Unitarianism (Christ is created)
Classical Chalcedonianism (Christ is one person in two natures)
Neo-Apollinarianism (Modified form of Chalcedonianism)
This article will show that the biblical evidence supports the Chalcedonian position.
Neo-Apollinarianism, however does not use the language of the divine mind of Christ "replacing" the human mind (unlike the Apollinarians did), instead neo-Apollinarianism argues that "person" is a synonym with "mind", thus when they say "one person, two natures", they mean "One mind, two natures". In the classical Chalcedonian/Constantinopolitan view, Christ has two wills and minds (human and divine), however the human mind is ordered to be in unity with the divine mind, thus there is no schizophrenia in Christ. In the classical view, the one person of Christ has two minds, without there being two Christs nor self-contradiction. The Neo-Apollinarian however teaches "monothelitism", that Christ has one will (this position was also condemned as heretical in church history).
Christ is God
This is one important aspect in understanding Christology, Jesus Christ is God himself. This is affirmed in multiple biblical texts:
John 1:1 ESV
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 8:58 ESV
Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.”
John 20:28 ESV
Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”
Colossians 2:9 ESV
For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily,
Matthew 1:23 ESV
“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us).
Hebrews 1:3 ESV
He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
It is highly important to understand that Jesus Christ is God for the atonement, as Christ had to be the perfect God in order to properly atone for our sins. There passages together show that the unitarian position is unbiblical, and it is inherently dangerous.
Jesus Christ is a man
The bible says "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.", this means that Christ was also fully human. This is also necessary for the atonement, as God cannot die in His divine nature. The Gnostics of old taught a doctrine called "docetism", which means Christ only appeared to be a man. Docetism was called by John a doctrine of the antichrist, sating in 1 John 4:3: and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.
Jesus Christ is one person
The two natures (human and divine) are united in His one person, John 1 says that the eternal Word united a full human nature to himself, meaning God the Son united a full human nature to himself so that he can dwell on the earth as a human. Due to being one person, there is only one Christ and we cannot separate "the man Jesus Christ" and "the God Jesus Christ" because that would mean there are two persons. This means that we cannot separate any work of Christ as being done "by the man Jesus Christ" or "by the God Jesus Christ", anything Christ does in his human nature can be attributed to the divine person of the Son, thus as Christ is one person, we can say that "God died as a man", this is similar language as what Paul used when stating in 1 Corinthians 2:8: "which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory."
The only way you can crucify the "Lord of glory" is if He has become incarnate. Similarly, the blood of Christ is called the blood of God in the bible, showing that Christ is one and there are not two Christs:
Acts 20:28
Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.
Dyothelitism
Now, this is where the difference between the Classical Chalcedonian view and the Neo-Apollinarian view comes in. Neo-Apollinarianism is a modified form of Apollinarianism (which was a doctrine born in the 4th century which argued that Christ had no human mind or will, and that the human mind of God was replaced by the divine mind, the doctrine was later condemned as heresy by the council of Constantinople).
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| Apollinaris of Laodicea taught that Christ had no human will. |
Neo-Apollinarianism, however does not use the language of the divine mind of Christ "replacing" the human mind (unlike the Apollinarians did), instead neo-Apollinarianism argues that "person" is a synonym with "mind", thus when they say "one person, two natures", they mean "One mind, two natures". In the classical Chalcedonian/Constantinopolitan view, Christ has two wills and minds (human and divine), however the human mind is ordered to be in unity with the divine mind, thus there is no schizophrenia in Christ. In the classical view, the one person of Christ has two minds, without there being two Christs nor self-contradiction. The Neo-Apollinarian however teaches "monothelitism", that Christ has one will (this position was also condemned as heretical in church history).
In my view, it seems biblically abundantly clear that Christ had a human will, for example Christ was tempted by Satan, but God cannot be tempted (James 1:13) which shows that Christ had a human will and Jesus in His human will submits to the Father (John 6:38, Matthew 26:39).
Jesus is also said to be "in every way like us" (Hebrews 2:17), this would include a will and a mind:Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.
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