“This is why the Jews began trying all the more to kill him: Not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal to God. And just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so the Son also gives life to whom he wants. The Father, in fact, judges no one but has given all judgment to the Son, so that all people may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Anyone who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him…..For just as the Father has life in himself, so also he has granted to the Son to have life in himself. And he has granted him the right to pass judgment, because he is the Son of Man.” John 5:18, 21-23, 26-27 CSB https://bible.com/bible/1713/jhn.5.18-27.CSB

The Deity of Jesus has long been a source of contention. Many today will say that He never claimed to be God. That is somewhat true, but He also never claimed not to be God. The Jews understood that His religious vernacular was claiming to be God, and they said so clearly. Jesus doubled down, claiming to be the Judge of all humanity for determining their eternal destiny. This is the work of God alone. Jesus claimed to have life in Himself, independent of God or any other source for being created or sustained as we were and need. Jesus claimed the goal of God the Father was for everyone to honor Him just as they honor God the Father. There is only one God, and He shares His honor with no one, yet Jesus claims this honor is also required of Him. We believe God can be in two places at once. Is it so difficult to believe He can be in two persons at once? Can God be both Spirit and flesh at the same time? Jesus is fully God and fully man, so He uses the terms Son of God and Son of Man. Is the Trinity, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, One God in three Persons challenging to understand? It is. Is it difficult for God to do? It is not. Jesus is God. Jesus is God as man, so He could sacrifice Himself for the sins of all humanity since every person is born a rebel against God, deserving condemnation from God. Religion that rejects Jesus as God and Savior continues the false hope of making people better so God will not condemn them at the judgment to come. Jesus came to restore a relationship with God through a relationship with Him. Those who know Him by faith in Him, as demonstrated by their love for Him, will live forever with Him, but those who reject Him as God will be forever rejected by God, Jesus the Judge.