Jesus Is Divine

By Adam Faughn

    “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). John opens his account of the Gospel with that glorious description of the Word who “became flesh and dwelt among us” (verse 14). We know the one called “the Word” is Jesus, but to claim that He was God? That claim is too much for some.
    However, Jesus Himself made that claim on more than one occasion. For example, when Jesus was tempted by the devil, our Lord responded to one of those temptations by quoting Deuteronomy 6:13, which states, “You shall worship the Lord your God and Him only shall you serve” (Matthew 4:10).
    Just a few chapters later, a leper came up to Jesus, and we are told by Matthew that the leper “knelt before [Jesus], saying, ‘Lord, if you will, you can make me clean’” (8:2). Kneeling was a sign of worship, but notice that this man also called Jesus, “Lord.” (For other examples, see Matthew 9:18; 14:33; John 20:28; et.al)
    If Jesus is not divine, then why would He allow such actions and words to be directed His way? If He is not divine, allowing these things would be nothing short of blasphemy and the very height of arrogance!
    The doctrine of the Trinity is one that we know intellectually, but that we simply cannot wrap our finite minds around. How the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit can be, as we often sing, the “blessed three in one” is impossible for us to fathom. However, we must always remember that each is worthy of worship because each is part of the divine Being, we simply call, “God.”
    So, we can rightfully sing, “Worthy of praise is Christ our Redeemer,” because Jesus is divine. He is God. May we kneel before Him, and call Him, “Lord.”

- Adam Faughn preaches for the Central Church of Christ in Paducah KY. He may be contacted through the congregation's website: http://www.centralchurchofchrist.org