The Uniqueness of Christ

As one reads the Bible it is impossible not to come away with the realization that Jesus Christ is truly unique. In this short devotion I would like to share eight ways in which Christ manifested his uniqueness.

Unique in His Deity and Humanity (1)

Of all the religious leaders and people who have ever lived Jesus is unique in that He was both fully human and fully God. Jesus was fully God and fully man in one person. Christ, throughout His entire life,  was always 100% man and 100% God. This is one of the great mysteries of Scripture. Trying to fully comprehend how this is possible can only be reconciled in the mind of God. We just need to accept this and marvel at the uniqueness of Christ.

Unique in His Conception (2)

Christ was miraculously conceived. While Adam was miraculously created by God from the dust of the earth, only Christ was miraculously conceived through virgin conception. (Matthew 1:22-23) clearly states this: “All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’ (which means ‘God with us’).”

Unique in Messianic Prophecies (3)

Centuries before His birth we read in the Old Testament numerous prophecies pertaining to His birth, death, resurrection, and uniqueness. Norman Geisler shares the following comments:

“The Old Testament, which even the most ardent critic acknowledges was in existence centuries before Christ, predicted the where (Micah 5:2), the when (Dan. 9:26), and the how (Isa. 7:14) of Christ’s entry into the world. He would be born of a woman (Gen. 3:15) from the line of Adam’s son Seth (Gen. 4:26), through Noah’s son Shem (Gen. 9:26-27), and Abraham (Gen. 12:3; 15:5). He would come through the tribe of Judah (Gen. 49:10) and would be the son of David (2 Sam. 7:12f.). The Old Testament predicted that Christ would die for our sins (Psalm 22; Isaiah 53; Dan. 9:26; Zech. 12:10) and would rise from the dead (Pss. 2:7; 16:10).

“All of these supernatural prophecies were uniquely fulfilled in Jesus Christ. This is not true of any great religious leader or person who has ever lived, including Muhammad.”1

Unique in His Sinlessness (4)

We read in (Hebrews 4:15): “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.” We know that all humanity is under the curse of sin – it’s our nature to sin. However, Christ never sinned and as a result was uniquely qualified to paid our sin debt before the Father. No other religious leader can make this claim – only Jesus was sinless.

Unique in His Life (5)

Jesus Christ truly lived a unique life. From His claim to be God, to His message of salvation in no other name but His, to His ability to read minds, to His incredible amount of supernatural miracles, no one has ever led such a unique life.

Unique in His Death (6)

Geisler, again makes the following telling remarks about Christ’s death:

“Events surrounding Christ’s death were miraculous. This included the darkness from noon to 3 P.M. (Mark 15:33) and the earthquake that opened the tombs and rent the temple veil (Matt. 27:51-54). The manner in which he suffered the excruciating torture of crucifixion was miraculous. The attitude he maintained toward his mockers and executioners was miraculous, saying, ‘Father forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing’ (Luke 23:34). The way in which he actually died was miraculous. As Jesus said, ‘I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord’ (John 10:18). At the very moment of his departure, he was not overcome by death. Rather, he voluntarily dismissed his spirit. ‘Jesus said, ‘It is finished.’ With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit’ (John 19:30).”2

Unique in His Resurrection (7)

While there are several accounts in the Bible of people being raised from the dead all of these people eventually died. Only Jesus died, was resurrected, and stayed alive – ascending into heaven. In addition, the Old Testament predicted He would die and be resurrected. And Jesus, Himself, made the same bold prediction right from the start of His public ministry.

Unique in His Impact on the World (8)

Without question Jesus has made a greater impact in our world than any other person in history. Perhaps historian, Philip Schaff, summed it up best when he shared:

“This Jesus of Nazareth, without money and arms conquered more millions than Alexander, Caesar, Mohammed, and Napoleon; without science or learning, He has shed more light on things human and divine than all philosophers and scholars combined; without the eloquence of schools, He spoke such words of life as were never spoken before or since, and produced effects which lie beyond the reach of orator or poet; without writing a single line, He set more pens in motion and furnished themes for more sermons, orations, discussions, learned volumes, works of art, and songs of praise, than the whole army of great men of ancient and modern times.”3

Even, H. G. Wells, the famous English writer and historian, commented: “I am an historian, I am not a believer, but I must confess as a historian that this penniless preacher from Nazareth is irrevocably the very center of history. Jesus Christ is easily the most dominant figure in all history.”4

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1 The Uniqueness of Christ – JA Show Articles

2 The Uniqueness of Christ – JA Show Articles

3 Goodreads.com: https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/8345526-jesus-of-nazareth-without-money-and-arms-conquered-more-millions

4 Apologetics315.com: https://apologetics315.com/2013/06/h-g-wells-on-the-historicity-of-jesus/