Did Jesus ever say He is God?

Some religious groups who claim to know the Bible say that Jesus was only a great prophet, and was not God. If that were the case, why are the terms he, him, my, myself, capitalized into He, Him, My, Myself whenever Jesus is speaking or referred to in the middle of a sentence, a privilege in the Bible only for God. Prophets like Moses for example were great Bible prophets and yet they do not enjoy the capitalization privilege in the Bible.

Take a look at some verses from Exodus chapter 3:

1 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush.

Now, contrast this with a Bible passage where Jesus is speaking, say in John chapter 8:

19 So they were saying to Him, “Where is Your Father?” Jesus answered, “You know neither Me nor My Father; if you knew Me, you would know My Father also.”

Now, some people might say that this is merely a matter of formatting that differs in each Bible version. Let us then look at some verses where Jesus Himself implied that He was God.

Let us look at John chapter 8 once again.

54 Jesus answered, “If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing; it is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God’; 55 and you have not come to know Him, but I know Him; and if I say that I do not know Him, I will be a liar like you, but I do know Him and keep His word. 56 Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.” 57 So the Jews said to Him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?” 58 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.” 59 Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple.

In this passage, Jesus says that before Abraham was born, I am. Jesus is saying that He existed before Abraham. People who deny Jesus as God will logically question His age. Only God is Eternal, He is the Alpha and the Omega, He has no beginning and no end. Jesus is therefore God since He says He existed before Abraham.

This was also the reason why the Jews wanted to stone Jesus. They understood that right there and then, Jesus was claiming to be God, which according to Jewish law, was blasphemy.

This can be found in Leviticus chapter 24:

16 Moreover, the one who blasphemes the name of the Lord shall surely be put to death; all the congregation shall certainly stone him. The alien as well as the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death.

So either the Jews were right or Jesus was right. Either Jesus was only a mere man as the Jews claim, or Jesus is indeed God.

Let's look at another verse from John chapter 8.

51 Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he will never see death.”

Can any mere man guarantee exemption from death or eternal life? And why does Jesus say My word, instead of God's word or My Father's word. Surely, a mere man's word is not equal with God, who alone can promise eternal life.

The Bible is filled with many more verses that prove the Jesus Christ is God. And if you are searching for answers, pray to Him for guidance as you read the Bible, that He may reveal the truth to you.

My friend, if you do not believe that Jesus is God, I hope that you seek Him with all your heart that He may reveal the truth to you. Only He can convince you. May the Lord bless you.