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By
Sam Nadler
The
month of December is filled with joyful tunes of Messiah’s
birth. One of the Jewish objections to faith in Jesus is
that a man cannot become God. This objection is born out of
a mistaken notion that Yeshua, a man, became God. This is
not the message of the Scriptures. The Hebrew Scriptures
prophesy and the New Covenant declares that in Yeshua, God
Himself, Adonai, became a man - He took on human flesh.
Three questions raised on this issue help us consider it
more fully: Can God Come in the Flesh? To find the answer let’s look at the visitation to Abraham in the book of Genesis, chapter 18. The passage begins, the Lord appeared to him by the Oaks of Mamre (Genesis 18:1). The next verse states that as he lifted his eyes, three men stood by him. Abraham and Sarah then prepared food for these guests (18:3-8). Was it merely a vision? Impossible, for not
only do you not prepare food for a vision, but visions don’t
eat, and these men did (Genesis 18:8).
This is traditionally recognized as
referring to Messiah: “I have yet to raise up the Messiah,
of whom it is written, for a child is born to us [Isaiah
9:6].” (Deuteronomy Rabbah 1.20).
Micah clearly states that Israel’s ruler would not only come from Bethlehem, but his goings forth would be from eternity. That is, He who would be born in Bethlehem is God, the Eternal One! Thus the Messiah - the One to bring peace, joy and life to all who would believe (the remnant); the One who would be born in Bethlehem, yet live in Galilee - this One is the Lord, the Mighty God Himself! Does the Scripture Proclaim Yeshua as Messiah and God? Hundreds of times the New Covenant
unequivocally declares Yeshua to be the Messiah. (The word
“Christ” is a transliteration, not a translation, of the
Greek word Christos, translated correctly
intoEnglish as “Messiah” or “anointed one.”) His Deity is
indicated repeatedly by His title “Lord” and His
identification as the Lord of the Hebrew Scriptures. Please
note that when referring to Yeshua, the New Covenant
repeatedly uses portions of the Old Testament (Tanakh) that
actually refer to God (Mark 1:1-3, Heb. 1:8-12).
What amazing love is demonstrated in the humility of our Messiah! The One who is the Eternal God, Adonai, came in the flesh to die for our sins and conquer death, that anyone might have forgiveness, life, joy and peace by trusting in Him. No man can become a god, but in accordance with the Scriptures, God Himself took on human flesh, in the person of Yeshua, the Messiah of Israel. May you be blessed as we celebrate Messiah's birth. ~
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