Is Jesus the Son of God and God the Son? – Part one

 
 
 
 
Jesus Son of Man – Part one
 
 

“But who do you say that I am?”

This question put to Jesus was once addressed to Him by the disciples. But it remains current and continues to be relevant to this day.

Why is Jesus’s identity so very important?

If this statement is true, then He is the Lord and Saviour of mankind, and people must either accept Him or reject Him, thus assuming a decision that has fundamental consequences for life, especially eternal life. How could just a (man) convince the masses that He is God, and establish a Church that would continue to worship Him for over 2000 years?

How did Jesus and His teachings manage to stand the test of time, and to change the course of mankind to such an extent as to divide history into two: “Before Christ (BC) and after Christ (AD). But what is certain is that Jesus invested a lot of time and trouble for (you) from His birth to the present day.
He was and is a character turned on all sides, analysed and reanalysed, loved, rejected, appreciated, ignored, believed, unrecognised, blasphemed or revered, but in all cases (known) to all at all times. Questions about who Jesus does not remain suspended by the thread of human history, like rhetorical questions. It willingly or unwillingly intertwined into the history of humanity, in the human fibre itself, and on mankind hangs at least the life of the soul, but especially eternal life, the ultimate goal of each of those who seriously pose existential problems of life and death.

This article aims to let the questions speak for themselves. They should offer the possibility of an answer, but above all to provide a basis for thinking about possible feedback, for a better understanding of each person’s position on a topic so debated today as in ancient times.
We do this knowing that an exhaustive approach cannot be offered in just a mere article, but only an angle that is kept in terms of modesty, open to honest deliberation of ideas, in the hope that all this effort was worthwhile, because it brought to each person at least more understanding, more conviction, and more faith.

The term (Son of God) is used in the Old Testament to refer to people who hold a special relationship with God. But in the New Testament (Son of God) is an expression used with a clear reference only to Jesus and, especially, to His role as the Messiah, Savior of the Jewish people, but also of all the nations, of every man, no matter what language or race. Some such as Non-Trinitarian Christians, distinguish between the term (Son of God) and the term (God the Son) the second person of the Trinity. They accept the idea that Jesus is the “Son of God,” but they do not accept the idea that Jesus is God the Son.

It must be said that the doctrine of the Holy Trinity in Christianity is about Jesus as God the Son, the same nature and being (co-substantially) as God the Father and God the Holy Spirit, but clearly distinct as a person. The phrase (children of God) also clarifies an explanation in the following verse:

John 1:12-13
“But as many, as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”

But with regard to the expression (sons of God), a few verses from the Bible present even God’s point of view on this topic:

Hebrews 1:5-8,13-14
“For to which of the angels did He ever say: “You are My Son, Today I have begotten You”? And again: I will be to Him a Father, And He shall be to Me a Son”? But when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says: “Let all the angels of God worship Him.” And of the angels, He says: “Who makes His angels spirits And His ministers a flame of fire.” But to the Son, He says: Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of Your kingdom. But to which of the angels has He ever said: Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool”? Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?”

What does Jesus’ statement that He is the Son of God mean, and what are the implications of this?
Jesus is the Son of God in the sense that He is God (incarnate) on earth.

Galatians 4:4-6
“But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!”

The verses of John’s Gospel teach a lot in a few words:

John 1:14
“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”

Jesus is the Son of God in that He was manifested to man through the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit:

Luke 1:35
“And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.”

How did the elders view Jesus’ claim to be the Son of God?
When Jesus said (I Am that I Am), the leaders of the Jewish people knew exactly what He meant when He asserted His identity under the expression (I AM). To be the Son of God meant to have the same nature and substance as God Himself, in fact, to be God. This statement was the main charge and the main cause of Jesus’ condemnation. The Jews answered Him:

John 19:7
“The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to our law He ought to die, because He made Himself the Son of God.”

According to rabbinic tradition, anyone who heard that God’s name was being blasphemed, they were forced to tear his clothes and put on sackcloth as a sign of indignation, pain, and despair.

Matthew 26:63
“And the high priest answered and said to Him, “I put You under oath by the living God: Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God!”Jesus said to him, “It is as you said. Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.” Then the high priest tore his clothes, saying, “He has spoken blasphemy! What further need do we have for witnesses? Look, now you have heard His blasphemy!”

Jesus claims to be the Son of God and He and the Father are (One). Jesus says directly and indirectly on many occasions that (He) is the Son of God and that God is (His) Father. Moreover, Christ uses the most intimate word in the family relationship, the word (ABBA), suggesting the closest intimacy. We know that the Jewish people do not refer to God as (my Father). No one in the history of Israel had used the word (Father) before Jesus in addressing God. They used the word (ABHINU) – a formula for mercy and forgiveness. Moreover, they even refused to pronounce God’s name, (YHWH). This name was seen by some as sacred. But Jesus clearly taught, “My Father.” Moreover, He never said “Our Father,” as He taught humanity like in the Lord’s Prayer, but He always said only “My Father.”

And to make matters worse, He said:

John 10:30
“I and My Father are one.”

John 10:36
“Do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God?”

Jesus makes many shocking statements for the Jews of that time, but also for most of us. He teaches that he existed before he was (born), that is, before he became incarnate in the material world. Jesus said to them,

John 8:58
“Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.”

And in the book of Colossians we find an interesting verse:

Colossians 1:15
“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.”

He also says:

John 6:38
“For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.”

John 8:23
“And He said to them, “You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world.”

John 16:28
“I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again, I leave the world and go to the Father.”

Simple logic suggests that if Jesus is the Son of the true God, then before He became incarnate in our material world, He must have been where God the Father dwells, that is in the spiritual world. We know that dimensions coexist in parallel with our material world. We also know that “God is Spirit;”

John 4:24
“God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

So at least according to this verse, God belongs to the spirit realm above in the heavens. So, if God resides in heaven in the spirit world, and Jesus came (down) from the Father, then with minimal logic we can understand that Jesus belonged to the spirit realm before He came into the material world. Is there any evidence to support the fact that Jesus existed before he came into our world?

If He belonged to the spiritual realm before He came into our material world, then the spiritual beings must have (seen) Him, and (known) Him. It is not easy to ask holy angels, archangels, or even seraphim. But we still have a chance to find out without even asking. Some spiritual beings inhabit both the spiritual and the material world. These are the fallen angels, or as they are now called (demons). Demons possess a spiritual identity that cannot easily be denied. Our whole world is encompassed in the clutches of evil and deception. Is it not a good idea to consider what they have to say about Jesus?

If Jesus and the demons belonged to the same spiritual dimension, then they must have known Him and consequently recognised Him in the flesh in the material world. Both in the Old Testament and in the New Testament we can find some very relevant situations, which open a platform for discussion whose reality is difficult to deny, as long as we admit that there is at least two worlds, one material and one spiritual. In the New Testament, demons actually meet Jesus on earth. It would be expected of them not to know Him, and consequently to treat Him as they generally do with people, according to their wicked and false nature.

The testimony of demons

We mention only two significant verses, many of which can be discovered in the pages of the Bible:

Luke 4:33-41
“Now in the synagogue, there was a man who had a spirit of an unclean demon. And he cried out with a loud voice saying, “Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!” And when the demon had thrown him in their midst, it came out of him and did not hurt him. Then they were all amazed and spoke among themselves, saying, “What a word this is! For with authority and power, He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out.”And the report about Him went out into every place in the surrounding region. Now He arose from the synagogue and entered Simon’s house. But Simon’s wife’s mother was sick with a high fever, and they made a request of Him concerning her. So He stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. And immediately she arose and served them. When the sun was setting, all those who had any that were sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and He laid His hands on every one of them and healed them. And demons also came out of many, crying out and saying, “You are the Christ, the Son of God!” And He, rebuking them, did not allow them to speak, for they knew that He was the Christ.”

Mark 5:2,6-7
“And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an (unclean spirit), When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshipped Him. And he cried out with a loud voice and said, “What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore You by God that You do not torment me.”

So these spiritual beings fallen or not, know Him and recognise His identity, as such worship Him. Worship means the feeling or expression of reverence and adoration. Reverence means deep respect for someone or something, and adoration means deep love or respect. In the case of demons, they had great fear and respect for Jesus. Fearing the Lord for us means to be in reverent awe of His holiness, to give Him complete reverence and to honour Him as the God of great glory, majesty, purity and power. Demons are not stupid they know the Bible better than we do. Obviously, they don’t show true love to Jesus but they did recognise His badge of authority.

1. A hateful spirit or unclean spirit is evil because of its disobedience it does not listen. So why would an evil spirit submit to a simple man on earth?

2. How can it be explained that a humble man came without a book like we have now the Bible, yet He stored up all that wisdom in His head already?

3. Why and where did Jesus obtain this authority from, if He is just a lowly man?

4. Would it not be self-evident that authority should be held (only) by someone who is of the same nature ie a spiritual nature?

4. We know that demons lie. From this perspective, shouldn’t they be the first to hide or deny the true identity of Jesus Christ?

Demons’ interests are opposed to the whole work of Christ on earth therefore, He is their direct enemy. Jesus was there when they were cast out of heaven. As the Son of God, He approved of them being banished from paradise. In addition, Jesus taught:

1 John 3:8
“For this purpose, the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.”

So he came to ruin their ungodly business. So why did the evil spirits worship him?
The whole world lies in the power of the evil one. The god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers. Satan severely punishes any violation of his command, especially when it comes to devotion. We know from the Bible that the god of this age does not joke when it comes to worship. He wants everyone, young and old, to worship Him, and him alone. But in the presence of Jesus, none of the fallen angels had the courage to lie or deny Him, nor even their leader Satan. What he tried to do in the wilderness with Jesus using temptation was to cast doubt on who He is, as he once did with the first humans, Adam and Eve. This old habit of the trickster is still used today by humanity. The (lord of the power of the air) was the first one to raise the question of the identity of Jesus, even before Jesus Himself affirmed it. He brought into question His characteristic style: “If you are the Son of God,” as he once said to the early humans, “Did God really say that?”
Satan had no doubts about Jesus’ identity. This can be seen from the bait he tempted Him with. logically why would Satan desire that Jesus bow down and worship him?
Other people saw Jesus as just a carpenter?
What possibly could this man offer the devil?
This question is rhetorical, but everyone can have their own reasons and answers.

The testimony of God and the Holy Spirit

Above all beings in the spirit world are God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth. The most important testimony is given by God at the time of Jesus’ baptism when he says:

Matthew 3:16-17
“When He had been baptised, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

It should be (noted) that this verse is the fulfilment of prophecy in Psalm 2:7

Psalms 2:7
“I will declare the decree: The LORD has said to Me, You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.”

This testimony is once again confirmed on Mount Tabor, where there are many things that are hard to explain and understand:

Matthew 17:2-3
“And He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him.”

Matthew 17:5
“While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!”

Testimonies before the incarnation of Jesus, and the prophecies of God about the Messiah.

There are over 600 messianic prophecies and over 300 of them were fulfilled. The probability that a single prophecy would be fulfilled exactly by Christ after tens, of thousands of years opens the way for many interesting discussions. God revealed many things to His prophets hundreds of years before they took place. Of the 8,000 general prophecies, over 600 are messianic prophecies. These prophecies in addition to proving that there is a sovereign God behind the scenes of human history are hard-to-deny that the Scripture, the Old, and the New Testament are written under God’s authority, by the inspiration of His Holy Spirit, which is the Spirit of truth. In the New Testament we find written:

Romans 1:2-4
“Which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.”

The Messianic prophecies, by their fulfilment at the appointed time of God, validated the divinity of Jesus. More than 300 prophecies were already fulfilled out of the existing 600, with express reference to the Messiah and His work, accredit Jesus as the Messiah and strongly confirm His sovereign identity. The Old Testament prophecies can be found in obvious clarity that can be easily recognised in detail by anyone. Prophecies are a sensitive subject as there are many articles on this subject.

A prophecy concerning His pre-existence:

Micah 5:2
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting.”

There is a prophecy by Isaiah, that was written 700 years before its fulfilment. Many people, including the former atheist and New York Times Bestseller, Lee Strobel would argue that divine inspiration makes the most sense of the evidence:

Isaiah 53
“Who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, And as a root out of the dry ground. He has no form or comeliness; And when we see Him, There is no beauty that we should desire Him. He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes, we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, everyone, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep, before its shearers are silent, So He opened not His mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment, And who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from the land of the living; For the transgressions of My people He was stricken And they made His grave with the wicked—But with the rich at His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was any deceit in His mouth. Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, And the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand. He shall see the labour of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge, My righteous Servant shall justify many, For He shall bear their iniquities. Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, And He shall divide the spoil with the strong, Because He poured out His soul unto death, And He was numbered with the transgressors, And He bore the sin of many And made intercession for the transgressors.”

Also in this regard, Paul, the apostle of the Gentiles, writes in the Epistle to the Hebrews:

Hebrews 1:1-3
“God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.”

Testimony of the Qur’an

In the Qur’an, we find that Jesus is usually referred to as Isa ibn Maryam – Jesus son of Mary. (Mary v.20) When she was told that she would give birth to a son, Mary replied, “How is this possible, for I am a virgin, and no mortal has touched me?”
The reference goes further, saying, “It is easy for me (the Lord).” Then He “breathed His Spirit upon her.” 4/6

*Source “Evidence that demands a verdict” by Josh Mc~Dowell