What does it mean that Jesus is the Son of God? (Part One)

Pastor Robert L. Taylor
Sep 21
2 min read

I was asked the question, “If the Bible says Jesus is the Son of God, how is it that Christians say that He is God?” The term Son of God is used in reference to Jesus more than a few times in the New Testament. John says, “These are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name” (John 20:31). If believing that Jesus is the Son of God brings life in His name, it is absolutely necessary that we understand what that means. Some people hear “Son of God” and think Jesus must be less than God, like a created being, a child, or someone secondary. But in Scripture, that title means something much deeper. The title emphasizes Jesus's full divinity, shared divine nature with the Father, and supreme authority, rather than a subordinate status or physical origin. Jesus is not God’s Son in the sense of a human father and a son. God did not get married and have a son. Jesus is God’s Son in the sense that He is God made manifest in human form (John 1:1, 14). Jesus is God’s Son in that He was conceived in Mary by the Holy Spirit. The Bible declares, “The angel answered, 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God’” (Luke 1:35). When Adam sinned (Genesis 3:9–12), he brought a “sin nature” to humanity, which was passed down to all of Adam's children (Romans 5:12, 17–18). Jesus' conception by the Holy Spirit, rather than by a human father, accomplishes two purposes. It makes Jesus free from sin that all fathers pass to their children. It also fulfills prophecy that the Messiah would be born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14). The title Son of God doesn’t lower Jesus. It reveals His full divine nature as God. Be encouraged!