Just who does he think he is?

I saw this ad for a course offered by Great Courses:

It is striking that Jesus never makes any claims to be divine in any of these earlier Gospels or their sources. How could that be if John, the final Gospel, is correct that this was the very burden of his entire message? Historians of the Gospels have long concluded that the idea that Jesus called himself God is not historical. If it were, it would be in the earliest Gospels; this is a view that is distinctive to John, the last of the Gospels to be written. Learn about this and much more in "How Jesus Became God":

“In the earliest and most reliable traditions about Jesus, he does not call himself God but presents himself as a human prophet.” Bart Ehrman, Professor of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

What? Is there any truth to this claim? No! I have nowhere near the education, reputation, or prestige of Bart Ehrman, but I do have a Bible, so I went through the first written gospel, Matthew, to see what it says about Jesus. Yesterday’s post was, Who is this man? What did Matthew and others say about Jesus? Today’s post, Who does he think he is? What did Jesus say about himself?

9:6  But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house.
This is the first time we see Jesus referring to himself, and he calls himself the Son of man. This is perhaps Jesus’ favorite title for himself. It is probably taken from Daniel 7:13 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. He uses it because this is a messianic prophecy, and by using this title he intentionally identifies himself as Christ; it also emphasizes his humanity.

“Son of man - A Hebrew phrase, expressive of humiliation and debasement; and, on that account, applied emphatically to himself, by the meek and lowly Jesus. It seems to be used to point out the incarnation of the Son of God. He seems studious to prove to them the certainty of his incarnation, because on this depended the atonement for sin. Indeed our Lord seems more intent on giving the proofs of his humanity, than of his divinity, the latter being necessarily manifested by the miracles which he was continually working.” Adam Clarke

Jesus referring to himself as “the Son of man”
11:19, 12:8, 12:40, 13:37, 13:41, 16:13, 16:27, 16:28, 17:12, 17:22, 18:11, 20:18, 20:28, 24:27, 24:29, 24:30, 24:44, 25:31, 26:2, 26:24, 26:64

11:2-15 Matthew clearly refers to Jesus as the Christ in v 2, Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ... Yet people often say that Jesus himself never claimed to be the Christ. But that is because having eyes they do not see, and having ears they do not hear, for this passage fairly screams, I am he.
In v 2-3 John sends two disciples to ask Jesus, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? In other words, Are you the Christ?
In 4-6 Jesus answered by telling them to compare what he was doing with a prophecy of what Christ was to do when he came. “I am doing the works of Christ. I am he.”

In 7-15 Jesus addressed the multitude and said two things about John:
(1) 10 For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee. In other words, John fulfilled this prophecy and he pointed to me!

(2) 14 And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to come. The Jews understood that according to the prophets, Elijah had to come before Christ could come. Jesus said John was Elijah. (see also 17:10-13) The point being, Elijah has come, just as the prophets said he would, and he pointed to me. I am the promised Messiah, John is my proof and witness.

No wonder he finished this discussion with, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. He very clearly stated that he was indeed the Christ.

“As if our Lord had said, These things are so clear and manifest that a man has only to hear them to be convinced and fully satisfied of their truth. But neither the Jews of that time nor [scholars] of the succeeding times to the present day, have heard or considered, these things. When spoken to on these subjects, their common custom is to stop their ears. They are deeply and willfully blind. They will not come unto the light, lest their deeds should become manifest, that they are not wrought in God. They have ears but they will not hear.” Adam Clarke

11:27  All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.
In this verse, Jesus refers to himself as the Son, and in the context he does not mean the Son of man, but the Son of God. As the Son of God he has the most intimate relationship with the Father. Did he present himself as merely a human prophet? No, “I am the Son of the Father. No man knows the Father except me.” He enjoys an intimate and unique relationship with the Father, because he is the Son of God.

16:13  When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?
16:14  And they said, Some John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.
16:15  He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?
16:16  And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
16:17  And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
“What are people saying about me?” They are saying that you are supernatural – a raised-from-the-dead John the Baptist, a returned-from-heaven Elijah, or a raised-from-the-dead prophet.
“What do you say?” Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
“Good. It was my Father who revealed this to you.” What did Jesus say about himself? He said he was the Christ, the Son of the living God.

16:20  Then charged he his disciples that they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ.
Again, he told his disciples that he was the Christ.
But why did he not want it blazed abroad? “Jesus here says, Tell no man that I am the Christ, i.e. the Messiah; as the time for his full manifestation was not yet come; and he was not willing to provoke the Jewish malice, or the Roman envy, by permitting his disciples to announce him as the Savior of a lost world. He chose rather to wait, till his resurrection and ascension had set this truth in the clearest light.” Adam Clarke

19:16  And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?
19:17  And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.
What does Jesus means here? Is Jesus denying that he is Emmanuel, God with us? If this is the case, then we have a genuine contradiction in the Gospel of Matthew, because everywhere else the gospel affirms this. No, Jesus is correcting this young man’s loose lips. He said, Good Master and good thing, with no apparent understanding of what he is saying. “If you call me good, then know what you are saying.” The rest of this encounter is no less shocking than its beginning.

22:41  While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them,
22:42  Saying, What think ye of Christ? whose son is he? They say unto him, [The Son] of David.
22:43  He saith unto them, How then doth David in spirit call him Lord, saying,
22:44  The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool?
22:45  If David then call him Lord, how is he his son?
This time Jesus questions the Pharisees, "What think ye of Christ? whose son is he?”
They answered, “The son of David.”
Jesus then says,  “How then doth David in spirit call him Lord, saying, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool? If David then call him Lord, how is he his son?”
This completely stumps them, “And no man was able to answer him a word.”
Is Jesus saying he is not the son of David and thus not Christ? Oh no! What he is saying is, He is the son of David and more – he is the Lord of David.

Son of David – the son promised to David, the Messiah. Frequently used title for Jesus (1:1, 9:27, 12:23, 15:22, 20:29, 20:30, 20:31, 21:9, 21:15). The Gospel opens with this designation, gives his genealogy from David, and his birth in the city of David.

26:63  But Jesus held his peace. And the high priest answered and said unto him, I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God.
26:64  Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.
26:65  Then the high priest rent his clothes, saying, He hath spoken blasphemy; what further need have we of witnesses? behold, now ye have heard his blasphemy.
26:66  What think ye? They answered and said, He is guilty of death.
Jesus is asked point blank, “Are you the Christ, the Son of God?” For these Jewish leaders, Christ and Son of God are synonymous, the Christ is the Son of God.
How does Jesus answer this direct question? Thou hast said. Is this Jesus saying, “Hey, I never said that, you said that”? Or is it the more non-committal, “You said it, not me”?
Well, how did the high priest respond? Then the high priest rent his clothes, saying, He hath spoken blasphemy; what further need have we of witnesses? behold, now ye have heard his blasphemy. The high priest heard, “Yes.” And in fact, “thou hast said” was a common form of expression for yes. So, when asked directly if he was the Christ, the Son of God, Jesus said, Yes.

Did Jesus see and present himself as merely a human prophet? No. He said of himself that he was the Christ, the Son of the living God. Yes, his favorite title for himself was Son of man, to emphasize his full humanity, because our salvation depends on a man dying for us, in our place. But, as we have seen, he said outright he was the Son of God. What is the full significance of “Son of God”? John’s gospel explains this for us.

Did this idea of Jesus as God grow and develop over the centuries, so that we start with a merely human Jesus and not until 325 (the Nicene Creed) did the Church start to think of him as God? No. From the very beginning Jesus speaks of himself and is known as the Son of God, Emmanuel. The epistles of the apostles are clear and adamant with their declaration that Christ, the Son of God, is the creator God.