Isn’t it true that Jesus never really claimed to be the son of God, but that is something that his followers said about him?
I’ve often heard people say that Jesus, Himself, never claimed to be the son of God, but that it was His disciples that made that claim, so I’m glad you asked the question. In fact, the Lord did openly state that He is the Son of God. Let’s start by reading John 10:24-33, “Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto him, How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly. Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father’s name, they bear witness of me. But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand. I and my Father are one. Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.” Here we find that some came to the Lord and asked Him to tell them plainly if He was the Christ, or the Messiah. He tells them that He had already told them that He was the Christ, but that they refused to believe Him. He then goes on to tell wonderful truths about Himself, His purpose, and His oneness with the Father. While we do not see that the Lord said plainly, “I am God”, the Jews certainly knew that that was exactly what He was saying. They picked up stones to kill Him saying, “thou, being a man, makest thyself God.” They understood His words and His intent. Jesus was saying that He was God.
In John, chapter nine, the Lord Jesus heals a man that had been blind from birth. I encourage you to read the entire chapter, but for our purposes, we will read John 9:35-38, where it says, “Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when he had found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God? He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him? And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee. And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him.” Here the Lord openly states that He is the son of God. There can be no mistake about his claim, and then He exhibits the fact that He is God by accepting the worship of this man, knowing that God is the only one to be worshipped. Consider the incident at the end of the book of Revelation, when the Apostle John tried to worship an angel. Revelation 22:8-9 says, “And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things. Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.” So, God is the only one to be worshipped and Jesus accepted worship, thereby exhibiting his claim of being God.
Now let’s look at the charges against the Lord Jesus in his trial before Pilate. John 19:1-7 says, “Then Pilate therefore took Jesus, and scourged him. And the soldiers platted a crown of thorns, and put it on his head, and they put on him a purple robe, And said, Hail, King of the Jews! and they smote him with their hands. Pilate therefore went forth again, and saith unto them, Behold, I bring him forth to you, that ye may know that I find no fault in him. Then came Jesus forth, wearing the crown of thorns, and the purple robe. And Pilate saith unto them, Behold the man! When the chief priests therefore and officers saw him, they cried out, saying, Crucify him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Take ye him, and crucify him: for I find no fault in him. The Jews answered him, We have a law, and by our law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God.” The chief priests and officers had certainly heard the teachings of the Lord Jesus and understood His claim to be the son of God. At His trial, they charged Him with claiming to be the son of God.
While the Lord was on the cross, dying for the sins of all men, He was mocked by those around Him. Of those that mocked him, we read in Matthew 27:43, “He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.”
These are just four examples where Jesus claimed to be God, and the Son of God. It was not just the claims of his disciples, but He, Himself, boldly stated who He was and is.
It’s worth noting that even the demons recognized that Jesus was the son of God as we read in Mark 3:11, “And unclean spirits, when they saw him, fell down before him, and cried, saying, Thou art the Son of God.” We have an account in Mark chapter 5 where the Lord met a demon possessed man. The words of this man to the Lord in Mark 5:7 was, “What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not.”
I pray that you would consider what the scriptures have to say about the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. May you come to realize the wonderful truth of the Lord and be able to say, as Peter did in John 6:69, “And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.”