Christology: Virgin Birth and Kenosis J. Brian Tucker, Ph.D. Moody Theological Seminary

2 The Life of Christ I. Virgin Birth (Mt 1:16-25; Lk 1:26-55) II. Kenosis (Phil 2:5-11)

3 Virgin Birth Importance Disproves idea that God and man are antithetical in nature, i.e., communion is possible. Fulfillment of OT anticipation of the incarnation, i.e., Messiah as man and God unified in the God-Man. Test case for orthodoxy in Christology, i.e., impacts: sinlessness, uniqueness, manhood, and deity.

4 Virgin Birth Definition and Qualifications Born without the agency of man. Born with the agency of woman. Born through the agency of the Holy Spirit. The primary issue is the virginal conception.

5 Virgin Birth Reasons Fulfill typological prophecies (Gen 3:15; Isa 7:14; Matt 1:22, 23). Fulfill curse of Jeremiah (Jer 22:30; 36:30). Eliminate transference of sin to Jesus. Accommodate the union of God and man in one person.

6 Virgin Birth Contribution of Matt 1 and Luke 1

7 Matthew 1:16-25 Matt 1:23 cites Isa 7:14 (almah) Two words for virgin: almah and betulah. Words are distinguishable in definition, betulah is the stronger term for virgin. LXX use of parthenos with almah, there is no strong reason to consider almah, a weak word for virgin. Matthew uses parthenos to describe Mary’s prophetic fulfillment. Parthenos ‘reproduction without union of sexual elements’ (BDAG)

8 Context of Isaiah 7:14 Name of child – Immanuel Ahaz’ time it prefigured judgment. Matthew interprets the name as deity for Mary’s child, and ultimate judgment he brings.

9 Context of Isaiah 7:14 Messianic structure of Isaiah suggests future fulfillment (9:6-7; 11:1-9).

10 Context of Isaiah 7:14 We cannot regard Matthew as being in error concerning the Isaiah passage.

11 Context of Isaiah 7:14 The sign in Isaiah’s day was a child. Some of the details would occur before the child reached an age of accountability. Scripture and history tell us many of these details were fulfilled in the initial context.

12 Context of Isaiah 7:14 Some portions of the prophecy could only be fulfilled in the person of the messiah - Jesus.

13 Conclusions: At the very least Isaiah’s prophecy of the child must be seen as at least indirectly referring to Messiah. Matthew’s interpretation views Christ as the child who fulfills Davidic claims to sovereignty and is specifically the child referred to in Isaiah’s prophecy.

14 Luke 1:26-55 Luke emphasizes the character of Mary and Christ.

15 Luke 1:26-55 Mary described as parthenos, betrothed to Joseph (v 27), naïve regarding men (v 34), and righteous (v 38). Parthenos relates to true virginity. Jewish concept of betrothal (1 year). Mary’s claim of innocence with regard to ‘knowing’ a man. Mary described as righteous (see Deut 20:7)

16 Luke 1:26-55 Christ described as eternal Davidic king (v 33), Son of God (v 35), one miraculously received (v 44). Agency of the Spirit evident: Mary’s womb was the focus of the miracle. There was no physical conjugation.

17 Conclusions: Matthew and Luke view the Christ as virgin born. There are no contradictory but rather, complementary emphases found in both authors. Matt: OT anticipation of virgin birth and Davidic Son. Luke: Points out the backgrounds of those involved and the uniqueness and eternality of Christ.

18 Scholarship on Virgin Birth Some acknowledge the incarnation but deny the virgin birth F.F. Bruce: incarnation and the virgin birth of Christ are “intimately bound together in the historic faith of the church.” Helmut Thielicke: relegates the doctrine to optional status (not a required christological confession). Hugh Schonfield: conflation of Jewish and Hellenisitic mythic concepts, used for dogmatic reasons.

19 Scholarship on Virgin Birth Some acknowledge the incarnation but deny the virgin birth Supposed contradictions in the Gospels: See Machen’s The Virgin Birth.” Bird on Machen http://euangelizomai.blogspot.com/2006/11/jg-machen-and-virgin-birth.html

20 Scholarship on Virgin Birth Other objections to the virgin birth addressed: It was the consistent teaching of the early church. Gal 4:4 and born of a woman. Mt 1 and Lk 1 are foundational to the life of Christ, should they be set aside so easily? Rejection of virgin birth often leads to rejection of other key aspects of Jesus’ life.

21 Scholarship on Virgin Birth Other objections to the virgin birth addressed: Is virgin birth any more difficult to believe than creation or ‘new’ creation? The virgin birth is itself an essential prerequisite to the incarnation. The hypostatic union of God and Man in Christ demands that Christ obtain his human nature through the virgin birth.

22 The Life of Christ I. Virgin Birth II. Kenosis (Phil 2:5-11)

23 Background ‘Kenotic theology is a theology that focuses on the person of Christ in terms of some form of self-limitation by the pre-existent Son in his becoming man’ (EDT 600).

24 Beginnings: Kenotic Theology ‘All forms of classical orthodoxy either explicitly reject or reject in principle Kenotic theology. This is because God must be affirmed to the changeless; any concept of the incarnation that would imply change would mean that God would cease to be God’ (EDT 601).

25 Various Explanations Christ had a human soul, to which the Logos imparted his divinity, little-by-little until he became completely divine.

26 Various Explanations Laid aside his deity which was then restored at the ascension.

27 Various Explanations ‘Abandoned certain prerogatives of the divine mode of existence in order to assume the human’. Others explain that he surrendered the external, physical attributes of omniscience, though retaining the attributes of love and truth, this was also held by Thomasius (Hodge, ST 2:434).

28 Various Explanations He lived a double life from two, non-communicating life centers (Berkhouwer, 328).

29 Various Explanations He disguised his deity and attributes, not by giving them up, but by limiting them to a time-form appropriate to a human mode of existence (A.B. Bruce, Humiliation of Christ, 152).

30 Various Explanations He gave up the use of the attributes (Strong, ST, 704; Carson, 35).

31 Various Explanations He acted as if he did not possess divine attributes (Anselm).

32 Various Explanations He gave up the independent exercise of the divine attributes (Strong, ST, 703).

33 Various Explanations He did not give up the attributes nor their use: a) he only exercised the divine attributes as directed by the Holy Spirit for the purpose of his messianic/redemptive mission. b) morphē, is ‘that independent exercise of powers and prerogatives of Deity which constitutes his “equality with God”’ (Strong, ST, 706).

34 Various Explanations He limited himself to the voluntary non-use of the attributes (Walvoord, 143-44).

35 Various Explanations Carson, ‘abandoned some substantial measure of independence in the use of his divine prerogatives’ (37).

36 Research Questions When and how did Christ exist in ‘the morphē,’ of God? Was Christ ‘equal’ with God; did he not desire to be ‘equal with God’; did Christ remain ‘equal with God’ or forfeit his equality with God? Of what, if anything, did Christ ‘empty himself’ (kneoō)?

37 Research Questions How did the human homoiōma/morphē affect Christ’s person/nature? Does Christ still possess a human homoiōma/morphē?

38 Lexical Reflections Classical Greek philiosophy: ‘attributes’ LXX: ‘visible form’ not essential attributes. The meaning of morphē (‘form’)

39 Lexical Reflections John 5:17-18: But Jesus answered them, "My Father is working until now, and I am working." 18 This was why 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 (ison) with God. (Joh 5:17 ESV) Christ was and is equal to God by nature. The meaning of isos (‘equal’)

40 Lexical Reflections Two explanations often given: (1) Equality with God was his by right and by nature and was not a theft, i.e. he did not steal his position unjustly; (2) equality with God was not viewed by Christ as something to be seized, i.e. he was not equal with God and did not make any ‘snatching effort’ to achieve that position. The meaning of harpagmos

41 Lexical Reflections Another explanation: ouch harpagmon ēgēsato is idiomatic. These factors result in the following idiomatic translation of Phil. 2:6 ‘he did not regard being equal with God as something to use for his own advantage’. The meaning of harpagmos

42 Lexical Reflections ‘To empty’ ‘He emptied himself’/‘made nothing’ Based on Paul’s use ‘made nothing’ is preferred. The meaning of kenoō

43 Conclusion: Incarnation: still possessed the morphē thou and was still isa theōi. Nothing is said about attributes. Jesus did not empty himself of anything.

44 Conclusion: NB: Instrumental use of the participles. ‘take on the form of a servant’ (morphēn doulou labōn) ‘by coming in the likeness of men’ (en homoiōmati anthrōpōn genomenos) How did he make himself nothing?

45 Conclusion: ‘by taking the form of a servant [and] by coming in the likeness of humanity’. In that condition he did not manifest the morphē theou outwardly. That he still possessed it, however, may be seen in the transfiguration (Matt 17:1-9). ‘The morphēn doulou served as a temporary veil cloaking [i.e. invisibility cloak] for the morphē theou. How did he make himself nothing?

46 The End