JESUS CHRIST: GOD-MAN - Vital Christianity

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The Archbishop of Canterbury: "Jesus is the Son of God, you know."
Jane Fonda: "Maybe he is for you, but he's not for me."
Archbishop: "Well, either he is or he isn't."1
MAN OR ANGEL
The first option is that Jesus never claimed to be God. This means He was either a mere
man or an angel, perhaps the archangel (as Jehovah's Witnesses claim). But we have carefully
looked at the evidence from both the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament and found that
such a hypothesis is simply unfounded. Scripture is replete with evidences for the deity of Christ.
In no uncertain terms Scripture testifies to the fact that Jesus claimed to be God. He did not
leave any other options for those who take Holy Scripture seriously.
As we face the claims of Christ, therefore, there are only four other possibilities. He
was either a liar, a lunatic, a legend or the Truth. If we say He is not the Truth, we are
automatically left with the other three options.
LIAR
One possibility is that Jesus Christ lied when he said that He was God. If He knew He
was not God then He was also a hypocrite because He told others to be honest, whatever the
cost, while He Himself taught and lived a colossal lie. And worse than that, He was a demon,
because he told others to trust Him for their eternal destiny. If He could not back up His claims
and knew it, then He was indescribably evil. And also He was a fool because it was His claims to
being God that led to His crucifixion.
Miracles—Works
Jesus pointed to His works as proof of His deity. During His ministry, Christ stilled the
raging tempest, walked on the water, healed the sick, cleansed the lepers, fed the hungry and
raised the dead.
Peter, who had been an eyewitness to these miracles, when confronting those who had
put Jesus to death, reported, "Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by
miracles, wonders and signs" (Ac 2:22). Not a voice of protest was raised. No one dared even
suggest that those miracles had not occurred. They had occurred so openly that they could not be
denied. Christ demonstrated a power over natural forces that could belong only to God who is
the author of those forces.
Miracles are essential to the integrity of the Person of Christ and the authenticity of
Christianity. As C. S. Lewis points out: