Who Is Jesus Christ?
By: Joe Dennison

Jesus Christ was born over 2000 years ago in an obscure village in present day Israel. His life, death and teaching have had a tremendous impact on our world. He was truly a great man. But was He more than that? Most people in America would agree that Jesus was a “good man.” Certainly, His teachings contain high moral standards. Yet the Bible claims that Jesus was something more than just a good man. It declares that Jesus is actually God’s Son, the Creator of our world!

Who Jesus is has profound implications for your own life. Perhaps you have thought of Jesus as simply a good man who was martyred in the prime of life. Possibly you have viewed His teachings as only noble ideals, to be accepted or discarded according to society’s current preferences. However, if Jesus is God, then His words are eternal truths and you can reject or ignore them only at your own peril.

Consider the arguments that the Bible presents for the deity of Jesus. First of all, it is clear that Jesus Himself claimed to be God’s Son. Jesus said, “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30). On the eve of His death, Jesus was asked, “Are you then the Son of God?” He replied, “You are right in saying I am” (Luke 22:70). On another occasion Jesus said, “before Abraham was born, I am!” (John 8:58). The people to whom Jesus spoke understood these to be clear statements of His deity—and as a result, they tried to kill Him.
Jesus demonstrated His deity by performing many miracles. He restored sight to the blind, healed the lame, gave hearing to the deaf and cured the sick. His greatest miracle was to give life to the dead. On at least three occasions, Jesus raised a person to life—including one man who had been in the grave for three days! Jesus’ enemies never questioned these miracles because they were impossible to deny! Jesus intended the miracles to demonstrate His deity.

Furthermore, Jesus displayed characteristics that only belong to God. He displayed His infinite supernatural wisdom and knowledge by revealing the thoughts of those around Him. His unlimited power over nature was seen when He calmed a raging storm on the Galilean Sea with three words: “Peace! be still.” The Gospel writers record His absolute righteousness in the New Testament. Even His enemies could find nothing wrong in His life. These characteristics—perfect righteousness, infinite wisdom, and divine power—were also demonstrations of His deity.

Finally, the Apostles clearly believed and understood Jesus to be the Son of God. Their New Testament writings are full of references to this indisputable truth. Paul wrote of the Lord Jesus as “being in the form of God” (Philippians 2:6) and as “the image of the invisible God” (Colossians 1:15). Also referring to Christ, John wrote, “In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God and the Word was God” (John 1:1). These men gave their lives to defend the truth about Jesus Christ.

The Lord Jesus claimed to be God. He demonstrated His deity by performing miracles—including raising the dead to life. Both His disciples and His enemies alike understood His claim to be God’s Son. The New Testament unmistakably proclaims His deity.

Since Jesus is God’s Son, He has claims on your life. In John 3:3 Jesus said, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” In John 5:24, Jesus also said, “He who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.” We challenge you to face the claims of Jesus today! If Jesus is Lord and God then you cannot afford to ignore Him. Jesus said “I am the way, the truth and the life, no man comes unto the Father but by me” (John 14:6). Your eternal destiny—heaven or hell—hinges entirely on who you think Jesus is, on whether you are willing to accept Him as your Savior and bow to Him as Lord.