Who is Jesus Christ?
Real or mythic?
 With
 the
help of a few historical records, we can say that Jesus Christ was born
around 7 B.C., a few years before the death of Herod the Great. He was
born of a human mother--her name was Mary--in the land of Palestine.
He ate and slept, he worked and prayed, he suffered and he died. Although
countless efforts have been made for twenty centuries to reduce him
to a mythical figure, it is hard for anyone to doubt his human existence.
According
to writings of the New Testament, which written by his early followers,
Jesus was a descendant of David, the warrior-king of Israel. Born in
Bethlehem, he was raised in Nazareth of Galilee. His birth was ordinary
in itself, although extraordinary happenings were reported as having
taken place on this great event.
What about his early life?
Except
for a few events, we know very little about the next quarter-century
of his life. Jesus was called "the son of a carpenter," and was raised
as a Galilean artisan. His neighbors, expecting children to follow in
their parent's footsteps, looked for nothing more from him. Later, when
he began to teach, they were utterly surprised at his wisdom and the
authoritative way he taught. Nothing much was supposed to come from
Nazareth, an obscure mountain village of Galillee. Jesus had a good
Jewish background. He knew the Jewish Scriptures, but we don't know
if he could even write his own name. He was proudly Jewish.  Immersed
in a Biblical culture, he shared a knowledge of Jewish history communicated
to him by his parents and teachers. He also shared the desire of his
people for the coming of God's Kingdom and believed in their special
place in God's plan of salvation.
When did Jesus' mission begin?
Jesus
began his ministry when he was about thirty years old, after his baptism
in the Jordan River by John the Baptist. At first, onlookers noted nothing
extraordinary about him. Remember, for almost 90% of his life he lived
as a humble carpenter. Then suddenly, with no advance warning, he
began to speak with wisdom and authority. Those who knew him were
surprised and shocked. Early on, the people of Nazareth expelled him
from their synagogue. Opposition to him continued to grow until eventually
he was put to death.
What did he do?
Once
his public career began, Jesus seemed completely absorbed in proclaiming
that the Kingdom of God had come! There was a consistent singleheartedness
about him. It almost seemed as though his own family ceased to exist.
Or perhaps it would be truer to say that the world had become his
family. Never attached to any one place, he was ever on the move:
"I must preach there, too."
Crowds
gathered around him. He healed the sick of illnesses as a sign that
God's Kingdom had come. He chose others and called them to follow him.
He told people to turn to God, to love him with their whole mind and
heart and soul, and their neighbor as themselves. He taught using parables.
Available to everyone, he treated each with a singular reverence and
kindness. He was rarely alone, excepting for hours of prayer in the
desert or on a mountain-top. Living one moment to the next, he didn't
seem to have any organized set of plans at all.
Among
those most attracted to him were society's outsiders: the prostitutes,
tax-collectors, sinners,  whom
he went out of his way to welcome. That disturbed some of the religious
elite, who could not understand why he shared the table of sinners.
A prophet, or more?
"The
spirit of the Lord is upon me," Jesus proclaimed. And in the next few
years, in the Jewish territories of Galilee and Judea, a growing number
of people called him a prophet sent by God, and some said perhaps the
long-awaited Messiah had come.
His death In Jerusalem
At
the time, revolutions were common in those Jewish territories, and the
Romans, then in control of Palestine, moved swiftly against any popular
figure who might cause unrest. The Jewish ruling class in Jerusalem
was also wary of anyone upsetting the delicate peace with the powerful
Romans. And so, when Jesus came up to Jerusalem for the great feast
of Passover, he was sentenced by Pontius Pilate, the Roman Procurator,
to death by crucifixion.
Risen from the dead!
There
 it
all might have ended. On Sunday after his death, however, his followers
saw him, risen from the dead! He ate, drank and spoke with them;
after a time he ascended into the heavens to establish God's Kingdom.
He sent the Holy Spirit on them and their faith grew. They believed
that Jesus was the Son of God, born of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin
Mary, his mother. He brought victory over death, forgiveness of sins
and the promise of everlasting life. His followers became his church,
a people gathered by him and led by the Holy Spirit. Soon they carried
the good news of Jesus Christ to the whole world.
What do Christians believe about Jesus?
The
Apostles' Creed summarizes what Christians believe about Jesus Christ:
I
believe...
in Jesus
Christ, (God's) only Son, our Lord.
He was
conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit,
and
born of the Virgin Mary,
He suffered
under Pontius Pilate,
was
crucified, died and was buried.
He descended
to the dead.
On the
third day he rose again.
He ascended
into heaven,
and
is seated
at the
right of the Father.
He will
come again
to judge
the living and the dead.
I believe
in the Holy Spirit,
the
holy catholic church,
the
communion of saints,
the
forgiveness of sins,
the
resurrection of the body,
and
life everlasting. Amen.
The
Apostles' Creed is a summary of the Four Gospels. You can learn
more about Jesus Christ from them and the other writings of the New
Testament. Jesus once asked those who followed him
"Who do you say that I am?"
That's
an important question for all of us. Our answer can change our lives.
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