Why Is Jesus Called “the Son of God”

10/02/24 • 2 min

1 Listener

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

Mark 1:1

It is important to remember that God the Father did not gain a Son when Jesus was born. God sent the Son, who was already at the Father’s side, into the world. The Son shared the Father’s glory, the Father’s life, and the Father’s love before He came into the world.

“[The Son] is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature” (Heb. 1:3). Jesus even said, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). You might be like your father in many ways, but no one would say these kinds of things about the two of you.

In the ancient world names described character. This is very different from our normal understanding of a father and a son. For example, the apostles nicknamed Joseph “Barnabas,” which means “son of encouragement” (Acts 4:36). Joseph was encouragement personified, encouragement in the flesh, so they called him "son of encouragement.”

When Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God” (Mat. 5:9), He was saying that God is the great peacemaker, and that when you make peace you reflect His character. So, when Mark tells us Jesus is “the Son of God,” he is telling us that Jesus is everything that God is in the flesh.

The more you think about this, the more staggering it gets. The great mystery at the centre of all true Christian faith is this: Jesus is the Son of God. The disciples didn’t pretend to understand it. But they did believe it. They followed Jesus with a faith that seeks understanding, and that is how we must follow Him too.

Are you following Jesus with this kind of faith?

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

Mark 1:1

Are you following Jesus with this kind of faith?

Previous Episode

Why Jesus Is Called “the Christ”

1 Recommendations

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ...

Mark 1:1

Jesus was a common name among the Jews until the beginning of the second century, but Christ is a title, telling us what this person named Jesus came into the world to do.

Today, we might speak about Dave “the plumber,” or Diane “the teacher.” Plumbing is what Dave does. Teaching is what Diane does. Similarly, Jesus is “the Christ.” This means He is “the Messiah,” or “the Deliverer.” Confronting what is wrong and putting it right is what Jesus does.

The Old Testament tells the story of the great human disaster—that our human sinfulness has fouled up God’s world, and it keeps happening. The idea that we have the ability to restore this world, and become what God calls us to be, has been disproved by thousands of years of human experience. But back in the garden of Eden, God promised that someone would come into the world, destroy the work of our enemy, and put things right (Gen. 3:15). And now, Mark is telling us that He has come, and His name is Jesus. He is “the Christ.”

If you hear someone say "Jesus Christ!" in a fit of anger, you might like to say to them: “Do you know what you just said? You just confessed that Jesus is God’s promised deliverer. Is that what you believe? What is it that you need Him to deliver you from?”

The centre point of Mark’s gospel comes when Jesus asks the disciples: “Who do you say that I am?” and Peter says, “You are the Christ” (Mark 8:29). “You are the promised One who has come to confront what is wrong and to put it right.”

Jesus is “the Christ.” Even His name is full of hope.

What would you say if Jesus were to ask you, “Who do you say that I am?”

Next Episode

Who Believes That Jesus Is the Son of God?

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

Mark 1:1

Someone might read Mark’s words and say, “Well, the confession that Jesus is the Son of God is just one man’s opinion...” Is it?

It’s the unanimous confession of the New Testament

“These are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God” (John 20:31). Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Paul, and Peter all say the same thing—check it out!

It's the confession of heaven

As Jesus was being baptised, “A voice came from heaven, ‘You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased’” (Mark 1:11). Maybe you think it would be easier to believe if you heard a voice from heaven. Well, there was a voice from heaven!

It's the confession of hell

“Whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, ‘You are the Son of God’” (Mark 3:11). People on earth may have had problems figuring out who Jesus was, but they knew who He was in hell.

It's Jesus' own confession

After Jesus was arrested, the High Priest asked Him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” Jesus said, “I am...” (Mark 14:61-62). Jesus’ answer could not have been clearer.

It's the confession of those who believe

“When the centurion... saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, ‘Truly this man was the Son of God!’” (Mark 15:39).

If you confess that Jesus is the Son of God, you are agreeing with the unanimous witness of the New Testament, the one thing on which heaven and hell agree, the testimony of Jesus about Himself, and you’re identifying yourself with the faith of every true Christian.

So, what do you say?