As our society rapidly approaches the end- time events of the book of Revelation, Satan and his evil forces are doing everything within their power to deceive humanity and to condition men to worship an individual known as "the beast" or "the Antichrist" (Revelation 13:1-18). Satan has always had a desire to be worshipped as God (Isaiah 14:12; Luke 4:7), and he will be worshipped as God in the coming Tribulation Period (2nd Thessalonians 2:3-4). In order to bring this about, Satan realizes that he must first DETHRONE the true God in the hearts and minds of people. That is, he must attack the Deity of Jesus Christ.
This attack on the Lord Jesus Christ is being executed in many ways by many different groups. Various cult groups, New Age groups, and even modern Bible translators have their own methods of robbing Jesus Christ of His Deity. Many young men today enter Bible colleges and seminaries believing in the Deity of Christ, and then graduate four years later with less faith than when they enrolled!
What about you, friend? What do you believe about Jesus Christ? Can you support your beliefs with God's word? That's the real issue: what saith the Scripture?
We challenge you to get your Bible (KJV) and check all the references that we are about to give. We are going to offer twelve Scriptural proofs for the Deity of Jesus Christ. That is, you are going to see twelve Bible proofs that Jesus Christ is God. Please do NOT take our word for anything. Our world is filled with deception because too many people believe what they hear without checking the facts. We urge you to search the Scriptures for yourself, and form your own convictions with God's word.
Quoting from Isaiah 7:14, Matthew 1:23 says,
According to both of these verses, Jesus was "God with us" when He walked upon this earth. He wasn't merely "God's chosen one with us" or "God's Son with us." As I Timothy 3:16 states,
John 1:14 tells us that
In Zechariah 12:10, GOD said that HE (God) would be "pierced" by sinners, and Revelation 1:7 states that Jesus Christ Himself fulfilled this prophecy! Friend, the Bible presents Jesus Christ as much more than a great prophet and teacher. God's word presents Jesus Christ as God incarnate.
In John 10:28, Jesus said,
If Jesus Christ isn't eternal, then how does He have the power to give "eternal life"?
Micah 5:2 states that Jesus Christ is "from everlasting", which is exactly what Psalm 93:2 and Isaiah 63:16 say about God!
In John 8:58, Jesus said to the Pharisees,
The term "I am" is the exact term that God used in Exodus 3:14 in reference to Himself! Jesus professed to be the eternal God of the Bible.
Check these references for yourself. In Matthew 22:42-45, Jesus claims to be the "Lord" of Psalm 110:1. He allows Thomas to address Him as "My Lord and my God" in John 20:28.
He is the "everlasting Father" and "The mighty God" of Isaiah 9:6.
According to His own words in John 10:11-14, He is the "shepherd" of Psalm 23:1, Psalm 80:1, and Ezekiel 34:12.
God is the "saviour" in Isaiah 43:3, 43:11, 45:15, 45:21, Hosea 13:4, Luke 1:47, and I Timothy 4:10, yet this same title is given to Jesus Christ in Luke 2:11, Philippians 3:20, II Timothy 1:10, and II Peter 2:20.
God is the "Rock" of Deuteronomy 32:4, 32:15, 32:18, 32:30-31, I Samuel 2:2, and Psalm 18:31, yet this title is given to the Lord Jesus Christ in I Corinthians 10:1-4, I Peter 2:7-8, and Romans 9:33.
God is "light" in Psalm 27:1 and Micah 7:8, and then Jesus is "light" in John 1:4-9 and in John 8:12.
In Isaiah 44:6 God says,
In Revelation 1:17 Jesus Christ says,
Jesus says in Matthew 28:19, "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:" If Jesus Christ isn't Deity, then why did He include Himself in the Holy Trinity?
Jesus says in
Is the Father someone other than Jesus Christ? No, not according to Jesus Christ.
In John 10:30, Jesus says,
Isn't that clear enough?
Philippians 2:6 says that Jesus was in the "form of God", and that he thought it not robbery to be "equal with God"!
The Jesus Christ of the New Testament claimed to be "one" with God and "equal" with God.
Only God has the ability to be everywhere at once, yet Jesus Christ claims this ability.
In Matthew 18:20, He says, "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them." How could this be possible if Jesus were not Deity?
The same is true in Matthew 28:20 where Jesus says, "...lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen." How could He be with each individual Christian always and be in Heaven at the same time? He is God, for only God has such attributes!
That is, He is all powerful. He has all power.
Revelation 19:6 states, "...the Lord God omnipotent reigneth." Then I Timothy 6:15 says that Jesus Christ Himself is "...the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;" If Jesus is the ONLY Potentate, then He must be the One of Revelation 19:6, God Almighty!
Also see Colossians 2:9-10, Revelation 2:26, and Matthew 28:18.
To be omniscient is to have all knowledge, unlike normal men. The Bible declares that Jesus was indeed omniscient.
Unlike normal men, Jesus Christ had knowledge of specific details about His own death. In Matthew 16:21, Jesus said that He would go to Jerusalem, suffer many things at the hands of the scribes and the elders, be killed, and then be resurrected the third day. He repeats this prophecy in Matthew 20:19.
Matthew 17:27 offers the account of Jesus knowing of a certain coin in a fish's mouth before the fish is caught!
He knew specific details about a woman's life whom He had never met (John 4:16-19). He also had all knowledge about Nathaniel in John 1:47-49.
Friend, Jesus Christ is Deity because He is omniscient.
The "Word" is the Lord Jesus Christ (John 1:14; I John 1:1-3; 5:7), and John 1:3 says that all things were made by Him!
Consider
You see, by Jesus Christ the worlds were made, and by Jesus Christ all things are upheld. He has the power to create and sustain the universe.
In Matthew 14:25, Jesus literally walks upon the sea, and in Luke 8:24, He rebukes the wind and it obeys Him. How could He perform such tasks if He weren't God? It must be understood that Jesus didn't pray for God to calm the sea; He calmed the sea Himself.
If we're wrong in teaching that the Lord Jesus Christ is God, then He must have been wrong in allowing people to worship him. Jesus Himself said, "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." (Mat. 4:10) Why would He say this at the beginning of His ministry and then spend His ministry allowing people to worship HIM?
In Acts 10:25-26, and in Revelation 19:10, worship of anyone other than God Himself is forbidden, yet Jesus willingly received worship throughout His public ministry (John 20:28; Mat. 8:2; 9:18; 15:25; 28:9; John 9:38). If He isn't Deity, then why didn't He correct those who worshipped Him?
According to these words, it is GOD Who has the power and right to forgive sins. However, the New Testament says that Jesus Christ has this power.
Please notice
Jesus Christ is God, because only God can forgive sins. It's true that He took on the form of a man for thirty-three years on this earth, but He was still God. He was God manifest in the flesh (1st Timothy 3:16).
How many people do you know who have the ability to lay down their own life and then take it up again? Jesus had this power.
Consider
Jesus had the power over His own life and death! When He died, He willingly gave up His own spirit (Luke 23:46).
According to His own words in Revelation 1:18, Jesus Christ has "the keys of hell and of death." How could He possibly have such power if He were not God?
Friend, make no mistake about it: the Lord Jesus Christ is Deity. He came to this earth and suffered in human flesh for thirty-three years. He lived a perfectly sinless life, and then laid that life down as an eternal payment for your sins. Mohammed didn't pay for your sins, because Mohammed wasn't God. Buddha didn't pay for your sins, because Buddha wasn't God. You can't pay for your sins, because you aren't God. Only Jesus Christ is sinless, because only Jesus Christ is God. He Alone can save your soul from the eternal fires of Hell.
Friend, do you know the Lord Jesus Christ as your own personal Saviour? Have you been born again? If not, be sure and call or write today for your free copy of Understanding God's Salvation Plan. Nothing in your life is more important than your eternal destiny, and no one can help you more than the Lord Jesus Christ.
Copyright © 1998 James L. Melton