IS YESHUA/JESUS GOD?
This is not a small question.
Who is Yeshua?
Was He a prophet?
The Messiah?
The Son of God?
Is He God?
Many people have been told an answer to that question.
But we don't want you to believe something simply because someone told you what to believe.
We want to open the Scriptures and see what they say.
We are going to begin with something that appears in the very first words of the Bible:
“In the beginning...”
Let's open the Word.
IN THE BEGINNING
Genesis 1:1–3
Begin with the opening words of Scripture.
“In the beginning...”
Don't rush past them.
Read Genesis 1:1–3 carefully.
God is there in the beginning.
God creates.
Then notice how creation begins to take shape:
God speaks.
“Then God said...”
- Who is present “in the beginning”?
- Who creates the heavens and the earth?
- What happens when God speaks?
- What relationship do you see between God's Word and creation?
Keep the phrase “In the beginning” in mind.
We are going to see it again.
BY THE WORD OF YHWH
Psalm 33:6, 9
Now let Scripture help us understand what we just saw in Genesis.
Read Psalm 33:6.
Then read verse 9.
Pay attention to the language.
The heavens were made “by the word of YHWH.”
“He spoke, and it was done.”
- According to the psalmist, how were the heavens made?
- What happens when YHWH speaks?
- Does this sound like the creation account you just read in Genesis?
- What role does the Word of YHWH have in creation?
MY WORD GOES FORTH
Isaiah 55:10–11
Now listen to YHWH speak through Isaiah.
YHWH compares His Word to rain and snow coming down from heaven.
Then He says:
“So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth.”
His Word goes forth.
His Word accomplishes what He desires.
His Word succeeds in the purpose for which He sends it.
Don't make Isaiah say more than Isaiah says.
Isaiah has not yet told us that the Word is a person.
For now, simply notice what the text actually tells us.
- Whose Word is being described?
- Where does the Word come from?
- What does YHWH say His Word accomplishes?
- What does YHWH say about sending His Word?
Keep those observations with you.
Now we are ready to open the Gospel of John.
Study path contributed by Hector Castillo, Corner Fringe Dixon.
IN THE BEGINNING WAS THE WORD
John 1:1–3
Now read John's opening words carefully.
“In the beginning...”
You have heard those words before.
Go back and compare John 1:1 with Genesis 1:1.
Then continue reading.
John tells us:
“In the beginning was the Word.”
“The Word was with God.”
“The Word was God.”
Then John tells us something else:
“All things came into being through Him.”
Stop here.
Don't move to verse 14 yet.
Let John's words stand.
- What phrase does John use to begin his Gospel?
- Where have you seen that phrase before?
- According to John, when did the Word already exist?
- Who was the Word with?
- What does John say the Word was?
- According to verse 3, what came into existence through the Word?
Compare this with Genesis 1 and Psalm 33.
- What connections do you see?
AND THE WORD BECAME FLESH
John 1:14–18
Now continue reading.
John has already told us:
The Word was there in the beginning.
The Word was with God.
The Word was God.
Creation came into being through the Word.
Now John tells us:
“And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us.”
Something has happened.
The Word we have been following from the beginning has entered into human life.
- What happened to the Word?
- Did John say the Word began to exist when He became flesh?
- Or had John already placed the Word “in the beginning”?
- What does John say the Word was in verse 1?
- What does John now say happened to that Word in verse 14?
- At this point, who do you think John is describing?
Don't settle the question yet.
Keep reading.
WHO IS THE WORD?
John 1:14–18
John 1:29–34
Don't leave “the Word” as an abstract idea.
Follow John's testimony.
The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.
John the Baptist then testifies concerning the One who has come.
Read what John says.
Then return to the beginning of the chapter.
- Who is John the Baptist testifying about?
- Who is called the Lamb of God?
- Who is identified as the Son of God?
- Who, then, is the Word who became flesh?
Now return to John 1:1.
- What did John say the Word was?
RETURN TO THE QUESTION
You began with a question:
Is Yeshua/Jesus God?
Now trace what you have read.
Genesis begins:
“In the beginning...”
God creates by speaking.
Psalm 33 tells us that the heavens were made by the Word of YHWH.
Isaiah tells us that YHWH sends forth His Word and that His Word accomplishes His purpose.
John begins:
“In the beginning...”
The Word was there.
The Word was with God.
The Word was God.
Everything that came into being came into being through Him.
Then John tells us:
“The Word became flesh.”
And John identifies the One who came among us.
Now return to the Scriptures themselves.
- What does John say about the Word in John 1:1?
- What happened to the Word according to John 1:14?
- Who does John identify as the One who came among us?
- Based on the Scriptures you have read, what can you establish about Yeshua?
- Which Scriptures establish that conclusion for you?
WHAT WE BELIEVE
We don't want to hide what we believe.
At Corner Fringe, we believe Scripture clearly identifies Yeshua as God.
We believe the Word who was with God and was God in the beginning is the Word who became flesh and dwelt among us—Yeshua the Messiah.
But we don't want you to believe that simply because we said it.
Go back to the Scriptures you have read.
Test what we have said against the Word of God.
Your conviction should not rest on our ability to convince you.
It should rest on what you can establish from Scripture.
BUT DON'T STOP HERE
This is an important discovery.
But a question this important deserves more than one passage.
If Yeshua is God, we should expect the rest of Scripture to bear witness to who He is.
And there are difficult questions we should not avoid.
If Yeshua is God:
Why does He pray to the Father?
Why is He called the Son of God?
Why does He speak about being sent by the Father?
Why does He say, “the Father is greater than I”?
Why does Scripture distinguish between the Father and the Son?
Those are not questions to be afraid of.
They are reasons to keep opening the Word.
WHAT WILL YOU DO WITH WHAT YOU HAVE READ?
Return one more time to the question that brought you here:
Is Yeshua/Jesus God?
What answer can you establish from Scripture?
Which Scriptures establish that answer for you?
If you disagree with what we believe, ask yourself the same question:
What Scriptures establish your conclusion?
Keep opening the Word.
Keep testing what you believe.
And then consider one final question:
If what you have discovered about Yeshua is true, what response does it require from you?
Don't answer because of what Corner Fringe believes.
Don't answer because someone made a convincing argument.
Let the Word of God shape both what you believe about Yeshua and how you respond to Him.
If you still have questions, write them down.
Don't be afraid of them.
They may show you where to open the Word next.