Understanding John 20:17 concerning the controversy “Jesus has a God.”

Jesus said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’”

Discussion,

Jesus often spoke from both His humanity and from His deity; therefore suggesting that Jesus denies His deity through Scriptures like John 20:17 is eternal error.

Jesus is the fullness of Deity (Colossians 2:9-10) as Jesus is God, Elohim, I AM, Creator, Warrior, Messiah, Judge (Genesis 1; John 1; Hebrews 1; Colossians 1).

Jesus entered the Realm of Time and relinquished many of His deific attributes while encapsulated in flesh; this, for YOUR benefit as Jesus’ hypostatic union of deity and flesh was essential in order to provide sinful humanity acceptable blood atonement (Leviticus 17:11; Genesis 3:21; Matthew 26:28) and thereby pave a divine Path, an acceptable Way, to enter the Kingdom where “nothing impure is permitted to enter” (John 3; Revelation 21:27; John 14:6); a purity, holiness, freely offered sinful humanity via the divine imputation of Messiah’s righteousness in exchange for your sin via faith in Jesus as Messiah (John 3; 2 Corinthians 5:21).

Therefore, if you do not see or understand or acknowledge the necessity for Messiah’s deity, you are NOT redeemed by faith as you do NOT possess the indwelling Holy Spirit who is Guarantor of New Covenant relationship with the Father given to all who acknowledge abiding faith in Jesus as Messiah (Ephesians 1:13-14); therefore, you are not redeemed, you remain in your sin (John 8:24) and you are on the path to the “second death” in Hell.

Though the knowledge of Messiah’s deity is NOT an element of salvation, the acknowledgement of Messiah’s deity is a natural manifestation of the Holy Spirit’s divine teaching during sanctification, a daily work of the indwelling Holy Spirit in the life of the redeemed as the Spirit methodically prepares the faithful in Jesus for an eternity of service in the New Jerusalem (Galatians 5:16; 1 John 2:27).

This truism concerning Messiah’s deity is NOT open for debate as the one who denies Messiah’s deity serves a different Jesus, NOT the Jesus of Scripture. It is the indwelling Holy Spirit who teaches Jesus’ deity and His divine sovereignty as Messiah; therefore, if Jesus is not your Elohim (Genesis 1:1), you do NOT belong to Him and you therefore remain in your sin (1 John 2:22-27).

The genuine acknowledgment, abiding knowledge, of Jesus as Elohim is a distinguishing, differentiating, truism in the life of an authentic Christian and this knowledge and confession distinguishes the Christian from every religion and religious cult present in the World today.

Jesus asks you, “Who do you say I AM?” (Matthew 16:15).