Topic: Jesus’ Humanity
Question:
Can you tell me how in Luke 2:52, the Scriptures say Jesus "grew in wisdom"? How is this possible if Jesus is God? Because of the incarnation. he was fully man with all the limitations of a man, right? Likewise, how can Jesus say: "Abba, Father, all things are possible to thee; remove this cup from me; yet not what I will, but what thou will." (Mark14:36) This one is a bit tougher. Didn’t he share the same will? Didnt he willingly submit himself as a sacrifice or did he do so a bit begrudgingly out of his human fears? How can Jesus' will be different from the Father's will?
Answer:
Well, it seems to me that these verses are harder for Trinitarians to answer than the question you posted. The answer to all three really comes down to the Nestrorian controversy. Jesus is one person with two natures - one divine and one human. The two exist together in what Catholic theology calls the "hypostatic union". So when you see passages that seem to point to Christ's limitations, it is the human side or nature of Him that it applies to.
When Jesus "prays to God", it is the human nature in Christ that is crying out to the Father in the same way we do when we experience suffering. He is the ultimate mediator. To be the ultimate and perfect mediator between God and Man, he must be both God and Man. If he is even the slightest bit less than either, than he cannot have undergone the "perfect sacrifice."
Remember Jesus is "begotten by the Father", whereas the Father is unbegotten. The Father causes Jesus to be *outside of time*; that is, it is an eternal causation with no beginning.
Hence, when Jesus crys out "My God, My God why have you forsaken me", it would be analagous (though obviously not perfect) to a child saying the same thing to his human father. Is the child any less in dignity or equality than his father? No. Likewise, the Trinity is a family of persons. They are all of the same substance - yet unique, but equal. Is a human father "superior" to his child in the sense of substance or being? No. So why then do subordinationists look at these verses and simply ignore the relationship that Jesus Himself said existed between He and "Jehovah"; that is, "Father - Son".
John Pacheco
The Catholic Legate
January 3, 2000