38 Bible Reasons Why Jesus is Not God, Answered

 

 

38 Reasons from the Bible why Jesus is not God, Answered

These 38 reasons have been the subject of discussion in the “Islam and Christianity Debate Group” on Facebook, a closed group to which I have been invited to join and participate. Muslims point to these issues in argument and discussion or debate as to reasons why they do not accept the claims true Bible believing Christians make about our Lord Jesus Christ. I saw recently, somewhere on the Internet, a discussion which frowned on any Christian bothering to answer such challenges as these, because as soon as answers are presented, Muslims can find and post many more objections. I look at these challenges in a different light. I believe most Bible verses appealed to by Muslims to justify their unbelief are verses which are taken out of context. Understanding verses Muslims quote from the Bible in the light of their context will actually show the Bible teaches the opposite of what the Muslims claim. Here (in perhaps my longest post ever!) is the portion of the discussion I have been engaged in on this subject so far:

Ayigbe Eseme posted the following 38 reasons Jesus is NOT God:

1- God Doesn’t Change His Nature (Malachi 3:6)

2- GOD Almighty is Greater than Jesus. (John 14:28 )

3- No one is “Good” including Jesus.

Only GOD is” Good” (Luke 18:19)

4- Jesus said he doesn’t know when the Hour will come. Only GOD Knows. (Mark 13:32)

5- Jesus said that” OUR God is One GOD (Mark 12:29 )

6- Jesus also said “My GOD and your GOD” (John 20:17)

7- Jesus bowed his face down to the ground to GOD Almighty. (Matthew 26:39)

8- Jesus was tempted by satan for 40 days (Mat1:4), while GOD Almighty can not be tempted (Jacob 1:13)

9- Jesus said he is a man (John 8:40)

10- God is neither a man nor a son of a man (Numbers 23:19)

11- No one can see God (1 John 4:20) but people saw Jesus

12- God is the living and everlasting (Habakkuk 1:12)

13- Jesus always confessed he is just a prophet sent by God (Matthew 21:10-11)

14- God Declared Himself to be God, Jesus didn’t (Ezekiel 20:20)

15- Jesus told his real mission was to preach not sacrifice Mark 1:38)

16- Jesus desired Mercy not Sacrifice (Matthew 9:13)

17- Jesus referred to himself as Servant: Matthew 10:24, 24:45, 12:18 John 13:16

18- Jesus referred to himself as Prophet:

Matthew 8:20 13:16,21:11, Mark 6:15, 6;4, 9;37, Luke 7:16, 9:8, 9:19, John 13:17, 7:16, 6:14, 7:40

19- Jesus referred to himself as Son of Man:

Matthew 5:9, 17:22, 8:20, 18:11, 26:2, Luke 9:22, John 5:27

20- Jesus referred to himself as a Slave: John 13:16, Matthew 10:24

21- Jesus referred to himself as a Student: Matthew 10:24

22- Father is Greater than Jesus (John 14:28). How can someone be greater than God?

23- Jesus was taught by the Father (John 8:28)

24- Jesus can do nothing by himself (John 5:19, John 5:30)

25- Jesus does not even have his own doctrine (John 7:16)

26- Jesus ascended to his God (John 20:17)

27- According to Christians, Jesus died as recorded in Matthew 27:27-56 but Bible says that God is infinite Psalm 102:27-27

28- Jesus needed to Pray, Eat, Drink and Was Helped by Woman, as stated in Luke 8:1-3 but God in Bible is self-sufficient Psalm 50:12

29- The God remain the same in nature (Hebrews 1:12)

30- Jesus is the same human today, yesterday and forever (Hebrew 13:8)

31- Jesus could not saved anyone as he was even not able to save himself (Hebrews 5:1-8)

32- Jesus said he was sent to lost sheep of Israel

(Matthew 15:24)

33- God can not be born and perhaps form his own creation

34- Jesus never asked people to worship him

35- Jesus did not Teach Trinity

36- God is the essence of the worship. He is the object of worship. Had Jesus been God, he would have told people to worship him. Truly, he did the exact opposite as in Matthew 15:9

37- Jesus never call his followers Christians, Paul did

38- Jesus as a servant of God (Matthew 12:18)

 

👉🏻 Am not the author of this article but thought it wise to share it with u. U may decide to share too.

Like · Reply · 1 · January 28 at 5:01am

 

My response:  Ayigbe Eseme has kindly posted 38 reasons why Jesus is not God. I have answered many of these points before on this forum, and some of my discussions are also posted at www.realbiblestudy.com as well.

 

I am feeling quite a bit better today, but I am still recovering from my fall on the ice back on December 12, 2016. That is why my responses have not been as prompt or as complete as I would wish. Thank you for understanding.

 

1- God Doesn’t Change His Nature (Malachi 3:6)

It is very true that God does not change His nature. But Malachi 3:6 speaks of God’s unchanging nature as the guarantee that God will keep His covenant with Abraham. Therefore, God says to the people of Israel, “therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.” Notice that this promise holds true until our own day, even though Iran, an avowed Islamic nation, has leadership that frequently proclaims that Israel as a nation has no right to exist. All this was predicted in Leviticus 26 in detail. The outcome for those who are against Israel is predicted in Psalm 83 in accordance with the promise in the Abrahamic Covenant recorded at Genesis 12:3, “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”

All this to say that Malachi 3:6 and God’s unchanging nature has nothing to do with the validity of the claim of Jesus to be the Son of God. It rather confirms it. Isaiah 9:6 speaks in prophecy that “unto us a child is born..” That is a prophetic reference to the birth of the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ. It also speaks in prophecy that “unto us a son is given.” This is in reference to the eternal sonship of Jesus Christ, who has always from all eternity, been the Son of God. The Incarnation, when the eternal Son of God became flesh, became a man, marks the entrance of Jesus Christ into this world in human form. He was given the name “Jesus” prophetically because He is the Savior of all men, the Savior of the world. God, therefore, did not change His own nature when He became a human person named Jesus: He simply took upon Himself the form of man, in the likeness of human flesh, having always been from all eternity past in the form of God.

 

2- GOD Almighty is Greater than Jesus. (John 14:28 )

This text in John is much abused and misused and misunderstood by those who use it as a proof-text against the full Deity of Jesus Christ. Unitarians, Moslems, Jehovah’s Witnesses and the ancient Arians have stumbled mightily over this verse. When Jesus said “my Father is greater than I,” He is speaking of the Father who then was greater in glory than Jesus was as a man during his pre-resurrection incarnate state. Therefore, the claim that “GOD Almighty is Greater than Jesus” has no bearing upon the issue.

 

If you carefully study this issue in depth, using the cross references I have furnished in my work, The Ultimate Cross Reference Treasury, you will find some surprising information in the Bible. For example, the Jehovah Witnesses claim that Jesus is called “mighty God” but He is never called “Almighty God” in the Bible. They are mistaken. Jesus Christ, the Messiah, is directly called “Almighty God” in the Bible as may be seen by comparing Revelation 4:8,

 

Rev 4:8 And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.

 

Revelation 4:8 is a quotation or allusion to Amos 4:13 as Amos 4:13 stands written in the Septuagint or LXX translation of the Old Testament used by John for his quotation. Here is my note from my book for Amos 4:13 which gives the unassailable evidence for this fact:

 

Amos 4:13 For, lo, he that formeth the mountains, and createth the wind, and declareth unto man what is his thought, that maketh the morning darkness, and treadeth upon the high places of the earth, The LORD, The God of hosts, is his name. (KJV)

 

unto men. LXX. adds, “his Christ.” The LXX reads for Amos 4:13, “For behold, I am he that strengthens the thunder, and creates the wind, and proclaims to men his Christ, forming the morning and the darkness, and mounting on the high places of the earth, The Lord God Almighty is his name” (Bagster, Septuagint with Apocrypha Greek and English, p. 1088).

 

Note the direct declaration in the Word of God quoted by John from the LXX or Septuagint, that “His Christ…The Lord God Almighty is his name” (Amos 4:13, LXX). Ayigbe Eseme, thank you for your continuing patience in waiting for my answers to your valuable challenges about the Bible and what it teaches about Jesus Christ.

 

Let me share more thoughts and answers about your 38 reasons why Jesus is not God.

 

3- No one is “Good” including Jesus.

Only GOD is” Good” (Luke 18:19)

 

Luke 18:19,

 

Luke 18:19 And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God.

 

Matthew 19:17 (a parallel passage),

 

Mat 19:17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.

 

that is, God. i.e. none independently and essentially good: in accordance with which the name of God found with little variation in all the Northern languages, is synonymous with Good. The young man only regarded Jesus as a prophet or teacher, and therefore he disclaims the title in his application of it (De Burgh).

 

Jesus refused to accept the rich young ruler’s attribution of the quality of goodness in the limited sense used by the rich young ruler. Jesus is more than good in the sense the ruler meant it. Jesus is absolutely good, absolutely holy, absolutely sinless, and absolutely God.

 

Moslems among many others today make the same error that the rich young ruler did: they only accept Jesus as a prophet or teacher, but they do not accept the repeated claim by Jesus Himself that He is not only the Son of man, but also He is the Son of God. That is a most unfortunate misunderstanding. It is a fatal error. To reject the fact that Jesus Christ is the Son of God is to make God a liar, because you have rejected the witness that God has given of His Son (1 John 5:10).

 

1 Jn 5:10 He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son.

 

1 Jn 5:12 He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.

 

Jesus clearly did not deny His own goodness. He called Himself “the good shepherd” you will recall in John 10:11.

 

 

4- Jesus said he doesn’t know when the Hour will come. Only GOD Knows. (Mark 13:32)

 

Mark 13:32 But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.

 

Many years ago my friend Mr. Don Rees introduced me to a friend of his, Mr. Frank Burrell. Everyone called him ‘Uncle Frank.’ It turns out that Uncle Frank lived right next door to my apartment building on Fort Street and Hubbard in the Fort Grand Hotel on Fort Street in Detroit, about eight blocks west of the Ambassador Bridge. I soon discovered that Uncle Frank loved to talk about the Bible. He would ask his favorite question to child or adult, “Is Jesus God?” Nearly always he received the correct answer “Yes.” Then he would ask, “Does God know everything?” Again, most would answer “Yes.” Then he asked, “If Jesus is God, how come He did not know when He was coming back?” That answer usually stumped what ever person he asked.

 

He and I would often discuss that question. Uncle Frank said he thought Jesus did not know because He chose not to know. I agreed, and we both surmised that Jesus after the resurrection, and particularly upon His return to heaven to sit at the right hand of God, most likely does know now.

 

But here is the note I furnished at Mark 13:32 in by new Bible study reference book, The Ultimate Cross Reference Treasury:

 

knoweth. Note: “To preclude the curiosity of men,” says Dr. Hammond, “and to engage their vigilance, Christ is pleased to tell them, that no dispensation of God, either by man (as Daniel), or by angels, or, which is the highest, by the Son of man, had ordered us thus to know the seasons; this being no part of the prophetic office, or within the commission of Christ himself.”

 

However this question might be answered, it does not amount to any proof that Jesus Christ is not God, or that Jesus Christ does not possess intrinsically full deity.

Like · Reply · 3 · January 29 at 12:14pm

 

I will continue, once again, to discuss the 38 reasons Jesus cannot be God which Ayigbe Eseme has kindly shared here.

5- Jesus said that” OUR God is One GOD (Mark 12:29 )

 

Mark 12:29 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:

 

Take careful note that Jesus is making a quotation from the Old Testament from Deuteronomy 6:4,

 

Deu 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:

 

My note as given in The Ultimate Cross Reference Treasury is as follows:

4. Hear.  Note: Shema Yisrael, Yehowah, Elohainoo, Yehowah aichod, “Hear, Israel, Jehovah, our God, is one Jehovah.”  On this passage the Jews lay great stress;  and it is one of the four passages which they write on their phylacteries.  On the word Elohim, Simeon Ben Joachi says;  “Come and see the mystery of the word Elohim:  there are three degrees, and each degree is by itself alone, and yet they are all one, and joined together in one, and are not divided from each other” (Zohar. Lev. Sect. 16.  Col 116).  the Lord.  Dt 4:35, 36, 39.  5:6.  1 K 18:21.  2 K 19:5.  1 Ch 29:10.  *Is 42:8.  44:6, 8.  45:5, 6, 18, 22.  Je 10:10, 11.  >*Mk 12:29-32.  +*Jn 17:3.  *1 Cor 8:4, 5, 6.  *1 Tim 2:5.  God.  Dt 32:39.  %+Ge 1:26.  **Ge 2:24.  Is 45:5.  +*Jn 17:3.  +1 Cor 8:6.  one.  Heb. echad (S#259h):  A numeral from S#258h; properly united, that is, one;  or (as an ordinal) first (Strong);  it means one in the same sense as our English word and may be used of one in our numerical sense (+Ec 4:8) or a compound unity, one made up of others:  Ge 1:5, one of seven;  Ge 2:11, one of four;  Ge 2:21, one of twenty-four;  Ge 2:24, one made up of two;  Ge 3:22, one of the three;  Ge 11:6, one people gathered to build the tower of Babel but clearly diverse;  Ge 34:16, 22, one people made up of Shechemites and Israelites;  Ge 41:25, 26, the dream is one though made up of two dreams;  Ge 49:16, one of twelve;  Ex 24:3, all the people answered with one voice;  Ex 36:13, one tabernacle made up of multiple components (see also Ex 26:6, 11;  36:18);  Nu 13:23, one of a cluster;  Jsh 22:20, Achan was not the only one who died for his sin;  2 S 7:23, one nation of many individuals;  Ps 34:20.  +Je 10:8mg;  Zc 11:8, one month comprised of 30 days.  Contrast yahed, *S#3173h, unique, a single or only one:  Ge 22:2, 12, 16.  Jg 11:34.  +Ps 22:20.  25:16.  35:17.  68:6.  Pr 4:3.  Je 6:26.  Am 8:10.  Zc 12:10.  See Ps 133:1. “One in essence, and the only object of our worship” (Matthew Poole).

The word for “one” in Hebrew often refers to “a compound unity, one made up of others,” as seen most clearly from Genesis 2:24, where ‘one’ is made up of ‘two,’

 

Gen 2:24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

 

6- Jesus also said “My GOD and your GOD” (John 20:17)

 

John 20:17 Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God. (KJV)

 

John 20:17 Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'”

 

The sense of “Touch me not” (KJV) or “Do not cling to me” is a gentle admonition “Do not detain me now; you will have further opportunities to see me before I ascend to be with the Father.”

 

This is a very rich text worthy of careful study and comparison of it to other verses in the Bible which shed more light on each part of it.

 

Here are the references and notes which I have given in my new Bible study tool, The Ultimate Cross Reference Treasury, for this verse:

 

John 20:17,

17. Touch.  Present imperative, used to prohibit action in progress.  FS108B15.  Idiom F/S 827.  “To touch” is used for detention, or for diverting from any purpose.  Note:  Or rather, “embrace me not,” or “cling not to me,” mē mou aptou, “Spend no more time with me now in joyful gratulations:  for I am not yet immediately going to ascend to my Father—you will have several opportunities of seeing me again;  but go and tell my disciples that I shall depart to my Father and your Father.”  ver. %27 (Jn 20:27).  2 K 4:29.  7:9.  SS 3:4.  Mt 8:3, 15.  9:20, 21, 29.  *Mt 28:7, *Mt 28:9, 10.  Lk 10:4.  **Lk 24:39.  2 Cor 5:16.  **1 J 1:1.  for.  This gives the reason for the prohibition. He afterwards allowed the women to hold Him by the feet (Mt 28:9). On this day, the morrow after the Sabbath, the high priest would be waving the sheaf of the firstfruits before the Lord (Le 23:10, 11 note); while He, the firstfruits from the dead (1 Cor 15:23), would be fulfilling the type by presenting Himself before the Father (CB).  The “for” may refer (1) to the whole sentence which follows, or (2) only to the first clause. In the first case the imminent, though not realized, Ascension of the Lord would be regarded as forbidding the old forms of earthly intercourse. In the second case the Ascension would be presented as the beginning and condition of a new union. The latter seems to be unquestionably the true view, and falls in with the moral circumstances of the incident (Westcott).   am.  FS96C1, +Ge 4:1.  not yet.  Jn 2:4.  ascended.  Lk 24:51.  Ac 1:2.  *He 4:14, 15.  1 P 3:22.  my Father.  The most ancient authorities omit the pronoun my, reading the Father (Westcott).  The difference of the paternal relation of the One Father to Christ and Christians is indicated in a very remarkable manner, where the unity of the Person is shewn by the one article common to the two clauses, and the distinctness of the relations by the repetition of the title [Father] with the proper personal pronoun  (Westcott on 1 J 1:2).  Jn 2:16.  my brethren.  Jn 21:23.  Ps 22:22.  Ezk 34:31.  *Mt 12:49, +*Mt 12:50.  *Mt 25:40.  *+Mt 28:10.  *Mk 3:34.  +*Lk 8:21.  Ro 8:29.  *He 2:11, 12, 13.  I ascend.  FS96C7, +Mt 26:24.  *Jn 13:1, 3.  +*Jn 14:1-3, 6, +Jn 14:12, *Jn 14:28.  *Jn 16:28.  17:5, 11, 25.  Ps 16:6.  24:3.  *Ps 68:18.  89:26.  +Mk 16:19.  *Lk 24:49-51.  Ac 1:2.  *Ep 1:17-23.  *Ep 4:8-10.  1 Tim 3:16.  1 P 1:3.  3:22.  unto.  Jn 7:33.  14:12, 28.  16:5, 10, 28.  my Father.  Jn 2:16.  +Jn 5:17.  14:19, 20.  15:15.  17:11.  18:11.  Is 42:1.  Mt 3:17.  Mk 14:36.  *Ro 8:29.  *+Ro 15:6.  2 Cor 1:3.  11:31.  Ep 1:3-5.  3:14, 15.  4:6.  He 2:11.  1 J 1:3.  Re 1:6.  your Father.  *Jn 1:12-14.  =Nu 18:2.  Mt 5:16, 45, 48.  6:1, 4, 6, 8, +*Mt 6:9, 14, 15, 18, 26, 32.  Lk 12:30.  Ro 1:7.  *Ro 8:14-17.  1 Cor 1:3.  *2 Cor 6:18.  Ga 1:4.  *Ga 3:26.  4:6, 7n.  Ep 1:2.  Col 1:12.  1 Th 3:11.  *+1 J 3:1, 2.  *Re 21:7.  my God.  *Ps 22:10.  31:14.  45:7.  63:1.  Mic 5:4.  Zc 11:4.  Mt 27:46.  %1 Cor 3:23.  8:6.  *Ep 1:17.  +*He 1:8, 9.  2 P 1:17.  Re 3:12.   your God.  +Ge 17:7, 8.  Ps 43:4.  *Ps 48:14.  103:13.  *Is 41:10.  *Je 31:1, 33.  32:38.  Ezk 36:28.  37:27.  Da 6:22.  Ho 9:17.  *Zc 13:7-9.  1 Cor 8:6.  Ep 1:3.  Phil 4:19.  *He 8:10.  +*He 11:16.  *Re 21:3.

 

 

In all these many references (more than you will likely find anywhere else for this verse), notice in particular the reference to Psalm 22:10 given for the keywords “my God.”

 

Psa 22:10 I was cast upon thee from the womb: thou art my God from my mother’s belly. (KJV)

 

Psa 22:10 On you was I cast from my birth, and from my mother’s womb you have been my God. (ESV)

 

Psalm 22 is what is called a Messianic Psalm. It is a Psalm that predicts many things of the Messiah. It is one of the Messianic Psalms which specifically predicts the ORDER or sequence in time of the Messianic Prophecies given throughout the Old Testament. It is the basis for what Jesus Christ taught the two disciples on the road to Emmaus recorded for our learning in Luke 24:26,

 

Luke 24:26 Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?

 

The risen from the dead Lord Jesus Christ declared plainly that first He must come to suffer and die for our sins, THEN at a yet future time He will return to this earth in glory and rule here forever (Luke 1:32).

 

Psalm 22:10 tells us, speaking of Jesus Christ the Messiah, “and from my mother’s womb you have been my God.”

 

This clearly teaches us that when Jesus Christ during His earthly ministry here on earth speaks of “my God,” He is speaking with regard to his true humanity. Such a statement would not apply, and is never applied in Bible prophecy, to the pre-incarnate existence of Jesus Christ as the eternal Son of God.

Like · Reply · 1 · January 31 at 11:36am · Edited
 

Ayigbe Eseme, I am pleased to continue our discussion of the “38 reasons why Jesus cannot be God or Lord” from the list you shared above.

 

7- Jesus bowed his face down to the ground to GOD Almighty. (Matthew 26:39)

 

Mat 26:39 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt. (KJV)

 

Mat 26:39 And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” (ESV)

 

Mat 26:39 Going a little farther, he threw himself down with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if possible, let this cup pass from me! Yet not what I will, but what you will.” (NET Bible)

 

It is clear from all three English translations I have cited that the actual text of Matthew 26:39 says Jesus “fell on his face” or “threw himself down with his face to the ground” and prayed “My Father.”

 

There is no issue here that would deny the full deity of our Lord Jesus Christ. The problem arises when any reader fails to take into account all that is revealed in Scripture about Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ in His incarnation has two natures in one Person: a true human nature and a true divine nature. In theology this is called the hypostatic union. It is this FACT of two natures that is denied by all who deny the deity of Jesus Christ.

 

As man, in His human nature, Jesus assumed the posture of prayer appropriate to the occasion and the deep concern He had regarding His subsequent requests.

 

The Bible is its own best interpreter. Reading the cross references given for Matthew 26:39 will provide a deeper, spiritually enriching study of what the rest of the Bible has to say about the themes found in this verse. That is why I will share, from my new work, The Ultimate Cross Reference Treasury, the cross references below:

 

Matthew 26:39,

39. he went.  *Lk 22:41, 42, 44.  and fell.  T#1241.  +Ge 17:3.  Le 9:24.  Nu 14:5.  16:22, 44, 45.  20:6.  Dt 9:18.  Jsh 7:6.  1 Ch 21:16.  Ne 8:6.  Jb 1:20.  Ezk 1:28.  9:8.  11:13.  Lk 5:12.  +Lk 17:16.  Ac 10:25.  Re 4:10.  5:8, 14.  7:11, 12.  19:4, 10.  and prayed.  ver. 36 (Mt 26:36).  Mt 6:7.  2 S 22:7.  Ezk 46:2.  +Mk 1:35.  *Mk 14:35, 36.  Lk 22:41, 42.  Ac 16:25.  *He 5:7.  O my Father.  ver. 42 (Mt 26:42).  Mt 7:21.  11:25.  Ge 22:7.  Ps 31:14.  42:6.  +*Ps 89:26.  Mk 14:36.  Lk 10:21.  +Lk 22:42.  23:34, 46.  Jn 11:41.  12:27, 28.  17:1, 5, 11, 21, 24, 25.  if.  FS184A, +1 Cor 15:2.  it be possible.  ver. 54 (Mt 26:54).  Mt 24:24.  Mk 13:22.  Ac 17:3.  He 2:10.  9:16, 22, 23.  let this.  T#1459.  +Mt 20:22.  Ge 22:7, 8.  Ps 18:4.  Lk 22:41, 42.  Jn 18:11.  He 5:7.  cup.  +Is 51:17 note, Is 51:22.  Mt 20:22.  Mk 10:38.  Lk 12:50.  He 2:10.  Re 14:10.  pass from.  Ex 12:23, LXX.  nevertheless.  Is 50:5.  not as I will.  ver. 42 (Mt 26:42).  +Mt 6:10.  2 S 15:26.  *Jn 5:30.  *Jn 6:38.  12:28.  *Jn 14:31.  Ro 15:1-3.  *Phil 2:6-8.  He 5:8.  but as thou wilt.  Mt 6:10.  Dt 3:26.  Jn 4:34.  6:38-40.  Ac 18:21.  21:14.  He 10:7-10.  1 P 3:17.

 

Like · Reply · February 1 at 10:56am

 

Ayigbe Eseme, here is my response to the next of the 38 supposed reasons from the Bible why Jesus cannot be God or Lord:

 

8- Jesus was tempted by satan for 40 days (Mat1:4), while GOD Almighty can not be tempted (Jacob 1:13)

 

Matthew 4:1,

 

Mat 4:1 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.

 

Notice that the text says Jesus was led (Mark’s Gospel states “driven”) by the Spirit into the wilderness. Jesus, then, by divine appointment, was put to the test to prove His qualifications to be the true Messiah as He defeated Satan and was victorious over the temptations Satan presented to Him. Satan meant to tempt Jesus to do evil, and so fail the tests, but Jesus had no element of a sinful nature in Himself to which the Devil could appeal (see John 14:30). So in that sense Jesus was not so much tempted but rather tested. The Greek word has both meanings, and which is meant must be determined by context and harmony with the rest of what the Bible teaches.

 

John 14:30 Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.

hath nothing in me.  Gr. ouk ouden, a double negative, for emphasis. No sin for Satan to work upon (CB).  Jn 8:46.  %Jn 9:24.  17:14.  18:36.  Ps 101:3.  Mt 26:59, 60.  +*Lk 1:35.  %Ro 7:18.  15:3.  **2 Cor 5:21.  +*He 4:15n.  *He 7:26.  *1 P 1:19.  *1 P 2:22, 23.  *1 J 3:5-8.

A most important verse which relates to this very subject is Hebrews 4:15,

 

Heb 4:15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.

 

Hebrews 4:15,

without.  or, apart from.  Gr. chōris (S#5565g, Mt 13:34), at a space, that is, separately or apart from (Strong).  He 7:26.  9:28.  **Jn 14:30.  *James 1:13, 14.   sin.  or, excepting sin, or, sin apart.  Gr. hamartia (S#266g, Ro 6:1).  Scripture teaches the impeccability of Christ.  In answer to the question “Was Christ able not to sin, or not able to sin?” the Scripture teaches Christ was not able to sin.  Since He possessed two natures (1 Th 4:16n), a human nature and a divine nature, which nature was in control?  Logically, the divine nature must have been in control of the human nature.  Since Jesus was both God (+*Jn 20:28, 29n) and man (Phil 2:7.  1 Tim 2:5), and it is impossible for God to sin or to be tempted with evil (Titus 1:2 n.  **James 1:13), Jesus could not sin, neither could he be tempted with evil, for there was nothing of our sinful nature in Him to which Satan could appeal (Jn 14:30).  Though he was tempted in all  points like as we, yet this temptation was never to sin.  His human nature was subject to weariness and hunger, and the suffering of death, but never sin.  Had Jesus been able to sin while on earth in his human nature, but merely did not, then he is still able to sin in the human nature which he still possesses (1 Tim 2:5), and the divine plan of redemption is ever in jeopardy—a doctrine incompatible with Scripture.  Thus the significance of the qualifying phrase “without sin” can be understood to teach Jesus not only did not sin, was able not to sin, but, possessed of a divine nature, could not sin.  He 7:26.  9:28g.  =Ge 39:9.  +*Lk 1:35.  Jn 4:34.  *Jn 8:29, *Jn 8:46.  +*Jn 14:30.  Ro 1:4.  Titus 1:2.  James 1:13.  *1 P 1:19.  *+1 P 2:22.

 

 

The above evidence from the Bible shows that the objection that Jesus was tempted by Satan but God cannot be tempted with evil is mistaken. Careful study of the relevant Bible passages as I have shared them above proves that Jesus Christ could not sin, and could not be tempted to evil. This proves that assertion number 8 is unfounded and cannot be sustained upon a careful examination of the evidence in Scripture.

Like · Reply · February 1 at 11:24am

 

9- Jesus said he is a man (John 8:40)

 

John 8:40 But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham.

 

No one questions whether or not Jesus was truly a man, a human being, unless they follow the mistaken teachings of a false cult, as actually did happen in history with the Gnostics.

 

But when you dip into the Bible to find a proof text, if you are mistaken in your understanding of the Bible you will quite often find that if you read what comes after and what comes before the passage or verse you cited you will be corrected in your understanding.

 

It ought to strike any reader that reads John 8 that there are statements here that are true, yet they cannot be said of any ordinary man, not even a prophet.

 

Jesus said:

 

John 8:45 And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not.

 

We all must take very great care that we believe what Jesus tells us about Himself in the Bible. We must not hide behind the unfounded excuse that the Bible has been “corrupted.” Such statements will only serve to condemn on Judgment Day those who make them, because they took away from the things of this Book.

 

Jesus said:

 

John 8:46 Which of you convinceth me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me? (KJV)

 

John 8:46 Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? (ESV)

 

John 8:46 Can any of you accuse me of sin? If you cannot, why won’t you have faith in me? After all, I am telling you the truth. (CEV)

 

Notice that Jesus challenged his enemies and all who heard Him to find a single sin that He could be charged with committing. That challenge still stands. Jesus was absolutely without sin. So while He was most certainly a man, he was more than just a man. He was and is yet the sinless Savior, the Son of man in his human nature and the Son of God in his Divine Nature at the same time.

 

John 8:58 Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.

 

The Jews argued that at that time when He spoke these words, he was not yet 50 years old, so how could he have seen Abraham. Jesus asserted His eternal existence when He said, “Before Abraham was, I am.”

 

And this proves the deity of Jesus Christ. Because if you examine the account carefully in the book of Genesis, when three men visited Abraham, and read the preceding and following context carefully, one of those three men was called the Angel of Jehovah. That specific Person is sometimes called the angel, sometimes called Jehovah. The Angel of Jehovah promised to return and Sarah would have a child even in her very old age, and she did. That is when, as Jesus said, “Abraham rejoiced to see my day, and saw it, and was glad.” Jesus, therefore, here claims (John 8:56) to be that Angel of Jehovah. The Jews understood His claim, but did not believe it. The Jews took up stones to stone Him. Just so, the Jehovah Witnesses and the Moslems and many others are unbelievers and do not believe the claim of Jesus to be Who He is. But these Scriptures are clear and unanswerable.

Like Jesus challenged His original listeners, “If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me?”

 

The tenth reason given in the list of 38 Reasons why Jesus is not God is most interesting, but easily resolved. I have had discussions with those who are of the Jewish faith, and they have introduced this same Bible text into the discussion, so I have seen it before.

 

10- God is neither a man nor a son of a man (Numbers 23:19)

 

Num 23:19 God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

 

At the time this was written and spoken, the Incarnation of Christ had not yet taken place. Therefore, it at that time could be said that “God is not a man.” But to interpret this or any text of the Bible by taking only a snippet or short segment of a verse and “running with it,” that is, building a whole doctrine on it, is not legitimate when a meaning is given to the snippet or segment which does not hold valid in the immediate context.

 

Here, God’s point is, not that He is not a man, but that He does not lie.

 

It is a characteristic of men that they will tell lies from time to time.

 

Unlike men, and individual men, and Satan himself who is the father of lies, God always tells the truth, and only the truth, for as it elsewhere states in the Bible, it is impossible for God to lie (Titus 1:2).

 

Titus 1:2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began; (KJV)

 

Tit 1:2 in hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began (ESV)

 

This subject at Numbers 23:19, if studied thoroughly by means of the cross references given for this verse in my Bible study tool, The Ultimate Cross Reference Treasury, will lead to much additional, often surprising truth to be found in the Bible.

 

Numbers 23:19 cross references:

19. God is not a man. This expression does not deny that our Lord Jesus Christ is God, for here God is a reference to the Father, not the Son. So, when it has been proved that Jesus is Jehovah (+1 P 2:3n. +Ex 3:2n. +Ge 19:24n), this is not to say that Jesus is the Father, but rather that there is more than one Jehovah in the Godhead (Ge 19:24n). 1 S 15:29.  Jb 9:32.  Ps 50:21.  Ho 11:9.  that he should lie.   +1 S 15:29.  Jb 23:13.  Ps 89:35.  Hab 2:3.  +*Ml 3:6.  Lk 21:33.  **Ro 11:29.  +*Titus 1:2.  He 6:18.  James 1:17.  1 J 5:10.  neither the son of man. Most probably a statement affirming that God does not possess any of the deficiencies of human nature or character. Jb 16:21. 25:6. 35:8. +Ps 8:4.  +**Da 7:13.  8:17.  +Ezk 2:1.  that he should repent.  ver. 27 (Nu 23:27).  Ge 6:6. +*1 S 15:29.  +*Ps 89:34.  110:4.  Is 31:2.  Ezk 24:14.  Ho 13:14.  %+*Jon 3:10.  **+Ro 11:29.  2 Tim 2:13.  hath he not said.  Nu 10:29.  Ge 32:12.  shall he not do it.  Nu 11:23.  14:35.  Ge 28:15.  Ex 6:8.  Jsh 23:14.  1 S 3:12.  2 S 7:21, 28.  Jb 23:13.  Ps 77:8.  +*Ps 89:2, 34.  Ezk 24:14.  36:36.  *1 Th 5:24.  or hath he spoken.  Ex 9:16.  *Jsh 21:43n, Jsh 21:45.  1 K 22:23.  **1 Ch 17:17.  Pr 16:4.  Is 1:20.  21:27.  +*Is 45:19, 23.  46:11.  52:6.  *Is 63:1.  Je 4:28.  38:21.  Ezk 21:32.  24:14.  26:14.  36:36.  **Mic 7:20.  +**Mt 24:35n.  Mk 13:31.  make it good.  **Ge 41:32.  2 K 7:16.  15:12.  Ne 9:8.  Is 25:1.  Da 4:28.  Zc 1:6.  Lk 1:57.  Ac 15:18.  27:25.  Ro 3:3.  9:6.  1 Cor 1:9.  Ga 3:17.

Like · Reply · February 3 at 11:20am

Ayigbe Eseme replied: Your references are noted for Christians of same faith with you Sir. Kindly note that Muslims believe God as one God. He is divine and the Creator of everything. He does not change. doesn’t sleep. Cannot die or be resurrected. The Qur’an says God does not change and is not a man. So any verses in the bible that correspond to the Qur’an are truths. Any other quotes from the bible not agreement with above truths are false. Cross reference and interpolation of words are your efforts in justifying the bible various variations or discrepancies.

My reply to Ayigbe Eseme: I appreciate the view you have of the Bible as a Muslim. But if you exercise logic here, the Bible declares that “all Scripture is inspired of God, and is profitable.” This means there are no flaws or falsehoods in the Bible, for all of it was written or recorded under Divine Inspiration. Neither the Koran nor The Book of Mormon can make claims that supersede the Bible. Any book that disagrees with the Bible must be mistaken.

 

Ayigbe Eseme, thank you for sharing, from time to time, your insights here from the Koran. I trust you continue to enjoy the insights I am sharing with you from the Bible. Here follows my discussion of reason 11 from the Bible why Jesus cannot be God:

 

11- No one can see God (1 John 4:20) but people saw Jesus

 

1Jn 4:20 If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?

 

I have furnished 5 cross references for the clause “whom he hath not seen” which I share as follows:

 

(1) 1Jn 4:12 No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.

 

(2) Joh 1:18 No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

 

(3) Joh 5:37 And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape.

 

(4) 1Ti 6:16 Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen.

 

(5) 1Pe 1:8 Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:

 

I notice another passage I did not list at 1 John 4:20 but gave at 1 Timothy 6:16 is to John 6:46,

 

Joh 6:46 Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father.

 

I shall now share some contrasting verses, statements in the Bible which appear on the surface to contradict the statements found in the verses given above:

 

Gen 32:30 And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.

 

Exo 24:9 Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel:

Exo 24:10 And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness.

Exo 24:11 And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.

 

Exo 3:4 And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.

Exo 3:5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.

Exo 3:6 Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.

 

Exo 33:11 And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he turned again into the camp: but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the tabernacle.

 

Jdg 6:22 And when Gideon perceived that he was an angel of the LORD, Gideon said, Alas, O Lord GOD! for because I have seen an angel of the LORD face to face.

 

Jdg 13:22 And Manoah said unto his wife, We shall surely die, because we have seen God.

Jdg 13:23 But his wife said unto him, If the LORD were pleased to kill us, he would not have received a burnt offering and a meat offering at our hands, neither would he have shewed us all these things, nor would as at this time have told us such things as these.

 

Notice that it is stated plainly in the above six passages that God was seen.

 

Is there a contradiction here? Not if you very carefully study these and other related texts of Scripture. Very few readers of the Bible, apparently, have made the effort to do this.

In brief, the solution to the seeming contradiction is that when anyone is said to have seen God Himself in the Old Testament, they actually saw the Angel of Jehovah. The Angel of Jehovah is clearly called God:

 

Genesis 22:15 note:

15.  angel of the Lord. The Angel of Jehovah is identified as Jehovah in the immediate context (ver. 16, Ge 22:16). (1) Here God appeared as the Angel of Jehovah. This is one of the Divine Persons of the Trinity. This is proof that there is more than one Jehovah (Ge 19:24n. *Nu 22:31. Je 23:5, 6).  (2) The Angel of Jehovah is one person, and Jehovah who sent Him is another (+Ge 19:24n. *Nu 22:31. Je 23:5, 6). (3) The Angel of Jehovah appeared to Abraham and later to Gideon (Ge 22:11. Jg 6:22). (4) That Angel is referred to as appearing in the form of a man, for He was one of three men that visited Abraham (Ge 18:1,2). (5) Throughout the following account one of those three men is consistently and repeatedly referred to and addressed as Jehovah (Ge 17:1. 18:1, 13, 14, 17, 19, 20, 22, 26, 33. 19:24. 21:1).  (6) In those narratives, the Angel of Jehovah, or the Angel of God, is referred to as God in context (Ge 17:1, 3). (7) There appeared on the same scene at the same time two Jehovahs (Ge 19:24), one on earth who had been walking and speaking with Abraham face to face, and one in heaven who administered judgment to Sodom and Gomorrah.

Further study of the Angel of Jehovah produces evidence which proves that the Angel of Jehovah is God, is a person, can be seen, and in the Bible is shown to be instances of the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ.

The conclusion to be drawn in the light of this evidence is that the claim “No one can see God, but people saw Jesus” has no bearing upon the issue of whether or not Jesus is God in the sense of the words used in the claim. But, turning to the Bible, the evidence proves the exact opposite: Jesus Christ has always been God, confirmed by His own claims to have been the one present as the Angel of Jehovah both in the case of Abraham, discussed previously in this series (where Jesus claimed to have seen and been seen by Abraham: Genesis 17:16; 18:10; 21:1; yet Abraham rejoiced to see his day: Genesis 17:17, John 8:56, 58), and in the case of Isaiah, as seen by comparing Isaiah 6:1-5 with John 12:41).

 

Once again, Ayigbe Eseme, it has been hard for me to find the place where I have left off in my discussion of the interesting and challenging information you presented for consideration about “38 Reasons Jesus cannot be God” drawn from the Bible.

 

12- God is the living and everlasting (Habakkuk 1:12)

 

Hab 1:12 Art thou not from everlasting, O LORD my God, mine Holy One? we shall not die. O LORD, thou hast ordained them for judgment; and, O mighty God, thou hast established them for correction.

 

Habakkuk 1:12 cross references:

12. Art thou not. Hab 2:1.   Dt 33:27.   **Ps  90:2.   93:2.  102:24, 27.  Is 40:28.  43:13.  +*Is 57:15.  Lam 5:19.  Da 7:9.  +*Mic 5:2.  1  Tim 1:17.   6:16.   He  1:10-12.  +*He 13:8.   +*Re  1:8,  11.  O Lord my God.  Ps 104:1.  mine Holy One.  Jb 6:10.   +Is  1:4.  37:23.  43:15.   49:7.  Ac 3:14.  Re 15:4.   we.   FS182,  +Ge 18:22.   Hab 3:2.  **Ps 102:28.  118:17.   Is  27:6-9.  Je  4:27.   5:18.  30:11.   +**Je 33:24-26.   46:28.   Ezk 37:11-14.  +*Am 9:8, 9.  +*Mt 22:32.  shall not die. According to the Sopherim, the primitive Hebrew text read “who diest not,” but was changed by them to avoid the supposed irreverent expression  to read “who die not,” rendered by the KJV, “we shall not die.” But this change from the second person to the first transferred to mortal men the truth which, apart from resurrection, pertains to God alone, “Who only hath immortality” (1 Tim 6:16) [CB]. Note, however, this comment reflects the materialist theology of E. W. Bullinger, the editor of the Companion Bible. Immortality is never asserted of the soul or spirit in man, which cannot die physically and so cannot be resurrected, but of the resurrection body, which will upon resurrection not be subject to physical death.  +**Mt 10:28n.   1 Cor  15:53,  54.   1 Tim 6:16.   thou hast ordained them.   2 K 19:25.   Ps 17:13.  Is 10:5-7.  37:26.  Je  25:9-12.  Ezk 30:25.  for judgment.  2 S 4:11.  2 Ch 24:24.  Jb 34:12.  Am 5:7.  mighty God.  Heb.  Rock.  Dt 32:4, 15,  18, 30,  31.   1 S 2:2.  2 S 23:3.  Ps 18:1,  2,  31,  46.  19:14.  Je 32:18.   established.  Heb.  founded.  Ps 8:2mg.   for correction.  Ps 94:10.  Ec 5:8.  Is 27:9, 10.  Je 30:11.  31:18-20.  46:28.  He 12:5, 6.

In Habakkuk 1:12, the expression “Art thou not from everlasting” is true both of God the Father and of God the Son.

Micah 5:2 reads as follows:

Mic 5:2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.

This text in Micah 5:2 was understood by the Jewish authorities at the time Jesus was born to indicate that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem of Judea, as also stated in Matthew 2:1-6,

 

Mat 2:1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,

Mat 2:2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.

Mat 2:3 When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.

Mat 2:4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.

Mat 2:5 And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet,

Mat 2:6 And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.

 

But of special interest is the expression in Micah 5:2, “from everlasting.” The birth of the predicted ruler in Israel is clearly a future event to Micah and the people reading his prophecy. Yet, this Person who is to be born in Bethlehem has been “from everlasting.”

 

Careful study of the cross references given for Micah 5:2 will lead to the evidence that this Person Who has been “from everlasting” is throughout the Old Testament Scriptures referred to as “the Angel of the Lord” or “the Angel of Jehovah.” I have furnished rather full or complete Biblical proof that this is the case at my note for Genesis 22:15 in my newest Bible study tool, The Ultimate Cross Reference Treasury.  This note in part is cited above under point 10.

 

The careful conclusion to be reached from this evidence is that before Jesus was born as a man to the Virgin Mary at Bethlehem, He existed and was made manifest to men on many occasions as the Angel of Jehovah. The Angel of Jehovah is sometimes spoken of as God. He is sometimes spoken of as Jehovah. So the Angel of Jehovah must be true Deity. That the Angel of Jehovah is not the only Jehovah (or the only one called Jehovah) is proven by Genesis 19:24 where two Persons who are each called Jehovah are on the same scene at the same time, one on earth, having been walking with Abraham, and the other Jehovah acting from Heaven, acting to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah.