Many
verses in John, the epistles, and Revelation
imply support for the doctrine that Jesus Christ is God and the closely related
concept of the Trinity. The Gospel of John in particular supports Jesus'
divinity. This is a partial list of supporting Bible verses:
- John
1:1 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God." together with John
1:14 "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We
have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the
Father, full of grace and truth." and John
1:18 "No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is
at the Father's side, has made him known."[16]The
Bible says "God the One and Only" in NIV.
- John
5:21 "For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life,
even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it."
- John
8:23–24: "But he continued,'You are from below; I am from above.
You are of this world; I am not of this world. I told you that you would
die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am [the one I claim to be],
you will indeed die in your sins.'"
- John
8:58 "I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "before
Abraham was born, I am!"[17]
- John
10:30: "I and the Father are one."
- John
10:38: "But if I do it, even though you do not believe me,
believe the miracles, that you may know and understand that the Father is
in me, and I in the Father."
- John
12:41: "Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus' glory and spoke
about him."—As the context shows, this implied the Tetragrammaton
in Isaiah
6:10 refers to Jesus.
- John
20:28: "Thomas said to him, 'My Lord and my God!'"
- Philippians
2:5–8: "Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God
something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature
of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance
as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a
cross!"
- Colossians
2:9: "For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily
form"
- Titus
2:13: "while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing
of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ."
- 1
Timothy 3:16: "And without controversy great is the mystery of
godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of
angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up
into glory."
- Hebrews
1:8: "But about the Son he [God] says, "Your throne, O God,
will last for ever and ever, and righteousness will be the scepter of your
kingdom."
- 1
John 5:20: "We know also that the Son of God has come and has
given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in
him who is true—even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and
eternal life."
- Revelation
1:17–18: "When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then
he placed his right hand on me and said: "Do not be afraid. I am the
First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive
for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades." This is
seen as significant when viewed with Isaiah
44:6: "This is what the LORD says—Israel's King and Redeemer, the LORD Almighty: I am the first and I am the last;
apart from me there is no God."
The
Bible also refers to Jesus as a man, which is in line with the Trinitarian
concept that Jesus was fully human as well as fully divine which is expressed
through the theological concept of kenosis.
[edit] God alone is the
Savior and the Savior is Jesus
The
Old Testament identifies the LORD as the only
savior, and the New Testament identifies Jesus Christ as God and Savior. These
verses are consistent with Trinitarianism, as well as various nontrinitarian
beliefs (binitarianism, modalism, the Latter-Day Saints' Godhead, Arianism,
etc.).
- Isaiah
43:11: "'I, even I, am the LORD, and apart from me there is no
savior.'"
- Titus
2:10: "and not to steal from them, but to show that they can be
fully trusted, so that in every way they will make the teaching about God
our Savior attractive."
- Titus
3:4: "But when the kindness and love of God our Savior
appeared," in regard with:
- Luke
2:11: "'Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you;
he is Christ the Lord.'"
- Titus
2:13: "while we wait for the blessed hope-the glorious appearing
of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ,"
- John
4:42: "They said to the woman, "We no longer believe just
because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know
that this man [Jesus] really is the Savior of the world.'"
- Titus
3:6: "whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ
our Savior,"
[edit] History
References to the Trinity
A few
verses directly reference the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit:
Matthew
3:16–17: "As soon as Jesus Christ was baptized, he went up out of the
water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God
descending like a dove and lighting on him. 17And a voice from
heaven said, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well
pleased.' " (also Mark
1:10–11; Luke
3:22; John
1:32)
Matthew
28:19: "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them
in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" (see Trinitarian formula).
2
Corinthians 13:14: "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of
God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with all of you."
1
John 5:7–8: "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the
Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are
three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and
these three agree in one." (This is the controversial Comma
Johanneum, which did not appear in Greek texts before the sixteenth
century.)
Luke
1:35: "The angel answered and said to her, 'The Holy Spirit will come
upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that
reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God.' "
Hebrews
9:14: "How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the
eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from
acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!"