Have you ever heard someone say that Jesus was “just a good man” or “just a wise teacher”? These people are willing to recognize that Jesus did in fact live and bring the teachings of the Bible to the world, but they don’t accept that He was the Son of God or THE sacrifice for sin. They will even go so far as to agree with and advocate many of the things that Jesus preached and taught while on earth, but they refuse to believe in the plan of salvation and the fact that Jesus was not just any other ordinary person…
There’s a big problem with this way of thinking. In my opinion, it’s all or nothing… I mean, if Jesus was a GOOD man but not the Son of God, why would He deceive people and claim Himself as something He wasn’t? Does that sound like something a “good” person would do? So what’s the alternative…that He was a liar? Or that He was crazy and confused? He was wise but didn’t really know what He was talking about where all the prophecies were concerned? It just doesn’t add up or make any sense. Either Christ Jesus was the Son of God and only way of redemption, or He was a false prophet. We can’t pick and choose and accept parts of His teachings but not His main focus and mission on earth.
Thankfully, we know that Christ Jesus IS the Son of God. Numerous prophecies were fulfilled through His birth, life, death and resurrection. He was born of a virgin as was foretold in Isaiah… He was from Nazareth… No bones from His body were broken even though that was something they usually did in crucifixions… He was pierced in the side as He was dying… And of course He was raised back to life three days after being put to death… Countless other prophecies were clearly fulfilled through the life of Jesus as well.
Obviously, people can discount what they like and believe what they want… But the truth is, Jesus was more than just a good man or wise teacher. He was so much more that! He was and is the Savior of all mankind. His teachings were wise; yes that is true. But those teachings would mean nothing if He weren’t the Messiah He claimed to be. What is knowledge if it doesn’t come from a reliable source? The importance of Christ’s life does not have to do with His wise teachings or good actions but with the fact that He was perfect… He came from Heaven to earth to live a sinless life of service and love, and then gave that life for the price of our sins. He then rose from the dead and was seen by many witnesses before ascending back up into Heaven. Our whole salvation hinges on the fact that Jesus was the Son of God and not just any other ordinary man. Not even just a good man… As Peter said in Matthew 16:16, Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. That’s a powerful statement to make, but it’s the truth! And the truth shall set us free!
-HK
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