Was Jesus Real?

 Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. John 21:25 English Standard Version

The New Testament story about Jesus is the message of the Sovereign LORD God to the world and continues the Old Testament story of Adam and His firstborn son, Israel (see e.g., Genesis 1:26-28; Exodus 4:22-23; Jeremiah 31:9; Hosea 11:1; Matthew 2:15). The Lord Jesus Christ our Savior is a Jewish descendent of Abraham, Israel, and King David as the world’s salvation is from the Jews (see e.g., Genesis 3:15; Matthew 1:1, 6-7, 16-18; 21; Luke 2:10-11; Acts 13:22-23, 32-33; Romans 9:4-5; John 1:29; John 4:22, 42; 1 John 4:14; Revelation 22:16). The Sovereign LORD God called Abraham and Abraham’s descendants Isaac, Jacob (Israel), and Jacob’s twelve sons (Twelve tribes of Israel) to take His holy message into all the world (see e.g., Genesis 12:1-3; Genesis 21:1-7; Genesis 22:17-18; Genesis 29:31-30:24; Exodus 19:5-6; Exodus 20:1-17; Deuteronomy 4:5-8; Acts 7:1-8). The New Testament continues Israel’s story and promises with the coming of the Sovereign LORD God’s Son, Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah (Christ, Anointed One) (see e.g., Matthew 1:1-17; Matthew 26:63-64; Luke 1:30-35; John 1:41-45; John 4:25-26). With His coming, Jesus brought heaven’s goodness to earth – the Kingdom of God and the Holy Spirit (see e.g., Matthew 4:17, 23-25; Mark 1:14-15; Luke 4:18-19; John 3:3-8; Acts 2:17, 33). 

The four New Testament Gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John – give the story and public life of Jesus. However, these four Gospel writers only provide a small glimpse into the life of Jesus. Only Matthew and Luke’s Gospels give the birth story (Christmas narrative) of Jesus in Bethlehem of Judea and the birth of his cousin John the Baptist (see Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 1:5-2:40). Mark and John’s Gospels do not tell of Jesus and John the Baptist’s births. Then, Matthew gives a small glance at the early life of Jesus as a very young child being visited by the Magi (wiseman from east lands), Jesus’s escape to Egypt, and His return to Nazareth with His earthly parents – Mary and Joseph (see Matthew 2:1-23). Only Luke’s Gospel gives a small look at Jesus’s childhood with His visit to the Jerusalem Temple for the Passover Feast at the age of twelve (12) (see Luke 2:41-52). After Jesus’ birth stories in Matthew and Luke’s Gospels, there are thirty (30) years of silence about Jesus’s life until Jesus appears with His cousin John the Baptist by the Jordan River as an adult male thirty (30) years old with a message of REPENTANCE to receive the Sovereign LORD God’s forgiveness because the Kingdom of God had come with His Son, Jesus (Matthew 3:2, 8-9, 13-17; Matthew 4:17; Mark 1:4, 9-11, 14-15; Luke 3:3, 8, 21-23; John 1:29-34; see also Acts 20:21). 

The New Testament essentially gives the world three (3) years of Jesus’s public life and ministry. The Gospel writer John wrote that Jesus did many other things and miracles that the New Testament writers were unable to write down and record regarding the historical Jesus (see John 20:30; John 21:25). The New Testament writers wanted the world to know that Jesus was a real historic man with human flesh and blood, but Jesus was also God. Jesus was the God-Man that walked and lived amongst the world He created (see e.g., John 1:1-3, 10-14, 18; Philippians 2:7; Colossians 1:16-19; Hebrews 2:17-18; 1 John 1:1-3; 1 John 4:14-15). 

Other sources outside the New Testament support evidence that Jesus lived and walked the earth. Proof of Jesus’s existence appears in non-Christian writings from historian Josephus (ca. A.D. 37-100), who wrote the great Jewish War with Rome. Also, Roman historians and other Roman writers noted the existence of Jesus, but they labeled Jesus as a troublemaker and magician that performed miracles. Rabbinic and other Jewish writings such as the Talmud and midrashim have few references to Jesus as “Yeshu” or “Yeshu ha Notzri” (“the Nazarene’), and they also considered Jesus a magician and a deceiver of Israel. Even more, the Qur’an references Jesus, His mother Mary, and Jesus’s disciples as well as Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension. 

Many of the New Testament writers were Jesus’s disciples such as Matthew (also known as Levi), John the Apostle, and Peter called Simon (see e.g., Matthew 10:2-4; Mark 3:13-19; Luke 6:14-16; Acts 1:13; 1 Peter 1:1-2). Jesus’s disciples and other New Testament writers like Luke and Paul wrote to inform EVERYONE that Jesus was REAL AND ALIVE (see e.g., Luke 1:1-4; Acts 1:1-3; 2 Peter 1:16-18; Acts 26:12-23; 1 John 1:1-3). The New Testament tells the stories of many people who saw and eyewitness Jesus in human flesh and witnessed Jesus’s many miracles, wonders, and divine signs, including His resurrection from complete death to bring salvation and forgiveness to the world (see e.g., Luke 24:45-48; John 1:29; John 3:2; Acts 2:22, 32; Acts 9:3-8, 20-22; Acts 10:37-43; 1 Corinthians 15:3-8). During His short public ministry on earth, Jesus announced that He is the resurrection and the life (see e.g., John 11:25-26; John 14:6). Everyone that believes in Jesus, though one may die, will live and have eternal life (see e.g., John 3:15-17, 36; John 4:14; John 5:21; John 6:39-40, 44; John 10:10, 27-28; John 11:25-26; 1 Corinthians 15:22). The New Testament writers proclaim that Jesus is ALIVE (see e.g., Matthew 28:1-8; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24:1-10; John 20:1-8; Acts 2:24; 1 Corinthians 15:3-8, 12-15, 20-21; Revelation 1:5). Jesus lives and Jesus is Lord (see e.g., Acts 10:36; Romans 6:9-11; Romans 14:9; 2 Corinthians 5:15; Revelation 1:8).

The New Testament writers wanted EVERYONE to believe in the Resurrected Jesus because He is the long-awaited Promised Messiah (Christ) predicted in the Old Testament Hebrew Scriptures and the Son of the living God (see e.g., Matthew 3:16-17; Matthew 14:33; Matthew 16:16; Mark 1:1; Acts 9:20, 22). Everyone that believes and accepts Jesus as their Messiah (Christ) and the Son of the living God receives life through faith (belief) in Jesus’s Name (see e.g., John 3:15-17, 36; John 10:10; John 11:25-27; John 20:30-31; Romans 10:9-13; 1 John 5:10-13). The Name of Jesus means Savior, and Jesus’s Greek name is related to the Hebrew name Joshua, which means the Lord is salvation or Yahweh saves.

Jesus came to the earth He created to unite and bring everyone together in harmony to worship and love His Holy Father in glory and honor (see e.g., Matthew 6:33; Matthew 22:37-40; Romans 15:1-7). The central teaching of Jesus focused on mercy, love, and accepting one another without passing judgment and criticizing others (see e.g., Matthew 7:1-2; Matthew 9:13; Matthew 12:7; John 13:34-35; John 15:12, 17; Romans 14:1-4). During His public ministry on earth, Jesus mainly ministered in the Galilean region of northern Israel-Palestine (see e.g., Matthew 2:22; Matthew 3:13; Matthew 4:12-17, 23-25; Mark 1:39; Luke 4:14; John 4:43-45). Galilee mainly was a mixed population of Jews, Samaritans (mixed-bred Jews), non-Jews (Gentiles), and Arabs. Jesus knew and taught that people that are warring and divided amongst themselves would be destroyed and not survive, so He wanted to unite everyone so they could love and worship His Holy Father – the Sovereign LORD God (see e.g., Matthew 12:25; Mark 3:24-25; Luke 11:17). Jesus came as the Savior of the world for ALL PEOPLE so everyone would love one another and worship His Holy Father – the Sovereign LORD God of heaven and earth in spirit and truth (see e.g., Matthew 1:21; Luke 2:10-11; John 3:15-17, 36; John 4:24, 42; John 13:34-35; Acts 5:31; Acts 13:23; Philippians 3:3; 1 John 4:14). 

References

ESV Study Bible, English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008).

Holy Bible, New King James Version (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1982). 

New Student Bible (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1992).

NLT Study Bible (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Pub., 2008). 

Zondervan NIV Study Bible (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2008).

Douglas, J.D. and Tenney, Merrill. NIV Compact Dictionary of the Bible (Grand Rapids, MI:  Zondervan, 1989).

Green, Joel B. Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2013), pp. 414-419.