Jesus' Claim to be God

Jesus’ Claim to be God

This could take some thought into the very acceptance of those who are with doubts about the Incarnation of Christ.  When Jesus came on the scene right after his encounter with the devil in the wilderness, what were the first words that he pronounced to these new to-be followers?  “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me to bring glad tiding to the poor.  He sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.”  Then, to the amazement of his listeners; “Today this scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”  (Lk 4: 18 - 19, 21).  

Which of us, if we had been there, would also have believed what we just heard?  Would the questions begin to come forth as those who were there?  

Putting this theory into perspective we might consider just what many modern people respond with.  Using some of C. S. Lewis’s Mere Christianity, lets see what his comments are.  “Then comes the real shock.  Among these Jews there suddenly turns up a man who goes about talking as if he was God.  He claims to forgive sins.  He says he has always existed.  He says he is coming to judge the world at the end of time.  Now let us get this clear.  Among Pantheists, like the Indians, anyone might say that he was a part of God, or one with God:  there would be nothing very odd about it.  God, in their language, meant the Being outside the world, who had made it was infinitely different from anything else.  And when you have grasped that, you will see that what this man said was, quite simply, the most shocking thing that has ever been uttered by human lips.”  

Continuing with C. S. Lewis: “But supposing God became a man - suppose our human nature which can suffer and die was amalgamated with God's nature in one person - then that person could help us.  He could surrender his will, and suffer and die, because he was man; and he could do it perfectly because he was God.  You and I can go through this process only if God does it in us; but God can do it only if he becomes man.  Our attempts at this dying will succeed only if we men share in God’s dying, just as our thinking can succeed only because it is a drop out of the ocean of his intelligence; but we cannot share God’s dying unless God dies; and he cannot die except by being man.  That is the sense in which he pays our debt, and suffers for us what he himself need not suffer at all.”  

God clearly reveals to us that man is destined to suffer on earth, all the days of his life  for his disobedience.(sin).  God allows suffering because it is a byproduct of sin.  Sin happens because God gave us free will, even though he opposes sin and helps us overcome it when we are willing.  God gave us free will because he loves us.  (cf CCC 1731 ff).  

As I have written before; the Cross is the way to salvation, but we cannot arrive there without personal suffering.  Christ gave over his life so we would be forgiven.  Look at the amount of suffering he had to undergo.  From the first rejection, beginning at Nazareth and his first preaching to his neighbors who quickly accused him of blasphemy, to the trial before Pilate and Herod and the people who shouted; Crucify him, Crucify him.  Without suffering, we shall not be complete as the Son of God was.  Jesus’ claim to be God rings clearly and succinctly to us who wish to follow in his footsteps and become just as he is.”Can you drink the cup that I am about to drink?”  Yes, we can, said his disciples to Jesus.”(Mt 20: 22).  When he asks you and I that same question, what will our answer be? 

Ralph B. Hathaway