Fully divine and fully human; eternal Son incarnate; Chalcedonian two-nature Christology
The LCMS confesses Jesus Christ as the eternal Son of God, coequal and coeternal with the Father and the Holy Spirit. He is truly God and truly man—two natures (divine and human) united in one person (hypostasis) without confusion, change, division, or separation. This Christology affirms the Chalcedonian definition and is foundational to LCMS theology.
Jesus Christ was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life, suffered genuine human suffering and temptation, died on the cross as an atoning sacrifice for the sins of all people, rose bodily and physically from the dead on the third day, ascended to the right hand of God the Father, and will return visibly to judge the living and the dead.
The doctrine of the communicatio idiomatum (communication of attributes or properties) is affirmed—the divine and human natures of Christ share in each other's operations and attributes in a mysterious but real way. Jesus is the sole Mediator between God and humanity, the unique God-man through whom alone salvation comes. He is confessed as Lord, Savior, Judge, and King worthy of worship and adoration.
Key Distinctions
- Natures formula:
- properties and operations shared between the natures in the one person
- Christological emphasis:
- affirmed — born of Mary, conceived by the Holy Spirit; Mary remains honored
Scripture References
Sources
- Book of Concord: Augsburg Confession, Article III (Christ); Formula of Concord on Christology
- Chalcedonian Definition (AD 451)