Begotten Son?

[timwho]

What does it mean when the Nicene Creed says "the Only Begotten Son of God / born of the Father before all ages"

Does it mean that Jesus came out of the Father in ages past as it seems to imply, or does it mean something else? I'm having trouble understanding the meaning of "μονογενὴς" (begotten).

[cappie]

[quote name='timwho' timestamp='1341512663' post='2452552']
What does it mean when the Nicene Creed says "the Only Begotten Son of God / born of the Father before all ages"

Does it mean that Jesus came out of the Father in ages past as it seems to imply, or does it mean something else? I'm having trouble understanding the meaning of "μονογενὴς" (begotten).
[/quote]

[center][i][b]“the only Begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages”[/b][/i][/center]
The Bible leads us to understand the identity of this “Only Son” as “The Word of God” Who created all things in the beginning:
[i]In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be… And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us… (John 1:1-3, 14a)[/i]

The creed makes it clear that Christian believers know Jesus [b]to be[/b] this Word of God now made flesh, and experience him in a profoundly personal way:
[i]And we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth…
No one has ever seen God. The only Son, God, who is at the Father’s side, has revealed him. (John 1:1-3, 14, 18)[/i]

The word [b][i]“Son,”[/i][/b] as does the word [b][i]“Father,”[/i][/b] evoke kinship – intimate personal relationship with one another. The Word of God that became flesh is more than just [i]what[/i] God is. The Word of God that became flesh in Jesus is [b][i]“the only Begotten Son,”[/i] a personal [i]“You”[/i][/b] at the core of [i]Who[/i] God is. The truth proclaimed in this is that [b]a personal God[/b] has broken into the world in a new way to seek out the broken, to heal, to regenerate, and to draw all things back together with one another in a life-giving whole.

As God, the Word of God, the only Son of God has no beginning. He was [b][i]“not made.”[/i][/b] He was not created and is not a creature. [b][i]“Born of the Father before all ages”[/i][/b] means “always and ever has been.” [b][i]“Begotten”[/i][/b] here means “emerging from,” “flowing from,” “constituent of” who God is. The Word of God, the Only Son of God who became flesh in Jesus always and ever has been emerging from, flowing from, and constituent of who God is – and as such, has no beginning to his existence. He always was and always will be. He is [b][i]“God from God, Light from Light, True God from True God.”[/i][/b]

The phrase “only begotten Son” occurs in John 3:16, the phrase "only begotten" translates the Greek word monogenes. This word is variously translated into English as "only," "one and only," and "only begotten." It's this last phrase ("only begotten" ) that causes problems. Some have latched onto this phrase to try to prove their teaching that Jesus Christ isn't God; i.e., that Jesus isn't equal in essence to God as the Second Person of the Trinity. They see the word "begotten" and say that Jesus is a created being because only someone who had a beginning in time can be "begotten." What this fails to note is that "begotten" is an English translation of a Greek word. As such, we have to look at the original meaning of the Greek word, not transfer English meanings into the text.

According to the Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature ( 3rd Edition), monogenes has two primary definitions. The first definition is "pertaining to being the only one of its kind within a specific relationship." This is the meaning attached to its use in Hebrews 11:17 when the writer refers to Isaac as Abraham's "only begotten son." Abraham had more than one son, but Isaac was the only son he had by Sarah and the only son of the covenant.

The second definition is "pertaining to being the only one of its kind or class, unique in kind." This is the meaning that is implied in John 3:16. In fact, John is the only New Testament writer who uses this word in reference to Jesus (see John 1:14, 18; 3:16, 18; 1 John 4:9). John was primarily concerned with demonstrating that Jesus was the Son of God (John 20:31), and he uses this word to highlight Jesus as uniquely God's Son—sharing the same divine nature as God—as opposed to believers who are God's sons and daughters through faith.

The bottom line is that terms such as "Father" and "Son," that are descriptive of God and Jesus, are human terms used to help us understand the relationship between the different Persons of the Trinity.