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Who is Jesus?

If you were to ask several different people this simple question, you might get a few different answers:

• A Jewish carpenter … nothing more

• A good moral teacher … nothing more

• A prophet of God … nothing more

• One of many paths to heaven

• God’s only Son and our only Savior

Well, if we’re going to be honest, all of these different answers can’t be correct. For example, if one person were to say that Jesus is nothing more than a Jewish carpenter and another person were to say that Jesus is a prophet from God, they both can’t be correct. So, the question remains, “Who is Jesus?” According to the Bible, Jesus’ birth was very special—so special that an angel announced it: “I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.”¹

Hmmm, the Bible says that Jesus Christ is a Savior and that He was born … for me. This raises a very important question: Why would I, or anyone else, need a Savior? I used to reject the idea of needing a Savior by thinking, “Hey, I realize that I am not perfect and that I need a little help at times, but, a Savior … do I really need a Savior? It’s not like I’m a bank robber or anything like that. Besides, I try to do my best and I also help other people whenever I can.” Although this might sound nice, the truth is that God doesn’t judge us by these standards; it’s not about whether we have tried our best or have done more good things in our life than bad things.

One standard God has given us which we can compare ourselves against is the “10 Commandments.” Let’s take a look at just three of them and see how we are doing.

• “Do not lie”—I’ve lied … I’m guilty … how about you?

• “Do not steal”—I’ve taken things that don’t belong to me … I’m guilty … you?

• “Do not murder”—You may think, as I did, “Since I’ve never killed anyone I’m okay with this commandment.” But remember that God also cares about what is in our heart. Jesus said that if we have had hateful feelings towards another person we are actually guilty of breaking this commandment (Matthew 5:21,22). So, I’m guilty again! How about you … have you ever had hateful feelings toward someone … ever?

These are just three Commandments and I’m guilty of breaking each of them. Breaking God’s law is called sin, and the truth is: “all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”² This bad news gets worse when the Bible then tells us that “the wages of sin is death.”³ Admittedly, this is not a pretty picture. Since God cannot lie, He can’t wink at our sin and pretend that it doesn’t exist. Furthermore, He must remain true to His word and punish sin.

At this point God, in His great love and unlike traditional “religion,” doesn‘t tell us to work harder in order to earn His forgiveness. In effect, He tells us something quite humbling: that we are unable to help ourselves. He then, however, goes on to tell us something that is tremendously encouraging: “God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”⁴

The Good News of the Bible is that Jesus, God’s Son, lived the sinless life that we couldn’t and then—although He didn’t deserve to die—willingly shed His blood on the cross so that by His death we might have our sins forgiven. After three days He rose again and has the authority to say, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me.”⁵

Now, listen to God’s gracious invitation: “But as many as received Him [Jesus], to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name.”⁶

So, what does it mean to believe in the name of Jesus as your Savior? It means more than knowing some things about Him, attending a church, or trying to live a good life. It means that you:

• Admit (confess) to God that you are a sinner

• Humbly admit that you cannot save yourself

• Repent (turn) from your sin toward God and ask Him for forgiveness

• Trust in Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross for your sin and in His being raised back to life

I urge you to honestly examine your heart in the light of God’s Word. Then have a conversation with God. Since God looks upon our heart, the exact words that you use are not important. However, we must believe that on the cross Jesus was accomplishing something for us that we, no matter how hard we tried, could never accomplish for ourselves. Then, as we place our trust in Him as our risen Savior and Lord, He gives us the peace and strength to live a life that is pleasing to God.

So, how about you … who do you say that Jesus is? If you feel led to call Him your personal Savior please do not delay as the Bible soberly warns us that “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.”⁷

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”⁸

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