Did God create Jesus? Was there ever a time when Jesus did not exist?

These are important questions that relate to the deity of Jesus. Scripture affirms that God the Father is eternal, without beginning and end (Psalm 90:2). But if Jesus had a beginning, then he wouldn’t be eternal and he wouldn’t be God.

You might be thinking, “So what? Every Christian thinks that Jesus has always existed!” To the contrary, many American Evangelicals today believe that Jesus was created by God!

The Firstborn of All Creation

This debate goes all the way back to the third century with a man named Arius. Colossians 1:15 is one of the texts that his followers used to show that Jesus began to exist:

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation” (Col. 1:15).

Those who continue to teach that Jesus was created, like Jehovah’s Witnesses, use…