Why I believe that the Scriptures teach that Jesus is God
Recently, in the first non-spam comment that I have received to one of my posts, one identifying himself as "one of Jehovah's Witnesses" asked me to explain why I believe that the Scriptures teach that Jesus is God incarnate. It has taken me some time to get to it, but I am happy to provide an answer. The apostle Peter exhorts us to be ready to answer those who ask us about the hope that is in us (I Peter 3:15-16).
I do not, of course, know the questioner's intent. It may be an honest quest for answers. It may be a desire to begin an argument, to get me to say something that he can tear down. It may be something in between. I begin my answer fully aware of all possibilities, yet I am glad to make it. If it is a sincere question, I hope to provide a sincere answer. If it is a challenge, I hope to provide a good defense of the truth.
I am fully aware that I cannot convince anyone. I can only present the facts. The Holy Spirit must make the truth real to those who seek it.
I shall also restrict myself to answering the question. I have some serious issues with the beliefs of the Watchtower, but my purpose here is to deal only with the one question: what leads me to believe that the Scriptures teach that Jesus is God incarnate?
I assume prima facie that the Scriptures are historically accurate and truthful accounts. I know that there are textual issues, and I shall touch on them as they are relevant, but my purpose here is not to enter into textual criticism or a defense of the authority of Scripture. I take that authority for granted.
I am indebted to C. S. Lewis and Peter Kreeft for some of the formulations of thoughts expressed here. Also, all Scripture quotations are from the English Standard Version.
The ancient formulation of the answer is simple: "Aut Deus aut homo malus." Either God, or a bad man. A modern formulation sometimes heard is, "liar, lunatic, or Lord." When presented with the evidence that the Scriptures present about Jesus, we are left with only two options: either he is God, or he is a bad man, either morally or mentally. The one option that they do not leave us is that he is a mere good man, a prophet, a teacher, but only a man. I would go further and say that if he is not God, as he claimed to be, then he is the worst liar and deceiver that has ever lived. There is no ground in between.
Here are references from Scripture that show that Jesus claimed to be, and indeed was, God incarnate. There are others that could be adduced. I am trying to focus on some of the main ones.
Isaiah had a high Christology. In Isaiah 9:6, we read, "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."
According to the apostle John, Isaiah saw Christ in his theophanic vision in the year that King Uzziah died, as recorded in Isaiah 6:1. In John 12:40, the apostle quotes Isaiah 6:10, and then says in verse 41, "Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him." He applies Isaiah's condemnation of the unbelief of Israel to unbelief in Christ.
The synoptic gospels have a high Christology. Mark records in chapter 2 that when a paralyzed man's friends made a hole in a roof and let the man down in front of Jesus, Jesus said, "My son, your sins are forgiven." The people who heard him knew very well what he was claiming. Verse 7 records their response: "Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?" Note that Jesus does not take the opportunity to say, "Oh no, you are mistaken, I am not claiming to be God." Instead, he proceeds to prove his ability to forgive sins by healing the paralyzed man.
Mark also records in chapter 2, verse 28, that Jesus claims to be lord of the sabbath. Since God gave the sabbath, who else could claim to be lord of it?
Mark also records Jesus's claim to lordship over the law. In Mark 7:19, we read in a parenthesis the early church's understanding of Jesus's teaching about defilement: "Thus he declared all foods clean." Since God gave the law, who else could be lord of it? Note: I am aware that not all agree on the meaning of this statement.
Mark records the transfiguration in chapter 9, as do all the synoptic gospels. Here, for a moment, the veil is pulled back, and we get a brief glimpse of the divine glory of Jesus the Christ.
The fourth gospel certainly has a high Christology. John begins his gospel, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." Some object that "the Word was God" does not have a definite article before "God" in Greek, and so it should say "the Word was a god". I answer that there was no concept in the Jewish mind of but one God: "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one."
And note the end of the prologue, John 1:18, which is even stronger in the Alexandrian texts than in the majority text: "No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known."
As to the incarnation, John clearly states: "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth." In the next verse he quotes John the Baptist's testimony to Jesus's preexistence: "He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me." This chapter is one of the clearest teachings on the incarnation.
John states that Jesus has divine knowledge, in 2:24-25: "But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man."
John also expresses the preexistence and incarnation of Jesus in chapter 3, verse 13: "No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man."
In 5:18, John tells us, "This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God."
Immediately thereafter, Jesus tells us of his authority, including his power to raise the dead (5:25). What can that be but divine power?
In John 8:58-59, we read one of Jesus's clearest claims to be God: "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." The Jews who heard him knew very well what he meant when he said that.
In John 10:30-31: "'I and the Father are one.' The Jews picked up stones again to stone him." I am aware that this story continues with a somewhat puzzling statement, where Jesus quotes Psalm 82:6, which seems to refer to judges as gods. I do not have a complete explanation for this, but it seems to be an argument from the lesser to the greater, not a denial of Jesus's own divinity.
In the high priestly prayer, in John 17:5, Jesus says, "And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed."
In connection with this, it is worth noting Isaiah 42:8: "I am the Lord; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols."
The high point of the gospel of John is 20:28: "Thomas answered him, 'My Lord and my God!'" There, Thomas finally "gets it," and so should we.
The apostle Paul has a high Christology. See Philippians 2:6: "who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped...". See also Colossians 1:15-20, especially verse 19: "For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell." You can't say much more about divinity and incarnation than that.
The author of Hebrews has a high Christology. The whole book is about how Christ is better: better than Moses, better than the angels: "Let all God's angels worship him." Hebrews 1:6b.
The book of Revelation has a high Christology. Note the vision of the glorified Christ in chapter 1, and John's response in 1:17: "When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead." Note also verse 1:8: "I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty." Now compare 1:17, where Jesus speaks: "Fear not, I am the first and the last." Now compare 22:12-13, where Jesus speaks: "Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay everyone for what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end."
Note also: Jesus is not an angel. In Revelation 22:8, John tries to worship an angel, who refuses his worship. In chapter 1, Jesus did not refuse his worship. And in Matthew 28:17 and John 20:28, Jesus accepts worship. Only God can properly do that.
There is ample evidence in Scripture for the divinity of Christ. Praise his name! He became incarnate, and all things are changed. He won the victory over sin, death, and hell, and the creation shall be renewed and redeemed.
In the words of the Nicene creed: "God of God, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, begotten not made, of one essence with the Father."
I do not, of course, know the questioner's intent. It may be an honest quest for answers. It may be a desire to begin an argument, to get me to say something that he can tear down. It may be something in between. I begin my answer fully aware of all possibilities, yet I am glad to make it. If it is a sincere question, I hope to provide a sincere answer. If it is a challenge, I hope to provide a good defense of the truth.
I am fully aware that I cannot convince anyone. I can only present the facts. The Holy Spirit must make the truth real to those who seek it.
I shall also restrict myself to answering the question. I have some serious issues with the beliefs of the Watchtower, but my purpose here is to deal only with the one question: what leads me to believe that the Scriptures teach that Jesus is God incarnate?
I assume prima facie that the Scriptures are historically accurate and truthful accounts. I know that there are textual issues, and I shall touch on them as they are relevant, but my purpose here is not to enter into textual criticism or a defense of the authority of Scripture. I take that authority for granted.
I am indebted to C. S. Lewis and Peter Kreeft for some of the formulations of thoughts expressed here. Also, all Scripture quotations are from the English Standard Version.
The ancient formulation of the answer is simple: "Aut Deus aut homo malus." Either God, or a bad man. A modern formulation sometimes heard is, "liar, lunatic, or Lord." When presented with the evidence that the Scriptures present about Jesus, we are left with only two options: either he is God, or he is a bad man, either morally or mentally. The one option that they do not leave us is that he is a mere good man, a prophet, a teacher, but only a man. I would go further and say that if he is not God, as he claimed to be, then he is the worst liar and deceiver that has ever lived. There is no ground in between.
Here are references from Scripture that show that Jesus claimed to be, and indeed was, God incarnate. There are others that could be adduced. I am trying to focus on some of the main ones.
Isaiah had a high Christology. In Isaiah 9:6, we read, "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."
According to the apostle John, Isaiah saw Christ in his theophanic vision in the year that King Uzziah died, as recorded in Isaiah 6:1. In John 12:40, the apostle quotes Isaiah 6:10, and then says in verse 41, "Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him." He applies Isaiah's condemnation of the unbelief of Israel to unbelief in Christ.
The synoptic gospels have a high Christology. Mark records in chapter 2 that when a paralyzed man's friends made a hole in a roof and let the man down in front of Jesus, Jesus said, "My son, your sins are forgiven." The people who heard him knew very well what he was claiming. Verse 7 records their response: "Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?" Note that Jesus does not take the opportunity to say, "Oh no, you are mistaken, I am not claiming to be God." Instead, he proceeds to prove his ability to forgive sins by healing the paralyzed man.
Mark also records in chapter 2, verse 28, that Jesus claims to be lord of the sabbath. Since God gave the sabbath, who else could claim to be lord of it?
Mark also records Jesus's claim to lordship over the law. In Mark 7:19, we read in a parenthesis the early church's understanding of Jesus's teaching about defilement: "Thus he declared all foods clean." Since God gave the law, who else could be lord of it? Note: I am aware that not all agree on the meaning of this statement.
Mark records the transfiguration in chapter 9, as do all the synoptic gospels. Here, for a moment, the veil is pulled back, and we get a brief glimpse of the divine glory of Jesus the Christ.
The fourth gospel certainly has a high Christology. John begins his gospel, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." Some object that "the Word was God" does not have a definite article before "God" in Greek, and so it should say "the Word was a god". I answer that there was no concept in the Jewish mind of but one God: "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one."
And note the end of the prologue, John 1:18, which is even stronger in the Alexandrian texts than in the majority text: "No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known."
As to the incarnation, John clearly states: "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth." In the next verse he quotes John the Baptist's testimony to Jesus's preexistence: "He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me." This chapter is one of the clearest teachings on the incarnation.
John states that Jesus has divine knowledge, in 2:24-25: "But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man."
John also expresses the preexistence and incarnation of Jesus in chapter 3, verse 13: "No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man."
In 5:18, John tells us, "This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God."
Immediately thereafter, Jesus tells us of his authority, including his power to raise the dead (5:25). What can that be but divine power?
In John 8:58-59, we read one of Jesus's clearest claims to be God: "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." The Jews who heard him knew very well what he meant when he said that.
In John 10:30-31: "'I and the Father are one.' The Jews picked up stones again to stone him." I am aware that this story continues with a somewhat puzzling statement, where Jesus quotes Psalm 82:6, which seems to refer to judges as gods. I do not have a complete explanation for this, but it seems to be an argument from the lesser to the greater, not a denial of Jesus's own divinity.
In the high priestly prayer, in John 17:5, Jesus says, "And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed."
In connection with this, it is worth noting Isaiah 42:8: "I am the Lord; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols."
The high point of the gospel of John is 20:28: "Thomas answered him, 'My Lord and my God!'" There, Thomas finally "gets it," and so should we.
The apostle Paul has a high Christology. See Philippians 2:6: "who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped...". See also Colossians 1:15-20, especially verse 19: "For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell." You can't say much more about divinity and incarnation than that.
The author of Hebrews has a high Christology. The whole book is about how Christ is better: better than Moses, better than the angels: "Let all God's angels worship him." Hebrews 1:6b.
The book of Revelation has a high Christology. Note the vision of the glorified Christ in chapter 1, and John's response in 1:17: "When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead." Note also verse 1:8: "I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty." Now compare 1:17, where Jesus speaks: "Fear not, I am the first and the last." Now compare 22:12-13, where Jesus speaks: "Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay everyone for what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end."
Note also: Jesus is not an angel. In Revelation 22:8, John tries to worship an angel, who refuses his worship. In chapter 1, Jesus did not refuse his worship. And in Matthew 28:17 and John 20:28, Jesus accepts worship. Only God can properly do that.
There is ample evidence in Scripture for the divinity of Christ. Praise his name! He became incarnate, and all things are changed. He won the victory over sin, death, and hell, and the creation shall be renewed and redeemed.
In the words of the Nicene creed: "God of God, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, begotten not made, of one essence with the Father."
posted by John at 6:51 PM
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