Is Jesus God – Part IV There is no doubt that Jesus is God. Some who deny that Jesus is God make the claim that Jesus never said that He is God. It is correct that the Bible never records Jesus saying the precise words, “I am God.” This does not negate His deity. Jesus said, as recorded in John 10:30, “I and the Father are one.” We need only to look at the Jews’ reaction to His statement to know He was claiming to be God. They tried to stone Him for this very reason: They reacted thus in John 10:33: “The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God. When Jesus declared, “I and the Father are one,” He was saying that He and the Father are of one nature and essence. Further, John 8:58 is another example. Jesus declared, “Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.!” This refers to Exodus 3:14 when God revealed Himself as the “I AM.” The Jews who heard this statement responded by taking up stones to kill Him for blasphemy, as the Mosaic Law commanded. John reiterates the concept of Jesus’ deity in John 1:1 and 14: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” And in the 14th verse, it says And the Word became flesh. These verses clearly indicate that Jesus is God in the flesh. Acts 20:28 tells us, “Be shepherds of the church of God, which He bought with His own blood.” Who bought the church with His own blood? Jesus Christ. And this same verse declares that God purchased His church with His own blood. Therefore, Jesus is God. Thomas the disciple declared concerning Jesus, “My Lord and my God” in John 20:28. Jesus does not correct him. Titus 2:13 encourages us to wait for the coming of our God and Saviour, Jesus Christ. In Hebrews 1:8, the Father declares of Jesus, “But about the Son, He says, ‘Your throne, O God, will last forever and ever, and righteousness will be the sceptre of your kingdom.’” The Father refers to Jesus as God, indicating that Jesus is indeed God. In Revelation, an angel instructed the apostle John to only worship God. (Revelation 19:10). Several times in Scripture, Jesus receives worship; He would have told people not to worship Him, just as the angel in Revelation did. The Word of God directly calls Jesus as God in Titus 2:13: “ Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” similarly is laid down in Colossians 2:9: “For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” The most important reason that Jesus is God is that, if He is not God, His death would not have been sufficient to pay the penalty for the sins of the world. I John 2:2 “And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.” A created being, which Jesus would be if He were not God, could not pay the infinite penalty required for sin against an infinite God. Only God could pay such an infinite penalty. Only God could take on the sins of the world, die, and be resurrected, proving His victory over sin and death. Undoubtedly, Jesus is God. Dr Ashwin Drummond Laddertoheaven.co.in