What other scriptures emphasize the importance of acknowledging Jesus as the Son? Rooted in 1 John 2:23 “Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father, but whoever confesses the Son has the Father as well.” The line is drawn clearly: knowing God hinges on openly embracing Jesus as His Son. Scripture keeps returning to that theme, often with striking urgency. Jesus’ Own Words About Confessing Him • Matthew 10:32-33 — “Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father in heaven.” • Luke 12:8-9 echoes the same warning and promise. • John 5:22-23 — “The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.” • John 8:24 — “…for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” • John 14:6 — “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” Jesus Himself makes acknowledging His Sonship a life-or-death matter. The Apostles Pick Up the Torch • Acts 4:12 — “There is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” • Romans 10:9-10 — “If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” • 1 Corinthians 12:3 — “No one can say, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ except by the Holy Spirit.” • Philippians 2:11 — “…every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” • Hebrews 4:14 — “Since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens—Jesus the Son of God—let us hold firmly to what we profess.” The early church treated public confession of Jesus’ divine Sonship as the gateway into fellowship and salvation. John’s Consistent Witness • John 1:12 — “To all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.” • John 3:16-18 stresses belief in “the only begotten Son.” • John 20:31 — “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.” • 1 John 4:15 — “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.” • 1 John 5:1, 5 — “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God… Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.” • 2 John 7-9 warns that those who do not remain in the teaching of Christ “do not have God.” John circles back again and again: confessing the Son is inseparable from fellowship with the Father. Old Testament Foreshadowing • Psalm 2:7 — “You are My Son; today I have become Your Father.” • Isaiah 9:6 hints at a divine Child whose name is “Mighty God.” These passages prepare the ground, so that acknowledging Jesus as God’s Son fulfils long-standing prophecy. Consequences of Denial or Confession • Hebrews 2:3 — “How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?” • Hebrews 10:29 speaks of the severe judgment awaiting those who trample the Son of God underfoot. • Revelation 21:7-8 contrasts “the one who overcomes” (through faith in the Son) with the “unbelieving” who face the second death. Scripture never treats acknowledging Jesus’ Sonship as optional. It is the watershed between life and death, fellowship and separation, hope and judgment. |
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