Questions and Answers about Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones' Sermon on the Person of Christ

What evidence does the Bible provide for the deity of Jesus Christ?

According to Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, the Bible provides several categories of evidence for Christ's deity:

1. Divine names ascribed to Him - including "Son of God" (mentioned 40 times), "the only begotten Son of God," "the First and the Last," "the Alpha and Omega," "the Holy One," "the Lord" (equivalent to Jehovah), "the Lord of Glory," "God" (as in Thomas's declaration "My Lord and my God"), "Emmanuel" (God with us), and "our great God and Savior."

2. Divine attributes - including omnipotence ("upholds all things by the word of his power"), omniscience, omnipresence ("Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I"), eternity, immutability, and preexistence.

3. Divine offices - including creation ("All things were made by him"), preservation, power to forgive sins, power to raise the dead, power to transform bodies, judgment, and bestowing eternal life.

4. Old Testament statements about Jehovah applied to Christ in the New Testament.

5. The coupling of His name with God the Father's name.

6. Divine worship ascribed to Him.

7. His own self-consciousness and claims to deity.

What biblical evidence proves the true humanity of Jesus Christ?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones outlines several proofs of Christ's true humanity:

1. The virgin birth - showing He took on genuine human nature.

2. Names like "the man Christ Jesus" and "the Son of Man" (used over 80 times).

3. His typical human physical nature - "The Word became flesh."

4. His appearance as a typical Jewish man (the Samaritan woman recognized Him as a Jew).

5. His retention of His human body after resurrection and even in glory.

6. His subject to growth and development - "Jesus increased in wisdom and stature."

7. Limitations in His knowledge - "Of that day and hour knows no one... not even the Son."

8. Physical limitations - He experienced weariness, hunger, thirst, physical agony, and death.

9. His experience of temptation - "tempted in all points like as we are."

10. His need for prayer.

11. His reliance on the power of the Holy Spirit.

12. His reference to God as "my God."

How was Jesus sinless despite being fully human?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that while Jesus was fully human, He was completely sinless. This is supported by:

1. The angel's announcement to Mary about "the holy thing" to be born of her.
2. Christ's own challenge: "Which of you convicts me of sin?"
3. Biblical statements like "He knew no sin" (2 Corinthians 5:21), "who did no sin" (1 Peter 2:22), and "in Him is no sin" (1 John 3:5).
4. Scripture's careful language that He came "in the likeness of sinful flesh" - not in sinful flesh.

Lloyd-Jones emphasizes that "carnality is not an essential part of humanity." Adam was truly human before sin, but not carnal. Christ's human nature from Mary, through the Holy Spirit's operation, was "truly human, but free from sin." The preacher states that "it was not merely the case that it was possible for Him not to sin. It was not possible for Him to sin" - distinguishing Christ from Adam, who could and did sin.

What is the difference between being human and being carnal according to Lloyd-Jones?

According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, a crucial theological distinction exists between humanity and carnality:

"The scriptures claim that he is truly human, but they never say that he was carnal. And this is the most important point, because carnality is not an essential part of humanity. Adam, as he was created perfect at the beginning, was truly human, but he was not carnal. Carnality is the result of sin."

Lloyd-Jones explains that Christ took "human nature from Mary as the result of the operation of the Holy Spirit upon her. It is truly human, but it's free from sin. In other words, it is not carnal." This distinction allows for Christ to be fully human while completely sinless - humanity itself isn't inherently sinful, but sin has corrupted human nature after the Fall.

How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones explain Christ's experience of temptation despite being sinless?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones addresses the question of Christ's temptation by explaining:

1. "The fact that he was subject to temptation does not imply any defect in him whatsoever."

2. Christ "could not have been subject to temptation if he had not become human" since "God cannot be tempted."

3. Temptation can be "purely external" without requiring any internal inclination to sin.

4. Christ was "subject to temptation, but was at the same time sinless."

5. The difference between Christ and Adam was that for Adam "it was possible for him not to sin" but he could sin, while for Christ "not only was it possible for Him not to sin, it was not possible for Him to sin" because He is both God and man.

6. The devil's temptation of Christ was real and intense "in a way that nobody else has ever been tempted," yet Christ remained "entirely free from sin."

Why does Dr. Lloyd-Jones say it's important to study the person of Christ?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones emphasizes the importance of studying Christ's person for several reasons:

1. Christ is "the great central figure and person of the Bible and there is no salvation apart from him."

2. The Bible "always points us to him as being absolutely vital and essential to our whole position."

3. Understanding the nature of Christ's person is foundational to understanding redemption and salvation.

4. The biblical doctrine of his person is the basis for our faith - we need to know who saved us.

5. Our doctrine must be built on the full biblical evidence rather than "cunningly devised fables."

6. The voluminous nature of scriptural evidence about Christ shows God's "loving condescension" in providing abundant proof to strengthen our faith.

As Lloyd-Jones concludes in his prayer: "O God, we thank thee for this loving condescension, for the way that thou hast stooped to our weakness, our ignorance and our frailty, and hast given us this, thy great word, with all these infallible proofs."