Is Jesus Really Divine?
Dr. John Hoole
Is Jesus divine? or was he nothing other than a mere man. Is it possible that as a mere man, he felt so strongly about his moral teaching, that not even crucifixion could sway him?
While these questions might seem silly to a person of faith, they are urgently relevant to millions of people. Each new generation must face these questions, confront them, wrestle with them and come to a conclusion. Further, one must decide, choose for or against. There is no other alternative.
It is not wise to simply dismiss these questions because, if Christ is who he claimed to be, everything hinges on belief in him through faith.
Mark 16:16 tells us:
“He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned”
On the other hand, if Jesus is NOT the Son of God and perfectly one with the Father as the gospels indicate his claim to be, then there is little use in fretting over his true nature or worrying about entering into a personal relationship with him. If he is not God, then Jesus is long dead, passed into history as just another interesting but ultimately lost, inconsequential figure.
Or was—is—Jesus someone entirely unique in the history of the universe itself? He certainly was someone making outlandish, radical, even blasphemous claims that could upset the entire balance of things. What Jesus’ taught tore at their core beliefs and way of life.
This Jesus, who grew up among a simple family in Nazareth claimed many things.
Today we are going to examine the claims made by Jesus as it relates to divinity.
1. He claimed to be one with the Father!
John 10:30 NKJV
30 I and My Father are one."
You only need to look at the reaction of the Jewish religious leaders to prove Christ was claiming deity equal to the Father.
John 10:31-33 NKJV
31 Then the Jews took up stones again to stone Him.
32 Jesus answered them, "Many good works I have shown you from My Father. For which of those works do you stone Me?"
33 The Jews answered Him, saying, "For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a Man, make Yourself God."
They were about to stone him because he was claiming to be God.
2. Christ said that he lived before Abraham.
John 8:56-59 NKJV
56 Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad."
57 Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?"
58 Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."
59 Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.
The religious leaders knew exactly that Jesus was claiming to be eternal.
He has always existed.
3. Jesus said His works are the same as His Father.
John 5:17-18 NKJV
17 But Jesus answered them, "My Father has been working until now, and I have been working."
18 Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.
Again, notice the thought and reaction of the religious leaders
Jesus repeatedly placed Himself in the place of Yahweh, assuming the Father’s divine prerogative.
4. Jesus claimed to have been given authority to judge.
Matthew 25:31 NKJV
31 "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.”
Immediately in the following verses, He speaks of judging the sheep and goat nations.
John 5:26-27 NKJV
26 For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself,
27 and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man.
5. Jesus claimed authority to raise the dead.
John 5:28 NKJV
28 Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice
6. Jesus claimed authority to forgive sins.
Mark 2:5-7 NKJV
5 When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven you."
6 And some of the scribes were sitting there and reasoning in their hearts,
7 "Why does this Man speak blasphemies like this? Who can forgive sins but God alone?"
For corroboration of what the religious leaders said, notice Isaiah 43:25.
25 "I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; And I will not remember your sins.
7. Jesus claimed power to answer prayers.
John 14:13 NKJV
13 And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
8. Jesus claimed omnipresence – able to be with each of us at the same moment.
Matthew 28:19-20 NKJV
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.
9. Jesus accepted worship
In Luke 4:8, Jesus said:
8. For it is written, 'You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.'
After Jesus’ resurrection, Thomas the doubting disciple finally understood Jesus’ deity, declaring Him to be “my Lord and my God” (John 20:28).
If Jesus were not Lord and God, He would have corrected Thomas, but He did not; Thomas spoke the truth.
After seeing Jesus walking on the water, His disciples worshipped Him (Matthew 14:33).
When He appeared to them after the resurrection, they fell at His feet and worshipped Him (Matthew 28:9).
The disciples were well aware of the Mosaic Law’s penalty for blasphemy, yet they worshipped Him as God, and Jesus accepted their worship. Jesus never rebuked people for worshipping Him, accepting their worship as good and proper.
In Revelation, an angel instructed the apostle John NOT to worship him, but only worship God (Revelation 19:10).
10. Jesus accepted being called “the Messiah, Son of the Blessed.”
In Mark 14, Jesus stands accused at His trial before the High Priest.
Mark 14:61-62 NKJV
61 But He kept silent and answered nothing. Again the high priest asked Him, saying to Him, "Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?"
62 Jesus said, "I am. And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven."
Here, Jesus is referring to the Old Testament book of Daniel. Here is what he wrote.
Daniel 7:13-14 NKJV
13 I was watching in the night visions, and behold, One like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him.
14 Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom the one Which shall not be destroyed.
In this reference to Daniel’s vision, Jesus is identifying Himself as the Son of Man. The Son of Man has a dominion that is everlasting and will not pass away. The High Priest immediately recognized Jesus’ claim to divinity.
Mark 14:63-64 NKJV
63 Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, "What further need do we have of witnesses?
64 You have heard the blasphemy! What do you think?" And they all condemned Him to be deserving of death.
But where’s the proof?
Claiming to be something, as Jesus claimed to be God, doesn’t make it true. Where’s the evidence that He is God?
Jesus’ identity isn’t based solely on what He says, but on what He does. And He has left a lot of evidence that He is God. That evidence includes fulfilled prophecy and recorded miracles.
Jesus reversed the laws of nature. He also lived a sinless life (Hebrews 4:15), something no one else has done. The ultimate proof of His divinity, however, was His resurrection from the dead after His death on the cross. This distinguishes Christ from all other religious founders.
Some who deny that Jesus is God make the claim that Jesus never said that He is God. It is correct that the Bible never records Jesus saying the precise words, “I am God.” This does not mean, however, that Jesus never claimed to be God.
Is Jesus God? — His followers declared Him to be God.
Not only did Jesus claim deity, the apostles also declared it. Let me begin with one of the most definitive statements by one of his fallowers. John describes the concept of Jesus’ deity this way.
John 1:1-3 KJV
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 The same was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
Jesus is called the “WORD” in this passage. There is no doubt about that, because just a few verses later, we read:
John 1:14 KJV
14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
These verses clearly indicate that Jesus is God in the flesh.
Acts 20:28 tells us, “Be shepherds of the church of God, which He bought with His own blood.” This verse tells us that God bought the church with His own blood? Who shed His own blood? Jesus Christ.
Revelation 1:5 tells us about Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, Jesus washed away our sins in His own blood. Why? Because He loved us!!
Titus 2:13 encourages us to be…
13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,
The apostle Peter echoes the same in the first verse of his second letter.
2 Peter 1:1 NKJV
1. Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteous-ness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:
In Hebrews 1:8, we find a quotation from Psalm 45 about a comment made by God the Father.
Hebrews 1:8 NKJV
8 But to the Son He says: "Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom.
Here, the Father refers to Jesus as God.
Is Jesus God? — The reason Jesus must be God.
The most important reason that Jesus must be God is that, if He is not God, His death would not have been sufficient to pay the penalty for the sins of the world (1 John 2:2).
A created being, which Jesus would be if He were not God, could not pay the infinite penalty required for sin against an infinite God. Only God could pay such an infinite penalty. Only God could take on the sins of the world (2 Corinthians 5:21), die, and be resurrected, proving His victory over sin and death.
Is Jesus God? Yes. Jesus declared Himself to be God. His followers believed Him to be God. The provision of salvation only works if Jesus is God.
Jesus is God incarnate, the eternal Alpha and Omega (Revelation 1:8; 22:13), and God our Savior (2 Peter 1:1).