Notes compiled by Marty Zide and Steve McAtee
The very things that Jesus said about Himself imply that He thought of Himself as equal with God. The reactions of others towards Jesus shows that they believed Him to be God.
These are some of His claims about Himself and honors He received from others: He claimed to be the object of saving faith.
He claimed to be able to meet man’s most basic needs, both physically and spiritually.
He is the object of worship and honor from others.
JESUS IS THE OBJECT OF SAVING FAITH
John 14:6 - Jesus said to him, I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.
John 17:3 - This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus the Messiah whom You have sent.
Acts 4:12 -And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.
ABLE TO MEET OUR BASIC NEEDS
Matt. 11:28-29 - Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
John 4:14 - but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.
ABLE TO MEET OUR BASIC NEEDS
John 6:51 - I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread also which I will give for the life of the world is My flesh.
John 10:28-29 - and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.
OBJECT OF WORSHIP AND HONOR
Matt. 28:9 - And behold, Jesus met them and greeted them. And they came up and took hold of His feet and worshiped Him.
Phil. 2:9-10 - For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above
every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
Heb. 1:6 - And when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says, And let all the angels of God worship Him.
Jesus clearly taught that no one but God can be worshipped. The fact that He accepted worship tells us that He believed (and correctly so) that He is God.
Matt 4:8-10 - Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory; and he said to Him, All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me. Then Jesus said to him, Go, Satan! For it is written, ‘YOU SHALL WORSHIP THE LORD YOUR GOD, AND SERVE HIM ONLY.
All of these truths clearly point to the fact that Jesus is fully and completely God. What has been said by no means exhausts the Bible’s teaching on this subject. These are simply a few examples of the dozens and dozens of other Scriptures that could have been mentioned.
No one who is less than fully divine could ever save us from our sins. This could never have been accomplished by a mere human being. Only God could save us.
Thus, Jesus came from God (He was eternal with the Father) as God (fully divine) to redeem us for God (He saved us for His glory) and from God (from His wrath).
There are several texts in Scripture which taken by themselves would imply that Jesus was inferior to God. They are describing His acts and experiences from the side of His humanity while in the state of mediatorial humiliation.
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