

(10:55):
him from a distance?
Do I believe in the Trinity ordo I struggle to understand it?
What does it change in my lifeto know Jesus is fully God,
fully man and the King of Kings.
If this episode encouraged,challenged, you, share it with a

(11:16):
friend.
Next week we are going to betalking about the Holy Spirit.
Thank you so much for joiningme today.
If you want to stay connectedoutside the podcast, please join
the mission on Instagram, atthe Radiant Mission, on Facebook
, at the Radiant Mission Podcast, or on YouTube by searching for

(11:36):
my name, rebecca Toomey, and mylast name is spelled
T-W-O-M-E-Y.
Today I'm going to close withHebrews 1, verse 3.
The sun is the radiance ofGod's glory and the exact
representation of his being,sustaining all things by his

(11:57):
powerful word.
Wishing you a radiant week andI'll see you next time.
Bye everyone.