The Importance of The Deity of Christ
Importance Deity of Christ PDF
The deity of Christ is an important topic for them to master in the scriptures, because many people will say they believe in Jesus, but they believe in “another Jesus”, 2Co 11, not the Jesus of the Bible who is also LORD.
And throughout Holy Scripture, when the word “Lord” is used it almost always refers to God Himself. Of course, context is key.
Deity is part of who Christ is, but Satan would love people to believe in a counterfeit Jesus who is less than God Himself, as seen in many religions today. Mt 16:13-17, 2Co 11:4 (this is true for Muslims, Hindus and Jehovah’s Witnesses, for example)
Mt 16:13-17
Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
Is 7:14
“Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.
Immanuel means “God with us”… not “a” god, but God!
Is 9:6
For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
Let’s also compare Jn 1:1, and 1:14:
Jn 1:1-3
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.
This is clearly telling us about God, our Creator, being the Word of God, one and the same.
Jn 1:14
And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
The Word is God… The Word Became Flesh… Jesus Christ has flesh, God the Father doesn’t.
Rev 19:13 – one of Jesus’ titles is The Word of God – He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.
— Jesus Christ called God His Father, making Himself equal with God! Jn 5:18,8:19,14:7
Jn 5:18
For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.
Jn 8:19 “If you knew Me, you would know My Father.”
Jn 14:7 – Jesus says you have known the Father and have seen Him! (because Jesus = God… otherwise how can HE say you have seen the Father?) We see the “oneness” with the Father here, claimed by Jesus.
Jn 14:6-9
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. 7 “If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him.”
8 Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” 9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?
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Jesus refers to Himself as the Great “I AM” from the OT, Jn 8:58. This is why they tried to stone Him to death.
Jn 8:58 – “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I Am! Therefore they picked up stones to kill him…”
Jesus calls Himself “I AM”. The title for God alone!
The title that God told to Moses in Ex 3:14… and here Jesus Christ says, I AM…. Making Himself out to be God.
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In Jn 10:28 – Jesus says He gives eternal life… but only God Almighty can give eternal life, right?!
Jn 10:27-34
“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; 28 and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. 29 “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. 30 “I and the Father are one.”
… and in vs. 31, we see the Jews pick up stones to kill him and in vs. 33… “because you make yourself out to be God!”
31 The Jews picked up stones again to stone Him. 32 Jesus answered them, “I showed you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you stoning Me?” 33 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.”
— The Jews had a law; if anyone claimed he was God, he was to be
killed. Jn 19:7, Mk 14:64 Their law wasn’t against if you made yourself out to be a small
god or a prophet…
… “Son of God” is a title for God… the Jews knew that and that’s why they wanted to kill him.
Jn 19:7
The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and by that law He ought to die because He made Himself out to be the Son of God.”
It was clear to them that Jesus claimed to be God… otherwise there is no grounds for killing Him.
Compare to:
Mk 14:61-64
61 But He kept silent and did not answer. Again the high priest was questioning Him, and saying to Him, “Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?” 62 And Jesus said, “I am; and you shall see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, and COMING WITH THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN.” 63 Tearing his clothes, the high priest said, “What further need do we have of witnesses? 64 “You have heard the blasphemy; how does it seem to you?” And they all condemned Him to be deserving of death.
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The Child is said to be “God with us”, and Holy Scripture says God shed His own blood and was pierced! Mt 1:23, Ac 20:28, Zec 12:10, Ps 22:16
Mt 1:23 – His name is Immanuel, which means God with us. “Behold the virgin will be with Child, and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel, which translated means God with us” – foretold in Is 7:14
Ac 20:28 says God purchased the church with “His own blood”! – obviously only Jesus Christ has blood, God the Father doesn’t…
Ac 20:28
“Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.
Zec 12:10 tells us that God Himself was pierced!
Zec 12:1, notice it’s “the Lord who stretches out the heavens” who is speaking… and the Lord goes on to say in vs. 10:
Zec 12:10
“I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn.
We can compare this with another prophecy in:
Ps 22:16
For dogs have surrounded me; A band of evildoers has encompassed me; They pierced my hands and my feet.
— Jesus is said to be the exact image of God and the fullness of
deity! Col 1:15-19, 2:9
Who created all things…… but God created all things… so they must be the same!
Col 1:13-19
For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities — all things have been created through Him and for Him. 17 He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.
18 He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. 19 For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him.
Col 2:9 “For in Him (Jesus) all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form!”
There again we see God in the Flesh – Emmanuel! —
GOD is said to be the Savior of all men. Is 43:10-11, 1Ti 4:10. But Jesus is clearly given this same title. Tit 2:13, 1Jn 5:20, 2Pe 1:1
Is 43:10-11 says only God is the Savior!
1 Ti 4:10
For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers.
Yet, Jesus is clearly given this title.
Tit 2:13
looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus,
1 Jn 5:20 “And we know the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding, in order that we might know Him who is true, and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.”
2 Pe 1:1
“our God and Savoir, Jesus Christ.”
And when Moses and the Jews followed God in the OT, they were following Christ.
1 Co 10:1-4
For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea; 2 and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea; 3 and all ate the same spiritual food; 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ.
— Only God can forgive sins, and no one else! Yet, Jesus boldly does
so. Mt 9:2-3, Mk 2:5-7 Mt 9:2 – Jesus forgives sins… Mt 9:3 they accused Him of
blasphemy because He forgave sins!
Mt 9:2-3
And they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a bed. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralytic, “Take courage, son; your sins are forgiven.” 3 And some of the scribes said to themselves, “This fellow blasphemes.
It’s even clearer in Mk 2:5-7
And Jesus seeing their faith said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” 6 But some of the scribes were sitting there and reasoning in their hearts, 7 “Why does this man speak that way? He is blaspheming; who can forgive sins but God alone?”
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Only God receives worship and glory. Yet, Jesus accepted worship and claimed God’s glory. Mk 5:6,11:9-10, Lk 5:8,17:15-18, Jn 5:23,9:38,20:28, Heb 1:6, Rev 5:8-14,22:8-9.
Every time in scripture where a human being worships any angel, the angel rebukes him and says “do not worship me, only worship God.”
NO ONE ELSE is worthy of worship except God Himself.
Rev 22:8-9
I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed me these things. 9 But he said to me, “Do not do that. I am a fellow servant of yours and of your brethren the prophets and of those who heed the words of this book. Worship God.”
And yet…
If Jesus were lesser than God in some way, He would have rebuked people who fell down at His feet, but He never did.
Lk 5:8 “But when Simon Peter saw, he fell down at Jesus feet, saying, ‘depart from me for I am a sinful man O Lord!”
Jn 5:23 – “in order that all may honor the Son, even as they honor the Father!
God does NOT share His glory or honor with anyone… so Jesus MUST be God if the Son is honored as the Father.
Jn 9:38 – And he (the healed blind man) said, Lord I believe. And he worshiped Him.
Mk 5:6 – the demon recognized Jesus as God and bowed down before Him… and Jesus speaks to him but doesn’t tell him not to bow down!
Mk 11:9-10 – everyone worshipped Him crying out Hosanna! And spread their garments and palm branches before Him. And Jesus never rebuked them.
Jn 20:28 ‘Thomas answered and said to Him, My Lord and my God!” – and Jesus did NOT rebuke him.
Rev 5:8-14 – the 24 elders worship the Lamb, thousands and thousands of angels worship the Lamb of God, who is Jesus Christ. And every created thing in Heaven, on earth and under the earth worship the Lamb.
Heb 1:6-12
And when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says, “AND LET ALL THE ANGELS OF GOD WORSHIP HIM.” 7 And of the angels He says,
“WHO MAKES HIS ANGELS WINDS,AND HIS MINISTERS A FLAME OF FIRE.” 8 But of the Son He says, “YOUR THRONE, O GOD, IS FOREVER AND EVER,AND THE RIGHTEOUS SCEPTER IS THE SCEPTER OF HIS KINGDOM. 9 “YOU HAVE LOVED RIGHTEOUSNESS AND HATED LAWLESSNESS;THEREFORE GOD, YOUR GOD, HAS ANOINTED YOU WITH THE OIL OF GLADNESS ABOVE YOUR COMPANIONS.”
(And God continues on about the Son:)
10 And, “YOU, LORD, IN THE BEGINNING LAID THE FOUNDATION OF THE EARTH,AND THE HEAVENS ARE THE WORKS OF YOUR HANDS; 11 THEY WILL PERISH, BUT YOU REMAIN;AND THEY ALL WILL BECOME OLD LIKE A GARMENT, 12 AND LIKE A MANTLE YOU WILL ROLL THEM UP;LIKE A GARMENT THEY WILL ALSO BE CHANGED. BUT YOU ARE THE SAME, AND YOUR YEARS WILL NOT COME TO AN END.”
Heb 3:1-4
Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest of our confession; 2 He was faithful to Him who appointed Him, as Moses also was in all His house. 3 For He has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, by just so much as the builder of the house has more honor than the house. 4 For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.
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The Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the Almighty was dead and became alive again! Rev 1:7-8,17-18
Rev 1:7-8 “Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him, even So, Amen. I am the Alpha and Omega, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty!
Rev 1:17-18 “Do not be afraid, I am the first and the last, and the living One, and I was dead and behold, I Am alive forever more and I have the keys of death and of Hades”.
The “Alpha and Omega”, the “Almighty”, vs. 8, was dead and is now alive forevermore!
Of course, only Jesus was dead and is now alive.
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To realize that Jesus Christ is God Himself in the flesh makes you think about the tremendous love that motivated Him to become human and go to a horrible Cross for us.
Two scriptures come to mind:
Php 2:5-8
Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. 8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
2 Co 8:9
For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich.
Why would God, who had it all in heaven, give it all up for creatures who went against Him??
It’s an eternal mystery!! But we know, God is good!