How do we really know that Jesus is the Son of God?

How do we really know that Jesus is the Son of God?

How do we really know that Jesus is the son of God? Did Jesus ever say, "I am God" in those words? Those words are not recorded in the Bible. However, Jesus did proclaim His deity. For instance, in John 10:30, Jesus said, "I and My Father are one." How did His audience react to His words? "The Jews answered Him, saying, 'For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a Man, make Yourself God'" (John 10:33). They understood that Jesus claimed to be God.

You can read another example in John 8:58, "Jesus said to them, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.'" The Jews picked up stones and wanted to stone Jesus. The Jews believed Jesus' statement to be blasphemy. They understood that Jesus claimed to be God!

Thomas, Jesus' disciple said, "My Lord and my God!" (John 20:28). You will see that Jesus doesn't correct him.

In the Bible, Jesus often receives worship. For example, Matthew 2:11 says, "And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh." (See also Matthew 14:33; 28:9, 17; Luke 24:52; John 9:38).

Is Jesus man or God? It is essential to believe that Jesus is God! Jesus has to be God for His death to be sufficient to pay the penalty for the sins of the world. 1 John 2:2 says, "And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world." Only Jesus, who is God, could pay such an infinite price!

Since Jesus is God, when did He realize it? Jesus realized who He was from eternity past. Consider these verses:

John 8:58 - "'I tell you the truth,' Jesus answered, 'before Abraham was born, I AM!'"

Genesis 1:26 - "Then God said, 'Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.'"

John 17:5 - "And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began."

Revelation 13:8 - "All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast - all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world."

Even as a child, Jesus was aware He was preparing to finish the work of His Father. In Luke 2:49 Jesus says, "Why were you searching for me . . . Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house?" Later in Luke, it reads "And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men."

If Jesus knew everything, He would not need to "grow in wisdom." Jesus needed to grow physically. He also voluntarily put himself in a position to gain knowledge as a human. Yes, Jesus was still God. Theology refers to this as the hypostatic union. (Hypostatic union means the union of two natures - God and man.)

Is Jesus God? Yes, and He has known from eternity past that He is God.

Ask yourself, "Do I believe that Jesus is God?" and "What are the reasons why I should believe that Jesus is God?" No legitimate historian denies that Jesus lived on earth, but it is up to you to decide for yourself whether Jesus is God in your life.

Continue Answering the Question - Is Jesus God?

Who Is God?

Who Is God - Who Does He Claim to Be?
Who is God? He's been described as everything from an impersonal life-force to a benevolent, personal, almighty Creator. He has been called by many names, including: "Zeus," "Jupiter," "Brahma," "Allah," "Ra," "Odin," "Ashur," "Izanagi," "Viracocha," "Ahura Mazda," and "the Great Spirit" to name just a few. He's seen by some as "Mother Nature" and by others as "Father God." But who is He really? Who does He claim to be?

Who Is God - Father God or Mother Nature?
Who is God? What has He revealed about Himself? To begin with, whenever He refers to Himself in parental terms, He always addresses Himself as "Father," never "Mother." He calls Himself "a Father to Israel,"¹and in one instance, when His "children" were particularly disrespectful to Him, He said to them, "A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am the Father, where is My honor? And if I am a Master, where is My reverence?" ²

His prophets acknowledged Him as Father by saying, "You are our Father, we are the clay, and You our potter; And all of us are the work of Your hand,"³ and "do we not all have one Father? Has not one God created us?"⁴ Never once does God refer to Himself as "Mother" and never once is He called such by the prophets to whom He spoke. Calling God "Mother Nature" is comparable to calling your earthly father "Mom."

Who Is God - What Does God Care About?
Who is God in terms of moral attributes? What does God have to say about Himself in this regard? He says that He delights in justice and righteousness: "…Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight."⁵ "For I, the LORD, love justice; I hate robbery and iniquity…"⁶

Justice and equity are very important to God. But so are grace and mercy. And so, while God will hold everyone accountable, each for their own lives, He extends His grace to the repentant sinner. He promises that, "'If the wicked man turns from all his sins which he has committed and observes all My statutes and practices justice and righteousness, he shall surely live; he shall not die. All his transgressions which he has committed will not be remembered against him; because of his righteousness which he has practiced, he will live. Do I have any pleasure in the death of the wicked,' declares the Lord GOD, 'rather than that he should turn from his ways and live?…I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies,' declares the Lord GOD. 'Therefore, repent and live.'"⁷

By "death" God is not referring to the physical death which we might have in mind. Rather, God is referring to something which will happen in eternity, after our physical deaths. The Scriptures refer to this event as the "second death."⁸ The first death separates us from our bodies and takes us from this world. The second death is different. It also entails a separation, but it's the separation of one group of people from another: the righteous and the forgiven on one hand and the wicked and the unrepentant on the other. The two groups will be judged separately.

The one group will be rewarded according to the good that they've done. Their evil deeds will be overlooked, forgiven by God. The other group will be judged according to the evil that they have done, and their good deeds will not keep them from their punishment. God says, "When a righteous man turns away from his righteousness, commits iniquity and dies because of it, for his iniquity which he has committed he will die." But "when a wicked man turns away from his wickedness which he has committed and practices justice and righteousness, he will save his life. Because he considered and turned away from all his transgressions which he had committed, he shall surely live; he shall not die. …Therefore, repent and live."⁹ In this way, God will see that justice ultimately prevails, but that mercy is given to the humble and the repentant.

God has made a provision for those who want to repent, a provision to atone for the sins of those who want to be made right with Him. He sent a "Messiah," a Servant who willingly suffered and died a vicarious death in order to pay for the sins of those who would repent and trust in Him. The Scriptures say, "Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?…Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows…He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.…it was the LORD's will to crush Him and cause Him to suffer, and though the LORD makes His life a guilt offering, He will see His offspring and prolong His days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in His hand. After the suffering of His soul, He will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.…he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors." ¹⁰

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