Q: #114. I heard a person talking about something to do with Jesus called a hyperstatic union. What is this, I can't find anything on it?
A: The term you are referring to is “hypostatic union.” (Hyperstatic union is a Christian band 🙂 ) It sounds like something really complicated, but it simply means that when Jesus came to the Earth (The Incarnation), He was fully God and fully man. In other words, Jesus never stopped being God, even though He was also human. (However, Jesus did voluntarily veil some of His divine attributes while on the Earth: Jn 17:5, 2 Cor 8:9, Phil 2:7.)
While there is no specific verse saying that Jesus was fully God and fully man, the reality of this is quite clear in Scripture. The Bible clearly shows that Jesus was “fully” human. He had a body, and experienced everything that a human experiences. He was born of a mother (Lk 2:7)(Gal 4:4), got hungry (Mt 4:2), got thirsty (Jn 19:28), got weary (Jn 4:6), slept (Mt 8:23-24)(Mk 4:38), was sorrowful (Jn 11:35)(Mt 26:38), died (Mk 15:37)(Lk 23:46), and more. The Bible also says that if anyone denies the humanity of Jesus, they are “antichrist” (1 Jn 4:2-3)(2 Jn 1:7).
In addition to this, the Bible shows that while He lived as a man, Jesus was also “fully” God. Jesus said He was God (Jn 8:58-59)(Jn 10:29-33)(Jn 5:16-18)(Mk 14:62-64), AND claimed attributes of God such as:
Omnipresence: (Mt 18:20)
Saying the angels were His: (Mt 13:41)(Mt 24:30-31)(Mt 25:31)(Mk 13:27)
Allowing Himself to be worshipped: (Mt 2:11)(Mt 2:2)(Mt 15:25)(Mt 28:17)(Jn 9:38)
Saying to pray to Him: (Jn 14:13-14)
Forgiving sins: (Lk 5:20-25)(Mk 2:1-12)(Mt 9:1-8)(Lk 7:47-50)
and more…
While I said above that there is no single verse that clearly says Jesus was fully God and fully man, there are several that pretty clearly point to this fact: (Col 2:9)(Jn 1:1,14)(1 Tim 3:16)(Isa 9:6)(Phil 2:5-8)(Rom 9:5)(Mt 1:23).
Putting all of this together gives us proof for the “hypostatic union.”
I like this short quote from an unknown author which sums it up well: “Remaining what He (Jesus) was, He (Jesus) became what He was not.”
***Note: Believing that Jesus is God crucial to our salvation (See: Q: #36.)
