Outline
Ⅱ
In Acts 13 Paul says that from David's seed "God, according to promise, brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus" (v. 23), and that "God has fully fulfilled this promise…in raising up Jesus, as it is also written in the second Psalm, 'You are My Son; this day have I begotten You'" (v. 33):
A
In verses 32 and 33 we see that Christ as the firstborn Son of God was promised to the fathers, and God fulfilled this promise by raising up Jesus.
B
Resurrection was a birth to the man Jesus:
１
He was begotten by God in His resurrection to be the firstborn Son of God among many brothers—Rom. 8:29.
２
He was the only begotten Son of God from eternity—John 1:18; 3:16.
３
After His incarnation, through resurrection He was begotten by God in His humanity to be God's firstborn Son—Heb. 1:6.
C
Paul was able to see the Lord's resurrection in Psalm 2:7: "You are My Son; / Today I have begotten You":
１
Paul applies the word today to the day of the Lord's resurrection.
２
This means that Christ's resurrection was His birth as the firstborn Son of God.
３
Jesus, the Son of Man, was born to be the Son of God through being raised from the dead; therefore, God's raising up Jesus from the dead was His begetting of Him to be His firstborn Son—Acts 13:33.
D
Through incarnation God's only begotten Son put on humanity and became the God-man (John 1:14, 18; Luke 1:35); then in resurrection this God-man was born of God to be His Firstborn (Acts 13:33; Heb. 1:6; Rom. 8:29):
１
Before incarnation God's only begotten Son did not have the human nature; He had only the divine nature.
２
In resurrection God's firstborn Son has the human nature as well as the divine nature.
E
Through His resurrection Christ was born to be the firstborn Son, and at the same time all His believers were born to be the many sons of God—1 Pet. 1:3; Heb. 2:10:
１
Among these many sons, only the Firstborn is God's only begotten Son—1 Pet. 1:3; Heb. 2:10.
２
This only begotten Son of God, in His resurrected humanity, is also the firstborn Son of God—Rom. 8:29.
３
The Firstborn has both divinity and humanity, and we, His believers as God's many sons, also possess both the human nature and the divine nature—2 Pet. 1:4.
Morning Nourishment
Acts 13:32-33 And we announce to you the gospel of the promise made to the fathers, that God has fully fulfilled this promise to us their children in raising up Jesus, as it is also written in the second Psalm, “You are My Son; this day have I begotten You.”As the Firstborn of God, [Christ] is the holy and faithful things of David. Through such a One, forgiveness of sins is announced, and whoever believes in Him is justified from all things.
In Acts 13:32-33…we see that Christ as the Firstborn of God was promised to the fathers, and God fulfilled this promise to their children in raising up Jesus…He was begotten by God in His resurrection to be the firstborn Son of God among many brothers (Rom. 8:29). He was the only begotten Son of God from eternity (John 1:18; 3:16). After incarnation, through resurrection, He was begotten by God in His humanity to be God’s firstborn Son. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, p. 2993)
Today’s Reading
Paul was able to see the Lord’s resurrection in the word in Psalm 2: “You are My Son; / Today I have begotten You” (v. 7). Paul applied the word today to the day of the Lord’s resurrection…Jesus, the Son of Man, was born to be the Son of God through being raised up from the dead. Therefore, God’s raising up of Jesus from the dead was His begetting of Him to be His firstborn Son.The Lord Jesus had two births. First, He was born of Mary to be the Son of Man. Then thirty-three and a half years later He was crucified, buried, and raised from the dead. Through resurrection He had a second birth, for as a man He was born in His resurrection to be the Son of God. Therefore, in His first birth He was born of Mary to be the Son of Man, and in His second birth He was born in resurrection to be the Son of God.
According to the New Testament, He is the Son of God in two aspects. First, He was God’s only begotten Son; second, He is now God’s firstborn Son. The words only begotten indicate that God has only one Son. John 1:18 and 3:16 speak of the only begotten Son of God. Eternally speaking, Christ is the only begotten Son of God. This is His eternal status. But through resurrection He, as a man, was born to be the firstborn Son of God. The word firstborn indicates that God now has many sons (Heb. 2:10)…We who believe in Christ are the many sons of God and the many brothers of the Lord, the many brothers of the firstborn Son of God (Rom. 8:29).
As the only begotten Son of God, the Lord is the embodiment of the divine life. The Gospel of John emphasizes that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that as the Son of God He is the embodiment of the divine life (1:4). Through resurrection Christ became the firstborn Son of God as the life-dispenser for the propagation of life. First, He was the only begotten Son as the embodiment of life; now He is the firstborn Son for the propagation of life. Through His becoming the firstborn Son of God in resurrection, the divine life has been dispensed into all His believers to bring forth the propagation of the life that is embodied in Him.
In Acts 13 Paul was not preaching Christ as the only begotten Son of God, as the Gospel of John does. Rather, here Paul was preaching Christ as the firstborn Son of God for propagation. For this reason, he preached the resurrection of the Lord Jesus as His second birth. Through His second birth, His birth in resurrection, Christ became the firstborn Son of God for the propagation of the divine life.
In Acts 13:34 Paul speaks a further word regarding the resurrection of Christ: “As to His having raised Him up from the dead, no longer to return to corruption, He spoke in this way, ‘I will give you the holy things of David, the faithful things.’” Verses 33 and 34 are concerned with the resurrected Christ. Verse 33 indicates that Christ’s resurrection was His second birth to bring Him forth as the firstborn Son of God. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 2993-2995)
Further Reading: The Conclusion of the New Testament, msg. 293