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Christology, Christophany (Study of Jesus, Old Testament Appearance of Jesus)
Meaning
Christology refers to the study of the work, and the person of Jesus Christ our Lord. Christology is central to understanding the Bible. The Bible is God’s revelation to mankind about Himself and His plan of redemption. This means the Bible from front cover to back cover, from Old Testament to New Testament is about Jesus. Jesus Himself confirmed this for us in the Gospel accounts when He told the Pharisees, “you search the scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me.” Moreover the Apostle John tells us in the first chapter of his Gospel that Jesus (the Word) was with God and He was God. John goes on to tell us that Jesus is not only God, but that everything that was created in the universe was made through and by Him. Therefore Christology, the divinity of Jesus and the Trinity are central to our understanding of the Bible. In addition, we cannot fully discuss or understand who Jesus is, and what He has done for us without first having an understanding of the Trinity and the Godhead.
The word Christology is a compound word made up of two Greek words. The first part means “Christ” or “Messiah” and the second part means “word” or “study.” And from an academic standpoint Christology answers several fundamental questions regarding Christian theology. Including the incarnation of Christ, the hypostatic union as well as the virgin birth and the divinity of Jesus. These are crucial issues for us because they are central to our salvation. It’s important that we understand the divinity of Jesus and why His sacrifice on the Cross of Calvary is so important for our atonement. Christology shows us why the incarnation had to happen. Jesus had to combine His divinity with our humanity in order that He could take our place. And because of this His sacrifice for us perfectly met God’s penalty for sin, thereby giving to us the remission of our sins through our faith in Him.
The word Christophany means an “appearance of Jesus” in the Old Testament. Jesus is fully God, He is also the Second Person of the Trinity. This means Jesus has eternally existed and He was present long before the incarnation took place. And because of this Jesus Himself does appear several times throughout the Old Testament scriptures. These appearances of Jesus in the Old Testament scriptures are called “Christophanies.” In addition, when we read the Old Testament and we see the phrase “the Angel of the Lord, ” we have to remember this is in fact the pre-incarnate Christ.
“Then the Lord appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day. So he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground.” (Book of Genesis 18:1-2)
“Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day. Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him, He touched the socket of his hip; and the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of joint as He wrestled with him. And He said, ‘Let Me go, for the day breaks.’ But he said, ‘I will not let You go unless You bless me’ So He said to him, ‘What is your name?’ He said, ‘Jacob.’ And He said, ‘Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.’ Then Jacob asked, saying, ‘Tell me Your name, I pray.’ And He said, ‘Why is it that you ask about My name?’ And He blessed him there. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: ‘For I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.'” (Book of Geneisis 32:24-30)