JESUS CHRIST THE SON
Why did Jesus become man? (CCC 456-460)
There are
four primary reasons why God became man.
1. He
can to save us from our sins. Without Him, we are doomed to
eternity in hell. He chose to become man in order than we might
again have the opportunity to spend eternity with Him.
2. He
came so that we might know God’s love. He wanted to show the
extent and depth to which He was willing to go in order to love
us.
3.
He came to be our model of holiness. Due to man’s fallen nature,
he did not know anymore what it meant to be truly human as God
had originally intended. To remedy this, God Himself took on
humanity in order to show us who we were created to be and how
we should act.
4.
He became man in order that we could share in His divine nature.
As quoted by St. Athanasius,
“For
the Son of God became man so that we might become God."
Was Jesus fully human, or did He just appear to be human?
(CCC 464-478)
The early
Church dealt with many heresies concerning the nature of Christ,
His humanity and divinity. As we profess in the Nicene Creed,
Jesus is fully human and fully divine. He is as human as us, and
this humanity is not merely an appearance, but a reality.
How was Jesus conceived? Is St. Joseph His biological Father? (CCC
484-486)
Jesus was
conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit in Mary. Mary is his
biological mother and God is His Father. Joseph, the husband of
Mary, was the foster father of Jesus, but had no biological
relationship to Him.
Did Jesus really die? (CCC 619)
Yes. He did
not just appear to die, nor did he die in a figurative way.
Jesus really died a full human death. Remember, human death does
not include death of our spiritual nature. The spirit (our
souls) is naturally immortal and will never die. In this way,
the divine nature of Christ never ceased to exist upon His
bodily death.
Why did God send Jesus to suffer and die? (CCC 599-618)
In simple
language, “Jesus paid a debt He didn’t owe because we had a debt
we couldn’t pay.” The punishment for sin is death; therefore,
because we have all sinned, we deserve eternal punishment. Human
beings are not able to pay the debt of sin. Therefore, God made
Himself a man and took the punishment of sin for us. He “made
him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become
the righteousness of God” (2 Cor 5:21). He had to do this as a
man because it was man who owed the debt of sin.
He substituted our disobedience for His obedience. In this act
He shows His incredible love for us. He, while we were stilled
sinners rebelling against Him, initiated the greatest act of
love by sending Himself to be killed by us in order that
we might later choose to accept His gift of salvation and spend
eternity with Him. This is an unfathomable and undeserved
gift for which we owe our entire lives.
Who killed Jesus? (CCC 597-598)
Throughout
history and even in current times, many people have tried to
make the Jews culpable for the death of Jesus. However, this is
not now nor has been the standpoint of the Church. The personal
sins of the many people directly involved of the death of
the Jesus are known to only God alone (Judas, Pilate, the
Sanhedrin, the Jewish bystanders, the Romans, the soldiers).
Jesus himself, while on the cross, pardoned those involved with
His plea of “Father forgive them for they know not what they do”
(Luke 23:34). The direct death of Jesus can be attributed to a
significant amount of ignorance on the part of those involved.
That is why the Church does not hesitate to inflict the greater
blame on Christians throughout the ages. She clearly understands
that “sinners were the authors and the ministers of all the
sufferings that the divine Redeemer endured” (Roman Catechism
I, 5, 11). The greatest sufferings of Jesus on the Cross were
(and are) caused by Christians who have professed to know Him
(and therefore are not ignorant) and yet deny Him
by their deeds, by continuing with and delighting in their sins.
What does it mean when we say that “Christ descended into
hell”? (632-635)
In this case
(the Apostles Creed), hell refers to the abode of the dead,
which is also referred to as Hades (Greek) or Sheol
(Hebrew). These are the terms people of the Old Testament used
for those who had died, evil or righteous, for all were deprived
of the vision of God before the coming of the Redeemer. This
does not mean that while they waited for the Redeemer, the lot
of the evil and the righteous was identical. When Jesus died, He
also went to the abode of the dead to minister to all the
spirits there who were waiting for the gates of Heaven to be
opened to them. He did not go to deliver those that would be
condemned to hell, but to free the just that were awaiting
salvation. This was the final phase of his mission to preach to
both the living and the dead.
Did Jesus rise from the dead? (CCC 638-644, 648-655)
Yes. The
Apostles did not steal His body, and His death was not faked. He
really died, and He really rose. If not, as St. Paul said, “our
faith is in vain” (1 Cor 15:14). For if He did not raise
Himself, we will not be raised either on the last day. The
cornerstone of our faith rests on the Resurrection.
Was His body after the Resurrection different than it was before
He died? (CCC 645-646)
Yes. It is
the same body, in that it is not a ghost and still bears the
traces of His Passion (the wounds in His hands, feet, and side).
However, this real and authentic risen body has new properties,
that of a glorified body. It is no longer limited by time and
space, and He can present Himself when and how He wills. It is
not a return to earthly life and bodies as we know them on
earth, but He now belongs to a glorified life in Heaven with His
new risen and glorified body. We too, in Heaven, will enjoy our
bodies in a glorified and risen state.
What did Jesus do after He rose from the dead? Where is Jesus
now? (CCC 659-664)
For 40 days
He appeared to His disciples on earth. After 40 days, He
ascended into Heaven and is now seated at the right hand of the
Father. In Heaven He is eternally offering Himself to the Father
on our behalf.
Does Jesus have a body in Heaven?
Yes, He is
present in Heaven, body and soul, and it will always be such.
