H ypostatic U nion

Abstract The hypostatic union of Christ is an essential Christological designation; it answers the question relating to the amalgamation of Christ's humanity and deity. The phenomenon of the two natures is known as the “hypostatic union,” as it is derived from the definition of faith in Hebrews 11:1 (“the assurance [subsistence, essence] of things hoped for”). The doctrine designates the actual and complete union of the human and divine natures of Christ. At the Council of Chalcedon (AD 451), the church declared the doctrine as describing the amal‐gamation of two genuine natures ( phuseis ) into one person ( hupostasis ). One may consider four requirements of a biblically based conception of the full humanity and deity of Christ, developed by the early Church: (a) he is truly and properly God; (b) he is truly and properly human; (c) the two genuine natures of deity and humanity are united in one person; and (d) each of the two genuine natures is properly distinct in one person. The New Testament assumes that Jesus Christ is one person who is both fully divine and fully human. John 3:13 refers to his descent from heaven as authentication of his deity, and yet he was called “the Son of Man,” which was used to mean the authentication of his humanity. Christ's encounter with the woman of Samaria affirms the hypostatic union. Christ's weariness “from his journey” (John 4:6) confirms he is truly and properly human. Moreover, when the Samaritan woman confessed, “Come, see a man who told me all the things that I have done” (John 4:29), it was confirmation of his omniscience. He is called “a descendant of David according to the flesh” (fully human) and “the Son of God” (fully divine) (Rom. 1:3–4). Christological controversies are always characterized by a violation of the four requirements previously stated.