The Unified Christ: Exploring the Incarnation, Resurrection, and the God-Man Doctrine: The Theological Debate between Rev. Abel Damina and Fr. Chinaka Justin

The ongoing theological debate between Rev. Abel Damina and Fr. Chinaka Justin highlights critical differences in understanding the person and work of Jesus Christ. Rev. Damina's assertion that the incarnate Christ offers no benefit because of His human limitations, as opposed to the resurrected Christ who saves and baptizes in the Holy Spirit, reflects a fragmented view of Christology. I used the unexpected opportunity to stay home today due to the wind, fire, and smoke affecting Los Angeles County. This time at home allowed me to listen to the debate several times, pray, reflect, and engage in Biblical and theological research. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzoArB11Lcg

This perspective, however, fails to recognize the indivisibility of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection in the salvation of humanity. Jesus is "the same yesterday, today, and forever" (Hebrews 13:8), and the incarnation, far from being a phase of limitation, is integral to His salvific mission. This essay demonstrates that Jesus' dual nature as fully God and fully man is essential to redemption, drawing from Scripture, the theory of atonement articulated by St. Anselm in Cur Deus Homo, and the broader theological witness of the New Testament.

Jesus Christ: The Same Yesterday, Today, and Forever

The foundational declaration in Hebrews 13:8, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever," underscores the unity and continuity of His person and work. This affirmation asserts that Jesus' identity as the pre-incarnate Word, the incarnate Savior, the crucified Redeemer, and the resurrected Lord remains unchanging. Any attempt to dichotomize the benefits of the incarnate Christ and the glorified Christ contradicts this essential truth.

Jesus' pre-incarnate divinity, affirmed in John 1:1-3, is seamlessly integrated with His incarnate mission (John 1:14) and His exalted state as the High Priest (Hebrews 7:25). Each aspect of His being serves God's singular purpose of reconciling humanity to Himself. Revelation 1:17-18 presents Jesus as "the First and the Last," demonstrating that His mission is eternal and unified, not a sequence of disconnected roles.

The Necessity of Jesus as the God-Man
The Epistle to the Hebrews provides one of the most comprehensive theological expositions on the necessity of Jesus' dual nature as both God and man. Hebrews 1 emphasizes His divinity, describing Him as "the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of His being" (Hebrews 1:3). His divine nature assures His authority and capacity to execute God's redemptive plan. Conversely, Hebrews 2 shifts the focus to His humanity, declaring that Jesus "shared in their humanity so that by His death He might break the power of him who holds the power of death" (Hebrews 2:14).

His incarnation allowed Him to be "a merciful and faithful high priest" (Hebrews 2:17), fully able to represent humanity before God. Jesus could not have served as humanity's representative or suffered in our place without the incarnation. Without His divinity, His sacrifice would lack the infinite value required to atone for sin. The necessity of this dual nature is not a theological abstraction but a vital truth for understanding the coherence of salvation.

Anselm's Theory of Atonement: Why the God-Man?

St. Anselm's seminal work, Cur Deus Homo (Why the God-Man?), offers a profound rationale for why Jesus had to be both fully divine and fully human. According to Anselm, humanity's sin created a debt of infinite magnitude because it was an offense against an infinitely holy God. Finite humanity could not pay this debt, and justice demanded a resolution. Only a being who was both God and man could satisfy this requirement.

Jesus could represent humanity and fulfill the demands of justice as a human. As God, His sacrifice had infinite worth and could reconcile humanity to God. Anselm's theory highlights the interconnectedness of Jesus' incarnation, life, death, and resurrection as one unified act of atonement. The incarnate Christ is not merely a precursor to the resurrected Christ; He is the foundation upon which the resurrection and its benefits rest.

The Divine Condescension of Christ
The incarnation demonstrates divine condescension, where the eternal Word humbled Himself to become flesh. Philippians 2:5-12 captures this humility, describing how Jesus "made Himself nothing" by taking on human form and becoming obedient to death on a cross. This act was not a limitation but a deliberate choice to identify with humanity in its weakness and sinfulness.

John 1:14 affirms that "the Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us." By doing so, Jesus bridged the infinite gap between God and humanity, not by compromising His divinity but by fully embracing humanity. His life of obedience, suffering, and sacrifice was essential for fulfilling the divine plan of redemption.

The Dual Nature of Christ: Fully God and Fully Man

The New Testament consistently portrays Jesus as fully divine and human, a mystery central to Christian theology. His humanity is evident in His experience of hunger, thirst, fatigue, and sorrow (Matthew 4:2; John 4:6; John 19:28; John 11:35). His divine nature is displayed in His miracles, authority over nature, and power over life and death.

Jesus calmed storms with a command (Mark 4:39), demonstrating control over creation. He raised Lazarus from the dead (John 11:43-44) and unveiled His divine glory during the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-8). These acts affirm His divine authority, even as He lived in the fullness of human existence.

The Unified Christology
Rev. Damina's assertion that the incarnate Christ is of no benefit reflects a fragmented view of Christology. Scripture presents the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus as an indivisible whole. The incarnation enabled the atonement, as Jesus lived a perfect, sinless life in human form. His death provided the sacrifice necessary for sin, and His resurrection vindicated His identity and mission. Romans 4:25 declares that Jesus "was delivered to death for our sins and raised to life for our justification." The resurrection does not diminish the benefits of the incarnation; it completes them. The glorified Christ is the same Jesus born in Bethlehem, walked the earth, died on the cross, and rose again.

Conclusion
The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ form a unified whole, essential for the salvation of humanity. Hebrews 13:8 affirms that Jesus is eternally consistent in His person and work, while Hebrews 1–2 and Anselm's Cur Deus Homo illuminate the necessity of His dual nature as the God-man. His divine condescension, as articulated in Philippians 2:5-12 and John 1:14, underscores the humility and intentionality of His mission.

Far from being of limited benefit, the incarnate Christ is integral to the redemptive plan. His humanity and divinity, fully united in one person, ensure He can reconcile humanity to God. Jesus Christ, the eternal Word made flesh, is indeed the same yesterday, today, and forever—a Savior whose incarnation, death, and resurrection are the indivisible foundation of our salvation.