How can you say that Jesus is God?
Even given the evidence for the resurrection, many still ask: "Sure, Jesus was a great moral teacher, but could he truly be God?"
Jesus clearly claimed to be God (John 8:58 [ref. Exodus 3:14], John 10:25-38, 12:44-45, also Matthew 10:40, 28:18, 26:63-65, Mark 14:60-62 [ref. Daniel 7:13-14], Luke 5:20-26, 6:5, 10:16, John 2:18-22, 5:17-23, 8:23, 13:13,19-20, 14:6-11, 17:5, Revelation 22:12-13 [ref. Revelation 1:8]). Just in John chapter 5 alone, Jesus makes 6 claims to equality with God: He is equal with God in his person (vv. 17-18); he is equal with God in his works (vv. 19-20); he is equal with God in his power and sovereignty (v. 21); he is equal with God in his judgment (vv.22, 27); he is equal with God in his honor (v. 23); and he has resurrection power (vv. 25-26)!
Given such claims, there are three possibilities as to His identity. Either Jesus was (a) a liar, (b) a lunatic, or (c) Lord.
If Jesus is a liar, then He has deceived more people than any other human. He could not be the greatest liar who ever lived, and also be a great moral teacher. His character is evidence of a person of absolute virtue and integrity. His instruction was pure and profound. He was not a liar.
When reading the words of Jesus, one is struck not only by His sheer intelligence but even more by his authority. O. Quentin Hyder, a practicing psychiatrist in New York City, analyzed the records of Jesus' behavior, personality and relationships for symptoms of psychiatric disorders. He said that the evidence does not support the notion that Jesus was a lunatic. Hyder concluded by saying: "A person is free to maintain that Jesus, out of honest delusion, made His claim to deity. But if one takes this position, he does so without any psychological evidence in its support and, indeed, in spite of considerable evidence to contrary."
Jesus lived a sinless, perfect life. His closest companions confirmed this (1 Peter 1:18-19, 2:21-24, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Hebrews 4:15, 7:26-27, 1 John 2:1, 3:5). Even His enemies, those who betrayed and crucified Him, acknowledged His perfect life (Matthew 27:3-4; Luke 23:14-15, John 8:46). As the most influential person who ever lived, history is measured from Jesus' life. His words, His character, and His influence all attest that Jesus was more than a mortal man.
Jesus' sinless life proves he was from God and was the Messiah as predicted in the Old Testament (Isaiah 53:9). But it is also important because it uniquely qualifies him to be our all-sufficent Savior.
Most people readily admit to Jesus' status as a great moral teacher. We submit that it is inconsistent to admit to Jesus' stature as a great teacher and not believe what he taught. Jesus taught His own deity. He claimed to be God and proved it through His resurrection.
Scripture records that, in time, the apostles fully accepted Christ's claims of deity (Matthew 1:23 [ref. Isaiah 7:14], Matthew 22:41-46, 25:31, Mark 1:2-3 [ref. Isaiah 40:3], Mark 13:31 [ref. Isaiah 40:8], Luke 2:11 [ref. Isaiah 9:6], John 1:1-4, 14, 12:41 (where John unambiguously ties Jesus to God or Yahweh of the Old Testament), John 20:24-31, Acts 2:36, Romans 9:5, Philippians 2:6, Philippians 2:11 (also Romans 10:9-13, where Paul refers to Jesus as Lord, which in Greek is kyrios, which is the same word used for God in the Septuigint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament), Colossians 1:13-19, 2:9, 1 Timothy 3:16, Titus 2:13, Hebrews 1:2-13, 2 Peter 1:1, 1 John 5:20).
Jesus has all the attributes of deity, including omnipotence (Matthew 28:18), omniscience (John 1:48), omnipresence (Matthew 18:20). He did the works of deity such as creation (John 1:3) and raising the dead (John 11:43-44). And he was worshipped as deity (Matthew 14:33).
Read the four biographies of Jesus, that is, the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Decide for yourself whether Jesus really was who he claimed to be.
If Jesus was who He said He was, you and I are under judgment. If we say He was not God, we must somehow reconcile Jesus' message, the evidence, and much of history.
Historically, we can be as certain of what we read about Christ in the Bible as almost any other recorded event. Refusing to believe in Jesus is not because of a lack of evidence. Refusing to believe can only be because we thumb our nose at God, or that we are unwilling to change. People reject Jesus because of moral reasons, not intellectual ones.