Did Jesus Claim to Be God (Part One – The Claim)
(John 10:22-25)
Transcript.
If I were to ask you, "How do you know that Jesus Christ is the Son of God?" many of you listening I’m sure would probably answer very quickly, "Because the Bible says so, and that settles it, doesn't it? The Bible says it, I believe it, and that settles it." And that’s fine, for I believe that also.
Before you get too secure in your position, I might warn you that not everybody agrees with you.
Of course, the world other main religions don’t believe what we believe, but there are also groups who claim to be Christians, or at least claim Christian heritage and source to their belief who deny that Jesus Christ is God’s Son.
That’s what we are going to look at today, and see what the Bible says, and what jesus himself said about this matter.
Welcome to TBPDP….
As I said in the introduction there are critics who argue that Jesus Christ never claimed to be God, and therefore he is not in fact God’s Son. They suggest that the whole idea of his divinity arose not from Jesus himself or his own words, but from his followers in the early church.
These critics are not isolated individuals whole religious groups and cults challenge the divinity of Jesus. Groups that you may be familiar with who deny not only that Jesus was God’s son but the whole Idea of the trinity include.
· The Jehovah's Witnesses: They teach that Jesus is a created being, specifically he was the archangel Michael who came down to earth. Which in fact it means they think Jesus was in fact, Satan’s, Lucifer’s half-brother.
· The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons): Mormons believe in the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost as three distinct personages, but they are only unified in purpose and Jesus is not equal to God the Father. And Christ is one of God’s many sons, and he is only unique in the sense he was saviour of this planet we call earth, not the other millions of planets across a multi-universe of plants for which there are millions if not billions of other spirit children who will die for those other populations of people. (I could go on). To back up this perspective they have of course in addition to the Bible, they also consider the Book of Mormon, a book called Doctrine and Covenants, and another work called the Pearl of Great Price, as Holy scripture.
· Christian Science: Founded by Mary Baker Eddy, Christian Science teaches that Jesus was a simple human who demonstrated Christ, the divine ideal. They simply believe that he was a good man that he showed the way to understand God. Again like the Mormons they need to rely not just on the Bible but also Eddy's book, "Science and Health” as the Key to understanding the Scriptures.
· The Unitarian Church. Unitarian’s have diverse range of beliefs, but traditionally, Unitarians rejected the doctrine of the Trinity, also viewing Jesus as a great teacher and moral leader rather than a divine being. They draw their interpretation from various religious texts and emphasize individual exploration of spirituality rather than the bible. By they way, the Unitarian church is the real father of the transcendental movement in the wet, much more so that Buddhism which is what most people believe.
But not all cults have emerged from what we would describe as Protestant or reformed Christian backgrounds.
· The Way International. (A Catholic sect that view God as a single entity and Jesus as a uniquely empowered human. They use the Bible but emphasize their founder Victor Paul Wierwille's teachings and interpretations also.
· Christadelphians. Christadelphians deny the deity of Christ. They reject the doctrine of the Trinity. They reject all the subsequent councils and traditional Christian creeds adopted by the church over the ages. (See my church history podcast).
· The New Church, also known as Swedenborgianism, is a Restorationist denomination of Christianity originally founded as a reaction against the Lutheran church in Sweden and they revere a man called Emmanuel Swedenborg's whose extensive writings are considered a direct revelation from God.
So, there are plenty of people who do not claim to believe what all mainstream Christians believe on this subject.
If you point to a verse where Jesus said something like, "I and my Father are one," most will argue that this does not mean Jesus is claiming to be God in the flesh, but rather that he and the Father are one in purpose. So, there are many who contend that Jesus Christ never claimed to be God, and therefore he is not.
Now, I know that you believe Jesus is the Son of God, so this might not seem like a big problem for you because you are settled in your mind about this . But suppose I asked you to take your bible and prove to me or a friend or someone on your door step the bible proves that that Jesus claimed to be God.
You see, this question is a really a life-or-death issue. If Jesus Christ is not God in the flesh, we, of all people, are the most to be pitied because our faith, our trust, and our hope for eternal life rest on this fundamental truth.
So, this is not a trivial question; it is as fundamental a question as you can possibly ask.
The question is: Can you answer it? Can you answer it to your own satisfaction from the Bible? Can you use the Bible to demonstrate to others that Jesus Christ claimed to be God? This is the question I’d like us to grapple with this morning.
Today is going to be a two parted. First and going to do an exposition of a passage that deals as pointedly with this question as any passage in the Bible where Jesus Christ himself was asked pointedly are you claiming to be the son of God.
Then we will look at what that actually means in it’s application for us tomorrow.
John chapter 10 and let's look at this passage beginning at verse 22.
Further Conflict Over Jesus’ Claims.
22 Then came the Festival of Dedication at Jerusalem. It was winter, 23 and Jesus was in the temple courts walking in Solomon’s Colonnade. 24 The Jews who were there gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.” 25 Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify about me.
(John 10: 22-26)
The text starts by saying these events occur "At Jerusalem at the feast of dedication, in winter and Jesus walked through the temple under Solomon’s colonades." These verses set the scene for the story we are about to explore. If you've been with me these last several weeks as we've rapidly moved through the Gospel of John, you’ll recall that in chapter 7, Jesus went to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles. He stayed there in chapter 8, chapter 9, and even in the first part of chapter 10, still at Jerusalem for that same feast.
However, this verse indicates that we are now dealing with a different event. This is not the trip to Jerusalem that started in chapter 7 and ended in chapter 10, verse 21. Instead, this now takes place at the Feast of Dedication later on in the year.
There were about two months between these two feasts. The Feast of Tabernacles took place around mid-October, while the Feast of Dedication happened at the end of December. This Feast of Dedication, also called the Feast of Lights, is still practiced by Jewish people still today and you may know it as Hanukkah.
So, the setting for this encounter Jesus had with some Jewish leaders was winter, around the end of December, likely in one of the porticos of Solomon’s Porch, indicating they were outside probably in the cold.
What follows in the rest of the passage is that the Jewish leaders come to Jesus, ask him a question, he answers, and John records the reaction to his answer. Let's first look at the question, we will later look at Jesus answer, and finally the reaction(s) to it.
In verse 24, we read, "Then came the Jews," and as I have said many times, in the Gospel of John, this term does not mean the general populace but specifically the Jewish leaders, particularly the Pharisees and members of the Sanhedrin. So the come and say, dispel the doubt, if you are really the Christ, the Messiah, tell us plainly.'" If I were to paraphrase this verse, it would be something like, "How long are you going to keep us in suspense? Tell us very openly, very clearly, are you implying you are the Messiah, give it to us in plain English!"
There seems to be an implication in their question, a subtle barb, suggesting that if there is any reason for their rejection of him, it is Jesus’ fault. They imply that he hasn’t told them in plain words whether or not he is the Christ, so how can he expect them to accept him? This question is sort of implying that Jesus is to be blamed for their scepticism.
Jesus begins his answer by saying, 'I told you, and already and you did not believe and furthermore the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness to me.'" It’s an interesting response. They ask him to tell them plainly, and he replies that he already has.
Now, if Jesus had simply said, "Yes, I am the Christ," that would not have solved the issue. Because their concept of the Messiah was a political liberator who would free them from Roman rule. If he had said, "Yes, I am the Christ," he would have spent the rest of his time explaining that he was not that kind of Messiah.
Instead, Jesus points to the works he has done in his Father's name as evidence.
Let’s pause and consider what Jesus said and did that could be taken as him declaring his divine identity. Although we haven’t done this in our study of John so far, I’d like you to put your finger in John chapter 10 and turn back with me to John chapter 4.
Let's take a quick survey of the Gospel of John to see what Jesus said about himself.
In John 4:25, Jesus is speaking with the woman at the well. He says, "The hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." And further down in the conversation, when the woman mentions the coming Messiah, Jesus plainly tells her, "I who speak to you am he."
So here already Jesus explicitly identifies himself as the Messiah.
This is as clear a claim as you can find in the Bible of Jesus Christ explicitly stating, "I am the Messiah." Now, you might argue that only the woman heard it, and that's true. However, if you read the rest of the passage, you'll discover that the entire town came to believe that He was not only the Messiah of Israel but also the Savior of the world.
Let's look at another clear claim in John 9. In verses 35-37, after healing a man born blind, Jesus asks him, "Do you believe on the Son of God?" The man replies, "Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him?" Jesus says to him, "You have both seen him, and heard Him, I who am talking to you now is He." Here, Jesus directly identifies Himself as the Son of God. J
John, in chapter 20,of this Gospel account in summing it all up explains that all these signs and statements he has recorded were written so that "you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that by believing in Him you might have life through his name."
So, Jesus claims to be the fulfilment of all the messianic prophecies in the Old Testament and asserts His deity. These are two of the clearest claims in the Gospel of John, but there is much more.
In public pronouncements that can only be interpreted as declarations of His divine nature, Jesus makes bold statements. For instance, in John 7, He says, "If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink." In John 8, He declares, "I am the light of the world," and repeats this in John 9. In John 10, He says, "I am the good shepherd," and the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.
In John 5:17-18, Jesus said, "My Father works and I AM doing the work also." The Jews understood that by calling God His Father, He was making Himself equal with God. They wanted to kill Him because He was claiming equality with God. This claim was clear to His audience, and Jesus did not deny it; instead, He reinforced it throughout the rest of John 5.
In John 7:28-29, Jesus claims He was sent from God, saying, "Yes, you know me, and you know where I am from. I am not here on my own authority, but he who sent me is true. You do not know him, but I know him because I am from him and he sent me.”."
For a climactic claim of His deity, look at John 8:23-24. Jesus says, "If You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am he, you will indeed die in your sins." The word "he" is italicized, meaning it's not in the original Greek text. Any Jew familiar with the Old Testament knew that "I am" was the name of Almighty God. Jesus is asserting, "I am God."
Further in John 8:28, He says, "When you lift up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am," and in John 8:58, "Before Abraham was, I am." This phrase again unmistakably claims both pre-existence and deity.
Lastly, look at John 20:27-28. After His resurrection, Jesus tells Thomas, " “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” Thomas responds, "My Lord and my God." Jesus accepts Thomas’ declaration of His deity without correction.
These passages make it unmistakably clear that Jesus claimed to be God. That the same evidences we can offer today from the Bible, among many more.
When confronted with such overwhelming evidence, the question remains: Do people, do you believe Him? This belief is not just a matter of intellectual assent but of life-changing faith.
Do you see now? If Jesus Christ is not God, if He is not claiming to be deity, He was duty-bound to say to Thomas, "Oh, Thomas, I appreciate the compliment, but you are mistaken." No! Jesus declared, "I am the way, the truth."
Here’s what He said in John 20:29: "Thomas, because you have seen and believed.'" Believed what? That I am God, that's what. Because of that, you're blessed. Jesus Christ is clearly claiming to be God.
I do not understand how some cultists can come to the Bible and say that Jesus isn't even claiming to be God in light of passages like these and many others.
Many people have commented on this phenomenon in the Bible. One author said, "Not one recognized religious leader, not Moses, or Paul, inside the Bible or Buddha, Mohammed, Confucius, from other perspectives have ever claimed to be God. That is with the exception of Jesus Christ.
Christ is the only religious leader who has ever claimed to be God. Think about that. He made the claim, and that claim has convinced millions of people for 2000 years that it's true.
In fact the main reason above all others which led directly to his execution by crucifixion was His incredible claim that He was not just a carpenter's son but God in the flesh.
Even if one takes a historical, secular approach to the question, it is found that even secular history affirms that Jesus lived on the earth, that while he lived and thereafter his followers worshipped Him as God.
He founded a community of people who have worshipped Him in that way for centuries and by doing so He changed the course of human history."
Someone once said, this is an old one but it is one of my favourites: "A man who can read the New Testament and not see that Christ claims to be no more than a man who can look to the sky at high noon on a cloudless day and not see the sun or the light it gives."
I tell you very simply, Jesus Christ told them very plainly that He was God. He used the phrase "the Son of God" to describe His deity. So when they said, "Tell us plainly," He legitimately said to them, "I have already told you."
But there’s a problem and it explained in how Jesus now tells us people react to the revelation, that he is God. And that problem and those reaction are the same to this day, and we will look at them tomorrow. In our next episode.
