Tag Archives: Deity of Jesus

The Da Vinci Code and Early Christian History, Part 1

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The Da Vinci Code, authored by Dan Brown, has quickly become an international bestseller and is now in theatrical release.1 Because of its depiction of Jesus Christ and Christianity, this fictional page-turner has caused vociferous reactions far outside the literary world. Page one of the work, entitled “FACT,” asserts that “All descriptions of artwork, architecture, documents, and secret rituals in this novel are accurate.” The book actually includes numerous historical inaccuracies, however. For the sake of time and convenience, this article will simply highlight those factual errors surrounding the book’s portrayal of early Christianity.2 These historical blunders particularly concern the fields of canonicity and Christology and are especially concentrated in the discussions on pages 230–259.

Jesus Christ As ‘God’ Before the Council of Nicea

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According to the popular historiography of various cults, the doctrine of the deity of Jesus Christ was “created” by the Council of Nicea in A.D. 325. For instance, the Restoration Church of God publishes a tract entitled “Who Is Jesus? Do the Creeds Tell Us the Truth About Him?” This work asserts that the belief that Jesus is God is not found in the Scriptures, but was only instituted by the Nicene Council in the fourth century, “well after the New Testament apostolic times.”1

Tremendous Truths from Jesus’ Family Tree

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Some time ago my oldest sister became interested in our family tree. She dug into some old dusty records and family Bibles and traced our family line back to Holland where she found the names of our ancestors for several hundred years. When we turn to the first chapter of the book of Matthew, we find a much greater family tree. It covers not just 200 years, but 2000 years. It is the family tree of Jesus Christ. The Gospel of Matthew was written for the Jews.

The Virgin Birth: A Mystery to Be Cried Aloud

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The virgin birth refers to Mary’s miraculous conception of Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit, without any male participation, so that, though the birth process was not unlike that of other humans, Mary was still a virgin when Jesus was born. This Biblical doctrine should be distinguished from the Roman Catholic tenets of Mary’s immaculate conception and her perpetual virginity (Erickson, 179). The Dogma of the Immaculate Conception According to the dogma of the Immaculate Conception, Mary was “preserved free from all stain of original sin” (Ott, 199).

The Eternal Sonship of Christ

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Every group claiming to be Christian teaches that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. The problem is: What does “Son of God” mean? What one thinks this title means will determine when one thinks Jesus became the Son of God. There are four major views on this issue. View #1: Jesus is called God’s Son because he is the first and highest created being by God. This view rejects the Trinity and does not believe in the deity of Christ.