Is Christ God?

Christ and His Righteousness-  E.G. Waggoner

'IS CHRIST GOD?

In many places in the Bible Christ is called God. The Psalmist says: "The mighty God, even the Lord [Jehovah], hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof. Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined. Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence; a fire shall devour before Him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about Him. He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that He may judge His people. Gather My saints together unto Me; those that have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice. And the heavens shall declare His righteousness; for God is judge Himself." Ps. 50:1-6.

That this passage has reference to Christ may be known (1) by the fact already learned, that all judgment is committed to the Son; and (2) by the fact that it is at the second coming of Christ that He sends His angels to gather together His elect from the four winds. Matt. 24:31. "Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence." No; for when the Lord Himself descends from heaven, it will be "with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God." 1 Thess. 4:16. This shout will be the voice of the Son of God, which will be heard by all that are in their graves, and which will cause them to come forth. John 5:28, 29. With the living righteous they will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air, ever more to be with Him; and this will constitute "our gathering together unto Him." 2 Thess.2:1. Compare Ps. 50:5; Matt. 24:31, and 1 Thess. 4:16.

(((2Th 2:1  Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him

Psa 50:5  Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.

Mat 24:31  And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other

1Th 4:16  For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first))))

"A fire shall devour before Him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about Him;" for when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, it will be "in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ." 2 Thess. 1:8. So we know that Ps. 50:1-6 is a vivid description of the second coming of Christ for the salvation of His people. When He comes it will be as "the mighty God." Compare Habakkuk 3.

This is one of His rightful titles. Long before Christ's first advent, the prophet Isaiah spoke these words of comfort to Israel: "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." Isa. 9:6. These are not simply the words of Isaiah; they are the words of the Spirit of God. God has, in direct address to the Son, called Him by the same title. In Ps. 45:6 we read these words: "Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever; the scepter of Thy kingdom is a right scepter." The casual reader might take this to be simply the Psalmist's ascription of praise to God; but when we turn to the New Testament, we find that it is much more. We find that God the Father is the speaker, and that He is addressing the Son, calling Him God. See Heb. 1:1-8.

(((Heb 1:1  God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,

Heb 1:2  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;

Heb 1:3  Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image 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;

Heb 1:4  Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.

Heb 1:5  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?

Heb 1:6  And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.

Heb 1:7  And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.

Heb 1:8  But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.))))

This name was not given to Christ in consequence of some great achievement, but it is His by right of inheritance. Speaking of the power and greatness of Christ, the writer to the Hebrews says that He is made so much better than the angels, because "He hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they." Heb. 1:4. A son always rightfully takes the name of the father; and Christ, as "the only begotten Son of God," has rightfully the same name. A son, also, is, to a greater or less degree, a reproduction of the father; he has, to some extent, the features and personal characteristics of his father; not perfectly, because there is no perfect reproduction among mankind. But there is no imperfection in God, or in any of His works; and so Christ is the "express image" of the Father's person. Heb. 1:3. As the Son of the self-existent God, He has by nature all the attributes of Deity.

It is true that there are many sons of God; but Christ is the "only begotten Son of God," and therefore the Son of God in a sense in which no other being ever was or ever can be. The angels are sons of God, as was Adam (Job 38:7; Luke 3:38), by creation; Christians are the sons of God by adoption (Rom. 8:14, 15); but Christ is the Son of God by birth. The writer to the Hebrews further shows that the position of the Son of God is not one to which Christ has been elevated, but that it is one which He has by right. He says that Moses was faithful in all the house of God, as a servant, "but Christ as a Son over His own house." Heb. 3:6. And he also states that Christ is the Builder of the house. Verse 3. It is He that builds the temple of the Lord, and bears the glory. Zech. 6:12, 13. Christ Himself taught in the most emphatic manner that He is God. When the young man came and asked, "Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?" Jesus, before replying to the direct question, said, "Why callest thou Me good? there is none good but One, that is, God." Mark 10:17, 18. What did Jesus mean by these words? Did He mean to disclaim the epithet as applied to Himself? Did He mean to intimate that He was not absolutely good? Was it a modest depreciation of Himself?—By no means; for Christ was absolutely good. To the Jews, who were continually watching to detect in Him some failing of which they might accuse Him, He boldly said, "Which of you convinceth me of sin?" John 8:46. In the whole Jewish nation not a man could be found who had ever seen Him do a thing or heard Him utter a word that had even the semblance of evil; and those who were determined to condemn Him could do it only by

hiring false witnesses against Him. Peter says that He "did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth." 1 Peter 2:22. Paul says that He "knew no sin." 2 Cor. 5:21. The Psalmist says, "He is my Rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him." Ps. 92:15. And John says, "Ye know that He was

manifested to take away our sins; and in Him is no sin." 1 John 3:5.

Christ cannot deny Himself, therefore He could not say that He was not good. He is and was absolutely good, the perfection of goodness. And since there is none good but God, and Christ is good, it follows that Christ is God, and that this is what He meant to teach the young man.

It was this that He taught the disciples. When Philip said to Jesus, "Show us the Father, and it sufficeth us," Jesus said to him: "Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known Me, Philip? he that hath seen Me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the

Father?" John 14:8, 9. This is as emphatic as when He said, "I and My Father are one." John 10:30.

So truly was Christ God, even when here among men, that when asked to exhibit the Father He could say, Behold Me. And this brings to mind the statement that when the Father brought

the First-begotten into the world, He said, "And let all the angels of God worship Him." Heb. 1:6. It was not simply when Christ was sharing the glory of the Father before the world was that He was entitled to homage, but when He came a Babe in Bethlehem, even then all the angels of God were commanded to adore Him. The Jews did not misunderstand Christ's teaching concerning Himself. When He declared that He was one with the Father, the Jews took up stones to stone Him; and when He asked them for which of His good works they sought to stone Him, they  replied: "For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that Thou, being a man, makest Thyself God." John 10:33. If He had been what they regarded Him, a mere man, His words would indeed have been blasphemy; but He was God.

The object of Christ in coming to earth was to reveal God to men, so that they might come to Him. Thus the apostle Paul says that "God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself" (2 Cor. 5:19); and in John we read that the Word, which was God, was "made flesh." John 1:1,14.

In the same connection it is stated, "No man hath seen God at any time; the only-begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him" (or made Him known). John 1:18.

Note the expression, "the only-begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father." He has His abode there, and He is there as a part of the Godhead, as surely when on earth as when in heaven. The use of the present tense implies continued existence. It presents the same idea that is contained in the statement of Jesus to the Jews (John 8:58), "Before Abraham was, I am." And this again shows His identity with the One who appeared to Moses in the burning bush, who declared His name to be "I AM THAT I AM."

And, finally, we have the inspired words of the apostle Paul concerning Jesus Christ, that "it pleased the Father that in Him should all fullness dwell." Col. 1:19. Christ And His Righteousness. What this fullness is, which dwells in Christ, we learn from the next chapter, where we are told that "in Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily." Col. 2:9. This is most absolute and unequivocal testimony to the fact that Christ possesses by nature all the attributes of Divinity. The fact of the Divinity of Christ will also appear very distinctly as we proceed to consider Christ and His Righteousness.

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My thoughts-

Christ, the only begotten of the Father.

Read this--

Gen 22:13  And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son.

Gen 22:14  And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the LORD it shall be seen.

Gen 22:15  And the angel of the LORD called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time,

Gen 22:16  And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son:

Gen 22:17  That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;

Gen 22:18  And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.

Now please re-read verse 16 and note the ending.

God speaking to Abraham-  '...and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son.'

Didn't Abraham have another son? Ishmael?

Gen 16:15  And Hagar bare Abram a son: and Abram called his son's name, which Hagar bare, Ishmael.

Did Abraham claim Ishmael, recognizing him as his son?

Gen_17:18  And Abraham said to God, Oh that Ishmael might live before You!

He did. Abraham knew that Ishmael was his son, his first born to Hagar.

What made God say that Isaac was Abraham's only son when the facts clearly reveal Abraham had another son?

Isaac was a very special birth, wasn't he? He wasn't born naturally. What made His birth different? God's supernatural intervention was needed to make Isaac's birth possible. In fact, it was physically impossible for Sarah to conceive a child. Every woman who has ever gone through menopause and is years and years passed it, knows they will not get pregnant no matter how hard they try with their partner, it is no longer physically possible. Nowadays women might seek medical intervention but unless there is intervention there is no way a woman will bear a child many years after she's ceased to be fertile.  God intervened with Sarah. God restored to Sarah the ability to reproduce for this one very special birth- Isaac. He was UNIQUELY begotten.  And because he was THE child of God's promise, He was the ONLY child uniquely begotten, the child of God's promise.

Christ was UNIQUELY begotten.  A child by decree. A child born of the Holy Spirit. This is why Christ could be the first raise from the dead. He was uniquely raised.  He was the only being raised from the dead that never deserved death at all.

Rev 1:5  And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood

Uniquely begotten. He was begotten uniquely, his birth was unique.

God who took on flesh.

God who dwelt among us.

Mat 1:20  But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.

Mat 1:21  And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

Mat 1:22  Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,

Mat 1:23  Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

God with us.

God - ever existent God.

We mustn't forget Melchizedek.

Gen 14:18  And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.

Heb_6:20  where Jesus entered as forerunner for us, having become a High Priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.

The order of Melchizedek- God called Melchizedek to the High Priest position.  This was long before the ceremonial laws were passed down to Moses and the Levitical priesthood was established.  God called. And Jesus is uniquely called- uniquely born, uniquely dies, uniquely resurrected, uniquely made a High Priest. 

Heb 7:1  For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him;

Heb 7:2  To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace;

Heb 7:3  Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually.

Heb 7:4  Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils.

We cannot deny the uniqueness of Melchisedec.

We cannot deny the uniqueness of our Savior.

Jesus - God with us.  To be God with us, He must be God.

To be accused of blasphemy and WRONGLY accused for Jesus was not guilty in anything, He must truly be God.

Ever existent.

The I AM.

Joh 8:58  Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.

Exo 3:14  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.

I AM   --  self-existent

That I AM  -- ever- existent

God with us.

God with God.

God decreed a Son.

A Son was born uniquely as God became flesh.

God with us.

Only God could save us, only that ultimate of sacrifices could truly end sin once and for all- nothing else, nothing else could ever have been worthy.

A Creator - God with God in the Creation of all things.

A Creator  sacrificing Himself in order to save His creatures.

God with us.

Yes, Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior was/is - God.

God the Son.

Blessed be the name of our Lord God always!

All by His mercy and grace, His love!

May we study more tomorrow growing ever closer to HIM and He to us!  All in His righteousness, His LOVE.