Who is Jesus?

Who is Jesus?

The apostle Paul writes,

For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form. 

                                                                           Colossians 2:9.

Jesus is God incarnate. God in the flesh. You either believe this statement or you do not. That being said if you do not believe Jesus is God you cannot be a true believer in Christ Jesus.
Matthews gospel records this conversation between Peter and Jesus,
“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” 
Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Matthew 16:,15,16.
In John’s gospel we are told of this conversation between Jesus and Martha.
“Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies;  and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
“Yes Lord” she told Him, “I believe you are the Christ the Son of God, who was to come into the world,” John 11:25,26,27.
The book of Hebrews states,
“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.  
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” Hebrews 1:1-3.
John’s gospel notes,
“Then came the Feast of Dedication at Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was in the temple area walking in Solomon’s Colonnade. 
“The Jews gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” 
Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The miracles I do in my Father’s name speak for me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. 
My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.  
I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand.  
My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand.  
I and the Father are one.” 
Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?” 
“We are not stoning you for any of these,” replied the Jews, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.” John 10 22-33.
Note here even when faced with stoning Jesus does not deny who he is.
Thus the question becomes. Who do you think Jesus is?
Please think about it.

Who is Jesus

Who is Jesus?
The apostle Paul writes,

“For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form.”                                                                                                      Colossians 2:9.

Matthew’s gospel records,
“When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” 
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 
“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” 
Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 
Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.” Matthew 16:13-17.
Jesus speaking to Martha said,
“Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies;  and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
“Yes Lord” she told Him, “I believe you are the Christ the Son of God, who was to come into the world,” John 11:25,26,27.
The writer of Hebrews states,
“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.  
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” Hebrews 1:1-3.
From the above scriptures it is clear that the writers of the New Testament truly believed Jesus was the Son of God, Saviour of the mankind, the Messiah, God incarnate.
These were to say the least controversial beliefs in the time of Jesus. They are equally controversial beliefs today. Yet true believers in Christ Jesus today as back when the words were written truly believe these claims.
If these claims are false then those early writers and early Christians have perpetuated one of the greatest lies in human history.
That being said if these claims are untrue then it doesn’t matter whether you believe them or not.
Where I believe the problem for unbelievers comes in is if these claims of Jesus and the early Christians are true. For Jesus did say.
“Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6.
Please think about it. 

Who is Jesus?

Who is Jesus?
The apostle John writes,
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  
He was with God in the beginning. 
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.  
In him was life, and that life was the light of men....
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. ” 
John 1:1-4,14
Who is Jesus to you?
In the above scripture the apostle John states that “The Word” (Jesus) was in the beginning with God. That all things were made by him. And that “The Word” became flesh.
Thus according to the apostle John, Jesus is God incarnate, God in the flesh.
The writer of Hebrews states,
"The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” Hebrews 1:3 
This backs up what John stated.
John’s gospel also records this incident where the Jews gathered around Jesus and asked him who he was. John records,
“The Jews gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” 
Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The miracles I do in my Father’s name speak for me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep.  
My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.  
I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand.  
My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand.  
I and the Father are one.” 
Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?
“We are not stoning you for any of these,” replied the Jews, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.”  John 10:24-33
For the Jews in the day of Jesus making ones self equal to God was blasphemy. Thus the question becomes if Jesus was not telling the truth. Why would he say such a thing? He knew the potential consequences of saying such a thing.
C. S. Lewis the great Christian commentator said,
“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.” C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
Thus the question you the reader must ask yourself is, Who is Jesus?
Please think about it.

Who is Jesus, "The Enunciation"

Who is Jesus
The Enunciation
As I write this Christmas is about two weeks away. One of the holiest days on the Christian calendar. A time when Christians all over the world celebrate the birth of their Lord and Saviour.
The question however for non-Christians is just who is Jesus. Perhaps one of the best accounts as to who Jesus is comes from the Gospel of Luke.
The gospel of Luke opens with,
“Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word.  
Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus,  so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.” Luke 1:1-4.
Luke is believed to be a well educated gentile believer, writing to another gentile believer we only know as Theophilus.
He states,
“I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus” Luke 1:3.
He makes it clear that he spoke to eyewitnesses of the events. Thus the way I see it when we read the gospel of Luke we can either believe him or don’t believe him. We either believe the witnesses Luke talked with or we do not. The choice is up to the reader.
Luke’s first mention of Jesus come in Luke 1: 26-38, where Luke records,
“In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee,  to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.  
The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” 
Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.  
But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God.  
You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.  
He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,  and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.” 
“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” 
The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.  
Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month.  
For nothing is impossible with God.” 
“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.” Luke 1:26-38.
What Luke records here is quite remarkable if you think about it. While he is writing to believers. He is also presenting the story of Jesus to the world at large.
Luke does not hid the miraculous visitation of the angel Gabriel to Mary. He makes it clear that Mary is a Virgin. He does not hide what was obviously told to him by Mary. The angel Gabriel telling her,
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.” Luke 1:35.
Luke lays everything out for his readers. Luke truly believed what he wrote. That Jesus was born of a virgin, that the child she bore was conceived by the Holy Spirit and was called the Son of God.
Luke asks all who reads his gospel be they in the first century or in the twenty-first century to believe it. He leaves no room for any middle ground.
Question, who do you believe Jesus is?
Please think about it.

Who is Jesus

Who is Jesus
John’s gospel records this conversation between Jesus and Martha.
“Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies;  and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
“Yes Lord” she told Him, “I believe you are the Christ the Son of God, who was to come into the world,” John 11:25,26,27.
Matthews gospel records this conversation between Peter and Jesus,
"When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” 
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 
“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” 
Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”Matthew 16:13-16.
For me a Christian for over forty years now I believe this is the most important question anyone who hears about Jesus must answer.
C. S. Lewis writing about Jesus in his book Mere Christianity makes this point,
“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.” C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
I agree with Lewis. Do you?
Please think about it.

Who do you think Jesus is?

Who do you think Jesus is?
Luke’s Gospel records Simeon the prophet, upon seeing the infant Jesus, as saying,
“Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. 
For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.” Luke 2:28-32
Jesus is the most influential person in all of history.
William Durant, popular American modern historian and philosopher (1885-1981) When asked what he felt the apex of history was he replied, “the three years that Jesus of Nazareth walked the earth.” 
Napoleon Bonaparte, Emperor of France said of Jesus,
"You speak of Caesar, of Alexander, of their conquests and of the enthusiasm which they enkindled in the hearts of their soldiers; but can you conceive of a dead man making conquests, with an army faithful and entirely devoted to his memory? My armies have forgotten me even while living, as the Carthaginian army forgot Hannibal. Such is our power.
I know men and I tell you, Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I have founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. 
Jesus Christ founded his empire upon love; and at this hour, millions would die for him.”
I search in vain history to find similar to Jesus Christ, or anything which can approach the gospel.” Napoleon Bonaparte
What these men say of Jesus is true.
The Apostle John states,
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  
He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.  
In him was life, and that life was the light of men.... 
He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.  
He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.  
Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—  children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.” John 1:1-4,10-13.
Christians believe Jesus is God incarnate, God in the flesh. God who entered this world in human form to show mankind the way to heaven.
However believing this takes faith. The writer of Hebrews tells us,

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope

 for and certain of what we do not see.”  

                         Hebrews 11:1

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, 

because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists 

and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” 

                                                                  Hebrews 11:6

Thus the choice is yours.
Who do you think Jesus is?
Think about it.

Who is Jesus?

Who is Jesus?
Throughout the centuries Christians have asked people to answer the question Jesus asked of Martha when he said,
“Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies;  and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
“Yes Lord” she told Him, “I believe you are the Christ the Son of God, who was to come into the world,” John 11:25,26,27.
Jesus among all the individuals that have ever lived stands alone.
Napoleon Bonaparte said of him,
“I know men and I tell you, Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I have founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded his empire upon love; and at this hour, millions would die for him.”
“I search in vain history to find similar to Jesus Christ, or anything which can approach the gospel.  Neither history nor humanity, nor ages, nor nature, offer me anything with which I am able to compare it or to explain it. Here everything is extraordinary.” Napoleon Bonaparte.
H. G. Wells, British writer, (1866-1946) When asked which person left the most permanent impression on history, he replied that judging a person’s greatness by historical standards:
“By this test, Jesus stands first.”
“I am a historian, I am not a believer, but I must confess as a historian that this penniless preacher from Nazareth is irrevocably the very centre of history. Jesus Christ is easily the most dominant figure in all history.”
“Christ is the most unique person of history. No man can write a history of the human race without giving first and foremost place to the penniless teacher of Nazareth.” H. G. Wells.
The apostle John writes,
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  
He was with God in the beginning. 
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.  
In him was life, and that life was the light of men....
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. ” John 1:1-4,14
What John is saying here is Jesus is God, the creator of the universe. That God in the form of Jesus entered the world he created. Jesus is God incarnate.
The gospel of John tells of this incident in the life of Jesus,
“The Jews gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” 
Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The miracles I do in my Father’s name speak for me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep.  
My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.  
I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand.  
My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand.  
I and the Father are one.” 
Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?” John 10:24-32.
Even when faced with stoning and death Jesus did not back down on saying who he was.
The apostle Paul tells us why Jesus came, stating,
“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.  
Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.  
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:6,7.
The apostle John stating,
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16,17.
God sent Jesus to point man to heaven. To provide mankind with a way directly to heaven through faith in Christ Jesus.
C. S. Lewis states,
“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg, — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.” C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
  Ultimately you must decide who Jesus is. Before you do however I would ask that you read the New Testament for yourself. Read what Christians who knew Jesus personally believed about him. Then decide.
Please think about it.