“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” (Genesis 1:1)
Scripture teaches that God the Father is the Creator of the universe. Why then did God involve His Son in the creation of all existence? There is a very important reason why Christ is involved in everything His Father does. Let’s dig a little deeper into the mystery of God’s Son.
“And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:21)
An angel appeared to Joseph telling him that Mary, his betrothed wife-to-be, will have a child. He was to call Him Jesus.
Let’s consider the name given to God’s Son. We know Him by the name Jesus or Yeshua in Hebrew. It is a simple name. In fact, "Jesus" is a common name known to many of us today. Many people have this name today. Even in biblical times, this name was common.
Jesus or Yeshua in Hebrew was the name given to God’s Son when He manifested Himself in the form of man. He lived among us for 33 and a half years. However, He existed before us long ago, before anything else existed. His role, however, was the same back then as it was 2000 years ago when He lived among us. He has always been the “Messenger” of God. The Bible refers to Him as “The Angel of the Lord”
“But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” So he said, “Here I am.” (Genesis 22:11)
“And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed.” (Exodus 3:2)
The word “angel” means messenger. He was always dispatched by His Father to deliver important messages to His people.
“Behold, I send My messenger, And he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple, Even the Messenger of the covenant, In whom you delight. Behold, He is coming,” Says the LORD of hosts.” (Malachi 3:1)
Jesus had an important role during the Old Testament times. He was not known as Jesus back then. During His pre-incarnate self, (before he took on the form of man) He was and still is the prince or commander in chief of all the heavenly hosts. He was known as Michael the Archangel.
“But I will tell you what is noted in the Scripture of Truth. (No one upholds me against these, except Michael your prince.” (Daniel 10:21)
“Then there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon and his angels” (Revelation 12:7)
“At that time Michael, the archangel who stands guard over your nation, will arise. Then there will be a time of anguish greater than any since nations first came into existence. But at that time every one of your people whose name is written in the book will be rescued.” (Daniel 12:1)
God the Father sends this mighty angel in His stead to be His personal spokesman. Michael is God’s voice to man. When the Angel of the LORD relays His Father’s messages to men, He speaks word-for-word as if it was the Father Himself speaking. Consider the following.
“And the Angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed.” (Exodus 3:2)
Moses was attracted to a bush that was on fire, but it did not burn up. When he went to take a closer look, a voice spoke out of the bush and identified Himself.
“...He said, “I am the God of your father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God.” (Exodus 3:6)
When Moses realized who he was speaking to, he hid his face because he was afraid to look at God. But it was not God He was speaking to, it was Michael. Scripture says that no man has ever seen God at any time.
“No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.” (John 1:18)
“No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us.” (1 John 4:12)
“Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He who is from God; He has seen the Father.” (John 6:46)
According to Exodus 3:2, it was the Angel of the LORD who was speaking out of the bush. According to Exodus 3:6, it was the Father’s words identifying Himself as God. Why?
“Behold, I send an Angel before you to keep you in the way and to bring you into the place which I have prepared. Beware of Him and obey His voice; do not provoke Him, for He will not pardon your transgressions; for My name is in Him.” (Exodus 23:20-21)
Here is the key phrase, “...for my name is in Him.” What does that mean? His Father’s name is His “Authority”. He speaks in place of God. The entire universe obeys His command as if He were God Himself. Christ could not have said it any clearer.
“Jesus said to 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’? (John 14:9)
This “Son of God” goes by many names. The reason He is known by so many names is that His roles are many. Christ (Messiah), Jesus or Yeshua (Yeshua is the Hebrew name for Joshua which means “God is salvation”), Immanuel (God is with us), Lamb of God (He is the sacrifice sent to die in our place.) He is the Advocate, the Anointed, the Branch, the Bridegroom, the Man of Sorrows, and so many more.
Other than God the Father, no other being outranked Him. He stood above all throughout the entire created universe. He was and is the most powerful being second only to God the Father. He possessed full authority over the entire universal creation. This is why He announced to the disciples the following.
“Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth.” (Matthew 28:18)
This authority was given to Him by His Father. But, He only had authority over all creation, not over His own Father.
“For the Scriptures say, “God has put all things under his authority.” (Of course, when it says “all things are under his authority,” that does not include God himself, who gave Christ his authority.)” (1 Corinthians 15:27)
The fact that Christ received all authority from His Father logically means He did not have this authority before it was given to Him. The question then arises, when did Christ receive this authority? Let’s look at this carefully. If we get this wrong, this misunderstanding will cause us to create a doctrine the bible does not teach.
During the time Christ lived among us here on earth, He was a mortal man just like us. He was physically frail, fragile, and prone to injury just like any one of us. He was not tall, handsome, and muscular as many of us would portray Him. There was nothing about His physical appearance that would attract people's attention.
“For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, And as a root out of dry ground. He has no form or comeliness; And when we see Him, There is no beauty that we should desire Him.” (Isaiah 53:2)
Jesus began His ministry at the age of 30.
“Jesus was about thirty years old when he began his public ministry.” (Luke 3:23)
Right before He began His ministry, He fasted for 40 days.
“For forty days and forty nights he fasted and became very hungry.” (Matthew 4:2)
Now, those of us who have experienced fasting longer than twenty-four hours, know the toll this takes on the body. Jesus was a very thin man. You can imagine Jesus' appearance by looking up Mahatma Gandhi on Google after his fast. Mahatma Gandhi fasted for 21 days and was very skinny. Jesus fasted for 40 days and no doubt he may have looked anorexic. After the fast, He may have put back some of that weight once He began eating again but He was a vagabond, with no particular place to call home. So there was nothing about His appearance worth boasting about. But it was not His physical appearance that attracted the crowds, it was His words and deeds. There was something about Him that demanded everyone’s attention. It was His authority.
He ruled the heavens before He came down to this Earth. He possessed the full measure of Glory, which He shared with His Father before the creation of the world.
“Now, Father, bring me into the glory we shared before the world began.” (John 17:5)
Michael the Archangel was the pre-incarnate Christ before humans existed on this planet. It was through Him that the angels were created.
“All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” (John 1:3)
The greatest angelic creature of all was Lucifer, yet Michael was greater than him because it was through Michael that Lucifer was created. Michael possessed full authority over all created beings for it was because of Him they all existed. So when were the angels created? Apparently, they existed way before us because they were there witnessing the creation of this earth.
“Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you know so much. Who determined its dimensions and stretched out the surveying line? What supports its foundations, and who laid its cornerstone as the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?” (Job 38:4-7)
So if we are looking for a chronological order of when things came to be, we can get a good idea by reading the creation story in Genesis chapter 1. According to Genesis chapter 1, God prepared a habitat first before He created the life that was going to inhabit the habitat. God is very predictable. Why? He is predictable because He never changes.
“I am the LORD, and I do not change. That is why you descendants of Jacob are not already destroyed.” (Malachi 3:6)
Since God (The Father) never changes, neither does His Son.
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8)
With this fact clear in our minds, we can make some clear educated assumptions. It is God’s customary practice to create a habitat before life. So, if we know for a fact that God created all life in the universe, we can easily assume that He created the universe first before He created all the life that now inhabits the universe. When we look at the starry sky, we see distant stars, planets, galaxies, nebulas, and many heavenly things that God created. All these were created way before any life came into being. Angels are God’s managers of the universe. God created the universe first and then He created the angels to manage it. There are almost an infinite number of planets out there.
“By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.” (Hebrews 11:3)
These worlds are inhabited by people. How do we know this? We know this because God creates planets exclusively to be inhabited.
“For the Lord is God, and he created the heavens and the earth, and put everything in place. He made the world to be lived in, not to be a place of empty chaos. “I am the Lord,” he says, “and there is no other.” (Isaiah 45:18)
God never changes, so whatever applies here on earth applies universally. God does not create planets to be empty and devoid of life. He creates them to be lived in.
“May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:10)
God’s creative acts on this earth are a model of His creative acts throughout the heavens. “As above, so below.” (Hermes Trismegistus) So if all the physical universe existed before the angels, when did the universe come into existence? Well, this date cannot show up on any calendar we know of. The universe was created after a specific event. One thing we can be sure of, according to John 1:2-3 Christ pre-existed all of the created universe because none of it would have existed without Him. So, when exactly did Christ receive all authority over heaven and earth? This must have taken place before the creation of anything.
“For God never said to any angel what he said to Jesus: “You are my Son. Today I have become your Father.” God also said, “I will be his Father, and he will be my Son. (Hebrews 1:5)
When did God say “You are my Son. Today I have become your Father.”? Apparently, according to Hebrews 1:5, this is something God never said to any created angel, or to any created being for that matter.
This is Paul writing to the Hebrews. This is not something God revealed to him directly, he read it and quoted it from the Psalms.
“The king proclaims the Lord’s decree: “The Lord said to me, ‘You are my son. Today I have become your Father.” (Psalm 2:7)
The reason why God said this to His Son and to His Son only is that there was nobody else around, for that matter, literally speaking, there was nothing else around in existence. Where do we find this in scripture?
“The Lord formed me from the beginning, before he created anything else.” (Proverbs 8:22)
Solomon is speaking metaphorically about Christ. The context of the book of Proverbs is mainly about “Wisdom”. In this case, “Wisdom” is in reference to Christ, who is the “Power and Wisdom” of God.
“...but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:24)
So, according to Solomon in the book of Proverbs, God gave birth to His Son before He created anything.
“The Lord formed me from the beginning, before he created anything else. I was appointed in ages past, at the very first, before the earth began. I was born before the oceans were created, before the springs bubbled forth their waters. Before the mountains were formed, before the hills, I was born before he had made the earth and fields and the first handfuls of soil. I was there when he established the heavens, when he drew the horizon on the oceans. I was there when he set the clouds above, when he established springs deep in the earth. I was there when he set the limits of the seas, so they would not spread beyond their boundaries. And when he marked off the earth’s foundations, I was the architect at his side. I was his constant delight, rejoicing always in his presence.” (Proverbs 8:22-30)
We need to understand something about scripture. It was written for earthly humans by earthly humans. Whenever scripture talks about the beginning origins of the universe, it is always from the perspective of this planet earth. This is the only perspective humans understand. Proverbs 8:22-30 does not indulge in describing the origin of the galaxies and distant stars, it simply describes the origins of this planet such as the springs of water, the formation of the mountains, hanging the clouds in the sky, establishing the springs of the deep and when he set borders for the oceans. These are things we understand. Solomon followed God’s agenda by making sure His words were understood by His target audience. The fact that Christ was begotten, or came forth from the Father was claimed by Christ Himself.
“For the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God.” (John 16:27)
This is why scripture tells us that Christ is God’s “only begotten Son.”
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)
Nothing existed when God gave birth to His Son. Nothing existed because it was through Christ that God created everything. So there was nothing and nobody around when God said “You are my Son. Today I have become your Father.”
When did God give His Son authority over all of heaven and earth? It was given to Him before any of it existed. It was given to Him at birth. It was given to Him by virtue of the fact that it was “through Him” and “for Him” that it was all created.
“For through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see, such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him.” (Colossians 1:16)
God (The Father) is nothing like us. We may bear His image in some form and shape, but other than that, the similarities stop there. God is so much more above and beyond any created being. Created beings exist in a dimensional realm with boundaries that cannot be crossed. God exists beyond all boundaries. Scripture tells us that God is eternal.
“ All honor and glory to God forever and ever! He is the eternal King, the unseen one who never dies; he alone is God. Amen.” (1 Timothy 1:17)
The dimensional realm where God exists is called eternity.
“The high and lofty one who lives in eternity, the Holy One, says this: “I live in the high and holy place with those whose spirits are contrite and humble. I restore the crushed spirit of the humble and revive the courage of those with repentant hearts.” (Isaiah 57:15)
The dimensional realm where we, His creatures, exist is called the “present” realm. We cannot cross the boundaries of the past or the boundaries of the future. We cannot worry about tomorrow, so we are to concern ourselves only about today.
“So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” (Matthew 6:34)
We exist within a linear timeline. We can look back at our past and learn from it. The lessons we learn from the past give us hope for the future. God, however, exists at a level beyond human understanding. He has no need for a physical, materialistic habitat for Him to abide in. He existed in eternity before He created anything, this proves He needed nothing. Why then did He create the universe? He created it for His Son.
“Everything was created through him (Christ) and for him (Christ).” (Colossians 1:16)
So, to answer the question that was posed at the beginning of this “Part 4” section, “Why then did God involve His Son in the creation of all existence?” God involved His Son in the creation of all existence because it was for Him (Christ) that it was all created. Speaking metaphorically, the universe is His (Christ’s) crib. The same way that we go to great lengths to prepare a special room with a beautiful crib and toys and all manner of things for our newborn child, that’s what God did for His Son. But it goes even beyond that.
God loves His Son dearly. But He loves His creation just as intensely. God gave birth to His Son for a purpose. That purpose was to create a universe populated by living intelligent beings. These beings were to glorify Him and to love Him as He loves them. The only way God is able to achieve that is through His Son. You would think that God being God, would be able to accomplish anything He wishes. But God, knowing the end from the beginning, knew there was only one way to create a universe that would willingly love Him back freely by choice. What we see playing out before us now is what God intentionally chose from the beginning of time. Why did God need a Son? God gave birth to His only begotten Son for one specific reason. To die.
God knew His creation would rebel. This would be the result of giving His creation the gift of choice. In order to fix the sin problem, He had to take responsibility, otherwise, He would be forced to extinguish everything He created. If He took responsibility, He would have to execute the very rule He created, “The wages of sin is death.” Romans 6:23 But God cannot die. If He did, He would never come back to life.
“Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.” (Ecclesiastes 9:10)
Yes, this applies to God as well. So what did God do? He created a scapegoat.
“And all the people who belong to this world worshiped the beast. They are the ones whose names were not written in the Book of Life that belongs to the Lamb who was slaughtered before the world was made.” (Revelation 13:8)
Christ is “the Lamb who was slaughtered before the world was made.” He was begotten of the Father specifically to redeem the universe He created. This was His plan before He created anything. His Son was part of Himself (the Father), therefore He (Christ) was qualified to take upon Himself the penalty of sin that we deserved. And so, by dying on the cross, the Father resurrected Him back to life by which death was defeated.
We must be careful not to attribute to Christ that which belongs to the Father alone. Christ is not God, He is the Son of God, literally. He has all the authority and the power of God, but all that authority and power comes from His Father. Christ never claimed to be God, He always deferred to His Father. He admits that He can do nothing on His own.
“I can do nothing on my own. I judge as God tells me. Therefore, my judgment is just, because I carry out the will of the one who sent me, not my own will.” (John 5:30)
Christ tells us that His Father is the “Only True God”.
“And this is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth.” (John 17:3)
Many of us read the following and believe that scripture teaches that Jesus is God.
“But to the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, endures forever and ever. You rule with a scepter of justice.” (Hebrews 1:8)
Maybe we need to look at where this quote comes from, it is a quote from Psalms.
“Your throne, O God, endures forever and ever. You rule with a scepter of justice.” (Psalms 45:6)
Notice the quoted text is exact, word-for-word. This statement came from Psalms and the author of the statement was King David. David was saying this to God. It was not God the Father speaking to His Son. How do we know this? First of all, the quote says, “Your throne, O God…” Do a little digging and you will find that Christ does not have a throne. There is only one throne in heaven and that throne belongs to God the Father. Christ sits at the right side of His Father’s throne.
“Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2)
Christ is always portrayed sitting or standing next to His Father. We also need to understand that many of our Bible translations come from Catholic scribes who translated the Hebrew texts according to their Catholic beliefs. So we must verify everything to make sure the context is correct.
The question then arises, why did Thomas call Jesus God?
“And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28)
Thomas called Christ “My Lord and my God!” because Christ is indeed “Our” God. In the same way that Satan is portrayed as the “God of this world”, our God is whomever we serve and worship.
“Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.” (2 Corinthians 4:4)
Jesus has a God, His God is His Father.
“Don’t cling to me,” Jesus said, “for I haven’t yet ascended to the Father. But go find my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” (John 20:17)
“At about three o’clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” (Matthew 27:46)
You will find nowhere in scripture that says that God the Father has a God. God the Father stands alone. There is no God other than Himself.
“I am the Lord, and there is no other; There is no God besides Me…” (Isaiah 45:5)
“Now see that I, even I, am He, And there is no God besides Me…” (Deuteronomy 32:39)
There is no basis in scripture that teaches Jesus is God. He is God’s Son. Christ was not created, He was begotten. This is what scripture says. He was begotten during the time called eternity.
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, from you, will go out the one who will be the ruler for me in Israel. His goings forth are from the beginning, from the days of eternity.” (Micah 5:2)
Christ was begotten during a time outside of our timeline. He existed with the Father during the Father’s dimensional realm called eternity. God’s Son is made up of the same substance, the exact image as the Father. Putting it in human terms, Christ is made up of the same DNA as His Father. Although God’s Son is not God, He is divine, just like His Father is.
“Who, being the brightness of his glory and the express image of his substance 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.” (Hebrews 1:3)
This is what scripture teaches about God the Father and His only begotten Son. God’s Son came into being for the purpose of glorifying the Father by making it possible for God’s created universe to exist for eternity. Without Christ, the universe would have been extinguished. The gift of “choice” would have been a curse instead of a gift and the rebellious creation would have stood without a redeemer.
One day soon, we will see our Creator God face to face. We will meet His Son and will have the honor of thanking Him in person for redeeming us from death.