WHO IS JESUS?
It’s difficult to find someone who doesn’t have an opinion on who Jesus is and what He is about. There are more paintings, songs and books about this one person than anyone else in history. Every year there is some new theory about who He is and what He did. Even our date system pivots around this man. But why?
Was He a prophet; a good man; a teacher; a revolutionary; or a mad man with a god-complex? What is it about this man that has spurned so much adoration and so much hatred? Let’s examine some of the facts that lead Christians to believe what they believe.
While the Discovery Channel and the like regularly give airtime to some new conspiracy theory around Jesus’ existence and life, the fact is that most historical scholars would never dream of disputing whether Jesus was a real, historical figure.
Jesus was a man like everyone else but he performed many miracles in his life. These miracles showed that God was with Him and had appointed Him to establish God’s Kingdom (his rule) on earth – where justice, love, mercy and grace reign. Jesus fulfilled over 300 prophecies found in the Old Testament that confirm Him as God’s saviour of mankind.
Now you know where all the good movies get their ideas from. Except this isn’t the Matrix or Harry Potter, this is real. By living a perfect and sinless life before God, and by perfectly carrying out God’s mission of love to the world, and by resisting all the temptations of the Devil, Jesus did not carry the guilt that we all carry before God.
Jesus was crucified by the plan of God, carried out by men. By arranging his crucifixion, despite His innocence, Jesus’ contemporaries sought a temporary political victory for their nation over the occupying forces of Rome. But it became something far different – Jesus’ death achieved a spiritual victory for all of mankind.
As the perfect man he traded his life to satisfy God’s justice against all of mankind’s sin. For God must uphold justice, as we would expect from any king. Except God’s love and mercy for mankind meant that the only way he could satisfy both his justice and love was to pour out his justice (wrath) on a willing, perfect substitute. Jesus was that willing substitute and He therefore paid the price of our sin on our behalf.
Jesus rose from the dead and was seen by over 500 people before ascending to heaven. His resurrection was the final victory over death, meaning that all who trust in Jesus step into this victory and will not die eternally. It also means that all who trust in Him can enjoy God’s life right now and know God personally.
The resurrection was also Jesus’ victory over the Devil who was not able and can now never stop God’s plan of redemption to mankind. God’s true character of being both perfectly loving and perfectly just show how empty the Devil’s philosophies and ideas about God, which are pervasive in this world, actually are.
Christians trust Jesus rather than themselves, their good works or even their religious works to save them from God’s justice. That’s what it means to ‘have faith in Jesus’. His rising from the dead proved that God declares mankind free. All that remains is for people to accept this freedom from God.
He is the all-powerful ruler over all things physical, social and individual; over nations, political systems and the individual heart; over death, wrongdoing and guilt. Whether we believe this or not doesn’t change the reality of who He is. Jesus Christ is the central message of the Bible, the figure that all of history points to, and the focal point of mankind’s future.
It doesn’t matter your culture or background, Jesus has promised to give you His Holy Spirit so that you may know Him personally, as He is alive today. To become a Christian you simply decide to put your trust in Jesus for salvation rather than in anything else – be it yourself, money, or even a religion. It’s Jesus alone who brings life and He is willing to give it to all who simply trust in Him. There is nothing else required of you except simple trust!
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We all bear guilt, shame, feelings of being unworthy; or the opposite problem of thinking too highly of ourselves, comparing ourselves with others, and stepping on whoever gets in our way.
In the Bible, Romans 3:23 says:
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
Whether or not you believe the Bible is true, the fact is it’s stating the obvious here:
We’ve all messed up.
We’ve all treated others badly. None of us have lived up to what it truly means to love. We’ve all missed the mark of what is truly good. We’ve stepped on others, treated them unfairly, used them and perhaps abused them. And we all struggle to love even ourselves. This is what it means to say we’ve all sinned. This has separated us from God. One day we will face judgement for all our sin.
In the Bible, Romans 6:23 says:
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
If we’re honest, we have to admit that we all live as slaves to our sin. Most of the time we can’t even help it – we act in ways that even we don’t like.
In the Bible, John 3:16 says:
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
The good news of Jesus is that he comes to free us from our slavery to our sin and the judgement to come for our sin. It’s not about how you need to clean yourself up to make God happy to get you to heaven.
In the Bible, Titus 3:5 says:
He saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit.
Ever wanted to start again?
Here’s your chance!
In the Bible, John 14:6 says:
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
There is no other way to God. Jesus is the only way. When Jesus died on a cross, He took all of your sin upon himself and defeated the evil in your life and in this world. As Isaiah 53:5 says in the Bible:
He [Jesus] was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.
It’s through simply putting your faith (your trust) in Jesus, rather than your own righteousness or goodness or ability to live a moral life, that you are saved from the judgement to come, and saved from your own sin. No spiritual method or god or philosophy can save you except Jesus.
In the Bible, 1 John 1:9 says:
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Ask Jesus to save you and lead your life
Here’s a prayer you can follow:
God, you created me and you have the right to lead my life. But I have sinned against you, a holy God, and I have been separated from you. Jesus, I believe you are the unique Son of God who died for my sins, rose again, and who is still alive. From now on I put my faith in you alone and commit my life to you.
Amen.
In the Bible, Romans 8:1-2 says:
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.
And Romans 8:38-39:
Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
And John 1:12 in the Bible says:
But to all who did receive him [that’s you now!], who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.
In the Bible, Acts 2:38-42 says:
Repent and be baptised every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.
Baptism with water is a sign to you and others that you are washed of your sins and made new in Jesus. After we come to faith in Jesus, we ought to be baptised in water. But even more, God does not just leave us to live our new life in Jesus alone, but baptises and immerses us with His very Spirit, to comfort us, be with us, teach us, and guide us into all He has for us. He fills us with His Spirit continuously, letting us experience God and His presence, empowering us to live the Christian life, and giving us various gifts.
GROW WITH OTHER BELIEVERS IN JESUS
In the Bible, Acts 2:42 says:
And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.
You need to be involved in a local church where you can make Christian friends, learn more about Jesus, the Bible, and also break bread and pray with others. The local church is a family of believers in Jesus who we can grow with in our faith and partner with to do good things in this world.
Psalm 68:6 in the Bible says:
God sets the lonely in families, he leads out the prisoners with singing.
Don’t do this alone!
LEARN MORE FROM THE BIBLE
Why must we earn more from the Bible? The Bible is God’s message of forgiveness and love in Jesus (what we call the “gospel”). We need to constantly be reminded of this message and explore its rich depths. It will grow us to become more like Jesus in this world.
BREAK BREAD TO HELP YOU REMEMBER
In the Bible, Matthew 26:26-29 says:
While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”
We break bread to re-enact what Jesus did, to remember His sacrifice, His love, and His forgiveness toward us. This living out of the good news (the gospel) of Jesus renews us each time we do it – at home, by ourselves, and with other believers in a local church.
PRAY
Prayer is a simple conversation with God. It is about having a relationship with Jesus, not about rituals or living a religious life. Speaking to God by ourselves and with fellow believers is important for getting to know Jesus better and knowing how to live His way.
LIVE OUT YOUR PURPOSE
God not only saves us from our sin and the judgement to come, but also gives us a purpose (a call) to live.
In the Bible, Ephesians 2:8-10 says:
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
Download our free 31-day devotional, New Life, to grow in your new found faith. It’s divided up into 31 short readings, one for each day of the month.
DOWNLOAD THIS WEB PAGE IN BOOKLET FORM
Get all the above text in a downloadable, free booklet as a PDF that you go through with a friend to help them understand the good news of Jesus, or that you can print to hand out to others, or send to others on email or WhatsApp.
