Jesus: The Almighty God?
By Rev. Esper Ajaj
The deity of Jesus Christ is a controversial doctrine. For
Christians, it is of vital importance because on it hangs the eternal destiny of
every human being. In the Gospel of John 3:36 we read: “He who believes in the
Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see
life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”
This is how serious this matter is according to the Christian faith!
The deity of Jesus Christ is not a man-made doctrine, but it
is documented by what we hold to be the written Word of God, the Old and the
New Testaments. In this article, I would like to present five reasons why I
believe in the deity of Christ. But
first, I would like to define what exactly I mean by the Deity of Jesus Christ.
Christians believe that Jesus Christ is the incarnated Son
of God. He is God manifested in the flesh. He is not a man who became God, but
God who revealed Himself to us in a human form. Can God do that? Yes He can, if He so desires.
But if Jesus is the incarnated Son of God, does that mean
that Christians believe in many gods, as Muslims claim? Definitely not! Christians all over the world believe that
there is only one God, and any one who does not believe in the oneness of God
is considered by Christians a heretic or infidel. In Exodus 20:3 it says: “Ye shall have no other God before
Me.” The Lord Jesus affirmed this when
one of the scribes asked Him, “Which is the first commandment of all? Jesus
answered him, The first of all the commandment is ‘Hear O Israel. The Lord our
God is one Lord. And you shall love the Lord your God with your heart and with
all your soul and with all your mind, and with all your strength’” (Mark
12:28-30). The apostle Paul stated this
very fact in his epistle to the Corinthian church by saying: “We know that an idol is nothing in the
world, and that there is no other God but one” (1Cor. 8:4).
How could we reconcile this teaching with the teaching that
Jesus Christ is God, as much as the Father and the Holy Spirit? This is where
the doctrine of the Trinity comes in. The trinity, according to Islam, is
composed of God the Father, Jesus the Son, and Mary the mother of God. This concept of the trinity is rejected by
Christians. Christians believe that
there is only one God. Christians don’t
worship three separate gods. But they believe that God although He is one, yet
He reveals Himself in the Scripture as a triune God (Father, Son and the Holy
Spirit). The question can be asked: How
can this be? The concept of the Trinity
makes sense when we consider the attributes of God. Take for example, the
attribute of love. If love is an
eternal attribute of God, then whom did God love before the creation of the
world? Jesus addressed the Father by
saying: “With the love which you have loved me before the foundation of the
world” (John 17:24). Only the principle
of plurality in oneness of the Godhead solves such problem. We believe in this doctrine, not only
because it does make sense, but also because it is clearly revealed to us in
Scripture. I would like to present five
testimonies from the Bible to the deity of Jesus Christ: the testimony of the Old
Testament, the testimony of Christ’s enemies, the testimony of Christ Himself,
the testimony of the disciples, and the testimony of the virgin birth.
1. The Testimony of the Old Testament
Jesus said to the Jews of His day, “You search the
Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they
which testify of Me. But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have
life… For if you believed Moses, you
would believe Me; for he wrote about Me” (John 5:39,40,46). It is also written, “But all this was done
that the Scripture of the prophets might be fulfilled” (Matt. 26:56). Let us, too, search the Old Testament
scriptures.
In Genesis 3:15, God spoke to the serpent in the Garden of
Eden and said, “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between
your seed and her seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His
heel." This was the first prophecy
about the coming of a special person.
This special person was going to be born from the seed of the woman and
He was going to bruise the serpent’s head. What else does the Old Testament say
about this special person, or the Messiah?
We read in Isaiah 7:14, “Therefore the Lord Himself will
give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall
call His name Immanuel.” Then we read in Isaiah 9:6:
”For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His
shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of
Peace.”
This person was going to be born for us and was to be called
the mighty God. In this verse we can
see the humanity and the divinity of the Messiah. For when he said, “Unto us a child is born” that was a reference
to His humanity. This was fulfilled when Jesus came into the world, and was
born in Bethlehem of Judea. But when he said, “Unto us a Son is given“ that was
a reference to His divinity. In John 3:16, we read: ”For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son,
that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
And then when we read in Isaiah 61:1:
"The Spirit of the Lord GOD is
upon Me,
Because the LORD has anointed Me
To preach good tidings to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the
brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives,
And the opening of the prison to
those who are bound.”
The Messiah was going to be anointed to preach good tidings
unto the meek.
Then we read in Is. 53:4, 6-7, 9-10, 12:
(V4)Surely He has borne our griefs
And carried our sorrows;
Yet we esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten by God, and afflicted.
(V6)All we like sheep have gone
astray;
We have turned, every one, to his
own way;
And the LORD has laid on Him the
iniquity of us all.
(V7) He was oppressed and He was
afflicted,
Yet He opened not His mouth;
He was led as a lamb to the
slaughter,
And as a sheep before its shearers
is silent,
So He opened not His mouth.
(V9) And they[1] made His grave with
the wicked--
But with the rich at His death,
Because He had done no violence,
Nor was any deceit in His mouth.
(V10)Yet it pleased the LORD to
bruise Him;
He has put Him to grief.
When You make His soul an offering
for sin,
He shall see His seed, He shall
prolong His days,
And the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper
in His hand.
(V12) Therefore I will divide Him a
portion with the great,
And He shall divide the spoil with
the strong,
Because He poured out His soul unto
death,
And He was numbered with the
transgressors,
And He bore the sin of many,
And made intercession for the
transgressors.
The Messiah was going to become an offering for our
sin. In Zech. 12:10 we read: “And I
will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit
of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes,
they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as
one grieves for a firstborn.” Who is
this person whom they have pierced? In
the gospel of John 19:32-37 we read, “Then the soldiers came and broke the legs
of the first and of the other who was crucified with Him. But when they came to
Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. But one of
the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water
came out. And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he
knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe. For these things
were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled, ‘Not one of His bones shall
be broken.’ And again another Scripture
says, ‘They shall look on Him whom they pierced.’"
Then in Isaiah 40:9 - 11 we read:
O Zion,
You who bring good tidings,
Get up into the high mountain;
O Jerusalem,
You who bring good tidings,
Lift up your voice with strength,
Lift it up, be not afraid;
Say to the cities of Judah, ‘Behold
your God!’
Behold, the Lord GOD shall come with
a strong hand,
And His arm shall rule for Him;
Behold, His reward is with Him,
And His work before Him.
He will feed His flock like a
shepherd;
He will gather the lambs with His
arm,
And carry them in His bosom,
And gently lead those who are with young.
The one to come, the Messiah, is called God. In the same chapter of Isaiah, we read: “The
voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the LORD, make
straight in the desert a highway for our God’” (Isaiah 40:3). Who is this person who is called in the Old
Test. God? We can find the answer in
the gospel of Matt. 3:1-3: “In those days John the Baptist came preaching in
the wilderness of Judea, and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at
hand!’ For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying: ‘The
voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His
paths straight.”’”“
In Micah 5:2 we read,
"But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
Though you are little among the
thousands of Judah,
Yet out of you shall come forth to
Me
The One to be Ruler in Israel,
Whose goings forth are from of old,
From everlasting."
The one to come is the eternal God, whose going forth has
been of old from everlasting.
The O.T. is literally rich with so many prophecies about
this individual, who someday will come to fulfill them. It clearly teaches that
this person is God. One person
summarized the pictures of Christ in the Old Testament with these words:
He is the theme of the Bible
The center and heart of The Book
He is the Rose of Sharon,
The Goodly Pearl
Wherever I open the Bible
The Lord of the Bible is there.
He is in The Book beginnings
Who gave the earth its form
He is the Ark of safety
The Lord that rode the storm
The Burning Bush of the desert
The budding of Aaron's rod
Whenever I open the Bible
I see the Son of God.
The Lamb upon Mount Moriah
The Ladder from earth to sky
The Scarlet Cord in the window
The Serpent lifted high
The Smitten Rock of the desert
The Shepherd with staff and crook
The face of my Lord I discover,
Whenever I open The Book.
He is the seed of the woman
The Savior virgin born
He is the Son of David
Whom men rejected and scorned
The Lord of eternal glory
Whom John the apostle saw
The Light in the celestial city
The Lamb without spot or flaw
The Bridegroom coming at midnight
For whom His people look
Whenever I open the Bible
I see my Lord in The Book.
This beautiful poem reminds us of the glorious meeting that
took place on the road to Emmaus. This was when the risen Lord expounded the
scriptures to the two disciples when He met them on the road saying, "’O
foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have
spoken! Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into
His glory?’ And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them
in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself” (Luke 24:25-27).
Truly Jesus Christ is the central theme of the Bible.
2. The Testimony of
the Enemies of Jesus
In the gospel of Mark 14:55, 61-64, we read: “Now the chief priests and all the council
sought testimony against Jesus to put Him to death, but found none... Again the high priest asked Him, saying to
Him, ‘Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?’ Jesus said, ‘I am. And you
will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming with
the clouds of heaven.’ Then the high
priest tore his clothes and said, ‘What further need do we have of witnesses?
You have heard the blasphemy! What do you think?’ And they all condemned Him to be deserving of death.”
Also in Matt. 26:62, we read: “And the high priest arose and
said to Him, ‘Do You answer nothing? What is it these men testify against You?’
But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest answered and said to Him, ‘I put You
under oath by the living God: Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of
God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘It is as you
said.”
As we see from this portion of Scripture that Jesus Christ
was not tried on what He did, but He was tried on the basis of His identity for
He claimed to be God.
In Matt. 27:41-43 we read: “Likewise the chief priests also,
mocking with the scribes and elders, said, ‘…He trusted in God; let Him deliver
Him now if He will have Him; for He said, "I am the Son of God."’”
In the gospel of John 5:17-18, the Lord Jesus addressed the
Jews by saying to them: “’My Father has been working until now, and I have been
working.’ Therefore the Jews sought all
the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that
God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.”
And in the gospel of Mark 2:5, When Jesus healed the
paralytic by saying to him: “’Son, your sins are forgiven you.’ And some of the scribes were sitting there
and reasoning in their hearts, ‘Why does this Man speak blasphemies like this?
Who can forgive sins but God alone?’"
The enemies of Jesus clearly understood his claim to deity.
3. The Testimony of Christ about Himself.
Let us read what Jesus said about himself:
“For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them,
even so the Son gives life to whom He will. For the Father judges no one, but
has committed all judgment to the Son, that all should honor the Son just as
they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father
who sent Him”(John 5:21-24).
“’My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.
And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone
snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater
than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand. I and My
Father are one.’ Then the Jews took up
stones again to stone Him. Jesus
answered them, ‘Many good works I have shown you from My Father. For which of
those works do you stone Me?’ 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 10:27-33).
“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe
also in Me.” (John 14:1).
“Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for
if you do not believe that I Am He, you will die in your sins” (John 8:24).
“When you lift up the Son of man, then you will know that I
AM” (John 8:28).
“No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from
heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven.” (John 3:13).
“And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with
the glory which I had with You before the world was” (John 17:5).
In John 8:57, Jesus said to the Jews, “'Your father Abraham
rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.’ Then the Jews said to Him, ‘You are not yet fifty years old, and
have You seen Abraham?’ Jesus said to
them, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.’ Then they took up stones to throw at Him.”
When Jesus said, “I AM,” he meant that he was the eternal
God, the one who has been from time and eternity past. In Exodus 3:13-14,
“Moses said to God, ‘Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to
them, “The God of your fathers has sent me to you,” and they say to me,
"What is His name?” what shall I say to them?’ And God said to Moses, ‘I AM WHO I AM.’ And He said, ‘Thus you
shall say to the children of Israel, "I AM has sent me to you.”’”' That means you tell them that the eternally
existing One has sent me.
“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through Me.
If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now
on you know Him and have seen Him.’
Philip said to Him, ‘Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for
us.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been
with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has
seen the Father; so how can you say, "Show us the Father”? Do you not
believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak
to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does
the works. Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else
believe Me for the sake of the works themselves’” (John 14:6-11).
“And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority
has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of
all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of
the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you;
and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age’’. (Matt.
28:18-20). This was the fulfillment of
the prophecy of Daniel as we read in Daniel 7:13-14:
"I was watching in the night
visions,
And behold, One like the Son of Man,
Coming with the clouds of heaven!
He came to the Ancient of Days,
And they brought Him near before
Him.
Then to Him was given dominion and
glory and a kingdom,
That all peoples, nations, and
languages should serve Him.
His dominion is an everlasting
dominion,
Which shall not pass away,
And His kingdom the one
Which shall not be destroyed.”
The prophets of old use to say: “Thus said the Lord,” but
Jesus said: “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and
hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse
you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you
and persecute you” (Matt. 5:43, -46).
Jesus instead of saying, “Thus said the Lord,” He said, “verily verily I
say unto you.” He never retracted anything He said.
4. The Testimony of the Disciples of Christ.
a. The Testimony of
Peter
“When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He
asked His disciples, saying, ‘Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?’ So
they said, ‘Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one
of the prophets.’ He said to them, ‘But
who do you say that I am?’ Simon Peter
answered and said, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’ Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Blessed are
you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My
Father who is in heaven’” (Matt. 16:13-17).
b. The Testimony of
the Thomas, the doubter
After the resurrection when Jesus appeared to the Disciples
in the upper room and “He said to Thomas, ‘Reach your finger here, and look at
My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be
unbelieving, but believing.’ And Thomas
answered and said to Him, ‘My Lord and my God!’” (John 20:27-28)
c. The Testimony of
Paul
“Philip said to Him, ‘Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for
us.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been
with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has
seen the Father; so how can you say, "Show us the Father”? Do you not
believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me?”” (John 14:8-10) Moses in Exodus 33, Like Philip, asked God to show him His glory.
But God answered him, “You cannot see my face, for no man shall see Me and live.” To this the apostle Paul says: “For it is
the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our
hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of
Jesus Christ” (2Cor. 4:6).
In Col. 1:14-17, Paul writes, “In whom we have redemption
through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth,
visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or
powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all
things, and in Him all things consist.”
“For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily”
(Col. 2:9).
“Looking for the blessed hope and the glorious appearing of
our great God and Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13).
The Apostle Paul sums up the greatness of His name by
saying:
“Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:5-11).
Here we see the Dual Nature of Christ. The divine nature:
“Who being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with
God.” and also “At the name of Jesus every knee shall bow of those in heaven
and of those on earth and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is
Lord.” Compare this with Isaiah
45:22-23:
"Look to Me, and be saved,
All you ends of the earth!
For I am God, and there is no other.
I have sworn by Myself;
The word has gone out of My mouth in
righteousness,
And shall not return,
That to Me every knee shall bow,
Every tongue shall take an oath.”
d. The Testimony of John
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made
through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 10He was in the
world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him… And the Word became flesh and dwelt among
us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,
full of grace and truth” (John 1:1-3,10,14).
“He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in
himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not
believed the testimony that God has given of His Son. And this is the
testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He
who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have
life” (1John 5:10-12).
The apostle John states this conclusion: “And truly Jesus
did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in
this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ,
the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name” (John
20:30-31).
5. The Testimony of His Virgin Birth
There are four reasons why the virgin birth of Christ was
necessary for His Deity:
a. His virgin birth
proves that He is a supernatural person.
When the angel told Mary that she was going to be with child, “Then Mary
said to the angel, ‘How can this be, since I do not know a man?’ And the angel answered and said to her, ‘The
Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow
you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the
Son of God’” (Luke 1:34-35).
b. His virgin birth proves
that He has no sin nature in Him. (Luke 1:34-3,5:21; 1Peter 2:22-24; Heb. 4:15,
7:26). Even when Jesus confronted the
Jews by asking them, “Who of you will convict me of one sin,” no one could
convict him of any sin.
c. The O. T. makes it clear that Jesus had to be both God
and man. (Is. 7:14; 9:6).
d. The Virgin birth fulfills the prediction in Genesis. 3:15
The deity of Christ is an important doctrine of the
Christian faith, and is clearly taught in the Scripture. I would like, however,
to emphasize that true religion is a personal experience. It is a spiritual
relationship between the individual and God. This spiritual experience demands
a divine miracle and will never be achieved by mere intellectual knowledge. We
Christians call that experience the new birth. I would like to leave you with
what others said about Christ.
C.S. Lewis, in his book The Case For Christianity,
mentioned that a person who said to him. “I am ready to accept Jesus as a great
moral teacher, but I do not accept His claim to be God.” C. S. Lewis contends: ”That is the one thing
we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus
said wouldn’t be a great moral teacher.
He would either be a lunatic -liar or Lord. You must make your choice.
Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, You can shut him up for a fool,
you can spit at him, and kill him as a demon, or you can fall at His feet and
call Him my Lord and my God. But don’t let us come with any patronizing
nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He hasn’t left that open to us.
He didn’t intend to.”
Dr Alfred Martin in his book Life Through Believing said:
“The logic is very clear, either the Lord Jesus was good or He was not good.
Most admit that He was a good man, But He claimed to be God and demanded that
all men should honor Him exactly as they honor the Father.”
S. M. Locker said about Christ:
He is God’s Son
He is the sinner’s savior
He is the centerpiece of
civilization
He stand alone in Himself
He is Awesome
He is unique
He is unparallel,
He is unprecedented
He is supreme,
He is preeminent,
He is the loftiest idea in
literature,
He is the highest personality in
philosophy,
He is the supreme problem in higher
criticism,
He is the fundamental doctrine of
proof theology,
He is the coral necessity of
spiritual religion,
He is the miracle of the ages,
He is the superlative of every thing
good,
He is the only one able to supply
all of our need simultaneously,
He is the strength of the week,
He is available for the tempted and
tried,
He sympathizes and He saves,
He heals the sick,
He cleanse the leper,
He forgives sinners, He discharges
debtors,
He delivers the captives,
He defends the feeble,
He blesses the young,
He regard the age,
He reward the diligent,
He beauties the meek.
He is the key of knowledge,
He is the wellspring of wisdom,
He is the doorway of deliverance,
He is fast way of peace,
He is the roadway of righteousness,
He is the highway of holiness,
He is the gateway of glory,
He is the Master of the Mighty,
He is the captain of the
He is the head of the heroes,
He is the Leader of the Legislators,
He is the overseer of the overcome,
He is the governor of governors,
He is the prince of princess,
He is the King of Kings and He is
the Lord of Lords,
His office is manifold,
His promise is sure,
His life is matchless,
His goodness is limitless,
His mercy is everlasting,
His love never changes,
His word is enough,
His grace is sufficient,
His reign is righteousness,
His yoke is easy and His burden is
light,
I wish I can describe Him to you,
but He is indescribable,
He is incomprehensible,
He is invincible,
He is irresistible,
The heaven of heavens cannot contain
Him,
Let alone a man explaining Him,
You can’t get Him out of your mind,
You can’t get Him off of your hand,
You can’t out live Him and you can’t
live without Him,
Pharisees couldn’t stand Him,
But they found out they couldn’t
stop Him,
Pilate couldn’t find any fault in
Him,
The witnesses couldn’t get their
testimonies to agree,
Herod couldn’t kill Him,
Death couldn’t handle Him and the
grave couldn’t hold Him,
He always has been, and He always
will be,
He had no predecessor,
And He’ll have no successor,
There was no body before Him, and
will be no body after Him,
You can’t impeach Him, and He is not
going to resign,
All power is given unto Him in
heaven and on earth,
For thine is the kingdom, and the
power and the glory,
Forever and ever and ever, how long
is that,
And ever and ever, and ever and when
you get through
With all the forever, then Amen.
Who do His enemies say that He was claiming to be? “GOD.
Who do His friends say he is? GOD
Who does the O.T. say He is “GOD”
Who does the N.T. say He is “God”
An essay entitled "The Incomparable Christ,"
"More than nineteen hundred
years ago there was a man born contrary to the laws of life. This man lived in
poverty and was reared in obscurity. He did not travel extensively. Only once
did He cross the boundary of the country in which He lived; that was during His
exile in childhood.
“He possessed neither wealth nor
influence . His relatives were inconspicuous, and had neither training nor
formal education. In infancy, He startled a King; in childhood, He puzzled doctors;
in manhood He ruled the course of nature by walking upon the billows as if
pavements, and hushed the sea to sleep. He healed the multitudes without
medicine and made no charge for His service.
“He never wrote a book, and yet all
the libraries of the country could not hold the books that were written about
Him. He never wrote a song, and yet He has furnished the theme for more songs
than all the songwriter combined.
“He never founded a college, but all
the schools put together cannot boast of having as many students.
“He never marshaled and army, nor
drafted any soldier, nor fired a gun; never shed blood, but His own; and yet no
leader had ever had more volunteers who have under His orders, made more rebels
leave their arms and surrender without firing a shot .
“He never practiced psychiatry, and
yet He has healed more broken hearts than all the doctors far and near. Once a
week the wheels of commerce cease their turning and multitudes wend their way
to worshipping assemblies to pay homage and respect to Him.
“The names of the past proud
statesmen of Greece and Rome have come and gone. The names of the past
scientists, philosophers, and theologians have come and gone; but the name of
this man abounds more and more. Though
time has spread nineteen hundred years between the people of this generation
and the scene of His crucifixion, yet He still lives. Herod could not destroy
Him, and the grave could not hold Him.
“He stands forth upon the highest
pinnacle of heavenly glory, proclaimed of God, acknowledged by angels, adored
by saints, and feared by devils, as the living, personal Christ, our Lord and
Savior."
One person wrote about the attributes of Christ:
To the Artist, He is the one
altogether lovely,
To the Architect, He is the chief
Cornerstone,
To the Baker, He is the Living Bread
To the Thirsty, He is the Living
Water,
To the Biologist, He is the Life,
To the Builder, He is the Foundation
To the Doctor, He is the Great
Physician,
To the Farmer, He is the Lord of the
Harvest,
To the Florist, He is the Rose of
Sharon and the Lily of the valley,
To the Geologist, He is the Rock of
Ages,
To the Jurist, He is the Counselor,
the Lawgiver and the Advocate,
To the Horticulturist, He is the
True Vine,
To the News Reporter, He is the Good
Tidings of Great Joy,
To Those who live in darkness,, He
is the Light of the World,
To the Philanthropist, He is the
Unspeakable Gift
To the Preacher, He is the Word of
God,
To the Philosopher, He is the Wisdom
of God,
To the Sculptor, He is the Living
Stone,
To the Servant, He is the Good
Master,
To the Statesman, He is the Desire
of all Nation,
To the Student, He is the Great
Teacher,
To the Theologian, He is the Author
and Finisher of our faith,
To the Traveler, He is the Way,
To the Weary, He is the Giver of
Rest,
To the United Nations, He is the
Prince of peace,
To the Rulers, He is the King of
King and the Lord of Lord,
To the Dying Man, He is the
Resurrection and the Life,
To the Broken Hearted, He is the
Great Comforter,
To the Christian, He is the Son of
Living God, The Savior, Redeemer, and Lord.
To the Sinner, He is the Lamb of God
that takes away the sin of the world,
____________________
All Scripture quotations
are from the New King James Version.