Without a doubt, Jesus of Nazareth has had a tremendous impact upon our world. But how did a carpenter born to a poor family living in a no-name town two thousand years ago become arguably the most famous person in history? Some would say it's because he was a great moral teacher, although they would reject the claim that he is the Son of God. But does it makes sense to view Jesus in that way? According to author and literary scholar C.S. Lewis, not at all:
"That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic—on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronising nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to."
If Jesus isn't merely a great human teacher, then who is he? And what did he come to accomplish? According to the eyewitness accounts of his life, Jesus came proclaiming what he called "the gospel of the kingdom." The word gospel literally means "good news," and it originally referred to a message of military victory won on behalf of a people.
So what is the good news that Jesus spoke of? The biblical gospel is the story of God entering into the wreckage of human sin to redeem a people for himself through the life, death, and resurrection of his Son, Jesus Christ. One way to understand the gospel is to break it down into four categories:
1. God
2. Man
3. Christ
4. Response
2. Man
3. Christ
4. Response
God
In the beginning, God created the entire universe by speaking it into existence. He formed the earth and caused it to flourish, and he called his creation good. Because he is the Creator of all things, he is worthy of all glory, honor, and power (Revelation 4:11). And because he is supremely good and full of justice, he must necessarily oppose all evil (Psalm 5:4-6).
Man
Humanity was created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-31), designed to worship him and experience joyful fellowship in his presence. But tragically, our first ancestors Adam and Eve chose to turn down the love of their Creator, rejecting his authority and seeking to become their own gods (Genesis 3:1-12). The image of God in humanity was fractured, and Adam forfeited the blessing of fellowship with God both personally and for all mankind. As a result, all human beings are alienated from God, corrupted by sin in every aspect of their person and condemned to death and eternal separation from God (Romans 5:12, 2 Thessalonians 1:9).
Christ
But this wasn’t the end of the story. From the moment of our rebellion, God promised that one day a descendant of Eve would overcome the forces of evil and undo the curse of sin that has ravaged our world. He did this by sending his own Son, Jesus Christ, to be born in a manger in Bethlehem two thousand years ago. Jesus is the eternal Word of God, but he took on flesh in order to identify with humanity and become our Savior (John 1:1-14).
He lived a sinless life, perfectly loving both God and his fellow human beings. He died a sacrificial death in the place of guilty sinners on the cross, absorbing the just wrath we deserved and reconciling us to the Creator whose laws we've broken. Three days later, he rose from the grave, conquering sin, death, and the devil.
Jesus is now alive and reigning over all things, and for the past two thousand years he has been subduing hearts and advancing his kingdom to the ends of the earth through his blood-bought people, the Church. He will one day come again to judge the earth in righteousness (Acts 17:30-31). At that time, he will fully establish his glorious kingdom, and God will once more dwell with man on the earth. He will wipe away every tear from our eyes, and death will be no more, for he will make all things new (Revelation 21:1-5).
He lived a sinless life, perfectly loving both God and his fellow human beings. He died a sacrificial death in the place of guilty sinners on the cross, absorbing the just wrath we deserved and reconciling us to the Creator whose laws we've broken. Three days later, he rose from the grave, conquering sin, death, and the devil.
Jesus is now alive and reigning over all things, and for the past two thousand years he has been subduing hearts and advancing his kingdom to the ends of the earth through his blood-bought people, the Church. He will one day come again to judge the earth in righteousness (Acts 17:30-31). At that time, he will fully establish his glorious kingdom, and God will once more dwell with man on the earth. He will wipe away every tear from our eyes, and death will be no more, for he will make all things new (Revelation 21:1-5).
Response
God now calls all people to turn from their wicked ways and to trust in Christ as their Lord and Savior for the forgiveness of sin. There is absolutely nothing we can do to fix ourselves or earn his favor—it is a gift of pure grace (Ephesians 2:8-9). Through faith in Jesus, we are transformed by God’s Spirit into a new creation with a redeemed heart that is able to love rightly. We are restored to right relationship with our Creator, adopted as children in the family of God, and made heirs of eternal life. Day by day, we are being healed from the sickness of sin and renewed to reflect more and more of the image of our Creator as we eagerly look forward to our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ (Titus 2:11-14).
Where do I go from here?
This is the story of who Jesus is and what he has accomplished. It’s a lot of information to take in, and you might have even more questions than when you started! We would love to help you process through your doubts and beliefs as you wrestle with the claims of Christianity.
Feel free to visit our church family when we gather on Sundays at 10:30am. It's a zero-pressure, friendly environment that is open to skeptics and believers alike. Or if you'd prefer to talk through your questions one on one, you can fill out a Connect Card and check the box that says "I'd like to meet with someone to learn more about Christianity".
Feel free to visit our church family when we gather on Sundays at 10:30am. It's a zero-pressure, friendly environment that is open to skeptics and believers alike. Or if you'd prefer to talk through your questions one on one, you can fill out a Connect Card and check the box that says "I'd like to meet with someone to learn more about Christianity".