What Jesus said about himself

One of the first things that must impress any serious reader of the gospels is that Jesus said an awful lot about himself. He said things about himself that a first century Jew must have found very puzzling, if not shocking.

He claimed to exist before his birth in Bethlehem

Jesus spoke of the glory he shared with his Father "before the world began" (John 17:5). He existed before Abraham (John 8:58). On the occasion on which he said this he was nearly stoned for blasphemy. He came from "above", whereas his hearers were from "below". His hearers were "of this world", whereas he was not (John 8:23). He came from heaven (John 3:13; 6:33-35). There are about 20 instances where he claimed to have been sent into this world by his Father (e.g. Luke 10:16; John 4:34; 5:37,38).

He claimed a unique relationship with God his Father

Jesus constantly spoke of God as his Father (about 120 times in John alone). Often he called him "my father" (Matthew 15:13; 18:10; Luke 2:49, etc). In one instance he addressed God by the Aramaic term "abba" (Mark 14:36) which a Jewish child would use of their dad. The Jewish scholar, Professor J. Jeremias, has drawn attention to the rarity of the word "Father" in Jewish literature as applied to God. God is rarely addressed as Father in the Old Testament and there are only a few examples of it in Palestinian Judaism during the early Christian era. The first appearance of "my Father" is in the Middle Ages. The use of the term "abba" as a personal address to God is unknown in Jewish writings. Jews of Jesus' day would have considered it improper, indeed scandalous, for a person to use such intimate titles for God. They realised that, in speaking this way, Jesus was making himself equal with God, and so sought to kill him (John 5:16-18).

Jesus took this claim further. He declared himself to be the only one who knew the Father, and therefore the only one who could reveal him to others (Matthew 11:27; John 6:46). He was one with the Father (John 10:30,38). Everything that belonged to the Father belonged to him (John 16:15; 17:10). The Father would send the Holy Spirit to believers in his name (John 14:26). To have our prayers answered we are to ask the Father in his name (John 14:13; 15:16; 16:23,24). He claimed to be the Son of God - not a son of God (Matthew 11:27; 14:33; 16:16,17; 21:33-41; Luke 22:70; John 1:49,50; 5:19-27; 10:36,38, etc.).

He claimed authority over the lives of people

Jesus invited a love and a loyalty that took precedence over love and loyalty for parents, children, possessions, and even life itself. Without giving him this kind of devotion people could not be his disciples (Matthew 8:21,22; 10:37; 19:29; Luke 14:26-33). He expected people to suffer insults, persecution and slander for his sake (Matthew 5:11, Luke 6:22) and to lose their lives for his sake (Matthew 10:39; 16:25). He expected people to acknowledge him before others and said they would be rewarded for doing so (Matthew 10:32). His Father would honour those who served him (John 12:26). He claimed to be his disciples' only Master, Teacher and Lord (Matthew 23:8-10; John 13:14).

He claimed to be a king with the right to rule over others (Matthew 25:34; 27:11; John 1:49,50; 18:37), and spoke of "my kingdom" (Luke 22:29,30; John 18:36). One of his most common ways of describing himself was to call himself the Son of Man. The Son of Man is a figure who appears in the book of the prophet Daniel who is given a kingdom of universal domain and eternal duration (Daniel 7:13,14).

The claim that was perhaps the most startling of all was that one day he would come again, this time in power and glory. All judgement had been committed to him and he would be the one who would call us from our graves for judgement (Matthew 7:22,23; 13:41; 16:27; 24:30; 25:31-46; 26:64; Luke 9:26; John 5:22,23, 27-30; 6:40)

He spoke of the future church as his church and that they would meet in his name (Matthew 16:18; 18:20). He said we could do nothing of significance without having a right relationship with him (John 15:5). Finally he declared that all authority in heaven and earth was his (Matthew 28:18). You can't have much more authority than that!

His estimate of his own character

Jesus dared challenge his opponents to prove him guilty of sin (John 8:46). He always did what pleased his Father (John 8:29). The devil had no hold on him (John 14:30).

His estimate of his own teaching

Jesus' purpose for coming into the world was to bear witness to the truth and those who were "of the truth" would listen to him (John 18:37). He went further and declared "I am the truth" (John 14:6). He claimed the right to put his own interpretation on the moral commands God had previously given his people through Moses (Matthew 5:21,22,27,28). In Jewish thinking a rabbi's authority only came to him as derived from Moses. Yet in these, and in several other instances, Jesus is plainly claiming an authority superior to that of Moses. Ernst Kasemann, in The Problem of the Historical Jesus, says:

To this there are no Jewish parallels, nor indeed can there be. For the Jew who is doing what is done here has cut himself off from the community of Judaism - or else he brings the messianic Torah [Law] and is therefore the Messiah.

As Lord of the Sabbath he had the right to declare what was lawful on the Sabbath day (Matthew 12:1-8). Hearing and obeying his teaching was the only solid foundation for life (Matthew 7:24-27). His words would never pass away (Matthew 24:35). If people were ashamed of his words he would be ashamed of them at the judgement (Luke 9:26). Hearing his word is necessary for having eternal life (John 5:24). His teaching came from God and he only said the things his Father told him to say (John 7:16; 8.40; 12:49,50). On judgement day, the word he had spoken would be the criteria by which we would be judged (John 12:48). Attention to his words was a requirement for having our prayers answered (John 15:7). Those who kept his word would not see death (John 8:51).

As the noted Anglican scholar, John Stott, sums it up:

The distinction between wisdom and folly in this life and between survival and judgement in the next, he dared to say, would depend on whether people had listened to his teaching and had obeyed or disobeyed it.

To add emphasis to the solemn nature of his statements, Jesus frequently preceded them with the words "Amen, I say to you" or "Amen, Amen, I say to you". There are over 70 instances of this in the gospels. "Amen" is normally used at the end of prayers to assert one's affirmation of, or agreement with, what has been prayed. Using it in the way Jesus did is unknown elsewhere in Jewish literature. Translations into English use such phrases as "Truly, truly" or "I am telling you the truth" to try to convey its meaning.