How can we know who Jesus truly is?

Apostle John goes out of his way all throughout his gospel to tell us how people responded to Jesus. He doesn’t only tell us what Jesus says and does, but also what peoples reactions were to the things that He says and does. All throughout his ministry, Jesus said outrageous things that everyone who knew of Christ, met Christ or heard Him teach; had an opinion about him. In John 7, you see multiple different responses to Jesus. Some hated him, some thought he was a criminal, some thought he was brilliant, others though he was a miracle worker, and a select few believed he was God in the flesh. But, how does one know? How do we know the truth about who Jesus really was behind all of the opinions and claims that others has about him?

In John 7:17 Jesus tells us that there is a way to know. "If anyones will is to do Gods will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority." The way to know whether or not Jesus is truly who he says he is (God in the flesh, sent from heaven, to pay the penalty for sin.) is to have a willingness to do the will of God. In other words, in order to know that Jesus is the truth, it requires you seeking after him as the truth. Not just with your mind, but also with your actions. Jesus is saying that when you seek me with your mind, and your actions, you will find me. If you only seek Jesus with your mind, you'll become at best an Intellectual. If you only seek Jesus with your actions, you'll become at best a Religious Moralist. But when you seek Him with your mind and actions, your eyes will be open to how truly glorious He actually is.

Jesus: Outrageous Claims

Of all the things that Jesus said during his 3 years of ministry on earth, nothing is as outrageous as his claims to deity. Here in John 5:1-24 we get our first glimpse of Jesus speaking as one who is equal with God. As a matter of fact, He was so persistent in his claims that the Jewish leaders went from persecuting him for his words to scheming on how to kill him. Beyond his claims to being one with God, he also claimed that whatever our view is of him, that is our view of God. In other words, unless we honor Jesus, we cannot honor God. This would be an outrageous claim if this were not true.

However, not only did Christ claim these things but he also proved it. He proved it through his power which he showed in his miracles. He proved it with his wisdom which showed his remarkable knowledge. And he showed it through his resurrection and assention which proved that he had power over life and death.

As outrageous as his claims were, they proved to be true. He is exactly who he claimed to be; God incarnate, the Messiah, the 2nd person in the trinity.