The Divinity of Christ

THE SONSHIP OF CHRIST

Let us first consider the Sonship of Christ. After that, we will consider His other attributes and, finally, His eternity.

1 - CHRIST IS THE SON OF GOD

In some passages, Christ is spoken of as becoming the "Son" at the time of the Incarnation. In others, His Sonship is said to have begun at the moment of resurrection. These passages are explicit enough that there are those who do not believe that Christ was the Son prior to the Incarnation. However, other passages in the Bible and Spirit of Prophecy are clear that He was the Son of God prior to coming to this earth.

But, in a special, new sense, Christ became God’s Son while on earth.

"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth . . No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him."—John 1:14, 18.

(1) SONSHIP AT THE INCARNATION

Jesus was the son of Mary and the Son of God.

"Which was the son of Enos, which was the son of Seth, which was the son of Adam, which was the son of God."—Luke 3:38.

"But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law."—Galatians 4:4.

There is an intriguing passage in the Old Testament which consists of a prophecy, given to King David, that, when Christ would be born, He would become the Son of God.

"And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish His kingdom. He shall build an house for My name, and I will stablish the throne of His kingdom for ever. I will be His Father, and He shall be My Son."—2 Samuel 7:12-14.

According to that verse, the Father-Son relationship would begin at a later time.

The following passage might apply the beginning of the Father-Son relationship to the time of the Incarnation:

"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 first begotten into the world, He said, And let all the angels of God worship Him."—Hebrews 1:5-6.

Notice that, in the announcement made to Mary, the Sonship of Christ is spoken of as occurring at Christ’s birth.

"The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee. Therefore that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God."—Luke 1:35.

At the Incarnation, God literally became the Father of Christ, and Christ literally became His Son.

If we accept Christ as our Saviour, we too can become the sons of God.

"But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name."—John 1:12.

(2) SONSHIP AT THE RESURRECTION

There are also Bible verses which point to the resurrection as the time in which Jesus became the "Son of God."

Please notice that in Hebrews 1:5, quoted above, God is speaking to the angels about how, by a future decree, He would become a Father to Christ and Christ would become His Son. According to Acts 13:32-33, that decree took effect when Christ was raised from the dead and entered upon His mediation as our great High Priest.

"I will declare the decree: The Lord hath said unto Me, Thou art My Son; this day have I begotten Thee."—Psalm 2:7.

At what time was Psalm 2:7 fulfilled? According to the New Testament, it happened when Christ was raised from the dead.

"And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers, God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that He hath raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art My Son, this day have I begotten Thee."—Acts 13:32-33

That passage definitely connects the sonship of Christ to the resurrection.

It is intriguing that, in the above passage, the Sonship and begottenship of Christ is shown as clear evidences of His Godhood. That is important. According to Scripture, the sonship of Christ in no way denies His full divinity. (More on this later.) As you know, the entire first chapter of Hebrews is an extremely strong statement on the total divinity of Christ.

There are other passages which indicate that the initiation into sonship was keyed to the beginning of Christ’s mediatorial work as our great High Priest.

"So also Christ glorified not Himself to be made an high priest; but He that said unto Him, Thou art My Son, today have I have begotten Thee."—Hebrews 5:5.

In view of Acts 13:32-33 and Hebrews 5:5, it is believed by many that Psalm 2:7 refers to the raising of Jesus from the dead as the Messiah and Mediator, and the recognition of Him as Son of God in an official sense. 2 Samuel 7:13-14 could also apply here; for it speaks in a future tense, when Christ will be the Son of God.

2 - CHRIST IS THE UNIQUE SON

Gennao, "to beget," is the Greek word used in these passages for "begotten." Monogenes is the Greek word for "only begotten." It can also mean "unique." , "to beget," is the Greek word used in these passages for "begotten." Monogenes is the Greek word for "only begotten." It can also mean "unique."

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son [His unique Son], that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."—John 3:16.

In other words, God the Father gave us the best He could; He gave us His special Son. Two verses later, we are told:

"He that believeth on Him is not condemned; but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten [unique] Son of God."—John 3:18.

A similar statement by John is found in 1 John:

"In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent His only begotten [unique] Son into the world, that we might live through Him."—1 John 4:9.

Some maintain that "only begotten" should be the correct translation. But keep this in mind: (1) As we will discover below, Christ was definitely not created. (2) If Christ is the "only begotten," in the sense of being created,—then no other creatures were ever created; He was the only one!

A similar word is yachid in the Hebrew Old Testament, which is rendered "only one" (Genesis 22:2, 12); "only son" (Jeremiah 6:26; Amos 8:10; Zechariah 12:10); "only beloved" (Proverbs 4:3); and "darling" (Psalms 22:20; 35:17).

The concept expressed both by monogenes and yachid is someone totally special, totally close to one’s heart, totally unique, irreplaceable. The Godhead wanted to show the utter magnitude of Heaven’s gift to save mankind, so Jesus was called the monogenes Son.

(A variant Greek reading of John 1:18 is monogenes Theos, which is "God, only begotten.")

3 - CHRIST’S SONSHIP REVEALS HIS DIVINITY

It is significant that the fact of Christ’s sonship to God was recognized as evidence of His divinity.

The Jewish leaders declared that, in calling Himself the "Son of God," Jesus was asserting His divinity. Because of this, they accused Him of blasphemy. Here are some sample passages supporting this:

"And the high priest answered and said unto Him, I adjure thee by the living God, that Thou tell us whether Thou be the Christ, the Son of God."—Matthew 26:63.

"But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work. Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill Him, because He not only had broken the Sabbath, but said also that God was His Father, making Himself equal to God."—John 5:17-18.

Here are other passages which indicate that, because Jesus was the Son of God, He was divine:

"If Thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross."—Matthew 27:40.

"Nathanael answered and saith unto Him, Rabbi, Thou art the Son of God; Thou art the King of Israel!"—John 1:49.

"She saith unto Him, Yea, Lord; I believe that Thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world."—John 11:27.

In the following verse, it is the demons who recognize that Jesus is the divine Son of God:

"And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with Thee, Jesus, Thou Son of God? Art Thou come hither to torment us before the time?"—Matthew 8:29.

These verses are also significant.

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ."—Ephesians 1:3.

"The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is blessed for evermore."—2 Corinthians 11:31.

4 - GOD’S SON IN PLACE OF OURS

The story of Abraham and Isaac, so early in the Scriptures, is one of the sweetest and most precious revelations of the love of God. It teaches us that God was going to offer up His Son for us, in the place of any offering we could make.

"Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah, and offer him there."—Genesis 22:2.

"By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac; and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son."—Hebrews 11:17.

Instead of Abraham’s special son, God offered up His special Son.

"And he said, Behold the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering. So they went both of them together."—Genesis 22:7-8.

"In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent His only begotten [unique] Son into the world, that we might live through Him."—1 John 4:9.

CHRIST IS FULLY GOD

1 - CHRIST IS THE IMAGE OF GOD

Christ is the totality of the "image" of God. This means He both reveals God and fully is God.

"Who is the image of the invisible God."—Colossians 1:15.

God clearly stands out in Scripture as a personal Being. If the Son of God is the very image of God, He too must be a Person, and have all the inherent attributes of Godhead.

"In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them."—2 Corinthians 4:4.

We find in that verse no hint that the Son is in any way inferior to the Father. They exist on the same plane.

The Greek word for "image," in the above verses, is eikon and means "exact likeness."

"Who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image [exact likeness] of His Person, and upholding all things by the Word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high."—Hebrews 1:3.

"Image" in the above verse is charakter, which means the thing which engraves or the thing engraved with the likeness of something else; that is, a seal. As a seal impresses an exact image of itself upon the wax, so Christ is the exact counterpart of the Father.

2 - CHRIST IS THE LOGOS

Christ is also the Word (logos in the Greek)—the total expression or embodiment of all that God is. Two outstanding "logos" passages are found in John’s writings.

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made . . And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us . . full of grace and truth."—John 1:1-2, 14.

"That which was from the beginning . . the Word of life."—1 John 1:1-3, 14.

3 - ONLY CHRIST FULLY KNOWS GOD THE FATHER

In some passages, it is very obvious from the context that the sonship of Christ directly shows that He is divine. One such passage is John 5:18-25. Another example is Hebrews, chapter 1.

Jesus was conscious of a unique relationship to the Father. He spoke of Him as "Father" or "My Father."

Jesus had a totally unique relationship to the Father, one which no one else has or can have.

"All things are delivered unto Me of My Father; and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him."—Matthew 11:27.

Only God can know God fully. Think about it.

Can you, by searching, find out God? No, you cannot. You can only have a partial understanding of His nature, special attributes, and ways of doing things. But, according to the above verse, the Son knows all about the Father. This is due to the fact that He is totally equal to Him. He too is God! Divinity understands Divinity.

On the other hand, no one can understand the Son except the Father. Why? Because the Son is divine, and only Divinity can understand Him. We can only understand as much of God as He chooses to reveal to us. That is the message of the above passage (Matthew 11:27).

4 - CHRIST IS REPEATEDLY CALLED "GOD"

The deity of Jesus Christ is clearly stated in God’s Word.

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."—John 1:1.

In the following passage, notice that Jesus did not reprove Thomas for calling Him "God." Instead, He commended him for his response. Would Jesus today commend those who try to question His full divinity?

"And Thomas answered and said unto Him, My Lord and my God. Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen Me, thou hast believed. Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed."—John 20:28-29.

Bible scholars recognize that Philippians 2:6 is a key doctrinal verse. First, we will quote it:

"Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God."—Philippians 2:6.

"Being" is huparcho, in the Greek, and means to exist. This verse speaks about the existence of Christ.

"Form" is morphe and does not refer to the outer appearance as our word, "form," does. Morphe denotes the essence—all the essential inner characteristics. So this verse gives us an X-ray view into the inner nature of Christ’s divinity,—and we learn that His inner nature is totally equal to the inner nature of God, the Father.

"Robbery" is harpagmos, which means "to grasp something." Christ fully knew that to be totally like God was not something to be sought after. Why? Because He already had it; He already had all the total morphe attributes of God.

Here are three other passages, in which Christ is referred to as God.

"Christ . . who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen."—Romans 9:5.

"Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ."—Titus 2:13.

"And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know Him that is true, and we are in Him that is true, even in His son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life."—1 John 5:20.

5 - THE DIVINE NAMES ARE APPLIED TO CHRIST

The divine names are applied to Christ in many passages, including these:

"For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, and the government shall be upon His shoulder. And His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."—Isaiah 9:6.

"The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness: Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God."—Isaiah 40:3.

"Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In His days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely. And this is His name whereby He shall be called: The Lord Our Righteousness."—Jeremiah 23:5-6.

"And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit,"—1 Timothy 3:16.

6 - CHRIST HAS THE DIVINE ATTRIBUTES

Jesus Christ is shown to have the qualities of divinity—the divine attributes—in several passages, including these:

"For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them."—Matthew 18:20.

"Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world."—Matthew 28:20.

"And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but He that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven."—John 3:13.

"And he said unto Him, Lord, Thou knowest all things."—John 21:17.

"I am He which searcheth the reins and hearts, and I will give unto every one of you according to your works."—Revelation 2:23.

"For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, and the government shall be upon His shoulder. And His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."—Isaiah 9:6.

"Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto His glorious body, according to the working whereby He is able even to subdue all things unto Himself."—Philippians 3:21.

"I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty."—Revelation 1:8.

(Christ’s divine attributes of eternity and immortality will be discussed later.)

7 - CHRIST HAS EVERY ATTRIBUTE OF GOD

Christ has every quality, every attribute which belongs to the Father:

"For in Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily."—Colossians 2:9.

8 - CHRIST DOES THE DIVINE WORKS

Jesus not only has the divine attributes or qualities, but He does the things which God does.

Creator:

Jesus Christ is the Creator! He made us. Who are we to talk back to Him and try to denigrate Him to something lower than that which He is?

"All things were made by Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made . . He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not."—John 1:3, 10.

"For by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers. All things were created by Him, and for Him."—Colossians 1:16.

"God . . hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds . . And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of Thine hands."—Hebrews 1:1-2, 10.

"And God said, let us make man in our image."—Genesis 1:26.

Lawgiver:

Jesus is the Lawgiver. Indeed, He is above the law! (Patriarchs and Prophets, 63:2). Seriously now, a created being could not be above the law!

And a related point could also be mentioned: How could the "power of an endless [Greek: indissoluble] life (Hebrews 7:16), and the "fullness of the Godhead" (Colossians 2:9) be given to a created being?

For Bible passages showing that Christ is the Lawgiver, read Deuteronomy 4:12-13; also Nehemiah 9:13-14; Exodus 20:2-17. For Bible passages which explain that Christ is God who led the Israelites, see Acts 7:30-38; 1 Corinthians 10:2-4; Isaiah 63:8-9.

Providence:

Jesus is in charge of this world, and He is guiding it in the great controversy with Satan toward a triumphant victory over the forces of evil.

"All things are delivered to Me of My Father; and no man knoweth who the Son is, but the Father; and who the Father is, but the Son, and He to whom the Son will reveal Him."—Luke 10:22.

"The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into His hand."—John 3:35.

"As Thou has given Him power over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as Thou hast given Him."—John 17:2.

"And hath put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be the head over all things to the church."—Ephesians 1:22.

"And He is before all things, and by Him all things consist."—Colossians 1:17.

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ."—Ephesians 1:3.

The forgiveness of sins:

It is a cardinal principle of Scripture that only God can forgive our sins. Jesus forgave sins,—and refused to back down when accused of claiming divinity by so doing.

"Be of good cheer, thy sins be forgiven thee. And behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth. And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, wherefore think ye evil in your hearts? For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee or to say, Arise and walk? But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins (then saith He to the sick of the palsy), Arise, take up thy bed."—Matthew 9:2-7.

"Why doth this man thus speak blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God only? And immediately when Jesus perceived in His spirit that they so reasoned within themselves, He said unto them, Why reason ye these things in your hearts? Whether is it easier to say to the sick of the palsy, Thy sins be forgiven thee or to say, Arise, and take up thy bed, and walk?"—Mark 2:7-9.

"Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any; even as Christ forgave you."—Colossians 3:13.

"When the Son of man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory. And before Him shall be gathered all nations, and He shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats."—Matthew 25:31-32 (cf. John 5:19-29).

"For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son. That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent Him."—John 5:22-23.

"And He commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is He which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick [living] and dead."—Acts 10:42.

"Because He hath appointed a day, in the which He will judge the world in righteousness by that Man whom He hath ordained: wherefore He hath given assurance unto all men, in that He hath raised Him from the dead."—Acts 17:31.

"Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto His glorious body, according to the working whereby He is able even to subdue all things unto Himself."—Philippians 3:21.

"I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick [living] and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom."—2 Timothy 4:1.

"Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon His kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever."—Isaiah 9:7.

"And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of Thine hands. They shall perish, but Thou remainest, and they all shall wax old as doth a garment. And as a vesture shalt Thou fold them up, and they shall be changed; but Thou art the same, and Thy years shall not fail."—Hebrews 1:10-12.

"Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto His glorious body, according to the working whereby He is able even to subdue all things unto Himself."—Philippians 3:21.

"And He that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new."—Revelation 21:5.

"For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son. That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent Him."—John 5:22-23.

"Let not your heart be troubled. Ye believe in God, believe also in Me."—John 14:1.

"If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable."—1 Corinthians 15:19.

"And again . . He saith, And let all the angels of God worship Him."—Hebrews 1:6.

"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost."—Matthew 28:19.

—In every conceivable way, Jesus Christ is fully God; He always has been fully God, and always will be fully God.

THE ETERNITY OF CHRIST

OF THE ETERNITY OF CHRIST

We have discussed every revealed aspect of the divinity of Christ—except one: What about the eternity of Christ? How long has He existed? Has there ever been a time in the past when He did not exist?

This is the especially contested aspect. Men are teaching the falsehood that Christ is a created being! But the Word of God clearly teaches that Christ has existed from all eternity.

If He has existed from all eternity, then He cannot have had a beginning. There never was a time when He was brought into existence, or created. There never was a time when He was brought into existence, or created.

1 - Preexistence and equality with the Father:

His goings forth are from old, from everlasting.

"But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall He come forth unto Me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting."—Micah 5:2.

"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory . . No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him."—John 1:14, 18.

"But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work. Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill Him, because He not only had broken the Sabbath, but said also that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God."—John 5:17-18.

"And now, O Father, glorify Thou Me with Thine own self with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was."—John 17:5.

"For by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers. All things were created by Him, and for Him."—Colossians 1:16.

"Moreover He said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God."—Exodus 3:6 (cf. Acts 7:30-38; 1 Corinthians 10:2-4—identify Him as Christ. Also see Isaiah 63:8-9.)

2 - Immutability:

Jesus is immutable, unchangeable, has always been so, and will ever be so.

"And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of Thine hands. They shall perish, but Thou remainest, and they all shall wax old as doth a garment. And as a vesture shalt Thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but Thou art the same, and Thy years shall not fail."—Hebrews 1:10-12.

"Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and today, and forever."—Hebrews 13:8.

This is but another word for "immutable." God, who speaks to us in the Bible, is Jesus Christ. He is unchanging.

"I am the Lord; I change not."—Malachi 3:6.

3 - Eternal existence:

He is called the "everlasting Father."

"For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, and the government shall be upon His shoulder. And His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."—Isaiah 9:6.

He was "in the beginning with God."

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God."—John 1:1-2.

4 - An endless, self-possessed life.

Jesus has a life which cannot end, and that would include both past and future.

"Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless [Greek: indissoluble] life."—Hebrews 7:16.

"In Him was life."—John 1:4.

No created being can give life to another. Think about it. But Jesus, who has total, unending—past, present, and future—life, can and will impart of His life to others. This impartation of Christ’s eternal life to His followers is stated in many passages, of which the following in John are but a few: John 5:40; 6:33, 40, 47; 10:10; 11:35: 17:2; 20:31.

5 - Not only eternal, but immortal as well.

"Eternal" means to have an existence which has never ceased—before or after the span of that eternity.

"Immortal" means not subject to death or non-existence. means not subject to death or non-existence.

Immortality, or not subject to death or non-existence, is one of the key attributes of the Godhead. It is self-possessed by each of them. They do not owe it to one another or to anyone else.

"The King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God."—1 Timothy 1:17.

"Jesus Christ . . who is the blessed and only potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords; who only hath immortality."—1 Timothy 6:14-16.

The Greek word for "immortal" is aphthartos, "imperishable," "incorruptible." On the divine level, this includes eternal life past as well as future.

It is the inner quality of God that He has always lived. (1) He cannot die in the future, and (2) there never was a time in the past when He did not exist.

6 - The beginning and the end:

Christ is the beginning and the end. He is before all things and after all things. He has an existence which spans the ages, and preceded them all.

"I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty."—Revelation 1:8.

"I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last."—Revelation 22:13.

7 - The I AM:

The above two passages include the special name of God: the I AM. The meaning of that term is this: One of the attributes of God is that He is an Eternal Presence. He has always existed and always will exist. He is the I AM in the past, in the present, and in the future. He sees all things, He knows all things, and He has existed forever.

DO YOU SEE THE POINT? If just one of the divine qualities were missing, He would not fully be God! And if He were not fully God, He would not be God!

It is not enough that Christ may be God today; He must have always been God in the past—or He is not fully God!

What is Satan desperately fighting in the age-long great controversy? It is Christ and the law, to which the devil is opposed. Satan is determined to undermine faith in either or both of them. In our time in history, a special battle is being fought over obedience to the law of God. But Satan also has agents who are attempting to downgrade Christ. The devil is using them in an attempt to topple Christ from His throne.

It is a shameful work, yet some men are willing to do it. —Flee from such men!

Jesus is the I AM.

"And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is His name? what shall I say unto them?

"And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM. And He said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you."—Exodus 3:13-14.

Who was that I AM which spoke to Moses? It was Christ. Acts 7:30-38 clearly identifies Him as Christ. Also see Isaiah 63:8-9.

"And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and did all eat the same spiritual meat; and did all drink the same spiritual drink; for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them,—and that Rock was Christ."—1 Corinthians 10:2-4.

"I AM" means the self-existent One. This is a basic quality of God. He can only be self-existent if He has existed forever. Think about it.

Several times in the book of John, Jesus applied the Divine Name, the I AM, to Himself. The Greek phrase used is ego eimi. It means "I am" in a special sense. Several of the passages in John which contain the I AM are quoted in the following passage in Desire of Ages:

"It was Christ who from the bush on Mount Horeb spoke to Moses saying, ‘I AM THAT I AM’ . . Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent Me unto you.’ Ex. 3:14. This was the pledge of Israel’s deliverance. So when He came ‘in the likeness of men,’ He declared Himself the I AM. The Child of Bethlehem, the meek and lowly Saviour, is God ‘manifest in the flesh.’ 1 Tim. 3:16. And to us He says: ‘I AM the Good Shepherd.’ ‘I AM the living Bread.’ ‘I AM the Way, the Truth, and the Life.’ ‘All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth.’ John 10:11; 6:51; 14:6; Matt. 28:18. I AM the assurance of every promise. I AM; be not afraid. ‘God with us’ is the surety of our deliverance from sin, the assurance of our power to obey the law of heaven."—Desire of Ages, 24-25.

—Do you see it? If Jesus is not truly God, then you have no assurance of deliverance from sin and no enabling power to obey God’s law!

8 - Before all things:

Jesus Christ has existed before all things.

"And He is before all things, and by Him all things consist."—Colossians 1:17.

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