Jesus Christ–The Mystery of Godliness Revealed

 

1 Timothy 3:16 “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.”

Having garnered the original word meanings in Strong’s Concordance, 1 Timothy 3:16 can be expressed as:

·        “Without objection, of vital importance is the secret, which can only be revealed by God, of the holiness of life:

·        God was shown openly in living flesh,

Revealed to be righteous by the Spirit,

Seen of angels,

Made known unto the gentiles,

Believed on in the world,

Received up into glory.”

(Notice: all these stanzas are dealing in revelatory terminology)

The word “mystery” in 1 Timothy 3:16 is musteriou which means “some sacred thing hidden or secret which is naturally unknown to human reason and is only known by the revelation of God.” Paul tells us that holiness of life (godliness) is a vital secret that can only be known by a revelation of God. Man had never seen nor known true holiness of life in all the history of mankind. This statement is concluded with a colon, thus signifying, an example of future explanation follows. The example or explanation of this great mystery or secret of holiness of life is:

God was shown openly (manifested, revealed, declared, proclaimed) in living flesh, –Revealed (manifested, seen, proven)to be righteous by the Spirit, –Seen (made apparent to view) of angels, –Made known (proclaimed, preached) unto the gentiles, –Believed on ( understood, trusted) in the world, –Received up into glory.

Thus, the vital secret of holiness of life is REVEALED by God manifest in living flesh. Just as the true nature of an individual is manifested by his actions [ by their fruits (works) shall ye know them], likewise, the nature of God was shown openly in living flesh, not divine flesh but human flesh manifesting divine nature.

This secret of the ages (of holiness of life) had been veiled in obscurity, glimpsed but never clearly seen, until God was manifest in the flesh, thus revealing Himself (His nature) to all that would truly “Behold the Lamb of God.” This secret was vital because without an understanding of the nature of God man could never know God. It was the lack of knowledge of this vital secret of holiness of life that confused and became a stumbling block to the Jews. “You being a man make yourself God,” was their stumbling in the dark retort to the Lord Jesus Christ. As frequently was the case, they had stated their confusion in terms of backwardness of truth. It was not a man making himself God, yea rather, God had made Himself a Man! These blind leaders of the blind had rightfully sensed His humanity but failed to see that that living flesh was manifesting God! Here was the image of the invisible God; the express image of His person. “When you have seen me, you have seen the Father.” Yet, they failed to see, having eyes they saw not. “Before Abraham was, I AM,” “Emmanuel, God with us,”

Jesus declared, however they stumbled on in their darkness nevertheless.

Why? Why did they so miserably fail to see this obvious display of God in living flesh? How could they have been so blinded as to not detect the nature of God radiating from this human body that they sought to destroy? Why? Because of their misconception of the nature of God, therefore when He manifested His nature they failed to associate those actions with their idea of God. Not knowing His true nature, they did not recognize Him when He came. “He came unto His own and His own received Him not.” Neither had God, as some tend to believe, changed His nature and stepped into the their world incognito. “I am God and I change not.” God’s nature was ever the same. It was the world’s conception of God that was in error.

The Jew had formulated a God that they only knew as far away, a God that set boundaries to prevent intimacy. A God of thunder and lighting and gross darkness, a God that clave open the ground and swallowed rebellious men alive. A God who hurled lighting bolts as javelins, a God who gathered the stars in His hand as trinkets of insignificance. A God who made the clouds His chariots and the earth His footstool. These were facets of God’s nature but not His complete revealed nature.

What they failed to see was His true holiness and their wretched sinfulness. Sin that had created a great gulf between man and God over which no man might pass. What they failed to understand was that man was without God and without hope in the world, doomed to an eternal damnation. And their greatest shortcoming was their failure to see and understand a God who loved them and would come to their rescue Himself!

While man could not cross the great chasm of sin to go to God, God robed Himself in living flesh and came to man! This WAS and ALWAYS had been His nature. “God is Love.” “And in the fullness of time, Christ died for our sins.” He came to manifest (make known) His nature!

The smoking mountain of Sinai could not MANIFEST this nature. It shook and quaked but it was lifeless stones, unfeeling sand and gravel, tons of earth without heartbeat or emotion. Even the pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night could not MANIFEST God’s nature. They were only ensigns without life that went before the people as God directed. All the types and shadows of the Tabernacle were but lifeless gold and silver, shittim wood and fabric that could only be understood AFTER true discovery of the vital secret of holiness; Jesus Christ!

No, “a body,” only a living body of flesh with emotions, language, feelings and breath could manifest the nature of God to fallen man.

Therefore, “God was manifest in the flesh.” No prophet could describe Him clearly enough, no leader could proclaim Him thoroughly enough! God, in order to MANIFEST Himself came in living flesh!

Jesus Christ was truly God and man, flesh and Spirit, human and divine, therefore He functioned in several offices at the same time. “Nature” implies “individuality.” “Natures” implies “individuals.” “Office,” rather, speaks of “role.” “Offices,” likewise, denotes multiple “functions” of the same individual as he performs in different roles, such as, father to child, husband to wife, son to father, neighbor to neighbor, employer to employee, etc. The self same individual functioning in all these roles, and having certain characteristics that come into play in some roles and not in others. For instance, to the wife he has reactions and involvements that are not brought into action with the neighbor, yet he is the same individual nonetheless. This is why many times Jesus referred to the “Son of man” as though he were speaking of another person, as we clearly see in:

 

Matt 8:20

And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.

 

Matt 9:6

But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house.

 

Matt 11:19

The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children.

 

 

Matt 13:41

The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;

These are only a few of the many instances where Jesus spoke of Himself thusly. Rather than using the personal pronoun “I,” Jesus uses the phrase “son of man.” (I wonder why the Trinitarians don’t use those instances to form yet another member of their confused godhead theology?). Then at other times He speaks of “the Father:”

John 4:23

But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.

John 6:37

All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.

John 6:46

Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father.

John 14:13

And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

What you see is NOT multiple persons of some supposed trinity but rather the operation of “offices.” Jesus illustrated this duality (Son of man and Father) not only in His actions but also in His speech. The office of “sonship” required certain boundaries to reside within. Certain actions and words were dependant upon whom He was dealing with or speaking to. Just as a husband will say and do things with his wife that would be out of place with anyone else. The office of husband is only performed with the wife. Likewise, Jesus Christ was God manifest in the flesh and yet he also performed in the offices of Father, Son and Holy Ghost. One must ascertain the role to determine why He spoke and acted as He did at various times. As the Father He spoke of the “Son of man,” as the Son He spoke of the “Father,” and as the “Holy Ghost,” He spoke of the “Father and of the Son.” This should answer any question arising from Matthew 28:19. The Name is singular, while the offices are plural! This UNDERSTANDING of the vital secret is why ALL the apostles baptized ONLY in Jesus? Name! They had understanding of the vital secret.

These office distinctions also answer the question as to the reason Jesus as the Son refrained from telling of the day and hour of the coming of Himself! Matt 24:44, “Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.” Even though He Himself is coming He says, Mark 13:32, “But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.” (Trinitarians must say that the three persons of their imagined trinity are NOT co-equal after all) But the simple explanation is that the boundaries of the “sonship” prevent discloser of the day and hour, that privilege resides in the “Fathership.”

Calvary was a place where Spirit could not fulfill the sacrifice; a living body of flesh capable of dying was needed (One error associated with the Divine Flesh Doctrine would be the impossibility to experience death). Not just any “body” but the Lamb of God; God manifest in the flesh!

Heb 10:5-10

Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure. Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God. Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

This musteriou, this vital secret, this sacred thing hidden which could never be understood by human reason was MANIFESTED by the revelation of God in living flesh! Heb 1:1-3, “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;”

God came in living flesh to DECLARE Himself, to reveal the vital secret of holiness of life and that revelation is JESUS CHRIST! We are told that Jesus ate, slept, walked, wept, drank, became weary, but not once is it ever recorded that He was ill or sick, yet He is our Great High Priest to whom we go often to seek healing.  Are we to believe that since He was never sick that He cannot relate to our sicknesses? No, He can relate to all human needs and desires simply because He is GOD! And because of His nature of Love He came to rescue us, not to be rescued!

Yes, great (vital) is the secret (mystery) of holiness of life (godliness)! And this secret was revealed, manifested, declared, made known, and proclaimed when God came in living flesh! “Hereby we perceive (see, understand) the love of God, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.”