The Christ in Prophecy Journal

Increasing Attacks on the Deity of Christ


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Who does the Bible say that Jesus is?

In this interview, Dr. David Reagan and I discuss the end time prophetic significance of the increasing attacks on the character of Christ, later televised on our program Christ in Prophecy.

Dr. Reagan: The Bible clearly says that Jesus is God in the flesh. That is who He was, that is who He is — that He’s God in the flesh. That is taught in both the Old Testament and the New Testament as you well know. For example, one of the major prophecies in the Old Testament about the Messiah is that He would be Emmanuel.

Nathan Jones: Meaning, “God with us,” right?

Dr. Reagan: Yes, “God with us,” that’s what Emmanuel means in Hebrew. In Isaiah 9:6 it says that He will be Mighty God and Everlasting Father, among the other titles that are given to Him like Prince of Peace. Well, you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out that the Messiah is going to be God in the flesh from just those two prophecies alone.

Jesus also claimed to be the Messiah, so if He truly was the Messiah He then was God in the flesh. At His baptism God spoke from the heavens and the voice that was heard said, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” The Jews themselves recognized that if you claim to be the Son of God you were claiming to be deity in the flesh. In fact, when Jesus would use that term for Himself they would immediately cry, “You are a blasphemer because you are claiming to be God in the flesh.” They knew what he meant.

Nathan Jones: They were always ready to stone him over His claim of being deity, right?

Dr. Reagan: Well, yes, that is right. In Revelation 1, God speaks and says, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, I am the beginning and the end.” But, in Revelation 21 Jesus says, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, I am the beginning and the end.” Things equal to the same thing are equal to each other, and that is one of the fundamental principles I learned in geometry and it is true here. Here is God saying, “I am the beginning and the end” and here is Jesus saying “I am the beginning and the end.” God and Jesus are one. Jesus was God in the flesh. That incidentally is one of the strongest arguments to use against a Jehovah’s Witness who claims that Jesus was not God in the flesh, to refer to Revelation 1 and Revelation 21.

In John 3:16, probably the best known verse in all the Bible, God said “I am sending my only begotten Son.” So, these are just a few examples that I could give, and examples that I do give in my book Jesus the Lamb and the Lion which includes biblical facts that Jesus truly was who He said He was, that He was God in the flesh.

But, the world tries to write Jesus off as merely a good man, or a great prophet, or a great teacher, but nothing beyond that. Being just a man is all that Jesus is to the world. For example, Islam recognizes Jesus as a great prophet, and even humanists and atheists and agnostics will say, “Oh, well, he was a great man and possibly even one of the greatest men who ever lived. He was probably the greatest teacher who ever lived, but that is all he was.”

One of my favorite writers is C.S. Lewis. He was an intellectual with a photographic memory. He was a great professor of Medieval English at Oxford University.

Nathan Jones: Most would remember him for The Chronicles of Narnia books and movies.

Dr. Reagan: Besides The Chronicles of Narnia series he also wrote many, many books. What most people don’t know is that he was an agnostic until the age of 30, and it was when he was about 30 years old that he came to accept the Lord.

In Lewis’ book Mere Christianity, he tells some of the reasons why he finally came to the Lord, and one of them had to do with having to come to grips with who Jesus Christ is. He wrote a statement that has become a classic in Christian literature. I want to read this statement because it is a great argument. Lewis says, “I am trying here to prevent anyone from saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Jesus. I am ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I can’t accept His claim to be God.” That is what people say, but now here is what he says, “That is the one thing that we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things that Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic, on the level with a man who says he is a poached egg, or else He would be the devil of hell. You must make your choice, either this man was and is the Son of God, or else a mad man or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill as a demon, or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us, He did not intend to.”

Certainly, a good man does not go around saying, “I forgive you of your sins. I grant you salvation.” He would be either a lunatic, a mad man, or He is who He said He was — God in the flesh.

Nathan Jones: Jesus would also be a liar, and if He was a liar He wasn’t a good man.

In the next part of this series discussing the increasing attacks on Christianity and Christ, I’ll question Dr. Reagan about how one can prove that Jesus is God in the flesh.

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Dr. Nathan E. Jones

As the Internet Evangelist at Lamb & Lion Ministries, Nathan reaches out to the over 4.5 billion people accessible over the Internet with the Good News of Jesus Christ. He also co-hosts the ministry's television program Christ in Prophecy and podcast The Truth Will Set You Free.

4 CommentsLeave a Comment

  • Hello Nathan

    This has evoked a precious memory of my youngest son who absolutely LOVED 'The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe'; he had all the Narnia books.

    My eldest Grandson totally 'got it' that Jesus died in his place on the cross thanks to reading about Aslan' dying in the place of Edmund.

    Has Dr.Reagan done an article on 'The Kingdom of God/Heaven'?

    It seems to be largely neglected; and not understanding the fact that we are NOT presently living in a kingdom, because Jesus is yet to receive the throne of David as is promised; decieves folk into believing they are now building it!

    It's lovely to think of the Son snuggled up beside the Father on His throne in heaven – and we, are cooched up together in Him until Jesus is given the throne and He comes to receive it… GLORY!

    Maranatha!

  • It is certainly amazing how the Holy Spirit speaks to us just at the right times and in ways that we can understand. It came to my attention recently that the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Heaven are referring to two seperate ideas. One being Universal and one being Messianic. God lets us know what we 'need' to know when we need it. Just as Jesus let his followers know what they needed throughout His ministry. This is just one other proof to Jesus' deity. God Bless!

  • Hello Lily

    Certainly, as you say, there is the Universal, Eternal Sovereign rule of God of the heavens, the earth, the seasons and everything in them, which has always existed. That has no conditions attached. Daniel 7 and 2 are important in this.

    Yes, in addition, there is the specific rule of God over the earth and mankind which He performs through a 'go-between'. I think that’s officially called the Theocratic Rule when God uses a mediator? It’s when God limits Himself to keep boundaries with Covenants with mankind.
    Adam was made in the likeness of God to rule over earth’s creation, so it is historical, having a beginning, but of course he lost it at the fall.

    There was no earthly kingdom until Mount Sinai when God gave it to Israel – but that didn’t last long and the glory of the Lord was seen by Ezekiel to gradually depart the Temple. There was no earthly kingdom rule until the Messiah came – but was rejected, and right now there is no kingdom rule on earth, UNTIL Jesus returns to claim the throne of David to begin the 1000 year Messianic Kingdom after he has cleansed the earth by the 70th Week judgments. After the 1000 years, His Kingdom goes into an Eternal reign.

    I don’t know what Dr.Reagan teaches on this; so he may not agree with me; but as far as I am concerned, the Kingdom of Heaven/God; is one and the same, not different as some claim. Matthew was writing to the Jews, so out of respect for their feelings he didn’t use the phrase ‘kingdom of G-d’ but changed it to ‘kingdom of heaven’ for their sakes. The same events in the other gospels they use the phrase the ‘kingdom of heaven’.

    Yes, it’s certain evidence that Jesus is God as he is now seated at the right hand of God the Father (UNTIL he makes all of his enemies His footstool) where He is making continual intercession for His Body on earth. He is said to be in ‘session’ like in a court of law. That’s my understanding, but as I say, Dr. Reagan may see it differently?

    Whatever, the ‘Kingdom Now’ teaching is absolutely wrong. That theory isn’t based on the Bible at all. It began in the late 19th C. to do with the so called ‘Social Gospel’. It’s linked with Darwin’s godless theory of Evolution that says man is getting better, evolving up! Huh! So they are trying to establish a kingdom on earth through social reform and politics – Marxism = Communism, but I’m not at all clear on all that garbage. Other than since it started up, mankind can now destroy itself many times over instead of just a few at a time.

    Nice chatting to you Lily. 🙂

  • Hello Expected,
    Thank you for your indepth comments. They help clarify a lot for me. I agree that the Kingdom of Heaven/God are one. Just as God and Jesus are one, but are also seperate as needed on earth/heaven to get 'all this mess cleaned up.' I look forward to understanding more and more as the Holy Spirit leads.
    God Bless!

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