John 8:14 Jesus answered, "Even if I do bear witness about myself, my testimony is true, for I know where I came from and where I am going, but you do not know where I come from or where I am going.
14 ἀπεκρίθη Ἰησοῦς καὶ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· κἂν ἐγὼ μαρτυρῶ περὶ ἐμαυτοῦ, ἀληθής ἐστιν ἡ μαρτυρία μου, ὅτι οἶδα πόθεν ἦλθον καὶ ποῦ ὑπάγω· ὑμεῖς δὲ οὐκ οἴδατε πόθεν ἔρχομαι ἢ ποῦ ὑπάγω.
This is a very bold statement, though it may not seem that way at first glance. Jesus was teaching in the temple and the Pharisees challenged His testimony. After all, it doesn't make sense for anyone to testify about himself. Of course he is going to validate what he is doing. That's what men do.
But what if the one testifying is not just a man? What if He is fully God and fully man? That changes everything. Then we can trust ἀληθής ἐστιν ἡ μαρτυρία μου. His testimony is true because He is God. God cannot lie. This is of course still self-affirming. However, as we put it together with everything else we see about Jesus in Scripture, we see this as yet another reference to His divinity.
There are many who say that Jesus never claimed to be God. Those folks have to spend more time reading what He actually said. We can confidently worship Him knowing that He is indeed divine.
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4 comments:
Greetings Jason
There are many scriptural reasons why bible-believing Christians say that Jesus never claimed to be God.
(BTW, neither in John 8.14, is there a claim by Jesus that he is GOD! Look at it again!)
As a summarization of some these reasons, I recommend this video:
The Human Jesus
Take a couple of hours to watch it; and prayerfully it will aid you in your quest for truth.
Yours In Messiah
Adam Pastor
Adam,
Thank you for stopping by. To be honest, with all that I have going on I don't have the time to watch a two-hour video defending what I consider to be heretical. I would maintain that either you are right or I am right, but we cannot both be right. Therefore, we cannot both be "bible-believing Christians." You think you are and I think I am. But one of us has got Jesus wrong.
What I don't understand is why the Pharisees would have been so upset if He was not claiming divinity. Why stone him if John 8:58 was not meant to take them to Exodus 3:14?
Well at the very least,
read these two articles,
and prayerfully you well see
that there is absolutely no connection between Exo 3.14 & John 8.58 at all!
Did Jesus really claim to be God in John 8:58? Or is your
translation misleading you?
Is Jesus the "I AM?"
BTW, the Pharisees got upset because Jesus said to them:
a) You are from beneath,
you are of this world. - v23
b) You will die in your sins - v24
c) You are slaves to sin - vs. 33-34
d) You are not truly Abraham's children - v39
e) Your father is the devil - v44
f) You are not of GOD - v47
And the final straw was
g) asserting that he, Jesus, in answer to their question in v. 53;
was greater than their father Abraham!
Hence verses 56 & 58
However, do endeavor to make time to watch the video.
Yours In Messiah
Adam Pastor
The Human Jesus
Adam --
Translating ego eimi as "I am he" makes no sense in this context. This is only being done by your writers because they have decided that it cannot possibly be a reference to Exodus 3:14, not based on grammar. I am unconvinced by either article. My translation is not deceiving me because I know how to read Koine Greek. In fact, this conversation encourages me to keep my Greek sharp.
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