Did Jesus say the exact words, "I am God" (Εγώ είμαι ο Θεός)?
Did Jesus ever utter the exact three words,
"I am God"?? Some say that if he did the Jews would have objected. They try to water down what Jesus said when he declared "I and the Father are ONE (1). They say what Jesus meant was that he and God were separate but united like a married couple would be. Is that what Jesus said? Would there not be a better way to say that, if that were his intent? What did the Jews think he meant?
Did Jesus ever say the exact four words,
"I am a Prophet," or did he ever declare,
"I am a man,"?? But we know that Jesus is a Prophet, that he is the giver of eternal life and that he is a man even though he never said it in so many words.
Some have come to this thread and declared that the Jews did not object to Jesus' claim that He and His Father were ONE (1). They say that that Jesus' argument is weak because there was no objection to it in the minds of the Jews. They would like to ignore the fact that the objection from the Jews was so strong that stones were taken up to put Jesus to death for his claim. Jesus may not have said the exact sentence "I am God" but he did claim the divine name for himself (cf.
Ex 3:14 with
John 8:58) and he also received worship (
Matt 2:2;
14:33;
28:9;
John 9:35-38).
When Moses was up at the Mount speaking to God, Moses asked God what his name was. God said, "I AM WHO I AM"; and He said, 'Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel,' 'I AM has sent me to you,' (
Exodus 3:14). In
John 8:58 Jesus said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am." Right after this the Jews picked up stones to throw at him. Later, in
John 10:30-33 Jesus claimed to be one with the Father and the Jews wanted to stone him again because they said to Jesus,
"You, being a man, make yourself out to be God." Jesus had claimed the divine name for his own and the Jews wanted to kill him for it. Therefore, from Jesus' own mouth we see that he was claiming to be God.
The words "I am"
Now please understand that anyone can say the words "I am" and it does not mean that he is claiming to be God. Someone could say, "I am over here." That is not claiming the divine name. Likewise, someone could say, "I am hungry," or "I am sick." Neither example is claiming divinity, because the use of the term "I am" in context clearly shows us that is not what is occurring. But, in John 8:58 when Jesus said "before Abraham was born, I am," the Jews knew exactly what he was saying. Notice that he says before Abraham was born (using the past tense) and then he switches to the present tense when he says "I am." Jesus switches tenses of the verbs on purpose so that when he does so in the context of referencing Abraham, Jesus is clearly drawing the Jews' attention to the Old Testament Scriptures and then using a present tense form of the verb "to be" by saying "I AM". Someone who says "I am hungry" is not drawing attention to the Old Testament Scriptures for context.
Jesus was clearly causing the Jews to reflect upon the divine name "I am" that Jesus used for himself. We know that they understood this because as is said above, they said, "You, being a man, make yourself out to be God," (John 10:33).
Giver of Life:
The crowning moment of creation was when God ''formed man... and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life» (Genesis 2:7). In Deuteronomy 32:39, after saying, ' ... there is no god besides me, "God said He is the one to "give life'' (compare Psalm 36:9).
Jesus said, " For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son also gives life... ° (John 5:21). Just prior to raising Lazarus from the dead, Jesus said, ' 'I am the resurrection and the life " (John 11:25). He went so far as to say that He was the giver of eternal life. "I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish; and no one shall snatch them out of my hand .. I and the Father are one' ' (John 10:28, 30). Jesus said that the Scriptures (referring to the Old Testament) «bear witness of Me-, and you are unwilling to come to Me, that you may have life" (John 5:39-40).
Is Jesus an angel?
Some come to thread and try to say that Jesus was an angel. Hebrews chapter 1 has a reply to this false notion:
"For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee?
And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son? And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him. And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.
But unto the Son [he saith], Thy throne, O God, [is] for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness [is] the sceptre of thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, [even] thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:" - Hebrews 1:5-10 KJV
Unto Jesus is said, "Thy throne, O God --> for ever and ever.
God has honored Jesus - telling the angels to worship him. "And let all the angels of God worship him"
Unto him is said, "Thy throne, O God, [is] for ever and ever"
Conclusion
It is not necessary that Jesus say a certain phrase in order for the truth of who he is to be made clear. The issue is not if he speaks a certain sentence that we construct in present terms in order to satisfy our theological demands. The issue is what did Jesus say in the context and culture of the time in which he spoke.
Finally, we know that Jesus is God in flesh because the Bible tells us so.
- John 1:1, 14, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God...14And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth."
- John 20:28-29, "Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!" 29 Jesus said to him, "Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed."
- Heb. 1:8, "But of the Son He says, 'Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever, and the righteous scepter is the scepter of His kingdom.'"
ENGLISH:................ Thy... throne, .. O God ... [is] for... ever .. and ever
GREEK:.....................σοῦ... θρόνος .... θεός ... εἰς ....... αἰών .....αἰών
TRANSLITERATION:... Sou... thronos ..Theos ... eis ...... aiōn ..... aiōn
Jesus is my Lord and my God and I am not alone: Angels called him, "Emmanuel" meaning "God with us". John 20:28 "And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God."
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Footnotes, References, Credits:
Jesus: A Biblical Defense of His Deity by Josh McDowel and Bart Larson
Did Jesus ever say the exact words "I am God?" by CARM (Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry)
