Who Did Jesus Claim to Be?
Back on page 13 and 14 were listed a number of contradictory beliefs for Jesus
identity. Now we will look at who Jesus Himself claimed to be in the Bible:
1. Jesus Claimed to be God
In the Old Testament God calls Himself “I
Am” in Exodus 3:14. In the NT Jesus uses
the same name in John 8:58-59; the Jews realized what He was saying and picked
up rocks to stone Him because they knew He was
claiming to be God.
God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Say this to the
people of Israel”, “I AM has sent me to you.” Exodus
3:14.
Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham
was, I Am,” so they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and
went out of the temple. John 8:58-59
2. Jesus Claimed to be the Object of Prayer
Jesus claimed to be the mediator between God and man, thus He was claiming to be God.
How would you respond if I asked you to pray in my name?
“Whatever
you ask in my name, this I will do, that the
Father may be glorified in the Son.” John 14:13
3. Jesus Claimed to Forgive Sins
We can all forgive someone for sinning against us personally. But of the numerous
times Jesus forgave sins, He had just met the people so they had not sinned
against Him personally. He was forgiving their sins against God, something only
God can do.
“Son, your sins are forgiven.” Now some of the scribes were sitting there,
questioning in their hearts, “Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can
forgive sins but God alone?” Mark 2:5-7
4. Jesus Claimed to be Worthy of Honor Due God
The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor
the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not
honor the Father who sent him. John
5: 22-23
5. Jesus Claimed to be the Messiah – God in the OT
The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ).
When he comes, he will tell us all things.” Jesus said to her, “I who speak to
you am he.” John 4:25-26
Caiaphas asks Jesus, “Are you the Christ, the Son of
the Blessed?” And Jesus said, “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at
the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.”
Mark 14:61-62
6. Jesus Claimed to be Equal in Authority with God
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.” Matt. 24:35
And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” Matt. 28:18
7. Jesus Claimed to be Yahweh (LORD)
In the Old Testament, God is referred to in many ways. In the New Testament, the same
attributes are applied to Jesus and suggest He is God in the flesh.
Old Testament Name New Testament
Psalm 23:1 Shepherd Heb. 13:20
Isa.44:4 First & Last Rev. 1:17
Isa.40:28 Creator Col. 1:16-17
Isa.62:5 Bridegroom Mt. 25:1
Ps.27:1 Light Jn. 8:12
Isa. 43:11 Savior Jn. 4:42
Isa. 42:8 God’s Glory Jn. 17:5
1 Sam. 2:6 Giver of Life Jn. 5:21
Deut. 32:4 Rock 1 Cor. 10:4
Joel 3:12 Judge 2 Cor. 5:10
Revelation
tells us it is “The Revelation of Jesus Christ.” Revelation 1:17-18 are Jesus’
words claiming to be the First and Last, an Old Testament title in Isaiah 44:6 reserved
for God. He also says “I was dead and behold, I am alive forevermore,” which
only fits Jesus.
When
I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me,
saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and
behold I am alive forevermore, and I have
the keys of Death and Hades.” Rev. 1:17-18
8. Jesus Accepted Worship on Nine Occasions
Mother of James and John - Matt. 20:20, Possessed man - Mark 5:6, A blind man - Matt.
28:17, Doubting Thomas - Jn. 20:28, The women at the tomb - Matt. 28:9, A
Canaanite woman - Matt. 15:25, His disciples - Matt. 14:33, A healed leper - Matt.
8:2, A rich young ruler - Matt. 9:18.
Jesus was also a Rabbi and the first duty of a Rabbi is to point out blasphemy. Yet
Jesus never rebuked anyone who worshiped Him and even commended Thomas in John
20:29. In contrast, the apostle John tried to worship an angel in Revelation
22:9 and was rebuked. Jesus, on the other hand, accepts worship reserved for
God alone. He was more than an angel.
9. Jesus Claimed to be One with God the Father
Despite the claims of many popular books today, it is clear the Jewish witnesses had no
trouble figuring out Jesus was claiming to be God. They did not believe He was
God, so in the end they crucified Him for blasphemy (claiming to be God, using
God’s name in vain). They would have been right if He was not in fact God.
“I and the Father are one.” The Jews picked up stones again to stone him. Jesus
answered them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father; for which of
them are you going to stone me?” The Jews answered him, “It is not for a good
work that we are going to stone you but for blasphemy, because you, being a
man, make yourself God.” John 10:30-33
10. Why Does Jesus Call Himself the Son of Man?
In the first verse below, Daniel 7:13, “Son of Man” is the God figure in the Old
Testament. In John 8:28 Jesus calls himself the Son of Man, which He does 82
times in the (ESV) version the New Testament.
I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came
one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient
of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and
a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his
dominion is an ever-lasting dominion, which shall
not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed. Dan. 7:13-14
So Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know
that I am he, and that I do nothing on
my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me.” John 8:28
No matter who you or anyone else in popular culture think Jesus is, based on the
evidence it’s ludicrous to say that Jesus never claimed to be God.
Ten Points, Source: Bible, format adapted from Dr. Frank
Turek’s video series. I Do Not Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist.
“Additionally there is an enormous difference between who Jesus claimed to be when compared
to other leaders of different beliefs. Jesus claimed to be able to forgive
sin, He accepted worship numerous times, and He said He was the only way
to the Father. Only Jesus claimed equality with a sole, supreme deity. According to E.O. James, an authority on comparative religions, nowhere else had it ever been claimed that a
historical founder of any religion was the one and only supreme deity. Only
Jesus spoke on his own unquestioned authority. Zoroaster and Muhammad acted as
spokesmen for God, while Socrates and Buddha urged every man to consult his own
conscience.”Edwin M. Yamauchi, Professor Emeritus of history, Miami University.
http://www.irr.org/yamauchi.html“Indeed, it’s shocking to me how much of Jesus’ life can be established, including his
radical personal claims, his crucifixion, his burial in a tomb, the discovery
of his empty tomb, his post-mortem appearances, and his disciples’ coming to
believe suddenly and sincerely that God had raised him from the dead. We
therefore have quite solid reasons for believing in Christ on the basis of the
historical facts preserved about him in the gospels.”
Dr.William Lane Craig.
http://www.reasonablefaith.org/ Conclusion – Jesus’ claim to be God is supported
in many ways. He gave us the ultimate proof by rising from the dead
as He predicted. Therefore Jesus is God who came in the flesh.
I thought Jesus was the Son of God He is the Son of God; He shares the nature of God with the Father and the Holy Spirit. This is what is called the Trinity. One God as the Bible clearly tells
us but in three distinct persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. A very simple but limited analogy that seems to help people understand the Trinity is H2O. It can be water, ice, or steam - but
the nature of all three is H2O. It is the Father, Son and Holy Spirit but the nature of all three is
God. The Trinity is hard to fully comprehend, but it’s not contradictory since it
does not state there are three Gods and one God at the same time.
How could Jesus be God and Man The Bible tells us Jesus was a man and God
incarnate; Deity willingly clothed with humanity. When reading through the
Bible it is important to consider who is speaking and who the audience is. For
example many people who do not believe in the Bible, claim that Jesus said, “God
forgives” and think it applies to everyone. But in context, this is spoken only in reference to those who have placed their faith in Jesus. So it is obvious how important context is.
Therefore when you ask a question about Jesus a similar situation arises. The question needs to be asked in two ways.Was the Father greater than Jesus? As God no, as man yes. Did Jesus know the day and hour of His return? As God yes, as man no. Did Jesus get hungry? As God
no, as man yes. Did Jesus get tired? As God no, as man yes. Did Jesus die? As
God no, as man yes. Next, Dr. William Lane Craig uses an analogy that utilizes
the movie Avatar, to explain the two natures of Jesus:
