Jesus was God
Why I believe Jesus is the Son of God - God in the flesh
If Creator God came to earth in the flesh, then I would expect ...
1) His coming would be announced
2) He would display His power
3) His teaching would be true, wise, relevant and timeless
4) He would lead a perfect life
5) He would remedy the worst problem that people have - sin and death
1) His coming would be announced
"You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me!" John 5.39
Written hundreds of years before Jesus the Old Testament says, 'A Savior is coming!' through:
His genealogical line - Genesis 5, 11.10f, 1 Chronicles 2,3 -> Matthew 1, Luke 3
the Covenants - Jeremiah 31.31-34 -> Hebrews 8.6f
Abrahamic covenant - Genesis 12.1-3 -> Galatians 3.6f, Romans 11.26,27
Mosaic covenant - Exodus 19-24 -> Hebrews 8-10
Davidic covenant - 1 Chronicles 17 -> Revelation 19.11-16
His offices as:
Prophet - Deuteronomy 18.15 -> Acts 3.20-23
Priest - Psalm 110.4 -> Hebrews 5.5-6
King - Isaiah 9.6,7 -> Luke 1.31,32
Prophecies - 300+ Messianic prophecies in the Old Testament fulfilled by Jesus' birth, life, death and resurrection (last book completed in approximately 400BC)
Prophecy - the suffering Servant (why He came)
Psalm 22 (written approximately 1000BC) -> Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, John 19
Isaiah 53 (written approximately 700BC) -> Matthew 1.20,21
“And beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He (Jesus) explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.” Luke 24:27
2) He would display His power
over disease - John 9, Luke 6:19
over nature/the natural - John 6.1f, Matthew 8.23f
over the spirit world - Matthew 8.28f, 1 John 3.8
over death - Hebrews 2.14, John 11
to change a heart/life -
James - Matthew 13.55, John 7:1-5, 1 Corinthians 15:3-8, Galatians 1:19, James
Peter - Luke 5:1-11, Mark 8:27-38, Matthew 26:69-end, John 21, Acts 2
Thomas - John 20:24-29
Paul - Acts 9, Acts 26
'Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old has passed away. Look! - the new has come.’
2 Corinthians 5:17
3) His teaching would be true, wise, relevant and timeless
What Jesus said about His Own teaching:
'For this reason, I was born and for this I came into the world - to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to Me.' John 18.37
'Heaven and earth will pass away, but My Words shall not pass away.' Matthew 24.35
'He who rejects Me and does not receive My sayings has one who judges him - the Word I spoke is what will judge him on the last day. For I did not speak on My Own initiative, but the Father Himself Who sent Me has given Me commandment, what to say and what to speak. And I know that His commandment is eternal life; therefore, the things I speak, I speak just as the Father has told Me.' John 12.48-50
'The Words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.' John 6.63
'Everyone who hears these Words of Mine, and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock.' Matthew 7.24
'Truly, truly I say to you - he who hears My Word and believes Him Who sent Me has eternal life and does not come into judgement but has passed out of death into life.' John 5.24
What others said about Jesus' teaching:
And they were all amazed so that they debated among themselves saying, 'What is this? A new teaching with authority. He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey Him.' Mark 1.27
The temple guards came to the religious leaders and the leaders said to the guards: 'Why didn't you arrest Him?' The guards answered, 'Never did a man speak the way this Man speaks.' John 7.46
Paul, the apostle: '... that they may understand God's mysteries, Christ Himself. In Him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.' Colossians 2.2,3 'So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the Word of Christ.' Romans 10.17
John, Jesus' disciple: 'In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.' 'And the Word became flesh and lived with us and we saw His glory.' 'No man has seen God at any time. The one and only Son, from the Father, He has explained Him.' John 1.1,14,18
Jesus' most famous teachings:
‘Do to others as you would have them do to you.’ Matthew 7:12
‘What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?’ Mark 8:36
‘Turn the other cheek’ or ‘If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also.’ Luke 6:29
'For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.' John 3.16
4) He would lead a perfect life
What Jesus said:
John 5:19 - "Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father (God) doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner.”
John 12:49, 50 - "For I did not speak on My Own initiative, but the Father Himself Who sent Me has given Me commandment, what to say, and what to speak. And I know that His commandment is eternal life; therefore, the things I speak, I speak just as the Father has told Me."
John 8:46 - "Which of you can truthfully accuse Me of sin?"
What others said:
Isaiah 53:9 (600BC - prophecy about Messiah, Jesus) - He had done no wrong and had never deceived anyone.
John 19:4 - Pilate (the Roman judge/official) went outside again and said to the people, "I am going to bring Him (Jesus) out to you now, but understand clearly that I find Him not guilty."
1 John 3:5 - Jesus came to take away our sins, and there is no sin in Him.
1 Peter 1:19 - It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.
1 Peter 3:18 - For Christ also died for sins, once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, that He might bring us to God - having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit.
Hebrews 4:15 - This High Priest of ours (Jesus) understands our weaknesses, for He faced all the same testings we do, yet He did not sin.
Hebrews 9:14b - ... Christ offered Himself up to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins.
2 Corinthians 5:21 - He (God) made Him (Jesus) Who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
- lived and taught, not to please man, but to please God
staying behind in Jerusalem (Luke 2:41-end)
cleansing the temple (John 2:13-22)
healing on the Sabbath (Mark 3:1-6, Luke 13:10-17, John 9)
associating with the wicked (Matthew 9:10f, Luke 7:36f)
calling out the hypocritical religious leaders (Matthew 23:13-end, Luke 11:42-end)
touched the leper, an unclean woman, a dead person - 'against' the law (Mark 1 & 5)
forgave sins - 'against' the law (Matthew 9:1-8)
called Himself the Son of God making Himself equal to God (John 10:30-39, 19:7)
- lived not to please Himself, but to please God
submissive to God (Luke 22:39-46)
a servant to mankind (Mark 10:45)
‘Who, though He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bondservant, being made in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.’ Philippians 2:4-6
5) He would remedy the worst problem that people have - sin and death
Take time to re-read the italicized passages above that come from the Bible. Each of these point to the truths concerning Jesus that enable belief –
Belief that Jesus was God’s Son, God in the flesh – 100% God, 100% Man!
Belief that He lived the perfect life that we could not live.
Belief that He died the death that we deserved
Belief that He rose proving to be the acceptable sacrifice and conquering death to be the rightful Judge of the living and the dead
“But these have been written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His Name.” John 20:31
Comments