The ‘high Christology’ of the Synoptics
Scholars such as Bart Ehrman (in his recent book How Jesus Became God) stress the differences between the ‘higher Christology’ of John’s Gospel (in which Jesus is represented as God incarnate) and the ‘lower Christology’ of the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke, in which he is represented as exalted, but not pre-existent). For Ehrman, even the Synoptic view of Jesus did not arise until after his followers came to believe that he had been resurrected; and the Johanine view developed later still.
Craig Blomberg (The Historical Reliability of the Gospels, 2nd ed., p211) summarises the matter well:-
However exalted John’s view of Jesus may be, it contains nothing that is not implicit in the picture painted by Matthew, Mark and Luke of a man who would sovereignly overrule Jewish interpretations of the Law, claim that his words would last for ever, pronounce forgiveness of sins, describe humanity’s eternal destiny as dependent on its reaction to him, demand absolute loyalty from his disciples, offer rest for the weary and salvation for the lost, promise to be with his followers always, guarantee that God would grant them any prayers requested in his name, identify who was the greatest and least among all humanity, and promise that his disciples would judge and rule over the twelve tribes of Israel.