Why Did God Become a Man
Why did God become a man? This is an age-old question asked by every generation that has walked the earth.
Scripture tells us that Jesus was (and still is) God incarnate, which means God in human form. He was a real historical figure, an actual man who claimed to be God who created all things. To the Jews who believed Jesus, He was called Messiah (or Savior). That made him either “a liar, a lunatic, or He actually was God“.
Prophecy About Jesus—When God Became A Man
The Jewish Scriptures contain more than 300 prophecies about the Messiah. They were written over some 2000 years by people from different stations in life, from shepherd boys to kings, from peasants to rich people, men and women. Most of them didn’t know each other and didn’t live in the same place or time. They didn’t have a reason for writing such things that benefitted any of them. They believed what they wrote about.
All of these prophecies culminated in one person. Many of the prophecies could not have been staged if a person wanted to claim he was the Messiah. These include his place of birth, where he lived and grew up, the performance of signs and wonders (miracles), the manner and place of his death, and more.
The Astronomical Odds Against All Prophecies Happening in One Man
With so many prophecies written about one man, there is pressure on that one man to show proof-positive results. Every prophecy would have to come to pass in this one person. So, what are the odds that all prophecies could come to pass in one person?
If just 48 key prophecies came to pass in one person, it would be the same as if someone won 22 lotteries in a row. Is that possible? Yes, it’s possible, but not very likely. More than 300 prophecies came to pass in Jesus (or will come to pass when their time comes).
Basically, the odds against Jesus being the one prophesied are so astronomical that the only conclusion we can arrive at is that He was who was prophesied.
Jesus is Very Likely Who He Said He Was
Think about this: if that many prophecies came together in Jesus’s life from different eras, cultures, and people—it is extremely unlikely those prophecies were for someone else or a hoax—it’s more than an incredible coincidence. It’s much bigger than that. Jesus said He was the Son of God. The prophecies told us that, too. Yes, it is still possible, but 22 lotteries in a row?! And that’s just 48 prophecies. Besides that, three hundred prophecies increase the odds by a magnitude of billions. Let it sink in.
Additionally, if you combine who Jesus said He was and the prophecies that testify to that fact with the science confirming the Multiverse, where invisible life may dwell—including God—and consider the deeds Jesus accomplished and the timeless and universal teachings he propounded. In that case, it begins to seem like we are onto the truth.
Imagine it’s true. That means God came to earth and dwelled in bodily form with us! This website asserts that is what happened.
But why would God become a man? Why would He have come at a particular time in history, and why would He have come in such a humble way? Why not enter with great fanfare at the beginning of man’s origins? Being eternal and omnipotent, why not dwell with us eternally here? His coming brings many questions.
We Were Created In God’s Image Originally
Jewish Scripture, in discussions about creating, God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” Genesis 1:26
That didn’t mean physical appearance. If it did, we would all look like God.
But God meant in the image of His character. We can all have different outward appearances, but inside, if we are one with God, we all look like Him in our character and ability to love and forgive because we are in harmony with God.
You may have noticed God said let us make man in our image. Jewish Scripture tells us, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” John 1:1-5.
Later, John wrote: “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14).
So God was talking to Jesus, who is the Word of God, when He said, “let us create man in our image”.
We were made to reflect God’s image; we were meant to reflect His glory. God didn’t make us to live for Jesus; we were made to live through Him. Jesus is the physical representation of God’s image.
The Fall of Humanity
From the beginning, God walked in the garden with Adam and Eve. But then came the devil to steal the identity of men and women.
In the book of Genesis chapter 3, we see a story about how humanity fell.
Genesis 3:1-7 tells us, “the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “…[Has] God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.’” The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die! For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings.”
The Effects of Disobeying God
They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. Genesis 3:8
From the beginning, God knew humans were imperfect. He gave them free will and the independent ability to make their own choices. He knew they would disobey and make bad choices sooner or later.
And when they ate of the fruit God forbid, they lost the image of God. From that day forward, instead of having God’s image in us, we were cut off from God. We began a chapter in history reliant upon ourselves for an image. We were lost and disconnected from what we were created for. And without God near, we didn’t have an example to follow to reflect Him.
“The fall of humanity” comes from this event in our history. We took on our own nature and made our own choices.
You may think, “What’s so bad about that?” Separation from God is a bad thing. Those who choose to live in disharmony with God don’t live near God in eternity. God is the source of light in eternity, so those who live apart from him live in the outer darkness—or worse—depending on how great an enemy you become to God. The devil, for example, will be locked in a bottomless pit for eternity at the end of the age.
Notice the devil’s tactic is to get them to over-think what God said and flavor His commandment with their own opinions. This is the tactic the devil uses with us today as well.
Since the Fall, Humanity Has Needed A Savior—That’s Why God Became a Man
Scripture tells us, “…we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation…Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned”. Romans 5:11-12
Sin entered humanity through one man, so the price for sin was paid once for all by one man, and that man was Jesus Christ of Nazareth some 2,000 plus years ago.
This is why God became a man. He had to pay the price for sin, but the reason He became a man was to reconcile us back to Him. Being without sin, Jesus, the only human being ever to not sin, was the only one qualified to pay the price. And He was the only one able to conquer sin and death.
Do you want to receive this reconciliation from Jesus? Click here to find out how to start. Feel free to contact us with questions or comments.
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