Discovering Jesus – Chapter 9: The Claims of Jesus
9. The Claims of Jesus
Whenever I’m travelling on an aircraft or in a taxi, my fellow traveller, on hearing that I’m a minster, inevitably talks about the person of Jesus. It seems the person of Jesus fascinates people in the twentieth century. If the person isn’t a committed Christian, the comment is invariably the same: ‘As I see it, Jesus Christ was one of the greatest men that ever lived, probably the greatest teacher of all.’ Occasionally the traveller will say, ‘I can’t accept the fact that Jesus is God, but he certainly was a good man.’
There are very few people who would ever make the comment that Jesus was just another man. They always acknowledge he was either one of the greatest men that ever lived, or one of the great founders of religion.
The only problem with these answer is that they just won’t do! Jesus doesn’t allow you the option of just dismissing him as easily as that.
These rather condescending tributes to Jesus are only allowable because they are made out of ignorance. No one who really studies the life and teaching of Jesus would make those comments. If you look at the facts – examine his teaching, face squarely what was said about him by others and study the claims he made for himself – then you have to make a serious and considered response to who Jesus was.
One thing is sure, you have not the option of saying he was simply another great man, a good teacher, a leading philosopher or the influential founder of an important world religion. The evidence itself does not allow you to avoid the issue of who was Jesus. 1
The longest journey Jesus ever undertook was to Caesarea Philippi, in the north of Israel. It proved an appropriate choice. On Mount Hermon rise the springs that give birth to the River Jordan. What could be more symbolic for all of Jewish faith than to be at the source of the Jordan? Also there was a Roman temple named in honour of the Emperor Caesar. Furthermore, at the actual spring from which the Jordan rose it was believed the Greek god Pan was born. Here at the spring of Jewish tradition, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Jesus asked his disciples, ‘Who do you say that I am?’ This is the question we all must answer for ourselves.
What others said about Jesus
(a) A great teacher
There was universal agreement among those people who first heard Jesus that he was different to any other teacher they had ever heard:
Jesus went to the synagogue and began to teach. The people who heard him were amazed at the way he taught, for he was not like the teachers of the Law; instead he taught with authority. 2
This teaching went through the village where Jesus taught like wildfire. It captured people’s imaginations, stirred their consciences and challenged their easy acceptance of their status as children of Abraham. But there was more to Jesus’ character than being a great teacher.
(b) The pre-existent agent of creation
The Apostle John after Jesus’ death was to make a stupendous claim for Jesus. With acute insight, he recognised Jesus was more than an ordinary man. He was ‘the Word’, present with God at the time of creation and the agent of creation.
From the very beginning the Word was with God. Through him God made all things; not one thing in all creation was made without him…The World was in the world, and though God made the world through him, yet the world did not recognise him. He came to his own country, but his own people did not receive him. Some however, did receive him and believed in him; so he gave them the right to become God’s children. 3
John would not say that Jesus was simply a good teacher. To John, he was there in the beginning of creation with God and was the means by which God created the world. Other people might believe that there were various intermediaries between ourselves and God, or there may be various spiritual beings involved in the act of creation. John saw Jesus as unique, the one who was with God before the world began.
The Apostle Paul likewise made a similar claim for Jesus:
Christ is the visible likeness of the invisible God. He is the first-born Son, superior to all created things. For through him God created everything in heaven and on earth, the seen and the unseen things, including spiritual powers, lords, rulers and authorities. God created the whole universe through him and for him. Christ existed before all things, and in union with him all things have their proper place. 4
Other passages of scripture likewise testify that Jesus was not only God’s Son, but was the one through whom God created everything. Thus the writer of the letter to the Hebrews says simply:
…in these last days [God] has spoken to us through his Son. He is the one through whom God created the universe, the one whom God has chosen to possess all things at the end. He reflects the brightness of God’s glory and is the exact likeness of God’s own being, sustaining the universe with his powerful word. 5
(c) The King of the Jews
But we must go a step further. People not only believed that Jesus was a great teacher, or that he was the pre-existent agent of creation. They also believed he was the King of he Jews.
For centuries there had been the anticipation that a child would be born who would be King of the Jews and who would redeem his people. Mary was given the promise:
You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the most High God. The Lord God will make him a king as his ancestor David was, and he will be the king of the descendants of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end! 6
Jesus acknowledged that he was king of the Jews. However, when the people of Galilee rose up to make him king in opposition to the Romans and to lead them into victorious battle, he declined to be used politically. His kingdom, he said, was not of his world. 7 So when he entered Jerusalem on an ass, not a war-horse – the sign of a peace mission – still the people clearly wanted a conquering king: ‘God bless the coming kingdom of King David, our father! Praise be to God!’ 8 Jesus accepted their adulation, but again refused to seek to establish a political kingdom. No wonder Pilate asked: ‘Are you the King of the Jews?’ 9 Although Jesus was a descendant of King David and fulfilled the prophesies that he would be the King of the Jews, he saw his kingdom in a very different light.
(d) The Son of God
But there was one other claim about Jesus that we must note. The people of his day believed that he was the Son of God. At his baptism he had heard the words, ‘This is my own dear Son with whom I am pleased.’ 10
That was the whole point of the temptations in the wilderness. If he had not accepted his role as God’s Son, there was no point in the struggle with Satan. The temptations of Jesus were seen as the struggle between the way of God and the way of the Devil. When Paul reflected on the life of Jesus he had no doubt about the true identity of Jesus. He simply said:
The good news was promised long ago by God through his prophets, as written in the holy scriptures. It is about his Son, our Lord Jesus Christ: as to his humanity, he was born a descendant of David; as to his divine holiness, he was shown with great power to be the Son of God by being raised from death. 11
If you want to find one passage of scripture that really summed up who Jesus was and what was his purpose in coming, then you find that summing up in the comment of John:
For God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not die but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to be its judge, but to be its Saviour. 12
What Jesus said about himself
But frequently people may see in a great man more than he sees himself. To really examine the claims of Jesus, we must look at the way he spoke about himself.
(a) A Master to follow
Great teachers always point beyond themselves in their teaching. Whether Buddha, Moses, Mohammed, Plato, Karl Marx or Albert Einstein, any random selection of the hundred greatest thinkers would always regard their teaching as key. They would say, ‘Don’t look at me – look at my teaching. I am not important, but the truth that I am giving you is essential.’
Jesus alone was different. He never wrote a book, formulated a system of belief or taught a code of ethics. Instead, he said simply, ‘Follow me.’ 13
It was along the shores of the Lake of Galilee that Jesus came up to groups of workmen and, apparently having never met them before, told them to drop their nets and follow him. For many that was the turning point; the result of life was spent in following him and obeying his teaching.
Jesus did not hesitate to make demands on his followers:
If anyone wants to come with me, he must forget himself, carry his cross, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his own life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 14
There were occasions when people wanted to follow him, but were not willing to give wholehearted commitment. In that case, Jesus did not want half-committed disciples. To be a follower was a demanding business and no half-hearted measures would do:
As they went on their way a man said to Jesus, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’
Jesus said to him, ‘Foxes have holes, and birds have nests, but he Son of Man has no place to lie down and rest.’
He said to another man, ‘Follow me.’
But the man said, ‘Sir, first let me go back and bury my father.’
Jesus answered, ‘Let the dead bury their own head. You go and proclaim the kingdom of God.’
Another man said, ‘I will follow you, sir; but first let me go and say goodbye to my family.’
Jesus said to him, ‘Anyone who starts to plough and then keeps looking back is of no use for the kingdom of God.’ 15
At base, Christianity is not a system of belief, a code of ethics or a creed of doctrine which needs to be accepted or believed. At base Christianity is accepting the friendship of Jesus and following him when he calls. Our obedience to his teaching follows our acceptance of his friendship.
(b) A Saviour who can forgive sins
Jesus made a second claim that really shocked those who heard it. He claimed that he was so close to God that God was his Father. In his Father’s name he could forgive them the sins they had committed against God.
Now it is possible for us to forgive those who have sinned against us, but Jesus claimed he could forgive people who felt guilty before God. Why was this shocking?
The religious leaders accepted that it was the right and privilege of God alone to forgive people who had sinned. Jesus was thus taking a privilege that belonged to God when he forgave people their sins. At Capernaum Jesus confronted the religious leaders and declared frankly the he had this authority:
‘When they had made an opening, they let the man down, lying on his mat. Seeing how much faith they had, Jesus said to the paralysed man, ‘My son, your sins are forgiven.’
Some teachers of the Law who were sitting there thought to themselves, ‘How does he dare to talk like this? This is blasphemy! God is the only one who can forgive sins!’
At once Jesus knew what they were thinking, so he said to them, ‘Why do you think such things? Is it easier to say to this paralysed man, “Your sins are forgiven,” or to say, “Get up, pick up your mat, and walk”? I will prove to you, then, that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.’ So he said to the paralysed man, ‘I tell you, get up, pick up your mat, and go home!’
While they all watched, the man got up, picked up his mat, and hurried away. They were all completely amazed and praised God, saying, ‘We have never seen anything like this!’ 16
(c) The Messiah promised by the prophets
But Jesus’ assertions about himself were even more dramatic than this. He claimed not only the right of God to forgive sin; he acknowledged that the sacred titles set apart to describe the long-expected Messiah belonged to him.
On one occasion, as part of a long dispute with some Pharisees, Jesus claimed not only to have been with God through all the ages but he stated that even the great father of the Jewish race, Abraham, knew him and rejoiced at his work. Jesus then used the sacred expression that God used of himself when Moses asked his name: ‘I Am’, meaning he who is eternal and beyond time.
‘If I were to honour myself, that honour would be worth nothing. The one who honours me is my Father – the very one you say is your God. You have never known him, but I know him. If I were to say that I do not know him, I would be a liar like you. But I do know him, and I obey his word. Your father Abraham rejoiced that he was to see the time of my coming; he saw it and was glad.’
They said to him, ‘You are not even fifty years old – and you have seen Abraham?’
‘I am telling you the truth,’ Jesus replied. ‘Before Abraham was born, “I Am”.’ Then they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and left the Temple. 17
While some people marvelled at what Jesus said, others were utterly outraged that he should claim to be the Messiah and tried to kill him on the spot.
Actually Jesus preferred another Old Testament term.
The coming Messiah was also referred to as the Son of Man. In the writings of Daniel and Ezekiel, and in some of the books written in the period between the end of the Old Testament writings and the writings of the New Testament, the term ‘Son of Man’ was the accepted way of referring to God’s Messiah or Son. Jesus took this sacred title and used it of himself constantly. For example, when his disciples were to be the greatest, he said to them:
If any one of you wants to be great, he must be the servant of the rest; if any one of you wants to be first, he must be the slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served; he came to serve and to give his life to redeem many people. 18
There were times when people directly referred to Jesus as the Son of God and on these occasions he accepted their ascription of him. The crowd shouted at his judgement, ‘We have a law that says he ought to die because he claimed to be the Son of God.’ 19 The Council of the Sanhedrin charged him with the same blasphemy. 20 The Samaritan woman he met at the well had heard the same claim: ‘I know that the Messiah will come, and when he comes he will tell us everything.’
Jesus answered, ‘I am he, I who am talking with you.’ 21 She later told everybody in her own township, ‘Come and see the man who told me everything I have ever done. Could this be the Messiah?’ 22 And after the people came and listened to Jesus themselves, many believed: ‘We believe now, not because of what you said, but because we ourselves have heard him and we know that he really is the Saviour of the world.’ 23
There are other terms in scripture for the Son of God: the servant of God, the image of God, the form of God, the fullness of God and the mystery of God. They all add up to the same conclusion: Jesus was divine and exercised the power of God.
(d) The complete revelation of God
Jesus used a number of daring sayings to describe himself as someone totally unique.
Compare the following:
*I am the bread of life. 24
*I am the vine, and you are the branches. Whoever remains in me, and I in him, will bear much fruit; for you can do nothing without me. 25
*I am the good shepherd, who is willing to die for the sheep. 26
*I am the gate. Whoever comes in by me will be saved. 27
*I am the way, the truth and the life; no one goes to the Father except by me. 28
*I am the light of the world…Whoever follows me will have the light of life and will never walk in darkness. 29
*You call me Teacher and Lord, and it is right that you do so, for that is what I am. I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet. You then, should wash one another’s feet. I have set an example for you so that you will do just what I have done to you. 30
*I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.31
*I am the first and the last…who is, who was, and who is to come. 32
These all add up to the most audacious claims as to who Jesus is. When you consider these claims were made by Jesus himself, either we have the greatest megalomaniac who has ever lived, or else what he was saying was true.
But before we can come to a decision on that question, there is one final piece of evidence that we should examine. While our contemporary minds might classify Jesus as a great teacher or religious leader and place him in a little box labelled ‘most remarkable man’, we should look at what the early Christians actually claimed for the person of Jesus.
What the early Christians said about Jesus
It is one thing for eyewitnesses of Jesus to have made certain claims about him; it is another for Jesus to have made certain claims about himself. How did the early Christians view Jesus after they had the opportunity to appraise the evidence about him?
We have already seen that the apostles John and Paul came to recognise Jesus as the eternal word of God, pre-existent before the creation of the world. The early Christians independently came to the same conclusion as the claims made by eyewitnesses of Jesus or Jesus himself.
(a) The promised Messiah
The Jewish people had been anticipating for centuries the coming of God’s Messiah. The early Christians saw in Jesus the fulfilment of that prophecy. 33
To Peter and the early Christians, the Old Testament testified to the fact that God’s Son would come as a Messiah, be born in the township of Bethlehem, grow up in Nazareth and appear among them with remarkable acts of power. He would be rejected by his own people, be crucified by foreign hands under leadership of Jewish rulers, but God would raise him from the dead. That summary of belief they repeated again and again.
On one occasion when an Ethiopian was reading the book of Isaiah, Philip ran over to him and asked if he understood the passage that he was reading. The passage was speaking about the lamb of God who would be slaughtered. At this point, ‘Philip began to speak; starting from this passage of scripture, he told him the good news about Jesus.’ 34
The early apostles had seen and heard him for themselves and felt compelled to tell others. The apostle John wrote:
We write to you about the Word of life, which has existed from the very beginning. We have heard it, and we have seen it with our eyes; yes, we have seen it, and our hands have touched it. When this life became visible, we saw it; so we speak of it and tell you about the eternal life which was with the Father and which was made known to us. What we have seen and heard we announce to you also, so that you will join with us in the fellowship that we have with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 35
We may say what we like about Jesus, but to the early Christians he was none other than the long expected incarnation of God himself.(b) The redeeming Saviour
From the time when he was greeted by John the Baptist, ‘There is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!’ 36 Jesus spoke about his role as the redeeming Saviour. The reason he came was to save us from our sins. The apostle Paul declared:
I passed on to you what I received, which is of the greatest importance; that Christ died for our sins, as written in the scriptures. 37
Or again:
This is a true saying, to be completely accepted and believed; Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. 38
Many places in the Bible demonstrate how Jesus redeems us from sin and justifies us before a righteous God, how he leads us to salvation and how he is responsible for a new people whose lives have been transformed and renewed through faith in him. As the first Adam brought sin and death, so ‘the second Adam’ brings forgiveness of sin and eternal life with God. 39
Jesus claims to be more than just a great teacher. He is the redeeming Saviour who, through his death upon the cross, makes us a new people of God.
(c) The resurrected Lord
To be called ‘Lord’ was to be acclaimed as divine. The New Testament believers accepted that Jesus was both ‘Lord and Christ’. Peter could say, ‘All the people of Israel, then, are to know for sure that this Jesus whom you crucified, is the one that God has made Lord and Messiah!’ 40 His death was for our salvation and his resurrection enabled us to posses eternal life. When God raised Christ from the dead, we who believe in him also were affected. As Jesus himself said, ‘Because I live, you also will live.’ 41
Following his triumph over death, Jesus now lives and reigns in heaven. The very first Christian martyr, Stephen, in his dying moments, declared: ‘Look! I see heaven opened and the Son of Man standing at the right side of God!’ 42 Call Jesus what you will, we cannot get away from the fact that to the early church, he was their resurrected Lord.
(d) The Christian’s friend
Jesus built the closest friendship with people. From a momentary contact with him, their lives were often changed. They now were willing to risk everything and follow him. His call to discipleship meant the complete abandonment of everything else – the exclusive commitment to his way and teaching.
Those who followed him belonged to a new group of people which was the church or his body. 43 He was the head to direct, guide and empower, but they were to be the hands, feet and mouth to tell his message. He promised that he would give them the Holy Spirit to be with them. 44
As they had known his friendship throughout his time on earth, so they would know his friendship wherever they went throughout the world. Never again would they feel lonely or bereft. Through his Spirit, he would always be with them, no matter where they were. 45
Christians everywhere have claimed the friendship of Jesus. Ultimately to be a Christian does not mean to obey a doctrine, recite a creed or believe a dogma; it is simply to live within the transforming friendship of Jesus.
(e) The returning King
Jesus himself declared that he would come again in power and in judgement. The early Christians looked for the coming of Jesus within their own lifetime. They were willing to abandon all that they had to spread his message everywhere. Jesus had declared that, while no one would know when he was returning, people were to be constantly watching for his return. Their word of greeting was ‘Maranatha’, which means ‘Our Lord, come!’ 46 They met every week to break bread in communion together, promising to do so ‘until he comes’. 47
The Bible closes on a note of triumph as we are urged to look to the future coming of Jesus as both Lord and King, the making of a new heaven and a new earth, and the ushering in of the age of God’s kingdom.
Which brings us back to the fundamental question asked at Caesarea Philippi two thousand years ago: ‘What about you? Who do you say that I am?’ 48
Ultimately, we have but three alternatives. He could have been a liar making false claims about himself. But this option doesn’t hold water: there were too many people who were eyewitnesses of his healings and miracles, his death and resurrection, and his appearance afterwards.
He could have been a lunatic, a megalomaniac who dreamed of greatness beyond the ordinary. Yet as we read the life of Jesus, we find there has never been one more sane nor whose teachings are more relevant.
Alternatively if we cannot find evidence that Jesus was either liar or lunatic, we must accept him for what he claimed to be – Lord, or in Simon Peter’s ageless reply, ‘the Messiah, the Son of the living God’. 49 No other assessment of Jesus makes sense. This is the testimony of countless millions of people down through the centuries and a thousand million today. There has to be something in it.
Endnotes:
1. Matthew 16:15; Mark 8:29; Luke 9:20
2. Mark 1:21-22
3. John 1:2-3, 10-12
4. Colossians 1:15-17
5. Hebrews 1:2-3
6. Luke 1:31-33
7. John 18:36
8. Mark 11:10
9. Matthew 27:11
10. Matthew 3:17
11. Romans 1:2-4
12. John 3:16-17
13. Mark 2:14
14. Matthew 16:24-25
15. Luke 9:57-62
16. Mark 2:1-12
17. John 8:54-59
18. Mark 10:45
19. John 19:7
20. Luke 22:66-71
21. John 4:25-26
22. John 4:29
23. John 4:42
24. John 6:35
25. John 15:5
26. John 10:11
27. John 10:9
28. John 14:6
29. John 8:12
30. John 13:13-15
31. John 11:25-26
32. Revelation 1:8
33. Acts 2:22-24
34. Acts 8:35
35. John 1:1-3
36. John 1:29
37. 1 Corinthians 15:3
38. 1 Timothy 1:15
39. 1 Corinthians 15:45-47
40. Acts 2:36
41. John 14:19
42. Acts 7:56
43. Romans 12:3-5; 1 Corinthians 12:12-31
44. John 14:15-17
45. John 14:18; Matthew 28:18-20
46. 1 Corinthians 16-22
47. 1 Corinthians 11:26
48. Matthew 16:15
49. Matthew 16:16
For personal reading
Theme: Who is Jesus
Monday : The source of Jesus’ authority (John 5:19-36)
Tuesday : Bread that satisfies (John 6:25-51)
Wednesday : A spectacular claim ( John 8:12-30)
Thursday : An extraordinary shepherd (John 10:1-18)
Friday : The inescapable challenge (John 12:31-50)
Saturday : A unique relationship (John 14:1-17)
Sunday : For all the world (Matthew 28:1-20)
For group reading
Topic: The Claims of Jesus
1. What is the problem with just describing Jesus as ‘a great teacher’?
2. Which claims made by Jesus about himself are the most significant for 20th century people
3. All great teachers point to their teaching as the focus of a believers’ allegiance. Why did Jesus point not to his teaching but to himself?
4. ‘At base Christianity is accepting the friendship of Jesus and following him when he calls.’ Discuss.
5. What does it mean to say ‘Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners’?
6. Why are all our little boxes and religious labels inadequate when it comes to describing the person of Jesus Christ?