The Incarnation, Quotation from Anthony Rogers

Anthony Rogers is a Christian that writes for AnsweringIslam.org and the paper I will be quoting from could be found  http://www.answering-islam.org/authors/rogers/incarnation_ot_objections.html.

"Muslims believe that all of this militates against the incarnation, but here, again, is another argument that does not apply to what the New Testament teaches or to what Christians believe. In the incarnation Christ did not cease to be God (John 8:58; Acts 20:28; 1 Corinthians 2:8; Colossians 2:9; etc.), so no change to His essential divine nature or character took place; rather, He took on Himself an additional nature, a human nature (Philippians 2:5-10; Romans 9:5; et al.). These two natures are united in His one person without either nature ceasing to be what it was or becoming what it was not. This belief is clearly expressed in the Chalcedonian Creed:

Therefore, following the holy fathers, we all with one accord teach men to acknowledge one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, at once complete in Godhead and complete in manhood, truly God and truly man, consisting also of a reasonable soul and body; of one substance with the Father as regards his Godhead, and at the same time of one substance with us as regards his manhood; like us in all respects, apart from sin; as regards his Godhead, begotten of the Father before the ages, but yet as regards his manhood begotten, for us men and for our salvation, of Mary the Virgin, the God-bearer; one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, Only-begotten, recognized in two natures, without confusion, without change, without division, without separation; the distinction of natures being in no way annulled by the union, but rather the characteristics of each nature being preserved and coming together to form one person and subsistence, not as parted or separated into two persons, but one and the same Son and Only-begotten God the Word, Lord Jesus Christ; even as the prophets from earliest times spoke of him, and our Lord Jesus Christ himself taught us, and the creed of the fathers has handed down to us. (Source)"

"Since the incarnation does not posit a change to Christ’s divine nature or character, the incarnation perfectly comports with the teaching of the Old Testament that God does not change. This is why it is not surprising to find not only that the same Old Testament that says God as God does not change and that His covenant faithfulness endures to all generations could appear in human form and would become a man, but the primary passage in the OT that conveys this truth also speaks of the Lord sending a herald ahead of Him to prepare the way for His coming and appearing at His temple, which is hardly what one would expect from a passage that is supposed to weigh in against the incarnation"

"Behold, I am going to send My messenger, and he will clear the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; and the messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says the Lord of hosts. “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap. He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the Lord offerings in righteousness. Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in the days of old and as in former years. “Then I will draw near to you for judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers and against the adulterers and against those who swear falsely, and against those who oppress the wage earner in his wages, the widow and the orphan, and those who turn aside the alien and do not fear Me,” says the Lord of hosts. “For I, the Lord, do not change; therefore you, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed. From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from My statutes and have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of hosts. “But you say, ‘How shall we return?’” (Malachi 3:1-7)"

"As all of the foregoing demonstrates, God did in fact dwell and appear in time and space during the Old Covenant age, which is proof positive that there is nothing about the New Testament teaching that is not congenial to previous revelation. All attempts by Muslims to pit the OT against the NT in this regard must therefore be seen as abortive efforts. Muslims should learn from all of this not to impose their understanding on the OT or pretend that Christians are in the same boat as they are when Muslims deny or contradict previous revelation. The New Testament is consistent with the Old Testament. The Qur’an is inconsistent with both".

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