In John 10, Jesus is in Jerusalem for the Feast of Dedication. A group of religious leaders and their followers gather around Jesus and demand of him, ‘How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly’ (John 10:24). 

This was not a sincere question. These Jews were not truly seeking Jesus’ identity. They instead were trying to trap him and get him in trouble with the Romans. So while this was not a genuine question, nevertheless, you cannot get a more essential question than the one they posed. 

Who is Jesus?  

This is a question that we often ask of those who don’t trust in Jesus. We ask of them, ‘Look at Jesus’ miracles, consider his claims of deity, and no longer limp between opinions. Who do you say he is?’ 

But more than ever, this is a question we need to pose to professing Christians. We need to ask those who claim to follow Christ, ‘Who do you say is Christ?’ 

The 2020 Ligonier State of Theology has recently come out, and one of the key findings is in regards to the deity of Christ. In response to the statement, ‘Jesus was a great teacher, but he was not God,’ 30% of evangelicals agreed. Read that again. 30% of those who claim to hold fast to the Gospel reject that Jesus is God. 

In some ways, this is shocking—if you reject the deity of Christ, you have completely forsaken the Gospel.

But in other ways, this is entirely expected. For years now, Jesus has increasingly been for a number in the church functionally no more than a peer. There is no reverence or awe or heartfelt worship of Jesus. Jesus is—as the bumper sticker puts it—our ‘co-pilot.’ He is basically an equal, but one we may call to for help if things go south. Jesus is not the one before whom we tremble. He is not the one before whom we sing loud shouts of praise. He is not the one before whom we resolve to obey, no matter the cost. 

The 2020 State of Theology is simply revealing what has been functionally true for quite some time: far too many claiming the name of Christ live as though Jesus is no more than an equal. His salvation means little. His majesty means little. His church means little. His commands mean little. 

What is desperately needed in the church is the high octane proclamation of the deity and glory and majesty of Jesus Christ. We need to hear that Jesus is the eternal and divine Word made flesh (John 1:1,14). That he does whatever the Father does (John 5:19). That he declares, ‘Before Abraham was, I am’ (John 8:58). That he has authority to lay down his life, and take it back up (John 10:18). That Isaiah saw the glory of Christ when he saw God’s glory (John 12:41). And that when Thomas declared, ‘My Lord and my God,’ that Jesus accepted this worship and called it faith (John 20:28). 

We need to hear that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who came into the world to save us from our sin, including the sin of treating Jesus as an equal. 

We need to pray that pastors would preach these kinds of truths, and to do so full of the Holy Spirit. And then we need to pray that all this truth would filter down in our lives, our families, and our churches and would yield an abiding faith, worship, and obedience to Jesus Christ, for he is indeed God.