I understand from such passages as John 6:44 and others that man does not have the ability to believe in Christ on his own. So can anyone explain to me why Jesus "marveled" (KJV) or "wondered" (NASB) at people's unbelief in passages like Mark 6:6?
I understand from such passages as John 6:44 and others that man does not have the ability to believe in Christ on his own. So can anyone explain to me why Jesus "marveled" (KJV) or "wondered" (NASB) at people's unbelief in passages like Mark 6:6?
Shane
1689 LBCF
Rosemont Baptist Church
Winston-Salem, NC
www.rosemontbaptist.com
"Tis not that I did choose thee, for Lord that could not be. This heart would still refuse thee, hadst thou not chosen me."
Shane,
Jesus has both a divine and human nature. As fully God, Jesus knew the hearts of men. But at the same time, as a man, Jesus marvelled at both belief and unbelief.
Mike Myers
Teaching Elder
West Suffolk Baptist Church
Suffolk, Virginia
Many a plain, honest, unlearned disciple of Christ, by meditation, experience, prayers, and especially obedience, attains to a more clear, sound, and useful knowledge of the word of God, than some great scholars with all their wit and learning. Matthew Henry
Christian Soldier (10-10-2009)
So, as God, He knew they didn't have the ability to believe, but as a man, He was still kind of perplexed about them not believing? I understand His dual human/divine nature, or the "hypostatic union", but I still struggle to understand some aspects of it such as this. Anyone want to elaborate or suggest some good reading material on the subject?
Shane
1689 LBCF
Rosemont Baptist Church
Winston-Salem, NC
www.rosemontbaptist.com
"Tis not that I did choose thee, for Lord that could not be. This heart would still refuse thee, hadst thou not chosen me."
Shane,
The hypostatic union is a doctrine that is difficult to grasp and one that we will never fully understand in this life. I haven't read any books fully devoted to the subject, but a good systematic theology may be helpful (Grudem, Berkhof, Hodge, etc.). Reading their thoughts on the Person of Christ, in my opinion, would be extremely helpful as you meditate on our Savior.
Click on the link below to go to Chapter 26 of Grudem's Systematic Theology. The link takes you directly to the subject of the hypostatic union, but I would suggest reading the entire chapter. It would certainly be a good read for a Lord's Day afternoon.
Systematic theology: an introduction ... - Google Books
I hope this helps!
Last edited by APuritansMind; 10-11-2009 at 07:26 AM.
Mike Myers
Teaching Elder
West Suffolk Baptist Church
Suffolk, Virginia
Many a plain, honest, unlearned disciple of Christ, by meditation, experience, prayers, and especially obedience, attains to a more clear, sound, and useful knowledge of the word of God, than some great scholars with all their wit and learning. Matthew Henry
Christian Soldier (10-11-2009)
Great I actually have both Grudem's and Berkhof's Systematics on my shelf so I'll go check out what they have to say. Thanks!
Shane
1689 LBCF
Rosemont Baptist Church
Winston-Salem, NC
www.rosemontbaptist.com
"Tis not that I did choose thee, for Lord that could not be. This heart would still refuse thee, hadst thou not chosen me."
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