In talking with Jehovah's witnesses, Mormons, we see that the doctrine of Christ's divinity (Jesus Christ being God) is often challenged. The following are some biblical basis for why Jesus is indeed the incarnate God:Christ claims the authority to forgive sins. Only God has the authority to forgive sins.
Mark 2:5-7.
Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? Which is easier: to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins….” he said to the paralytic, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”
Jesus’ question to the teachers of the law whether it is easier for one to say, “Your sins are forgiven,” or “Get up, take your mat and walk?” is a puzzling one. The answer is neither. For if any man would say to another “Your sins are forgiven” in front of the teachers of the law he would be in danger of being stoned to death for blasphemy. It would be easy merely to say it, but it wouldn’t mean anything because a mere human being does not have the authority to forgive sins. Only God. Just as easily, one could say to the paralytic “get up, take your mat and walk” but if he didn’t have the divine power to heal he would make himself a laughing stock before the onlookers. Jesus however, boldly announces both statements and shows that He is more than competent to claim these words by first pronouncing that the paralytic’s sins are forgiven, then in order to prove He has God's authority to forgive sins He heals the man- a miracle that can only be done by God.
Christ is comfortable with receiving worship due only to God
Many Mormons and Jehovah’s witnesses although they recognize Jesus to be “Son of God” (this merely means for them that he is “one of the many sons” of God, or one of the angels) do not worship Jesus Christ. In the Bible however we see that Jesus is worshiped as God.
There are several instances where this occurs:
John 9:35-38
After Jesus heals a man born blind from birth, the man is taken to the Pharisees according to Jewish custom. When the Pharisees realize that he has been healed on the Sabbath and by Jesus they refuse to believe and accuse him of being a liar. When he is driven out from the religious community for his association with Jesus, Jesus finds him alone, distraught and abandoned. He asks the healed blind man. “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” The man replies, “Who is he sir? Tell me that I may believe in him.” Jesus answers him “You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.” Then the man says “Lord I believe,” and he worshiped him.
The word for worshiped in the original Greek is proskuneo, meaning to bow down, or kneel or to fall prostrate before someone in an act of reverence. This kind of posture is taken only before a deity in the ancient near east culture and particular in the Jewish culture before Jehovah their God, never before human beings or angels. To point this out when John the apostle tries to bow down to the angel who was announcing him the message about the end times, the angel urgently stops him saying, “Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God!”
Jesus does not stop the man from worshiping him, but receives his full worship.
When Jesus is being tempted by the devil in the desert and the devil asks Jesus to bow down to him Christ replies, “It is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’” Christ affirmed the unchanging truth that man is to worship God and God only. If he then did not stop the formerly blind man from worshipping him, wasn’t his silence confirming the fact that he is God? For if Jesus was not God, he would have lied to himself and to the devil. Jesus by being in very nature God would not lie.
In a second instance, when Jesus is entering into Jerusalem on a donkey all of the people are praising him, shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord (Matthew 21:9)!”
Jesus receives this worship without any qualms or denial while the Pharisees demand Jesus to stop the people from praising him. To this Jesus replies “If they keep quiet, the stones will cry out” (Luke 19:37). Who is Jesus that even the rocks will cry out and praise him if the people are silent? Jesus is God. Therefore, Jesus is confident to receive the praise and honor from men.
Luke 5:1-11 Luke 5:1 ¶ One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the people crowding around him and listening to the word of God, 2 he saw at the water's edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. 3 He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat. 4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch." 5 Simon answered, "Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets." 6 When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. 7 So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink. 8 When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus' knees and said, "Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!" 9 For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, 10 and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon's partners. Then Jesus said to Simon, "Don't be afraid; from now on you will catch men." 11 So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.
This is a remarkable reaction from Peter. Why would Peter say such a thing? One would expect him to be jumping up and down shouting “Wow! how did you do that?!” or even disbelief… “I can’t believe it…!” Perhaps even of fear, “Who are you…?”
But Peter says “Go away from me Lord; I am a sinful man!”
Why this odd reaction about sin and wanting Jesus to turn away from him? If anything it seems more likely that Peter should have been begging Jesus to show him how to catch more fish.
There is one passage in the Bible where a similar reaction occurs to someone encountering the power of God. In Isaiah 6 when the prophet Isaiah standing before the majesty of the Lord sees God in His glory and is lost for words, he has this deep contrition that he is a sinful person and deems himself unworthy to stand before the Almighty. “Woe is me for I am a man of unclean lips”. It is only natural then that when mortals encounter the awesome presence of God, they recognize their sinful state and are humbled to the point of trembling and reverence. Jesus’ miraculous display of divine power made Peter get a glimpse into the identity of the Son of God and bring him to recognizing his own sinful state. Peter, like the prophet Isaiah had a sudden realization that he was standing before the holy God and shows the same reverence.
Verses that refer to Christ being God
John 1:1
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John1:18
“No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.”
John 20:24-29
“But Thomas (Who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he said to them, ‘Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.’
A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.’ Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.’”
Romans 9:5
“and from kwhom, according to the flesh, Christ came, lwho is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen.” (NKJV)
“Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of Christ, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen.” (NIV)
Philippians 2:6-
“…who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited.”
Colossians 1:19, 2:9
“For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell…”
“For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily.”
Hebrews 1:8
But about the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, will last forever and ever, and righteousness will be the scepter of your kingdom.”
1 John 5:20
And we are in Him who is true- even in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.
2 Peter 2:1
“…who share the same precious faith we have, faith given to us by Jesus Christ, our God and Savior, who makes us right with God.”
