Carl
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 Posted: Sun Sep 28, 2008 1:05 am Post subject: A GREAT DEDATE JESUS IS GOD? |
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The Deity Of Jesus Christ
by R.A. Torrey
"While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, Saying, What
think ye of Christ? Whose son is he?..." Matt. 22:41-42.
The question that our Lord Jesus puts here to the Pharisees is the most
fundamental question concerning Christian thought and faith that can be put
to anybody in any age. Jesus Christ Himself is the center of Christianity,
so the most fundamental questions of faith are those that concern the Person
of Christ. If a man really holds to right views concerning the Person of
Jesus Christ, he will sooner or later get right views on every other
question. If he holds a wrong view concerning the Person of our Lord Jesus
Christ, he is pretty sure to go wrong on everything else sooner or later.
"What think ye of Christ?" That is the great central question; that is the
vital question.
And the most fundamental question concerning the Person of Christ is - is
Jesus Christ really God? Not merely, is He Divine, but, is He actually God?
When I was a boy, to say you believed in the Divinity of Christ meant that
you believed in the real Deity of Christ, that you believed that Jesus was
actually a Divine Person, that He was God. It no longer means that. The
Devil is wise, shrewd, and subtle, and he knows that the most effectual way
to instill error into the minds of the inexpert and unwary is to use old and
precious words and put a new meaning into them. So when his messengers
masquerading as "ministers of righteousness" seek to lead, if possible, the
elect astray, they use the old precious words, but with an entirely new and
entirely different and entirely false meaning. They talk about the Divinity
of Christ, but they do not mean at all what intelligent Christians in former
days meant by it. Likewise, they talk of the atonement, but they do not mean
at all the substitutionary death of Jesus Christ in our place by which
eternal life is secured for us. And oftentimes when they talk about Christ,
they do not mean at all our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, the actual
historic Jesus of the four gospels; they mean an ideal Christ, or a Christ
principle.
So our subject is not the Divinity of Christ, but the Deity of Christ; and
our question is not, is Jesus Christ Divine, but rather, is Jesus Christ
God? Was that Person Who was born in Bethlehem nineteen hundred and
twenty-one years ago, and Who lived thirty-three or thirty-four years here
upon earth as recorded in the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John,
Who was crucified on Calvary's cross, Who rose from the dead the third day,
and was exalted from earth to heaven to the right hand of the Father - was
He God manifest in the flesh, was He God embodied in a human being? Was He,
and is He, a Being worthy of our absolute faith and supreme love and our
unhesitating obedience and our wholehearted worship, just as God the Father
is worthy of our absolute faith and supreme love and unhesitating obedience
and our wholehearted worship? Should all men honour Jesus Christ even as
they honour God the Father (John 5:23). Not merely is He an example that we
can wisely follow, or a Master whom we can wisely serve, but is He a God
Whom we can rightly worship? I presume that most of us do believe that He
was God manifest in the flesh and that He is God today at the right hand of
the Father, but why do you believe so? Are you so intelligent in your faith,
and therefore, so well-grounded in your faith that no glib talker or
reasoner, no Unitarian or Russellite (JW) or Christian Scientist or
Theosophist, or other errorist can confuse you and upset you and lead you
astray?
It is important that we be thoroughly sound in our faith at this point and
thoroughly well-informed, wherever else we may be in ignorance or error, for
we are distinctly told in John 20:31 that "these are written, that ye might
believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye
might have life through his name." It is evident from these words of the
inspired apostle John that this question is not merely a matter of
theoretical opinion, but that it is a matter that concerns our salvation. It
is to confirm and instruct you in your blessed faith, your saving faith in
Jesus Christ as a Divine Person.
When I studied the subject of the Divinity of Christ in the theological
seminary, I got the impression that there were a few texts in the Bible that
conclusively proved that He was Divine. Years later I found that there were
not merely a few proof texts that proved this, but that the Bible in many
ways and in countless passages clearly taught that Jesus Christ was God
manifest in the flesh. Indeed, I found that the Doctrine of the Deity of
Jesus Christ formed the very warp and woof of the Bible.
Divine Names
The first line of proof of the absolute Deity of our Lord Jesus is that many
names and titles clearly implying Deity are used of Jesus Christ in the
Bible, some of them over and over again, the total number of passages
reaching far into the hundreds. Of course, I can only give you a few
illustrations at this time. Turn with me first of all to Revelation 1:17,
"And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand
upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last." The text
shows clearly that our Lord Jesus was the speaker, and here our Lord Jesus
distinctly calls Himself "The First and the Last." Now this, beyond a
question, is a Divine name, for in Isaiah 44:6 we read, "Thus saith the LORD
the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and
I am the last; and beside me there is no God." In Revelation 22:12,13, our
Lord Jesus says that He is the Alpha and Omega. His words are, "And, behold,
I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his
work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first
and the last." Now in this same book in the first chapter and the eighth
verse the Lord God declared that He is the Alpha and the Omega. His words
are, "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord,
which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty." In I
Corinthians 2:8, the apostle Paul speaks of our crucified Lord Jesus as "The
Lord of glory." His exact words are, "Which none of the princes of this
world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of
glory." There can be no question that "The Lord of glory" is Jehovah God,
for we read in Psalm 24:8-10, "Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong
and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O ye gates; even
lift them up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in. Who
is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, he is the King of glory. Selah."
And we are told in the passage already referred to that our crucified Lord
Jesus was the King of glory; therefore, He must be Jehovah.
In John 20:28 Thomas addressed the Lord Jesus as his Lord and his God: "And
Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God." Unitarians have
endeavored to get around the force of this utterance made by Thomas by
saying that Thomas was excited and that he was not addressing the Lord
Jesus, but was saying "my Lord and my God" as an ejaculation of
astonishment, just the way that profane people sometimes use these
exclamations today. But this interpretation is impossible and shows to what
desperate straits the Unitarians are driven, for Jesus Himself commended
Thomas for seeing it and saying it. Our Lord Jesus' words immediately
following those of Thomas are, "Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast
believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed" (John
20:29).
In Titus 2:13 our Lord Jesus is spoken of as our "great God and our Saviour
Jesus Christ." In Romans 9:5 Paul tells us that "Christ came, who is over
all, God blessed forever." The Unitarians have made desperate efforts to
overcome the force of these words, but the only fair translation and
interpretation of these words are found in our Authorized Version. There can
be no honest doubt to one who goes to the Bible to find out what it actually
teaches, and not to read his own thought into it, that Jesus is spoken of by
various names and titles that beyond a question imply deity, and that He in
so many words is called God. In Hebrews 1:8 it is said in so many words, of
the Son, "But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and
ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom." If we
should go no further it is evidently the clear and often repeated teaching
of the Bible that Jesus is really God.
Divine Attributes
But there is a second line of proof that Jesus Christ is God, a proof
equally convincing, and that is, all the five distinctively Divine
attributes are ascribed to Jesus Christ, and "all the fulness of the
Godhead" is said to dwell in Him. There are five distinctively Divine
attributes, that is, five attributes that God alone possesses. These are
Omnipotence, Omniscience, Omnipresence, Eternity and Immutability. Each one
of these distinctively Divine attributes are ascribed to Jesus Christ.
First of all, omnipotence is ascribed to Jesus Christ. Not only are we
taught that Jesus had power over diseases and death and winds and sea and
demons, that they were all subject to His word, and that He is far above all
principality and power and might and dominion and every name that is named,
not only in this world, but also in the world to come (Eph. 1:20-23), but in
Hebrews 1:3 it is said in so many words that He "[upholdeth] all things by
the word of his power."
Omniscience is also ascribed to Him. We are taught in the Bible that Jesus
knew men's lives, even their secret history (John 4:16-19), that He knew the
secret thoughts of men, knew all men, knew what was in man (Mark 2:8; Luke
5:22; John 2:24,25), which knowledge we are distinctly told in 2 Chronicles
6:30 and Jeremiah 17:9-10, that God alone possesses. We are told in so many
words in John 16:30 that Jesus knew "all things," and in Colossians 2:3 we
find that in Him "are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge."
Omnipresence is also ascribed to Him. We are told in Matthew 18:20 that
where two or three are gathered together in His Name, that He is in the
midst of them, and in Matthew 28:20 that wherever His obedient disciples
should go, He would be with them, even unto the end of the age, and in John
14:20 and 2 Corinthians 13:5 we are told that He dwells in each believer, in
all the millions of believers scattered over the earth. In Ephesians 1:23 we
are told that He "filleth all in all."
Eternity is also ascribed to Him. We are told in John 1:1 that "in the
beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." In
John 8:58 Jesus Himself said, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before
Abraham was, I am." Note that the Lord Jesus did not merely say that "before
Abraham was I was," but that "before Abraham was, I AM," thus declaring
Himself to be the eternal "I AM." Even in the Old Testament we have a
declaration of the eternity of the Christ who was to be born in Bethlehem.
In Micah 5:2 we read, "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little
among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me
that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old,
from everlasting." And in Isaiah 9:6 we are told of the child that is to be
born, "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the
government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called
Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of
Peace." And in Hebrews 13:8 we are told, "Jesus Christ the same yesterday,
and to day, and for ever."
His immutability is also taught in the passage just quoted from Hebrews, and
in the first chapter of the same book, in verses eleven and twelve, we find
that while even the heavens change, the Lord Jesus does not change. The
exact words are, "They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall
wax old as cloth a garment; And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and
they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail."
Each one of the five distinctively Divine attributes were ascribed to our
Lord Jesus Christ. And in Colossians 2:9 we are told in so many words, "For
in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily [in a bodily form]."
Here again we might rest our case, for what has been said under this
heading, even if taken alone, clearly proves the absolute Deity of our Lord
Jesus Christ. It shows that He possesses every perfection of nature and
character that God the Father possesses.
Divine Offices
But we do not need to rest the case here. There is a third unanswerable line
of proof that Jesus Christ is God, namely, all the distinctively Divine
offices are predicated of Jesus Christ. There are seven distinctively Divine
offices. That is to say, there are seven things that God alone can do, and
each one of these seven distinctively Divine offices is ascribed to Jesus
Christ. The seven distinctively Divine offices are: Creation, Preservation,
Forgiveness of Sin, the Raising of the Dead, the Transformation of Bodies,
Judgment and the Bestowal of Eternal Life, and each of these is ascribed to
Jesus Christ.
Creation is ascribed to Him. In Hebrews 1:10 these words are spoken of our
Lord: "And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the
earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands." The context clearly
shows that the Lord addressed is the Lord Jesus. In John 1:3 we are told
that "All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made
that was made." Preservation of the universe and of everything is also
ascribed to Him in Hebrews 1:3 where it is said of the Lord Jesus, "Who
being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person
[God's], and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by
himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high."
The forgiveness of sin is ascribed to Him. He Himself says in Mark 2:5-10
when His power to forgive sins was questioned, because that was recognized
as a Divine power, "But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on
earth to forgive sins."
The future raising of the dead is distinctly ascribed to him in John
6:39,44, "And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all
which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again
at the last day. No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me
draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day."
The transformation of our bodies is ascribed to Him in Philippians 3:21. In
2 Timothy 4:1 judgment is ascribed to Him. We are told that He shall "judge
the quick and the dead." Jesus Himself declared that He would be the judge
of all mankind and emphasized the fact of the Divine character of that
office. In John 5:22,23 He said, "For the Father judgeth no man, but hath
committed all judgment unto the Son: That all men should honour the Son,
even as they honour the Father." The bestowal of eternal life is ascribed to
Him time and time again. In John 10:28 He Himself says, "And I give unto
them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck
them out of my hand," and in John 17:1,2, He says, "Father, the hour is
come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee: As thou hast
given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many
as thou hast given him." Here then, we have the seven distinctively Divine
offices all predicated of Jesus Christ. This alone would prove that He is
God, and we might rest the case here, but there are still other proofs of
His absolute Deity.
Statements Which in the Old Testament Are Made Distinctly of Jehovah, God,
Taken in the New Testament to Refer to the Lord Jesus Christ
The fourth line of proof of the absolute Deity of Jesus Christ is found in
the fact that over and over again statements which in the Old Testament are
made distinctly of Jehovah, God, are taken in the New Testament to refer to
Jesus Christ. We have not time to illustrate this at length, but will give
but one illustration where many might be given. In Jeremiah 11:20 the
prophet says, "But, O LORD of hosts, that judgest righteously, that triest
the reins and the heart, let me see thy vengeance on them: for unto thee
have I revealed my cause." Here the prophet distinctly says that it is
Jehovah of Hosts Who judgest and triest the reins and the heart. And in the
17th chapter and the tenth verse Jeremiah represents Jehovah Himself as
saying the same thing in these words, "I the LORD search the heart, I try
the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to
the fruit of his doings." But in the New Testament in Revelation 2:23 the
Lord Jesus says, "...I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I
will give unto every one of you according to your works." We are distinctly
told in the context that it is "The Son of God" who is speaking here. So
Jesus claims for Himself in the New Testament what the Lord in the Old
Testament says is true of Himself and of Himself alone. In very many other
instances, statements which in the Old Testament are made distinctly of God
the Father, are taken to refer to Jesus Christ. That is to say, in New
Testament thought and doctrine, Jesus Christ occupies the place that God the
Father occupies in Old Testament thought and doctrine.
The Way the Name of God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son Are Coupled
Together
The fifth line of proof of the absolute Deity of our Lord is found in the
way in which the name of Jesus Christ is coupled with that of God the
Father. In numerous passages His name is coupled with the name of God the
Father in a way in which it would be impossible to couple the name of any
finite being with that of the Deity. We have time for but a few of the many
illustrations that might be given. A striking instance is in the words of
our Lord Himself in John 14:23 where we read, "Jesus answered and said unto
him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him,
and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him." Here our Lord Jesus
does not hesitate to couple Himself with the Father in such a way as to say
"We," that is, God the Father and I, will come and make our abode with him.
In John 14:1 He said, 'Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God,
believe also in me." If Jesus Christ was not God, this is shocking
blasphemy. There is absolutely no middle ground between admitting the Deity
of Jesus Christ and charging Christ with the most daring and appalling
blasphemy of which any man was ever guilty.
Divine Worship to be Given to Jesus Christ
There is a sixth line of proof of the absolute Deity of our Lord Jesus.
Those already given have been decisive, each one of the five have been
decisive, but this, if possible, is the most decisive of them all, and that
is that we are taught in so many words that Jesus Christ should be
worshipped as God, both by angels and men. In numerous places in the gospels
we see Jesus Christ accepting without hesitation a worship which good men
and angels declined with fear and which He Himself taught should be rendered
only to God (Matt. 28:9; Luke 24:52; Matt.14:33; Acts 10:25,26; Rev. 22:8,9;
Matt. 4:9,10). A curious and very misleading comment is made in the margin
of the American Standard Revision upon the meaning of the word translated
"worship" in these passages, and that is that "the Greek word translated
worship denotes an act of reverence, whether paid to a 'creature' or to the
'Creator."'
Now this is true, but it is utterly misleading; for while this word is used
to denote "an act of reverence paid to a creature" by idolaters, our Lord
Jesus Himself distinctly says, using exactly the same Greek word, "thou
shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve," and on the
other hand he says in John 5:23 that "all men should honour the Son, even as
they honour the father."
And in Revelation 5:8-13 the four living creatures and the four and twenty
elders are represented as falling down before the Lamb and offering worship
to Him just as worship is offered to Him that sitteth upon the throne, that
is, God the Father. In Hebrews 1:6 we are told in so many words, "And again,
when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all
the angels of God worship him."
One night in the inquiry room in Chicago I stepped up to an intelligent
looking man at the back of the room and said to him, "Are you a Christian?"
He replied, "I do not suppose you would consider me a Christian." I said,
"Why not?" He said, "I am a Unitarian." I said, "What you mean then is that
you do not think that Jesus Christ is a person that should be worshipped."
He replied, "'That is exactly what I think," and added, "the Bible nowhere
says we ought to worship Him." I said, "Who told you that?" He replied, "My
pastor," mentioning a prominent Unitarian minister in the city of Boston. I
said, "Let me show you something," and I opened my Bible to Hebrews 1:6 and
read, "And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he
saith, And let all the angels of God worship him." And he said, "Does it say
that?" I handed him the Bible and said, "Read it for yourself," and he read
it and said, "I did not know that was in the Bible." I said, "Well it is
there, isn't it?" "Yes it is there." Language could not make it plainer. The
Bible clearly teaches that Jesus, the Son of God, is to be worshipped as God
by angels and men, even as God the Father is worshipped.
Incidental Proofs of the Deity of Jesus Christ
The six lines of proof of the Deity of Jesus Christ which I have given you
leave no possibility of doubting that Jesus Christ is God, that Jesus of
Nazareth is God manifest in a human person, that He is a being to be
worshipped, even as God the Father is worshipped. But there are also
incidental proofs of His absolute Deity which, if possible, are in some ways
even more convincing than the direct assertions of His Deity.
1. Our Lord Jesus says in Matthew 11:28, "Come unto me, all ye that labour
and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Now any one that makes a
promise like that must either be God, or a lunatic, or an impostor. No one
can give rest to all who labor and are heavy laden who come to him unless he
is God, and yet Jesus Christ offers to do it. If He offers to do it and
fails to do it when men come to Him, then He is either a lunatic or an
impostor. If He actually does it, then beyond a question, He is God. And
thousands can testify that He really does it. Thousands and tens of
thousands who have labored and were heavy laden and crushed, and for whom
there was no help in man, have come to Jesus Christ and He actually has
given them rest. Surely then He is not merely a great man, but He is in fact
God.
2. Again in John 14:1 Jesus Christ demands that we put the same faith in Him
that we put in God the Father and promises that in such faith we will find a
cure for all trouble and anxiety of heart. His words are, "Let not your
heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me." It is clear that
He demands the same absolute faith to be put in Himself that is to be put in
God Almighty. Now in Jeremiah 17:5, Scripture with which our Lord Jesus was
perfectly familiar, we read "Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that
trusteth in man," and yet with this clear curse pronounced upon all who
trust in man, Jesus Christ demands that we put trust in Him just as we put
trust in God. It is the strongest possible assertion of Deity on His part.
No one but God has a right to make such a demand, and Jesus Christ, when He
makes this demand, must either be God or an impostor; but thousands and tens
of thousands have found that when they did believe in Him just as they
believe in God, their hearts were delivered from trouble no matter what
their bereavement or circumstances might be.
3. Again, the Lord Jesus demanded supreme and absolute love for Himself. It
is clear as day that no one but God has a right to demand such a love, but
there can be no question that Jesus did demand it. In Matthew 10:37 He said
to His disciples, "He that loveth father or mother more than me is not
worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy
of me," and in Luke 14:26,33, he says. "If any man come to me, and hate not
his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters,
yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. So likewise, whosoever
he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple."
There can be no question that this is a demand on Jesus' part of supreme and
absolute love to Himself, a love that puts even the dearest relations of
life in an entirely secondary place. No one but God has a right to make any
such demand, but our Lord Jesus made it, and therefore, He must be God.
4. In John 10:30 the Lord Jesus claimed absolute equality with the Father.
He said, "I and my Father are one."
5. In John 14:9 our Lord Jesus went so far as to say, "...he that hath seen
me hath seen the Father." He claims here to be so absolutely God that to see
Him is to see the Father Who dwelleth in Him.
6. In John 17:3 He says, "And this is life eternal, that they might know
thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." In other
words, He claims that the knowledge of Himself is as essential a part of
eternal life as knowledge of God the Father.
Conclusion
There is no room left to doubt the absolute Deity of Jesus Christ. It is a
glorious truth. The Saviour in Whom we believe is God, a Saviour for Whom
nothing is too hard, a Saviour Who can save from the uttermost and save to
the uttermost. Oh, how we should rejoice that we have no merely human
Saviour, but a Saviour Who is absolutely God in all of His fulness and
perfection.
On the other hand, how black is the guilt of rejecting such a Saviour as
this! Whoever refuses to accept Jesus as his Divine Saviour and Lord is
guilty of the enormous sin of rejecting a Saviour Who is God. Many a man
thinks he is good because he never stole, or committed murder, or cheated.
"Of what great sin am I guilty?" he complacently asks. Have you ever
accepted Jesus Christ? "No." Well, then, you are guilty of the awful and
damning sin of rejecting a Saviour Who is God.
"But," you answer, "'I do not believe that He is God." That does not change
the fact nor lessen your guilt before God. Questioning a fact or denying a
fact never changes it, regardless of what Mary Baker Eddy may say to the
contrary.
Suppose a man had a wife who was one of the noblest, purest, truest women
that ever lived, would her husband's questioning her purity and nobility
change the fact? It would not. It would simply make that husband guilty of
awful slander; it would simply prove that man to be an outrageous scoundrel.
So, denying the Deity of Jesus Christ does not make His Deity any less a
fact, but it does make the denier of His Deity guilty of awful, incredible
blasphemous slander against the Lord God of Heaven. It also proves that you
who deny His Deity to be ________________ . I leave your own conscience to
finish the sentence thus begun.
---
May God bless,
Carl
my website -- http://www.nettally.com/saints/
my blog -- http://www.anniemayhem.com/cgi-bin/wordpress/ |
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