Jesus: To Believe or Not to Believe
John 20:24-31
Scripture tells us to be prepared to give an answer for the hope within us (1 Peter 3:15). But sometimes our minds go blank when we are asked a “faith” question. How should we reply to someone who asks why we believe Jesus is the Lord God?
First, we can point to His relationship to His Father. God Himself proclaimed at the beginning and again at the end of the Lord’s ministry that Jesus is His beloved Son. (Matthew 3:17, 17:5) If Jesus is not divine, then He cannot be the Son of God. Jesus testified that He and the Father are one. (John 10:30) Jesus could not be merely a man and still be one with God.
Second, we can also identify Jesus’ relationship to His past. The Lord told the Jewish leaders who knew God as the great “I AM” (Exodus 3:14), “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am” (John 8:58). Jesus also explained that He was with God before the world began and shared God’s glory. (John 17:5) His testimony reveals that He is eternally the Son of God and eternally God.
Finally, we can point to the declaration by the apostle Paul. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he proclaimed that Jesus is the image of the invisible God and that all things were created by Him. (Colossians 1:15-16) This points to Jesus’ position in the Godhead – Father, Son, and Spirit.
Use these truths about Jesus to strengthen your own faith and help other people move from questions to certainty about who Jesus is.
Daily Devotions with Dr. Charles Stanlley, InTouch Ministries