It can be very difficult to grasp that Jesus was both fully God and fully human at the same time. Even in Jesus’ time on Earth, there were critics who viewed him as a liar, a lunatic, another prophet, or simply a great teacher. As Christians, though, we believe Jesus is both fully man and fully God, the long-awaited Messiah promised throughout the Old Testament of the Bible. We believe He is the Savior who lived a perfect life, died on the Cross to save us from sin, and rose again to defeat death (Mark 10:45) — and is coming back again. Do you believe Jesus is God? In this article, we’ll dive into the Bible to examine how we can come to the conclusion that Jesus is God.
JESUS AS PART OF THE TRINITY
In Christian theology, the Trinity is defined as one God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. As God the Son, Jesus was and is part of the Trinity. While Jesus is the Son of God, he is also God Himself (John 1:1-3). To help illustrate this, think of water in its three separate forms — liquid (water), solid (ice), and gas (steam). Each form is different, but they are all made up of the same substance: water. The same applies to God in the Trinity. Each person is unique from the others, but they are all united together as one God. To better understand God’s complex identity, watch this video from The Bible Project.
GOD IN THE FLESH
According to the New Testament of the Bible, Jesus of Nazareth was understood to be God “in the flesh” (John 1:14). Since Jesus is the physical embodiment of God, he performed miracles and forgave people of their sins while also relating to others on a personal level as a human. Both Jesus’ divinity and humanity were on full display when tempted by Satan in the wilderness (Luke 4:1-13). He could fully resist the devil even though he was physically tired and hungry. Jesus never gave in to the temptation of sin… not even once. His perfection allowed Him to bear the weight of the world's sins on our behalf. He was the perfect human who could take our deserved punishment.
THE PROMISED MESSIAH
Though there are many more references to Jesus found throughout the Old Testament, one that stands out to us is in Daniel 7:13-14. The prophet Daniel saw many visions concerning the end times, but one vision stood above them all. In his dream, Daniel saw a vision of a glorious “son of man” living directly in God’s presence, ruling alongside Him. This was considered strange to Daniel because no human could be anywhere near God’s presence without being destroyed, which meant that this figure had to be God if He was to be worshiped by “all nations and peoples of every language.” While the Old Testament provides many allusions and prophecies pointing to the “son of man,” the New Testament explicitly points to Jesus as the very promise of this God-man that was seen in Daniel’s vision. In fact, Jesus called himself the “Son of Man” several times throughout his three-year ministry, fulfilling what was seen by Daniel.
WHO DO YOU SAY JESUS IS?
Do you see Jesus as the promised Savior that the Bible claims Him to be? This week, take some time to reflect on this question and examine in your heart who Jesus is to you. For further study about the life of Jesus Christ, feel free to check out additional articles below from our "Who Is Jesus?" series:
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