“Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
That’s the question Jesus asked His disciples:
(Matthew 16:13-17 – BSB) — [13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He questioned His disciples: “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” [14] They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” [15] “But what about you?” Jesus asked. “Who do you say I am?” [16] Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” [17] Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by My Father in heaven.
Let’s first discuss the following statement:
“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
“The Christ” (The Anointed, The Messiah)
Note that Jesus Himself confirms this revelation. He confirms that He is indeed the “the Son of the living God.”
This is one of the most important statements in the whole Bible in identifying who Jesus is. Furthermore, it reveals that without a proper understanding of who Jesus is, there is no salvation. How do we know that? The Apostle John, who was among Jesus’ disciples when He said this, answers that question in the 5th chapter of 1 John, as well as in his Gospel:
(1 John 5:1,5,11-13,20 – BSB) — [1] Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father also loves those born of Him.
[5] Who then overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
[11] And this is that testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. [12] Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. [13] I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.
[20] And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true—in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.
(John 20:31- BSB) – But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.
Of particular note is what John says in the last two lines of 1 John 5:20:
“In His Son, Jesus Christ (the Messiah). He is the true God and eternal life.”
Keep this statement in mind as we lay all this out. We’ll come back to it later.
Based on what both Jesus and the Apostle John revealed, who is “the Christ?” In other words, who is the Anointed One of God? Who is the Messiah the OT prophesied about? First and foremost, as was revealed to Peter, He’s “the Son of the living God.” We also see that the Apostle John makes that clear in 1 John 5. Thus, to believe in Christ (the Messiah), is to believe that He is the Son of God. Let’s go back to the statement made by Peter:
“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
There’s so much more to this statement than meets the eye. There are two phrases here that we must properly define:
“The Christ”
The Jews today believe that the Messiah is someone who will come through the line of David, who will be both their King and Redeemer. They believe that He will regather the people of Israel and usher in a Messianic age where there will be universal peace, with Israel as the world center and world power, with their Messiah as the world Ruler. They believe that the temple will be rebuilt and that there will be universal knowledge about the God of Israel. As King, He would lead them in all the ways of God, just as David did. Thus, their redemption is directly related to their national restoration, which involves obeying God’s commands (the Law). It’s in this way that they believe the Messiah will be both King and Redeemer.
At the time of Jesus’ ministry, the Jews believed that their Messiah would save them from the oppression of Rome as their Deliverer, where Israel would once again have a king to rule over both their nation and the whole world. Of course, they believed that obedience to the Law of the Old Covenant was their redemption.
While they were correct that the Messiah would be a descendent of David, who would sit upon his throne as King, they were wrong about the nature of this King and what His mission really was. They were also wrong about what he would accomplish for them as their Redeemer.
“The Son of the Living God”
“The Son” of which God? How we answer that question is all-important. There are many gods in the world, so which God was Peter referring to? Obviously, as a believing Jew, he would be referring to the God of Israel, who is Yahweh (YHWH). This is who God revealed Himself as to the people of Israel.
The OT teaches that God is one God, who is Yahweh, the “I Am” of Israel (Ex 3:14). What’s significant about this is that Jesus revealed Himself as the “I Am” of Israel, the very God they worshipped:
(John 8:58 – CSB) — Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, before Abraham was, I am.”
Along with providing salvation for the world, Jesus came to reveal Himself to Israel as the very God they worshipped—keeping in mind that the Jews as a nation and as a religion rejected Jesus as their Messiah and God.
Note the following Scriptures:
(John 8:24 – BSB) — That is why I told you that you would die in your sins. For unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.”
Unless the Jews believed that Jesus was who He said He was, they would “die in their sins.” It’s important that we continue to identify who the “He” is. Jesus made that clear to them:
(John 8:19 – BSB) — “Where is Your Father?” they asked Him. “You do not know Me or My Father,” Jesus answered. “If you knew Me, you would know My Father as well.”
(John 5:17-18 – BSB) — [17] But Jesus answered them, “To this very day My Father is at His work, and I too am working.” [18] Because of this, the Jews tried all the harder to kill Him. Not only was He breaking the Sabbath, but He was even calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.
(John 10:30-33,36 – BSB) — [30] I and the Father are one.” [31] At this, the Jews again picked up stones to stone Him. [32] But Jesus responded, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone Me?” [33] “We are not stoning You for any good work,” said the Jews, “but for blasphemy, because You, who are a man, declare Yourself to be God.” [36] then what about the One whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world? How then can you accuse Me of blasphemy for stating that I am the Son of God?
The way the Jews reacted to the claims of Jesus, they clearly understood Him to be claiming to be the God of Israel. We know that because they said so themselves.
Jesus also revealed Himself to His disciples as the God of Israel:
(John 14:7-9 – BSB) — [7] If you had known Me, you would know My Father as well. From now on you do know Him and have seen Him.” [8] Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.” [9] Jesus replied, “Philip, I have been with you all this time, and still you do not know Me? Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?
These passages are sufficient to prove that Jesus claimed to be the God of Israel (YHWH – Yahweh). These passages are also sufficient to prove that the Jews understood Him correctly. However, we know that many of them refused to believe it. Therefore, Jesus told them that the consequences of that would be that they would “die in their sins.” Meaning, they would die without God, without forgiveness, where they would pay the price for their sins forever and ever.
What’s significant about all this is that the Jews had a correct understanding about God before Jesus came along. They believed that there was only one God, and that was Yahweh, the I AM of Israel.
However, when Jesus arrived and revealed Himself to Israel, they didn’t believe the fuller revelation of who God is. Throughout the ages people have been held accountable to believe the light that was revealed to them. While the Jews of Jesus day acknowledged the one God of Israel before their Messiah arrived, they failed to believe the additional light given to them about who He is.
The true believing Jews of Jesus’ day were able to recognize the Father in the teaching and the life that Jesus lived before them (which included His miracles). The Jews who were not true believers, were not able to recognize Jesus as their God, because they didn’t believe in the Father before Jesus arrived.
Note: To be clear, the Jews referred to the God of Israel as the Father or as their Father. So when Jesus talked about His Father, they knew who He was claiming to be.
The God of Israel is a Trinity
In the days of Jesus’ ministry, He revealed Himself as the God of Israel—that He and the Father were one (and I don’t mean that Jesus was the Father, or that the Father was Jesus). That was the fuller revelation about who God is.
However, throughout the NT the full revelation of who God is, is that He is a Trinity. God is a Triune God, who exists eternally as three Persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It’s not that God merely reveals Himself as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. He IS Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Remove one Person from the Trinity, and God doesn’t exist. Add one person to the Trinity, and you have a false god. God is no less and no more than a Triune God.
In addition, for a person to be saved, they must believe in the eternal pre-existence of the Son of God when it’s taught to them. Furthermore, people who do believe it give evidence of their salvation. I make this point because there are professing Christians who don’t believe that the Son of God had a pre-existence, but that He came into being in this life as Jesus (Oneness Pentecostalism). That is a false understanding of who Jesus is.
We must realize that in order to be saved, we must have a correct understanding about God. Only the true God has power to save. Who we place our faith in is all-important. The example of the Jews is our example. They believed in God as revealed in the OT, but rejected the fuller light that Jesus is the God of Israel. Keep this in mind as we continue this study.
There’s an abundance of Scriptures that I can provide to demonstrate the Triune nature of God, but I’ll just provide a few. Since there’s so many, I’ll just provide the references for you to look up:
Genesis 1:2; Judges 3:10; 1 Samuel 16:13; 2 Samuel 23:2; Ezekiel 11:24; Matthew 1:20-21; Matthew 3:16; Matthew 12:28; Mark 1:10-11; Matthew 28:18-19; John 14:16-17,26; John 15:26; Acts 8:39; 1 Corinthians 2:11; 2 Corinthians 3:17-18; 2 Corinthians 13:14; 1 Peter 1:2; 1 Peter 4:14; Romans 8:9-11; 1 Peter 1:11; John 7:37-39; John 4:10; 2 Peter 1:21; Revelation 22:1.
In addition to those references, there are many places we can go to that describe each Person of the Trinity in the same ways.
With that background, let’s return to where we started, and that’s with these passages:
(Matthew 16:16) – “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
“The Christ” (The Anointed, The Messiah)
(1 John 5:1,5,20 – BSB) – [1] Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father also loves those born of Him.
[5] Who then overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
[20] And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true—in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.
(John 20:31- BSB) – But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.
These passages make it clear that to believe in Jesus Christ (the Messiah) is to believe that He is the Son of God. There is no salvation for anyone who doesn’t believe that Jesus is the eternal Son of God. But the most important question to ask at this point is “which God is Jesus the Son of?” We already answered that. It’s YHWH (Yahweh), the God and Father of Israel. Furthermore, the full revelation about God is that He is Triune in nature: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Before we go on, I want to give you the statement of faith about God that I have on this website. It will give you a better understanding of the Triune nature of God:
Quote:
God — There is one true God who exists as a trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (three distinct Persons, but not separate). They are one in essence, co-eternal, co-equal, and do all things in perfect unity. God is all-powerful, all-knowing, everywhere-present. He is the creator and Ruler of the universe. As Sovereign God, He is moving all things according to a grand plan for His people and for the world.
In the Trinity of God, there is one will and one authority and one center of consciousness, for the Three are one in essence. Thus, the Trinity does all things as a single operation. This is commonly referred to as “inseparable operations.” Therefore, I believe the idea of ESS (Eternal Subordination of the Son) — also known as EFS (Eternal Functional Subordination) — is a serious error. I believe it’s a false understanding of the Trinity. The authority that was “given” to Jesus (Matt 28:18), was given to Him in His humanity, but something He shared with the Father and Holy Spirit throughout eternity. When I say “shared,” I mean one authority, not one authority over the other. Nor is it the idea of three separate modes of authority that merely function as one (in unity). Further, this authority could not have been given to Jesus in His humanity if He didn’t have it in eternity. That alone invalidates ESS. Nothing could be given to the Son in eternity when God has existed throughout eternity as a Trinity, and with all authority as God.
Unquote
Therefore, when the Bible tells us that we need to believe that “Jesus is the Christ” (the Messiah) in order to be saved, it means that we must believe that He is the eternal “Son of God,” and that He is the Second Person of the Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The Jews of Jesus’ day had to believe that as their Messiah and as the Son of God, that He was the God of Israel. The same is true today, except with the full revelation of the NT Scriptures, we know that Yahweh exists as a Triune God. Everyone who comes to faith in Christ must believe that He is the Son of the true God. For sure, not everyone who first believes, has been taught that God is a Trinity. But if that’s what they were taught, then they must believe it—and they will indeed believe it, because God will grant them that understanding. Furthermore, the evidence of salvation is that those who are truly born-again will believe that God exists as a Trinity once they’ve been taught (post-conversion). Again, God will reveal that to them. If someone claims to be a Christian or a believer in Christ, but rejects the Trinity — who exists as three distinct (but not separate) Persons — they cannot be saved. How do we know that? The Apostle John tells us that in 1 John 5:20:
“And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know Him who is true.”
The fruit of salvation is that a believer “understands” who the true God is. Jesus Himself, as God, is the One who gives us this understanding. This takes us back to Matthew 16:16-17:
[16] Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” [17] Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by My Father in heaven.
Jesus identifies that Jesus is not only the Christ (the Messiah), but that He is also the Son of who? Answer: He’s “The Son of the living God!” Who is the Living God? He’s “the Father,” who is the God of Israel (YHWH – Yahweh). Thus, we must realize that Jesus is one with the Father, of the very same essence, of the very same Divine nature. With the full revelation of the NT Scriptures, we also know that God exists as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. To speak of one is to speak of the other, not as the same Person, but as the same God—the only true God of the universe, who exists from everlasting to everlasting as three distinct Persons.
Summary
To believe in Christ (the Messiah) is to believe in the Son of God. To believe in the Son of God is to believe in the Son of the true God. To believe in the true God is to believe in the YHWH (Yahweh) of Israel. To believe in YHWH is to believe that He exists as a Trinity—as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. God doesn’t merely reveal Himself as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. He IS Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
The point of this study is to demonstrate from Scripture that in order to be saved, one must believe in the true God. Not everyone who first comes to faith in Christ is aware that God exists as a Trinity (Father, Son, Holy Spirit). But if that’s what a person was taught, then they must believe it (and will believe it). After conversion, if a person is truly born-again, with the “Spirit of Truth” dwelling within them (John 16:13; 1 John 4:6), then they will believe the teaching that God is Triune in nature (essence) when it’s presented to them. Once God grants light, we are accountable to believe it.
We don’t get saved by believing in a false god, false ideas about God, or incomplete ideas about God (like the unbelieving Jews of Jesus’ day). God reveals Himself to His people as He really is (He did that in stages), not some false version of Himself (2 Cor 4:6; 1 John 5:20; John 14:21,23). God does not reveal Himself to His people in different ways! Those who believe that God is anything but a Triune God, give evidence that they don’t belong to Him (not saved).
The unbelieving Jews of Jesus’ day had an incomplete idea about God, because they didn’t recognize or believe in the fuller revelation of God, which is that Jesus is the Son of God and one with the Father (Yahweh, YHWH)—that Jesus is, in fact, the very God of Israel they claimed to believe in. To believe in Jesus Christ (the Messiah) is to believe the full revelation of who Jesus is (via the NT Scriptures), that He is the Son of God (Yahweh) and that God exists eternally as a Trinity of distinct Persons (but not separate from each other). Together, they are one God. God doesn’t require us to fully comprehend the Triune nature of Himself (the incomprehensible), only to believe it.
If someone claims to be a Christian, but doesn’t believe who Jesus identified Himself to be, cannot be saved. If they believe in a false god, or believe that God is anything other than a Triune God, who flatly rejects the Trinity, they cannot be saved. That is not the fruit of salvation.
If someone believes that God merely reveals Himself in three different ways (modes, roles, masks), as Oneneness Pentecostals believe (modalists), and rejects the teaching that God exists eternally as three distinct Persons, they cannot be saved, because a god of different modes (modalism) is not who God is. That’s not how God has revealed Himself as.
