According to Ligonier Ministries’ State of Theology survey in 2018, fifty-seven percent of American adults agree with the statement that “Jesus is the first and greatest being created by God.” The majority of Americans believe that Jesus was a created being. They believe that He was the first and greatest creation, but He was still created by God. Is this actually true? And does it really matter whether Jesus was created or not?
There are certain religious groups, such as Muslims, Mormons, and Jehovah’s Witnesses, who do believe that Jesus was created. They believe that Jesus was a great prophet or an archangel.[1] There likely are some Christians who believe this idea as well because they’ve misunderstood verses like Colossians 1:15. But evangelical Christians cannot accept the belief that Jesus was a created being because the Bible clearly states that Jesus is no mere man. Jesus is God incarnate. And God was not created. He is the Creator, and He has always existed (Psalm 90:2).
But how can we know Jesus is God? Well, He admitted it Himself. During His ministry, He claimed to be the lord of the Sabbath, God’s holy day of rest (Mark 2:28). He also claimed that God was His Father and had given Him authority (Matthew 11:27). Jesus declared,
“I and the Father are one.” John 10:30, ESV
He declared, “Before Abraham was, I am” (John 8:58), clearly mirroring what God said to Abraham in Exodus 3:14. And during His prayer before His arrest, He spoke to God about the glory they had shared before the earth even existed (John 17:5).
But Jesus wasn’t the only one claiming His divinity. His disciples and others also believed that Jesus was God. In his gospel, John wrote that Jesus, the Word became flesh, was God and was with God in the very beginning (John 1:1,14). Peter wrote in his second letter that Jesus was their God and Savior (2 Peter 1:1). Quoting an Old Testament prophecy, the author of Hebrews reveals that the Son, Jesus, is God (Hebrews 1:8). Thomas, after doubting Jesus’ resurrection and discovering that Jesus had indeed raised from the dead, exclaimed that Jesus was his Lord and his God. Paul taught that Jesus was God over all (Romans 9:5), and
“…in Him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily,” Colossians 2:9
Throughout His life, many, many people worshipped Jesus as God, not as a god, but as the one true God (Matthew 2:11, 14:33, 28:9; Luke 24:52; John 9:38).
Not only did Jesus and other people claim that He is God, but He did things that only God could do. He turned water into wine (John 2:8-9). He was in control of nature and weather (Luke 8:24-25, Matthew 21:19). He turned five loaves of bread and two fish into enough to feed and fill over five thousand people, plus fill up twelve large baskets with extras (Matthew 14:19-21). He healed those who were sick and demon possessed (Mark 1:25-26,34). He made the blind see, the lame walk, the deaf hear, and the mute talk (John 9:6-7, Matthew 9:6-7, Mark 7:32-35). He raised the dead (John 11:43-44) and resurrected Himself (Luke 24:6).
Jesus is God. Jesus claimed to be God. Others claimed He was God. And He did things that only God could do. He is God, which means He could not have been created. But why does this matter? Why is it so important to remember that Jesus is uncreated, that Jesus is God? As was established earlier, if Jesus was created, He could not be God. If Jesus was not God, then He could not have lived a perfect, sinless life. If Jesus did not live a perfect, sinless life, He could not be a sufficient sacrifice for all our sins. And if Jesus was not a sufficient sacrifice, we would all be destined for hell.
But Jesus is God. He did live a perfect, sinless life on this earth. He did die as a sufficient sacrifice for all our sins, and He did resurrect to defeat sin and death and hell and give us life. This is all possible because Jesus was not created. He eternally existed with the Father (and the Holy Spirit!). Praise the Lord today for this truth and remember that Jesus is eternally “our great God and Savior” (Titus 2:13).[2]
[1] “Was Jesus Created?,” Got Questions, accessed March 10, 2020, https://www.gotquestions.org/was-Jesus-created.html.
[2] Two online articles from gotquestions.org helped me greatly as I wrote this post – “Was Jesus Created?” (https://www.gotquestions.org/was-Jesus-created.html) and “Is Jesus God?” (https://www.gotquestions.org/is-Jesus-God.html).
