Many questions surround the Christian faith. One of the main questions that are asked by non-Christians and Christians alike is – how can Jesus be God? The answer to this question is of utmost importance since the nature of Jesus authenticates the claims and works of Jesus. What this means is if Jesus is God then all humans must respond to what culminates his earthly ministry – the cross and subsequent resurrection. Some claim that Jesus never explicitly states that He is God, but is this true?
Jesus from the beginning
The bible begins with the following statement “In the beginning God…” (Genesis 1:1). What this statement illustrates is that before the world was created there was God, this implies that God is the Creator and has not been created. Verse 3 then states “Then God said “Let there be light”, and there was light” (Genesis 1:3). So what we see is that God used words to bring forth creation. The gospel of John will later explain that the Word used to bring forth creation is Jesus Himself. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God”. (John 1:1). In this book, the writer lets his audience know that the Word was with God in the beginning. Who is this Word? Well, this Word put on flesh and dwelt among the people in the world (John 1:14). Who is this Word that put on flesh? Jesus. Philippians 2:7 states “Instead he emptied himself by assuming the form of a servant, taking on the likeness of humanity…,”. The Word of God is the Son of God who became a human so that through His life and death He might reconcile the world to Himself (John 1:1-3; 2 Corinthians 5:17-19). Jesus is God.
The Bible is axiomatic
The bible being axiomatic simply means that the Bible is self-authenticating. This means that the evidence for the truthfulness of the claims the bible makes can be found within the scriptures itself. The mistake we can make when trying to decipher the truthfulness of a claim is isolating one piece of information from a wider body of information. The issue faced regarding biblical literacy is that the bible is seen as several mini-stories rather than one cohesive story. Scripture progressively reveals not only who God is but that God will, through His Son, intervene in human history to be the long-awaited sacrifice mankind need to be redeemed from their sin and into fellowship with their maker. From the Seed being promised in the garden (Genesis 3:15) to King David prophesying that the Holy One will never see Decay (Psalm 16:8-11), to Daniel’s vision of the Son of Man (Daniel 7:9-14); there are over 500 prophecies that reference Jesus as the coming Messiah. Why is this important? Because the Bible calls this Messiah coming into the world God (Philippians 2:6-8).
Do you believe it?
If Jesus is God, will you believe? If you do believe, what have you done with this information? You see what the bible claims about Jesus are a big deal and this declaration cannot be met with indifference. Jesus was hated because He made Himself to be equal with God (John 5:18). Does this make you angry along with the Pharisees? Or does it fill you with awe? Jesus being God changes everything. Jesus being God means that we don’t have a God that is distant but One that is near. We serve a God who came into human history to not only defeat sin but to suffer alongside sinners. Jesus is God and the empty grave proves it.