THEOLOGY PAPER
Jesus as Deity
The Gospel of John is all about one verse. John thesis is not to show Jesus as a king, like
Matthew, or the son of man. Matthew traces Jesus' genealogy back to Abraham, Luke traces his
genealogy back to Adam, but Johns gospel could not contain a genealogy because his thesis was
that Jesus was God in the flesh. John wants to prove to his readers that Jesus is God incarnate.
Subsequently, he spends 21 chapters to prove one verse; “In the beginning was the Word, and the
Word was with God, and the Word was God,” (John 1:1, KJV). In order to prove his thesis, he
must ultimately depict Jesus doing things that only God can do. Johns mission was to prove that
Jesus was God all mighty and he proves it, by depicting Jesus saying and doing things only a
God could do.
Köstenberger claims that, “the pronouncement of John’s gospel that, in Jesus, the Word (who
was God) had become flesh (that is, a human being) was therefore diametrically opposed to the
claims of Gnosticism. A full-fledged gnostic would have had nothing but scorn in response to
John’s claim of Jesus’s incarnation.1 The author also asserts that, “Others may not share
evangelical presuppositions regarding the nature of Scripture, the deity of Christ, or the
substitutionary atonement, but nonetheless consider John’s gospel to be a work of literature
deserving of study,”2 in which I would strongly agree. John precisely depicts signs that highlight
the fact that Jesus was not just some ordinary man, or even a powerful prophet being assisted by
God, but the he was in-fact God himself. 1
1 1.Andreas Köstenberger, Encountering John. (Grand Rapids MI: Baker Publishing Group, 2017), 70, Wordsearch
Bible.
2. Ibid, xiv
All scriptures are from the King James Version unless otherwise noted
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THEOLOGY PAPER
Köstenberger also claims that, “John’s explicitly stated purpose is quite clear: “Jesus did
many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these
are written that you may believe that the Christ, the Son of God, is Jesus, and that by believing
you may have life in his name” (John 20:30–31).3 Although there are many scholars that would
dispute the deity of Christ depicted by John and would have liked to see John focus more on
Jesus’ human characteristics. Köstenberger argues that, “while the designation of Jesus as Son
blends elements of his humanity and deity, other elements of John’s Christology focus more
explicitly on Jesus’s divine nature.”4
Elements of John’s Christology that focus on Jesus’ divinity is the language that this gospel
records him using. Barolet mentions that, “It was C.S. Lewis who took it one step further stating
that Jesus was either the Lord, a liar, or a lunatic. Why bother asking? Well, good men or sane
men don’t go around claiming they are the truth (John14:6), “I am the way, the truth, and the
life”), that they are God incarnate (John 1:14), “The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us,
and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only Son,” or “Whoever has seen me has seen the
Father,” (John 14:9), that they will die and rise again (John 2:19), “Destroy this temple and in
three days I will raise it up”), or that they are the Creator (John 1:3), “All things were made
through him”). These are just a sampling of the claims Jesus uttered about Himself.”5
2
2 3. Köstenberger, xiv
4. Ibid, 26
5. Greg Barolet, The Lordship of Christ. Ligonier Ministries. (September 2005), Para 1,
https://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/lordship-christ/
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THEOLOGY PAPER
John recorded Jesus saying things only a God would say. The mannerism in which Jesus spoke
would often frighten, if not offend the people he spoke to. This type of spoken word has been
dated all the way back to the beginning. Morris claims that, “translators used this emphatic form
of speech when they were rendering words spoken by God. This sort of thing has been widely
acceptable among religious people. In the not so distant past, for example, the Ten
Commandments were normally cited in the form “Thou shalt not. . ..” It was a form of speech
that was not much used in ordinary conversation or writing, but it seemed appropriate for the
words of God. The point of all this is that when Jesus used the “I AM” construction he was
speaking in the style of deity.”6
Morris also mentions that, “this expression is used sparingly in the New Testament. “I AM”
mostly represents the speech of the heavenly Father, or of the Son. The overtones of deity that
we find in its use in the Old Testament are not lost when we move to the New.”7 Although, the
author does not stand against Johns thesis (that Jesus is God) he does mention that as Christians,
“we should not say that he did some things as God and some things as man. He was not a split
personality, moving from deity to humanity and back. He was one person, albeit a person who
quite naturally did some things that we can do and other things that we cannot do. Consistently
Jesus did the work of God, whether that meant living quietly the life of a Galilean peasant or
whether it meant doing some stupendous miracle. And because he was doing the work of God,
the glory of God was shown in all he did; in the miracles, certainly, but also in the quiet deeds of
everyday life.”8 3 18556003453
3 6. Leon Morris. Jesus is the Christ. (Grand Rapids MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company 1988),108,
Wordsearch Bible.
7. Ibid, 109
8. Ibid, 19
9. Köstenberger, 9
10.Morris, 98
11.Ibid, 98
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THEOLOGY PAPER
Johns gospel continues to depict Jesus saying and doing things that only God could say or do.
As a matter of fact, Köstenberger states that the gospel of John, “holds in admirable balance
Jesus’s humanity and deity. Nevertheless, he makes clear that it is precisely because Jesus was
more than just a man that he clashed with the Jewish authorities.”9 “A little later we find Jesus
saying that the sickness of Lazarus was not with a view to death but “for the glory of God, so
that the Son of God should be glorified through it” (11:4). John then records Martha’s matchless
confession, “Lord, I have believed that you are the Christ, the Son of God, he who comes into the
world” (11:27), a confession that matches pretty well John’s declared aim in writing his book
(20:31).”10 The author then mentions that, ‘when this confession is taken also in the light of the
fact that the words are recorded in the context of calling back Lazarus from the dead, we should
see yet once more that John is giving expression to the full deity of the Christ.”11
Jesus asserts, “I am the bread of life,” “I am the light of the world,” “I am living water,” “I am
the way, truth and the life,” and performs miracles to back his claims. Lazarus sister Martha
refers to the resurrection as a futuristic metaphor. Jesus corrects her theology by informing her
that the very thing she was talking about and standing on-“I am.” Morris mentions that, “Jesus
does not say simply that he will give resurrection and life, but that he is resurrection and life.
Jesus means that raising people from the dead and giving them life is not, so to speak, a routine
activity that he performs in an uninvolved way.”12 Köstenberger, asserts that, “these and other
works furnish more than adequate proof that we have every reason to believe both in the full
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THEOLOGY PAPER
humanity and deity of Christ as well as in the historical fact of his resurrection, to name but some
of the most crucial claims advanced with regard to Jesus in the canonical gospels,”13 Anders
claims that, “Jesus asserted such absolute unity with God that the Father was responsible for His
every act, including, of course, the miracle which they had denounced as a violation of the divine
law. He next claimed absolute equality with God as "the author and giver of life"—the supreme
prerogative of deity. And, lastly, He asserted His exclusive right to the equally divine prerogative
of judgment.”14
In concluding, John precisely depicts signs that highlight the fact that Jesus was not just some
ordinary man, or even a powerful prophet being assisted by God, but the he was in-fact God
himself. Anders also asserts that, “Jesus claimed to be God because he was God and John
affirmed that deity in every possible way.”15 Johns thesis was not to prove that Christ was a king.
He was not trying to prove that he was a prophet, or the son of man. He aimed to prove that Jesus
was God in the flesh. The almighty God-who took off his divinity, and put on humanity. The
father who left the thrown room of God in the form of Jesus became the sacrificial lamb. There is
no questioning his humanity, or his deity. He is God the father, the son and the Holy Spirit.4 John
has proven his thesis.
Bibliography
Anders Max. Holman New Testament Commentary – John. Nashville TN: B&H Publishing
Group, 2011, Wordsearch Bible.
413. Köstenberger, 205
14. Max Anders, Holman New Testament Commentary - John (B&H Publishing Group, 2011), 61, Wordsearch Bible.
15. Ibid, 61
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Barolet, Greg. The Lordship of Christ. Ligonier Ministries Accessed on August 10, 2019
https://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/lordship-christ/
Köstenberger, Andreas. Encountering John. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 1999.
Morris, Leon. Jesus is the Christ: Studies in the Theology of John. Grand Rapids: Wm. B.
Eerdmans’s Publishing Co., 1989.
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