The Son of Man

I recently received an excellent question from a friend, which went something like this:

How do you feel about the Transcendentalist interpretation of Jesus? That he was just a man. An exceptional, one-of-a-kind man who illustrated the "internal infinitude" of us all, and the potential thereby to actualize great deeds on behalf of the community and humanity.

My short answer is that this interpretation falls short of grasping the true uniqueness and glory of Jesus. It gives Him far less credit than He deserves and is a very dangerous position to hold, because it fails to grasp Jesus' authority over every single person (including you and me!), which God gave only to Him.

A few Scriptures giving a more accurate view of Jesus, and my notes on those passages, follow.

Mark 14:60-65

And the high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus,
"Have You no answer to make?
What is it that these men testify against You?"

But He remained silent and made no answer.

Again the high priest asked Him,
"Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?"

And Jesus said,
"I am, and you will see the Son of Man
seated at the right hand of Power,
and coming with the clouds of heaven."

And the high priest tore his garments and said,
"What further witnesses do we need?
You have heard His blasphemy.
What is your decision?"

And they all condemned Him as deserving death.

And some began to spit on Him
and to cover His face and to strike Him,
saying to Him, "Prophesy!"
And the guards received Him with blows.

Here is Jesus, being questioned by the high priest of the Jews.

When questioned about His identity, Jesus acknowledges in no uncertain terms that He "is the Christ, the Son of the Blessed." To acknowledge that He is God's Son is enough for those standing by to condemn Him "as deserving death."

However, Jesus goes further than that. Jesus proclaims that the high priest "will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven."

Jesus does not just confirm His identity as the Son of God, He also states that the high priest will see Him again. At that time, "the Son of Man" will be "seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven."

How can Jesus say this, knowing that He is about to die? Is He confused or thinking wishfully? Is He talking in parables or spiritual terms that are not to be understood naturally? Is He referring to someone else when He talks about "the Son of Man?"

No, Jesus knows exactly what He is saying. Not only is He the Son of God, He is also the Son of Man. That puts Him in a unique category, which can be understood more clearly through the following passage.

John 5:19-29

So Jesus said to them,

"Truly, truly, I say to you,
the Son can do nothing of His own accord,
but only what He sees the Father doing.

For whatever the Father does,
that the Son does likewise.
For the Father loves the Son
and shows Him all that He Himself is doing.
And greater works than these will He show Him,
so that you may marvel.
For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life,
so also the Son gives life to whom He will.

The Father judges no one,
but has given all judgment to the Son,
that all may honor the Son,
just as they honor the Father.

Whoever does not honor the Son
does not honor the Father who sent Him.

Truly, truly, I say to you,
whoever hears My word
and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life.
He does not come into judgment,
but has passed from death to life.

Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming,
and is now here,
when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God,
and those who hear will live.

For as the Father has life in Himself,
so He has granted the Son also to have life in Himself.

And He has given him authority to execute judgment,
because He is the Son of Man.

Do not marvel at this,
for an hour is coming
when all who are in the tombs
will hear His voice and come out,
those who have done good
to the resurrection of life,
and those who have done evil
to the resurrection of judgment."

Here is Jesus speaking to a group of Jews who in fact want to kill Him for healing a man on the Sabbath, and also for calling God His Father. Jesus reveals more about His unique position as the Son of God and as the Son of Man.

As the Son of God, Jesus has life in Himself and gives life to the dead. That alone is unique. Nobody else can claim to give life to the dead, nor can they. Jesus says that "an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear His voice and come out." This would be quite an intense claim for Jesus to make if he were merely human, but quite natural if He is in fact the Son of God, as Jesus continually claims in this passage.

But Jesus' authority extends far beyond that. Not only can He, the Son of God, give life to whom He will, but God "has given Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man." In other words, God gave Jesus the authority to judge all human beings because Jesus is Himself a man. God the Father is not a man. Although it is God's right to judge us, He delegated that right to His Son because He is the Son of Man.

Why? Jesus answers: "The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him."

This is a question of honor, respect, and recognition! Most people recognize that God ought to receive honor, but what of His Son? Out of His great love, God sent His only Son, Jesus, to save us from the wrath we deserved and create a way for us to be called children of God! Are we just going to ignore God and His Son after all that?

Jesus says: "The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father."

Jesus is the only One with the authority to execute judgment upon me, you, and everyone we know. Not even God Himself will execute judgment - He's delegated that right to Jesus!

Perhaps, after considering these things, we may think we still have nothing to be concerned about. After all, Jesus said this: "Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment." If we're among those "who have done good," we have nothing to fear.

But how are we counted as having done good? Is it based on moral self-improvement, treating people decently, religious rites, or anything we can muster up of our own strength?

No, it is not. The only ones who have done good in God's eyes are those who believe God's testimony about His Son. Remember, Jesus is the judge. It is not a comparison game; it comes down to one sovereign decision.

Actually, the Lord Jesus sent a man named Paul to testify to these facts:

Romans 3:23-26

For all have sinned
and fall short of the glory of God,

and are justified by His grace as a gift,
through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,

whom God put forward as a propitiation by His blood,
to be received by faith.

This was to show God's righteousness,
because in His divine forbearance He had passed over former sins.

It was to show His righteousness at the present time,
so that he might be just
and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

God purposefully created one way for sinners like us to be justified. He put Jesus "forward as a propitiation by His blood, to be received by faith."

What does this mean? By becoming a propitiation for our sins, Jesus turned away God's wrath from those who deserve it - us - by absorbing it into Himself. Although, in our pride, we may tend to think pretty highly of ourselves, this passage is clear: "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."

We are justified before God not based on our goodness - since we have none to speak of before God - but by God's "grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus." We must receive Christ Jesus by faith. It is the only way.

To return to Jesus' own words:

"Truly, truly, I say to you,
whoever hears My word
and believes Him who sent Me
has eternal life.
He does not come into judgment,
but has passed from death to life."

If we don't place our faith in Christ Jesus, the Lord Jesus will judge us, and we will be found guilty. But if we hear Jesus' words and believe God, who sent Him, Jesus will rescue us from judgment, and God will justify us.

Only in that way can we be saved from the coming wrath of the Lord Jesus! Remember, once resurrected, we, like that high priest, "will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven."

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Scripture references from English Standard Version
Pronouns for God and the Lord Jesus Christ capitalized