“Christ’s sonship preceded His mission and is the foundation of it. He lived in a relationship of love with His “Father” even “before the foundation of the world” (John 17:24).
The Bible not only calls Jesus the Son of God, but also names Him God (Hebrew El or Elohim, Greek theos). Isaiah prophesied that the child to be born to us would be “the mighty God” (Isa. 9:6), a title of the Lord God, Jehovah (10:20–21; cf. Jer. 32:18).
The psalmist addresses Christ as “God” when attributing to Him an eternal dominion (Ps. 45:6), which the New Testament cites to prove Christ is superior to the angels (Heb. 1:7–9). John writes, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1).
Thomas reverently addressed the risen Christ as “My LORD and my God” (20:28). There are other Scripture passages that, when analyzed in the Greek text, also appear to use “God” for Christ.
The New Testament often calls Christ the Lord. Sometimes “Lord” (kyrios) may mean “master” or “sir” (Matt. 10:24; 13:27). However, Christ is “the Lord of glory” (1 Cor. 2:8), the “Lord of lords” (1 Tim. 6:15; Rev. 17:14; 19:16), and the “Lord of all” (Acts 10:36).
These are titles of deity. The centurion of Capernaum addressed Christ as “Lord” when the soldier said he was not worthy for Christ to enter his house, but Jesus could heal his sick servant merely by speaking the word (Luke 7:6–7).
Christ was already Lord at His birth, was still Lord on the cross, and was manifestly Lord on the third day after that, when it was proclaimed, “The Lord is risen indeed” (2:11; 23:42; 24:34).
“Lord” is the term used to translate the divine name Jehovah (YHWH) from the Old Testament. When the New Testament quotes Old Testament statements about Jehovah and applies them to Jesus as “Lord,” it is clear that God’s Word is calling Jesus “Jehovah.”
Other names attributed to Christ also reveal His deity. He is Immanuel (Isa. 7:14), which means “God with us” (Matt. 1:23). Charles Spurgeon (1834–1892) said, “Believer, he is God with thee, to protect thee; thou art not alone.”
Especially, Spurgeon said, Christ is God with us “by the influence of the Holy Spirit” to illuminate, convict, convert, and comfort us. He is called The LORD Our Righteousness (Jer. 23:6), a name that combines the divine name (YHWH) with the promise of a Davidic king who would reign in justice and righteousness (v. 5).
Jesus says, “Before Abraham was, I am [egō eimi]” (John 8:58). The striking use of the present tense for Christ’s existence in the distant past identifies him as I Am, the One who revealed himself to Moses, saying, “I AM THAT I AM” (egō eimi ho ōn, Ex. 3:14 LXX), the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (v. 15).
Christ is the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last (Rev. 22:13; cf. 1:17; 2:8), the titles of the Almighty (1:8), the only God (Isa. 44:6).
By claiming the first and last letters in the Greek alphabet, Christ asserted Himself to be the Creator who made all things, the One whom all things will ultimately glorify, and the Lord who calls into existence every generation in between in an orderly manner (41:4).
It is a tremendous comfort to know that Jesus is our Lord and our God, Immanuel, the Alpha and Omega. In Him perfect majesty and meekness meet for our benefit. Godefridus Udemans (c. 1581–1649) said, “If we believe in Christ as Lord, He is also our friend and brother (John 15:15; 20:17).”
What a friend we have in Jesus!
The experiential knowledge of the Lord’s names ignites saving faith in our hearts. Psalm 9:10 says, “They that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.”
Psalm 91:14 says, “Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.” Therefore, use Christ’s names like windows in which you can see the face of your Savior, so to speak.
Trust Him to be what He says He is and love Him supremely for the sake of His name.”
–Joel R. Beeke and Paul M. Smalley, Reformed Systematic Theology, Volume 2: Man and Christ (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2020), 2: 751–753.
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