I don’t think we can go beyond what Jesus said about himself, nor can we go outside of the context of what Jesus said about himself. I think the video stayed SOMEWHAT within what Scriptures say as to what Jesus said about himself. We have to stay with what the author meant by the words that they used. Let’s use John 10:30 as an example, which reads, “I and the Father are one.” Many times, this is used as Trinity proof text for the Trinity and to prove that Jesus is God. Yet, John Calvin, who literally had Michael Servetus killed over his rejection of the Trinity said that John 10:30 cannot be used a proof text for the Trinity in the sense of showing Jesus to be God because the context merely means unity, oneness in purpose. So, in our interpretation of the Scriptures, we should stay with what the author or Jesus meant by the words that they used.

(1) VIDEO: Jesus Claimed to be the Messiah

RESPONSE: Yes, in response to the high priest, he did personally claim to be the Messiah. Jesus came to be called “Jesus Christ” (meaning “Jesus the Khristós”, i.e. “Jesus the Messiah” or “Jesus the Anointed”) by later Christians, who believe that his crucifixion and resurrection fulfill the messianic prophecies of the Old Testament.

(2) VIDEO: Jesus Claimed to be the Son of God

RESPONSE: Yes, in response to the high priest, he did personally claim to be the Son of God. Not explicitly himself but yes because of his calling God his Father. Even if historically he never called himself the Son of God (cf. John 1:14, 18; John 3:16, 18), Jesus presented himself as the Son and not just as one who was the divinely appointed Messiah (and therefore “son” of God). Yes, the parable of the vineyard shows that Jesus saw himself as the Son of God.

(3) VIDEO: Jesus Claimed to be the Son of Man

RESPONSE: Yes, the expression “the Son of man” occurs 80 times in the Greek text of the four Canonical gospels, and is used only in the sayings of Jesus, applying in every case to Jesus Christ, being used by him to refer to himself. (Matt. 8:20; 9:6; 10:23) The use of the definite article in “the Son of man” in the Koine Greek of the Christian gospels is original. W. E. Vine: “Speaking generally, when the title [Christ] is the subject of a sentence it has the article; when it forms part of the predicate the article is absent.”—Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words, 1981, Vol. 1, p. 190. In Matthew 8:20 and Luke 9:58 Jesus states: “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head.”

Ok, the video goes to Mark 14:61-62 and Matthew 26:63-64.

Mark 14:61-62 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)
⁶¹ But he kept silent and made no reply at all. Again the high priest began to question him and said to him, “Are you the Christ the Son of the Blessed One?” ⁶² Then Jesus said, “I am; and you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power and coming with the clouds of heaven.”

Matthew 26:63-64 Updated American Standard Version
⁶³ But Jesus remained silent. And the high priest said to him, “I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.” ⁶⁴ Jesus said to him, “You yourself said it. But I say to you, from now on you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

THE VIDEO: The video says that by Jesus applying all three of these titles to himself: (1) the Messiah, (2) the Son of God, and (3) the Son of Man, Jesus was claiming in no uncertain terms that he was the very God that his accusers worshipped.

RESPONSE: I think the video is going a little beyond what the authors meant and what Jesus meant by the words that they used.

When we consider the use in the Hebrew Scriptures and the Greek New Testament, what did the authors mean by the words that they used?

The name or title “the Messiah,” serves to identify Jesus Christ as …?

Theologian Erickson writes, “Messiah  Literally, ‘the anointed one,’ the leader appointed by God to carry out the special mission of redemption and liberation.”^[1]

Yes, Jesus had been given all authority in heaven and on earth (Matt. 28:18) so as to redeem those believing in him from bondage to sin and death, thus making him the great Avenger of blood. (Le 25:48, 49; Nu 35:1-29)

Ephesians 1:20-21 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)
²⁰ which he brought about in Christ, when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, ²¹ far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.

Philippians 2:9-11 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)
⁹ Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, ¹⁰ so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, ¹¹ and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

The name or title “Son of God,” serves to identify Jesus Christ as …?

Theologian Erickson writes, “Son of God  Biblical expression indicating a unique relationship to God. It is used of Israel, of kings, and especially of Jesus with reference to his deity.”^[2]

θεότης (theotés) ητος – deity means divine nature; divine being.

The name or title “Son of Man,” serves to identify Jesus Christ as …?

Theologian Erickson writes, “Son of man  A somewhat enigmatic christological title that Jesus frequently used of himself. Against the background of Daniel 7:13–14, it seems to indicate someone who has the very prerogatives of God.”^[3]

The key word that Erickson seems to use here, “it seems,” which the video puts on the level of absolute certainty when they say, “in no uncertain terms.” Maybe it refers not to “the very prerogatives of God,” but rather to the very authority of the Father given to the Son, as is stated in Matthew 28:18 “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth.” Yes, Jesus was given all authority to perform miracles (even raise the dead), cast out demons, not really revise the law as the video speaks of but get at the spirit of the law, and after his execution, remove the law, and finally to forgive sins. Yes, eternal life is based on one’s belief in Jesus, specifically, one’s correct belief in Jesus.

Daniel 7:13-14 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)
¹³ “I kept looking in the night visions,
and behold, with the clouds of heaven
there came one like a son of man,
and he came to the Ancient of Days
and was presented before him.
¹⁴ And to him was given dominion
and glory and a kingdom,
that all peoples, nations, and languages
should serve him;
his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
which shall not pass away,
and his kingdom one
that shall not be destroyed.

On Daniel 7:13-14 J. Dwight Pentecost writes,

The Son of Man ([Daniel] 7:13–14)

7:13–14. In the third major portion of this vision Daniel saw the Son of Man approaching the Ancient of Days. Jesus Christ, taking the title “Son of Man” from this prophecy, frequently used it to refer to Himself (as recorded in the Gospels; cf. comments on Mark 8:31; John 1:51). When the Son of Man was brought into the presence of the Ancient of Days, all the authority, glory, and sovereign power that had been exercised by rulers in the four kingdoms over all peoples, nations, and men of every language (cf. Dan. 3:4, 7; 4:1; 5:19; 6:25) was conferred on Him and those peoples worshiped Him. This is in keeping with the Father’s promise to the Son in Psalm 2:6–9, and will be fulfilled at Christ’s Second Advent (Matt. 24:30; 25:31; Rev. 11:15).

The Son of Man will establish an everlasting dominion or kingdom (cf. Dan. 4:34; 7:27). That kingdom will never be conquered by another (cf. 6:26). His reign will be established on earth (Rev. 20:1–6). At the expiration of the 1,000 years of the Lord’s millennial reign, He will surrender the kingdom to God the Father, after which Christ will be appointed as Ruler over God’s eternal kingdom forever (1 Cor. 15:24–28).^[4]

John F. Walvoord writes,

The coming of the Son of man (v. 13) could be understood to refer to the coming of Jesus Christ as the Messiah in His second coming, as Christ Himself used the expression “a Son of man” in many references to Himself in the New Testament (e.g., Matt. 8:20; 9:6; 10:23; 11:19; 12:8, 32, 40).

This passage refers to Jesus Christ in His incarnation approaching “the Ancient of Days” (Dan. 7:13), an obvious reference to God the Father. The reference to giving Him complete authority over all peoples will be fulfilled in His millennial kingdom, which, as far as dominion is concerned, will continue forever (v. 14).^[5]

“I kept looking in the night visions, and behold” exclaimed Daniel. “ with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him.” (Daniel 7:13) When on earth, Jesus Christ called himself “the Son of Man,” symbolizing his kinship toward mankind. (Matthew 16:13; 25:31) To the Sanhedrin, that is, the Jewish high court, Jesus said: “You yourself said it. But I say to you, from now on you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.” (Matthew 26:64) What we see here in Daniel’s vision and Jesus’ words of himself, Jesus is the one coming on the clouds, adding a quality of majesty and grandeur, and gaining access to God the Father was the resurrected, exalted Jesus Christ.

God had made a covenant for a Kingdom with Jesus Christ, even as he had made with King David. (2 Samuel 7:11-16; Luke 22:28-30) Daniel’s prophetic account goes on to say: “And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.” (Daniel 7:14) Thus the Messianic Kingdom is not some future kingdom that we are awaiting, it went into play at the ascension of Jesus Christ in 33 A.D. and has been at work ever since carrying out he will and purposes of the Father. (Matthew 7:21-24) He will continue this work until his return.

In Conclusion

What Jesus tells us about himself is that he is the divine person, who was the chosen leader who has been appointed King of God’s Kingdom to carry out the Father’s will and purposes of redeeming and freeing mankind from Adamic sin and death. For this Jesus has been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Jesus was not a human charismatic leader or a Jewish teacher. I think the video misses the mark when it says that Jesus put himself in God’s place. For one thing, if he is God, why would he have to put himself in God’s place, he would already be in that place. But even more so, Jesus was and is the Son, which by its very nature is a subordinate position. Moreover, Jesus did not put himself in the position of the Father, he said many things that showed his subordinate position to the Father. John 5:19 tells is, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.”

(John 5:30) I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me.

(John 7:28) So Jesus proclaimed, as he taught in the temple, “You know me, and you know where I come from. But I have not come of my own accord. He who sent me is true, and him you do not know.

(John 8:28) So Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me.

(John 12:49) For I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment, what to say and what to speak.

Now, some might argue that Jesus’ subordination came about the moment he came to earth as a man and ended the moment he ascended back to heaven but I would then point them to Revelation 1:1, which reads. “The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John.” At this point, Jesus had been back in heaven for 60+ years and yet the Father gives him the revelation, which he then gives to an angel, who then makes it known to John. The same subordination of ‘I only teach what the father teaches,’ ‘I seek not my will,’ ‘I can do nothing on my own,’ and so on. We must answer for ourselves the question that Jesus asked Peter.

Matthew 16:13-15 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)
¹³ Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he was asking his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” ¹⁴ And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.” ¹⁵ He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” ¹⁶ Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Maybe we should no go beyond Peter’s answer because Jesus was quite satisfied with that answer, as he responded to Peter, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona,[197] because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.” – Matthew 16:17.

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^[1] Millard J. Erickson, The Concise Dictionary of Christian Theology (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2001), 125.

^[2] Millard J. Erickson, The Concise Dictionary of Christian Theology (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2001), 186.

^[3] Millard J. Erickson, The Concise Dictionary of Christian Theology (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2001), 186.

^[4] J. Dwight Pentecost, “Daniel,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 1 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 1351.

^[5] John F. Walvoord, Every Prophecy of the Bible: Clear Explanations for Uncertain Times (Colorado Springs, CO: David C Cook, 2011).