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| Chapter XIX. That the birth of Christ in time diminished nothing of the glory and power of His Deity.
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Chapter XIX.
That the birth of Christ in time diminished nothing of
the glory and power of His Deity.
For the fact that He came
of the flesh and in the flesh, has reference to His birth, and involves
no diminution in Him: and He was simply born, not changed for the
worse.2572
For though,
still remaining in the form of God, He took upon Him the form of a
servant, yet the weakness of His human constitution had no effect on
His nature as God: but while the power of His Deity remained whole and
unimpaired, all that took place in His human flesh was an advancement
of His manhood and no diminution of His glory. For when God was born in
human flesh, He was not born in human flesh in such a way as not to
remain
Divine in
Himself, but so that, while the Godhead remained as before, God might
become man. And so Martha while she saw with her bodily eyes the man,
confessed Him by spiritual sight to be God, saying, “Yea, Lord, I
have believed that Thou art the Christ the Son of the living God, who
art come into the world.”2573
So Peter,
owing to the Holy Spirit’s revelation, while externally he beheld
the Son of man, yet proclaimed Him to be the Son of God, saying,
“Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.”2574
So Thomas when he touched the flesh,
believed that he had touched God saying, “My Lord and my
God.”2575
For they all
confessed but one Christ, so as not to make Him two. Do you therefore
believe Him; and so believe that Jesus Christ the Lord of all, both
only Begotten and first-born, is both Creator of all things and
Preserver of men and that the same Person is first the framer of the
whole world, and afterwards redeemer of mankind? Who still remaining
with the Father and in the Father, Being of one substance with the
Father, did (as the Apostle says), “Take the form of a servant,
and humble Himself even unto death, the death of the
Cross:”2576
and (as the
Creed says) “was born of the Virgin Mary, crucified under Pontius
Pilate, and was buried. And the third day He rose again according to
the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven; and shall come again to judge
both the quick and the dead.” This is our faith; this is our
salvation: to believe that our God and Lord Jesus Christ is one and the
same before all things and after all things. For, as it is written,
“Jesus Christ is yesterday and today and the same for
ever.”2577
For
“yesterday” signifies all time past, wherein, before the
beginning, He was begotten of the Father. “Today” covers
the time of this world, in which He was again born of the Virgin,
suffered, and rose again. But by the expression the same “for
ever” is denoted the whole boundless eternity to
come.E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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