In the Bible, Jesus is revealed as the Son of God, the promised Messiah, and the Savior of the world. On Day 1, we looked at Old Testament prophecies about the coming Messiah. Today on Day 2, we will explore what the New Testament says about who Jesus is.
Jesus is the Son of God
The New Testament clearly teaches that Jesus is the Son of God. This means that Jesus has the same divine nature as God. He was not created, but has eternally existed with the Father (John 1:1-3). Let’s look at some of the key passages:
– At Jesus’ baptism, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17).
– When questioned by the Jewish leaders if he was the Son of God, Jesus responded “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” (Mark 14:62).
– Martha confessed her belief that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of God (John 11:27).
– The apostle John wrote his entire gospel to demonstrate that “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God” (John 20:31).
Jesus referred to God as his Father over 200 times in the Gospels. He spoke of his unique, intimate relationship with God. Jesus said, “All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him” (Matthew 11:27).
Jesus’ disciples also understood him to be the Son of God:
– Simon Peter declared, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16).
– After seeing the resurrected Christ, Thomas exclaimed, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28).
– John wrote that Jesus is the only begotten Son of God in whom we have eternal life (John 3:16, 1 John 4:9).
In calling God his own Father, Jesus was making himself equal with God (John 5:18). The religious leaders recognized that Jesus was claiming to be divine. There is no middle ground – either Jesus was telling the truth about his identity, or he would be a liar or lunatic. The historical evidence confirms Jesus spoke the truth.
Jesus is the Promised Messiah
The New Testament presents Jesus as the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah. The Hebrew word “Messiah” (mashiach) means “anointed one.” Jesus is the one anointed and sent by God to save his people. Let’s look at some examples:
– John the Baptist, who prepared the way for Christ, testified that Jesus was the “Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29), referring back to the Passover lamb and the suffering servant of Isaiah 53.
– When Jesus asked his disciples who they believed he was, Peter responded, “You are the Christ [Messiah], the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16).
– In Matthew 5:17, Jesus said he came to fulfill the Law and the Prophets, meaning the Old Testament Scriptures.
– After his resurrection, Jesus explained how the Old Testament foretold his death and resurrection (Luke 24:25-27, 44-47).
– Jesus rebuked people for not recognizing him as the promised Messiah, saying “If you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me” (John 5:46).
The New Testament authors explicitly connect Jesus to Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah:
– Matthew opens his Gospel showing how Jesus fulfilled Isaiah’s prophecy of a virgin giving birth to Emmanuel, meaning “God with us” (Isaiah 7:14, Matthew 1:22-23).
– The chief priests and scribes cited Micah 5:2 to identify Bethlehem as the birthplace of the Messiah. Jesus was born in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:4-6).
– In Acts 3, Peter preaches that Jesus fulfilled Deuteronomy 18:15, where Moses spoke of God raising up a future prophet like himself.
– Hebrews 1 applies Psalm 2 and 2 Samuel 7 to Jesus as the ultimate Son of God and heir to the throne of David.
Jesus embodies the offices of prophet, priest, and king foreshadowed throughout the Old Testament. He is the ultimate Messiah.
Jesus is the Savior of the World
The most important truth about Jesus is that he came to be the Savior of sinners. While the Old Testament pointed forward to a coming deliverer, the New Testament records the fulfillment of God’s plan of salvation in Christ.
Jesus explained that he came “to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). A ransom was the price paid to redeem a slave. Jesus gave his life to purchase sinners out of their bondage to sin.
Throughout his ministry, Jesus forgave the sins of many who put their faith in him (Luke 7:48-50, Matthew 9:2). He said he had authority on earth to forgive sins (Matthew 9:6).
The cross was central to Christ’s mission. He repeatedly predicted his own death and resurrection (Mark 8:31, 9:30-32; 10:32-34). At the Last Supper, Jesus said his blood was poured out for the forgiveness of sins (Matthew 26:28).
The apostles proclaim Jesus as the one appointed by God to bring salvation:
– Peter preached that there is salvation in no one else but Jesus (Acts 4:12).
– Paul wrote that Jesus gave himself for our sins to rescue us (Galatians 1:3-4).
– The author of Hebrews says Jesus made purification for sins and sat down at the right hand of God (Hebrews 1:3).
– John wrote that Jesus is the atoning sacrifice for our sins and the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2).
These verses reveal Christianity is distinct in teaching that salvation is achieved through a Savior, not earned by good works. Jesus alone is uniquely qualified to bring us back to God.
Jesus is Fully God and Fully Man
A mystery the Bible teaches about Jesus is that he is fully divine and fully human at the same time. We cannot fully comprehend this, but we accept it by faith.
Jesus’ two natures are seen in the gospel accounts:
– Jesus demonstrates his deity by knowing people’s thoughts (Luke 6:8), controlling nature (Mark 4:39), and raising the dead (John 11:43-44).
– Jesus displays normal human qualities such as hunger (Matthew 4:2), tiredness (John 4:6), sorrow (John 11:35), and lack of knowledge about the future (Mark 13:32).
At the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451, the church recognized that Jesus has two natures in one person forever. Some errors the church rejected include:
– Saying Jesus only appeared to be human (Docetism)
– Denying Jesus’ human nature resulted from Mary (Apollinarianism)
– Separating Jesus’ divine and human natures (Nestorianism)
– Blending together Jesus’ human and divine natures (Monophysitism)
A proper understanding of Christology recognizes Jesus as fully God and fully man, two natures in one eternal person.
Eyewitness Testimony about Jesus
The New Testament contains eyewitness testimony confirming the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. The Gospels were written within the lifetime of eyewitnesses by Jesus’ disciples Matthew and John, and by Mark and Luke who carefully researched their accounts (Luke 1:1-4).
In 1 Corinthians 15, written around AD 55, Paul lists Peter, the Twelve disciples, James, 500 people, and himself among those who saw the risen Lord. He challenges readers to check the eyewitness reports for themselves, since most were still living.
Peter testified, “we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty” (2 Peter 1:16). The apostles were killed for proclaiming what they saw firsthand.
Even critical scholars admit the apostles genuinely believed Jesus appeared to them after his death. Their willingness to suffer and die for this testimony shows their sincere conviction that they had seen the resurrected Christ.
Extrabiblical Evidence for Jesus
Several ancient non-Christian writings confirm Jesus’ existence and crucifixion under Pontius Pilate:
– Tacitus, a Roman historian (AD 56 – 120), wrote about Christ being crucified under Pilate’s administration (Annals 15:44).
– Josephus, a Jewish historian (AD 37 – 100), refers to James as the brother of Jesus called Christ (Antiquities 20:9).
– Mara bar Serapion, a Roman Stoic philosopher, wrote of the wise Jewish king killed by his own people (Letter to Son).
– The Babylonian Talmud says Jesus was hanged on Passover Eve for sorcery and leading Israel astray (Sanhedrin 43a).
This non-Christian testimony verifies that Jesus was a real historical figure who was crucified under Pontius Pilate’s rule.
Jesus’ Impact as a Historical Figure
Looking beyond the Bible, it is clear Jesus has profoundly impacted world history in many ways:
– Jesus is the most written about and sung about person in history. No one else even comes close.
– Jesus’ teachings in the Sermon on the Mount have highly influenced moral philosophy and nonviolent resistance movements.
– Christianity, the world’s largest religion, has spread to nearly every nation today.
– Art, music, literature, and culture have been greatly inspired by Jesus’ life for 2,000 years.
– The medieval calendar (BC/AD) revolves around Jesus’ birth.
– Major holidays like Christmas and Easter are celebrated globally because of events in Jesus’ life.
No serious historian doubts Jesus existed due to the overwhelming evidence. Denying Jesus’ existence would mean throwing out basically all ancient history.
Conclusion
In this overview, we have seen how the Bible and history present Jesus Christ as the Son of God, the promised Messiah, the Savior of the world, the God-man, and the most influential person who ever lived. But each person must decide for themselves who Jesus is. Jesus asks each of us, “But who do you say that I am?” How we answer has eternal significance.
