THE HYPOSTATIC UNION 

Hypostatic Union – Is set forth officially in the definition of faith produced by the Council of Chalcedon in 451, concerns the union of the two natures of deity and humanity in one hypostasis or person of Jesus Christ.

Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary defines the word “union” as, “an act or instance of uniting or joining two or more things into one.” To unite is to put together 2 things to form a single unit. Christ unites in Himself: (1) The essence of God (2) The essence of man.

A. The term Hypostatic Union is a critical doctrine in Christology.

1. Christology is the study of Christ.

B. The word Hypostatic is a Bible Word meaning that it is derived from the original language of Scripture (Hebrews 1:2-3).

Hebrews 1:2-3 - has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds;

3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His “person” (Hy/pos/ta/sis or Hypostatic), and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,

1. The term hypostatic comes from the Greek word Hy/pos/ta/sis.

2. Hy/pos/ta/sis was a term that belonged to the realm of science and medicine, and has a variety of meanings in classical Greek.

3. Hy/pos/ta/sis means “essence,” “person” or “substance.”

Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary defines “essence”, “the properties or attributes by means of which something can be placed in its proper class or identified as being what it is.” The word essence refers the “nature of something.” The Doctrine of the hypostatic union teaches that our Lord’s deity and humanity were united.

C. The hypostatic union is the Christian doctrine that in the one person of Jesus there are presently two distinct natures,

1. The divine and human. 

2. That Jesus is God in flesh (John 1:1, 14, 10:30-33, 20:28, Phil. 2:5-8, Heb. 1:8).

D. He is fully God and fully man (Col. 2:9), thus, He has two natures: God and man.

Colossians 2:9 - For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily;

1. He is not half God and half man.

2. He is 100% God and 100% man.

3. He never lost His divinity.

4. He continued to exist as God when He became a man and added human nature to Himself (Phil. 2:5-11).

Philippians 2:5-11 - Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,

6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God,

7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.

8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,

10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth,

11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

E. Therefore, there is a “union in one person of a full human nature and a full divine nature.”

1. Right now in Heaven there is a man, Jesus, who is our Mediator between us and God the Father (1 Tim. 2:5).

1 Timothy 2:5 - For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus,

2. God did not become a man, but God added another nature.

3. In the incarnation, it was not the subtraction of deity, but the addition of humanity.

JESUS AS GOD                                                      JESUS AS MAN

He is worshipped (Matt. 2:2, 11, 14:33).              He worshipped the Father (John 17).

He is prayed to (Acts 7:59).                                    He prayed to the Father (John 17).

He is sinless (1 Pet. 2:22, Heb. 4:15).                  He was tempted (Matt. 4:1).

He knows all things (John 21:17).                         He grew in wisdom (Luke 2:52).

He gives eternal life (John 10:28).                        He died (Rom. 5:8).

The fullness of deity dwells in Him                        He has a body of flesh and (Col. 2:9).                                                                                bones (Luke 24:39).