Both the Old Testament and New Testament both teach that no one is worthy of worship but God. For example Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6:13 in Luke 4:8
Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.'"Showing that Jesus clearly did not teach that anyone could be worshipped but God. Why did he not correct Thomas in John 20:28? John 20:28 says:
Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!"
Jesus did not correct him. I've heard some people say that in English the verse is mispunctuated. The it should be like "Oh My God, My Lord!" There are two problems with this. One, no way can you get that out of the Greek grammar and two as a Jew Thomas would not have been taking God's name as an explicative now matter how surprised he was.
Look at Hebrews 1:6 as another example:
And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says,
"Let all God's angels worship him."
See the point? If Jesus is not God then why do we see him being worshipped? Answer: The Bible teaches that Jesus is God.
I would like to look at a few more scriptures dealing with who Jesus is. I love Philippians 2:5-11 because it encapsulates the early church's understanding of Jesus so simply.
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
I prefer the NIV and more modern translations than the King James rendering. The KJV says "Let this mind be in you..." which hides what the Greek is definitely saying for modern readers. Paul is admonishing us to be of a humble attitude like Jesus was. Then we are told the kind of humility Jesus exhibited for us. He was God and voluntarily entered into a human body to serve those whom he created. Considering the heights from which Christ condescended to serve humanity shouldn't be willing to lay aside ego and pride and serve each other in love.
I would be remiss not to mention John 14:8-21. I want to look at what Jesus said:
Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us."
Jesus answered: "Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'? Don't you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves. I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
"If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him."
Jesus emphatically tells us that seeing Him is as good as seeing the Father. He does not assert that He is the Father. No the Father and The Son are distinct but both are still God. John 12:12-14 is a great text that shows a glimpse of the Son's Relationship with the Father.
When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."Jesus and the Father are 2 distinct witnesses to who Jesus is and why He came. Each a distinct person. Not one.
The Pharisees challenged him, "Here you are, appearing as your own witness; your testimony is not valid."
Jesus answered, "Even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid, for I know where I came from and where I am going. But you have no idea where I come from or where I am going. You judge by human standards; I pass judgment on no one. But if I do judge, my decisions are right, because I am not alone. I stand with the Father, who sent me. In your own Law it is written that the testimony of two men is valid. I am one who testifies for myself; my other witness is the Father, who sent me."
Here are some other scriptures that should be considered when discussing this about Jesus' deity. John 1:1-5 says:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning."The Word" is the Greek word LOGOS. It means the "eternal expression of the divine intelligence" (Goodrick-Kohlenberger number 3364). Some people have tried to take this idea as meaning that it's not talking about a person. The problem is John emphatically writes that the Word is God and is called a Him.
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
John 1:14 says:
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
John says the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. He says that God dwelt among men in the person of Christ.
John 1:18 says:
No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known.How can John write about no one seeing "God but God the One and Only" made him known? We must accept John's language whether we understand it or not. He is saying that no one has seen God, but God (the Word) has made him known. Unless you want to argue that the Word is not Jesus Christ what other conclusion can you draw other than Jesus is God.
Colossians 1:15-20 says:
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.How can all things be made by him and for him and all things be held together by him unless he is eternal and is God? Most people agree that this passage is about Jesus. Jesus held the fullness of all that God is in him. This makes Jesus as more than just an exalted human being. It says that Jesus is God.
John 12:39-41 says
For this reason they could not believe, because, as Isaiah says elsewhere:
"He has blinded their eyes
and deadened their hearts,
so they can neither see with their eyes,
nor understand with their hearts,
nor turn—and I would heal them." Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus' glory and spoke about him.
John 12:39-41 refers to Isaiah 6:1-4:
In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another:
"Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty;
the whole earth is full of his glory." At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.
John is saying that when Isaiah says He "saw" God, he was referring to Christ!
Let us turn to what the Bible says about the Holy Spirit. We can see that it says that Holy Spirit is God. The Holy Spirit is not an impersonal force or energy field without consciousness or thought. Look at Acts 5:3,4 which says:
Then Peter said, "Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land? Didn't it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn't the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied to men but to God."
Examine what Peter said. First he said Ananias lied to the Holy Spirit. You can't lie to a force, you can only lie to a person. Second, Ananias lied to God not just to men. The Holy Spirit is equated to God. Let's get another example: Acts 13:1-3 says
In the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off.
I'm sure you can see that it says that the Holy Spirit spoke. He said He had a plan for Barnabas and Paul. A force cannot have plans or have desires.
Let me sum up what I am saying so far. The Bible says the Father is God. The Bible says the Son is God. The Bible Says the Holy Spirit is God. Here is the next part. The Bible Says there is one God. Here are 2 Scriptures that say that there is only one God. Isaiah 43:10 says:
"You are my witnesses," declares the LORD,
"and my servant whom I have chosen,
so that you may know and believe me
and understand that I am he.
Before me no god was formed,
nor will there be one after me.
Isaiah 45:22 says:
"Turn to me and be saved,
all you ends of the earth;
for I am God, and there is no other.
Are there any scriptures in the Bible that talk about the Father, the son, and the Holy Spirit? Yes. Look at Matthew 28:19 which says:
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
Matt 3:16,17 says
As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."
Therefore if the Father is God; the Son is God; the Holy Spirit is God; and there is only One God then the Bible teaches the doctrine of the Trinity.
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