If Christ was Divine, How Could He Have Been Tempted?

by leavingwt 141 Replies latest jw friends

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  PSacramento

  I don't hink we cna view Jesus as have being "just like us", sure he was tempted just like us and when through all the we go through, but Jesus KNEW why he was here and going through all that and his nature was divine, and in his ressurected form was all the we CAN and WILL be, according to the will of God, but Jesus, while fully human, was still the son of God and in him the fullness of God lived.

  So yes, Jesus was tempted as we are, far more actually since Satan never offered me the world, LOL !, but just because he was tempted as we are doesn mean that he was just like us.
• 

  leavingwt

  PSacramento:

  I don't hink we can view Jesus as have being "just like us"

  In view of this, what is your interpretation of the Scripture below.

  Hebrews 2:17

  17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.
• 

  PSacramento

  LWT,

  I struggle hard with many passages, as we all do and in the end I try to come to a view based on the WHOLE of the gospels and the WHOLE of their teachings and I base that on not only my interpretation but bible commentaries and finally, follwoing myheart as to what I KNOW is true about Jesus, that he is the son of God, God personified and that God is Love.

  Based on that, MY VIEW is that Jesus was what God had to be for US to understand "him". All he did was for OUR benefit, for us to approach him and that is why we feel that jesus is indeed so "reachable".

  So, what does it mean that Jesus was like his brothers in every respect/n all things?

  That Jesus was fully human, he felt pain, sorrow, happiness, the occasional bout of constipation, hunger and yes, he even felt what it was to be tempted, even though, as The WORD, he had known ALL these things before, which means he was no "just like us", but was indeed "one of us, fully".

  He was after his ressurection, all that way CAN be, but even then, when we share in his glory, we will still not be "just like him", he wil stil be The Word of God.

  I don't know if I am conveying what I mean accuretly.
• 

  littlebird

  Wow! lots of pages and Im sure Ive missed some valuable opinions, but anyway, here's mine, of which, Im not dogmatic about. I believe he made himself human as phil. says.

  Philippians 2:6-8 (New International Version)

  6 Who, being in very nature [a] God,
  did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
  7 but made himself nothing,
  taking the very nature [b] of a servant,
  being made in human likeness.
  8 And being found in appearance as a man,
  he humbled himself
  and became obedient to death—
  even death on a cross!

  (As leaving mentioned.)

  Hebrews 2:17

  17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.

  Based on these scriptures, I believe he was human. During his temptation when satan tells jesus to throw himself down, satan reminds jesus that that God , the father, wont allow jesus foot to strike against a stone, but would send angels to lift him up. If jesus had his godly powers on earth, he wouldnt need the angels help.

  I believe he was able to perform miracles, because, God the father, granted him those gifts, as the holy spirit did for the believers at pentecost. Just my theory.
• 

  littlebird

  Based on these scriptures, I believe he was human. OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOppppppppppppps, I meant that he was human on earth.
• 

  PSacramento

  Well, I don't think we are disagree that he was human, just to what extend he was like us.

  The very passage you quoted:

  6 Who, being in very nature [a] God,
  did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
  7 but made himself nothing,
  taking the very nature [b] of a servant,
  being made in human likeness.
  8 And being found in appearance as a man,
  he humbled himself
  and became obedient to death—
  even death on a cross!

  Shows that his nature was God, the he made himself into human LIKENESS and had the APPEARANCE of Man.

  Fully human, yes, but also divine, Human in body, divine in spirit.
• 

  littlebird

  I guess Im referring to verse 7, that he made himself nothing, but who knows.
• 

  VoidEater

  Mot meaning to hijack, but a sidepoint - if every free agent can fail, wouldn't time eventually empty heaven?

  Might at some point christ (depending on how you think of that entity's current status) fall from grace?

  It's as if we sometimes think of the heavens and the earth being static after some historical point in time...
• 

  PSacramento

  Who KNows?

  Well, it is very cool to try and debate and understand that Nature of God and Jesus, as if we actually can, LOL !
  I mean, IF we believe that God created the Universe and that he did it tthrough Jesus, to even begin to understand that we would have to understand the universe and when we do that, then we are at the BEGINNING of understanding what caused the creation, but still not being able to undserstand the NATURE of the creator.

  But its asking these questions and exchanging views that shows that we are interested and that drives us to KNOW God and Jesus, to ask and test what is written, just like we were told to do.

  Unless of course you just wanna take someone elses view and not bother with finding out for yourself.

  Personally, I like the search, I like the questioning, I like the exchaneg of view points.
• 

  PSacramento

  Not meaning to hijack, but a sidepoint - if every free agent can fail, wouldn't time eventually empty heaven?

  Not sure what you mean...free agent?

  Might at some point christ (depending on how you think of that entity's current status) fall from grace?

  Grace comes from God through Jesus, grace is Jesus, he can't fall from himself, if you kwow what I mean.

  It's as if we sometimes think of the heavens and the earth being static after some historical point in time...

  Static?