Shalom,
>> .as the world defines "religion"...Christianity is a relationship
>> with God our Father through His Son our Lord andr Savior the Jesus
>> the Christ......Although many denominations and some
>> "religions"....Characterize Christianity as a religion..but in the
>> heart of those who call Jesus their Savior..."religion" has no
>> place...
Agreed. A religion tells you what to do to get to heaven. Christianity tells you what Christ already did for you to get to heaven.
>> Jesus never did in fact "proclaim" to be God....
I've never heard such a preposterous claim in all my life! (Well, maybe I've heard a few...) Jesus REPETITIVELY claimed to be God:
When tempted of the devil, Jesus replied "It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God." (Matthew 4:7; Luke 4:12)
When questioned by the high priest whether he was "Christ the Son of God", Jesus replied "Thou hast said" and the high priest accused him of blasphemy. (Matthew 27:63-65) Clearly the high priest accepted his answer as a clear "Yes!" Compare this to Matthew 26:25 where Jesus replied "Thou hast said" to Judas when Judas asked if it was him who betrayed Christ.
When asking Peter who he thought that Jesus was, Jesus replied "The Christ of God." If Jesus were not God, wouldn't he have corrected Peter? Instead he charged him and commanded that he not tell anyone.
The Gospel of John is especially filled with quotes from Jesus claiming to be God:
John 8:42 Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.
John 9:35 Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when he had found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God?
John 11:4 When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.
John 5:25 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.
John 10:36 Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?
John 16:27 For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out from God.
Add to that the dozens of times that Jesus referred to God as his Father. (I can give you some references if needed.) Plus, I barely even touched on the dozens of times that other people recognized that he was God.
God himself declared that Jesus was his "beloved Son, in whom [He is] well pleased" at the baptism of Jesus.
Sorry if it sounds like I'm jumping down your throat here, but to deny the deity of Christ is a very dangerous thing.
- Michael Coley
- i1.net |
