I'm aware of that definition of the Koine Greek word
"theios" (divine), because I presented that word and its definitions to you in a previous post. Here are its definitions again:
"Forms of the word
Dictionary: θεῖος, α, ον
Greek transliteration: theios
Simplified transliteration: theios
Numbers
Strong's number: 2304
GK Number: 2521
Statistics
Frequency in New Testament: 3
Morphology of Biblical Greek Tag: a-1a(1)
Gloss: divine
Definition: divine, pertaining to God, 2 Pet. 1:3, 4; τὸ θειον,
the divine nature, divinity, Acts 17:29*"
The word
"theios" (divine) is used only
three times in the New Testament (
Act. 17:19,
2 Pet. 1:3,
2 Pet. 1:4), and in each of those times it's used to refer to God.
I see that you have a propensity to regurgitate your previous replies as if we didn’t hear you the first time….
People who do that are not students of God’s word, but merely echo chambers.
If “divine” means “pertaining to God”…..having “divine nature”…..does “the Word“ have divine nature? Does his divine origin make him God’s equal?
Did he issue from God?
What does “begotten” mean?
When was the son “begotten”?
Since Col 1:15 states that Jesus is the “firstborn of ALL CREATION” and is the “image of his invisible” God and Father, then the son existed before “ALL CREATION”. So his status as “only begotten” is not in relation to his human birth….he was “with God” “in the beginning”…and in Jesus’ own words, called “the beginning of God’s creation” as Rev 3:14 states.
How is Jesus “the image” of one who is “invisible”? He can only reflect his Father’s qualities and attributes, which he did so eloquently.…like the moon reflects the sun. Like an image is a reflection of reality.
So, you're saying that God had to create a lesser divine and sinless being than Himself, the most Divine, Holy, Pure, and Powerful Uncreated Being, in order to accomplish what He could not.
No, that is not what I said…..the son was created as God’s “firstborn”…..God has many “sons” in heaven but none are like his “firstborn”…the only one created directly by his Father, who is also his God.
Even after his earthly mission and return to heaven, Jesus continued to address his Father as “my God”. (Rev 3:12) Can God have a god even in heaven? Is an “image” the same as the real thing? Is a photograph of you the same as the person?
The son can be “holy and pure and powerful”, without being a deity. The Jews knew only Yahweh as their deity…and he was “ONE”….not three. (Deut 6:4)
Jesus is also called a “holy servant” of his Father….(Acts 4:27) Can God be his own servant?
And he is our High Priest….which is a position of service to God….can God be his own High Priest? (Heb 3:1)
Did you know that Jesus was also called an “apostle”?
Well, the mission of the Redeemer was not only to cancel sin from the moment it occurred until the moment of the sacrifice and annul in those to come the effects of sin by having them be born unaware of evil. No. With a total sacrifice He had to make reparation for Sin and the sins of all mankind, give the men already dead absolution of sin, and give those living at that time and in the future the means to be helped to resist evil and to be forgiven for the evil which their weakness would lead them to do.
Putting it all in simple easy to understand language….humans were persuaded to disobey their Creator, which they knew carried the death penalty. The devil wanted the worship that these lower beings would give to God, so he plotted a way to obtain it….but he had to take them away from God to accomplish it….he did so by lies and deceit.
As free willed beings all three rebels had broken God’s law. So instead of eliminating them from existence, which he had every right to do, and start afresh with some new humans, God decided to make the rebellion into an object lesson…he would allow the devil to rule the world to show him, and any who might follow his course, a first hand view of what a failure he would be….and to show the humans what the consequences of their disobedience would lead to, with the devil in control of their world. (Luke 4:5-7)
What do we see as a result? Every despicable breach of God’s commands has led to a multitude of problems which are unsolvable. Humans are now living in the “end times” where the devil knows he only has a short time left…..and he is pulling out all the stops to accomplish his final hurrah…..to take as many down with him as he can, using his old, tried and tested tricks. He has nothing new, so he has amplified his old weapons of choice…..deception, violence, immorality and demonism. His world is rife with all three.
Nothing in his world is as it appears to be. (1 John 5:19)
How did God address the situation right from the beginning of their rebellion? He prepared a sacrificial Lamb who would willingly do what He could not….no one can kill an immortal God, but at that time only God was immortal. Until he had completed his rescue mission by sending his faithful son, God alone was “King of Eternity” a position he will always hold as the only uncreated Being in existence.
The word “eternal” actually means “without beginning or end”, but the son was “begotten” of his Father, meaning that he was produced by his Father, as one who had to exist before him (as all begetters do).
“Monogenes” (only begotten) is used in the Bible to denote the firstborn and only child in a family….and even of animals…..it is not a special word that means something else with regard to Jesus, who is and always will be “the son of God”.
Their sacrifice thus had to be such as to present all the necessary requisites, and it could be such only in a God made man: a host worthy of God, a means understood by man. In addition, They were coming to bring the Law.
Who else could do that but God Himself? Why do you believe that God Himself couldn't do that?
I have answered that question….God provided what was necessary to fulfill his own Law…..Jesus came to “redeem” mankind. So what does it mean to be a “redeemer”?
If we use a modern day application, if you owe someone a debt but you have no money to pay it, but you have some valuable possession that the Pawn Shop could turn into cash for you, you can pawn the object and redeem it later when you have enough money to repay the pawnbroker.
The price of redemption will be set at the time you pawned the object. When you have saved enough money to redeem your possession, you get it back.
Back in Bible times a debtor was pressed into service for his creditor until his debt was paid….but if he had a family to support, he could assign one of his children to service the debt for him. Or if he had a wealthy friend or family member, they could pay the debt and free the debtor from his forced labor.
So how does redemption work with Jesus? The human race was plunged into debt by their forefather Adam.
But the debt was so enormous that not a soul on earth could pay it. It required the fulfillment of God’s Law…”an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a life for a life”….only a set equivalent could cancel the debt.
Since only a sinless life could pay for the life Adam lost for all his offspring, even though God was the Creditor, He sent his son to become a sinless human on earth to pay that debt. It required his death to cancel what Adam had done, and thus defeat the devil, who underestimated how God would solve the dilemma. The Creditor would furnish the payment, even at great cost to himself…such was his love for mankind. (John 3:16)
As a reward for his faithful course under such awful circumstances, God gave his precious son the power of an indestructible life (immortality) upon his return to heaven. (John 5:26-30) He will also raise his elect to immortal life in heaven (Rev 20:6) as opposed to those whom Christ will restore to life in the general resurrection which takes place on earth. (John 5:28-29)
Jesus is called the Word because He is the Word as a human, for John said that the Word "became flesh and lived among us" (Jn. 1:14), and was "testified about" by John the Baptist. (Jn. 1:15)
I was asking about the title “ho logos” (The Word)….why is Jesus the bearer of that title? It is one of many titles he has been given in his service to God.
It was not “ho theos” who “became flesh”…..it was “theos“…the divine son of God who became Jesus the Christ.