Did Jesus Ever Claim to be God?

Q. Did Jesus ever claim to be God?

A Not directly by saying “I am God’”, but He did many things that only God can do. Many times, Yeshua let you make up your own mind about Him, but there is plenty of evidence to suggest He was. In Jn 10.33 and 8>59 the Jewish authorities were ready to kill Him because they thought He was making that claim. Thomas, after the resurrection, declared him to be his God (Jn 20.28). Paul calls Yeshua God in Titus 2.13 and at the beginning of many epistles (Eph 1.2, Phil 1.2, Col 1.2, 1Thes 1.1, 2 Thes 1.2 he puts Yeshua on equal status with the Father. In Acts 5.31 and Col 3.13 Yeshua is said to have the power to forgive sins.

In Jn 11.25 Yeshua does not simply say that He gives life, but that He IS life. It is a present reality within Him. Only God could pay the penalty for the sins of the whole human race (1Jn 2.2). Now, I can’t explain the “triune” concept of God and neither can anyone else, but it’s there and it is not from paganism as some say. The Father initiates, the Son is the agent through whom the Father works creation, revelation, salvation and the Ruach ha Kodesh (Holy Spirit) is the power of God. There is an internal “order” to this “unity” as well. The Holy Spirit (Ruach) is subordinate to the Father and the Son.

The Son is subordinate to the Father, but that is not the issue we have here in your question. I said all that to set up the answer. In Revelation 19.10, John is told by the angel not to worship him because he is just a fellow servant, and that he was to worship God only. Now, in Matt 2.11, 14.33, 28.9-17, Lk 24.52, Jn 9.38 and other passages, Yeshua is worshipped. The word for worship in Revelation 19.10 is the same word used in the other verses. Yeshua does not stop them like the angel did. Worship is reserved for God only, therefore, by Yeshua’s own actions we see a direct claim to what rightfully belongs to the Lord only, so, in my opinion, I believe Yeshua is God Himself manifested in the flesh.

He accepted worship, forgave sin, grace and mercy come from Him, and He is life itself. These things can only be said of the Lord. So, we have the witness of the Father, Yeshua’s witness, the witness in the Scriptures of those that knew Him, and the witness of His enemies that Yeshua is the Lord Himself.