The Deity of Christ Continued

In this passage we see Thomas, after having been doubtful that Christ was resurrected, acknowledging that Jesus was Lord and God. Jesus affirms Thomas' belief that He is our resurrected Lord and God, and blesses those who believe this who have not seen Him.

Colossians 2:8-10 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
2:9 For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.
2:10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:

Paul declares that in Jesus dwells all the fullness of the Godhead in the flesh, and warns against being lead astray from this truth by the false wisdom of this world which denies this truth. He goes on in verse 10 to state that you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power, which can only be qualities attributed to God.

Hebrews 1:8-9 But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever: a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of thy kingdom.
1:9 Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.

The writer of Hebrews applies the Scripture of Psalms 45:6-7 to Jesus, the Son of God, declaring Him to be God.

1John 4:1-3 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
4:2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:
4:3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.

John in his Gospel had already declared that Jesus Christ is God in the flesh, and now he makes the declaration that to deny that He has come in the flesh is the spirit of antichrist.

Essential to understanding the divinity of Jesus is to understand that He is also fully human. When Christ was born of a virgin conceived by the Holy Spirit he was made flesh, fully human. So Jesus is both fully man, and fully God, this is called the hypostatic union, and is the Biblical model of Jesus' two natures.

Romans 5:19 5:19 For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

1John 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

These verses describe how we were made sinners by the disobedience of the first man Adam, so by the obedience of the man Jesus we are made righteous. Jesus had to become a man in order to become a sacrifice for the sins of man. And Jesus as perfectly righteous and Holy God provided a sufficient substitutionary sacrifice (propitiation) for the sins of the world.

1Timothy 2:5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

As a man, Jesus stands as the only mediator between God and man.

In summary, the Scripture makes clear that Jesus Christ is God in the flesh, fully human and fully God, and that to deny this is to reject salvation and is the spirit of antichrist. It is an essential doctrine of Christianity to confess that Jesus is God.

Mat 3:16-17 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:
3:17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

A derivative doctrine of the divine nature of Jesus is that of the Trinity, that there is one God, eternally existing in three persons, The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. The three persons of the Godhead are represented in the above verses in Matthew as well as Mark 1:10-11 and Luke 3:22.

Although the trinity is considered a fundamental doctrine of orthodox Christianity, a person can be saved without a proper understanding of the triune nature of God. There are some who would argue that a regenerate person would come to understand the doctrine of trinity through the Scriptures and the enlightening power of the indwelling Holy Spirit.

However there are many convincing, seductive and influential teachers in the world that preach false doctrines, and I believe a Christian can be influenced by them and convinced that the trinity is unbiblical, especially in regards to the person of the Holy Spirit.