Since Jesus the Son is part of the triune Godhead, “Son of God” means that Jesus is a part of the Godhead.
It’s one thing to show from Scripture that Jesus possesses divine attributes; it’s still another to demonstrate that Jesus actually claimed to be God. If Jesus never affirmed His deity, then the evidence presented so far would be suspect. Christians could be charged with misinterpreting Scripture, and the New Testament authors with misunderstanding Jesus’ identity and mission. On the other hand, if Jesus did claim to be God, and if the Bible supports this claim by demonstrating He possesses attributes of deity, then surely we have sufficient evidence that Jesus is God.
Once again, our evidence rests on the proven historical reliability of the Bible, which supports the Bible’s claim that it’s divinely inspired and inerrant. If the Bible is God’s Word, then not only what the authors of Scripture say about Jesus must be true, but what Jesus Himself says must also be true. And Jesus does claim divine status in numerous ways.
Jesus makes several explicit statements concerning His deity: “I and My Father are one” (John 10:30); “If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him. … He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:7, 9).
In Mark 14:60–64 (see Matt. 26:63–66), Jesus is questioned by Caiaphas, the high priest. In response to Caiaphas’s question as to whether Jesus was the “Christ, the Son of the Blessed,” Jesus acknowledged His deity by stating “I am.” Caiaphas had no doubt that Jesus was making such a claim. He referred to it as blasphemy, and the rest of the religious leaders agreed by condemning Jesus to death. Caiaphas even ripped his clothes, a customary reaction upon hearing blasphemy, which Jesus’ claim to be equal with the Father was to the high priest. According to Jewish law, blasphemy was a capital offense punishable by stoning. In fact, this charge provided the Jews with their only legal excuse to have Jesus crucified. (Compare this with John 5:16–18, where the Jews were seeking to kill Jesus because He was “making Himself equal with God.”
Still another direct claim to deity is found in John 8:56–58. Speaking to the Jews, Jesus said, “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad … before Abraham was, I AM.” If we compare this passage with Exodus 3:13–15, we see that the phrase “I AM” in John 8:58 is a claim by Christ to be the Yahweh of the Old Testament. In Exodus 3:14, “I AM” is the divine name Yahweh, by which God revealed Himself to Moses at the burning bush. It emphasizes God’s eternal self-existence. Thus in John 8:58, Jesus is saying more than the fact that He existed prior to Abraham. It is a distinct claim to be God, the one and only. Once again, it is evident that the Jews understood this claim. In verse 59, we read that they picked up stones to throw at Him for what they considered to be His blasphemous self-affirmation.
In many other direct ways, Jesus claimed to be God. He said He was “Lord even of the Sabbath” (Matt. 12:8). Who but God could be this? He tells a paralyzed man that his “sins are forgiven” (Mark 2:5). Who but God can forgive sins? Jesus said to the multitudes in His famous Sermon on the Mount, “You have heard that the ancients were told … but I say to you …” (Matt. 5:21, 27, 31, 33, 38, 43, 44, NASV). Who but God could speak with such finality, with such authority? In Matthew 23:34, Jesus says, “I am sending you prophets and wise men” (NASV). Who but God can do this?
In addition to these claims to deity, there is other evidence to consider. For instance, Jesus claimed to have God’s authority. Whereas other religious leaders pointed men away from themselves and to their respective gods, referring to themselves as mere spokesmen, Jesus referred to Himself as the very source of authority and truth (Matt. 28:18; John 14:6).
Jesus also equated people’s attitudes about Himself with their attitudes toward God. He said that to know Him is to know God (John 8:19), to see Him is to see God (John 12:45), to believe in Him is to believe in God (John 12:44), and to hate Him is to hate God (John 15:23).
The titles “Son of Man” and “Son of God,” which indicate deity, were taken by Jesus as applying to Him. “Son of Man” frequently occurs in the Old Testament (see Dan. 7:13–14). By the time of Christ, it had tremendous messianic significance. And the Messiah was believed to be divine, as Isaiah 9:6 makes clear, where we read that the Messiah is called “Wonderful Counselor” (referring to the Messiah as a supernatural counselor) and “Mighty God” (designating Yahweh). By taking the title “Son of Man” for Himself, Jesus declared His deity, as the Jews recognized (see Matt. 26:64–65; Luke 22:69–71).
Although, in the Old Testament, the title “Son of God” is applied to angels, Adam, and the Hebrew nation, it denotes deity in the New Testament. In Matthew 26:63–65, Jesus accepted the title when the high priest applied it to Him in a messianic sense. Once again, the Jewish reaction to His claim demonstrates that they understood Jesus to be calling Himself God.
Jesus also used the “Son of God” title to underscore His special union with God the Father (John 3:16). Moreover, the repeated use of son with father may be alluding to Jesus’ equality with the Father in the Godhead. Since Jesus the Son is part of the triune Godhead, “Son of God” likely means that Jesus is a part of the Godhead.
Dan Story, Defending Your Faith
