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Jesus is never recorded in the Bible as saying the precise words, "I am God." That does not mean, however, that He did not proclaim that He is God. Take for example Jesus' words in John 10:30, "I a...
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When they reached the region of Caesarea Philippi, Jesus asked his disciples, "Who do poeple say I am?" and the disciples enumerated a long list of prophets. Then Jesus asked, "Who do you say I am?" Peter spoke up, "You are the Messiah" and he could have stopped there - and any Jew could agree with him, but he adds something wierd and almost blasphemous, "The Son of the living God." For the pagans, all the gods are divine. But for the Jews, only God is divine. And Peter, by saying that Jesus is Son of God, is saying Jesus is divine, since a son inherits the nature of his father. A human father begots a human son - A divine Father begots a divine Son. Jesus is concerned that people do not mistake him as "one of the prophets", he is more than that. Peter gets the answer correct, and Jesus confirms him, "No man has revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven." ------------------- For the Jews, only God can forgive sin. For this reason, the pharisees and scribes get a shock whenever he says, "Your sins are forgiven." In their hearts, they protest, "It is blasphemy! You think you are God?!" Jesus doesn't correct their reasoning - they are perfectly logical. He would have thought, "Yes, only God can forgive sins. And you see me forgive sins. The logical conclusion is?" It is a divine in-your-face.
Actually we can know for certain that Jesus is God incarnate. Look at zec 12. 10 And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. Here we have God saying that He was pierced and He would pour out on Davids house His Spirit of grace. That's effectively the Godhead in one verse. Over in revelation 1 there are verses where Jesus refers to Himself as the Almighty. Rev 1:8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. Rev 1:11 Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last:and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea. Then after referring to Himself as the Almighty we can know for certain it is Jesus speaking when He refers to Himself as having died and is now alive. Rev 1:17-18 And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:18 I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death. Rev 21.6 Rev 21:6 6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. Rev 22:12 And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. Rev 22:13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last..... Matthew 1.23 explains the Name of Jesus. Mat 1:23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. These verses when added to all other biblical records of miracles Jesus did including raising the dead can leave us with no other conclusion except that Jesus is who He said He is. God. (KJV)
Yes, in many places, one in John 8:58; &38, ch. 14:8-10, ch.20:24-29, in the 20th ch. Of John 28v. Thomas addresses him as God. In the 29th verse Jesus didn't rebuke him: "More blessed is he that has not seen and still believes." Paul in 1 Tim. 3:16 removes any controversy. The fact that Jesus is God manifest in the person of Jesus is, was, & always will be the center piece of Christianity; if not it's false teaching. This is Christianity: a real relationship with him is what makes us different than all other religions--that he is alive, he knows us and we know him. If a person doesn't have personal friendship with him, s/he is not a true christian. I'm not try to judge, it's just fact.
Verses quoted already by members in the forum were descriptions by others about Jesus being God, Alpha Omega, Messiah and Son of God, etc... However, these did not show actual quotes from Jesus himself, that he is God. Actually, there are verses that proved Jesus, when asked about his deity, answered directly that he is God. But, his answers were lost in the English translation of the word "God". Going to the original words will give us understanding. The following verses proved this fact incontrovertibly. But, let us analyze this narrative by retrospection: Jesus has taken on different names. He was called Logos/Word in John 1:1 and that is followed in v-3 that he was the Creator of all. Tracing back, this Creator God/Jesus/Elohim in Gen. 1:1 was specifically identified with his proper name YHVH ELOHIM in Gen. 2:4,"These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God (YHVH Elohim) made the earth and the heavens." Furthermore, YHVH Elohim introduced himself with a different name, as El Shaddai to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, but to Moses he was known as YHVH (Ex.6:2-3). This name that was translated "Lord God" in English is YHVH ELOHIM. Compare Deut. 6:16 with the temptation of Jesus by Satan in Matt. 4:7 and Luke 4:12 showing that Jesus, being YHVH ELOHIM is also the one referred to as "Lord thy God", as translated in English. Here, tangentially, he was signifying to Satan that He was The Lord God/YHVH ELOHIM, and Satan should not tempt him. Also, another name he used was I AM, as in Ex.3:13-14 "And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? What shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. And God said moreover unto Moses, ".... And continuing the verse, this I AM is identified as..."Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God (YHVH ELOHIM) of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations." This other specific identity as "I AM", is YHVH ELOHIM and is a direct claim of being that Creator God in Gen. 1:1 and Jn. 1:1. And, it was Jesus who took on this specific name " I AM" by saying" I AM that I AM", as in John 8:56-58 "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my (or Jesus') day: and he saw it, and was glad. Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham? Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am." (Jesus is I AM). So, while the translated English word God was not used, Jesus, by himself saying that he is "I AM", did in fact directly acknowledge that he is God. In summary, when taken from the original words, the verses quoted, viz., Deut 6:16, Matt. 4:7, Luke 4:12, Ex 3:13-14, and specifically John 8:56-58 proved unequivocally that Jesus himself said he is God. Please access these links for analysis of "I AM that I AM/ehyeh asher ehyeh" in Ex.3:13-14: http://www.exodus-314.com/part-ii/the-meaning-of-ligehyeh-asher-ehyehlig.html http://www.ask.com/wiki/I_Am_that_I_Am?lang=en
It is irrelevant if I say that Jesus is God and irrelevant if anyone says that he is not God. The fact is that what WE say does not matter. What really matters is what God has done. We all agree that there is but One God our Almighty Father and no one else. It is the first commandment in the Old Testament. So how can Jesus be God? Mark 16:19 (KJV) “So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.” As a witness Mark tells us that Jesus Christ was taken into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God. All of creation looks up towards the throne of God and worships our Almighty Father. We need to look at the position here the (Right hand side of God is the Holy of Holies and is a position of WORSHIP). Now all who worship the Father also worship the Son! God has already given him authority over Heaven and the authority to forgive sins on Earth. God our Father does not need our consent to place Jesus in a place of Worship IT’S ALREADY DONE! Therefore, so when a Jew Prays to God the Father he also prays to the Son, when a Muslim bows to God the Father he also bows to the Son, and when a Christian prays to the Son he also praises and worships the Almighty Father. (God gives no options, whether we like it or not) So, my brothers be warned: if anyone blasphemes the Son he is also guilty of blasphemy against the Almighty. This is the trick Satan has played with the Jews, Muslims, Jehovah witnesses and all those who reject the divinity of Jesus.
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