Bible Insights | CafeLogos.org
And Thomas answered and said to Him, My Lord and my God – John 20:28 Jesus’ declaration that He is the Son of God has been debated by many people down through the ages. The concept of His divinity has at times been a controversial subject, not only among non-believers and people of other religious beliefs, but also among those who claim adherence to the Christian faith.
Lord and God
While men may hold different opinions regarding who Jesus is, the only thing that really matters is how God wants us to view Jesus. Our own personal opinions should be willing to concede to God’s perspective on the matter if it is our desire to sincerely please the Almighty.
So, how do the Scriptures reveal how God wishes us to view Jesus?
When Jesus was confronted by the religious leadership of His day He told them –
“My Father works and I work” – John 5:17.
This was His answer to them after He had performed an amazing miracle upon a man who had been unable to walk for thirty-eight years. As the Pharisees watched the former handicapped man use his feet for the first time in decades, they were enraged that this miracle had been performed on the Sabbath. When they angrily accused Jesus of violating God’s law, they were further incensed when Jesus declared to them that God was His Father “Making Himself equal with God” (John 5:18), and they wanted to stone Him for blasphemy.
To understand why the Pharisees were so angry, we need to know a little bit about one of their customs at that time. In their culture, if a man had some business to do and he sent his son to do it for him, the son was to be viewed exactly as if he was the father himself. So, by saying that God was His father, Jesus was telling them that they were to view Him as if He was “equal with God” according to their custom.
Jesus reiterated this principle by telling them “That all men should honor the Son, even as they honor the Father, He that does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who has sent Him” – John 5:23.
In Jesus’ parable of the vineyard (Matthew 21:33-41), God, represented by the vineyard owner, sends His representatives, His servants, the prophets, to correct His people through the ages, and they are rejected by a rebellious and apostate Israel. At the last, the owner of the vineyard sends His son saying, “Surely they shall reverence My Son.” This parable is based on the Jewish tradition of viewing the son as if he is the father.
In the parable, the son is rejected and killed, as was the Messiah Jesus, and the vineyard, which represents the kingdom of God is taken from the former keepers and given to others, the Gentiles, who as was prophesied in the Old Testament, would respond to the Gospel and come to the Messiah Jesus, receiving Him as God requires; as if He was God Himself.
Jesus said, “I and My Father are one” – John 10:30.
Jesus is the image of God and the fullness of the Godhead bodily – (Colossians 1:15, 2:9).
The prophet Zechariah was shown a graphic illustration of the future when the Lord Jesus would return to earth a second time (Zechariah 14, Revelation 19) and in this prophetic narrative Jesus is viewed as God Himself.
“And His feet that day shall stand upon the Mount of Olives” – Zechariah 14:4.
The God who dwells in light that no man can approach (I Timothy 6:16) and whose holiness would fry sinful men with a mere wink of His eye, now returns to earth again through His Holy Spirit with and in His Son, but this time not as a helpless infant in a manger, but as a powerful King. And in that day when He takes His rightful place – The LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and His name one – Zechariah 14:9.
And they shall look upon Me whom they have pierced and mourn for Him as if He was their only son – (Zechariah 12:10.
We find ourselves standing before Him in awe and we realize that we are to view the Son as if He is the Father, for indeed, the Father is in His Son (II Corinthians 5:19) and, like Thomas, we fall at our Savior’s feet in worship and declare, “My Lord and My God.”
For more insight into the relationship of the Father and His Son we invite you to explore our free eBook - Understanding the Trinity from the Scriptures - It's all about God's Love for You
Copyright 2013 by H.D. Shively