Jesus - Who was he?
A brief History
Jesus was a man who lived about two thousand years ago.
He was a Jew who lived most of his life in the town of Nazareth in the northern part of the Roman province of Judea, which we now call Israel.
We know quite a lot about the circumstances of his birth, which occurred at the time of a Roman census for which his mother, Mary, and the man she was engaged to, Joseph, had to travel to the town of Bethlehem to be registered. Over the following years the family grew as other brothers and sisters were born.
Apart from one incident that occurred when Jesus was about the age of twelve we know almost nothing about his upbringing and early life. He lived at home in Nazareth, it is possible that Joseph had died and consequently Jesus, as the eldest child following in Joseph's trade of builder/carpenter, probably had the main responsibility for supporting the family.
At the age of thirty Jesus made a significant change in his lifestyle. He left the family business and started touring the villages and cities of Israel teaching about God. He told his listeners "The time has come," he said. "The kingdom of God is near. Turn away from your sins and believe the good news!".
Jesus soon had a national reputation. Crowds would gather to hear him speak. He challenged people to begin a new relationship with God, who he referred to as "Father". He was very popular with the majority of the people who loved his teaching which was often expressed in simple stories. But he also confronted the hypocrisy and oppression of the religious leaders and rulers, challenging what they had been teaching the people and substituting a different point of view.
Jesus reputation grew not just because of what he said, but also because of what he did. Stories circulated that he had special powers from God, that he restored the sight of the blind, made the lame walk and healed all kinds of diseases. Consequently the crowds come not just to hear him speak but also to bring their sick family and friends to be healed. On more that one occasion he brought dead people back to life again.
Supported by the evidence of the things he said and did Jesus made claims that he was more than just an ordinary man. He not only referred to God as "Father" in a general way, but he claimed he was God's only Son and had come specifically to bring people into a close relationship to God, one which was only possible through himself. Although huge crowds followed him everywhere he went, Jesus chose twelve men to be close to him as special friends. In addition to teaching the people generally he spent much time teaching his 'disciples' as he called them, about himself and his purpose. Most of what we know about Jesus comes from the reports of these twelve.
After three years, during which his popularity with the people grew and the confrontations with the authorities became more intense, a plot was made to get rid of Jesus. Feeling their authority and position threatened the Jewish rulers decided Jesus had to die. He was arrested, tried before a Jewish court and, because Israel was occupied by the Romans who alone could give the death sentence, tried again before a Roman court. Despite the illegality of the trial and the lack of proper evidence, Jesus was found guilty and condemned to death. There was no opportunity for appeal, so that same day, a Friday, he was taken outside the city and executed by being crucified - nailed to a beam of wood hung on a stake or a tree. Six hours later he was dead and a short while after that, buried.
That should have been the end of the story. Everybody thought so. With their leader gone, his close friends and followers went into hiding fearing for their lives. Most of the people mourned a good man and the authorities were pleased to have got rid of a trouble maker. A three year era of excitement and wonder had come to an end.
But two days later, on the following Sunday morning, a new story began.
Some women who had followed Jesus while he was alive, went to the grave where he was buried to complete the burial arrangements which there had not been time to finish before. They found that the grave was empty! Jesus' body had gone. No one could account for it and produce the body. The grave had been guarded by soldiers to prevent the body being stolen, and yet that was the explanation given by the authorities to account for the disappearance. However, starting that Sunday morning and over the following days, Jesus appeared to his followers on a number of occasions, alive!
The knowledge that Jesus was not dead but alive transformed his followers from frightened, timid, people into those who went on to 'turn the world upside down' with their account. The message of Jesus life, teachings, death and resurrection was told first in Jerusalem, where it occurred, then throughout Israel, then to the Roman world of that day, and now to the whole world. Those who believed it and became followers of Jesus for themselves were so convinced of the truth of it that they were even prepared to be imprisoned, tortured and put to death rather than deny who Jesus is.
Rather than gradually being forgotten, this movement, now called Christians, has grown to include the whole world. Even our date system is counted from the supposed date of his birth. Many countries of the world have enshrined the principles of Jesus' teachings into their laws and constitutions. From the original twelve followers that Jesus chose has grown a movement that now includes 1,700 million people who claim to follow him, 25% of the world population. Between 60,000 and 100,000 are added to that number every day. The Bible, the book that tells us most about Jesus, is the number one best seller in the world every year, selling so many copies that it is always ignored in the best seller lists.
How could this apparently insignificant Jew, in a minor province of the Roman empire, two thousand years ago, have such an effect on the world?
If he was just an ordinary man who said a few good things and got some sort of reputation, he was either a liar (because he made such outrageous claims about himself - which he must have known were not true) or he was mad, a lunatic, (because he made those same claims, and although they were not true, he really thought they were) or he was exactly who he claimed to be, the Lord, the Son of God, who came to show us how we can have a relationship between ourselves and the God who made us.