Question from a Site Viewer
Can you explain in detail why Jesus is supreme over everything?
Tim’s Answer
The reason why is a simple statement. Jesus is God. Isaiah prophesies that Jesus would be God (Isaiah 9:6). Micah prophesies that the Coming One would be of old, even from everlasting (Micah 5:2). Malachi prophesies that the Lord will come to His temple. (Malachi 3:1) John states that the One who created all things, the Word, is the One who dwelt among us (John 1:1-14). Thomas reaffirmed his belief in Jesus as God and Jesus blessed him (John 20:28). Paul calls Him the “eternally blessed God” (Romans 9:5). Paul calls Jesus God in Titus 2:13. Peter does the same in 2 Peter 1:1. Jesus speaks of sharing in the glory of the Father before there ever was a world (John 17:5). This apparently is a reference back to Isaiah 42:8 where God says that He will not give His glory to another. Jesus referred to Himself as the great I Am, in John 8:58, the One who existed before Abraham (see Exodus 3:14). The writer to the Hebrews called Jesus the “brightness of [God’s] glory and the expresss image of [God’s] person (Hebrews 1:3). Paul says in Phillipians 2:6 that Jesus was in the form of God but became human for us.
Thus, the reason why Jesus is over everything is that He is God. He is the creator of all things (John 1:3, Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 1:2). He is the sustainer of all things (Colossians 1:17; Hebrews 1:3). He is the One who is over all (Romans 1:5).
I trust this helps.
May the Lord Jesus and His Spirit guide you into a fuller understanding of Himself.
tim
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Good answer. So many Scriptures confirm Jesus as the “only true God.” John 1:10: “He was in the world, the world was made by Him and the world did not know Him.”
I Timothy 3:16: “Great is the mystery of godliness, GOD was manifested in the flesh..”
Colossians 2:9: “ALL the fulness of the Godhead dwells bodily in Him (Christ.)”He is NOT “in” the Godhead – all the Godhead is in HIM.’
He is not the “second person in the Godhead,” as the Roman Catholic Athanasian Creed would have it but: He says, “I am the first and the Last.” (Revel. 1;17)
When they went to arrest Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, He said, “I AM.” and the whole troop of soldiers fell backwards.
He is the Great I AM who spoke to Moses out of the burning bush.
The reason people get confused is simply because they do not discern or distinguish, between when Jesus speaks as a man (in Gospels,) and when He is speaking as GOD. ”
“I am…” says the Lord, “which is and which was and which is to come, the Almighty.” (Revel.1:8
When showing the deity of Christ, I try to use the texts that are without reasonable ambiguity. For believers, all of these texts point to the deity of Jesus. But if we want to persuade those who may not be believers, it is good to understand that some texts are not as clear as we may think. For instance, I generally do not go to 1 Timothy 3:16 because there is a textual variant with many old manuscripts saying “he” rather than “God.” You might look at the New International Version or the New American Standard Version. A sceptic will say that the verse does not show Christ’s deity, if it is properly translated.
The Colossians 2:9 passage is great, but one may argue whether Christ was filled with the fullness different than what we are filled with the Spirit or with the fullness of God (Ephesians 3:19).
Likewise, the “I am” statements are powerful, but Christ is not the only one to answer a question by using the “I am” words. The blind man did so as well (John 9:9). Of course, no one fell over at the blind man’s statement as they did when Christ uttered those words in John 18:5-6.
I say this only to sharpen the discussion when we engage with others. We need to be cognizant of these issues and be ready to address them when dealing with those who may not believe as we do. But as you state, there are many verses and passages in Scripture that point to the full deity of Christ.
Finally, the Athanasius Creed does not state that Christ is the second person of the Trinity. The Creed does not put any member of the Trinity in second place. Nevertheless, it is not wrong to speak of Christ as the second person of the Trinity, as long as we understand that second is not in relation to time or equality. The First and Last statements in Revelation do not purport to address the subject of the Trinity, but rather the subject of the fullness of all things in Christ. As Paul states, He is before all things and all things exist in Him (Colossians 1:17). When theologians, pastors, and saints speak of the second person of the Trinity, they generally are speaking in terms of subordination (the Son is begotten of the Father), not in terms of time or equality. It is akin to saying that Mark is the second gospel, which means only that it is the second of the gospels in the order of the Bible, not that it is less important, or later in time.
I hope this helps.
Matthew 28:19 states all authority in heaven and on Earth has been given to me. This verse works in well Isaiah 9:6.
Thank you for your reply.
Firstly, I did not know that this site was one whereby you hope to reach the unsaved, or I certainly would have worded things in a way so as to offer more understanding of the deity of Christ.
I put no faith in the NIV or the ASV, they can say what they like.
Sceptics are always contesting anything and everything and I certainly would have no hesitation in quoting Scripture regardless of what they say.
Thirdly, I may have gotten mixed up between the Athanaisan Creed and some other..?
I do not accept that it is alright to call Jesus a Second Person “so long as it is not in relation to time and equality.”
He is the One True Living God, and I would have to spend a bit of time going back and forth with you no doubt, if I were to tell you that I do not accept that He was begotten prior to His entry to earth. “This day have I begotten thee..” in regard to Christ coming to earth,
I can’t access concordance to find that verse as I’m away from home for several days.
Thanks. The verse you reference is Psalm 2:7 which then is quoted three times in the New Testament (Acts 13:33, Hebrews 1:5 and 5:5). Based on this and other passages, the church from the days of the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D. has largely held to the “eternal generation” of the Son. Such forms a part of the Nicean Creed, as it was modified at the first council of Constantinople in 381 A.D.
Others have argued that Jesus was begotten by the Father when He was born on this earth. This is the position I tend to hold, though not dogmatically so. I note from Psalm 2:7 that He was begotten of the Father by decree, not by birth. Psalm 2:7 states that the decree is spoken to the Son, meaning for me that the Son was in existence when the decree was spoken, and that the decree did not generate the Son, but only made an economical change in the relationship of the Trinity to one of Father-Son. I see the “today” as referencing the time the Father brought the Son into the world, reading the “again” of Hebrews 1:6 as referencing back the event of 1:6 to 1:5. But I hold this position lightly, given the long history of godly people in the church who have held to the eternal generation of the Son. Another argument I have heard is that He was begotten by the Father at the resurrection, noting Acts 13:33.
Nevertheless, whether the “begotten” occurs in time or eternity is not of great interest to me. To some extent it is like arguing the relationships of the two natures of Christ. We draw inferences and reach firm conclusions on matters over which we have very limited knowledge. There remain mysteries in God that we do well to adore and not debate. What is important to me is to affirm the eternal deity of Christ, His eternal existence with the Father and the Spirit as three Persons and one God, His becoming a man, His substitutionary death for our sins, His salvation made available by His grace through faith, His return for us, and our responsibility to live rightly before Him.
YES, JESUS IS GOD, EVEN UNTO HIS DISPLES, HE TOLD THEM THAT HE IS IN THE FATHER AND THE FATHER IN HIM, THEY R ONE, AND THAT IF YOU HAV SEEN HIM YOU HAVE SEEN THE FATHER. GLORY BE TO GOD FOR HIS ONENESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!AMEN I LOVE YOU JESUS