Session 4

 

Q. Today, we would like to study the words stated in verse three of the same chapter, ‘All things were made through Him, and without Him, and nothing was made that was made.’ What do these words mean?

A. These words mean that the entire creation, all that is in this spacious universe, not only merely our limited world on the planet earth - be that human, animal, plant or object - was all created through the Lord Jesus Christ. We’ve mentioned this before, and are now confirming it that the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) is God revealed in human body. The creator cannot be except One: God Almighty.  Since the Holy Scripture witnesses to The Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) that He is the creator, then indeed He is God Almighty.

 

Q. Dr. Nagi, was the concept of the Lord Christ (Glory be to His name) is God in human body, revealed when the bible according to St. John the Evangelist, was written, around the 70 A.D? Or was it known before then, during the time when the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) was on earth?

A. It was known since the time the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) was on earth.  All His followers and those around him knew this truth. As He spoke with Philip, one of his disciples who asked if He would show them the Father, God Almighty who sits on the throne, the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) told him, ‘Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, “Show us the Father…Believe Me, I am in the Father and the Father in Me.’ John 14:9-11. These are indeed serious words that no man dare utter, save for God Almighty Himself

 

Q. Did the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) mention in any other occasion that He and the Father are One?

A. The Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) said His well known words, ‘I and the Father are One’ John 10:30. He also called Himself; ‘Son of God’ and we’ve already explained the meaning of Son of God in a previous episode. God is One, He has no partner, ‘He begets not, nor was He begotten - And there is none comparable to Him’ Surat Al Ikhlas 112:3,4, then what the Lord Jesus has meant by being Son of God, is that He is God Almighty, and no one else.   When the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) said these words, the Jews were about to stone Him; His answer was, ‘Many good works I have shown you from My Father.  For which of those works do you stone me?  The Jews answered Him, saying, “For a good work we do not stone you, but for blasphemy, and because you, being a Man make Yourself God”.  Jesus answered them, ‘Is it not written in your law, “I said you are gods”?. If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming, ‘because I said, ‘I am the Son of God?’ John 10:31-37.  This was what the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) said of Himself.

 

Q. What if I do not believe that the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) is the Son of God, that is God revealed in human flesh?   I do believe in all else that Christianity entails, wouldn’t that be enough?

A. Do you mean to say that you do not wish to believe, or that you cannot believe?

 

Q. Let us assume that I do not wish, and refuse to believe this truth; we can deal with the other issue of ‘cannot believe’, later on.

A. Should you not wish to believe means that you are denying what the most Truthful of all men, the Lord Jesus Christ, had said about Himself.   You say, ‘This is not true and I refuse it’. To which God Almighty will respond by not enlightening your heart with faith. The Almighty presents the truth in simple form; those who refuse to believe it, He punishes them by turning them over to a debased mind and falsehood, that the evil of the slinking whisperer (Satan) deceives them, and turns them away from faith and from believing the truth. As punishment from God, they have denied the marvels of God Almighty and will be punished severely in eternity. Nonetheless, I would like to draw your attention to a very important fact: There is NO Christianity without faith that the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) is God Almighty revealed in human flesh. You cannot accept a fraction of the Christian Faith, and refuse the rest. You either accept the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) As Lord and God, accept all that he did and taught, or you reject Him altogether.

 

Q. Why wouldn’t there be Christianity unless one believes that the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) is God revealed in human body? Christianity has plenty of great teachings and principles that should Man follow, s/he will please God, and fulfill all the obligations of one’s religion?

A. It is not a matter of teachings or commandments. Enjoining what is right and prohibiting what is wrong are principles that exist in all religions. Many philosophers and social reformers attempted to stay true to the Almighty and fulfill ethical codes.  The point is related to forgiveness of sins, sanctification and deliverance from eternal doom set for sinners. Those who do not enjoy the salvation and redemption of God Almighty will be doomed to eternal hell.  The redemption of Mankind is tentative to the existence of One Savior and Redeemer. No one qualifies for such a serious and crucial mission, except the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Q. Why is it that the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) is the only One who qualifies?

A. Because He is the only One in who are fulfilled all the requirements of The Savior: The Savior of the fallen Mankind has to fulfill certain conditions: First, not to have inherited the corrupted human nature. This is impossible, since every one born of natural parents has inherited the corrupt human nature. This provision could not qualify any man save the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is born from a virgin that God Almighty has chosen of all other women. No man had touched her, and she was not immoral. She gave birth to the Lord Jesus Christ, Master of all the earth, and He did not inherit the corrupted human nature of the fallen Mankind. Second, a person who qualifies to be our redeemer has to be sinless; He had to have not committed one single sin throughout His entire life. It is very clear that, of all prophets and messengers, this did not apply except to the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord witnessed to himself when He asked the people around Him, ‘Which of you convicts me of sin?’ in other words, who remembers any sin that I have committed. Of course, no one dared to; it was only The Lord Jesus who never asked the Almighty to forgive Him a word or an action. He actually did not need forgiveness or redemption. We have never heard him say, ‘My God I ask your forgiveness’, or ‘I repent for …’. He was the only one whom Satan could not touch. He lived honorably on earth and in eternity.

 

Q. Why is this second condition that The Savior had to be sinless?

A. Because if He had committed one single sin, He would not have qualified for the process of redemption; He would have needed another, sinless savior, to sanctify, and redeem Him, someone to abolish His sins.

 

Q. What other conditions had to apply to the One who qualifies to be our savior, than His not being born of natural parents, and that He should be sinless from the day He was born, until He offered Himself to God - a sacrifice on behalf of us all?

A. The third condition is that He had to be equal to God Almighty in essence, in order to be able to satisfy the justice of God, His sacrifice is accepted and that He may be worthy of mediating between God Almighty and man. He had to be equal to God Almighty on side, and equal to man on the other. This could never apply to anyone except the Lord Jesus Christ, about whom the Holy Scripture says, ‘He is the Word of God, His very spirit. As the angel came and announced the good news to Virgin St. Mary, she wondered at his words, as his good news of bearing a son most pure and dignified, in his life in the hereafter. She asked the angel, ‘How can this be since I do not know a man?’ And the angel answered and said to her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and power of the Highest will over shadow you; therefore, also that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.’ Luke 1:34, 35. Here is another reference to reason the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) is called Son of God: He was conceived when the Holy Spirit came upon a pure virgin, St. Mary. Every prophet, or messenger came to our earth was conceived of natural parents, except for the Lord Jesus Christ, He came to our earth, merely, by the will of God.  He was therefore called, the Son of God.

 

Q. Are there any other conditions in order to qualify a person be The Redeemer of entire human race?

A. The fourth and last condition is that the person who qualifies to be savior be willing to die on behalf of Mankind, on His own free will - not by force.  He, who has never known sin, had been willing to bear the wages of the sins of all humans, in order to fulfill the Law of God Almighty: the wages of sin is death.  This person had to die, pay the price, and fulfill the justice of the Almighty redeeming the sins of Man, who is incapable of redeeming oneself. He saved Mankind from such that no other human could save them, that death that no other descendent of Adam could save them - since all have sinned.  Simply, by looking at the nature of the Lord Jesus Christ: He was born from a women who suffered pain, much like we all do, yet by the Will of God, being His Word, and His very Spirit; He lead a pure life since He was born, up till the day He was ascended to heaven; finally He voluntary died on behalf of the entire human race.  Indeed He was the only one to meet all the requirements of the Redeemer that The Almighty had long revealed in His Holy Book, since the time of creation. There is no drop of exaggeration in saying that the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) is the only way to heaven.

 

Q. Dr. Nagi this was your answer, in case I refuse to believe the truth, that the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) is the Son of God.  What if I am not rejecting the truth but rather unable to perceive it? What if it is too difficult for me, and I do not know how to believe and have faith in it. Especially since, if the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) is the only way to heaven, as you have said?

A. God Almighty is available to help people accept Biblical truths, which seem to be far beyond logic and human perception.  All that Man needs to do is be willing to believe what God Almighty has revealed in His Holy Book, be ready to open mind and heart to the Almighty, and change every ancient perception that has no base in God’s Holy Scripture.  Man needs to raise one’s heart and call upon the Lord who is the Most Merciful of all.  He is ready to reveal His truth to all genuine seeks, and the truth will cause them to sing out loud, ‘Truth has come and falsehood has vanished, indeed falsehood is bound to vanish.’ Surat Al Israa 81:17

 

Q. In John 1:4 and 5, the revelation says of the Lord Jesus Christ, ‘In Him was life and the life was the light of men.  And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend Him.’  What do these words mean?

A. These verses consist of four divisions. They sound As if they are stanzas of a poem. The revelation here says that the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) was indeed life for all that had life in this vast universe. This reminds us of what the Lord Jesus said of Himself, ‘I am the way the truth and the life’ John 14:6, and ‘He who believes in me, they he may die, he shall live.  And whoever lives and believes in me shall never die.’ John 11:25 - 26.  It also speaks of immortal spiritual life, which the Lord Christ (Glory be to His name) gives to whoever believes in Him. The Lord Christ (Glory be to His name) introduced a spiritual life in order to enlighten our way, and show us how to lead (life) in light; thus the meaning of the life was the light of men?

 

Q. The third and the forth divisions of these verses say, ‘And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend Him.’ What does ‘did not comprehend Him means?

A. If two things contrast, the difference between them is easy to recognize. The Lord Christ (Glory be to His name) came to enlighten the human sinful nature. Because of sin, Man lived in darkness, ‘For you were once darkness’ Ephesien5: 8 it is clear that there is a link between sin and darkness.  All descendants of Adam try to hide the sinfulness of their hearts: grudge, jealousy, pride, evil thoughts, adultery, or fornication by closing their lives, As if to hide it in a closed dark room. The Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) came to enlighten this dark room, and to save man of his evil doings; but Man failed to perceive His true light and separated himself from the light.  This is one of the meanings of darkness could not comprehend it. The other meaning is that the darkness of Man could not over power or defeats the power of the light, which came to earth within the Lord Jesus Christ. Coming unto His presence, Man finds the heart to be dark and evil . Oh how happy is the Man who asks the Almighty to enlighten the depth of his heart, ridding it from its darkness.

 

Q. Dr. Nagi, in John 1:6 speak of a new person called John, and about his mission. This after the first five verses had spoken only of the Lord Jesus Christ. Who is this John?   Is he the same one by whom the Gospel we are studying was named?

A. This great personality mentioned in John 1:6 is different from John the Evangelist, the one whom God Almighty had used to transcribe the Gospel at hand.  John, the Evangelist, is known As John, the beloved; he is one of the close disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) - I dare say the closest to Him. John, the evangelist was the one to whom our Lord entrusted His Mother, the Virgin, St. Mary, after He died. He was the only one who stayed with our Lord during His trial, followed Him to the cross, and was the first to hurry to see the empty tomb after our Lord’s resurrection from death.  But, As for John who is mentioned in verse 6, he is the one known As the Baptist. He is John; son of Zechariah and Elizabeth is his mother .He was born after Zechariah and Elizabeth were aged. His mother is a relative to the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Lord Christ (Glory be to His name) The Baptist was the first to bow down and worship the Lord Jesus Christ.  He leaped for joy when the Lord came to him.

 

Q. Where was it mentioned that John, son of Zechariah was the first to worship the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) and leap for joy?

A. This incident was mentioned Luke, chapter one. When the Virgin Mary was pregnant with the Lord Jesus Christ, after the angel had announced to her that she had conceived in a son most pure, she went to visit her relative, Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist. Elizabeth was still pregnant with John. The Holy Scripture states that, ‘Now Mary arose in those days and went in the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah, and entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.  And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, ‘Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb.  But why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me?  For the instant, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. Luke 1:39-44 

 

Q. Why did John the Baptist come as a prophet and messenger before the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) came? Why is His coming important anyhow?

A. John 1:6 says,’ there was a man sent from God, whose name was John. This clarifies the difference between John, son of Zechariah and the Lord Jesus Christ. The revelation of the Holy Scripture says of John, son of Zechariah, that he is a man, where As the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) in referred to as’ the Word was with God, and the Word was God’. Meaning the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) is the Son of God. The revelation also said of John son of Zechariah that he is sent by God, whereas the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) is God Himself As we previously said. The name John means, the Lord is compassionate, as for meaning of the name of the Lord Jesus, it is savior; and Christ (Glory be to His name) means the anointed one.  Another name for the Lord Jesus is Emmanuel, which means (God is with us). There is great significance in of his coming before the Lord Jesus Christ: First, as his name indicates, the Lord takes compassion on his people. God Almighty had left his people, then Israel, and turned them over to their disobedience and separation from Himself for about 400 years, before the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) came. John the Baptist came to tell people, ‘the Lord has taken compassion on you; He is sending a Savior, Jesus Christ the Lord (Glory be to His name). Second he came for witness, to bear witness to the light. He was not the light, just as the scripture is revealed, but came to bear witness to the light. The light here is the person of the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) , who is light revealed of light, and a true God revealed of a true God .Third he came to call people to repent, raise from their negligence, which have lasted for so long, since God had sent them no prophets. He came to declare that, by the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) to earth, the ax is positioned by the roots of the tree, ready to cut it off, since,’ Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and is thrown into the fire’ Matthew 7:19 meaning every one who does not accept the Lord Jesus Christ (Glory be to His name) As personal savior and redeemer from sins and iniquities, and As the only way to heaven, is similar to a tree that God Almighty had planted in His earth, watered it with his pure water, yet if remained dry, disobedient, rejecting its Maker and creator; it is only right that it is cut and thrown into hell set for atheists.