In this episode of "A Word from the Vine," we explore how the concepts of the hypostatic union and communicatio idiomatum help us to understand the significance of Jesus' death and resurrection. We begin by revisiting the hypostatic union, the belief that Jesus is fully God and fully human. This means that when Jesus died on the cross, it was God himself who died for our sins, making his sacrifice infinitely valuable.
We then turn to the concept of communicatio idiomatum, which refers to the exchange or communication of attributes between the two natures of Christ. This means that Jesus' divine nature was able to be affected by his human nature, and vice versa. This is important because it means that in Jesus' death and resurrection, both his divine and human natures were involved.
To illustrate this, we turn to two scriptural examples. The first is John 1:14, which says, "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us." This verse shows us that Jesus, as the Word of God, became fully human, dwelling among us and experiencing all that we experience as human beings. This is significant because it means that when Jesus died on the cross, he experienced the full weight of humanity's sin and brokenness, making his sacrifice all the more powerful.
The second example is from Philippians 2:5-8, which says, "In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross!" This passage shows us that Jesus, though he was fully God, willingly humbled himself and took on the nature of a servant, ultimately dying on the cross as an act of obedience to the Father.
These two passages help us to see how the hypostatic union and communicatio idiomatum work together to give us a fuller understanding of the significance of Jesus' death and resurrection. By understanding that Jesus is fully God and fully human, and that his divine and human natures are united in one person, we can see how his sacrifice on the cross was able to reconcile humanity to God. I'm Pastor Loren, and thank you for joining us for "A Word from the Vine."
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