Yes, that is exactly what I am saying, and indeed it is bold claim, but a claim that Jesus himself made. He said it in John 8:24: "I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am [the one I claim to be], you will indeed die in your sins." So either Jesus was a liar or he's telling the truth. I choose to believe the latter.
However, Christ is not talking about himself in that passage, he is in fact applying Old Testament language (I am He) as being the words of God. This implies that anyone is able to receive the Grace of Salvation, you need not adhere to a very specific belief in Christ but remove the iniquity of remaining in sin, this is rather than the common misconception (I can explain this linguistically if you wish) that it is referring to an implied sin of unbelief. Essentially he is not referring to himself as the messiah, but to the message that he was tasked to bring and illustrate through his sacrifice, again for ALL Mankind, not only those that assume authority through Christianity.
This is not about whether Christ was telling the truth or not, but about your interpretation of scripture and how you apply it to your argument against those who may have different beliefs and understanding from yourself.
Last edited: