For more than two thousand years ago, the identity of Jesus has remained very much controversial. Among many who claim to be His followers, there are various diverse opinions about His identity. Among the disciples, there was also some doubt as to who Jesus truly was. No wonder in Matt. 16:13, Jesus asked them, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?" In response to the question, the disciples began to mention some of His assumed identities—one of the Major Prophets, namely, John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah, etc. Jesus then wanted to know if His own disciples knew who He was, and Simon Peter said, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." (Matt. 16:16)
Suffice it to say here that there is much more debate now over the true identity of Jesus compared to the time of His early ministry. The question therefore is, "Does it mean that nobody knows the true identity of Jesus?" Obviously, the answer is, "No." In the popular story of the six blind men who went to see an elephant, it was obvious that none of them had the clear picture of the elephant since they were all blind.
Truly speaking, there are many people today who are spiritually blind, hence cannot "see" the true identity of Jesus. Like the Pharisees, these people have feigned their knowledge of Jesus based on their carnal, intellectual, philosophical and logical knowledge. Now let us begin to look at some of the assumed identities of Jesus:
A Prophet? Many are of the opinion that Jesus is a prophet just like any mortal man chosen in the time of old to be the mouthpiece of God. To prove this assumption wrong, the Bible declares in Hebrews 3 that Jesus is far greater than Moses or any of the prophets. All through the Gospels, it must be noted that unlike the prophets, Jesus never used the expression, "Thus says the LORD" or "The LORD says" He speaks authoritatively as the LORD Himself. (Matt.9:2-3) With this, JESUS CANNOT BE A PROPHET.
The son of David? Just like the Pharisees, many still believe that Jesus was the earthly son of King David. To correct this error, Jesus asked, "Since David called him Lord, how can he be his son at the same time?" (Matt. 22:45 cf. Ps. 110:1) No Pharisee could answer this question. This proves that JESUS CANNOT BE A MERE MORTAL SON OF DAVID.
The Supreme Angel? It is an error to equate Jesus with an angel, whether superior or average. Those who hold this opinion believe that Jesus is the supreme angel created by God to be His mouthpiece. To show that Jesus cannot be an angel, the Bible makes it clear that God has never said to any angel, "You are my Son. Today I have become your Father…Your throne o God, endures forever and ever." (Heb. 1:4-9) All through the Scriptures, Jesus often uses the expression, "My angels" but never "My fellow angels" (Matt. 16:27, Rev. 22:16) Therefore, THERE IS NO BASIS TO COMPARE JESUS TO AN ANGEL.
The big question now is, "Who is this Jesus?" Interestingly, during His earthly ministry, Jesus did not hide His true identity. No one can get the true identity of Jesus outside the Bible. The identity of Jesus is consistent in both the Old and the New Testaments:
God the Creator? In Genesis 1, we see God create the heaven and the earth by His spoken word, and in John 1, Jesus is declared as the Word by whom the heaven and the earth were created. Cf. Col. 1:16. The question is, CAN GOD BE DIFFERENT FROM HIS WORD?
Jehovah God? Jesus as a name means "Jehovah is our salvation" (Matt. 1:21, 3:3 cf. Is. 40:3)
God Almighty? One of the names of Jesus is "Immanuel" which means "God is with us" (Matt. 1:23 cf. Is. 7:14, 9:6)
Jehovah our Shepherd? In Psalm 23, David says, "The LORD is my shepherd I shall not want." In Is. 10:11 and Ezekiel 34:11-12, the Almighty God says that He Himself will be our Shepherd. In John 10:11 and Heb. 13:20, Jesus is referred to as the Good Shepherd.
God our Savior? Titus 2:13 refers to Jesus as God our Savior. Cf. Hos. 1:7
God the Judge? 1 Cor. 4:5, 2 Cor. 5:10 and 2 Tim. 4:1 declare Jesus as the One who will judge the world. Cf. Ecc. 12:14.
King of kings and LORD of lords? In Rev. 1:5 and 17:14, Jesus is referred to as the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Cf. Dan. 10:17.
Jehovah the First and the Last? In Rev. 1:17 and 22:13, Jesus revealed Himself to John as Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last. Cf. Is. 44:6, 48:12.
From the above, it is clear that in the Old Testament God revealed Himself as JEHOVAH and in the New Testament as JESUS. In John 14:9, Jesus tells Philip, "Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father." This confirms His earlier statement, "The Father and I are one." (John. 10:30) Col. 1:15 also confirms that "Jesus is the visible image of the invisible God." Because of His assertion, the Jews charged Jesus with blasphemy and later killed him on the cross (He came to die anyway), but on the third day, He rose from dead to show that His assertion was true.
"Is Jesus really God to be worshiped and adored?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"The Bible says so."
"And you believe the Bible?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"It is the revelation of God Himself."
"But it was written by mere men."
"Yes, as they were moved by the Holy Spirit." (2 Pet. 1:21)
"Another reason?"
"God can't lie"
"Meaning?"
"Because in Is. 42:8, He says He will never share His glory with anybody but in Matt. 16:27, Jesus says that He will come in the glory of the Almighty God, and in Rev. 4:11, we see the angels of God worshiping and singing praises to Jesus."
"Any danger in refusing to accept this?"
"Of course."
"What is it?"
"Eternal punishment in Hell." (Matt. 25:46)
In conclusion, dear reader, the truth about the identity of Jesus is that, for every other job, God sent a man (the prophets). But in order to rescue you from sin and recycle you to bring meaning to your life, God became a Man. Therefore, you must believe this truth today, and ask Jesus to come into your life and be your Lord and Savior. Remember He is coming soon to judge the world. God bless you as you take this decision today!
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