Who Says Jesus Is God? Verbal Testimonies From Mark 1:1-11
The
deity of Jesus Christ is the bedrock of biblical Christianity and one of the
foundational truths of the Bible. Repeatedly the New Testament teaches that
Jesus is the Son of God, which simply means that Jesus is God the Son.
The
evidence for the deity of Jesus is overwhelming and is found on virtually every
page of the New Testament. For example, let's take a look at Mark 1 and see
whether the deity of Jesus is presented. Mark 1:1 states categorically that
Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Now let's see how Mark unpacks that statement
with verbal testimonies about the identity of Jesus.
1.
The testimony of the Old Testament prophets (Mark 1:2-3).
Mark
begins his record of the ministry of Jesus by describing his forerunner, John
the Baptizer. And he introduces John by quoting Malachi 3:1 and Isaiah 40:3.
That second verse makes it clear that John's mission was to tell people to get
ready "for the Lord", and the word "Lord" (in Isaiah 40:3)
is the Hebrew word "Yahweh", the most common name of God in the Old
Testament. God Himself was coming, so get ready!
2.
The testimony of John the Baptizer (Mark 1:4-8).
John
described Jesus as someone infinitely greater than himself. He said that this
Jesus would be "more powerful than I" and a person "whose
sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie" (Mark 1:7). The reason
John ascribed such praise to Jesus is because John knew that Jesus was not only
a man, but also God in human flesh.
John
the Baptizer himself quotes Isaiah 40:3 (in John 1:23). And John's recognition
of the deity of Jesus is evidenced when John said "he (Jesus) was before
me" (John 1:30) and "I have seen and I testify that this is the Son
of God" (John 1:34).
3.
The testimony of God the Father (Mark 1:9-11).
When
Jesus was baptized by John in the Jordan River, God the Father spoke from
heaven and said to Jesus, "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well
pleased" (Mark 1:11). So not only did Old Testament prophets predict the
coming of the Son of God, and not only did John the Baptizer recognize Jesus as
God's Son, but here is God Himself testifying to the divine identity of Jesus.
Do
you ever imagine yourself being present at some great event of the past?
Wouldn't it be cool if there really were such a thing as a "time
machine", so we could travel back in time and witness the past rather than
only read about it?
I
would love to have been there at the baptism of Jesus. How about you? We would
have heard God proclaim from heaven that Jesus is the Son of God!
Is
this not a testimony worth our full attention and consideration? If God said
it, shouldn't we take it to heart?
Yes,
make no mistake about it the Bible is quite clear in its teaching about the
identity of Jesus. He is presented as none other than God the Son, God in a
human body. May the truth of the deity of Jesus Christ grip our hearts and
cause us to bow at His feet today in Jesus name.
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