This video is a continuation of the previous episode about God the Son. Here, Pastor Ted Wilson discusses further the fourth fundamental belief of the Seventh-day Adventists, which you can review at adventist.org/beliefs.
As part of the Godhead, God the Son has existed from eternity. His mission of salvation was established before the creation of the world. His birth and mission were also foretold in the prophecy.
In Galatians 4:4, God sent His Son to earth in "the fullness of the time." And it was fulfilled when Jesus began His earthly ministry, as recorded in Mark 1:15.
As we can see, Christ’s life was in harmony with earlier prophecies. These prophecies give the details of His death and resurrection. For instance, we read in Isaiah 53: "He was despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed" (verses 3-5).
Continuing in verse 6, "the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all." Verses 7 and 8 describe Christ’s trial, saying, "He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment…He was cut off from the land of the living."
Verses 9 and 10 prophesy how Christ would die with the wicked and would be buried with the rich. His body would be laid in the tomb of a wealthy man.
Psalm 41:9 contains another amazing prophecy. Here, Christ would be betrayed by a close friend. Zechariah 11:2 indicates that He would be sold for 30 pieces of silver. Then, His side would be pierced.
According to Isaiah 50:6, the Messiah would be beaten and spat upon during His trial. Those who executed Him would gamble for His clothes, according to Psalm 22:18. But chapter 34, verse 20, confirms that none of His bones would be broken.
Aside from the Savior’s death, the Bible also predicted His resurrection. In Acts 2:31, the Apostle Peter referred to David’s prophecy in Psalm 16:10, stating that "His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption." The apostle continues in verse 32, "This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses."
There were many witnesses to this resurrection. In 1 Corinthians 15:3-7, we read: "For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once…after that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles."
These prophecies and testimonies are just some of the many indications that Christ came to this earth, died for our sins, and was resurrected triumphantly.
There is so much to study about God the Son, but this video can’t cover it all. However, many of our fundamental beliefs branch out into various aspects of the Son. In the upcoming videos, we will look further into who He is, what He is doing for us today, and what we can look forward to in the future.
Indeed, God the Son, Jesus Christ, is central to who we are and what we believe as Seventh-day Adventists. "For in Him, we live and move and have our being," Acts 17:28 states.
For closing, The Desire of Ages, page 24, reminds us: "Since Jesus came to dwell with us, we know that God is acquainted with our trials, and sympathizes with our griefs. Every son and daughter of Adam may understand that our Creator is the friend of sinners. For in every doctrine of grace, every promise of joy, every deed of love, every divine attraction presented in the Saviour’s life on earth, we see 'God with us'...By His humanity, Christ touched humanity; by His divinity, He lays hold upon the throne of God. As the Son of man, He gave us an example of obedience; as the Son of God, He gives us power to obey."