Who Is Jesus? - A Plea for a Return to Belief in Jesus - the Messiah

Sep 29, 2026

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Who Is Jesus? argues that biblical teaching maintains strict monotheism and that Jesus is presented as the Messiah and mediator rather than “God” in the capital-G sense. Using Old and New Testament references, it examines how Jesus and Paul confirm belief in one God, contrasts the New Testament usage of “God” with references calling Jesus “god,” and addresses claims about divinity. The study invites readers to reassess worship “in spirit and in truth.”

LanguageEnglish

CategoryReligion & Spirituality

FormatPDF

Pages40

Reading Time1 h 41 min

AccessFree to download

Contents

Old Testament Monotheism Confirmed by Jesus and Paul

Whoever Said the Messiah Was God?

The Son of God

The Son of Man, the Lord at God's Right Hand

Jesus Claimed NOT to Be God

John's Jewish Language

Glory Before Abraham

The Logos in John 1:1

The “Divinity” of Jesus

In the Form of God

Head of the New Creation

“The Inhabited Earth to Come of Which We Speak”

The Hebrew Background to the New Testament

From Son of God to God the Son

The Man and the Message Obscured

What the Scholars Admit

Jesus, the Man and Mediator

The Church's Confession

Footnotes

WHO IS JESUS? A Plea for a Return toBelief in Jesus,the MessiahAnthony Buzzard Digitized by the Internet Archivein 2022 with funding fromKahle/Austin Foundation https://archive.org/details/whoisjesus0000unse Who Is Jesus? A Plea for a Return to Belief in Jesus,the Messiah A study paper to further the restoration of biblical faith. by.Anthony F.Buzzard M.A.(Oxon) "There is one God,and one mediator between God and men,the manChrist Jesus”(1 Tim.2:5). Contents OldTestament Monotheism Confirmed byJesus and Paul………3 Whoever Said the Messiah Was God?………………………………………………6 The Son of God………………………………………………………………………………………9 The Son of Man, the Lord at God's Right Hand…………………10 Jesus Claimed NOT to Be God……………………………………………………………11 John's Jewish Language………………………………………………………………………13 Glory Before Abraham……………………………………………………………………14 The Logos in John 1:1……16 The“Divinity” of Jesus………………………………………………………………………18 In the Form of God……………………………………………………………………………………19 Head of the New Creation……………………………………………………………………22 “The Inhabited Earth to Come of Which We Speak”…………24 The Hebrew Background to the New Testament…………………25 From Son of God to God the Son………………………………………………26 The Man and the Message Obscured……………………………………………27 What the Scholars Admit………………………………………………………………………29 Jesus, the Man and Mediator……………………………………………………………33 The Church's Confession………………………………………………………………………33 Footnotes……………………………………………………………………………………………………………35 The suggestion that Jesus is not,according to the Bible,"very God of very God"is likely to prove startling to thoseaccustomed to the widely held views of the major denomina-tions.It is not generally known that many students of theBible throughout the ages,including a considerable numberof contemporary scholars,have not concluded that Scripturedescribes Jesus as“God”with a capital“G.” A difference of opinion on such a fundamental issueshould challenge all of us to an examination of the importantquestion of Jesus'identity.If our worship is to be,as the Bibledemands,“in spirit and in truth”(John4:24),it is clearthat weshal want to understand whatthe Bible discloses aboutJesusand his relationship to his Father.Scripture warns us that it ispossible to fall into the trap of believing in“another Jesus”(2Cor.11:4)--a“Jesus”other than the one revealed in theBible as God's Son,the Messiah promised by the prophets ofthe Old Testament It is a striking fact that Jesus never referred to himself as“God."Equally remarkable is the New Testament's useof theword“God”—in Greek ho theos—to refer to the Fatheralone,some 1350 times.In sharp contrast,Jesus is called"god"ina handfulof texts only—perhaps no more than two.Why this impressive difference in New Testament usage,when so many seem to think that Jesus is noless“God”thanhis Father? Old Testament Monotheism Confirmed by Jesus and Paul Readers of Scripture in the 20th century may not easilyappreciate the strength of the monotheism—belief in oneGod—which was the first principle of all Old Testamentteaching about God.The Jews were prepared to die for theirconviction that the true God was a single person.Any idea ofplurality in the Godhead was rejected as dangerous idolatry.The Law and the Prophets had repeatedly insisted that onlyone was truly God,and no one could have envisaged"distinctions"within the Godhead once he had committed tomemory texts like the following(quoted from the NewAmerican Standard Bible): "Hear,O Israel!The LORD is our God,the LORD is one!"(Deut.6:4.) "Do we not all have one father?Has not one Godcreated us?"(Mal.2:10.) "Before Me there was no God formed,and there will benone after Me”(Isa 43:10). “Iam God,and there is no other”(Isa.45:22).Iam God, and there is no one like Me(Isa.46:9). Examples of strictly monotheistic statements can be multi-plied from the Old Testament.The important fact to observeis that Jesus,as founder of Christianity,confirmed andreinforced the Old Testament insistence t

FAQs

What is the book’s central claim about Jesus’s identity?

The book argues that the Bible does not present Jesus as “very God of very God,” but instead as the Messiah and mediator while God remains one unique Father.

How does the text support strict monotheism in the Old Testament?

It cites Old Testament passages insisting the LORD is one God, and argues that Jesus reinforced this unbroken monotheistic teaching.

Why does the book emphasize the New Testament’s wording for “God” and “god”?

It notes that “God” (Greek ho theos) is used for the Father alone many times, while Jesus is called “god” only in a handful of texts, prompting a reevaluation of commonly held conclusions.

Sep 29, 2026

Upload by hdkawk