[Jesus Is Unique #6]
And then I said to the class and to the professor
when the professor said “Nowhere in the gospel of Mark did Jesus ever claim to be God or even hint that He was God in human flesh.”
So then I went to Mark 14, verses 60-64, to the trial of Jesus.
Which, the trial of Jesus is just an outspoken, obvious declaration that He claimed to be God.
It’s a very unusual trial. Follow through it with me as I relate the Scriptures.
“And the high priest stood up and came forward and when he questioned Jesus saying, “Do you make no answer?
What is it that these men are testifying against you?’ but He kept silent and He made no answer.
Again the high priest was questioning him and saying to Him, ‘Are you the Christ, the Son of the blessed one?’”
And then it says, “And Jesus said.” Why did He answer? Why was He silent the whole time and then He answered? For this reason
in some of the other accounts in the other gospels on the trial of Jesus, the other accounts point out that at this point
He was put under an oath where the high priest said, “I adjure you by the name of the living God
that you tell us whether you are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.”
When the priest did that he put Jesus under oath and according to their custom and law, He had to answer.
So that’s why Jesus kept silent and then He answered, because He was put under oath. Now notice what He said.
“And Jesus said, I am.” Now come on you can’t any closer. “I am.” I am what? “I am the Christ, the Son of the Living God.”
Then He gave two great prophecies about the Messiah.
“And you shall see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.”
To a Jewish mindset…mindset…that was deity.
“And tearing his clothes the high priest said, ‘What further need to we have of witnesses.’”
Now notice the chronology. Normally this is what would happen in a trial.
The Sanhedrin, the supreme court of the Jews and the high priests would hear all the accusations.
Then the high priests would turn to the Sanhedrin and say, “What do you say?”
And they would go out and they would take time to discuss it and come up with a conclusion.
Then they would come back in and say “Guilty or Not Guilty.”
Then when the high priest heard that – today the judge brings down the gavel and says “Guilty or Not Guilty” – but in those days
the high priest would reach down to the hem of his garment and he would just tear it a little bit
and that was like the judge bringing down the gavel saying, “This is the verdict.”
But notice the chronology here. “And tearing his clothes…” You see, before the Sanhedrin brought in the verdict the high priest tore his garments.
Why? Because it was one time you tore the garment before the Sanhedrin brought in their verdict.
That was in the presence of blasphemy – someone claiming to be God. Notice the progression.
“And tearing his clothes the high priest said, ‘What further need do we have of witnesses? You have heard the blaspheming. How does it seem to you?’
And they all [meaning the Sanhedrin] all condemned Him to be deserving of death.”
The very chronology of the trial confirms that Jesus claimed to be God.
But the issue is, was He truly who He claimed to be?
But I think that anyone who says that Jesus never claimed to be God when you read the gospels
would be somebody standing outdoors on a clear day and saying, “I can’t see the sun.”