Jesus Part 1… Introduction

Jesus is, without a doubt, the most controversial figure of all time. Here is a man who is, by all accounts, a simple man, the son of a carpenter, hailing from a small town, who stirs the pot of history like no one else ever has.

Performing a Google search on “Jesus” nets 143 million results,  “Questions About Jesus” yields 295 million hits, and a staggering 592 million links are available to anyone looking to find out “Who was Jesus.”

Was He a real person? Did He really perform miracles? Did He really die? Did He really rise? Do our calendars really actually hinge on when He walked the earth (BC/AD)?

These are all questions that swirl around this man of mystery.

If outside speculation weren’t enough, however, Jesus adds to the intrigue with a few, but pointed sayings.

While arguing with the pharisees, He said, “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me” (John 5:39), and “if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me.” (John 5:46).

In saying these things, Jesus is actually saying that the Tanakh, or Christian Old Testament bears witness about Him, and that Moses, the writer of the Tora, or the first 5 books Old Testament actually wrote about Jesus.

Furthermore, following his resurrection, Jesus walked with two of His disciples, “And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.” (Luke 24:27).

Next, he appeared to the rest of His disciples and, “he said to them, These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled. Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. (Luke 24:44-45).

What are these “things concerning himself” in the writings of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms? Some answer this question by pointing to prophecies fulfilled, some by pointing to vague ideas of a Messiah, followed by claims regarding whether or not Jesus was this Messiah that was prophesied to come.

Interestingly enough, the Bible doesn’t stop with thoughts of Jesus’ past… it also speaks of Jesus’ future.

In Revelation 19, John, seeing a Kingly, Triumphant Jesus on a white horse, refers to Jesus as the one who “is called The Word of God.” (Revelation 19:13).

It is this same Word of God of whom John writes in His gospel when he begins by saying, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. (John 1:1-5).

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14)

Could it be that Jesus was more than a man, more than an oft prophesied of Messiah?  Could it be that Jesus was indeed God?

And, if so… assuming one were also to believe that the whole of Scripture is about God… could it be that the entire Bible is actually about Jesus?

If this were true, then in order to correctly interpret Scripture we would need to connect its verses, concepts and events to Jesus.

This would mean that the Bible prophecies of Jesus, highlights pre-incarnate appearances of Jesus, provides accounts of people, events and images that foreshadow Jesus, recounts the life of Jesus, provides instruction for life in Jesus, and finally reveals to us the ultimate purpose of mankind… eternal life with Jesus.