When you think of Jesus, do you think of a man gently petting sheep? Do you think of a warrior on a white horse with a fire in his eyes? The truth about Jesus Christ is that he is all this and more. Learn about how dynamic and counter-culture Jesus is with this excerpt. It is from the NIV Storyline Study Bible, originally posted on bibleconnection.com
The Jesus of Our Own Making
For many people, Jesus is a figure from the past—someone to be admired as a great teacher, even a prophet. For others, He is someone to call upon in a time of crisis who will wipe our tears away, rather like a tissue. We can either take this Jesus or leave Him.
The Truth About the Jesus of the Bible
If we look at the Gospels, however, a totally different picture emerges. Here is no “gentle Jesus meek and mild,” but a person so dynamic and so inspiring that hard-bitten fishermen, tough tax collectors, Roman soldiers, and a man with one of the greatest intellects of his day—the apostle Paul—were all prepared to put their reputations and their lives on the line in order to follow Him.
What made them do this?
It was the fact that they concluded, as Peter memorably did, that Jesus was “the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16). How did these people reach that conclusion?
The Truth About Jesus, the Messiah
The disciples who worked with Him for three years would have seen and heard the extraordinary claims He made for Himself. These would have been arrogant if they hadn’t been true: claims that He was the way, the truth, and the life, and that no one could come to the Father except through Him.
They would have heard His teaching, so authoritative that even the Jewish temple guards had to say, “no one ever spoke the way this man does” (John 7:46).
Then there were the amazing miracles that he performed: demonstrating His power over disease in the healings He did; over nature—He could calm a storm or change water into wine; over evil spirits; and finally over death itself—He raised others from the dead, and death could not hold Him either. The evidence is overwhelming. Only God could do all this.
The Never-Ending Truth of the Gospels
The Gospels give us firsthand testimony about Jesus as evidence of His claims. And as no two witnesses will see something in exactly the same way, the supposed differences in the Gospels only serve to authenticate their veracity.
But Jesus is not just a figure from the past.
He is alive today, still changing the lives of men, women, and children all over the world. He is not someone we can cast aside—He demands our allegiance and our worship. In return He gives us life in all its fullness—life that will last into eternity.
Do you know Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of the living God? How has he given you life in all its fullness?
Learn More with the NIV Storyline Bible
Journey through the interwoven story of the gospel from Genesis to Revelation. The NIV Storyline Study Bible features over 380 articles paired with book introductions that illuminate the interconnected nature of God’s inspired Word. The content adapted from Biblemesh.com explores major events, key characters, and the theology of the Bible over seven historical eras:
- Creation
- Patriarchs
- Moses
- Israel
- After Exile
- Jesus
- The Church
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