Emmanuel: God is with us
Jesus was born on the first Christmas Day. His coming to the world in man’s likeness was not without unreparable consequences. Lucifer, the greatest of all angels, could not accept the “undignified plan to bow to a God of flesh and bones.”
so conscious of their spiritual magnificence, beauty and dignity, some angels led by Lucifer said “non serviam” (I will not serve). so Lucifer, the Light Bearer, and his followers were thrown on earth (Revelations 12:9).
No one can redeem mankind and restore the friendship between God the Father and men—only Jesus!
And in the silence of the night, the angels heralded His coming emmanuel—God is with us.
The Annointed
Jesus Christ is God in a selfrevelation in the prologue of the Gospel of John. He is the Logos (Word). “All things came to be through Him, and without Him nothing came to be” (John 1:3).
After Judas betrayed Jesus, He was led to the high and chief priest. When asked, “Are you the Messiah the son of the Blessed One?” Jesus answered, “I am” (Matthew 14:61-62).
Likewise, he was told by the high priest, “I order you to tell us under oath before the living God, whether you are the Messiah the son of God. Jesus said in reply, “You have said so” (Matthew 26:6364).
In Christology, Jesus Christ is called in many names—Lord, son of God, son of Man, son of Abraham, son of David, Lamb of God and the Good shepherd.
“Lamb of God,” however, is the “foundation and integral” to Christians. And, acknowledged as God, who has full authority and control over man and everything, He is called Lord.
Jesus was called son of David to indicate His royal origin, a descendant of King David. He was also called son of Abraham to attest that he is an Israelite.
some of the people He healed acknowledged Him as son of David. the Canaanite woman, whose daughter is demon-possessed, asking for her healing addressed Jesus. “Have Mercy on me Lord, son of David” (Matthew 15:22). same with the two blind men in Jericho (Matthew 20-30).
On Palm sunday, as Jesus entered Jerusalem, He received the praise and worship of the people. “Hosanna to the son of David” (Matthew 21:9).
Son of Man
TO call Jesus as son of Man is simply outrageous. But it is Jesus’ favorite phrase for Himself. It is a self-designation. He was referred to as son of Man over 100 times in the Hebrew Bible.
In the Koine Greek of the four gospels, the total is 81—30 in
Matthew, 14 in Mark, 25 Luke and 12 in John.
However, Larry W. Hurtado in Lord Jesus Christ: Devotion to Jesus in earliest Christianity, wrote there were “no records of its use in any of the surviving documents of antiquity.”
An analysis of the synoptic verses where the phrase, son of Man indicates that the title was used in reference to his teachings, His passion, death, resurrection and His final coming.
thus, although the phrase son of Man describes who He was, it always described Him as the Messiah. “For the son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and give His life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45; Matthew 20:28).
too, in the context of being known as a son of Man, He continued His tasks and related better with other people since He “strictly ordered His disciples to tell no one He was the Messiah,” which was explicit in Mark’s version: “For the son of Man is come to save that which was lost.”
Dramatic though was Jesus’ conversation with the samaritan Woman in sychar from whom He requested for water. the conversation drifted on worshipping God, in spirit and truth. the woman said, “I know the Messiah is coming, the one called the Anointed.”
Jesus replied, “I am He, the one who is speaking with you” (John 4: 25-26)
Most eloquent incident on His admittance as Messiah happened
on the way to Caesarea, Philippi. Asking His disciples who he was according to people—elijah, John the Baptist, a prophet— were the answers. When Jesus asked, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter said, “You are the Messiah” (Mark 8:29).
Jesus never said directly “I am the son of Man,” but there were verses in the gospels that seem “to portray Him as referring to Himself when using the title” (Matthew 8:20 and Mark 8:31) according to Brian O. Mc Dermott in Word Become Flesh.
too, Jesus was never addressed as son of Man, for the title “can mean a human being or can have the indefinite sense of someone.” Mc Dermott added, ”the evangelists felt free to use the title as a substitute for I.”
until the end
AFTER the first Christmas, Jesus never left mankind. He loved men so much that He gifted men with graces to help Him live a life of holiness. Indeed, He came to save us all.
And, instructing His disciples to spread the gospels of truth and love, He assured men, “and behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).
Damo-Santiago is a former regional director of the Department of Education National Capital Region. She is currently a faculty member of Mater Redemptoris Collegium in Calauan, Laguna, and of Mater Redemptoris College in San Jose City, Nueva Ecija.