This painting, "Christ on the Road to Emmaus", is found in the National Gallery of Art (Washington D.C.), painted by an unknown American artist in the 18th century.
For 2,000 years this Jesus has been the subject of controversy and his life literally changed the world whether or not you believe him to be the Son of God.
When we ask the world who Jesus Christ is many will proclaim that he was a good man. Some profess that he was a teacher, a prophet, a wise man.
The problem is that Jesus Christ did allow himself to be characterized in this way. Jesus Christ made it very clear, his claim was that he was indeed God. In John 10: 24-33 we read, "
The Jews gathered around him, saying, "How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly."Jesus answered, "I did tell you, but you do not believe. The miracles I do in my Father's name speak for me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father's hand. I and the Father are one."Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus said to them, "I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?" "We are not stoning you for any of these," replied the Jews, "but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God."
Jesus Christ claimed to be God. From this we can only conclude the either Jesus was a liar, and a very good one, or He was a lunatic who actually thought He was God's Son, or He truly is God made flesh.
My Class 100 at Scottsdale Bible Church investigated these three thoughts:
Is Jesus a Liar?
- Jesus never contradicted himself
- A good liar generally knows when to quit (Jesus died for his claims)
- His disciples would never die horrible deaths for a lie
Dr. Philip Schaff (Christian Historian):
"the moral purity and dignity of Jesus, revealed in His every word and work (is) acknowledged by universal consent."
"How, in the name of logic, common sense, and experience, could an impostor - that is a deceitful, selfish, depraved man - have invented, and consistently maintained from the beginning to the end, the purest and noblest character known in history with the most perfect air of truth and reality? How could He have conceived and successfully carried out a plan of unparalleled beneficence (kindness), moral magnitude, and peace, and sacrificed His own life for it, in the face of the strongest prejudices of His people?"
Conclusion: A person who lived, thought and died as Jesus did could not have been a liar.
Is Jesus a Lunatic?
- Again, Jesus never contradicted himself. Hard for a lunatic to pull that off.
- Jesus' life fulfilled many prophecies from the Hebrew Canon (Old Testament). How could Jesus have concocted his birth and the many prophecies from ages past?
- The disciples, after Jesus death and resurrection, did not drink Kool-Aid and pull a "Jim Jones" on us. They continued their lives. Preached the same message. Founded a church. Changed the world and ultimately all died horrible deaths, save one, for this message. Again, not something people would do for a mad man.
Psychiatrist, J. T. Fisher writes:
"If you were to take the sum total of all authoritative articles ever written by the most qualified of psychologists and psychiatrist on the subject of mental hygiene - if you were to combine them and refine them and leave out the excess verbiage - if you were to take the whole of the meat and none of the parsley, and if you were to have these unadulterated bits of pure scientific knowledge concisely expressed by the most capable of living poets, you would have an awkward and incomplete summation of the Sermon on the Mount. And it would suffer immeasurably through comparison. For nearly two thousand years the Christian world has been holding in its hands the complete answer to its restless and fruitless yearnings. Here...rests the blueprint for successful human life with optimism, mental health, and contentment."
A person who responded to life as Jesus did could no have been a lunatic!
Is Jesus the Lord?
Here then is the central point of this article. We all must bring ourselves to the point where we understand the claims that Jesus made. There is overwhelming historical evidence unlike any other religion. Jesus himself was real clear. He claimed to be God made flesh, sent to earth to redeem a fallen world.
I choose to believe that Jesus Christ is Lord, Savior, and the second Person of the Trinity.
How about you?
