In this sermon, the speaker emphasizes the importance of being proficient in using the Word of God to defend the deity of Jesus Christ. He encourages listeners to have at least five or six verses readily available to support this belief. The speaker highlights John 1:1 as a key verse that teaches the deity of Jesus, emphasizing His eternity and equality with God. He also warns against the deceptive tactics of those who deny this truth and emphasizes the power of using Scripture as a weapon in defending the faith.

John chapter 5, we're going to begin reading in the 16th verse. This is a chapter that deals with the healing of the impotent man. And to remember how the Jewish people were furious with the Lord Jesus because he had healed a man on the Sabbath day. Mind you, if they had been impotent for over 30 years, they wouldn't have cared what day of the week the Lord had healed them. But because he had done it to this poor helpless man, they were angry. And it says in verse 16, and therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus and sought to slay him because he had done these things on the Sabbath day. Jesus answered them, my father worketh hitherto and I work. Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him because he not only had broken the Sabbath, but said also that God was his father, making himself equal with God. Then answered Jesus and said unto them, verily, verily, I say unto you, the son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the father do. For what things do ever he doeth, these also doeth the son likewise. For the father loveth the son and showeth him all things that himself doeth, and he will show him greater works than these that he may marvel. For as the father raiseth up the dead and quickeneth them, even so the son quickeneth whom he will. For the father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the son, that all men should honor the son even as they honor the father. He that honoreth not the son, not the father which hath sent him. Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth my word and believeth on him that sent me hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from death unto life. Verily, verily, I say unto you, the hour is coming, and now is when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and they that hear shall live. For as the father hath life in himself, even so hath he given to the son to have life in himself, and hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the son of men. Marvel not at this, for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the grave shall hear his voice, and shall come forth, they that have done good unto the resurrection of life, and they that have done evil unto the resurrection of damnation. I can of mine own self do nothing. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will, but the will of the father which hath sent me. Now, the great foundation truth of the Christian faith is the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the truth against which the most savage attacks have been made, and this is the truth against which we can expect still more savage attacks in the days to come. People are willing to say all kinds of nice things about the Lord Jesus, but anything less than an acknowledgment of his full deity is utter blasphemy when it comes to the Christ of God. Those who treat him thus are damning him with faint praise. Either Jesus Christ is God, or he is truly an imposter. Now, I'd like to take up three lines of thought with you tonight in this connection. First of all, a few of the many verses that clearly teach that the Lord Jesus is true God. Secondly, a few of the many, many verses which imply the same. And thirdly, some of the verses which are used by the enemies of Christ. We read two of them tonight. I wonder if you noticed them. Verse 19, Jesus said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, the Son can do nothing of himself. And they put a period there. And then verse 30, I can of mine own self do nothing. And they put a period there. I wonder if you had gone to a door last Saturday and engaged some folks in conversation, and they had brought forth these and other verses to you, would you have been able to defend the deity of the Lord Jesus from the scriptures? It's of utmost importance that launching out into the field, and in many cases going into the very jaws of the lion, that we should be well equipped with the sword of the Spirit. And incidentally, in introduction, I would just like to say that our great weapon in this connection is the word of God. And I hope that we will never tire of using the scriptures. One verse of scripture is worth more than a thousand arguments. Sometimes we're so taken up with our own covenants and with the fast flow of our own words that I want to tell you that our words are weak and ineffective. But the word of God is living and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword. And we should never be frustrated in using the scriptures. Sometimes men will come to us and say, well, I don't believe the Bible. No use quoting that to me. I remember when I was going through college that one afternoon I was witnessing to a young seminarian. He was training ostensibly for the ministry. And I began to witness to him and to probe him with the word of God. And he kept saying to me, but I don't believe the Bible. No use quoting that to me. I don't believe the Bible. Well, I went home for supper that night and it so happened that Dr. Ironside was a guest in our home. And I thought, here's my chance. And I said to him, Dr. Ironside, when you're talking to people about the Lord and you quote the scriptures to them and they say, but I don't believe the Bible, what do you say next? He said to me, I quote more of it. And I liked that. And I've never forgotten it. If I'm in battle with a sword and a man says to me, I don't believe that sword's real steel. What do you do? Drop it back in his cheek? No, you give him a jab with it, don't you? That's what we should do with the word of God too. You'd never be ashamed in using them to the glory of God and to the blessing of our fellow men. All right. Then first of all, some verses that teach the deity of the Lord Jesus. Now you might want to make a different list, but I would suggest that five or six verses, at least at your finger tips that you could use on short notice in this whole connection. I think the first one that would come to our minds is John 1.1. John 1.1. In the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God. Now there are three lovely things we learn in this verse about the Lord Jesus Christ. First of all, we learn his eternity in the beginning was the word. He never did have a beginning. In the beginning, he was. The second thing we learn about the Lord Jesus in this verse is his distinct personality. The word was with God. There was a distinct personality there, and the third thing we learn about him in that verse is his absolute deity. The word was God. Language could scarcely be clearer. Incidentally, I just pause here to say that many people today, when you approach them, will admit that Jesus is the son of God or a son of God, and usually in dealing with people, it is not enough to get that admission from them. Many of the cultists, many of those who hold evil doctrines, will say, oh yes, Jesus is the son of God, but they mean he's a son of God like we're all sons of God. They don't mean that he's the son of God equal with God the Father, and so I believe it's of first importance in challenging these people to answer this question, is Jesus Christ God? Really, it's impossible for them to evade the force of that question. Is Jesus Christ God? John 1 says he was from all eternity, he has a distinct personality, he is God. Now, I'm aware that one of their translations translates that verse, the word was a God. No reputable Greek scholar will accept that translation of the verse. It's a pity and a shame that a false cult has to fashion out its own translation of the scriptures and take the that teach the deity of the Lord Jesus and purposely twist them and perverse them, contrary to all the rules of translation, and seek to make him less than God. Well, there's one verse. The second verse I like very much, we've already read tonight, John 5, 23. John 5, 23. Listen to what it says, that all men should honor the Son even as they honor the Father. My, that's wonderful, isn't it? Why, that would be blasphemy if the Lord Jesus Christ were not God. Just think what that means, that the same honor should be heaped upon the Lord Jesus as are heaped on God the Father, and so when these people come knocking at my door and seek to peddle their pernicious doctrine, I say to them, I have a question to ask you. They say, yes, what is it? I say, do you honor the Son even as you honor the Father? And it's a very embarrassing question for them. They don't like it at all, and they'll start to talk about the kingdom on earth or something else, total sleep or annihilation or something of the sort. My dear friends, I won't let them get away from this subject. When I come in touch with anyone who denies the deity of Christ, I refuse to talk with them on any other subject. Why? Because if you're wrong on this, you're wrong on the whole scheme. It's impossible to be wrong on this, and right in the rest. What city of Christ is a test to try both your faith and your scheme? You cannot be right in the rest unless you think rightly of him. The Lord Jesus Christ built his church on that great foundation truth, that he is indeed the Christ, the Son of the living God. This is a foundation that was laid by the apostles and prophets of the New Testament period, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone. And so here we have it, that all men should honor the Son even as they honor the Father. Is that music to your ears tonight, or does that embarrass you? Well, it's music to my ears. I love it, and I love to keep worship and homage and praise upon him as I do upon the Father. The third verse is John chapter 10 and verse 30. John chapter 10 and verse 30, going back to verse 27. Jesus said, My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me, and I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father which gave them me is greater than all, and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. I and my Father are one. People say, well, yes, one in spirit, one in harmony, one in unity. Even here we can have a group of people together and say, well, we're one, we agree on things. Yes, that's what they say. What do you do when people come up with arguments like this? Usually I go back to the very passage that they're using. I find it a great rule in handling the word of God is to go right to the passage that they're quoting to subvert the faith and see what it says. So I read on. It says, Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. Jesus answered them, Many good works have I showed you from my Father. For which of these works thee stone me? The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not, but for blasphemy. And because of thou being a man, make it thyself. The Jews understood. The Jews knew that when Jesus said he was the Son of God, he was claiming equality with God. It is true that we are sons of God, but certainly in a lesser sense. The Lord Jesus was Son of God in a unique sense. I like the French translation of John 3, 16. He so loved the world that he gave his unique son. And that's exactly true. His unique son, the Lord Jesus Christ is Son of God in a unique sense. And the Jews understood it. I and my Father are one. They knew exactly. And so they took up stones to kill him. He could have said to them, Now look, you've misunderstood me. He never said that. He would only go on to press his claims the more. And he did this in this passage, and we're going to take it up a little later. So I'm not walking away from it. John chapter 14, verses eight and nine. John chapter 14, verses eight and nine. Philip said unto him, Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus said unto him, Have I been so long with you? And yet hast thou not known me, Philip? He that hath seen me hath seen the Father. And how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? Isn't that tremendous? He that hath seen me hath seen the Father. The only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath fully told him forth, fully declared him, so much so that when men looked upon the Lord Jesus Christ, they looked upon God. God manifests in the flesh. Why, it's terrible to be on wrong doctrine. It's the word of God, and just flash away at it. Wonderful to have our feet firmly planted on the truth of the sacred scripture. And then I also like Romans chapter nine and verse five. This passage of scripture is speaking about the great privileges that the Jewish people as a nation had. To them were inflected the temple with all its ceremonies, and the priesthood, and the glory, and the covenants, the giving of the law, and so forth. And then it says in verse five, Whose are the fathers, that is the patriarch, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is overall God blessed forever. Amen. Wonderful, isn't it? Christ came from the nation of Israel as to his humanity, but the word of God quickly adds that he is overall God blessed forever. A lovely verse in which the humanity and the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ are enshrined in one. Well might the spirit of God add. Amen. And then don't forget Colossians chapter two and verse nine, and I still don't know how anyone who denies the deity of Christ can explain this verse. It says, For in him and the antecedent there is Christ, the last word of the previous verse, for in him Christ dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bottle. Notice the way that the spirit of God guards the truth through the use of words. In him Christ dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bottle. It's really amazing. In fact it's too great for the human mind. We were singing that in a hymn tonight. I wonder if you've noticed those words. It says, But the high mysteries of thy name an angel's grasp transcends. The Father only, glorious flame the Son can comprehend. There's only one person in the universe who can comprehend that marvelous truth, that in that body in him dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead bottle. And I would warn you young people against taking a truth like this, the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ, and putting your mind on the throne and putting the truth down here somewhere and trying to handle it. The thing to do is to put the word of God on the throne and bring your mind in a position. Because there are mysteries here in the incarnation. Great is the mystery of godliness. God was manifest in the flesh. And some of the worst heresies that have ever come into the Christian church have come through men putting their mind on the throne above the word of God. And in that connection I like Philip's translation of verse 6 in this same passage. Could I read it to you? It says, Be careful that nobody spoils your faith through intellectualism or high-sounding nonsense. Such stuff is that that founded a man's idea of the nature of the world, and disregards Christ. You know this is going on all about us today. People's faith being spoiled by intellectualism and high-sounding nonsense. By not being willing to bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. Some of you here tonight know what I'm talking about. So be careful in coming to these truths of the word of God that come with a humble submissiveness and an acceptance of it because God has said it. Then I'm especially fond of Hebrews chapter 1 and verse 8. Hebrews chapter 1 verse 8 where God the Father addresses the Lord and calls him God. Go back to verse 7. And of the angels he saith, who maketh his angel spirit, and administereth the flame of fire. But unto the sun he saith, thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever. A scepter of righteousness is a scepter of thy kingdom. Do you know how they translate this verse? They translate it, thy divine throne is forever and ever. Anything to get rid of the deity of Christ. And I was noticing tonight that reading down it says, thou hast loved righteousness and hated iniquity. Therefore God, even thy God, has anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy toes. And thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth and the heavens are the works of thy hands. They shall perish, but thou remainest. And they all shall wax older and duffer garments, and the vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be same. But thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail. And it describes anything, describes the eternal God without beginning and without ending. And then finally, 1 John chapter 5 and verse 20. 1 John chapter 5 and verse 20, it says, And we know that the son of God is come, and has given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true. And we are in him that is true, even in his son Jesus Christ. This is the true God. You see, at this time there were Gnostics who arose and who professed to have superior knowledge to the scripture. They acted very patronizingly toward the Bible. They would say nice things about the Bible, but they said, we have knowledge beyond the Bible. And their great denial was that Jesus Christ was come into play. And the apostle John is saying in this verse of scripture, keep yourself from any conception of God that denies the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life. Well, it's good to have these verses at our fingertips so that when you run into people who deny the deity of that blessed one, that you might be able to face them. And then it's good to see a host of other verses in the Bible which, while they do not positively state the deity of Christ, certainly imply it in the most clear way. For instance, Ephesians 1, 3. Ephesians 1, 3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in the heavenly places. Now, God is the God of our Lord Jesus Christ in his humanity. God is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ in his deity. And then the verse before says, Grace be to you and teach from God the Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. And here the Apostle Paul places the Lord Jesus Christ on the same level as God the Father. He says that they both are the spring, the fountainhead, the source of grace and peace. Now, it would be utterly ridiculous if that verse said, Grace be to you and teach from God our Father and from the Apostle Paul. Boy, that comes with just a grating sound in your ears. Putting the Apostle Paul on the same level as God the Father, being the source of grace and peace. Of course, Paul would have been the first to shout his denial. But the scripture time and time again puts the Lord Jesus Christ, mentions him in the same breath as it were, with God the Father. John chapter 15 and verse 24. Another verse that strongly implies it. John chapter 15 and verse 24. I'm afraid I have the wrong verse here. Oh, yes. If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sinned. But now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father? Here you have it once again. The Lord Jesus himself putting himself on the same level as God the Father. And then you turn to a verse like Titus chapter 2 and verse 3. And here the deity of Christ is very, very clear. Titus chapter 2 and verse 13 it is. It says, Looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ. Or the revised version says, of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ. And what could be clearer than that? Of our great God and Savior. And the construction, I understand, in the original language of the New Testament, demands that the two are one. The same person who is being spoken of in both of those expressions, the great God and Savior Jesus Christ. Then there's a whole line of proof in the New Testament where the attributes of God are applied to the likeness of Christ. You have, for instance, his omnipresence. I've already quoted that verse from John chapter 1 where it says, No man hath seen God at any time, the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, as fully told him forth. He was standing here on earth at the time he's in the bosom of the Father. His omnipotence is told forth in the gospel. That day he rose to the ship on the Sea of Galilee, a great storm raging. He said, Peace, be still. The wind and the wave obeyed his voice. His omniscience. How many times during the gospel do we find the Lord Jesus moving in and out among men? And they begin to reason certain things within themselves, and he perceives what they are reasoning, and he replies to them before they had ever spoken a word. The omniscience of the Lord Jesus Christ. His holiness, his righteousness, his justness, his sinlessness are all told forth in the gospel. Then you have the miracles of the Lord Jesus. But I'd like to say a word here, a word of caution, and that is that the miracles in themselves do not prove deity. Miracles in themselves are not a proof of deity. Just a minute, aren't the miracles used in the gospel to prove that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God? Yes, they are. But miracles in themselves only prove that a supernatural power is at work. That's all. You say, well, what about the miracles of the Lord? The reason the miracles of the Lord prove him to be the Christ is that they were in direct fulfillment of what was prophesied about him in the Old Testament, and also the nature of the miracles that he performed to be the Son of God. But miracles in themselves do not necessarily mean that God is at work. And I want to emphasize that tonight, because I think whenever they see some supernatural power at work, then it must be of God. It might not be of God, it might be of the devil. You say, can you prove that from the word of God? Yes. Let us turn, first of all, to Matthew 7, verses 22 and 23. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name, and in thy name have cast out demons, and in thy name done many wonderful works? Those are miracles. Now, Jesus didn't say, no you didn't, you didn't perform any miracles. No, he allowed that miracles had been performed. Then will I profess unto them, I never knew you, depart from me, ye that work adequately. These people come knocking at the Lord's door in the coming day and say, Lord, we preached in your name, we cast out demons in your name, we did many mighty miracles in your name. And then in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2 you have the same thing. You have the manifestation of the man of sin in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2. And what do you read there? Well, you read verse 8, And then shall that wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming. Even him whose coming is after the working of Satan, notice, with all power, and signs, and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness, and them that perish, because they receive not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And so a word of warning is in order. A day is coming when the man of sin is going to appear upon the earth. And many people will say, well, it's a miracle, it must be of God. Miracles in themselves do not prove that God is working. The miracles of the Lord Jesus proved that he was the Christ of God, because they fulfilled the prophecy that were made concerning him by Isaiah, and also the nature of the miracles that he performed. And I think there is something else worth thinking about in connection with the Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus not only performed miracles himself, but he confirmed them. That's good. Isaiah 44, verse 6, Thus saith the Lord, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts, I am the first and I am the last, and beside me there is no God. I am the Lord, the King of Israel, his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts, I am the first and the last. Notice those words, I am the first and I am the last. Now turn to Revelation chapter 1, in verse 17. The Lord Jesus is speaking, When I saw him, John says, I shall at his feet as dead. He laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not, I am the first and the last. I am he that liveth and was dead. Behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And have the keys of hell and of Hades. That's only one verse. There are many more in the New Testament, of which the same thing is spoken of Jehovah in the Old Testament. One day I was traveling on a train down to Kansas City, and I was reading my Bible, and a porter came to me. He said, Are you a Bible student? I said, Well, I do study the Bible. He said, Well, I do too. He said, I went to a seminary in Brooklyn, New York. I only knew of one seminary in Brooklyn, New York, a seminary of a false cult. And he said, You know, before I studied the Bible, before I started studying the Bible, I always thought that Jesus was God. And I said to him, What did you find in the Bible that made you think differently? He said, Jehovah is his name in the Bible. I said, Look, my friend, if I could give you six verses of scripture that clearly state that Jesus Christ is God, would you believe them, or would you explain them away? So there you have it. But now we come to the third section of verses, verses that are used by the false cult to disprove the deity of the Lord Jesus. The first one that I'd like to take up with you is in John chapter 19. They say, And honestly, sometimes the devil that is best there, he isn't, those who believe it for a minute, that's something that could never be said. He could do, he could do nothing, because I can do a lot of things, cold and hot, and trifle with the world. Isn't that beautiful? Equal with the dead. And from verse 30, I cannot, Jesus said, I cannot my don't be afraid of mine own will. But the volume of the book is written of him from cover so much for that past 14. And we have heard how I said unto you, I go away. If he loves me, he would rejoice. Jesus isn't God. No, it doesn't. I have to do three things. There's the Lord Jesus came from the idiot state in heaven. God's father never did. And the Lord Jesus said to the venom. And he said, looking forward, because my father right now in the glory, but put the key in the door and it makes very good sense. John chapter 10, verse 33. I promised that we'd go back to that. And I'm going to, yes, I'm going to begin reading in verse 33. John 10 33, the Jews answered him, saying for a good work, we stone thee not, but blasphemy. And because it's now being a man, make it thyself. God, Jesus answered him. Is it not written in your law? I said, he, our God, he called them God unto whom the word of God came and the scripture cannot be broken. Say he of him whom the father has sanctified and sent into the world. Now black femur, because I said, I am the son of God. If I do not the works of my father, believe me not. But if I do, so you believe, not me, believe the works that you may know and believe that the father is in me. Therefore they start again to take it. Doesn't it say there that Jesus is just a man. He called them God. God called certain. Now it's a very confusing passage of scripture to many people. And I think for us to understand it, Psalm 82 and verse six, I think I'll read the whole psalm. And I'm going to ask you a question. When I get to God's standards in the congregation of the mighty, he turned the poor and father of the men in common everyday life is God speaking. It uses the word judge. Uh, how long will you judge defend the poor and follow us? That isn't what they were doing. Revised verses judge had the deity 13 concerning governmental powers. They, they carry not the ordained of God. And they said, God's standards in the congregation of the mighty three and on the Lord. Jesus is that we're not too soon. They were getting asked to him because he claimed absolutely quality to them. They were nothing in themselves or the word of God came to them on our day. Now, if God called them God in before they were born. And so he argues from that, not denying his verse 35 unto whom the word of God came about that the also underlined whom the father has sanctified and send into the world. That's the difference. That's only true of the unique son slipping. And I do want to give two more verses that are used by the enemy of souls in an effort to disprove the deity of Christ. And one of them is in Colossians chapter Colossians chapter one in verse, uh, I think I'll begin in verse 14. It's in whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sin, who is the image of Israel from the chapter itself by showing that the Lord Jesus is the art of creation revolved around. Sometimes it means, and sometimes it means first as to rank. Let me give you a verse where it means first brought forth for that means, but then for a showing that it means first in Psalm 89. And I like this. It says, speaking of David also higher than the Kings of the earth, Peter do with it in Colossians chapter same spot in Romans chapter eight and verse and verse 29 for whom he did foreknow. He also did predestinate to be with the order of birth in time. And so in the market of my Bible, I think it's 29 for a ready record. One final very 14 says, and under the angel of the church of the Laodiceans, right? These things that the amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God. And they like that expression as they say, well, he's part of the creation of God. He's a creator. He's the beginning of the creation of God in the sense that he originated it, not that he's a part of it. He said unto me, it is done. I am alpha and Omega, the beginning. See what they say at me? No, this is speaking of God. That is the first of the fountain of the water of life. I am alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. He's the originator of all, and he's the object. And so in revelation chapter three, when it says the beginning of the creation of God, there's no suggestion at all that the Lord Jesus is a part. This is most important. What we've been going over tonight is of great importance for young people, especially of who he is really grips our souls. We will have a true, and no matter how dark the pathway ahead, maybe we'll know we're on the winning side. We'll know if we go out and our souls are resting, the pathway may lead. We'll know that the, that's exactly what happened. It says with you has reached its prize again. The first day he said, there are some of you standing here will not take appreciation of who he is.