One of the most familiar titles that is used to describe the Lord Jesus is “Son of God.” This phrase is used to refer to Jesus about thirty-seven times in the New Testament. Just to list a few of those, in Matthew 16:16, Peter confessed Jesus to be “the Son of the living God.” As Paul states, “When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons” (Galatians 4:4-5). Jesus refers to Himself as the Son of God (Matthew 11:27; Mark 14:61-62). God identifies Jesus as “My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17; 17:5). Even demons acknowledged Jesus as God’s Son: “And whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, ‘You are the Son of God’” (Mark 3:11).
What does this title teach us about our Lord? First, we need to acknowledge that Jesus being described as God’s Son has led to several views that are not correct Biblically. There are some religious groups who believe that Jesus was born from the Father, just as we were physically born from our physical parents. They believe Jesus to be the first created being, who has always existed in inferiority to the Father. Based on what we have seen so far in this study, this teaching cannot be true because Jesus existed in the beginning as God (John 1:1). If Jesus is the One through whom God created all things (John 1:2-3), Jesus could not have possibly been created Himself.
When we think about Jesus being the “Son of God,” the best avenue that we can take is letting the Bible explain itself (this is true with any subject!). Looking to the Old Testament, the phrase “son of God” is used to describe individuals and groups who had special, unique relationships with God. The title is used to describe kings (Psalm 2:7; 89:27) and heavenly beings (Psalm 29:1; 82:6; Job 1:6). The title is also used to refer to the nation of Israel as God’s special people (Exodus 4:22–23; Hosea 11:1).
In the New Testament, we see that idea continuing to build and develop. In John 1:49, Nathanael confessed to Jesus, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” In this verse, Jesus being identified as the “Son of God” is used interchangeably with the idea of Him being the prophesied Messiah and King that Israel was longing for at that time. In John 5:18, the Bible says, “The Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.” Claiming to be the Son of God, in the minds of the Jewish religious leaders, meant that Jesus was claiming equality with God. That is why they stood so opposed to Him; they believed that to be a claim of blasphemy.
Jesus being the Son of God does not speak to us about Jesus’s origin. Instead, it describes to us who Jesus is: He is the One who has a special, unique, one of a kind, eternal, equal relationship with the Father. While “Son of Man” is oftentimes thought to emphasize Jesus’ humanity, “Son of God” is thought to emphasize His deity. As God’s beloved Son, we must be willing to listen to Him (Matthew 17:5), believe in Him (1 John 5:10), and confess Him (1 John 4:13). We must align ourselves with Paul in saying, “the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). Because Jesus has this special, unique relationship with God, we are able to have life (1 John 5:12).
-Tyler Alverson
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