God’s Dear, Precious, Special, Unique and Only Son!
Luke 9: 35 And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!”
A person could be known in a lot of different ways in this life. Some want to be known as President, some as CEO, some as rich, and some as intelligent. But there is nothing quite like being known as “beloved.” This a term of endearment that implies a unique special quality of love. This person is precious to the one who is calling him or her beloved. In some cases even the adjective beloved isn’t enough and the person is called well-beloved. Such was God’s relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.
God’s introduction of His Son
When the Lord was baptized, in a sense God the Father introduced Him to the world then since He began his three and one-half years of public ministry at that time. In Luke 3:22 we read, “And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, “You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased.”” Later on the mount of transfiguration the Lord is again presented as the beloved Son. Luke records the event in Luke 9:35 which says, “And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!”” I believe that the mount of transfiguration gives us a glimpse of what heaven is like. I believe that God will always keep us reminded of the preciousness to the Lord Jesus to Him; and, thus to those of us who are there. No one who thinks that they earned a spot in heaven by something that they have done could possibly appreciate the preciousness of the Lord, God’s beloved Son. Those people are occupied with themselves and with what they have done and not with the Lord and with what He has done. But those of us who know we don’t deserve to be there will truly appreciate how “beloved” this “well-beloved” Son was and is. We are the only ones who will be able to truly understand the magnitude of the love demonstrated to us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8). Our occupation throughout eternity will be with Him.
The Old Testament Example
In Genesis 22, we have God asking Abraham (the father) to offer Isaac (the unique well-beloved Son) as a burnt offering to God. Isaac had been born after both his mother and father should have been able to have children. He was not only a son of Abraham’s old age, but he was a son of promise. He was born as a result of a miracle by God. He was the son who was the basis of future promised blessing to Abraham. But God tested Abraham to see if he would willingly offer him as a sacrifice to God. Abraham was willing; and, of course, God provided a substitute for Isaac so that Isaac was not slain. We know from Hebrews 11:19 that Abraham had expected Isaac to be raised from the dead, but still this was a real trial when we consider the love of Abraham for Isaac. God says that Abraham loved Isaac. Those of us who have sons and daughters know what that bond of love is like. So it was a very difficult thing that God was asking of Abraham. This helps us understand from a human point-of-view how difficult it must have been for God to “give His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish (John 3:16).”
The Blessing Extends to New Testament Believers
When Paul addresses the Romans he does it this way, “To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 1:7).” The saints or holy ones in Rome were beloved of God. Certainly, if God “so loved” the world that He was willing to give His unique Son as the sacrifice for our sins, then those who trust His Son and respect that sacrifice must be precious to Him as well. The only way a sinner can truly honor the Son in whom God is well-pleased is by simply trusting Him. When we trust the Son that God finds dear or precious, then God finds us dear or precious. That is a wonderful truth.
The Preeminence of Christ
We know that the Old Testament tells us that Christ is coming. The New Testament tells us that Christ came and is coming again. But while Christ is the anointed One of God who came to earth to fulfill a mission and to fulfill prophecy, yet this anointed one of God is God’s beloved Son. God can seem aloof and abstract to me. The truth about Christ can seem deep and academic to me. But the truth that the Lord was God’s beloved Son presents the Gospel in a way that touches me. I can identify with the concept of a beloved Son. I can understand how it must hurt God when people despise and reject His son. Looking at the beloved Son as a father would, I can also understand why those who reject this beloved Son have the wrath of God abiding on them (John 3:26).
Bruce Collins
Meditation for the week of April 13, 2014