For centuries, people have asked and struggled whether Jesus is God. And what’s this concept of being the Son of God? How can one being God as well as being the Son of God. And question is, how can God has Son? These are some of the mystic and penetrating questions people ask, and rightfully so. But why bother knowing so much theology on this? Can’t we just teach Jesus loves, heals, died for us? 

The identity of who Jesus is, defines the whole religion and faith of Christianity

The biggest and most far reaching religion in the world depends on who Jesus actually is. And without knowing the identity of Jesus, we cannot experience justification (salvation), and we cannot experience sanctification (holiness and life transformation). So don’t take this question as purely academic and leave to the seminary, and lets just preach God is good, loving and have faith that He will heal you and lift you up, which are all true and good. Before we jump into applications and exhortations, it behooves us and it’s best, for us to know the source or the substance of such exhortations, the source of that power, the source of that salvation etc. By the way, there is a tendency for a lot of evangelical pastors and especially charismatic churches to do that, that quick application style. (see my other article https://alngu.com/2020/05/20/why-many-pastors-especially-charismatics-ignore-theology-let-my-people-think/).

There are many verses in the Bible we can tackle this question, like in Genesis 1, God says “Let us…make the world”, He was not alone. The Godhead clearly extends to more than one person. John 1 says in the beginning is the Word, the Word is God, and the Word became flesh. Clearly that’s referring to Jesus who became flesh, and it explicitly says the Word is God, i.e. Jesus is God. But I am intrigued with Psalm 45 here, and perhaps I will expound all the other passages mentioned in future articles.

Psalm 45 reveals and exhibits one of the most stunning revelation of Jesus is and as the second person of the Trinity, and proves Jesus is God, in the Old testament 

Psalms 45:6-9 (ESV) 6 Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of uprightness;7 you have loved righteousness and hated wickedness.Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions;

It says here “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.” V5. Then in v7b “ Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions”. Whoa! What does that mean? God calling out to God? Is there two God? What’s going on here? I love to expound this, after my research paper on the Trinitarian God. Let me expound them as follows:

God the Father calling out to His only Begotten Son as God

Psalms 45:6-9 (ESV) 6 Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of uprightness;

V6 here is God the Father calling out his Son Jesus Christ. This actually affirms and solidifies the doctrine of our Trinitarian God theology. God is saying Jesus is God and is God forever and ever. This may have missed many pastors sight on this, but God the Father has such high view of God the Son, effectively calls him as equal. This would have caused an uproar among the Pharisees in NT, as they have accused Jesus as blaspheming to call himself as God. John 10:33 (ESV) 33 The Jews answered him, “It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you but for blasphemy, because you, being a man, make yourself God. 

Now why is it a big deal? It is a big deal because that just elevated the man Jesus who walked righteously on earth and then was crucified dead and rose from the dead, is actually affirmatively God himself. Now, that’s hard to swallow, because how can God be mocked, beaten, whipped, spit at, and lie helplessly on the cross at the hands of mortal men? That’s why it is of utmost importance that we understand the two natures of Jesus. While on earth, he was a man, though he is still God. The guy bleeding on the cross, is the man Jesus, not the God Jesus. Let’s be clear, because without the full manhood of Christ, he won’t have been able to save us, because we needed a condemnation on his flesh to take our condemnation away from God. And God cannot be imputed our sins and be condemned, as He is God. But the righteous requirement of God for justification, purification and hence salvation requires an atonement, a punishment for the sins committed. Therefore Jesus took the human body and soul and committed to dying on the cross to save humanity through his incarnation to become a man. Then he was raised from the dead, and now seated on the throne at the right side of the Father. He is still interceding for us in the capacity of man for us the elect in heaven right now. Its mind blowing, I know, but this crucial we understand all these to make sense of the religion or faith called Christianity.

God has anointed his Son as the Man Jesus 

Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions;

That’s clear this is God the Father anointing Jesus in the form of a man while ion earth carrying out his salvific ministry. It actually says, “ your God”. 

Also, God the Son needs no anointing from the Father, he is full of anointing unlimited. Therefore, again, this is the Man Jesus. Look at this verse, all things on earth and heaven, visible, invisible, thrones or powers or authorities been created in him, through him, and for him. That makes him equal with God the Father. Wow! What else do we need? The Man Jesus is God! Also , the next verse” …in him all things hold together”. ( Colossians 1:15-17)

Colossians 1: ¹⁵ The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. ¹⁶ For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. ¹⁷ He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions;

ALL things in the universe are held together in Christ. That means the sun stays its course giving the right amount of light and UV, and the earth rotates the right speed around the sun, and together with thousands or millions of stars in this HUGE cosmos, all happen in Jesus! Is that enough for Jesus to be God? Even our human body, an awesome creation by God in the image of God (Imago Deo), is distinctively marvelous in the lungs that breathe, the intestines in our body that runs longer than a football yard, the eyes that see, etc. etc., is held together in Jesus! 

Amen.