Christology Test

What does Messiah/Christ mean?

Jesus is the coming deliverer foretold in the OT

What does the Son of God mean?

Jesus is the incarnate son of God- He is fully God

What does the Son of Man mean?

Jesus is fully man, the son of Mary

What is Docetism?

A heresy that denies the full humanity of Christ. Docestists asserted that Jesus Christ was purely divine and merely appeared human.

What is Ebionism/Adoptionism?

The belief concerning the person of Christ that Jesus was not divine in essence but merely a human being on whom the Holy Spirit descended at His baptism.

What is Arianism?

The view holds that Christ was God’s first and greatest creation, but He was not God. Arianism rivaled trinitarianism in the early church but was finally pronounced heretical, beginning at the Council of Nicea (AD 325)

What is Apollinarianism?

This view sees the humanity of Christ as a mere shell for the divine person of God. This view was pronounced heretical at the Council of Chalcedon (AD 451) because it denies the full humanity of Christ.

What is Nestorianism?

The heresy that states there were two persons- with two minds- present in Jesus Christ, one divine person, and one human person. Nestorianism was condemned at the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451.

What is Eutychianism?

The belief concerning the person of Christ that Jesus’s human nature was overshadowed by and absorbed into the divine nature and thus effectively eliminated.

What is Impeccability?

highest standard/faultless)

In Favor of Christ’s impeccability: God can’t sin, so Christ’s divine nature made it impossible for him to sin.

What is Kenosis?

Jesus’s “emptying” himself of his divine rights and privileges so that he might live genuinely as a human being.

What does it mean “Christ from Above”?

How Can God become man?

What are the advantages from “Christ from Above”?

Respect, reverence

If God is almighty, he can even become human

What are the limitations for “Christ from above”?

override /shortcut critical thinking or evidence-based approaches

Would incarnation somehow mess up God?

What does “Christ from below” mean?

How can a man be God?

What are the advantages for “Christ from below”?

Personable/relatable

Scientific approach

What are the limitations of “Christ from Below”?

Finite being

The danger of a man becoming God approach

As just a special man- Adoptionism

What is the Passion?

The suffering and death of Christ

What are the four ways to view the passion?

Recapitulation

Substitutionary sacrifice

Ransom/Triumph over the Devil (Christus Victor)

Empowering example

What is propitiation?

Literally, appeasement in regard to atonement theory, Christ appeased God’s wrath toward humanity, and as a result, God did not take out his wrath on humanity directly.

What is the Incarnation?

Embodiment in flesh; specifically, the belief that Jesus, while remaining fully divine, became at the same time fully human

What is homoousios?

The same substance

What is the orthodox formula for the hypostatic union?

Jesus is 1 person with 2 complete natures: one human and one divine

What does the slogan “The unassumed is the unhealed” mean?

Jesus takes a complete (full) human nature to save/heal/sanctify every part of who we are (mind, body will). His complete humanity saves our complete humanity- no part of us in untouched by Christ.

What are the 2 natures and states of Christ?

Of the same nature (homoousios) as God the Father and of the same nature (homoousios) as us humans.

State of humiliation (descent) and state of exaltation (ascent

What are the three offices of Christ?

Prophet

Priest

King

What is the Anselm’s satisfaction view of the atonement?

This payment by God (the Son) to God (the Father) satisfied the infinite nature of the debt of humans owed to God for sin.

What is the Christus Victor view on the Atonement?

According to this view of the atonement, Christ’s act on the cross delivered the death blow to sin, death, and especially the devil.

What is the subjective/exemplar/moral influence view on the atonement.

Jesus is seen as a role model of perfect love and self-sacrifice, and believers are to emulate that character in their own lives.

What is the penal substitution view of the Atonement?

Christ frees humans from the penalty of sin (hell) by accepting the punishment for sin in their place.

What is the moral government/rector view of the atonement?

According to this view, the atonement is not a transference of guilt from sinful humans to Jesus (as per penal substitution) but rather a vivid presentation of God’s wrath against sin for all to see.

What is the virgin birth?

The fact that Jesus was born to a virgin Mary.

What does “Descent in Hell” mean?

It’s one element of creedal and biblical teaching

What is the resurrection?

Bodily, but immortal

Vindicates Jesus’ claims about his identity

Contributes to our salvation

Sign that the End Times have begun

Prototype for our future

What is the ascension?

40 days after Easter

Royal Inauguration

Day of Atonement

Model for Christ’s return

What is session?

Christ reigns as king

Christ intercedes as Priest

The Holy Spirit comes at Pentecost, 10 days after Christ’s ascension

What is the classical view on Christology?

the belief that Jesus Christ had both a human and divine mind. The divine mind has full access to the human mind but not vice versa. This is a common view of many who hold to classical Christology, which affirms that Christ exercised by human and divine attributes while on earth. This view contrasts with kenotic Christology.

What is the kenotic Christology?

The belief that when the Son of god became incarnate as Jesus of Nazareth, he emptied himself of all divine attributes that would have been inconsistent with his ability to be a full human being. He took on the limitations of finitude and humanity. Hence, Jesus was not, for example, omniscient or omnipotent while on earth.

What is the essay question?

Be able to give several lines of evidence for the complete humanity, uniqueness, and complete divinity of Christ & explain why the hypostatic union must be true for Christ to be the perfect Savior. (This would make for a good essay.)