“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
(John 1:14)
Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God. The truth that Jesus is completely unique, the only begotten of the Father, can be understood in two ways. First, in relation to His Divinity, He was begotten from everlasting from the substance of the Father. And, second, in relation to His humanity, He was born in a manner no one else ever was. He was born from a pure and chaste virgin by the power of the Holy Spirit.
In ancient times, the first begotten child received a double portion of the inheritance, while each of the remaining children received only a single portion. The reason for this was due to the office which the first-begotten filled – a position of leader or ruler over the others. This was certainly true for God’s only begotten. “Christ is the first born of every creature: who is the beginning, the first born from the dead, that in all things He might have the pre-eminence,” (Col. 1:15, 18).
Christ is begotten of the substance of the Father, meaning Christ is God, the eternal Son of God (Matt. 16:15-16; John 1:14-18 and 3:16, 18; 1 John 4:9; Heb. 1:2-3). The names, attributes, works and worship which peculiarly belong to God are also ascribed to Him. He is man, the man Christ Jesus (1 Tim. 1:5), the Son of man (John 6:27), the Son of David, the Son of Abraham (Matt. 1:1), and the Son of the blessed virgin Mary, of the house and lineage of David (Luke 1:27, etc., and 3:23-24, etc., and 2:4-7, etc., with verse 21). And this Jesus Christ is God and man in one person, (John 1:14; Gal. 4:4; 1 Tim. 3:16).
As the unique God-man, Christ is the sole access to God – the one and only means of reconciliation that fallen man has to a holy God. This truth is evidenced by the many references to Him in the Old Testament as the Restorer and Recoverer of fallen sinners (Gen. 3:15, 12:3 and 26:4 with Gal. 3:16; Psalm 110:1, etc., Isa. 9:6-7, 11:1-10, 42:1-10 and 53:4 to the end; and 55:1-4, 61:1-4; Dan. 9:24-26; Acts 10:43), as well as by the many types of Christ, depicting Him as the Redeemer, Restorer and Deliverer of His people; those who believe on Him by faith.
Francis Roberts creates this short list to further demonstrate the unique, only-begotten nature of JEsus, for Christ is:
A Mediator between God and man, (1 Tim. 2:5; Heb. 9:15).
A Redeemer, (Isa. 59:20; Rom. 11:26).
Redemption itself, (1 Cor. 1:30).
A Ransom for many, (1 Tim. 2:6).
A Sacrifice for sin, offered once forever, (Heb. 10:12).
A Propitiation for our sins, and for the sins of the whole world, (1 John 2:2).
A Propitiation through faith in his blood, (Rom. 3:25).
A Reconciler of the world to God, (2 Cor. 5:18-20). We are reconciled to God, when we were enemies, by the death of his Son, (Rom. 5:10). By whom we have received the atonement, (Rom. 5:11).
The Lamb of God, taking away the sins of the world, (John 1:29).
The Deliverer, that shall come out of Zion, and turn away ungodliness from Jacob, (Rom. 11:26).
A Savior, which is Christ the LORD, (Luke 2:11). Who came into the world to save sinners, (1 Tim. 1:15). Able to save to the uttermost, (Heb. 7:25). The chief Captain, (or Arch-duke) of our salvation, (Heb. 2:10).
An Advocate with the Father, (1 John 2:1-2).”
- Oh Lord, You are the special gift of God in grace to all those who believe on You for salvation. You are my Mediator of the new covenant, and the new covenant is all of grace. I am not under the covenant of works. Instead, I find grace everywhere I look in Scripture (John 1:14). I receive grace by receiving Christ as Savior. As John 1:16 says, “Of His fulness have we all received, and grace for grace.” Your very Person is the essence of grace.
- Lord, it pleases You to manifest Your grace to sinners like me. As Mediator, You lay Your hand on God (Zech. 13:7) and on man (Heb. 2:14-16), becoming the “daysman” for me and all Your elect. You are eminently suited to accomplish this, for You have the true likeness of both natures in one Person (Acts 3:21).
- Lord, St. Augustine said in his tract on John 1:14, that You love the humanity of Christ more than any man, because He was more full of grace and truth than any man. His perfect humanity as the God-man covers my humanity which is fallen. He is our light, our life, our beauty, our glory, our joy, our crown, our heaven, our all. My holy soul as a faithful believer is happy in this life, and will be blessed in death, and shall be glorious at the dawn of the final resurrection when Jesus shall say, “Lo, here am I, and my holy ones, who are my joy; Lo, here am I, and my holy ones, who are my crown; and therefore, upon the heads of these holy ones will I set an immortal crown.” Even so, Amen! Lord Jesus!
Further References for John 1:14
1 Tim. 3:16; 1 John 1:1, 4:2; John 14:6; Gal. 4:4; Ps. 45:2
