Can something be difficult to understand and still be true?
Christians believe that Jesus was God and Man, having two natures: The God-Man. This is what is taught in the pages of Scripture. While these two natures existing together may be difficult to comprehend, our difficulty understanding something doesn't make it untrue. Some skeptics ask "where did Jesus say, "I am God, Worship Me?" How many auto companies put the word "Car" on their product? None- because it is plain by it's function and existence that it is a car. Jesus proclaimed to be God in ways far more powerfully and profound than just saying "I am God", as we will see.
Jesus is the "I AM" of the Old Testament
“And God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." And He said, "Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, I AM has sent me to you.” Exodus 3:14
"Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM." Then they took up stones to throw at Him;……” John 8:58-59
"To the religious Jew, Jesus was declaring that he was the eternal being of God. This explains why they sought to kill him with stones. In their eyes, this was blasphemy for a man to ascribe to himself one of the most well known titles of God Himself. “I AM” can mean nothing less than a claim to be God, the LORD. In the Old Testament, Yehovah (yeh-ho-vaw') is (the) self-Existent or Eternal; Jehovah, Jewish national name of God: If all Jesus wanted to say was that he existed before Abraham, all He had to do was to use the imperfect tense “I was”. But this would not have caused a riot and an assassination attempt.” Dr. Robert Morey
“….the present tense “I am” predicates absolute existence for the person of Jesus, with no point of beginning at all…….Thus with the simplest words Jesus testifies to the divine, eternal pre-existence of his person” R.C.H. Lenski
"Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM." Then they took up stones to throw at Him;……” John 8:58-59
"To the religious Jew, Jesus was declaring that he was the eternal being of God. This explains why they sought to kill him with stones. In their eyes, this was blasphemy for a man to ascribe to himself one of the most well known titles of God Himself. “I AM” can mean nothing less than a claim to be God, the LORD. In the Old Testament, Yehovah (yeh-ho-vaw') is (the) self-Existent or Eternal; Jehovah, Jewish national name of God: If all Jesus wanted to say was that he existed before Abraham, all He had to do was to use the imperfect tense “I was”. But this would not have caused a riot and an assassination attempt.” Dr. Robert Morey
“….the present tense “I am” predicates absolute existence for the person of Jesus, with no point of beginning at all…….Thus with the simplest words Jesus testifies to the divine, eternal pre-existence of his person” R.C.H. Lenski
The LORD is the Savior in the Old Testament
"I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour." (Isa 43:11 KJV)
(Isa 49:26 KJV) "And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; and they shall be drunken with their own blood, as with sweet wine: and all flesh shall know that I the LORD am thy Savior and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob."
(Hosea 13:4 KJV) "Yet I am the LORD thy God from the land of Egypt, and thou shalt know no god but me: for there is no savior beside me."
The LORD Himself has declared that there is no savior besides Him. Since the New Testament repeatedly calls Jesus "Savior", what conclusion do we come to?
The New Testament Delares Jesus as the Savior
(Luke 2:11 KJV) "For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord."
(John 4:42 KJV) "And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world."
(Acts 13:23 KJV) "Of this man's seed hath God according to his promise raised unto Israel a Saviour, Jesus:"
(Phil 3:20 KJV) "For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ:"
(2 Tim 1:10 KJV) "But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel:"
Yahweh of the Old Testament declares He is the only Savior. Christ in the New Testament is declared to be the savior. This means there can only be one savior and He also is God. This is what we would expect to find having a Trinitarian view of God in the Scriptures.
(Isa 49:26 KJV) "And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; and they shall be drunken with their own blood, as with sweet wine: and all flesh shall know that I the LORD am thy Savior and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob."
(Hosea 13:4 KJV) "Yet I am the LORD thy God from the land of Egypt, and thou shalt know no god but me: for there is no savior beside me."
The LORD Himself has declared that there is no savior besides Him. Since the New Testament repeatedly calls Jesus "Savior", what conclusion do we come to?
The New Testament Delares Jesus as the Savior
(Luke 2:11 KJV) "For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord."
(John 4:42 KJV) "And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world."
(Acts 13:23 KJV) "Of this man's seed hath God according to his promise raised unto Israel a Saviour, Jesus:"
(Phil 3:20 KJV) "For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ:"
(2 Tim 1:10 KJV) "But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel:"
Yahweh of the Old Testament declares He is the only Savior. Christ in the New Testament is declared to be the savior. This means there can only be one savior and He also is God. This is what we would expect to find having a Trinitarian view of God in the Scriptures.
The Old Testament declares 2 LORDS (Yahwehs) in 1 Verse AND two persons claiming to be the First and the Last
(Isa 44:6 KJV) "Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God."
Also declared by Jesus….
(Rev 1:17 KJV) "And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:"
Yahweh is the first and the last AND Jesus is the first and the last. For Jesus to say He is the first and the last, He can only be attributing deity to Himself. This is what we would expect to find having a Trinitarian view of God in the Scriptures.
Also declared by Jesus….
(Rev 1:17 KJV) "And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:"
Yahweh is the first and the last AND Jesus is the first and the last. For Jesus to say He is the first and the last, He can only be attributing deity to Himself. This is what we would expect to find having a Trinitarian view of God in the Scriptures.
Paul and John Declare Jesus is God
(Titus 2:13 KJV) "Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;"
(Rom 9:5 KJV) "Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen."
(1 John 5:20 KJV) "And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life."
(Rom 9:5 KJV) "Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen."
(1 John 5:20 KJV) "And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life."
Jesus Making Himself Equal with God
(John 10:33 KJV) "The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God."
Mark 2:5-11 “Son, your sins are forgiven….” (The scribes correctly responded), “who can forgive sins, but God?”
(John 5:21 KJV) "For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will."
(John 5:23 KJV) "That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him."
Mark 2:5-11 “Son, your sins are forgiven….” (The scribes correctly responded), “who can forgive sins, but God?”
(John 5:21 KJV) "For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will."
(John 5:23 KJV) "That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him."
God the Father declares Jesus to be God. But to the Son He says: "Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. Hebrews 1:8
This verse is a quote from Psalm 45:6. The force of the argument being made by the writer of Hebrews is that Jesus is better than the angels. Here is a passage that clearly calls Jesus God. |
25 Quotes By Early Church Fathers (Prior to Constantine) Expressing their Belief in Christ's Deity
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DEBATE: Is Jesus God According to the Bible? (Part One)
James White Vs. Jalal Abualrub
"Depend on it, my hearer, you never will go to heaven unless you are prepared to worship Jesus Christ as God." Charles Spurgeon