This article came about from a debate I had with Tavish (let’s pray for his salvation), who rejects Jesus’ divinity YET says Jesus is his savior! This position is a contradiction to me! ONLY God can save (Isaiah 43:11; Psalm 3:8; Hosea 13:4; Jonah 2:9)! If you wish to watch it, here is the debate. Click Here.
We live in an age obsessed with “fixing” things. We want every data point to line up perfectly, every mystery to be explained away, and every contradiction to be smoothed over. We like formulas and clear-cut logic.
However, when we look at the person of Jesus Christ in the Bible, we aren’t looking at a simple math problem. We are looking at the Infinite God stepping into human skin. Because of that, we shouldn’t be surprised when we run into things that make our heads spin.
As you read the Gospels, you’ll find “tensions” — moments where Jesus is described in ways that seem to clash. To our limited human minds, these look like contradictions. But as we look at these eight specific examples, we have to keep one thing in mind: God’s ways are simply higher than ours.
1. Was He Eternal or Created?
The Bible starts the Gospel of John by saying, “In the beginning was the Word” (John 1:1). This tells us Jesus has no beginning. Yet, in Colossians 1:15, He is called the “firstborn of all creation.”
To us, “firstborn” sounds like a starting point in time. But in God’s language, it’s a title of rank and supremacy. He is the uncreated Creator who holds the highest position over everything He made.
2. Fully God vs. Fully Man
How can the person who holds the entire universe together (Hebrews 1:3) also be a man who gets hungry (Matthew 4:2) and tired? We struggle with this because, in our experience, you are either one thing or the other.
Jesus doesn’t fit into our “either/or” boxes. In the miracle of the Incarnation, He remains fully God while becoming fully human. He bridged the gap between the Creator and the creature in a way we can’t fully explain, but we can certainly trust.
3. Total Knowledge vs. Limited Knowledge
There is a famous moment in Mark 13:32 where Jesus says that only the Father knows the time of His return — not even the Son knows. Yet, in John 21:17, Peter tells Jesus, “Lord, you know everything.”
How can He know everything and “not know” something at the same time? We don’t have to understand the mechanics of how a Divine Mind works inside a human brain. We simply recognize that Jesus chose to limit His use of certain divine powers while He walked among us.
4. All-Powerful vs. Unable to Act
In His own hometown, the Bible says Jesus “could do no mighty work” because the people didn’t believe (Mark 6:5). Does this mean God ran out of power? Not at all.
It means that God often chooses to work through the channel of our faith. His power is never gone; it is simply restrained by His own purposes. He doesn’t lose His strength just because He chooses not to use it in a certain moment.
5. Peace vs. Division
We love the “Prince of Peace” described in Isaiah 9:6. We cling to His promise of peace in John 14:27. But then we see Luke 12:51, where Jesus asks, “Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.”
This isn’t a change in His personality. It’s a reality of the Truth. Truth naturally divides. While His ultimate goal is to bring us peace with God, the path to that peace often requires us to be divided from the world’s ways.
6. Equality vs. Following Orders
“I and the Father are one,” Jesus says in John 10:30. But then, in John 14:28, He says, “The Father is greater than I.”
This isn’t a conflict of “worth.” Just because Jesus submits to the Father’s plan doesn’t mean He is “less than” God. Think of it like a team: different roles, but equal importance. He remains God even while He obeys the Father.
7. The Judge vs. The Savior
Is Jesus the Judge (John 5:22) or the Savior who didn’t come to judge the world (John 12:47)? The answer is “Yes.”
The “contradiction” here is actually just a matter of timing. He came the first time in humility to save us from our sins. He will return a second time in glory to judge the world. He is both the Lamb who was slain and the Lion who rules.
8. His Own Testimony
In John 8:14, Jesus says His testimony is true even if He’s the only one talking. But in John 5:31, He says if He is the only witness, His testimony is not true.
Here, Jesus is talking about two different things. In one breath, He is acknowledging the human legal rules of the time (which required two witnesses). In the next, He is stating the absolute reality of who He is. He meets our human standards while standing far above them.
Conclusion: We Don’t Need to “Know How”
If we could fully explain Jesus, He wouldn’t be God; He would be a character we made up. These tensions in the Bible are actually proof of His divinity. They remind us that we are dealing with a Reality that is much bigger than our three-pound brains.
We don’t need to understand the “gritty details” of how Jesus can be two things at once to be saved by Him. We don’t need to solve every mystery to worship Him.
Our job is to submit to the Scriptures. When the Bible says something that doesn’t fit your logic, don’t try to “fix” the Word of God. Instead, let the Word fix you. Trust that even if you don’t understand how it works, God does — and that is more than enough.
M.J. Kelley