Jesus Who is He?

Who is Jesus? Is He the Son of God? Let's briefly explore the life of Jesus and why we believe he did not follow blindly.

Let's take a closer look at history and see if there is any evidence that tells us about God's revelation. You will find a clear clue that leads us to a village in Palestine before 2000. It was there that a baby was born in a manger. And to this day, the whole world is celebrating the birth of that baby, Jesus. Until Jesus was thirty years old, he lived an ordinary life that was not at all conspicuous. After that, the three-year work of publicly proclaiming the gospel began. This is destined to change the direction of the whole of history. According to the record, he was a kind man, "When Jesus finished these words, the multitudes were amazed by His teachings, for He taught them like powerful men, not like their scribes."

Who is Jesus? His story begins...

Shortly after Jesus' work began, it was clear that he had said something startling about who he was. He began to say that he was not just a brilliant teacher or prophet. He made it clear that he was God and made his identity the focus of his teachings. He once asked those who followed him a very important question, "Who am I, you say?" When Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God," Jesus was not surprised or blamed Peter (the average Jew would never accept a man who said he was God). On the contrary, Jesus praised Him. He made his identity clear, and his audience faced a sweeping shock because of what he said. We will read in the Bible, "This made the Jewish leader even more determined to kill him, for he not only broke the Sabbath precepts, but also said that God was his own Father and regarded himself as equal to God." On some occasions, Jesus said, "I am one with the Father." The Jews immediately took up stones and tried to beat him. Jesus asked them, "I have shown you many good deeds from the Father, for which one of you has stoned me?" The Jew replied, "We did not stone you for good, but because you said blasphemous words." And because you are a human being, he regards himself as a god."

Jesus clearly declared that He was God

In Mark 2:3-12, when a paralyzed man was hanged from the roof with the mattress on which he lay, Jesus saw their faith and said, "Child, your sins have been forgiven." A few scribes sat there, and they said, "How can this man say this?" He said blasphemous words. Who but God can forgive sins?" And when Jesus was being questioned privately before his passion, at the most crucial moment, the high priest asked him, "Are you the Christ the Son of the Praiser?" Jesus said, "I am. You will see the Son of Man, sitting at the right hand of the mighty, descending on the clouds of heaven." Then the high priest tore open his clothes and said, "Why should we use witnesses again?" You have heard his blasphemous words. What's your opinion?" They all condemned him to death. Jesus had a very close relationship with God. He even equates man's attitude toward Him with his attitude toward God. He said that if you know Him, you will know God; when you see Him, you will see God; if you believe in Him, you will believe in God; to receive Him is to receive God; to hate Him is to hate God; to respect Him is to respect God.

Who is Jesus - the Son of God?

When we think about Jesus' account of who he is, we can see four possibilities. He could be a liar, a lunatic, a legend, or he could be the truth. Whether we are aware of it or not, if we say that He is not the truth, we naturally divide Him into any other identity.

The first possibility is that Jesus was lying when he said he was God: that is, he knew he was not God, but he deliberately deceived his hearers so that his teachings might sound authoritative. Few people can seriously hold this position, and although some deny the divinity of Jesus, they identify with him as a great moral teacher. But they did not find the two statements contradictory, and the most crucial thing in his lesson was his identity. If he is indeed a prudent liar, he cannot be called a great moral teacher.

(ii) The second possibility is that he is a good man, sincere, but self-deceitful. Today, if we were to have a man next to us who claimed to be God, we would most likely think of him as a lunatic. If Jesus had been deceived on such a crucial question as who god really is, then this truth would have been applied to Him as well. However, when we look at the life of Jesus, we find no evidence that His spirit was abnormal and unbalanced. Instead, what we see is that Jesus was able to maintain his composure despite extreme pressure.

(iii) The third possibility is that all theories that mention "Jesus is God" are nothing more than legends. In fact, it was his followers who were too fiery, so three or four centuries later, they forced some words that would surprise even Jesus himself. However, this theory of legends has been overturned by many modern archaeological discoveries. These findings show that the four biographies of Christ were all written by his contemporaries. Some time ago, the world-renowned archaeologist Dr. William F. Albright said that there is no reason to believe that these four Gospels were written at a later time than in 70 AD. Because it is unbelievable to want an unfounded legend to spread in all directions and have such a vast and far-reaching influence. If that happens, it's unbelievable, like someone is writing a biography of John F. Kennedy now, in which he claims to be God who can forgive sins and rise from the dead. Such a ridiculous story is impossible to accept, because there are many people who know Kennedy alive today. Because the manuscripts of the Gospel appeared very early, this legendary theory is not convincing.

The fourth possibility, the only possibility, is that all that Jesus said was true. In fact, from a certain point of view, people's statements about themselves do not represent everything. Anyone can easily say something. It is true that some people have called themselves Gods. You and I can call ourselves gods, but the question is, "Do we have the credentials to prove it?" You don't have to blow your might to overturn what I say, and I can easily refute you. But when it comes to Jesus of Nazareth, it's not that easy. He did have the credentials to prove his claim to himself. He said, "If I do, believe these things even if you do not believe me. Let you know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father."

Evidence taken from the life of Jesus

First, Jesus' character conformed to his proclamation. There are many spiritual hospital patients who call themselves stars or gods, but what they say is not consistent with their character. Christ is different, He is unique, as unique as God. Jesus Christ lived a life without sin. Not only was he of extraordinary character, but he could even ask his enemies, "Who among you can testify against my guilt?" Although Jesus' enemies wanted to testify against him, they were dumbfounded. We read that when Jesus was tempted, He did not sin. Although He taught his followers to ask for forgiveness, he himself never needed to ask for forgiveness. When we compare the experiences of the sages of all ages, we are surprised by the fact that Jesus did not lose his moral footing. The closer a person is to God, the more he will see his own failures, corruption, and inadequacies. The closer a person gets to this dawn, the more he realizes that he needs to cleanse himself. It's also a fact that in the realm of morality, it's a very basic cognition. It is also a remarkable fact that John, Paul, and Peter learned and believed in the universality of sin from an early age, but when they mention Christ, they consistently refer to Christ's sinlessness. "He did not sin, and there was no deceit in his mouth." Pilate, a Roman official who was clearly not a friend of Jesus, said, "What evil did he do?" There is no doubt that he recognized that Christ was innocent. The centurion and his fellow caretaker witnessed the death of Christ, saying, "This is truly the Son of God."

Second, Jesus demonstrated his ability to transcend the natural world. This can only come from God alone, for He is the possessor of all powers. He rebuked the wind and waves in the Sea of Galilee. When he did this, he made the people on the ship ask him in awe, "Who is this, even the wind and the waves?" He turned water into wine, fed five thousand people with five loaves and two fish, returned his dead and resurrected son to a grieving woman, and revived the dead daughter of a heartbroken father. To his old friend, he said, "Lazarus come out!" And dramatically raised him from the dead. Deeply significantly, his enemies did not deny these miracles. In fact, they wanted to kill him because of this. They said, "If this is done to him, everyone will believe in him."

Third, Jesus demonstrated the power of the Creator in the sick. He made the lame one walk, the mute able to speak, and the blind see. Many of the people he treated were congenital illnesses rather than psychologically triggered physical and mental illnesses. One of the most peculiar records is in John 9, an event about how Jesus healed a man who was born blind. Although the man who was originally blind could not answer the rational questions of others, what he experienced was enough to convince him. He declared, "One thing I know, I was blind before, and now I can see it." He was surprised that his friend did not recognize the healer as the Son of God. He said, "Since the creation of the world, I have never heard of anyone who can see again the one who was born blind." For him, this is a clear proof.

Fourth, Jesus' most trustworthy thing is his confirmation of His claim to rise from the dead. In the course of his life, he had predicted five times that he would die. He also prophesied how he would die and that in three days he would rise from the dead and appear to His disciples. To be sure, this is a great test. Because, this is an easy-to-verify declaration. It may or may not happen at all. Christian friends and enemies recognize the resurrection of Christ as the cornerstone of our faith. Paul, a great apostle, wrote, "If Christ is not resurrected, what we preach is in vain, and so is what you believe."

If Jesus really was the Son of God...

If Christ is truly resurrected, we can know with certainty that God does exist and what kind of a God He is and how we can experience Him personally. Therefore, this universe has purpose and meaning, and in modern life it is even more likely that we will experience the risen Lord. On the other hand, if Christ had not been raised from the dead, Christianity would have been an interesting display in a historical museum — nothing special. There is no real or real purpose. Although it is a beautiful vision, it is certain that it is not worth our investment. The martyrs sang to the lions, and the contemporary missionaries dedicated their lives to Ecuador and congo, and when they brought this message to the people, they became nothing more than a bunch of stupid people worthy of pity and deception. The late Carl Gustav Jung said, "The most important spiritual disease of this age is emptiness." Everyone's deep desire for their own life is meaningful and deep. Jesus wants to give us a meaningful, abundant life through our relationship with Him.