Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Steve C on April 25, 2012 at 1:41pm

"Before Abraham came to be, I AM" - John 8:58 --> Jesus calling himself Yahweh. Jews respond to stone him for blasphemy.  Seems a pretty clear claim to being God.

"My Lord and My God" - John 20:28-29 Thomas' confession after seeing and believing.  Jesus implicitly affirmed it as true in 29.

"Who but God alone can forgive sins?" - Mk 2:5-12 Healing of paralytic.

That's the first 3 that come to my mind.

Permalink Reply by Elliott Jason Ridgway on April 25, 2012 at 1:57pm

This is an except from Dr. Thomas Holland's book, Crowned With Glory.

"Some have proclaimed that modern versions or their Greek texts deny the deity of Jesus Christ. Certainly there are some, such as the New World Translation, that seek to diminish Christ's deity. It is also true that some versions are stronger regarding Christ's deity than others. While most translations clearly and strongly proclaim this basic biblical truth, the Traditional Text does present a stronger Christology regarding His deity.."

Philippians 2:1-11 (KJV)

 ¹If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, ²Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.

 ³Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. ⁴Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.

 ⁵Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:

 ⁶Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:

 ⁷But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:

 ⁸And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

 ⁹Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:

 ¹⁰That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;

 ¹¹And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Permalink Reply by Stephen Washington on April 29, 2012 at 4:34pm

There are a lot of "obvious" ones, so I thought I'd throw in a few of the more obscure references.

 

• For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator. (Hebrews 9:16)

This gets into a good study of why the old covenant with Abraham provided no salvation to the Jews, and why God had to manifest Himself in human form and experience death in order to fulfill the new covenant.  It might also prod some to consider the weight of one's Last Will and Testament, and why we have no inheritance unless the creator of that Testament dies.

 

• Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me. I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour. (Isaiah 43:10-11)

God, in the Old Testament, claiming to be the servant/saviour He will later send to mankind.

 

• Thus saith the LORD, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the LORD that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself; (Isaiah 44:24)

compare with the following:

• All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. (John 1:3)

• For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. (Colossians 1:16-17)

Permalink Reply by Herb Munson on April 29, 2012 at 6:48pm

Thanks, Steve. Great references.

Permalink Reply by Steve C on April 30, 2012 at 11:40am

This one might be a stretch, considering the abundance of shepherdy-ness in the OT, but...

"I am the Good Shepherd..." John 10:11+

referring back to:

Psalm 23 - "The Lord is my shepherd"

Psalm 28:9 - "Save your people and bless your inheritance; be their shepherd and carry them forever."

Psalm 80:1 - "Hear us, Shepherd of Israel... You who sit enthroned between the cherubim..."

Isaiah 40:11 - "He tends his flock like a shepherd"

etc...

Permalink Reply by Herb Munson on May 2, 2012 at 5:39pm

No stretch at all. The Shepherd of Israel is indeed Jesus, the Good Shepherd as he described himself in John 10.

Permalink Reply by Nick Lanier on May 5, 2012 at 11:12am

Also, check out St. John 14:6-20.  A brief thumbnail sketch is that Christ declares who he is, and is asked by Phillip to show them the Father.  And Christ pretty much lays it down for him.  While I appreciate the Epistle's of Sts. Paul, Peter, etc. I find that the Gospels pretty much establish the diety of Christ in His own words, and show how He is truly the Messiah who was prophecied about in the Old Testament.  He truly fulfilled the Law, and established the new covenant with humanity.

 

Permalink Reply by Herb Munson on May 5, 2012 at 11:34am

Thanks, Nick. A great passage. I love Jesus' reply to Phillip ... "Have I been such a long time with you Phillip, and still you don't know who I am?" Love it.

Permalink Reply by Nick Lanier on May 5, 2012 at 9:19pm

Herb, I am of the opinion that we, as people, try to find the least obvious way to defend a theological viewpoint.  While any number of people can go around and around about various aspects of belief and faith, it is always a good reminder to realize that what Christ said about Himself is what established the Church, and our faith.