He is the cornerstone of the Christian faith, meaning everything that makes a Christian a Christian, is based on the teachings, the life, and the person of Jesus Christ. In the beginning of His ministry, the first command of Christ was, “Come follow me.” The extent someone can claim to be a Christian depends for the most part on how well they can answer the question, “are you following Jesus?” Are they simply following His example? Are they simply following a few principles they believe He exemplified? Are they simply claiming the name of Jesus to give themselves some sort of authority to do what they do?

Or, have they surrendered their life to follow what Christ teaches, to believe what Christ is, and to try and be everything that Christ wants them to be?

That is a Christian. And for Christians, the authority on what Jesus said and did and claims about Him come from the Bible, -specifically the New Testament. So when speaking or writing about Jesus from a Christian perspective, and presenting what Jesus is all about, -these things must come from the Bible. You may agree or disagree, but nevertheless, these are the claims and beliefs about Jesus the Christ, the Son of the Living God, the Prince of Peace, the Mighty God, that Christians around the world worship. This is Jesus 101:

WHO DID JESUS CLAIM TO BE ACCORDING TO THE BIBLE?

Jesus claimed to be the Messiah, He claimed to have the same power and position as God, and He claimed to be God. He claimed all these things at one time or another, in an attempt to get the religious leaders of His day to recognize He was the Messiah, the Annointed One sent from God that had been prophecied hundreds of years earlier in the Old Testament.

The most common name Jesus used for Himself was “Son of Man.” A name that was directly associated with the Messiah in the Old Testament in the book of Daniel. It specifically stated:

“In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.” -Daniel 7:13-14

Daniel himself was also called “son of man,” by Gabriel the angel, and Ezekiel was called “son of man” by God, and God said “son of man” when speaking simply of human beings to Jeremiah. So it’s important to see that when Daniel was writing about the Messiah, he said the Messiah would be “like a son of man.”

He wouldn’t be simply a human being like you and I according to Daniel. He would be more than that, and the claims Jesus made about Himself are consistent with this idea.

In John 10:30 Jesus said, “I and the Father are one.”

He would clarify this later by saying

“the Father is in me, and I in the Father.” -verse 38.

He would answer this question,

“Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us,”

asked by Philip in John 14:8, with this reply

“Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves.” -verse 9-11.

The Jews certainly reacted in a way that indicated they knew exactly what Jesus meant by these type of statements. When Jesus claimed He was “one” with the Father, they tried to kill Him for blasphemy.

“We are not stoning you for any of these, replied the Jews, but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God” -John 10:33

Jesus even took the same name as God did when He spoke to Moses from the burning bush! At the burning bush God told Moses:

God said to Moses,

“I am who I am . This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” -Exodus 3:14

And Jesus would say to the Jews:

I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I am!” -John 8:58

And again, the reaction of the Jews is telling.

At this, they picked up stones to stone him -John 8:59

So understand, the idea of Jesus being God AND man is tough for anyone to wrap their brain around, but the idea is one that the Bible obviously presents to us. The statements of Jesus present them to us, and the statements of the other books of the New Testament present them to us.

“The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.” – Hebrews 1:3

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made … The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth….No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known.” -John 1:1-18

To speculate that this idea was added later, is simply that, speculation. There is no actual evidence for instance that suggests John was purposefully lying when he wrote what he wrote. There is no motivating factor for him or the others who died horrible deaths for what they believed, as well as living in poverty and suffering for their beliefs. A more reasonable understanding is that John and the early church fathers believed what they wrote and said. They often died for it, and John spent the last days of his life in prison, where he wrote the book of Revelation. He was obviously still a believer. Whether you believe is a different question. Speaking of the word “different” and it’s various forms…

WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE?

From the Christian perspective, the decision you make about Jesus Christ is a life and death decision. An eternal one.

It’s politically incorrect, and admittedly offensive to say, but Christianity draws a line in the sand and Jesus is the line. According to the New Testament, and according to Jesus Himself, there is no way to avoid God’s eternal judgment except through Jesus Christ. He is the Savior of the world because…well the world needs to be saved from eternal death and judgment.

Remember the most famous, beautiful verse from John 3:16? The one we often see on billboards, or signs held up at football games? It reads:

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” -John 3:16

Guess what Jesus finishes with?

“Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” -John 3:18

Perish and condemned are harsh words, but it refers to a foundational belief of Christianity and the Bible. God will judge the world for the sins we have all committed, and Jesus is the only way to be forgiven of our sins.

It works like this:

1. Everyone is a sinner because there isn’t a single person on the planet who can or has lived a perfect life. (“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” -Romans 3:23)

2. Only God can forgive us of our sin. (oh by the way, Jesus forgave people for their sins too, which led the religious leaders to exclaim, “”Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” -Mark 2:7… yet another time when Jesus claimed the same authority as God.)

3. God punished Jesus, our substitute so to speak, for the sins of everyone in the entire world, including the past, present and future. (“For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.” -I Peter 3:18 and “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.” I Peter 2:24)

4. So now when someone believes in Jesus and follows Him, God forgives their sins, -having punished Jesus (who was innocent) instead. (All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”-Acts 10:43 and “Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people.” Hebrews 9:27-28)

That is the Christian message. Christ died for the world, and everyone can be saved through faith in Him.

Interestingly, any other religion on the earth that believes in right and wrong, has a set of rules to follow for all of its believers. In those rules, the right and wrong is laid out, and usually, there are punishments and warnings for those who violate the rules.

The Bible is similar with one huge exception. The New Testament teaches that absolutely no one is capable of following the rules to perfection! No one can make it! Only Jesus, the Son of God was able to live without sinning, but we mere humans fall short all the time. Thus, we all face punishment. We all face judgment. Everyone.

And while this seems harsh, and the rules of the Bible are criticized as too difficult to follow, it nevertheless does fit with what we know about human beings, -namely that no one is perfect. At least with the Bible, you have a God who recognizes this, and a Savior who can sympathize with us, knowing what it was like to live and breath our air, and walk on the earth as we do. He’s been here, and He understands what it is like, and what we are like. There’s something poetic and beautiful in that.

Speaking about Jesus, Hebrews 4:15-16 says

“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

So with Jesus and Christianity, no one can sin so much that God cannot forgive them. No one can be so evil that Jesus can not rescue them and change them. No one can commit acts so bad, or commit so many of them, that God will quit loving them and quit reaching out for them. The religion of Christianity, the message of Jesus Christ, begins with the idea that everyone is a sinner, and that all have fallen short. It’s part of the deal.

Jesus Himself said,

“I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” -Mark 2:17

and Paul wrote,

“Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst.” -I Timothy 1:15

So if Jesus can save the worst of sinners, then evidently he can save anyone.

SO WHAT DO I DO TO BE SAVED?

BELIEVE and PUT YOUR FAITH in Jesus to forgive you of your sins, and lead you the rest of your life. Acts 16:30-33

BE BAPTIZED in His name. Matthew 28:18-20Acts 2:38, Acts 22:16, Ephesians 4:4-6,

It’s a heart decision to put your faith in Christ, but it’s also a decision made public by baptism. Baptism represents leaving your old life and sin behind and commiting yourself to following Christ. If you’re ready, the adventure awaits.