ASK DR.ZAKIR NAIK:
{JESUS CLAIM DIVINITY ? “I AND MY FATHER ARE ONE”: BIBLE JOHN CH 10
VERSE 30}
(QUESTIONER)
Assalaam
Alaikum – My name is Haji Muhammed. Brother Zakir… Brother Zakir, you mentioned
in your talk that Jesus never claimed Divinity. But it is mentioned in the
Bible that Jesus said… ‘I and my father
are one’ Does this not simply that he claimed Divinity?
ANSWER:
(DR. ZAKIR)
Brother has asked a question that I said in my talk, that nowhere does the
Bible say ‘that Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) claimed Divinity’ - And he
gave a quotation of the Bible, that Jesus said ‘I and my father one’. What the
brother is quoting is, a verse from the Bible, in the Gospel of John, Ch.
No.10, Verse No.30, which does say… ‘I and my father are one’. But when you ask
the Christian missionaries, that… ‘What is the context?’ I have not yet met a
Christian missionary, who can tell you the context without opening the Bible.
He knows ‘I and my father are one’, but he does not know the context. For
example, if I quote to someone, that the Qur’an says, ‘Does not pray’ - Most of
the Muslims would be shocked - what am I saying? And if you open it up, it
says… ‘Do not pray’ - but its half the verse. Surah Nisa Ch.4, Verse No.43,
says ‘Do not pray with your mind befogged’ - Do not pray when you are
intoxicated. So if I only quote… Do not pray - It will mean Qur’an says, ‘Don’t
pray’ – half the quotation. So for the context, ‘I and my father are one’ - you
have to go to the Gospel of John, Ch. No.10, Verse No. 23, and I am quoting
from my memory, that ‘Jesus walked into the temple, in Solomon’s porch’.
Verse No. 24 says, and the Jews came around him and asked him. ‘How long
does thou make us doubt? - If thou art the Christ, tell us plainly’. Verse
No.25 says, ‘I told you, but you believe me not - the works that I do in my
father’s name, - they bear witness of me. Verse No.26 says that, ‘you believe
not because you are not my sheep, as I
said unto you’. The Jews, they
are asking Jesus Christ (peace be upon
him) that ‘Why don’t you speak plainly?’. So he tells them that…‘Yes I am the
Messiah - I have told you clearly, but because you are not my sheep, you don’t
believe in me. Verse No.27 continues…Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) continues
saying that… ‘My sheep - they hear my voice, and I know them - and they follow
me. Verse No.28, that… ‘I give them eternal life - no man can pluck them out of
my hand, and they shall not perish’. Verse No.29 says ‘My father who giveth to
me, He is greater than all - No man can pluck them out of my father’s hand.
Then Verse No. 30 says, ‘I and my father are one’ – ‘Any person who has little
bit sense can make out, ‘I and my father
are one’ doesn’t mean one - as one person. It means one is purpose. Verse No.28
says, ‘No man can pluck them out of my hand – Jesus Christ (peace be upon him)
says- ‘No man can pluck them out of my hand’. Verse No.29 is saying. ‘No man
can pluck them out of my father’s hand’. Verse No.30 says ‘I and my father are one’ -In purpose. Both
Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) and
Almighty God - they are one in purpose. If I say that my father is a doctor…
and he is a doctor… Alhamdulillah - Even I am a medical doctor. If I say, ‘I
and my father are one’ - What does it mean? It means one in purpose - As
medical profession, my father is a doctor - Even I am a doctor. It doesn’t mean
that ‘I and my father are one’.
It means my father is a medical doctor - even I am a medical doctor. But
Christians say ‘No.. No – it means ‘one’ - actual Unity. So we say… ‘Okay, you
say actual unity… let us read further’. If you go ahead in the Gospel of John,
Ch. No.17, Verse No.21, it says that, Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) said
that… ‘Ye all of them are one - My father in me, and I in thee, we all are
one’. ‘Does it mean that God Almighty, is in Jesus Christ… and Jesus Christ is
in all his 12 disciples. So there will be 14 gods - Jesus Christ, God Almighty,
and 12 disciples. The same ‘one’ is used there, and here. If you go to the source,
the same word is used - If you go to the Greek… the same word is used - So does
it mean you have 14 gods? And among those disiples, Judas was a traitor -. Even
he is God? Thomas doubted Jesus Christ (peace be upon him ) - is he God? - ‘Peter’ - Jesus Christ says …
‘is satanic?’- Is he also God? No, - all
of them, God Almighty - Jesus Christ and the
Apostles, are one in purpose - they are
same. Again if you go 2 verses
ahead - Gospel of John, Ch. 17,
Verse 23, says that, ‘I am in thee, and you are in me’… he tells the disciples.
Does it make all them God? No! It means one in purpose. But then Christians
will say, ‘I have quoted the first part... why don’t you quote after that...
after Verse No.30 - Gospel of John Chapter 10. Lets go ahead - Gospel of John,
Ch. No. 10, Verse No.31. says, ‘And Jews picked up stones again, to stone at Jesus (peace be upon him) Verse No. 32, says… ‘And
Jesus (peace be upon him) asked them - for which of the good works of my
father, do you stone me?’ Verse No. 33, says that…‘We don’t’ stone you for any
good works, but because you blashpheme – being a man, you call yourself God –
that is why we stone you’. Verbatim…I am reading from my memory - Any person
who wants to check up, can check up.
It is there in the Bible - Gospel of John, Ch. 10, Verse 23 onwards… I am
quoting. So Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) gives the answer - the Jews say
that see he is trying to blaspheme, calling himself ‘God’. Good riddance - they
want to kill him - good riddance. The Christians say ooh! the Jews called him
God Almighty - See they understood him correctly - for redemption. One wants
for redemption - they are calling him God - the other group of people for good
riddance. But the answer is given in the next verse - Verse no. 34, of John Ch.
10, Gospel of John, Ch. 10, says that…‘Is it not mentioned in your Scriptures
that ye are gods? - and if the person to whom the word’ of God came … if he
says… ‘god’ - the Scripture is not broken. If you check up in the Bible, in the
Psalms, Ch. No. 82, Verse No.6, does say that, ‘Ye are gods’. So Jesus Christ
gave the answer, that the person to whom the ‘Word’ of God came, if you call
him ‘God’, it is not blaspheme. It is meaning that… they are one in purpose.
Hope that answers the question.