February 16
“This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased,” Matthew 3:17.
“This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!” Matthew 17:5.
On two different occasions, God the Father spoke from heaven and identified Jesus as His beloved Son. The first occasion was at the baptism of Jesus. Jesus, God the Son, was standing in the Jordan river being baptized by John the Baptist. The Father spoke from heaven and identified Jesus with the words, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” God the Holy Spirit descended in the form of a dove and sat upon Jesus.
This is a clear revelation of the teaching of the Holy Trinity. There is only one God, but there are three distinct Persons – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – in the one Divine Being. This is an article of faith; we believe it because it is clearly revealed in Scripture. We cannot comprehend it, but we believe it.
The second occasion when the Father spoke from heaven and identified Jesus as His beloved Son was when Jesus had ascended the Mount of Transfiguration, a certain mountain unknown to us. He ascended the mountain to pray, as the evangelist Luke reports. He took with Him three of His disciples, Peter, James, and John. On the mountain, Moses and the prophet Elijah appeared bodily, and they spoke with Jesus about what He would accomplish by His suffering and death.
Peter thought he had a bright idea and said, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” Scripture reports that Peter really did not know what he was talking about. Indeed, it was good to be there. It is always good to be with Jesus, as we are whenever we hear or read His Word. But Jesus could not stay on the mountain. He had to complete our salvation.
The Father identified Jesus as His beloved Son. He had to be the Son of God to save us. If Jesus had been only a human being, we would not have a Savior. He had to be both Man and God. He had to be a Man to fulfill the Commandments for us. He had to be a Man to suffer and die. He had to be the Son of God to fulfill the Commandments perfectly in our place. He had to be the Son of God to make the sufficient sacrifice for our sins. He had to be the Son of God to conquer death and the devil. He had to be the Son of God to accomplish the things that a mere human being could never accomplish.
There is no doubt in the heart of a Christian that Jesus is both God and Man in one Person. Thank the heavenly Father for identifying Jesus with the words, “This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased!” God the Father was well pleased with what His Son was doing to save us.
God the Father says, “Hear Him!” Let us heed that invitation and hear Him regularly and faithfully. Dear Lord, through Your Word, keep us in the faith in Your beloved Son and in our Lord and Savior. Amen.