poole2

The Only Begotten Son Of God
Part 2.

by
James F. Poole

"I will declare the decree: the Lord hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee (Psalm 2.7)."

Though crucified and buried, Jesus was raised from the dead. This may be considered the greatest of all miracles and the core doctrine of the believer’s faith. The Apostle Paul affirmed the resurrection of our Lord in the most positive tone possible: "But God raised him from the dead (Acts 13.30)." Nothing could be plainer—the Son of God, having assumed a body of flesh, died, yet He lives—He was raised from the dead by the power of His Father.

In our last article on this subject we affirmed this position—the resurrection of Jesus from the dead was the fulfilling of the text above, "I will declare the decree: the Lord hath said unto me, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee." It is not our aim in this article to review the wise purposes of God in decreeing the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. It is worth mention, though, that from eternity past the will of God was that Jesus would satisfy the demands of the law. The elect could not satisfy its demands, nor was that ever the purpose of God. Jesus would suffer in their place as their eternal sacrifice and substitute, be buried to put away all their sins from view, rise for their justification, and be seated at the right hand of His Father as mediator for the elect forever. All of this certainly necessitated the begetting of Jesus from the dead, for He was not only the eternal Son of God, but the Elder Brother of all the elect family. They were His responsibility; their security rested in His success. His success rested in the Father’s begetting Him from the dead.

Briefly, we shall review the meaning of the words, "I will declare the decree," appraise the importance placed on the resurrection of Jesus in the Apostles’ early ministry, and finally examine the several texts relating to the begetting of Jesus, the Son of God.

"I WILL DECLARE THE DECREE"

There is no room for vain speculation in applying the language of Psalm 2. The Holy Spirit has clearly applied the Psalm to the events surrounding the trials, death and resurrection of our Lord. How does Psalm 2 open? "Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and against his anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us (Psalm 2.1-3)." This quotation is positively applied in the New Testament as follows: "And being let go, they went to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them. And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, Lord, thou art God, which hast made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is: Who by the mouth of thy servant David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things? The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ. For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together, For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done (Acts 4.2328).

Psalm 2 is without doubt a vivid reference describing the grand spectrum of events leading to the ascension of Jesus to the right hand of the Father. Thus we find the proper time frame wherein to ascribe the expression of our Lord, "I will declare the decree."

"What is the decree the Lord said He would declare?" someone may ask. Well, if you believe God moved David to write in Psalm 2.7 with a continuity of thought, then the decree was exactly what followed when he quoted Jesus as saying He would declare it—"The Lord hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee." That expression is the decree the Lord said He would (and did) declare.

It may again be asked, when did Jesus declare this decree, before or after He was raised from the dead? We respond firmly, after the resurrection, not before. Before the raising of Jesus from the dead there was considerable question respecting His Sonship. The religious rabble constantly quarreled with everything said by the Lord or His disciples that might in any way be construed as affirming Jesus was the Son of God and one with the Father. The whole of the books of Luke and John abound with such controversies. When it is recognized that the resurrection of Jesus was the very affirmation of God that Jesus was His Son and that He was that day begetting Him from the dead, the notion that He would have declared the decree before the resurrection simply evaporates.

There are several corresponding texts which shed light on the declaration of Jesus that as God’s Son He was begotten from the dead. The first is found in that storehouse of sublime truths, Isaiah chapter 53. It comes in the form of a question. "He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken (Isaiah 53.8ff)." Indeed, who was there to declare a generation that appeared to be lost due to the cruel death of the Man of Sorrows? He was cut off from out of the land of the living. Seemingly, He left no seed. His house, to all appearance, was barren. Having no wife or properties, a kinsman-redeemer would benefit Him nothing. There was none to declare His generation, to revive or pronounce it alive and well, but one—that was Himself! God had decreed, and Jesus would declare, His Sonship by being the firstborn from the dead (Colossians 1.18). To this perfectly agree the words of John the Apostle: "And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood (Revelation 1.5)." From this full text we draw two vital truths, though many more could be extracted. First, as Paul described Jesus as the firstborn from the dead, here John portrayed Him as the first begotten of the dead, showing both expressions to be the same. A birth and a begetting both answer to the same thing; a bringing forth of life from the bowels of death. Second, our Lord was described by John as the faithful witness. Blessedly yes, Jesus was and is faithful in all respects and witnessed to the Father’s will in yielding up His life in a voluntary dying. Furthermore, He was a faithful witness to the power of the Father to raise Him from the tomb as covenanted, and from the tomb He did arise. He declared (witnessed) the decree and emblazoned the universe with the truth of it when the foul regions released Him to the Father’s begetting. None other could declare this decree but He Who would rise in victory. And He did!

It is imperative that it be kept in mind that as Jesus was the firstborn and the first begotten from the dead then there must be others to follow; else there could be no first. This answers to the inquiry, "Who shall declare his generation?" from Isaiah 53.8. When Jesus declared Himself the Father’s Son, begotten from the dead, He as well declared the whole of His generation with Him, the entire family of the redeemed. Scriptures to support this truth abound and are no doubt familiar to the readers.

THE APOSTLES AFFIRM THE RESURRECTION

Were there only one or two Scriptures addressing the theme of the resurrection it would still command our close attention; however, there abounds in the early witness of the Apostles their firm conviction that the begetting of Jesus from the dead was the cornerstone of the gospel. One example: "For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures a Corinthians 15.3,4ff)." It is worthy of notice that Paul appeals to the Old Testament Scriptures to buttress his declaration. Additionally, it commands our attention that Paul attests to the resurrection "first of all."

That the resurrection was a vital, even major, component of the early gospel message will be clear to any that may search the Acts of the Apostles. If it be remembered that the resurrection was described by Paul as the begetting of the Son of God (Acts 13.33), the eagerness of the Apostles to affirm this blessed moment comes to focus.

Following are some of the early testimonies to the resurrection:

The Pentecost Message

"Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it (Acts 2.23, 24)." Thus begins a series of pronouncements that God honored the work of Jesus in His life and death and raised Him from the dead as promised in the everlasting covenant. Notice: if it was not possible for Jesus to be held by death, as Acts 2 clearly states, then the begetting of Jesus from the dead must have been an eternal certainty. Why else would God deliver His Son by His determinate counsel and foreknowledge if any possibility existed the covenant would fail?

The Pentecost Message Continued

"Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne; He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption. This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses (Acts 2.30-32)." It is extremely important to recognize that since God had sworn with an oath to David that He would raise Jesus from the dead—His begetting—then it must come to pass, or else the word of oath from God would be as unreliable as mere man’s oaths. Moreover, if God swore to raise Jesus from the dead then Jesus must first die; thus all the scope of what Peter proclaimed on the day of Pentecost was absolutely predestinated. If not predestinated, what assurance could David have that God would perform what He related to him by oath? To attempt to assign some other name to the making certain God’s oath will not change the fact that God eternally willed the trial, death, burial, and ultimately the begetting of Jesus, just as all transpired, with no shade of variation.

At the Temple

"But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses (Acts3.14,15)." It is little wonder that God must raise Jesus from the dead as His only begotten Son. According to the testimony affirmed by Peter, Jesus was, first, the Holy One; second, the Just; and third, the Prince of Life. Death could never hold One Whose names were so exalted and Who was indeed worthy of such titles. Marvelous it is to follow then the remarkable record of inspiration as it reveals the importance of the begetting-resurrection of Jesus from the dead.

Before the Sanhedrin

"Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner (Acts 4.10,11)." Peter, in a matter-of-fact manner, asserts it was Jesus "whom God raised from the dead." Of particular notice here—Peter associates the resurrected One as the prophesied stone of Psalm 118.22: "The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner." And that which even further confirms the saints faith in this blessed resurrection is the following: "This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes (Psalm 118.23)." If words have meaning, we are told by the Psalmist that the Sanhedrin’s refusal of Christ as the chief cornerstone, which resulted in His being put to death, was the Lord’s doing! No wonder then there was such an uproar when Peter and the others took such a stand. They were filling Jerusalem with this Absolute doctrine!

The Church Alone in Prayer

"And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all (Acts 4.33)." What were the Apostles doing but laying their veracity on the line? They said, in effect, "We were there; we saw the empty tomb." "We saw the resurrected Jesus as begotten from the dead; we held His body, saw His wounds, and observed His glory." From this text it appears the Holy Spirit greatly blessed their witness and owned their testimony. The church was evidently blessed in great measure upon hearing so profound a testimony of the raising from the dead of the Son of God.

What is vital to see here is the Apostle’s interjecting the theme of the resurrected Jesus in the middle of the disciples’ giving up their possessions for the common good of the church. Read verse 32 of Acts 4, then skip to verse 34, 35 and read them in conjunction with verse 32. There is a perfect continuity of thought without verse 33. But, verse 33 is there; right in the middle. Obviously the message of the only begotten Son of God, Who came forth from the dead, was vital to establish the early conduct of the church. Why else would the thoughts of verse 33 be included?

Released from Prison

"Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree. Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins (Acts 5.29-31)." Many have marveled at the bold expression of the apostles, "we ought to obey God rather than men," but it is clear as crystal what motivated their conduct at this delicate juncture. Jesus, their Lord and Master, had, by the power of God the Father, become the first begotten from the dead. He Who was Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, the first and the last, He that liveth and was dead, and yet is alive forevermore, having the keys of hell and of death, He emboldened them to speak thus. (See Revelation 1.8; 17,18.)

First Sermon to Gentiles

"And we are witnesses of all things which he did both in the land of the Jews, and in Jerusalem; whom they slew and hanged on a tree: Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly (Acts 10.39,40ff)." How to the point Peter was when extolling the grand business of God. After all had been said and done, God brought His Son forth from the tomb. This was not a miracle for the world to gaze on. Rather, it was for witnesses chosen before of God. From this we may gather that the message of the begetting of our Lord from the dead was not intended for the consumption of the ungodly world. But for those who have been blessed to walk by the faith of God’s dear Son this is the very seal upon all the promises of life.

Other accounts of the resurrection proclamation could be given, but we forebear. Sufficient has been shown to render it unmistakably clear—the early church was frequently reminded of the importance of the begetting of their Lord; the Father’s only begotten Son.

TEXTS USING THE WORD "BEGOTTEN"

There are a number of Scriptures that use the word, begotten, in them. Some may, at first view, appear to pose some small difficulty in harmonizing with our stated view that the resurrection of Jesus from the dead constituted His begetting and was the fulfillment of Psalm 2. The difficulty is really only the result of casual investigation and will readily dissolve when examined.

John 1.14

"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth (John 1.14)."

Eternity itself would not be long enough to relate a small portion of the beauty in this text. May the Lord be pleased and enable us to glean a little for the moment.

At first reading, one may suppose that the glory beheld by John and the other disciples was during the earthly ministry of the Lord, but that would be only partially correct. On careful reflection, we are reminded that Jesus was God clothed in the humility of a body of flesh. On some few occasions the glory of the Lord did shine, such as the event on the mount we call transfiguration. It is, however, clear that mostly Jesus was shrouded in the burdens of His ministry to His Father. The glory and its appearance was, at best, infrequent.

Notice the order: First, the Word was made flesh; Second, He dwelled among the disciples; and Third, they (we) beheld His glory. That order might also be reckoned as first, next, and last of all. Last of all Jesus was seen in His glory, a glory John identifies as the glory of the only begotten of the Father. Thus, the time when John and the others saw Jesus in His glory was after His begetting or resurrection. To this Peter perfectly agrees: "Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow (I Peter 1.11)." How simple and plain; Jesus first suffered, died and was buried, then the glory followed. We do not rely on the testimony of Peter alone, for this is precisely what Jesus expressed to the disciples on the road to Emmaus the same day (Luke 24.13) of His resurrection: "Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory (Luke 24.25,26)?"

From the two following verses it is clear that until Jesus was resurrected from the dead He did not possess the full glory that was His either before or after His brief sojourn on this earth: "These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee (John 17.1):" "And now, O Father, glorify thou me with shine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was (John 17.5)."

It should be clear that the language of John 1.14, where it was said they beheld his glory as the only begotten of the Father, can only be applied to the time after the resurrection, for it was then He was glorified.

John 3.16

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life (John 3.16)." The only question to be resolved regarding this text is, when did God give His only begotten Son? If Jesus was, as some mistakenly suppose, eternally begotten, then God may have given His Son at any time. However, if Jesus was begotten in the resurrection, as seems certain, then God must have given His Son, Jesus, at some time after He came forth from the tomb. Moreover, if Jesus had been given by the Father before He was crucified, then God would have taken Him away for the brief period He hung as a curse for His elect on the tree; when He died alone, and while He reposed in the tomb for three days and three nights. The obvious answer is that God gave Jesus to His family a glorified Saviour and Bishop of their souls after He had been received up to glory to assume all power. It was before His resurrection that Jesus had all the sins of the elect laid upon Him. Certainly, at that time, He had not satisfied all God’s good pleasure in Him as the perfect gift for the saints. The sins of the elect must be left behind in the tomb as Christ arose for Him to be given to them.

Hebrews 5.5

"So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee (Hebrews 5.5ff)." What was the function of a high priest? As recorded in verse one, the high priest was taken from among men, ordained for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins. So then, when did Jesus offer gifts and sacrifices? Certainly after His death, for He was Himself the one great sacrifice for sin which was ordained unto death. Thus He could not have offered Himself any time prior to His pleasing the Father in His sacrifice of Himself.

I John 4.9

"In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him (I John 4.9)." When the Lord first appeared in His earthly ministry it was recorded that He came unto His own (John 1.11), but now the Father has sent Him into the world. Both Jew and Gentile are now favored with His blessed propitiation and mediation, for the middle wall of partition has been broken down. "Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh (Ephesians 2. 15-17)." Notice: He came and preached peace to you. This, according to the order of the events recorded in this context, was after His resurrection; thus it perfectly harmonizes with the begetting being His coming forth from the dead.

We shall never in this life know all we would like to on such themes, but sufficient has been revealed for us to bow in adoration and praise to Him Who is the first begotten, the only begotten Son of God, who is alive forevermore.

J. F. Poole