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. Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods? If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken; Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God? If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him.

John 10:31-38

Jesus’ claim to be one with the Father is a direct claim to be God Himself. If Jesus was just a man, these unbelieving Jews would have been justified under the law to stone Him for blasphemy. The problem is…

Jesus is God!

Jesus offers a defense against the charge of blasphemy by quoting Psalm 82.

I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High 

Psalm 82:6

Jesus tells them that they should not be shocked by His claim because God Himself has called regular men gods in the past because of their positions of authority. Then He further argues that it is obvious that God the Father has sanctified (set apart) Him to an even higher position than those men of the past. The marvelous works He performs are evidence of this.

Jesus further asserts that He is more than just a man by saying that the Father sent Him into the world. In order for Him to be sent, He had to exist before!

Given the sheer multitude of miracles that Jesus performed in front of the world, it is impossible for any reasonable person to deny that God not sent Jesus but that Jesus is in the Father and the Father is in Him. Anyone that would deny Christ’s deity in the face of all this evidence has no rational argument to make. 

Those who continued their denial have only one course to which they can resort. They must ignore the facts, make up lies, and attempt to besmirch the character of Jesus. We will see this exact behavior throughout the rest of the gospel narrative. But please remember – a lie that is repeated a thousand times is still a lie!

By the way, anyone who claims to be Christian or use the name of Jesus and states that He never claimed to be God, needs to take another look at this passage!