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Why Do You Call Jesus the Son of God?

Dear Muslim Friend,

 

The concept of Jesus (Isa) as the Son of God can be confusing and easily misunderstood. You may have been taught that Christians claim the following about Jesus: 

a) He was an ordinary human whom Christians made a god

b) He was born as the result of a physical relationship between Allah and Mary. 

 

These claims are not true. Let’s look at the source of these misconceptions and find out what it means when the Bible calls Jesus the Son of God.

Jesus: A Human Who Became a God?

This is the Quranic verse most often quoted to promote the belief that Isa encouraged his followers to make him a god though he was a mere human:

 

“And when Allah will say: O Isa son of Maryam! did you say to men, Take me and my mother for two gods besides Allah he will say: Glory be to Thee, it did not befit me that I should say what I had no right to (say); if I had said it, Thou wouldst indeed have known it. . . .” Quran 5:116

The Bible does not teach that Jesus was a man who became a god, nor do Christians accept this concept. Instead, the Bible affirms that Jesus, as the Word of God, existed from eternity as part of the Triune God.

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“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.” John 1:1–2

Jesus appeared in the flesh at a certain historical time because God chose to become man in the form of Jesus Christ. Please do not gasp and say, “this is blasphemy!” Allow me to ask you these two questions: 

1. Isn’t God the Creator able to do anything He wants? The answer is “yes.”

2. If God chooses to become a human being so that He can relate to our finite minds, is He able to do it? The answer is “yes.” 

God created humans in His image and He loves them. God chose to send to this earth His eternal Word, Jesus Christ the Messiah, as a human so that we can know God’s heart through Him.

You might ask: Was God’s ability to be everywhere interrupted when He became flesh?

No, God did not cease being God nor did he stop possessing the core attributes of His nature in order to become man in the form of Jesus. When Jesus was on earth, God continued to be omnipresent; He was still everywhere. God, the Father, spoke from heaven when Jesus was in the flesh: ​

“There He [Jesus] was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light . . . and a voice from the cloud said, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased. Listen to Him!’” Matthew 17:2–5.

Jesus: The Result of a Physical Relationship?

Another misconception you might have been taught concerning Jesus’ nature is that He was born as the result of a physical union between Allah and Mary. Christians consider this blasphemy just as you do. The Quran defines the term Son of God in a different way than the Bible. It uses the word son only in terms of sexual reproduction, and concludes that if Christians call Jesus the Son of God, they are declaring that God fathered a child with Mary.

 

“The Christians say the Messiah is the Son of Allah, that is a saying from their mouths.” Quran 9:30

 

Read the entire story of Jesus’ birth in the Bible, the Gospel according to Luke, beginning from chapter one.

What Does it Mean to be the Son of God?

Let us look at the biblical definition of this term. The term Son of God indicates origin, a close association, or identification. In Christian theology, it describes the relationship of two persons of the Triune God. It expresses an intimate relationship between these two persons: God the Father and God the Son (Jesus, the Messiah).

Here is an example that may clarify this term:

In Egypt, Egyptians call themselves “sons and daughters of the Nile.” We know this does not mean that the Nile got married and had children. In the same manner, God chose to describe the relationship between Himself and Jesus as a father-son relationship because it is a term we can understand. However, the relationship between God the Father and God the Son is much stronger and deeper than we can fully comprehend.

We encourage you to read the Bible and learn more about the life of Jesus Christ. Call out to God each time you read and ask Him to show you the truth about Himself.

 

Ask a Christian friend to pray with you as you learn more about Jesus Christ, the only Savior. Jesus invites you to come to Him.

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“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28

Read “Do Christians Worship Three Gods?” to understand the Christian beliefs about the Trinity.

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