Is Jesus of Nazareth the son of God? Did Jesus of Nazareth even exist? There are really four main views on these questions. Many people simply answer no to the second question and leave it at that. Other people say that yes, Jesus of Nazareth did exist historically, but they believe he was simply a good moral teacher. Some other people agree that Jesus existed, but instead of him being merely a moral teacher they see him as a prophet of God. The final group of people answer yes to both questions. They believe that not only did Jesus of Nazareth exist, but that he is the son of God. These viewpoints are completely incompatible with each other, and there is no way to compromise a solution.
There is only one right answer, and that is that Jesus did exist historically, and that he is the son of God.
This issue is important because the way someone answers these questions is foundational to their world view. It is also important because answering yes to both questions is the foundation of the worlds largest religion, Christianity. This author is a Christian, and a deacon at Windfall Christian Church. However, that has not always been the case. For over ten years the author searched for spiritual answers. He searched for something to believe not because someone else, or some book, said that he should, but because it made sense logically and rationally. This search ended back where it started, with the belief that Jesus of Nazareth did exist historically, and that he is the son of God.
However, many people disagree with this view. Some of them believe that he could not possibly be the son of God, because he never existed. Why is it that these people believe this? Some of them claim that there is a lack of historical evidence for exis...
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...clusion that they can come to; that Jesus did exist historically, and that he is the Son of God.
Works Cited
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Lewis, C. S. (2001). The shocking alternative. In Mere Christianity (Harper Collins ed., pp. 48-52). New York, NY: Harper Collins. (Original work published 1952)
Zindler, F. R. (1998). Did Jesus even exist? Retrieved June 27, 2011, from American Atheists website: http://www.atheists.org/Did_Jesus_Exist%3F
Zindler, F. R. (n.d.). Brief biography of Frank R. Zindler. Retrieved July 13, 2011, from The Secular Web website: http://www.infidels.org/library/modern/frank_zindler/bio.htm
What was agreed upon at the Council of Chalcedon can supported in the Synoptic Gospels. It was reported that He was born of a woman, grew from infant to man, wept, experienced hunger, was tempted, and also experienced death, reavealing His human nature. "Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him", Matthew 8:26-27 (Bible np). Jesus also has power over nature, diseases, demons, sins, and death, revealing His divinity. "I and my Father are one", John 10:30 (Bible np). With each agreed statement, there are always some who think differently. The Chalcedon definition of Jesus had staying power, but there were still two sides and more questions. But it stays to say that the Jesus Christ is truly divine and truly man.
How would you personally answer Jesus’ question, “But who do you say that I am?” Describe your own beliefs about Jesus.
Russell, Bertrand. Why I Am Not a Christian: And Other Essays on Religion and Related
So could Jesus be the Son of God? Again, Jesus lived a life so noble, amazing, and loving that it has been remembered by billions of people and has been the center of a religion for thousands of years! If it were all a lie, why would a man die a horrific death for something he knew was not true? If he was crazy, why was there never any indication in any secular writing that would affirm this truth? He lived a life worthy of what he preached and he predicted his death and resurrection.
Several non-biblical and non-Christian sources are available to help bear out the fact that Jesus actually did exist as a historical person. These sources are of an array of backgrounds: Josephus, a Jewish historian; Tacitus, a Roman writer; Pliny the Younger, a Roman writer; and Suetonius, also a Roman writer, all spoke of Jesus of Nazareth in their records.
Stanton, Graham. Gospel Truth?: New Light on Jesus and the Gospels. Valley Forge, PA: Trinity Press International, 1995. Paperback.
Being a Christian and a student of Communications, I felt compelled to reading The Case for Christ. I decided to use this book for this review especially due to the large amount of criticisms and backlash it had received. Lee Strobel is known for being a hard-nosed skeptical journalist and ex-investigative reporter for the Chicago Tribune. He also described himself as a "former spiritual skeptic" before his personal mission for the proof of God. Skeptics around the world claim that Jesus either never said He was God or He never exemplified the activities and mindset of God. Either way they rather triumphantly proclaim that Jesus was just a man. Some will go so far as to suggest that He was a very moral and special man, but a man nonetheless. For Strobel, there was far too much evidence against the idea of God, let alone the possibility that God became a man. God was just mythology, superstition, or wishful thinking.
Eastman, Roger. The Ways of Religion: An Introduction to the Major Traditions. Third Edition. Oxford University Press. N.Y. 1999
Charles, T. (n.d.). A Response to HJ McCloskey’s “On Being An Atheist”. Retrieved from Carry your cross: http://charlestinsley.wordpress.com/2012/12/17/a-response-to-hj-mccloskeys-on-being-an-atheist/
Moreland, J.P., and Wilkins, Michael, ed. Jesus Under Fire: Modern Scholarship Reinvents the Historical Jesus. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1995.
Rourke, Nancy. “Christianity Notes.” Religion 101 Notes Christianity. Entry posted April 14, 2011. https ://angel.canisius.edu/section/default.asp?id=43760%5FSpring2011 (accessed April 18, 2011).
Before this semester I had never taken a moment to ask myself - Who is Jesus? It is something that I have never been given the option to question. Being brought up in a strong Christian background, where I went to mass every Sunday, and then following mass, went to bible school for two hours, ingrained a specific image of Jesus into my head. This image portrayed Jesus as a white man who preformed miracles for the poor and oppressed, and also sacrificed himself on the cross for all of humanity’s’ sins. However, after taking this course, I have been able to rethink Jesus in ways that I could have never imagined. It has become evident to me that there are many different ways to see Jesus. And with each of these contrasting views, there comes both biblical and rational evidence supporting each image along with criticism disputing each image.
Jesus Christ was the light that came to earth to brighten the lives of the people. He taught phenomenal and meaningful lessons that changed many hearts and caused people to accept Jesus as their Lord. Jesus Christ is the life of Christianity; the Word of God in flesh. His life, his ministry, and his crucifixion where prophesied long before he was born and Christians believe that they were all fulfilled. He had so much love for human kind that he came to earth to die for the sins of the people, so that their souls would be able to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. The Bible testifies that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who taught memorable life lessons and performed astonishing miracles during his ministry.
Gonzalez, Justo L. The Story of Christianity. 2nd ed. New York City, NY: HarperOne, 2010.
Freud said, “God is a projection of our inner desires”. Marx said, “It was just a way of keeping the hungry masses quiet”. (3) Even with all this negative opposition and doubt, can the hard- line skeptic honestly deny the existence of Jesus? We see proof of Jesus’s existence in the New Testament. The New Testament is a compile of stories after Jesus’s death written by people who believed passionately in what he had done and said. The gospel writer’s were people who saw the stories happen with their own eyes; they were his followers. . “What non-Christian sources are there for Jesus? (Answer: a reference in the Jewish historian Josephus, a reference in the Roman historian Tacitus, and one possible allusion in a more scurrilous Roman writer, Suetonius.)” (23) We can try to ignore the facts because we did not physically see it happen and we did not experience it but, I think there is enough evidence to keep an open mind. In the search of truth that we seek we need to understand who Jesus is. He first came into the public’s eye in the late 20’s of the first century. With only being in the public eye for three short years, he was one of the greatest teachers, spiritual leaders, moralist and healer. The authorities in Jerusalem soon became threatened with the impact he had on society and arrested him for being a would-be rebel leader. He was executed as the “king of the Jews.” All four gospels make note of this phrase and said