One of the simplest ways to understand who Yeshua is is to ask a simple question:
When the apostles introduced Him to people who had never heard of Him before, what did THEY actually say?
No one in antiquity understood Yeshua better than the apostles. The book of Acts records the first sermons ever preached after Yeshua’s resurrection. If anyone knew how to describe Him correctly, surely it would be the men He personally chose and taught, living with and eating with them during His whole time ministering throughout the land of Israel.
What is striking is not merely what they said—but what they consistently didn’t say.
Again and again, the apostles proclaim first God, and THEN His Son, the Messiah.
Peter stood before Jerusalem and declared: “God has made [acting upon] this very Yeshua, whom you have executed, both יהוה and Messiah.” [Acts 2:36]
Notice the pattern. God acts. Yeshua is the One upon whom God acts. Peter does not say that God ׳became a man׳ like many do today. He proclaims that God raised, exalted, glorified, and enthroned His Messiah, “Yeshua the Nazarene, a MAN who was sent from God, who appeared among you…” He focused on His humanity, but appealed to His Divine nature at the same time. Yet the focus: “a MAN” [Acts 2:22], adding “this man, who was consecrated for this purpose…” in the next verse.
Only a few verses later he proclaimed: “This very Yeshua, God has raised up…” [v. 32] Then Peter explains, “It is He [Yeshua] who is exalted by the right hand of God, and has received from The Father the promise of The Ru’akh HaKodesh [Holy Spirit]. [v.33] Later he tells the people, “The GOD of Avraham and of Yitz’khak and of Ya’akov, the God of our Fathers, has glorified His Son Yeshua.” [Acts 3:13] Peter is consistent in his message, saying at another time, “The God of our fathers has raised up Yeshua whom you killed when you nailed Him on the tree. This very One, God has appointed a Prince and a Savior, and has lifted Him up to His right hand…” [Acts 5:31]
Throughout Peter’s preaching, the distinction remains clear. The Father sends. The Son is sent. The Father raises. The Son is raised. The Father exalts. The Son is exalted.
Stephen preached the same message. As he was being stoned, he looked into heaven and declared, “Behold I see the heavens opened and The Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” [Acts 7:56] He did not see one person, nor three persons. He saw God and Yeshua, a risen human being, standing at Almighty God’s right hand. The title “Son of Man” is how Yeshua referred to Himself the most, and the whole point of it is that He was God’s man, the Messiah, a living human being. He has been raised from the dead.
He did not describe Yeshua as being the One seated on the throne. He saw the Son beside the One whom Scripture calls God. Philip preached “the things concerning the Kingdom of God and the Name of Yeshua Messiah.”
Paul followed the same pattern. In Antioch he declared that God fulfilled His promises by raising up Yeshua. In Athens he proclaimed that God will judge the world through the Man whom He appointed, giving assurance by raising Him from the dead. Before governors and kings, Paul continually testified that God had raised His Messiah, His Son. This language is not occasional. It is not ‘ontological’ or philosophical. It is plain, everyday vocabulary. It is the normal vocabulary of the apostolic proclamation.
Over and over we encounter the same expressions:
- God sent His Son.
- God raised Him.
- God glorified Him.
- God exalted Him.
- God appointed Him.
- God made Him יהוה and Messiah.
- God seated Him at His right hand.
The emphasis is remarkably consistent. The apostles certainly proclaimed Yeshua’s unique authority, His sinlessness, His preexistence, His role as Judge, His kingship, and His divine commission. They called all people everywhere to bow before Him, obey Him, and believe in Him. But they also consistently identified Him as the One whom God sent.
Perhaps that should shape our own language. If our desire is to sound like the apostles, then perhaps we should proclaim Messiah the way they did. Not reducing His glory. Not diminishing His authority. But honoring Him exactly as the Father honored Him.
The book of Acts leaves us with an important question. If this was how the apostles introduced Yeshua to the world… Why do so many introduce Him differently today?