Jesus claimed to be God

The Bible teaches that God manifests Himself in human form as Jesus; an assertion embraced by evangelical Christians but not by Jews or Muslims. To demonstrate the Bible presents this, consider two of many Biblical references. Recorded in the eighth chapter of the Gospel of John, the conversation Jesus had with prominent Jewish persons illustrates the point. When in verse 58 Jesus said, “Before Abraham was, I am.” (quoting from the English Standard Version, ESV) He was claiming to be God Himself; the eternal God who, even before Abraham’s time, was continually existing. That the Jewish religious leaders clearly understood Jesus’ claim to deity is evident in the next verse which describes how they prepared to stone Him, the punishment for blasphemy. In case of doubt about the reason for the Jews’ attempt to stone Jesus, the Apostle John recorded another similar occasion just two chapters later. In verse 30 of chapter 10 Jesus claimed that He and the Father, who the Jews recognized as God, are “one”. That Jesus was claiming essential equivalent identity with God is shown in verses 31 through 33 where the Jews again prepared to stone Him. When Jesus asked them the reason they said, “Because you, being a man, make yourself God.” (ESV). Many other places in the Bible support this idea. For example, the entire fifth chapter of the Gospel of John presents Jesus as God. In that chapter are at least seven assertions which can only be true of God Himself: verse 18, Jesus is equal with God; verse 19, Jesus performs God’s works; verse 20, Jesus knows what God knows; verse 21, Jesus has power over life and death; verse 22, Jesus exercises divine judgment over people; verse 23, Jesus is due the same honor as God; and verse 26, Jesus possesses divine life. Any simple reading of the New Testament, using normal rules for interpreting the meaning of common language, creates the inescapable conclusion that Jesus claimed to be God in the flesh. Neither the Jews nor the Muslims accept this as true of Him. To the Jewish authorities of Jesus’ time He was an imposter worthy of death. Modern day orthodox Judaism still does not accept that Jesus is the human manifestation of the one true God, e.g. the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Similarly though Islam attempts to honor Jesus as a prophet, they do not accept that He is the embodiment of God Himself. Here’s the crux of the issue: Jesus claimed to be God, and the Bible asserts repeatedly that no person can be reconciled to God except by belief in Jesus as God. By this I mean the Bible teaches that to escape God’s otherwise inevitable judgment against one’s personal sinful thoughts and actions, each individual must seek reconciliation through embracing Jesus as Lord, God, and believing His sacrificial death and resurrection would in God’s eyes expunge their guilt. All other beliefs about God and strategies to be reconciled to Him fail. This is either true or false. The Bible clearly presents it as true; and the Jews and Muslims would say it is false. There is a big difference — with eternal consequences.