This is the most important question one can ask. Who is Jesus? Was He just a man? Was He just a great teacher? Religious leader? Was He crazy? Was He the Son of God? The way you answer this question will determine the rest of your life.
Jesus of Nazareth is a historical person
With all the confusion surrounding who Jesus is, one thing is for sure, He did exist. It would be a grossly foolish thing to say Jesus is just a mythical man who was made up. Every credible historian, both secular and religious agree on this one point, Jesus of Nazareth did indeed live in the first century. The real question is not did Jesus live, but who was He really?
The Historical Jesus
There is little doubt as to the ethnicity of Jesus. He was a Jewish male living in the first century AD. He grew up in a highly religious home, was circumcised on the 8th day and kept all the Jewish law. We would go to the synagogue on Sabbath and would go to Jerusalem for the feast days annually. His name was not pronounced Jesus, but was probably pronounced as Yeshua, which was a common name for Jewish males in that time period. He did not travel to China to learn from Buddha, He was not versed in the oriental religious customs, He was a Jew, through and through, and to deny that is to disregard every reliable historical witness we have of Jesus of Nazareth.
Historical Witness of Jesus of Nazareth
There are 42 documents which mention Jesus within 100-150 years of His resurrection.
9 Traditional New Testament Authors Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Paul, Author of Hebrews, James, Peter, and Jude.
20 Early Christian Writers Outside the New Testament
Clement of Rome, 2 Clement, Ignatius, Polycarp, Martyrdom of Polycarp, Didache, Barnabas, Shepherd of Hermas, Fragments of Papias, Justin Martyr, Aristides, Athenagoras, Theophilus of Antioch, Quadratus, Aristo of Pella, Melito of Sardis, Diognetus, Gospel of Peter, Apocalypse of Peter, and Epistula Apostolorum.
4 Heretical Writings
Gospel of Thomas, Gospel of Truth, Apocryphon of John, and Treatise on Resurrection.
9 Secular Sources
Josephus (Jewish historian), Tacitus (Roman historian), Pliny the Younger (Roman politician), Phlegon (freed slave who wrote histories), Lucian (Greek satirist), Celsus (Roman philosopher), Mara Bar Serapion (prisoner awaiting execution), Suetonius, and Thallus.” (Ryan Turner)
Liar, Lunatic or Lord
Jesus only gives us three options, as C.S.Lewis put it years ago, He is either a liar, a lunatic, or He is indeed who He said He was, Lord. Perhaps He was going around and blatantly lying about who He was in order to get some kind of attention and start a revolution. But that does not explain why someone who was lying would go to His death so willingly and without fight. Liars typically aren’t the most courageous types. Perhaps He was a lunatic who was so self deceived that He actually believed He was God in the flesh. But no self deceived lunatic would be so compassionate as to forgive those who were killing Him, or to stay up all night healing people and genuinely show love and care for the down trodden of society. Or He was exactly who He said He was, Lord, God in the flesh, come to save sinners.
Jesus Messiah
Jesus asked His disciples this all important question, “Who do you say that I am?”And in Mark 8:29, Peter responds, “You are the Christ (or Messiah).” Jesus is the Son of the living God, the King of kings, God in the flesh. This is who He is and always has been. Who do you say that Jesus is?
Sources
Turner, Ryan. “Did Jesus Ever Exist?” CARM. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Jan. 2013.