One of the most challenging ideas for those coming from a Muslim background is the concept that God could have a Son. Many wonder: Doesn’t this idea compromise the oneness of God? Isn’t calling Jesus the “Son of God” blasphemous? How could an eternal, infinite God have a son?
These are understandable questions. To address them, we need to explore what the Bible really means when it calls Jesus the “Son of God.” It’s not about God having a physical son, as humans do, but about a deep, spiritual reality. Let’s walk through this together.
1. “Son of God” is NOT a Biological Son
When Christians say Jesus is the Son of God, they’re not saying that God had a physical relationship to produce a child. The Bible rejects any idea of God having a physical partner or offspring. Instead, the term “Son of God” is a title that reflects a spiritual and eternal relationship between God the Father and Jesus.
In human terms, a son shares the same nature as his father. In the same way, when Jesus is called the Son of God, it means He shares the same divine nature as God. This is about identity and relationship, not physical birth.
2. Jesus as the Perfect Representation and Manifestation of God
In Hebrews 1:3, it says:
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being.
This means that Jesus shows us exactly what God is like. When you see Jesus’ compassion, wisdom, and power, you are seeing God’s character made visible. Throughout the Gospels, Jesus speaks about His unique relationship with God the Father. In John 10:30, Jesus says:
I and the Father are one.
This statement shows that Jesus shares the same essence and unity with God.
The religious leaders who heard this understood it as a claim to divinity. They even tried to stone Him for blasphemy (John 10:31-33). Jesus wasn’t claiming to be a separate god but was revealing His oneness with God.
3. In the context of the Old Testament: God's Anointed One Foretold in the book of Daniel
The Book of Daniel contains remarkable prophecies about the coming of a figure both divine and human. In Daniel 7:13-14, the prophet describes a vision:
I saw one like a son of man coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into His presence. He was given authority, glory, and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him.
This “Son of Man” is no ordinary human. He comes "with the clouds of heaven," a phrase reserved for God Himself (see Psalm 104:3). Yet, he is "like a son of man," clearly emphasizing his humanity. Astonishingly, all nations worship him, an honor given only to God in the Bible (Exodus 34:14). This points to a being who is both fully divine and fully human.
Daniel 9 adds clarity with its prophecy of the “Anointed One” who would come to atone for sin (Daniel 9:24-26). Jesus fulfills these prophecies perfectly. In the Gospels, He refers to Himself as the “Son of Man” over 80 times, connecting His mission to Daniel’s vision. Jesus alone reconciles humanity with God as both the divine Son and the human Savior.
Could anyone else meet these extraordinary claims?
4. In the context of the Old Testament: Isaiah’s Prophecy of the Coming of a Divine Figure
The book of Isaiah offers remarkable insights into the coming of a Savior who is both fully God and fully man. Isaiah 7:14 foretells,
The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel—a name meaning “God with us.
This hints at a miraculous birth, signaling divine intervention.
In Isaiah 9:6, the Messiah is described as “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
These titles are extraordinary: how could a child be “Mighty God” unless He possesses divine nature?
Isaiah 53 presents this same figure as a suffering servant, one who “was pierced for our transgressions” (v. 5). Only a being who is both human (to suffer) and divine (to bear sin’s penalty) could fulfill this role.
Isaiah weaves together God’s promise of a Savior who bridges heaven and earth, pointing to Jesus as the fulfillment of these ancient prophecies.
5. God’s Word Made Flesh
Another way to understand this is through the idea of God’s Word. Just as our words express who we are, God’s Word expresses His thoughts and being. In John 1:1, it says:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
Then, in John 1:14, we read:
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.
Jesus’ birth wasn’t the beginning of His existence. He existed eternally with God before He came into the world. Jesus is God’s eternal Word who took on human form. When we hear Jesus’ teachings and see His life, we encounter God communicating with us directly.
6. The Incarnation: God’s Love Made Personal and Accessible
The idea that God has a Son ties directly to the concept of the Incarnation—God becoming human. In Luke 1:35, the angel Gabriel tells Mary:
The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.
The Incarnation means that God, in His infinite love, stepped into human history to reveal Himself, to rescue us from sin, and to offer us a relationship with Him.
Calling Jesus the Son of God also emphasizes that He reveals God to us perfectly. In John 14:9, Jesus says:
Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.
Jesus is the visible, living expression of God’s character and love. Through His words, actions, and life, we come to understand who God is. This is not about God having a son in a physical sense; it’s about God expressing Himself in a way we can understand.
Analogies that may help us understand more
No metaphor can perfectly capture the mystery of Jesus' divine identity as the Son of God. These examples below are all imperfect, but they do provide a clearer picture of the uniqueness and direct relationship between God the Father and the Son.1. The Sun and Its Light
Imagine the sun in the sky. You can’t look directly at it because it’s too intense. However, you can experience its light and warmth. The light comes from the sun, and you can say the light is the sun’s direct expression.
In the same way, God is vast, holy, and beyond our comprehension. Jesus is like the light of the sun—He is the visible, tangible expression of God on earth. When we encounter Jesus, we encounter God Himself. Hebrews 1:3 says, “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being.”
2. An Adaptor for a High-Voltage Power Source
Imagine you have an electrical device that runs on a specific voltage. Plugging it directly into a high-voltage power source would immediately destroy it because the power is too strong. To use this device safely, you need an adaptor specifically designed to regulate the power, making it accessible and safe.
This adaptor has to fit the high-voltage power source (Son of God) on one end, and fit the small electrical device on the other end (Son of Man) at the same time in order to act as a functional connector of the two.
Just as an adaptor doesn’t reduce the nature of the power source but translates it safely, Jesus doesn’t diminish God’s nature. Instead, He expresses God’s fullness in a way that we can engage with personally. As John 1:14 says: “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.”
3. A Voice on the Phone
Imagine a loved one calls you on the phone. When you hear their voice, you know it’s them. Your loved one is not physically inside the phone, but the voice represents their presence perfectly.
Through Jesus, we hear God speaking directly to us, expressing His heart, love, and truth. When Jesus spoke and acted, it was God Himself speaking and acting through Him.
4. A Seal and Its Impression
In ancient times, a king would use a seal to stamp official documents. The impression made by the seal perfectly matched the seal itself and carried the king’s full authority.
Jesus carries God’s authority, power, and nature. Colossians 2:9 says,
In Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form.
When we look at Jesus, we see God’s full authority and identity expressed perfectly.
Why This Matters
When addressing the profound question of God sending His Son to earth, the Bible emphasizes the "WHY" far more than the "HOW." It focuses on the purpose—restoring our broken relationship with God through Jesus' sacrifice—rather than delving into the mechanics of the process. This reveals the Bible’s overarching priority: not to present intellectual riddles, but to convey the life-changing truth of God’s mercy and His deep desire to draw us closer to Him for eternity.
God is holy, infinite, and beyond our full understanding. How could we ever know Him? If God is truly loving and desires to be known by His creation, then His ability to express Himself through Jesus makes perfect sense. Jesus, the Son of God, shows us who God is in a personal, relatable way. In Him, we see God’s mercy, justice, and love in action.
The concept of Jesus as the Son of God is also not about blind belief, but a coherent explanation for how an infinite God can personally relate to finite humanity. If you are searching for truth, consider examining the teachings and claims of Jesus with an open mind.
