As the God-man, Christ was born of a human virgin and therefore has the essence of man (Luke 1:31; Gal. 4:4). Christ was born of a human virgin with the human essence. In Luke 1:27 and 31 we see that a virgin named Mary conceived in her womb and bore a son whose name was Jesus.
Because the God-man was conceived of the Holy Spirit with the divine essence and was born of a human virgin with the human essence, He has two essences, the divine and the human. Such a conception of the Holy Spirit in a human virgin, accomplished with both the divine and the human essences, constitutes a mingling of the divine nature with the human nature, producing the God-man, the One who is both the complete God and a perfect man, possessing the divine nature and the human nature distinctively, without a third nature being produced. This is the most wonderful and excellent person of Christ in His incarnation.
The conception of the God-man was God’s incarnation, constituted not only by the divine power but also of the divine essence added to the human essence, hence producing the God-man of two natures—divinity and humanity. Through this, God joined Himself to humanity so that He might be manifested in the flesh.
Some Bible teachers have failed to understand the matter of mingling in Christ’s conception. In ancient times there was a debate regarding the word “mingling,” a debate concerning the mingling of the divine essence and the human essence in the person of the Lord Jesus. Some who did not understand this mingling said that it caused a third nature to be produced, something which is neither divine nor human. It is a great heresy to say that Jesus Christ is not quite God nor quite man but a third entity with a third nature, something neither God nor man. To say that with respect to the Lord Jesus the mingling of the divine essence with the human essence produced a third nature, a nature that is neither fully human nor fully divine, is heretical. The first definition of the word mingle given in Webster’s Abridged Dictionary is: “to combine or join (one thing with another, or two or more things together), especially so that the original elements are distinguishable in the combination.” According to this definition, when two or more things are mingled together, their original natures are not lost but remain distinguishable. This certainly is the situation regarding Christ as the God-man. He was conceived of two essences, the divine and the human. Hence, He is a mingling of God and man. But in Him both the divine essence and the human essence remain and are distinguishable. These essences are mingled in Him as one person without the producing of a third nature. As the God-man He possesses two natures, and in Him each nature is distinguishable.
In Luke 1:35 Christ is called “the holy thing.” Because the conceiving was of the Holy Spirit, what was born of this conception was a holy thing, something intrinsically holy. As the holy thing, Christ was absolutely for God and separated unto God. He was absolutely unto God and one with Him.
The name Jesus was given by God. The angel Gabriel told Mary that the child she would conceive was to be called Jesus (Luke 1:31). Later, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph and also told him to call the child Jesus (Matt. 1:21). Hence, “Jesus” was a God-given name.
Luke 1:31 says, “Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call His name Jesus.” “Jesus” is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew name Joshua (Num. 13:16), which means Jehovah the Savior, or the salvation of Jehovah. Therefore, Jesus is not only a man but also Jehovah, and not only Jehovah but Jehovah becoming our salvation.
The name Jesus includes the name Jehovah. In Hebrew “God” means the mighty One, and “Jehovah” means I Am (Exo. 3:14). The verb “to be” in Hebrew refers not only to the present but also includes the past and the future. Hence, the correct meaning of Jehovah is I Am That I Am, the One who is now in the present, who was in the past, and who will be in the future and in eternity forever. This is Jehovah.
Only God is the eternal One. From eternity past to eternity future, He is the I Am. Because the Lord Jesus is God incarnate, He could say of Himself, “Before Abraham came into being, I am” (John 8:58). Furthermore, He could say to the Jews, “Unless you believe that I am, you shall die in your sins,” and, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am” (John 8:24, 28). We need to realize that Jesus is the I Am and believe in Him as the I Am. The Lord Jesus is whatever we need. If we need salvation, He Himself will be salvation to us. Whatever we need, He is. He is life, light, power, wisdom, righteousness, holiness. Everything we need is found in Him.