Son of Man (Part 1)
In recent posts I have discussed what I think it means to be God’s image bearer. We have been given
Jesus came and demonstrated what it means to completely
reflect the image of God. In that sense he showed us what it means to be fully
human. He became the paradigm for the life we should follow.
In the New Testament Jesus often refers to himself with two
different descriptive names: Son of God & Son of Man. What does He mean by
these names?
The obvious answer would be that He used the phrase “Son of
God” to refer to his divinity and “Son of Man” to reference his humanity.
While this is partially true there is more to the story.
Similar to the way Jesus filled the role of image bearer he
also filled the role of Son of Man. The phrase “Son of Man” recognizes more
than that the fact that Jesus experienced the struggles and joys of being
human. It was a loaded phrase for those who heard Jesus speak in his time. In
fact, it was the phrase “Son of Man” not “Son of God” that cause the
Pharisees to tear their cloths and send Jesus to his death.
So what would have come to mind for a first century Jew when
they heard the phrase “Son of Man”? And what would it have meant for
the role Jesus was fulfilling if He chose to give himself this title?
Most Biblical scholars agree that when Jesus’s hearers heard
the phrase “Son of Man” used it would have immediately brought an image to
their minds from Daniel 7. To understand why this was such a big claim for
Jesus to make and why it would have caused controversy with the officials let’s
take a look at what Daniel 7 says about the Son of Man.
Daniel dreaming...
13. "In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed...
...27. Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.' 28. "This is the end of the matter. I, Daniel, was deeply troubled by my thoughts, and my face turned pale, but I kept the matter to myself."
When Jesus called himself the Son of Man he wasn't just claiming to be human. He was claiming authority over all humanity. He had come to establish a kingdom that was to rule all other kingdoms. The Jewish and Roman officials had lots of reason to be angry about this, and the disciples had lots of reason to be excited about following this man on his way to becoming a world power.
Do we think about Jesus in this light? Do we consider the future scope of his kingdom as He uses us to establish it? His followers certainly did.
In the next few upcoming posts on the "Son of Man" I plan to look at the passages in the Gospel of Mark where Jesus refers to himself this way. His followers wanted and expected him to lead the world in power and greatness. I want to look at how Jesus uses the phrase "Son of Man" to establish and reframe what true greatness and Godly leadership should look like.
Check out my upcoming book at www.adhogan.com
Daniel dreaming...
13. "In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed...
...27. Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.' 28. "This is the end of the matter. I, Daniel, was deeply troubled by my thoughts, and my face turned pale, but I kept the matter to myself."
When Jesus called himself the Son of Man he wasn't just claiming to be human. He was claiming authority over all humanity. He had come to establish a kingdom that was to rule all other kingdoms. The Jewish and Roman officials had lots of reason to be angry about this, and the disciples had lots of reason to be excited about following this man on his way to becoming a world power.
Do we think about Jesus in this light? Do we consider the future scope of his kingdom as He uses us to establish it? His followers certainly did.
In the next few upcoming posts on the "Son of Man" I plan to look at the passages in the Gospel of Mark where Jesus refers to himself this way. His followers wanted and expected him to lead the world in power and greatness. I want to look at how Jesus uses the phrase "Son of Man" to establish and reframe what true greatness and Godly leadership should look like.
Check out my upcoming book at www.adhogan.com
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