Was Jesus Made God After The Three Synoptic Gospels Were Written?

In a recent debate between Bart Ehrman and Jimmy Akin, Bart claimed (in seconds 30:23-30:47) that Jesus never referred to Himself as God in the three synoptic gospels of Mark, Luke and Matthew. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKShBLRixR8&t=8137s). Bart claims that only in the later written gospel of John do we find Jesus claiming to be God, the “I AM”, the one with the Father, and the image of the Father (John 14). As such, Bart concludes that Christianity started with Jesus as the Messiah and gradually kept elevating Jesus to be God Himself. Is this claim really true? Well, not really because of two main reasons. 

First, the earliest written text in the New Testament are the letters of St. Paul. It is well known that Paul’s undisputed letters were written even before the earliest gospel, the Gospel of Mark. In the letters of Paul, we find abundant evidence that Christians believed that Jesus was God, and therefore, the Gospel of John didn’t invent the divinity of Jesus. For example, in Paul’s first letter to Timothy, he stated: 

“And without controversy great is the [a]mystery of godliness: 

God was manifested in the flesh, 

Justified in the Spirit, 

Seen by angels, 

Preached among the Gentiles, 

Believed on in the world, 

Received up in glory.” (1 Timothy 3:16). 

Paul was clear that Jesus was God manifested in the flesh. He also confirmed that Jesus was fully God by stating that “in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power” (Colossians 2:9-10). There are many more verses from Paul’s letters that indisputably establish the divinity of Jesus. 

Second, in contrast to Bart’s claim, Jesus’ divinity is clearly established in the Synoptic gospels alone. The earliest gospel, the gospel of Mark, starts with the claim that Jesus is the Son of God “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” (Mark 1:1), and that Jesus is the Lord:  

“As it is written in the Prophets: 

“Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, 

Who will prepare Your way before You.” 

3 “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 

‘Prepare the way of the Lord; 

Make His paths straight.” (Mark 1:2-3) 

Mark records that even the demons knew that Jesus was God when he healed a possessed man. The demons shouted: “Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” (Mark 1:24). Jesus certainly didn’t deny such a confession. The Scribes knew that Jesus acted like God when he forgave the paralyzed man as they thought in their hearts “Why does this Man speak blasphemies like this? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” (Mark 2:7). Jesus also challenged the Pharisees when he “answered and said, while He taught in the temple, “How is it that the scribes say that the Christ is the Son of David?  For David himself said by the Holy Spirit: 

‘The Lord said to my Lord, 

“Sit at My right hand, 

Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.” ’ 

Therefore David himself calls Him ‘Lord’; how is He then his Son?” (Mark 12:35-37). 

In conclusion, the claim that the gospel of John elevated Christ to become God is not true. Paul’s letters, which were written earlier than the gospels, confirm the doctrine that Jesus is God. In addition, there are numerous claims and actions by Jesus in the Synoptic Gospels that confirm that Jesus is God, the Son of God, and the Son of Man.  

Is calling St. Mary ‘the mother of God’ Biblically correct? 

Calling St. Mary “the mother of God” is not only a matter of creed related to St. Mary, but also to our Lord Jesus Christ. 

First, calling the Blessed Virgin Mary “the mother of God” essentially means that the child who is conceived in her womb by the power of the Holy Spirit, carried in her body and born into this world, is God. Consequently, the title of “mother of God” highlights the pivotal truth of the Orthodox, and Catholic, Church’s Faith which is that God has, in Jesus Christ, manifested in human nature, chosen to be born into this world and lived a real, human life. So, it was through her that Jesus, who is God, was born. It doesn’t mean that she is the creator of God or the world. However, she was full of grace that God chose her to conceive His Son, Jesus Christ, to be born through her.  

Second, in the Old Testament, the prophecy of Isaiah speaks of a virgin mother of Immanuel, a name that means “God is with us”. In Isaiah 7:14 “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.” Later in Isaiah 8:8-9 Immanuel is referred to as the future Savior of his people. Here the prophet foretells an extraordinary future sign: that a virgin, without the cooperation of a man, will give birth to a child whose name means “God is with us.” Also, the prophecy of Micah 5:2-3 foretells the birth of the Savior in Bethlehem from a woman who will “bring forth” the “ruler of Israel” and that she will be this ruler’s mother.  

Third, the New Testament clearly mentions the greeting of Elizabeth to Saint Mary as “mother of my Lord”. In Luke 1:43, when Saint Mary’s relative, Elizabeth, greeted her shortly after she had conceived The Lord, and said “And why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” So, it is stated in the Bible that Saint Mary was called the “mother of the Lord” which has the same meaning of “mother of God” as The Lord Jesus Christ is God.  

So, both the Old Testament and the New Testament reveal to us that Saint Mary is the mother of God through prophecies and direct references.