The name "God" is a word that applies appropriately to only the three personalities of divine nature (the Godhead), either collectively or individually. All three of these personalities, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, are called "God" in Scripture (John 1:1; John 3:16; Acts 5:3-4) and each possesses all of the attributes of Deity. This means that all are "God" and all are equal in every respect. It has been the claim of many, even today, that Jesus is not Deity, that he never claimed to be God, and that the Bible does not teach such. However, even a casual reading of the Bible uncovers the error and inaccuracy of such empty assertions.
The relationship of "Father" and "Son" expressed often in Scripture (Matthew 11:27; John 3:16; John 5:19-23; Revelation 2:18) clearly evidences an existing equality. The Jews that sought to kill him rightly understood this fact. In John 5:18 they declared that Jesus "said that God was his Father, making himself equal with God." In the following verses (18-23), Jesus did not deny what the Jews had said, but rather attested to that equality. He expressed that equality in terms of work (vs. 19); in terms of knowledge (vs. 20); in terms of power (vs. 21); in terms of judgment (vs. 22); and in terms of honor (vs. 23). Logic, as well, attests to the fact that the nature of a father inheres in his son. So it is with human beings and so it is with Deity. In this we see the significance of the phrase, "His only begotten Son" (John 3:16). Christ was not only a son in the sense that the faithful are called sons (John 12:36). He was unique in that he was the "only begotten" Son, being, thereby, a unity with the Father and in possession of the same divine nature. He is God, a fact attested to by the inspired apostle Paul in Philippians 2:5-6 who wrote, "He thought it not robbery to be equal with God" and Colossian 2:9, "For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily."
That Christ claimed he is God can also be seen in his statement of Revelation 1:11 and 18, "I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last." This phrase expresses absolute Godhead and is applied also to Jehovah, the God of the Old Testament (Isaiah 41:4, 44:6, 48:12). In 44:6, the point is made clear, "thus says the Lord, the king of Israel, and his redeemer, the Lord of hosts: I am the first and the last; beside me there is no God." The God of the Old Testament, Jehovah, claimed to be "the" (one) Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the very thing that Jesus claimed for himself in the New Testament, the eternal divine nature of the Godhead! There cannot be two firsts and two lasts! Basic logic and understanding must attest to this fact. Therefore, the only rational, scriptural conclusion that can be drawn is that "Christ is one with God," that he is God, beside whom is no other. They, in their divine eternal nature as the first and second persons of the triune Godhead, are expressed and defined as a unity that is the one first and the one last, the Alpha and the Omega! Clearly, Christ proclaimed that he is God!
The prophets of old also claimed that Christ is God. Isaiah wrote (Isaiah 7:14) that his name would be called Immanuel, "which being interpreted is, God with us" (Matthew 1:23). The same prophet in foretelling the coming of the Messiah in Isaiah 9:6 said his name shall be called "Mighty God," a name also assigned to Jehovah God in Jeremiah 32:18, indicative of Deity in both cases. He was also to be called "Everlasting Father" or literally "Father of Eternity" (Isaiah 9:6) having reference to him who possesses the eternal nature of Deity. The same truth is revealed in Micah 5:2.
Upon the truth that Jesus is God, a central fact of Scripture, hangs the salvation of man!This item originally appeared in gospelgazette.com (February 2002)
