Re: REALLY OT: News Flash

[cothrige <cothrige@bellsouth.net>]

* hendrik@topoi.pooq.com (hendrik@topoi.pooq.com) wrote:
> 
> Just where did Jesus claim to be God?  I've heard lost of people say 
> that Jesus was God, but I haven't seen the place where Jesus himself 
> claims it.
> 
> -- hendrik

I think the clearest place is in the Gospel According to St. John:

        The Jews therefore said to him: Thou art not yet fifty years
        old, and hast thou seen Abraham?  Jesus said to them: Amen,
        amen I say to you, before Abraham was made, I am.  They took
        up stones therefore to cast at him. But Jesus hid himself, and
        went out of the temple.

The key phrase is "before Abraham was made, I am."  This is eveb
stronger than things like "I and the Father are one." In the Old
Testament, in the burning bush incident, God actually introduces
himself as "I Am" and makes this his personal name.  Therefore, by so
obviously calling himself by this name we see that Jesus is directly
declaring himself not only to be divine in a general sense, but more
precisely is saying that he *is* the very God who spoke to Moses.

Patrick