Fully God
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Last week we discussed Jesus being fully Human and why this was important. Because he was fully human we know he experienced what we experienced and he understands what we are going through. He felt pain, he hurt physically and emotionally. He knew the full range of emotions as you and I do. We have more in common with Jesus than we sometimes will admit. It is comforting to know Jesus was human and that we can identify with him. He wasn’t just this God sitting on high looking down on us, he became one of us!
Last week we discussed Jesus being fully Human and why this was important. Because he was fully human we know he experienced what we experienced and he understands what we are going through. He felt pain, he hurt physically and emotionally. He knew the full range of emotions as you and I do. We have more in common with Jesus than we sometimes will admit. It is comforting to know Jesus was human and that we can identify with him. He wasn’t just this God sitting on high looking down on us, he became one of us!
While he was one of us, he also was still God. this is one of the great mysteries of the faith. How can this be? Jehovah’s Witnesses will tell you he was not God he was just divine. If you read their version of you will see:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god.
They believe he was divine or godlike, but not God.
A proper translation of yields:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
Jesus was not a God, he was God. To say he was a god, makes me wonder, How many gods do they believe in. The debate over the deity of Jesus goes back to the earliest days of the church. At least 18 church councils were held in the 4th century before the Council of Constantinople was held. The deity of Christ and how the trinity was defined were major topics of discussion. Everyone of these meetings upheld the belief Jesus was part of the trinity and was both fully human and fully divine. This debate has spanned centuries with the question being whether Jesus was the same substance as the Father or was he simply a similar substance? Divine, but not God, Himself.
The gospel, the good news, is that God became a man in Jesus Christ, and His very life displayed the character of God. His very life displayed the righteousness of God. This doctrine of the humanity and deity of Christ separates, the true gospel, from false, cultic gospels. These truths separate Christianity from Islam and Judaism. It is extremely important that Jesus is fully God and fully man.
What does the Bible say about this?
What does the Bible say about this?
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John says Jesus was God, that he was with God from the very beginning. John’s description of Jesus tells us that Jesus always existed and there was never a time that he was not.
He was in the beginning with God.
All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.
Everything that was created came through Him. But Genesis says, “In the beginning God created...”
JWs will tell you God created Jesus and then Jesus created everything else. No, he was in the beginning with God and as God everything was created. John’s text echoes Genesis and you cannot separate them. God the Son was always fully God.
Before I move on from this, I want you to jot down a couple more Scriptures, because you will be confronted with this argument one day.
There came a man sent from God, whose name was John.
But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name,
who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.
If they followed their own rule of translation all of these would read differently:
There came a man sent from a god, whose name was John.
He gave the right to become children of a god,
who were born, not of blood ..., but of a god.
No one has seen a god...
The problem is, they don’t translate any of these verses this way. Their translation of is flawed because it the only translation they can have that fits their beliefs.
The writers of the NT believed Jesus was God, not just a god.
When Thomas had seen the risen Christ he said:
Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”
He did not say, My lord and my master. He said God.
I have heard opponents say, “Jesus never claimed to be God.”
In Paul’s letter to Titus we see how he viewed Jesus;
looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus,
In Peter’s second letter we see Peter’s belief of who Jesus is:
Simon Peter, a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ:
There is no doubt Peter believed Jesus was fully God.
The writer of Hebrews says Christ is the exact duplicate of God. He is the same as the Father in every way.
Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Bible Doctrine 2. Each Person Is Fully God
In the Old Testament, Isaiah 9:6 predicts,
“For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given;
and the government will be upon his shoulder,
and his name will be called
‘Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God.’ ”
As this prophecy is applied to Christ, it refers to him as “Mighty God.”
The prophecy found in speaks in the same way:
A voice is calling,
“Clear the way for the Lord in the wilderness;
Make smooth in the desert a highway for our God.
Paul sums this up best in:
For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form,
All the fullness, not some and not something like God. he is the fullness of God.
This is what people wrote about Jesus. And you will hear the next argument: Jesus never claimed to be God.
“Jesus Claimed to be God.”
“Jesus Claimed to be God.”
Jesus asked his disciples, “Who do you say I am?” Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” JWs will point out that he said Son of the living God, this is because they believe Jesus to be the spirit brother of Lucifer. They believe him to be Michael the Archangel. But Jesus commended Peter for his answer. By confirming he was the Son of God, he was claiming he was equal with God. In Jesus used the very words that God used when he revealed himself to Moses.
Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.”
This was a direct statement from Jesus claiming to be God. The people understood it this way and wanted to stone him for blasphemy. In Jesus said:
“I and the Father are one.”
That is a pretty plain statement. If there is any doubt to what he was claiming it is cleared up in the next few verses:
The Jews picked up stones again to stone Him. Jesus answered them, “I showed you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you stoning Me?” The Jews answered Him, “For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy; and because You, being a man, make Yourself out to be God.”
They wanted to stone him and when he asked why, it was because he held himself out to be God.
Jesus’ followers believed him to be God. Jesus held himself out as God, but more important than this, his actions and his attributes proved him to be God.
Actions & Attributes
Actions & Attributes
Omniscience
Omniscience
He proved that he was omniscient, all-knowing, when he told Peter, “This very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times. (Matt26.34)
Omnipotence
Omnipotence
He showed his power when he resurrected Lazarus from the dead and when he resurrected the widow’s son on the way to his burial. () In Jesus stated:
Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”
He would raise himself from the dead. Only God can do this.
He showed power over nature when he stilled the storm. “What kind of man is this?” He was the God-man.
Omnipresence
Omnipresence
Jesus promised his disciples he would be with them until the end of the age. () In addition to this Jesus also chose to do what only God could do by claiming the:
Ability to forgive sins
Ability to forgive sins
When a paralyzed man’s friends brought him to Jesus, Jesus said:
Seeing their faith, He said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven you.”
Jesus could have just as easily said, “You are healed.” but he claimed to have forgiven the man’s sins. Only God could do that.
Accepted Worship
Accepted Worship
When Thomas confessed Jesus to be God, he fell to the ground and worshipped him. If Jesus was not God, he should have stopped him immediately and condemned him for doing that, but instead, jesus commended him for his correct answer and response. “My Lord and my God.”
Conclusion:
Why This Matters
Why This Matters
As we approach Easter and we think about Jesus and the cross, we need to know Jesus was fully human and fully God.
Only someone who is the infinite God could bear the full penalty for sin. No mere human could do this.
Salvation is from the Lord. The promise of salvation from the beginning is from God, alone. The hope of salvation the world waited for would only come from God. Scripture is designed to show that no human being, no creature, could ever save man. Only God could do this!
Only someone who was truly and fully God could be the mediator between God and man. Who else has this right? Jesus brings us back to God and he reveals God to us as no one else ever could.
If Jesus is not fully God, we have no salvation.
If Jesus is not fully God, the Christianity is a waste of time.
John said, “No one who denies the Son has the Father.” ()
If we want to have salvation and a relationship with God the Father, we must know Jesus is fully God. There is no other way to salvation.