Faith and Self Defense

Is Jesus God? (Part 9)

In our last study, we saw how Jesus blinded the chief persecutor of His followers, Saul of Tarsus, and informed Saul that He was going to use him to carry His Name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel.

The Book of Acts was written by a Gentile (Luke). That’s a powerful statement in itself. Why would the Holy Spirit inspire a Gentile to write what was first a story about God’s offer of the Messiah to Israel? What happened to change that? As we read through Acts, we quickly see the reason. Israel’s leaders rejected God’s gracious offer. They killed the Messiah and refused to bow to Him even after Jesus Rose from the grave and ascended to the Throne of God. The message of the 12 Apostles was clear that Jesus was ready to return and establish His Messianic Kingdom if they would repent  (Acts 3:19-23). How did Israel’s leaders respond to the call of the Apostles to repentance? The leaders killed many of the Lord’s followers in an attempt to snuff out what God was doing in Israel. So, what did Jesus do? He appeared to the chief persecutor of His followers and changed him into the leader of God’s new way of managing His household (Ephesians 3:1-11).

Jesus personally called Saul (Paul) to follow Him and carry His Name before the Gentiles, their kings, and before the people of Israel. So what did Saul tell people about Jesus?

“Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. All those who heard him were astonished and asked, ‘Isn’t he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?’ Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ.” Acts 9:19-22

How does someone go from arresting people who believed that Jesus is Christ, the Son of God, to preaching that Jesus is Christ, the Son of God? Simple. Saul personally met Jesus Christ, the Son of God. That first meeting had a profound impact on Saul’s heart and mind and on the plans he had for his life. That life-changing event was Saul’s testimony and he often told the story when he spoke with people about the change in his spiritual life.

“Indeed, I myself thought I must do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. This I also did in Jerusalem, and many of the saints I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests; and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them . And I punished them often in every synagogue and compelled themto blaspheme; and being exceedingly enraged against them, I persecuted them even to foreign cities. While thus occupied, as I journeyed to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests, at midday, O king, along the road I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who journeyed with me. And when we all had fallen to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me and saying in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ So I said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But rise and stand on your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you. I will deliver you from the Jewish people, as well as from the Gentiles, to whom I now send you, to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.’ Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance.” Acts 26:9-20

Paul discovered that he had been fighting against God, but instead of God destroying him Jesus said He would make Paul a minister and a witness of the things which he had seen and the things Jesus would reveal to him in the future. The purpose? “… to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.”

Paul did receive many revelations directly from Christ. He made it clear throughout his ministry that the Gospel message he preached came through the revelation of Jesus Christ (Galatians 1:11-12; Ephesians 3:3) and not from the teachings of any man. Paul told the Corinthians that Jesus had given him many visions and revelations and that he had even been caught up into Paradise.

“I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago—whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows—such a one was caught up to the third heaven. And I know such a man—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows— how he was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.” 2 Corinthians 12:2-4

This was a remarkable experience for Paul and one that would strengthen him throughout his life. Jesus showed Paul Paradise and allowed him to hear “inexpressible words” which he was not allowed to repeat. The Greek is arrhetos rhema and carries the idea of words that are too sacred to be spoken.

When Paul taught, preached and wrote, he spoke as a man who had been with God – similar to how Moses spoke with God face to face. Paul met Jesus Christ face to face and was well qualified to speak about the Lord’s Deity. We’ll look at that in the next part of our study.

In Christ’s Love and Grace,

Mark McGee

Faith Defense

Building Confidence Through Evidence

“Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”

Is Jesus God? (Part 8)

In our last study, we learned about the importance of what Stephen claimed about Jesus being the “Son of Man” and how angry it made the leaders of Israel – angry enough to kill Stephen. We also met a young man named Saul who consented to Stephen’s death.

We learn from Acts 8 that a great persecution arose from the believers assembled at Jerusalem. It was so great that it scattered all of them throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except for the apostles who remained in Jerusalem. Saul became a leading persecutor of believers and “made havoc” with them, “entering every house, and dragging off men and women, committing them to prison.” (Acts 8:3)

This persecution did not deter the disciples of Christ from preaching about Jesus. What it did was spread God’s Message throughout the land. So, Saul went looking for followers of the Way.

“Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.” Acts 9:1-2

Jesus had other plans for Saul and revealed Himself to the chief persecutor in a unique way.

“As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’ And he said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ Then the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ So he, trembling and astonished, said, ‘Lord, what do You want me to do?’ Then the Lord said to him, ‘Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” Acts 9:3-6

Saul had a heart for God, but it was misguided. Nothing Saul had seen so far had influenced him to change his mind about Jesus – not the faith of the believers, not their testimony of believing that Jesus was the Messiah of Israel, not even their personal sacrifice. Jesus had a plan for Saul’s life and knew how to reach him. Saul immediately recognized that he was in the presence of a superior power – “Who are You, Lord?” – Saul said. Jesus revealed Himself in the clearest terms Saul would understand – “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.”

A quick note about “the goads.” A goad was a long rod with a pointed end (often a sharp piece of metal attached to a wooden rod) used to control oxen. The sharp end of the goad was placed on the flesh of the oxen to control and guide them. If the oxen didn’t go where they were supposed to go, the farmer would push a little harder on the goad to move the oxen in the right direction. Oxen would often kick against the goad because of the pain, but the farmer would just push harder until the oxen finally submitted to the farmer’s will. Jesus used that terminology in showing Saul that what he was doing was misguided and he needed to submit to God’s Will.

God’s Will for Saul was something the Lord determined for him before Creation. That’s an amazing thing to consider, but it was Paul (Saul) who said -”For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.” (Ephesians 1:4) Paul included himself in that “us.” God chose Paul and other believers in the sphere of Christ before He Created the world to be “holy and blameless in his sight.” The Lord’s calling to Saul on the road to Damascus had been determined long before – thousands of years before. Here’s what happened next:

“The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything. In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, ‘Ananias!’ ‘Yes, Lord,’ he answered. The Lord told him, ‘Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.’ ‘Lord,’ Ananias answered, ‘I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem. And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.’ But the Lord said to Ananias, ‘Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.’ Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, ‘Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.’ Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, and after taking some food, he regained his strength.” Acts 9:7-19

Did you see that? Jesus told Ananias that Saul was His “chosen instrument” to carry His Name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. Fascinating! Saul was a “chosen instrument.” The Greek words are skeuos ekloges – “a vessel of choice.” The word skeuos was used for vessels or implements of various kinds – often used to carry out household duties. As we will see later, God was going to change the way He managed His household and would use Saul (Paul) as His vessel for that change. The word was also a common Greek metaphor for the human body because people in the 1st Century viewed souls as living temporarily in the body. Paul was a vessel of God’s choice. The word ekloges means “to pick out, choose for ones self.”

In the next part of our study, we’ll look at how God used Saul (Paul) to reach the Gentile world and what he told them about the Deity of Jesus Christ.

In Christ’s Love and Grace,

Mark McGee

Faith Defense

Building Confidence Through Evidence

“Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”

Is Jesus God? (Part 7)

In our last study, we learned the beliefs of the 12 Apostles about the Deity of Jesus Christ. They all believed Jesus is the Son of God – the Eternal God. Those were exciting and dangerous days following the Lord’s return to Heaven. The Apostles preached the Gospel of the Kingdom and called on the people and leaders of Israel to repent of their wickedness in killing the Son of God. Even though they were arrested and warned not to preach in the Name of Jesus, the Apostles continued to speak boldly about the Messiah that the leaders had killed but God had raised from the dead.

As we read through the early chapters in Acts, we see the Apostles’ primary message was that Jesus Christ was Israel’s Messiah – “And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ” (Acts 5:42). The number of believers in Jerusalem continued to grow and the Apostles needed help so they could continue in prayer and preaching. That led to the selection of seven godly men to help in the daily distribution of food to the Grecian widows. One of those men was named Stephen. Stephen was “a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit” (Acts 6:5). Stephen was full of faith and power and did great wonders and signs among the people. Some Jews from the Synagogue of the Freedmen tried to dispute Stephen’s claims about Jesus being the Messiah, but they were not able to resist his wisdom and the Spirit by which he spoke. Those Jews induced men to lie about Stephen, saying he spoke blasphemous words against Moses and God. They stirred up the people, the elders, and the scribes to seize Stephen and drag him before the Sanhedrin Council. They set up false witnesses who continued to say that Stephen spoke blasphemy against the Law of Moses and the Temple of God.

The Council gave Stephen the opportunity to answer the charges against him and he did so with great power. Stephen rehearsed the history of Israel and things seemed to be going along alright until he said these words:

“You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you. Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who foretold the coming of the Just One, of whom you now have become the betrayers and murderers, who have received the law by the direction of angels and have not kept it.” Acts 7:51-53

Those words cut so deep into the minds and hearts of Stephen’s enemies that they gnashed at him with their teeth. Then, Stephen did something that brought everything crashing in on him. Being full of the Holy Spirit, Stephen gazed into Heaven and saw the Glory of God, and Jesus standing at the Right Hand of God, and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” The leaders of Israel instantly understood that Stephen was identifying Jesus with God and ran at him with one accord. They pushed Stephen outside the city and stoned him to death.

Before we move on, let’s look at the term Son of Man. Jesus referred to Himself as the “Son of Man” more than 80 times during His Ministry. It was a term the Jews of that time knew well because it was part of a famous prophecy in the Old Testament concerning the promised Messiah.

“I was watching in the night visions, And behold, One like the Son of Man, Coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, And they brought Him near before Him. Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, That all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, Which shall not pass away, And His kingdom the one Which shall not be destroyed.” Daniel 7:13-14

Jesus often called Himself the Son of Man while describing activities ascribed only to God. Here are some examples from Matthew’s Gospel.

“But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins’—then He said to the paralytic, ‘Arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.” Matthew 9:6

“For the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.” Matthew 12:8

“The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.” Matthew 13:41-42

“When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, ‘Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?’ So they said, ‘Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Simon Peter answered and said, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’ Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 16:13-17

“So Jesus said to them, “Assuredly I say to you, that in the regeneration, when the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” Matthew 19:28

“Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.” Matthew 24:30

“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.” Matthew 25:31

“Jesus said to him, ‘It is as you said. Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.” Matthew 26:64

No wonder that the leaders of Israel attacked Stephen with such rage. He was accusing them of murdering Jesus and saying that Jesus was alive in Heaven and standing at the Right Hand of God Himself!

“And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul … Now Saul was consenting to his death.” Acts 7:58; 8:1a

This was the beginning of a great attack on those who followed Jesus. Saul of Tarsus was a young law student who was determined to destroy the sect of the Way in Jerusalem.

“At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. And devout men carried Stephen to his burial, and made great lamentation over him. As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering every house, and dragging off men and women, committing them to prison.” Acts 8:1b-3

Saul led the charge against those who believed in Jesus Christ, but God had other plans for him – as we’ll see in the next part of our study.

In Christ’s Love and Grace,

Mark McGee

Faith Defense

Building Confidence Through Evidence

“Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”

Is Jesus God? (Part 6)

Witnesses To The Deity of Jesus Christ

In our last study, we saw the powerful message of the Apostles on Pentecost. Peter presented Jesus as being “exalted to the right hand of God” and made it clear that people had to repent. Thousands of Jews became believers that day and were baptized. The Holy Spirit performed many wonders and signs through the Apostles and the believers continued steadfastly in the teaching and fellowship of the Apostles, and in the breaking of bread and in prayers. Everyone had everything in common. They sold their possessions and goods and divided the money among everyone as anyone had need.

An important question here is what happened to the Apostles’ teaching about the Deity of Jesus Christ? Did that change in any way during the months and years that followed Pentecost? We don’t have to look far to find the answer to our question. The Book of Acts is filled with evidence of that belief.

The Apostle Peter called Jesus Christ “the Holy One and the Just” and told Jews in Jerusalem that they had “killed the Prince of life.” Peter claimed that “faith in His name” was what healed people (Acts 3:14-16). Peter also reminded the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah of Israel and the Prophet Moses had promised centuries before (Acts 3:18-26). Peter was as bold in his proclamations about Jesus with the chief priests, scribes, elders, and rulers of Israel as he was with the people on the streets of Jerusalem. Peter stood up to them after he was arrested and told them they had “murdered” Jesus by hanging him on a tree, but “Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.” (Acts 5:31) That statement greatly angered the chief priests and rulers and they plotted how to kill Peter and the other Apostles.

The rulers of Israel had more to be concerned about than just the Apostles. The Jews who were believing the Apostles’ teaching were also becoming a problem. Their faith and knowledge was growing stronger every day. A powerful example of that was a man named Stephen. He was described as a man “full of faith, power and the Holy Spirit” (Acts 6:5, 8). Stephen’s teaching and wisdom was so powerful that a group of men secretly induced men to lie about Stephen and say that he spoke blasphemous words against Moses and God. The group stirred up the people, elders and scribes to seize Stephen and bring him to the ruling council. False witnesses came before the council and lied about what Stephen was teaching.

The council looked at Stephen and his face was like that of an angel (Acts 6:15). The high priest asked Stephen if the things being said against him were true. That question gave Stephen the opportunity to proclaim one of the most powerful messages in the Book of Acts. He began with God calling Abram out of Mesopotamia and continued to rehearse the history of Israel through the days of Moses. Then, Stephen aimed his message directly at the priests and elders of Israel.

“You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you. Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who foretold the coming of the Just One, of whom you now have become the betrayers and murderers, who have received the law by the direction of angels and have not kept it.” Acts 7:51-53

That enraged the rulers and they gnashed at him with their teeth, but Stephen, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into Heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. That’s when Stephen said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” (Acts 7:56) When the rulers heard Stephen call Jesus the “Son of Man” and place Him standing at the right hand of God, they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord. That’s because Stephen was equating Jesus with God Himself. They dragged Stephen outside of the city and stoned him to death. Even as Stephen was dying, he asked God not to charge the sin against the men who were killing him (Acts 7:57-60).

We see evidence of what people believed about Jesus from the teaching of the Apostles. For instance, Philip had been chosen along with Stephen to help the Apostles with the daily feeding of the widows in Jerusalem. Many of the disciples were scattered after Stephen’s death, including Philip who went to the city of Samaria and preached Christ to the people there. Acts 8 tells us that Philip worked miracles before the people – casting out demons and healing the sick – and the people believed Philip’s message and there was great joy in the city (Acts 8:6-8). What was Philip’s message and what did people believe about Jesus?

“And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship,Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet.Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot.And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth:In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth. And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man? Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus. And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” Acts 8:26-37

Philip preached what he had been taught by the Apostles – he preached Jesus. What does that mean? According to what we see in Acts 8, it means Philip preached that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Keep in mind that the eunuch did not have time to attend seminary and learn what to say when people asked him theological questions. He said what he believed at the earliest moment of his faith – “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” That was the Apostolic teaching.

In our next study, we’ll look at the beginning of a huge shift in the way God worked with people on earth. When God changed the rules of the household, did He also change the message about Christ’s Deity?

In Christ’s Love and Grace,

Mark McGee

Faith Defense

Building Confidence Through Evidence

“Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”