Believe that Jesus is the Eternal One

8.         BELIEVE THAT JESUS CHRIST IS THE ETERNAL ONE

The eighth integral aspect of believing in Jesus Christ is that He is the eternal One, denoting that He eternally existed and since He is the same yesterday, today, and forever, Jesus retained the same glory which He had with the Father before time began. In His prayer to the Father Jesus said, “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as you have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.’

“And this is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. I have glorified You on the earth I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was” (John 17:1-5).

Jesus Christ said quite explicitly, “I and My Father are One” In revealing the Father to the disciples Jesus said, "If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him." Philip said to Him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us."

Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, 'Show us the Father'? Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves” (John 14:7-11).

In His prayer to the Father Jesus said, “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as you have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.’

“And this is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. I have glorified You on the earth I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was” (John 17:1-5).

Yes to believe in Jesus Christ one must believe that He is eternal, “His years are throughout all generations. Of old He laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of His hands. They will perish, but He will endure; yes, all of them will grow old like a garment; like a cloak He will change them, and they will be changed, but He is the same, and His years will have no end” (Psalms 102:24-28).

And at the end of the thousand year reign of Christ`s kingdom on earth, then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power: For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet.

The last enemy that will be destroyed is death. For "God the Father has put all things under His feet:" But when He says "all things are put under Him," it is evident that He who put all things under Him is excepted: Now when all things are made subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him, who put all things under Him, that God may be all in all” (1 Corinthians 15:24-28).

Believing in Jesus Christ therefore, is more profound than most people have realized, and unfortunately because of this lack of understanding, many of those who profess to believe in Jesus Christ, do not ascribe to Him the glory and honor due to Him as the eternal God, which is the main objective for worship, even by the angels and the hosts of heaven.

It is quite apparent that most people who profess to know Jesus Christ do not attribute to Him the same degree of honor that is given to the Father. But Jesus in no uncertain terms said to the Jews, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner. For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.’

“For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will. For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son, that all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him” (John 5:19-23).

Now, the way one demonstrates his/ her belief in Jesus Christ as the Eternal God is by observing the Eighth day of the Feast of Tabernacles. This is the day that the Lord was circumcised and through His circumcision, Gentiles who were called Uncircumcision and at that time were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world were brought near to God through the circumcision of Jesus Christ.

It is also on that day that, God the Father highly exalted Jesus Christ and gave Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Here lies the root cause of the many problems that we face in the Christian community, which is the failure to ascribe to the Lord the glory due to His name and following the protocol. For this is what the Lord says; “You shall keep My Sabbaths and reverence My sanctuary: I am the LORD” (Leviticus 19:30; 26:2).

Inasmuch as no problem can truly be resolved unless we deal with the root cause of it, ascribing to the Lord the glory due to His name in the prescribed manner is the solution to the plea that we all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among us, but that we be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph