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Is Jesus God?
(Or a great moral teacher, a liar, lunatic or the Lord)

Some say Jesus was just a great moral teacher. Here is what C. S. Lewis (a former agnostic) wrote about that:

"That is one thing we must not say. A man who was a great moral teacher and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic--on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg--or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to." (Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis, page 41)

Jesus said He was God:

"I and the Father are one." (John 10:30, NIV)

Some might say Jesus was a liar. He claimed to be God, he acted like he was God, but it was all a lie. Josh McDowell, a former atheist writes:

"If when Jesus made his claims, he knew that he was not God, then he was lying and deliberately deceiving his followers. But if he was a liar, 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. More than that, he was a demon, because he told others to trust him for their eternal destiny. If he couldn't back up his claims and knew it, then he was unspeakably evil. Last, he would also be a fool because it was his claims to being God that led to his crucifixion." (More Than A Carpenter by Josh McDowell, pages 27-28)

Some might say Jesus was a liar. He claimed to be God, he acted like he was God, but it was all a lie. Josh McDowell, a former atheist writes:

"If when Jesus made his claims, he knew that he was not God, then he was lying and deliberately deceiving his followers. But if he was a liar, 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. More than that, he was a demon, because he told others to trust him for their eternal destiny. If he couldn't back up his claims and knew it, then he was unspeakably evil. Last, he would also be a fool because it was his claims to being God that led to his crucifixion." (More Than A Carpenter by Josh McDowell, pages 27-28)

Was Jesus a lunatic? In his book "The Case For Christ" another former atheist, Lee Strobel, quotes psychologist Gary Collins:

"Jesus exhibited no inappropriate emotions, was in contact with reality, was brilliant and had amazing insights into human nature, and enjoyed deep and abiding relationships. "I just don't see signs that Jesus was suffering from any known mental illness, " he concluded. In addition, Jesus backed up his claim to being God through miraculous feats of healing, astounding demonstrations of power over nature, unrivaled teaching, divine understanding of people, and with his own resurrection, which was the final authentication of his identity." (The Case For Christ by Lee Strobel, pages 261-262)

When agnostics and atheists do an honest investigation of the facts, the answer is that Jesus is God. We invite you to read their books, they are all readily available.

Jesus and the attributes of God

Did Jesus claim to be God?

Jesus uses God's name for Himself

What does the Bible say?