Is Jesus God?
Question 3004
The deity of Jesus Christ is the foundation upon which Christianity stands or falls. If Jesus is not God, then Christianity is false, and we are still in our sins. But if Jesus is truly God, then everything changes. His words carry divine authority, His death has infinite value, and His promises are absolutely certain. This is not a peripheral doctrine but the very heart of the Christian faith. So what does Scripture actually teach? Is Jesus God?
Jesus Is Called God in Scripture
The New Testament explicitly calls Jesus God on multiple occasions. John 1:1 declares, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (καὶ θεὸς ἦν ὁ λόγος, kai theos ēn ho logos). The construction in Greek is unmistakable: the Word, who is Jesus (John 1:14), is identified as God. Some have tried to translate this as “the Word was a god” (e.g. Jehovah Witnesses) based on the absence of the definite article before θεός (theos), but this is grammatically indefensible. Greek grammar uses this construction (Colwell’s Rule) to indicate that “God” is a qualitative noun describing the nature of the Word. Jesus possesses all the qualities and attributes of deity.
When Thomas saw the risen Jesus, he exclaimed, “My Lord and my God!” (ὁ κύριός μου καὶ ὁ θεός μου, ho kyrios mou kai ho theos mou) (John 20:28). Jesus did not rebuke Thomas or correct him. He accepted this declaration of His deity as entirely appropriate. If Jesus were not God, such acceptance would have been blasphemous.
Paul, in Romans 9:5, writes of Jesus as “the Christ, who is God over all, blessed forever.” In Titus 2:13, he refers to “our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ.” The grammar here (Granville Sharp’s Rule) indicates that “God” and “Saviour” refer to the same person: Jesus Christ. Peter uses the same construction in 2 Peter 1:1, speaking of “our God and Saviour Jesus Christ.”
Hebrews 1:8 quotes Psalm 45:6 and applies it directly to Jesus: “But of the Son he says, ‘Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.'” God the Father addresses the Son as God.
Jesus Claimed Divine Prerogatives
Beyond the explicit titles, Jesus claimed and exercised prerogatives that belong to God alone. He forgave sins. When the paralysed man was lowered through the roof, Jesus said, “Son, your sins are forgiven” (Mark 2:5). The scribes immediately recognised the implication: “Who can forgive sins but God alone?” (Mark 2:7). They were right that only God can forgive sins. They were wrong in concluding that Jesus had committed blasphemy, for Jesus is indeed God.
Jesus claimed authority over the Sabbath: “The Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath” (Mark 2:28). Since God instituted the Sabbath, only God could be Lord over it. Jesus accepted worship. Throughout the Old Testament, when humans or angels were worshipped, they refused (Acts 10:25-26; Revelation 19:10). But Jesus accepted worship repeatedly: from the wise men (Matthew 2:11), from a leper (Matthew 8:2), from a ruler whose daughter had died (Matthew 9:18), from the disciples in the boat (Matthew 14:33), from the women at the tomb (Matthew 28:9), and from Thomas (John 20:28). Either Jesus was God and worthy of worship, or He was a blasphemer who encouraged idolatry.
Jesus Claimed Equality with God
In John 5:18, the Jews sought to kill Jesus because “he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.” They understood His claims correctly. In John 10:30, Jesus declared, “I and the Father are one.” The response? “The Jews picked up stones again to stone him” (John 10:31). When asked why, they replied: “It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you but for blasphemy, because you, being a man, make yourself God” (John 10:33). Again, they understood exactly what Jesus was claiming.
Jesus’ “I AM” statements in John’s Gospel echo the divine name revealed to Moses. “I am the bread of life” (6:35). “I am the light of the world” (8:12). “I am the door” (10:9). “I am the good shepherd” (10:11). “I am the resurrection and the life” (11:25). “I am the way, and the truth, and the life” (14:6). “I am the true vine” (15:1). Most strikingly, in John 8:58, Jesus said, “Before Abraham was, I am” (πρὶν Ἀβραὰμ γενέσθαι ἐγὼ εἰμί, prin Abraam genesthai egō eimi). He did not say “I was” but “I am,” claiming the eternal, self-existent name of God from Exodus 3:14.
Jesus Possesses Divine Attributes
Scripture attributes to Jesus the very characteristics that define God. He is eternal: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). He existed “in the beginning” before creation (John 1:1). Micah 5:2 speaks of the one born in Bethlehem “whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days” (literally, “from the days of eternity”).
He is omniscient, knowing all things. Jesus “knew all people and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man” (John 2:24-25). He knew Nathanael before meeting him (John 1:48). He knew Judas would betray Him (John 6:64). Peter confessed, “Lord, you know everything” (John 21:17).
He is omnipotent. All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Him (Matthew 28:18). He upholds the universe by the word of His power (Hebrews 1:3). He commands wind and waves, and they obey (Mark 4:41). He raises the dead with a word (John 11:43).
He is omnipresent. “Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them” (Matthew 18:20). “Behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). Only God can make such promises.
Jesus Did Divine Works
Jesus performed works that only God can do. He created all things: “All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:3). “For by him all things were created” (Colossians 1:16). He sustains creation: “in him all things hold together” (Colossians 1:17). He will raise the dead: “For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will” (John 5:21). He will judge all humanity: “The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son” (John 5:22).
The Testimony of the Early Church
The deity of Jesus was not an invention of later councils. The earliest Christians worshipped Jesus as God. The Roman governor Pliny, writing around AD 112, reported that Christians sang hymns “to Christ as to a god.” Paul quotes an early Christian hymn in Philippians 2:6-11 that declares Jesus existed “in the form of God” and was equal with God. The Apostles’ Creed, Nicene Creed, and Chalcedonian Definition all affirmed what Scripture clearly teaches: Jesus Christ is truly God.
Why This Matters
If Jesus is not God, then He cannot save us. Only an infinite God can bear the infinite weight of human sin. Only God’s sacrifice has sufficient value to atone for all who believe. Only God can give eternal life. Moreover, if Jesus is not God, then He was either a liar who knowingly deceived millions, or a lunatic who genuinely believed He was God when He was not. Neither option fits the Jesus of the Gospels. The only coherent explanation is that Jesus truly is who He claimed to be: God in human flesh.
The testimony of Scripture is overwhelming. Jesus is called God, claimed to be God, possessed divine attributes, and performed divine works. He accepted worship and forgave sins. The early Church understood this and worshipped Him accordingly. The evidence demands a verdict. Jesus is not merely a great teacher or a good example. He is God the Son, the second Person of the Trinity, worthy of our worship, trust, and complete devotion.
“Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!'” John 20:28
