#DailyDevotion As A Matter Of Fact Jesus Is Truly Human & That’s Important
Mark 4:35–38 35In the evening of that day Jesus said to His disciples, “Let us cross over to the other side.” 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took Jesus, just as He was, with them in the boat. There were other boats with Him. 37Then a violent storm came up, and the waves dashed into the boat so that it was filling up fast. 38Meanwhile, in the back of the boat, He was sleeping on the cushion.
There are two major heresies, i.e. false teachings which normally attack Christianity. One is that Jesus is only human, the other is Jesus is only God. There are some that try to make him out to be some mixture but even they end up on one end of that spectrum.
Today’s devotion focuses on the fact that Jesus is truly human. This account in the Gospel of Mark shows us that Jesus is truly human. Jesus had been teaching the people all the day before this. Teaching people can be quite exhausting. So Jesus wanted to get away with his disciples and he also wanted to go and teach other people. As they were going along, what was Jesus doing?
Jesus was fast asleep in the stern, the back of the boat. Jesus being truly human got tired. He needed to sleep. He was sleeping so well that when a storm came which was dashing against the boat and filling up with water he didn’t even get aroused by it. His disciples would have to wake him up. If Jesus were not truly human he would not have needed sleep.
Of course there are other passages which depict the humanity of Jesus. We know from Matthew and Luke, Jesus was conceived in and born of the Virgin Mary. We know that after his fasting in the wilderness he was hungry. In his prayer in the garden he sweated what looked like drops of blood. He drank and ate with his disciples.
So why is it important that Jesus is truly human and not just appearing human important? Why do we go to extreme and condemn anyone who diminishes Jesus’ humanity? Because as St. Gregory of Nazianzus (The Theologian), in his letter to to Cledonius, says: “For that which He has not assumed He has not healed; but that which is united to His Godhead is also saved. If only half Adam fell, then that which Christ assumes and saves may be half also; but if the whole of his nature fell, it must be united to the whole nature of Him that was begotten, and so be saved as a whole.”
So Jesus has a human body, a human will, a human spirit or soul. Jesus has human emotions, affections, feelings and the like. Indeed whatever is truly necessary to be truly human Jesus has. You may quip, “Jesus didn’t have a human father.” You are correct, but Adam didn’t have a human father or mother. Yet Jesus is born of the seed of the woman as he told the serpent in Genesis three. Jesus became fully and truly human to save all of you, your whole being. There is nothing of you that is truly human that is not saved and redeemed and assumed into the Godhead by Jesus. Because of this, when Jesus dies on the cross, all you is indeed redeemed and saved by Jesus. You never have to be worried or doubt that some part of you is not saved and redeemed.
Heavenly Father, we thank you for sending Jesus to assume our human nature that in it, he redeemed everything truly human about us so we may join him with you in your kingdom. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.