Since the days when Jesus walked on the earth, men have been asking the question, “Who is Jesus?” (Matthew 16:13). The fact that He is a historical figure is beyond doubt, but who is He? Was He a man? Was He a prophet? Was (Is) He God? “Yes,” to all three. Jesus was born of a virgin as prophesied (Isaiah 7:14; Luke 1:27-31), spoke as a prophet (John 7:28ff, 46) and is indeed God (John 1:1ff, 14, 17; Acts 20:28).
God through the prophet Isaiah said, “…Before Me there was no God formed, Nor shall there be after Me” (Isaiah 43:10 NKJV). God is eternal with no other God before or after.
In the Gospel record according to John, we note that the Word was in the beginning with God and was God (1:1). Who was the Word? Continuing in verse 14, we learn that this Word became flesh and was full of grace and truth. Finally in verse 17, we see that Jesus was this grace and truth.
In just one short example, we can clearly see that Jesus is God, according to the Scriptures. However, many today are not satisfied with just one example. This further reveals their distrust in the divine origin of the Bible. Jesus exhibited characteristics that could only be attributed to God.
- Jesus Claimed to Be Deity (John 10:22–30). Even God (the Father) Himself called Jesus God: “But to the Son He says: ‘Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom’”(Hebrews 1:8 NKJV).
- Jesus Claimed Eternality (John 8:39, 58). When the Jews challenged Jesus’ power and His authority, they called on the heritage of Abraham as their father. Jesus met their challenge and stated that if they were truly children of Abraham, they would do the works of Abraham. He then concluded that “…before Abraham was, I AM” (John 8:58), thus placing His existence before the time of Abraham and claiming eternality.
- Jesus Claimed Equality With God (John 17:5). As the end of Jesus’ life approached, He made a statement that would surely either confirm Him as a blasphemer, by claiming equality with God, or declare Him to be the true Son of God. “And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.”
- Jesus Accepted Worship (Hebrews 1:6). The God Who prohibited the worship of other gods in the Old Testament is the same God Who accepted worship in the New Testament.
In the book of Hebrews (1:1-6), God addressed the superiority of the Son. He showed Him to be better than the prophets and the angels. He even calls the angels to worship Him. God has also shown Jesus to be the One to whom every creature will bow in the Judgment (Philippians 2:9–11). Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God(Matthew 16:16). Jesus is God (John 1:1–4, 14, 17).
