INTRODUCTION:

John saves us so much effort in trying to determine why he wrote his book by simply giving us a complete sentence of explanation. In (20:31) he states that he wrote so that his reader might "believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that in believing we might have life in His name."

"John's presentation of who Jesus is lies at the heart of all that John's gospel stands for. It is not just a question of the special titles given to Jesus whether those found only in the fourth gospel (Lamb of God, Word, I Am), or those found in all four

(Son of Man, Christ, King). Basic to all else that is said of Him, Jesus is the Son of God, or simply, the Son. Although `Son of God' can and does serve as a synonym for `Messiah' it is enriched by the way in which Jesus as God's Son relates to His Father: He is subordinate to Him and does and says only those things the Father gives Him to do and say, but He does everything that the Father does, since the Father shows Him everything that He Himself does (5:19ff). Jesus obedience to the Father and the fact of His dependence on the Father become the snapshot in which Jesus shows us nothing less than the words and deeds of God Himself. The whole gospel highlights the deity of Jesus as the only begotten and pre-existing Son of God who in obedience to His Father became human in order to die in place of and for the redemption of mankind. John uses the name Jesus 237 times - by far the most of any New Testament book.

I. John Calls Jesus God - The first chapter is one of the main sections in all of Scripture to establish the deity of Jesus the Christ.

A. John 1:1 - Introduced the logos idea. "The word (logos) is from lego - to lay by, to collect, to put words side by side, to speak, to express an opinion." Four times in chapter 1, John calls Jesus the Word, then never uses it again. "We use the term `word' for a unit of language, whether spoken or written, but the Greeks gave it a much wider use_ as they looked at this mighty universe, some of the philosophers saw a principle of rationality. The sun and the moon rise and set with regularity; the planets move in their orbits; the seasons follow each other in regular sequence. So they thought of logos, a word, that runs right through the universe, something like a `world soul.' Whatever depths John wanted to express by using `the Word', it is clear that this Word was eternally with God before creation and that the Word was/is God. The Word `has the characteristics' of God, the Word is God; or equally correct, God is the Word.

B. John 1:14: If any doubt the significance of 1:1 the rest of the chapter adds weight to John's argument. In 1:14 `the Word' becomes flesh and tabernacled among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as the only begotten of the `Father'. No Jewish mind could miss this obvious correlation to the `shecan glory' which appeared to Moses and fell on the tabernacle and temple. Ezekiel prophesied the glory (shecan) of God departing from Israel, which it did. John is clearly stating that the glory of God is back `tabernacling' among the people.

C. John 1:18: Is an absolute proof text for anyone trying to establish Christ's deity from this gospel (v 12). "No one has ever seen God, but God, the only Son who is at the Father's side has made Him known."

Beside the obvious, that the `logos' is now called God directly, He is also the only begotten, which is in the bosom of the Father (eternally). John "brings this out with the use of the term `monogenes', which he uses of Jesus four times. The word is translated `only-begotten' in KJV, but it really means `only, `unique'; the word has nothing to do with begetting."

Jesus is in the bosom of the Father. To be in the bosom of someone is the Hebrew phrase that expresses the deepest intimacy possible in human life. It is used of mother and child. When John uses this phrase about Jesus, he means that between Jesus and God there is complete and uninterrupted intimacy. It is because Jesus is so intimate with God, that He is one with God and can reveal Him to men.

John will eventually tell us that this Son of God brings salvation. God so loved the world that He gave his Son (3:16): He sent his Son to save the world (3:17)

The function of the Son in relation to the Father according to (1:18) is to declare Him "The Greek verb is egoumai (from which we get exegete); it means to expound or interpret or reveal a mystery. RSV translates it `has made Him known'"

D. John 20:28: When Thomas exclaimed "my Lord and my God" we are not struck so much by what Thomas says as we are by what Jesus did not say - If He were not God, He certainly would not have let such a statement go unchallenged.

II. Jesus is equated with God

A. John 10:30: Jesus, on several occasions, seemed to be equating Himself with the Father. In 10:30, when the Jews surrounded Him in Solomon's porch and said to Him `How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.' (v. 24) He did! He responded, "I and my Father are one." (v.30) Jesus never claims to be the person of the Father. Scripture suggests that Jesus and the Father are of the same nature. Jesus reinforces this statement in His prayer in John 17, asking God to ultimately include us in their oneness (v 20 - 23).

B. John 5:17 - 19: After Jesus told the lame man to `take up his bed and walk' on the Sabbath, the Jews tried to kill Him (v. 16). As if that weren't trouble enough, He continues to anger them by calling God His father in v. 17. While to us that may sound rather harmless, to the Jewish mind it obviously meant much more. We see their violent response in v.18 They sought to kill Him all the more because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also `said that God was His Father making Himself equal with God."

C. John 1:32 - 34: John relates that he personally saw the baptism of Jesus (and the transfiguration) in which the Father spoke from heaven that Jesus was "His beloved son in whom He is well pleased" John's conclusion to all that in v. 34 is that "I have seen and testified that He is the Son of God."

III. Jesus as the Son of Man

A. John 5:27: John joins the synoptic writers in quoting Jesus references to Himself as the Son of Man. In the John 5 passage, I was just referring to; Jesus answers His attacker with a long discourse. He freely calls Himself both the Son of God and the Son of Man. He openly makes claims for Himself that could only be true of God Himself and in v. 27, the divine authority to execute judgment falls directly on the Son of Man - No first century Jew has any doubt whom He was comparing Himself to. Every Jew knew that Daniel 7; 9-14 taught the Ancient of Days would give dominion, glory, and a kingdom to the Son of Man; all peoples, nations, languages would serve Him; and His kingdom would be an everlasting kingdom that would never pass away.

B. John 1:51: In response to Nathaniel's "You are the Son of God! You are the king of Israel!" (1:49) Jesus responds with a flashback to Jacob's dream but includes Himself as the Son of Man the angels are descending to.

C. John 3:14: John includes here one of several references to the `lifting up' of the Son of Man in which Jesus Himself was predicting His own death by crucifixion.

IV. Jesus is the same as Yahweh of the Old Testament

While other New Testament authors will quote Old Testament prophecies in New Testament contexts about Christ, John limits himself to just one connection, but it is the mother of all connections.

The Exodus 3 giving of God's covenantal name (YAHWEH) to Moses at the burning bush was certainly a high point in God's self-revelation. He became personal, tying himself unconditionally forever to a single nation through whom He would produce salvation and bless all the nations of the world. His name expressed His eternality, (I Am) and His sovereign control (I will be who I will be). It also produced a sense of unparalleled awe in the Jews in that they would not write or speak it.

Jesus, Himself, blows the top off this Holy Grail by making a series of I AM claims in the fourth gospel:

In John's Gospel there is a distinctive use of "I am" in the sayings of Jesus. The expression can, of course, be used in very ordinary ways. But when the Old Testament was translated into Greek, the translators evidently felt that divine speech should be treated in a special way. So, when God is the speaker, instead of using the normal way of translating "I am," they often used the

emphatic pronoun. It is this solemn, emphatic form of speech that John ascribes to Jesus on several occasions.

One could claim these statements are coincidental to the I Am of Exodus. I doubt any first century Jew would have agreed. Every bit as important is his response to the Samaritan women who asked if He was the Christ and He responded, "I am He, who speaks with you." (v. 4:25, 26)

I find huge importance in the account of Jesus' arrest in 18: 5-6. When the soldiers approached, Jesus asked, "Who are you seeking?" (v. 4) They responded "Jesus of Nazareth" and He said "I am He" (v. 5) which sounds harmless enough if it weren't for the response of the soldiers. V. 6 says that when "He said to them I am He, they drew back and fell to the ground." The most important passage John gives us is in 8:58, 59. Jesus spoke to the Jews as if He has had previous contact with Abraham (v. 56). They ask how He could have seen Abraham who has been dead 2000 years when He was not yet 50 years old? (v. 57). "Jesus said to them, `Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM." (vs. 58). There is absolutely no way anyone could doubt the importance of Jesus' words, what He meant by them, or the context He said them in. He was claiming equality with Yahweh!

VI. John ascribes to Jesus attributes that are divine

A. Life

1. John 1:14 - Jesus came from the Father, He is the Word of 1:1 who was with God in the beginning but He took on human flesh, incarnated in to human form. He has within Himself the power of being, the power to create new life.

2. John 11:25 - In one of Jesus "I" statements, which in itself equates Him with the self-existent Yahweh, He continues by calling Himself, `the resurrection and the life.' It's like a triple play, He is the I AM, He is the eternal life producer, and He is life itself. He adds that whoever believes in Him will live and never die. Not only does He have life in himself, He can pass out eternal existence to whomever He wishes. In this case He emphasized His point by raising Lazarus from the dead.

3. John 14:6 - In another of Jesus' "I AM" statements He assures us that He doesn't have eternal life, hasn't created eternal life for Himself, and us; He is life.

B. Eternality

1. John 1:1 - 3 - Several cults today emphasize that Jesus was created a Son of God, by God, to bring God's salvation to mankind. John 1:1 destroys the theory of an unequal son but also teaches that Jesus is just as eternal as the Father. He was in the beginning with God and v. 3 says that was before all of creation for Jesus, the Word was the creator!

2. John 17:5 - When one grasps the glory of God as it shows up in the OT `shecan', it becomes more evident why in the New Testament Christ is the perfect reflection of God; He is "the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, upholding all things by the word of His power (Heb. 1:3) One is not only impressed with this visible manifestation of God's self-revelation but one also comes to understand that God's glory is His very identity. That's why God was so jealous when His glory was replaced by an idol. His very essence was being stolen and given to a piece of stone or wood. John 17:5 says that Jesus not only shares that very presence (essence) with God, but that He has shared it since `before the world began.'

C. Omnipresence - John 3:13 - While there are several passages that directly teach Jesus' omnipresence after His ascension this verse seems to teach His omnipresence in heaven while incarnate in human form. "This high view of Christ runs all through the gospels and is often in Christ's own words; as here. The phrase, "which is in heaven", is added by some manuscripts_ and emphasizes the timeless existence of God's son who was in heaven even while on earth.

D. Omniscience - Jesus started His human life as a baby and as such needed to learn and grow in wisdom and stature. However by the time of Jesus' ministry John directly states in three places that Jesus had unlimited knowledge.

1. John 2:24, 25 - John records that in Jerusalem many believed in his name because of the signs he did. But "Jesus did not commit Himself to them because He knew all men (v 24). The Word `men' is not in the original; the sentence ends with He knew all. Verse 25 adds that He `had no need that anyone should testify to man, for He knew what was in man.'

2. John 6:64 - Gets even more specific in stating that Jesus' foreknowledge allows Him to know who would believe and who would not believe and who would eventually betray Him.

3. John 16:30 - Just before Jesus' arrest and crucifixion in the upper room the disciples show an unusual display of insight into Christ's divine character. (v. 30a) - "Now we are sure that You know all things and have no need that anyone should question You." They emphasize that this omniscience in Jesus leads them to accept His divinity. "By this we believe that You came forth from God." (v 30b). This all came out of Jesus answering questions that were coming to their minds before they even asked them.

4. John 21:17 - Peter, at the end of the `Feed my sheep' questions, angrily attests to Christ's omniscience with `Lord, You know all things."

VII. John ascribes to Jesus activities that are divine

A. Creation

1. John 1:3, 10 - John leaves no doubt about who it was that said, "Let there be_" John 1:3 clearly states, "all things were made through Him and without Him nothing was made that was made." V. 10 adds that `the world was made through Him."

B. Providence - Jesus is clearly stated by John to have Pro-videoed everything before His incarnation.

1. John 3:35 - says "the Father loves the Son and has placed everything in His hands." That emphasized the Word in Chapter one who is supreme God and supreme ruler.

2. John 17:2, 3 - Builds this theme to a climax. In v. 2 Jesus asked the father to glorify the son. (9:2) - as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as you have given Him." "And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent." (v.3)

C. Christ raised them and judged them.

1. John 5:19 - 29 presents an unshakeable link between the Father's activities and the Son's activities. I will try to list them.

a. The Son can do nothing of Himself - v. 19b. But what He sees the Father do - v. 19

c. Whatever the Father does - v. 19

d. The Son does in like manner - v. 19

e. The Father loves the Son - v. 20

f. The Father shows Him all things that He does - v. 20

g. He will show Him greater works than these - v. 20

h. The Father raises the dead and gives life - v. 21

i. The Son gives life to whoever He wills - v. 21

j. The Father has committed our judgment to the Son - v. 22

k. All should honor the Son as the Father - v. 23

l. Just as the Father has life in Himself - v. 26

m. So He has granted the Son life in Himself - v. 26

n. He has given Son of Man authority to execute judgment. - v. 27

D. Jesus is the object of Prayer and Worship

2. John 14:14 - Finally, Jesus promises that `anything we ask in His name, He will do it."

Conclusion: For we who accept the Bible as God's inspired word, John presents a flawless case for Christ's deity. Indeed in order to deny Christ's deity one would virtually have to toss out John's entire gospel.

WE DO NOT, THEREFORE WE BELIEVE!