Who Was He?
Who was Jesus? If you don't accept Him as the true Savior, you must conclude that He was a phony, a madman, or that His disciples started the greatest hoax on earth.
Phony?
Could He have been merely trying to gain a following?
If He was, He certainly wasn't very successful -
if you gauge success by power or financial gain.
He turned many away by His high standards and His unwillingness to overlook
hypocrisy and halfheartedness. And He certainly wasn't tricking people to
get their money. The evidence does not support the possibility
that He was a charlatan.
Madman?
Self-deceived? Sincere but deluded about His own identity?
His words and actions do not reflect the behavior of a person who
is mentally unstable. Such a charge against Him does not explain
the miracles, the brilliance of His teaching, nor His resurrection.
Hoax?
Could the desciples have been guilty of painting a picture of Jesus
that was far bigger than life? It doesn't make sense that all the disciples
would conspire to create a monstrous lie that would contradict what
they knew to be true. Would you die for what you knew was a lie?
The disciples wouldn't have either, yet most of them died as martyrs.
Truth?
We have good reason to believe that the Bible presents an accurate picture
of Jesus Christ. His fulfillment of prophecy, His impact on history,
His life and teachings, and the response of His disciples all point
to a conclusion that He was and is all that He claimed to be -
the Son of God.
Have you personally put your trust in Him as the One who died for you
and who offers to you forgiveness of sin? Jesus said, "I am the way,
the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
(John 14:6)