According to the Christian scriptures, who is right about Jesus -- the Quran or Pat Robertson? The Jews keep their monotheistic God for themselves -- a conspiracy between them against the rest of us -- and those who follow Christ's name are actually worshiping three God's (a trinity) instead of the one true God -- but is Jesus the same as the one he prayed to? Who is telling the truth about Jesus? If you want to be a student of the man who taught "love your enemy" and "return good for evil" should you not start by knowing who he was and who he definitely was not? Is Jesus GOD? http://www.islamreligion.com/articles/35/viewall/ 1. Bible Says that God is NOT Man: The Bible says: Numbers 23:19: "God is not a man", Hosea 11:9: "...For I am God, and not man..." Jesus is called a man many times in the Bible: John 8:40: "a man who has told you the truth", Acts 2:22: "Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know.", Acts 17:31: "He will judge the world in righteousness through a man whom He has appointed", 1 Tim. 2:5: "the man Christ Jesus.", God is not a man, but Jesus, may God praise him, was a man, therefore, Jesus was not God. 2. The Bible Says that God is NOT a Son of Man: Numbers 23:19: "God is not a man...nor a son of man" The Bible often calls Jesus "a son of man" or "the son of man.": Matthew 12:40: "so will the son of man be", Matthew 16:27: "For the son of man is going to come", Matthew 28: "until they see the son of man coming in His kingdom.", Mark 2:10: "But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority", John 5:27: "because He is the son of man." In the Hebrew Scriptures, the "son of man" is also used many times speaking of people (Job 25:6; Psalm 80:17; 144:3; Ezekiel 2:1; 2:3; 2:6; 2:8; 3:1; 3:3; 3:4; 3:10; 3:17; 3:25). Since God would not contradict Himself by first saying He is not the son of a man, then becoming a human being who was called "the son of man", he would not have done so. Remember God is not the author of confusion. Also, human beings, including Jesus, are called "son of man" specifically to distinguish them from God, who is not a "son of man" according to the Bible. 3. The Bible Says that Jesus Denied He is GOD: Luke 18:19: Jesus spoke to a man who had called him "good," asking him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.", M atthew 19:17: And he said to him, "Why are you asking me about what is good? There is only One who is good; but if you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments." Jesus did not teach people that he was God. If Jesus had been telling people that he was God, he would have complimented the man. Instead, Jesus rebuked him, denying he was good, that is, Jesus denied he was God. 4. The Bible Says that God is Greater than Jesus: John 14:28: "My Father is greater than I.", John 10:29: "My father is greater than all." Jesus can not be God if God is greater than him. The Christian belief that the Father and son are equal is in direct contrast to the clear words from Jesus. 5. Jesus Never Instructed His Disciples to Worship Himself or the Holy Ghost, but God and God only: Luke 11:2: "When you pray, say Our Father which art in heaven.", John 16:23: "In that day, you shall ask me nothing. Whatsoever you ask of the Father in my name.", John 4:23: "The hour cometh and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth; for the Father seeketh such to worship him." If Jesus was God, he would have sought worship for himself. Since he didn't, instead he sought worship for God in the heavens, therefore, he was not God. 6. The Bible Says that Jesus Recognized, Prayed, & Worshipped the ONLY true GOD: Jesus prayed to God with the words: John 17:3: "that they might know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent." and Jesus prayed to God all night: Luke 6:12: "he continued all night in prayer to God." because: Matthew 20:28: Just as the son of man did not come to be served, but to serve. How did Jesus pray to God? Matthew 26:39: 'he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, 'My Father" Even Paul said: Hebrews 5:7: "During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission." Who was Jesus praying to when he fell on his face with loud cries and petitions? Was it himself? Was Jesus crying in tears to himself pleading to be saved from death? No man, sane or insane, prays to himself! Surely the answer must be a resounding 'No.' Jesus was praying to "the only true God." The God Jesus was the servant of, the One Who sent him. Can there be a clearer proof that Jesus was not God? The Quran confirms that Jesus called for the worship of the Only True God: "Truly, God is my Lord and your Lord, so worship Him (alone). This is the straight path." (Quran 3:51) 7. The Bible says that the disciples did not believe Jesus was GOD: The Acts of the Apostles in the Bible details the activity of the disciples over a period of thirty years after Jesus, may God praise him, was raised to heaven. Throughout this period, they never referred to Jesus as God. For instance Peter stood up with the eleven disciples and addressed a crowd saying: Acts 2:22: "Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know." For Peter, Jesus was a servant of God (confirmed in Matthew 12:18): Acts 3:13: "The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus .", Acts 3:26: "God raised up his servant..." When faced by opposition from the authorities, Peter said: Acts 5:29-30: "We must obey God rather than men! The God of our fathers raised Jesus..." The disciples prayed to God just as they were commanded by Jesus in Luke 11:2, and considered Jesus to be God's servant, Acts 4:24: "...they raised their voices together in prayer to God. 'Sovereign Lord,' they said, 'you made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them.'" Acts 4:27: "...your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed.", Acts 4:30: "of Your holy servant Jesus." This is exactly what the Quran states of Jesus: Quran 19: 30 "I am indeed a servant of God." 8. The Bible says that Jesus was God's servant, chosen one, and beloved: Matt. 12:18: "Behold, My servant, whom I have chosen, in whom My soul is well pleased." Since Jesus is God's servant, Jesus can not be God. 9. The Bible says that Jesus could not Do anything by Himself: John 5:19: "The son can do nothing by himself; he can only do what he sees his Father doing.", John 5:30: "I can of mine own self do nothing." Jesus did not consider himself equal with God, rather he denied doing anything by himself. 10. The Bible says that God performed miracles through Jesus & Jesus was limited in what he could do: Matt. 9:8: "But when the crowds saw this, they were awestruck, and glorified God, who had given such authority to men.", Acts 2:22: "a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst." and Acts 10:38: "he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him." If Christ was God, the Bible would simply say that Jesus did the miracles himself without making reference to God. The fact that it was God supplying the power for the miracles shows that God is greater than Jesus. Also, Jesus was limited in performing miracles. One time when Jesus tried to heal a blind man, the man was not healed after the first attempt, and Jesus had to try a second time (Mark 8:22-26). Once a woman was healed of her incurable bleeding. The woman came up behind him and touched his cloak, and she was immediately healed. But Jesus had no idea who touched him: Mark 5:30: "At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, 'Who touched my clothes?'", Mark 6:5: "He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them." Quite obviously, someone with such limitations can not be God. The power of miracles was not within Jesus. 11. The Bible says that at times of weakness Angels strengthened Jesus; God, however, does NOT need to be strengthened: Luke 22:43: "An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him [in the garden of Gethsemane].", Mk. 1:13: "Then the devil left him; and behold, angels came and began to minister to Him." and Mark 1:13: "And he was in the wilderness forty days being tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts, and the angels were ministering to him." Men need to be strengthened; God does not because God is All-Powerful. If Jesus had to be strengthened, he must not be God. 12. The Bible says that Jesus wanted God's will to be done, not his own: Luke 22:42: "not my will but Yours be done.", John 5:30: "I do not seek my own will, but the will of Him who sent me." and John 6:38: "For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of Him that sent me." Are some members of the coequal Trinity subservient, and less than equal, to other members? Even though they have different wills ("I do not seek my own will"), do they obey without question the others' commands ("the will of Him who sent me")? Jesus admits to subordinating his own distinct will, yet according to the Trinitarian doctrine they should all have the same will. Should one of the triune partners have to forgo his own will in favor of the will of another member of the Trinity? Should not they all have the exact same will? 13. The Bible says Jesus regarded God's testimony as separate from his own: Jesus regarded himself and God as two, not "one." John 8:17 and 18: "I am one who testifies for myself; my other witness is the Father.", and John 14:1: "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me." If Jesus was God, He would have not have regarded God's testimony as separate from his own. 14. The Bible says that Jesus is subordinate to God: 1 Corinthians 11:3: "Now I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God." and 1 Corinthians 15:28: "When he has done this, then the son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all." Since Jesus was subordinate to God, he was not God. 15. The Bible says that Jesus grew in wisdom & learning, but God is All Wise & does not (need to) learn: Jesus grew in wisdom, but God is all wise: Psalms 147:5: "Great is our Lord and abundant in strength; His understanding is infinite.", and Luke 2:52: "And Jesus increased in wisdom." God does not need to learn, but Jesus learned. Heb. 5:8: "Although he was a son, he learned obedience" 16. The Bible says that Jesus had limited knowledge, but God's knowledge is infinite: Mark 13:32 "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the son, but only the Father." Since Jesus, may God praise him, did not know, he was not all-knowing, and therefore, he cannot be the God whose knowledge is all-encompassing. 17. The Bible says that Jesus was tempted, but God cannot be tempted: Heb. 4:15: "tempted in every way-just as we are", and James 1:13: "for God cannot be tempted by evil" Since God can not be tempted, but Jesus was, therefore, Jesus was not God. 18. The Bible says that Jesus teachings were from God, NOT Jesus himself: John 7:16: "So Jesus answered them and said, "My teaching is not mine, but His who sent me." Jesus could not have said this if he were God because the doctrine would have been his. 19. The Bible says that Jesus died, but God cannot die: The Bible teaches that Jesus died. God cannot die. Romans 1:23 and other verses say that God is immortal. Immortal means, "not subject to death." This term applies only to God. 20. The Bible says that Jesus lived because of God: John 6:57: "I live because of the Father." Jesus cannot be God because he depended on God for his own existence. 21. The Bible says that Jesus' powers were given to him: Matt 28:18: "All power is given unto me." God is all-powerful, no one gives God His powers, otherwise He would not be God because He would be weak. Therefore, Jesus could not be God. 22. The Bible says that Jesus was taught to commanded by god: John 8:28: "As my Father hath taught me, I speak these things,", John 12:49: "The Father, who sent me, he gave me a commandment." and John 15:10: "I have kept my Father's commandments." No one can teach God, otherwise God cannot be All-Knowing and would owe His teacher. Since Jesus was taught and commanded by God, Jesus cannot be God himself. The teacher and the student, the commander and the commanded are not one. 23. The Bible says that God made Jesus "Lord": Acts 2:36: "God has made this Jesus... both Lord and Christ." "Lord" is used in many ways in the Bible, and others beside God and Jesus are called "Lord." For example: 1 property owners (Matt. 20:8) 2 heads of households (Mk 13:35) 3 slave owners (Matt. 10:24) 4 husbands (1 Pet. 3:6) 5 a son called his father Lord ( Matt. 21:30) 6 the Roman Emperor was called Lord ( Acts 25:26) 7 Roman authorities were called Lord ( Matt. 27:63) "Lord" is not the same as "God." "Lord" (the Greek word is kurios) is a masculine title of respect and nobility used many times in the Bible. If Jesus were God, then for the Bible to say he was "made" Lord would make no sense. 24. The Bible says that Jesus was lower than Angels: Hebrews 2:9: "But we do see him who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus." God, the Creator of angels, can not be lower than His own creation, but Jesus was. Therefore, Jesus was not God. 25. The Bible says that Jesus called the Father 'my God" Matt. 27:46: "My God, My God, why have You forsaken me?", John 20:17: "I ascend to my Father and your Father, and my God and your God." and Rev. 3:12 " the temple of my God the name of my God the city of my God comes down out of heaven from my God." Jesus did not think of himself as God, instead Jesus' God is the same as ours. 26. The Bible says that God cannot be seen, but Jesus was: John 1:18: "no man has seen God at any time." 27. The Bible says twice that Jesus was accused of being God, BUT he DENIED it: According to the Bible, on only two instances the Jews opposed Jesus on the basis that he pretended to be God or equal with God. Had Jesus, may God praise him, claimed to be God, he is likely to have been opposed on this basis more frequently. Because in these two instances, when charged, in the one case, with making himself God, and in the other, with making himself equal with God, he denied the charges. In reply to the charge of being an equal with God, he says immediately: John 5:19, 30: "The son can do nothing of himself, but what he sees the Father do"; and directly after: "I can of mine own self do nothing." In answer to the charge of making himself God, he appeals to the Jews in substance thus: Your own Scriptures call Moses a god, and your magistrates gods; I am surely not inferior to them, yet I did not call myself God, but only the "son" of God (John 10:34-36). This is unlikely to have been Jesus' actual response. Hastings in "The Dictionary of the Bible" says, "Whether Jesus used it of himself is doubtful." Grolier's encyclopedia, under the heading "Jesus Christ," says, "it is uncertain whether the Father/Son language (Mark 18:32; Matt. 11:25-27 par.; John passim) goes back to Jesus himself." A University of Richmond professor, Dr. Robert Alley, after considerable research into newly found ancient documents concludes that: "....The (Biblical) passages where Jesus talks about the Son of God are later additions.... what the church said about him. Such a claim of deity for himself would not have been consistent with his entire lifestyle as we can reconstruct. For the first three decades after Jesus' death Christianity continued as a sect within Judaism. The first three decades of the existence of the church were within the synagogue. That would have been beyond belief if they (the followers) had boldly proclaimed the deity of Jesus." Assuming Jesus did say that he was "son" of God. What did it mean? We first need to know the language of his people, the language of the Jews to whom he was speaking. First, most people think there are no other verses that contradict or give equal divine sonship to other persons in the Old or New Testament. But according to the Bible God had quite a few "sons": Adam, [1] Jacob is God's son and firstborn, [2] Solomon [3], Ephraim [4] is God's firstborn, common people are called the sons of God. [5] All four Gospels record Jesus as saying, "Blessed are the peace-makers; they will be called sons of God." The word "son" cannot be accepted literally because in the Bible, God apparently addresses many of his chosen servants as "son" and "sons." The Hebrews believed God is One, and had neither wife nor children in any literal sense. Therefore, it is obvious the expression "son of God" merely meant "Servant of God"; one who, because of faithful service, was close and dear to God as a son is to his father. Christians who came from a Greek or Roman background, later misused this term. In their heritage, "son of God" signified an incarnation of a god or someone born of a physical union between male and female gods. This can be seen in Acts 14: 11-13, where we read that when Paul and Barnabas preached in a city of Turkey , pagans claimed they were gods incarnate. They called Barnabas the Roman god Zeus, and Paul the Roman god Hermes. Furthermore, the New Testament Greek word translated as "son" are "pias" and "paida" which mean "servant," or "son in the sense of servant." These are translated to "son" in reference to Jesus and "servant" in reference to all others in some translations of the Bible. So, consistent with other verses, Jesus was merely saying that he is God's servant. Additional Problems with Trinity To a Christian, God had to take human form to understand temptation and human suffering, but the concept is not based on any clear words of Jesus. In contrast, God does not need to be tempted and suffer in order to be able to understand and forgive man's sins, for He is the all knowing Creator of man. This is expressed in the verse: Exodus 3:7: "And the Lord said: 'I have surely seen the affliction of My people that are in Egypt, and I have heard their cry because of their taskmasters; for I know their pains.'" God forgave sin before Jesus' appearance, and He continues to forgive without any assistance. When a believer sins, he may come before God in sincere repentance to receive forgiveness. Indeed, the offer to humble oneself before God and be saved is made to all humankind. Isaiah 45:21-22, cf. Jonah 3:5-10: "And there is no God else beside Me; a just God and a Savior; there is none beside Me. Look to Me, and be saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is none else." Biblically, people can receive forgiveness of sins through sincere repentance sought directly from God. This is true at all times and in all places. There has never been a need for the so-called intercessionary role Jesus plays in attaining atonement. The facts speak for themselves. There is no truth to the Christian belief that Jesus died for our sins and salvation is only through Jesus. What about the salvation of people before Jesus? Jesus' death brings neither atonement from sin, nor is it in any way a fulfillment of biblical prophecy. Christians claim that in the birth of Jesus, there occurred the miracle of the incarnation of God in the form of a human being. To say that God became truly a human being invites a number of questions. Let us ask the following about the man-God Jesus. What happened to his foreskin after his circumcision (Luke 2:21)? Did it ascend to heaven, or did it decompose as with any human piece of flesh? During his lifetime what happened to his hair, nails, and blood shed from wounds? Did the cells of his body die as in ordinary human beings? If his body did not function in a truly human way, he could not be truly human as well as truly God. Yet, if his body functioned exactly in a human way, this would nullify any claim to divinity. It would be impossible for any part of God, even if incarnate, to decompose in any way and still be considered God. The everlasting, one God, in whole or in part, does not die, disintegrate, or decompose: Malachi 3:6 "For I the Lord do not change." Did Jesus' flesh dwell in safety after his death? Unless Jesus' body never underwent "decay" during his lifetime he could not be God, but if it did not undergo "decay" then he was not truly human. Footnotes: [1] "Adam, which was the son of God." (Luke 3:38) [2] "Israel is my son, even my firstborn." (Exodus 4:22) [3] "I will be his father, and he shall be my son." (2 Samuel 7:13-14) [4] "for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn." (Jeremiah 31:9) [5] "Ye are the children of the Lord your God" (Deuteronomy 14:1)
1. Bible Says that God is NOT Man & 2. The Bible Says that God is NOT a Son of Man:
Numbers 23:19: "God is not a man...nor a son of man" At the last supper Jesus said, "Believe in God. Believe also in Me." God was not a man because Jesus was a man, but rather God was reconciling the world to himself through the man Jesus Christ, whom he had created in the flesh to be redeemer of the world; even the very physical body Jesus had was unique, being conceived outside of the sin of man -- "a body thou hast prepared for me," (Hebrews 10:5) it was a physical, fleshly body like our own in every way but was not tainted by sin through the lineage of Adam ("for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God"). This is why it is written: "And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit." (1 Cor. 15:45) and "Wherefore, as by one man (Adam) sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: ... For if by one man's (Adam) offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ...For as by one man's (Adam) disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous." (Romans 5:19). Christ was the 'second Adam' in this sense, and instead of choosing to follow Satan (through the sin of self-will), Christ walked in perfect faith toward God and His Holiness, as it is written, "Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we do not have a high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin."(Hebrews 4:14-15). "For what the law could not do, in that it was weak
through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh,
and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law
might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit."
(Romans 8:3-4) Also, it should be considered that many passages from the Old Testament being used by the author to claim Jesus Christ is not God are being misused and taken entirely out of context. For example, the author puts blinders on the reader by not posting the entire quoted passage, so it reads in his favor. But lets look at it: Numbers 23:19: "God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?" Is this saying what the author is saying, when he improperly quotes it with missing words? On the contrary, this passage is saying God is not a sinful man or like sinful man, who can and will and does lie, or sin, or have any need to repent. And this is 100% true. God is not like man in his fallen nature. This passage cannot be used as proof text from the Torah that God is not a man or "son of man," but merely says he is not LIKE sinful man, and cannot lie; cannot sin. This passage is about the trustworthiness of God. Interestingly enough, when Jesus walked the earth, though he was a man in every respect, he did not ever sin. He never had reason to repent, for he was guiltless, tempted in every respect as we are to sin, but never did he allow sin to corrupt him. It should be evident enough to the Muslim that the Lord God promised, through the prophet Micah, "But you, Bethlehem Ephratah, though you are so little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from the days of eternity." (Micah 5:2). An eternal being would come forth from Bethlehem to rule -- Just as it is written by the prophet Isaiah, "Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." (7:14), as is recognized in the New Testament, "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." Matthew 1:23. Jesus' name in Hebrew, Y'shua, means precisely that. And his "going forth," his origin, is "from the days of eternity," -- clearly not a mere mortal man! SON OF MAN was also known idom for the coming "Messiah," or Deliverer. Moses was the first 'type' of this 'son of man/deliverer,' but was not divine. He was a sinner like every other man, and had to make offerings for his sins. Jesus, on the other hand, was both son of man and Son of God, in that he was born of woman (through the conception of the Holy Spirit his body was prepared for him apart from conception by human spermatazoa and egg -- Mary was 'host' to the new creation which was Christ Jesus, the perfect and the divine: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made...And the Word was made 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 1:1-14). We can almost say that Jesus was 'human,' but not man, because what man is is defined by God in utterly sinful terms after the fall. Jesus was entirely human, like Adam was before the fall. In this we have equal attributes with him. But unlike Adam, and unlike us, Jesus was without sin and was conceived without sin (ie, was not born of Adam -- "As in Adam all die," from Adam's sin death came to all men. Jesus was no subject to this death, having never sinned and having not been born in the lineage of sinful flesh. He was, therefore, the perfect sacrifice and utter propitiation for all sin, having been prepared, incarnated, for this very purpose. "But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. 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. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt 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. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities." (Isaiah 53:5-11) 3. The Bible Says that Jesus Denied He is GOD: Luke 18:19: Jesus spoke to a man who had called him "good," asking him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.", Matthew 19:17: And he said to him, "Why are you asking me about what is good? There is only One who is good; but if you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments." & 4. The Bible Says that God is Greater than Jesus: John 14:28: "My Father is greater than I.", John 10:29: "My father is greater than all." Again, scripture lifted out of context can be seriously destructive. One must remember, that it would have been absolute blasphemy for Jesus to have claimed to be God in the culture of his day. Throughout the Gospels we see several encounters where Jesus skirted the edges of the truth of his divine nature and origins and risked being stoned to death, and narrowly escaped. He was not about to sit around with the people and say, "I am the Lord thy God..." -- such would be ridiculous and dangerous. Jesus said to one group of priests, "Before Abraham was, I am." Many of them understood that he was suggesting to them that he pre-existed Abraham, whom the wicked Jews had raised to the status of a racial demi-god for themselves, but it was a perfectly crafted statement which did not entirely lay claim to being God. But the message is clear and distinct, and they took up stones to kill him -- so those say Jesus never claimed to be God (1) haven't studied the scriptures very well and/or (2) missed that repeatedly the Jews were upset that he claimed to be God and/or the Son of God. How does one miss that? It's utterly incomprehensible and intellectually dishonest to the core. Also, it should be evident to anyone who understands this that when Jesus says "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone," that he was, in sense, acknowledging the recognition that he was, indeed, God... but without placing himself in danger. Elsewhere Jesus did make the claim and in some instances it required supernatural intervention to keep him from being stoned to death. Some would like to argue dualities and polarities, but such does not exist in the Spirit with God; God can be and was manifest in the flesh through Jesus Christ, without any conflict or contradiction of nature or divinity. Even the mysterious person of Melchizedek, to whom Abraham offered tithe, is pictured in the Old Testament as a man of supernatural origin: "For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the
most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings,
and blessed him; To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being
by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem,
which is, King of peace; Without father, without mother, without descent,
having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the
Son of God; abideth a priest continually." (Hebrews 7:1) "Thou madest him a little lower than the angels; thou crownedst him with glory and honour, and didst set him over the works of thy hands: Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him." "For he (God the Father) hath put all things under his (Christ's) feet. But when he says all things are put under him, it is evident that he (himself) is excepted, which did put all things under him. And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him (God the Father) that put all things under him, that God may be all in all." (1 Cor.15:27-28) "For though there be that are called gods, whether
in heaven or in earth,(as there be gods many, and lords many,) But to us
there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him;
and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him."
(1 Cor. 8:5) Here we see the shared glory of the Father and Son -- all things
are by and from God the Father and God the Son, which is One God, differentiated
only by title and form, God the Father being the Eternal and God the Son
being made manifest in the flesh, called LORD. Jesus even made it distinctly
clear that the people and religionists of his day totally misunderstood
the character and nature of God and the Son of God, when he said, "What
think ye of the Christ? whose son is he? They say unto him, The son of David.
He saith unto them, How then doth David in spirit call him Lord, saying,
The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine
enemies thy footstool? If David then call him Lord, how is he his son?"
(Matthew 22:42-25) 5. Jesus Never Instructed His Disciples to Worship Himself or the Holy Ghost, but God and God only: Luke 11:2: "When you pray, say Our Father which art in heaven.", John 16:23: "In that day, you shall ask me nothing. Whatsoever you ask of the Father in my name.", John 4:23: "The hour cometh and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth; for the Father seeketh such to worship him." If Jesus was God, he would have sought worship for himself. Since he didn't, instead he sought worship for God in the heavens, therefore, he was not God. & 6. The Bible Says that Jesus Recognized, Prayed, & Worshipped the ONLY true GOD: Jesus prayed to God with the words: John 17:3: "that they might know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent." and Jesus prayed to God all night: Luke 6:12: "he continued all night in prayer to God." -- & subsequent contentions, all of which center around this same issue and controversy.... On the contrary, Jesus would NOT have SOUGHT worship of himself and DID NOT (though it happened many times!), for being in the flesh he had still yet to accomplish the fullness of the workd of God for which he came into the world. So the author is fundamentally incorrect in assuming that if Jesus was God he would ipso facto seek to be worshipped. Once glorified, he accepted worship completely, as demonstrated (as stated earlier) by Thomas, who worshiped Jesus saying "My Lord and My God!" There was no quibbling over terms here! If what Thomas declared was in error in any way, even as just a rabbi or a prophet (as many think Jesus merely was) Jesus would have condemned him for blasphemy! But Thomas was NOT rebuked by Jesus for saying this. He received the worship. But even during his ministry Jesus was worshipped and did not rebuke the worshiper: "While he (Jesus) spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler, and worshipped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live." (Matthew 9:18). The disciples worshipped Jesus, also: "Then they that
were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the
Son of God." (Matthew 14:33) "Jesus... said unto him, Dost thou believe on the
Son of God? He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe
on him? And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that
talketh with thee. And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him."
(John 9:35) Jesus of Nazareth in the flesh and Jesus Christ, The Lord, glorified, are two completely different aspects, separated by the accomplishment of a sinless life and the sacrifice of himself on the cross for the sins of the world, as pointed out in Scripture. "(Jesus) Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared; Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;" (Hebrews 5:7-9) Jesus the man had the normal limitations of being a finite
entity in a flesh body, he did not have omnipresence. Therefore the Father,
who did have omnipresence, was "greater." Such things are elementary
and should be obvious. Jesus, while in the flesh, did not claim to even
perform the miracles he did, but in all humility, called upon The Father,
gave all credit to the Father and in some cases said to people, "Your
faith has made you whole." Jesus said he was doing the work
of his heavenly Father, repeating the words of his Father, and demonstrating
the character and nature of the Father to us. Jesus indeed directs us to
worship the Father, but in and through HIS name. This is worshipping the
Father "in spirit and in truth." Universally, Christians pray
to God the Father, in Jesus' name. But there is no error in prayin directly
to or worshipping Jesus Christ, personally, for the Father has directed
that all praise, honor and glory be given to Jesus Christ, His Son: "(He said) I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the
last... And in the midst of the seven candlesticks (I saw) one like unto
the Son of man... and his countenance was as the sun shines in full strength.
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: I am he
that lives, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and
have the keys of hell and of death." (John, seeing the glorified Christ
- Revelation 1:11+) "And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing. And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever. And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever." (Rev. 5:11+) The prophets say the whole world will worship the Messiah-King
as God: "And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of
all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year
to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of
tabernacles." (Zechariah 14:16) Who made the heavens and the
earth? Is Christ the Creator-God ? If Christ was God, the Bible would simply say that Jesus did the miracles himself without making reference to God. The fact that it was God supplying the power for the miracles shows that God is greater than Jesus. Another false assumption founded on a misunderstanding of the divine nature of God in Christ. Christ divested himself of absolute divinity when he took on the tent of human flesh for the purpose of his mission as Messiah: "(Jesus)Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philipians 2:6+) 11. The Bible says that at times of weakness Angels strengthened Jesus; God, however, does NOT need to be strengthened: Again, while in the flesh, scripture tells us Jesus suffered the infirmities and weaknesses of a man, and this in order to fulfill his mission as Messiah. This was something he took upon himself willingly, as the scripture above explains perfectly. There were several instances where Jesus made it clear that at any time he could put a stop to it and make use of his complete divinity -- it was perpetually the choice and desire of Jesus to do the will of the Father -- but notice always in keeping with perfect humility and righteousness: "Do you think that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels? But how then shall the scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be?" (Matt.26:53). If this were not so, then the temptations Satan offered Jesus in the wilderness are MEANINGLESS (Matthew 4). If Jesus did not have divine power of his own, and a will of his own, and a choice in matters, clearly the temptation was a joke. Only one who COULD choose to manifest bread from stone to feed himself can be tempted to do so. Jesus even suffered having the mind of a man, though aware of his divinity, still troubled with the same doubts and fears which any man has, all of which he overcame by faith. He was tempted in all things -- yet without sin. He even broke down to the point that he asked that if there was any other way to bring about the salvation of man other than going to the cross, "Let this cup pass from me," and sweated great drops of blood in his anguish. It was not just the crucifixion alone that gripped Jesus 'the man' with terror, it was knowing that he would have all the sins of the world heaped upon him alone and he would be violently separated -- damned -- from the presence of The Father, to "taste death for every man." Not just physical death, but spiritual death, which is hell, being cut off from The Father; three days and nights he would be in the grave, by which Jesus in the spirit went and made proclamation to the spirits in the underworld and rose again on the third day. Death could not hold him, for the "wages of sin is death," and Jesus had no sin... "I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knows me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep ...Therefore does my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man takes it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father." (John 10:14+) Why did Jesus express that the will of The
Father, and not his own, was of utmost importance? He explained it himself: It should be rather obvious that Jesus MUST lay a foundation of faith toward God The Father regarding his own ministry, otherwise -- who is he? The people do not accept him as it is. It is foolish to suggest that Jesus denied his own will because he was not truly God; on the contrary, it is evident he denied his own will in order to fulfill all righteousness, for the same reason he was baptized when it was not needed, for the same reason he could ask for legions of angels, but if he did, how could he fulfill what had been prophesied, what he came into the world to accomplish? 16. The Bible says that Jesus had limited knowledge, but God's knowledge is infinite: Mark 13:32 "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the son, but only the Father." Since Jesus, may God praise him, did not know, he was not all-knowing, and therefore, he cannot be the God whose knowledge is all-encompassing. Firstly, it is very haughty for man to make assumptions about the nature of God and come to conclusion based on human terms and rationales. They simply do NOT apply. The "Godness" of Jesus, for lack of a better term, has nothing to do with omnipresence, omniscience and omnipotence. Zero. Jesus, as the incarnate Messiah, has no need for these things. He has divested himself of his former glory which he had prior to his incarnation... "And now, O Father, glorify me with your own self
with the glory which I had with you before the world was." (John 17:5) "And again, when he (The Father) brings the firstbegotten
into the world, he says (quoting from the Old Testament), 'And let all the
angels of God worship him.' And of the angels he says, 'Who makes his angels
spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.' But unto the Son he says, 'Thy
throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre
of thy kingdom.' " (Hebrews 1:6-8) The author further states, To a Christian, God had to take human form to understand temptation and human suffering, but the concept is not based on any clear words of Jesus. In contrast, God does not need to be tempted and suffer in order to be able to understand and forgive man's sins, for He is the all knowing Creator of man. I know of no Christian that believes God manifested in the flesh in the person of Jesus "to understand" anything! This may be a Gnostic concept, but it is not mainstream Christian thinking. God was manifest in the flesh, in Jesus Christ, for the sole purpose of paying the final sacrifice for sins and the resurrection from the dead, conquering forever sin, death and hell. It was not some "experiment" by God to learn anything; He needs no education! Again, the author errs, saying Biblically, people can receive forgiveness of sins through sincere repentance sought directly from God. This is true at all times and in all places. There has never been a need for the so-called intercessionary role Jesus plays in attaining atonement. What the author does not comprehend is the role of COVENANTS in the salvation of mankind. Christ brought in, through his own sacrifice, a NEW Covenant between God and Man. "But now hath he (Jesus) obtained a more excellent
ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which
was established upon better promises. For if that first covenant had been
faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second. For finding
fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I
will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of
Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the
day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt;
because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith
the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel
after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and
write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall
be to me a people: And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and
every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from
the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness,
and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. In that he
saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth
and waxeth old is ready to vanish away." (Hebrews 8:6+) |
