s Jesus God?
Have you ever met a man with such personal magnetism that he is always the center of attention? Possibly his personality or intelligence---but something about him is enigmatic. Well, that’s the way it was two thousand years ago with Jesus Christ. But it wasn’t merely Jesus’ personality that captivated his followers. Those who witnessed his words and life tell us that even though he was human, he was remarkably different from all other men.
Eyewitnesses tell us that Jesus was a man who grew physically, ate, slept, felt pain, and eventually died. Their written accounts also describe Jesus as walking on water, calming storms, healing the blind and lame, and even raising the dead. Furthermore, they tell us that Jesus appeared alive to them after they watched him die on the cross.
Jesus’ greatness was obvious to all those who saw and heard him. But, whereas most great people simply fade into history books, Jesus of Nazareth is still the focus of numerous books and media controversy. And much of that controversy revolves around the radical claims Jesus made about himself.
As an unheralded carpenter from an obscure Judean village in what is modern day Israel, Jesus made claims that, if true, have profound implications on our lives. Jesus said that those who have seen him, have seen God, and that the way to God is through him---alone. According to Jesus, you and I are special, part of God’s great plan for us, with him as the center of it all. These and other claims like them stunned everyone who heard them uttered.
It was primarily Jesus’ outrageous claims that caused him to be viewed as a threat by both the Roman authorities and the Jewish hierarchy. Although he was an outsider with no credentials or political powerbase, within three years, Jesus changed the world for the next 20 centuries.
Although some have wondered if Jesus really existed, even most non-Christian scholars acknowledge him as a real person. The great non-Christian historian, H. G. Wells, ranked Jesus as the most influential person ever (see
http://www.y-jesus.com/bornid_1.php). Other great leaders have left an impact---but nothing like that unknown carpenter from Nazareth.
What was it about Jesus Christ that made the difference? Was he merely a great man, or something more? Some believe he was merely a great moral teacher; others believe he was simply the leader of the world’s greatest religion. But many, including former skeptics, believe something far more.
Former Cambridge professor and skeptic C. S. Lewis came to the shocking conclusion that Jesus’ claims wouldn’t allow us to call him simply a great moral teacher.
So who is the real Jesus? Let’s take a closer look at this man who changed our world.
As we take a deeper look at the world’s most controversial person, we begin by asking: could Jesus have been merely a great moral teacher?
