If Jesus was not God, yet knowingly received worship, He was a blasphemer and all who bow the knee to Him are guilty of idolatry.
If Jesus began His existence at His birth, then the eternal Trinity is a fallacy. Neither would Jesus be God, for God is eternal. If Jesus was not God, yet knowingly received worship, He was a blasphemer and all who bow the knee to Him are guilty of idolatry. If we cannot believe His claims then He was a liar and cannot be trusted. Such are the consequences if Jesus is not God. However, Scripture reveals to us the truth regarding Jesus Christ and His divinity. What are some of the biblical evidences for the deity of Christ?
A plurality
Jehovah spoke of Himself in the plural: “Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness,” “The Lord God said, ‘Behold man is become as one of Us’,” “Let Us go down…” (Gen. 1:26; 3:22; 11:7, 8). There are also instances where the Angel (messenger) of the Lord speaks as God: to Abraham He states, “‘by Myself have I sworn,’ saith the Lord” (Gen. 22:15f). In Exodus 3:2-4, God calls to Moses in a blazing fire from the midst of a bush. Samson’s parents both converse with the Angel of the Lord in Judges 13:21-22, expecting to die, “for we have seen God.” This Angel of the Lord who identifies Himself as God throughout the Old Testament disappears in the New Testament. John 1 verses 1 and 14 tell us why: “The Word was with God, and the Word was God…and the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us.” The Messenger and the Message are now the same.
Eternal
The One born in Bethlehem was One “whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting” (Mic. 5:2). He was “in the beginning with God” (Jn. 1:2) and He was “before all things” (Col. 1:17). The fact that He was “only begotten” is a term of favor, not a statement implying that He was created—Hebrews 11:17 describes Isaac as such in his relationship to Abraham, although Isaac certainly was not Abraham’s first, or only, begotten in time.
Creator
Jehovah is given sole credit for creating all things: “Thou, even Thou, art Lord alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein” (Neh. 9:6). Yet of Jesus we read, “the world was made by Him” (Jn. 1:10), and “all things were created by Him, and for Him…and by Him all things consist” (Col. 1:16f). John 1:2 emphasizes this by re-stating it in the negative: “Without Him was not anything made that was made.” Hebrews 1 further discusses the Son of God’s role in creation: “Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of Thine hands” (v. 10).
Made flesh
John records “the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us.” The One who said, “I am from above” (Jn. 8:23) was “sanctified, and sent into the world” (Jn. 10:36). Hebrews 1 states, “He [God] bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world” (v. 6) and then says that this firstbegotten is the One who “laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of [His] hands” (v. 10). His eternality perplexed others when He made such statements as “before Abraham was, I am” (Jn. 8:58). Furthermore, Jesus clearly stated, “I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father” (Jn. 16:28), showing that He did not begin His existence in the manger, but, rather, He “came down from heaven” (Jn. 6:38) and would return “up where He was before” (Jn. 6:62).
Self-representation
Some suggest Jesus was a “front man,” born into this world to represent God to the world. God, however, represents Himself, for in Isaiah 42:8 He declares, “I am the Lord…and My glory will I not give to another.” Yet we read that Jesus is not only repeatedly worshipped in the New Testament (Mt. 8:2; 9:18; 14:33; 15:25; Jn. 9:38; 20:28), but He also invites others to put their faith in Him as they would in God (Jn. 14:1). God jealously guards His glory, yet we read of Jesus, “we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father” (Jn. 1:14), and later, in Jesus’ own words to His Father, “glorify Thou Me with Thine own self with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was” (Jn. 17:5). To the Jews He plainly declared, “I and the Father are one” (Jn. 10:30).
His names
Jesus was given the name “Immanuel” (Isa. 7:14; Mt. 1:23) which means “God with us.” He was also called “the mighty God, the everlasting Father” (Isa. 9:6), and “Saviour” (Jn. 4:42), titles that belong exclusively to Jehovah (Ps. 50:1; Hos. 13:4). Many verses refer directly to Jesus as God (Heb. 1:8; Acts 20:28; Titus 2:13; 1 Jn. 5:20; Jn. 14:9; 1 Tim. 3:16). Jesus personally claimed Jehovah’s name stated in Exodus 3:14—I AM—which caused His enemies to unexpectedly fall backward (Jn. 18:5f). Jesus also made a dreadful promise to those who do not believe the truth so plainly revealed: “if you believe not that I AM He, ye shall die in your sins” (Jn. 8:24).
In light of the overwhelming evidence, what would you say if He asked you, “but who do you say that I am?” (Mt. 16:15).