Is Jesus our brother?

By the leading of the Spirit, the authors of the bible ascribed different titles to our blessed Lord which reveals aspects of his work and person. He is described as king of kings and Lord of all lords (Revelation 17; 14), he is also called our savior (Titus 2; 13). Jesus is also referred as the author and perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12; 2) and in another place he is described as the righteous Judge (Acts 17; 31). The bible is also clear about the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus is of equal substance and essence with the father (John 10: 30). He is our Lord and God as thomas described him (John 20; 28). But did you know that Jesus is also our brother? Many people address Jesus as our Lord and Savior and that is excellent, but are unwitting of the truth as it is revealed in the holy scriptures that he is our brother as well. The bible says: For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings. For both He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one Father; for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying, "I will proclaim Your name to My brethren, In the midst of the congregation I will sing Your praise" (Hebrews 2: 10-12). 

The passage unambiguously reveals Jesus as our brother. It baffles me that God the Son, in all his glory and uniqueness stooped low to identify himself with us by taking a human nature into union with himself. In order for him to be our brother, he came on earth as one of us, he came as a Man that through his death he might purchase with his own blood the right for us to call his father our father, and to relate with him as our brother. The bible says: But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba Father!"(Galatians 4: 4-6). What a great privilege for me and you to call God "Abba father'', and Jesus Christ as our elder brother. Yes, Jesus is our elder brother, for it is written: For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren (Romans 8: 29). 

Firstborn as Paul wrote signifies preeminence, it means he is first in rank among many brethren. In the family of God, the Lord Jesus Christ is our preeminent brother, he is our senior brother. Learn this, every good brother looks out for the best interest of his fellow brothers and sisters. It is the same with Jesus, he is our brother and as our elder brother he is always working out all things for our good (Romans 8; 28). We also have a brother who is always ready to defend us and to keep us safe under the shadows of his wings. He will not suffer us to be a prey to our foes, for he is our present help in time of trouble (Psalm 91). It is incredibly amazing that the author of Hebrews by the Spirit tells us that Jesus Christ is not ashamed to call us his brethren (Hebrews 2; 11). 

Jesus Christ is not ashamed of us, and he is not the least bothered to call imperfect beings like us as his brethren, though he is perfect in his dual distinct natures which constitutes the uniqueness of his person. If Jesus Christ is not ashamed to call and own us as his brothers and sisters, we also shouldn't be ashamed of him. It behooves us to let the world know that the creator and the sustainer of the universe is our own true brother, for we are of the same family and we have the same father. Jesus Christ though he is exalted as the GodMan, yet he is akin to us and calls us as his brethren. I love what John Calvin wrote concerning how Jesus relates to us as brethren; "There is a second Adam, who comes to remedy all … our Lord Jesus Christ (Luke 3: 23-38; Rom 5: 12; 1Cor 15: 20)…By the power of the Holy Spirit, we are bone of the bones of our Lord Jesus Christ, and we have in him …a new and second creation …And there is no doubt at all that we are joined to God by means of him, seeing he is our true brother…because we are bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh (Ephesians 5: 29-30)  … For just as he is very God, so on the other hand He is akin to us, because he came down…in order that we might be glorified by means of him … And for that reason also he is called our brother. I see that Jesus Christ is my Head, and that I belong to him, and that not only I am his, but also he is mine, so that his life belongs to me … eternal salvation was bought for us so dearly by the blood of God’s only Son, in order that in the end we should be partakers of the effect and virtue that proceeds from it. This saying alone ought to break off distrust when we are in doubt and perplexity whether or not God will accept us. For seeing we have this record that Jesus Christ is our brother, what more do we want?

Beloved, since we are part of the family of God, we are entitled to all the blessings and inheritance befitting the children of God. For we are said to be heirs of God and co-heirs with our elder brother (Romans 8; 17). We are part of the family of God forever by reason of our eternal union with our elder brother. The incarnation and death of the Son of God is the primary reason why we relate with him as brethren. Jesus as our brethren depicts the depth of our relationship with him. Though he is very God of very God, yet he condescends to call us his brethren, a truth which transcends all understanding. But what did we do for Jesus Christ, the second member of the triune God to come down from heaven to take on flesh and live among us and relate with us as his brethren? This is an act of unmerited favour, it is something inexplicable, the only thing we can do is to be eternally grateful for this gratuitous blessing which the Lord has freely lavished on us.

 Probably, as you're reading this article, you do not have any personal relationship with Jesus Christ, the elder brother of all the saints. Jesus said: For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother" (Matthew 12: 50). The good news is that there is a sure way for you to be a member of the family of God and that is by doing the will of the father. The question is, what is the will of the father? The will of the father in context is to exercise saving faith in Jesus Christ (John 6; 29). Through faith in his death and resurrection, you will be saved and Jesus will call you his brother or sister. But if you are not part of him, if he does not know you as one of his brethren, then you are not part of the family of God and at last you will perish in eternal damnation. Therefore, it of the highest importance to call on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation and you shall be saved (Romans 10; 13). God bless you

                       A thought to ponder 

Jesus Christ is not ashamed of us, and he is not the least bothered to call imperfect beings like us as his brethren, though he is perfect in his dual distinct natures which constitutes the uniqueness of his person

We defend and exposit the truth of the gospel

Comments

  1. AnonymousOctober 24, 2024 at 5:14 AM

    Jesus Christ is indeed my elder brother

    ReplyDelete
  2. Eugene Nii Lartey OtooOctober 26, 2024 at 12:08 AM

    Wow nice explanation
    God bless you 🙏

    ReplyDelete

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