Even today opinions differ wildy about Jesus Christ. He has moved and changed the world like no other man or woman. If you were looking for the single person who had the most influence on the course of
history up until now – Jesus would come off as clear winner.

From the point of the historian he has made the biggest waves of human history. He managed to get milliards of people to count years starting with his birth year.

He has managed to have 2,1 milliard people (who suffer to be) called “Christians” and let themselves be associated with him. Today, he has followers among popstars and professors, politicians and professional
footballers, and people we will never hear about.

On the other hand he has also “managed” to have crimes committed “for him” and his name has become a red rag for many, or even a course word.

Who is Jesus?

Nazarene
For a man of antiquity we can date Jesus’ birth quite exactly. The fact that he wasn’t born in AD 0 but seven years before is due to an error in the calculation that gave rise to our calendar. (Sorry Dionysius Exiguus! – the monk who invented the new calculation of times unfortunately made a mistake here!)
Jesus was born 7 BC (=before Christ) in Bethlehem. His parents acutally came from the backwater of Nazareth in the north of Galilee, and that’s where Jesus grew up. For this reason he is sometimes also called “Jesus of Nazareth” or “Jesus of Galilee”.
Jesus had a childhood and a family like most of us – but he was special.

Sage
Around 27 AD Jesus goes public. He starts delivering stirring and impressing speeches and, like other teachers (rabbis) of the time, he takes students who accompany him on his journeys.

What he had to say, and how he said it, was astonishing for his listeners. At the end of his “Sermon on the Mount” for example we can read: “When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching.” (The Bible, Gospel of Matthew, chapter 7,28)

If the scientists and scholars of his time got into a discussion with Jesus, they often found themselves out of their depth. He understood their arguments better than they did. Not once could they trap him with questions – although they really tried hard.

If someone turned to Jesus for advice, they often saw that he could see the question behind their question and look through the problems they were struggling with.

“The Golden Rule” in a new and exceptionally challenging version, the command to love everyone, even enemies, unforgettable stories like the “Prodigal Son” – they’re all from Jesus.

His wisdom was in touch with reality, practical and relevant, and always aimed at the greatest possible harmony. Jesus easily fits into any given crowd of teachers of humanity, the great sages of all time – but he is more!

Visionary Leader
You can’t only learn wisdom from Jesus – not only how to get happy and how to life a life with fulfillment that is. Today managers learn from Jesus what it means to be a leader with vision.

Jesus managed to change the world through a small group of students. His unique type of leadership is now called “servant leadership”.

Prophet
Prophets are men and women who are inspired by God. They are not afraid to say the most unpopular things and point out the social injustice of their time even when it’s uncomfortable. Jesus did just that.

He has openly decried religious hypocracy. He attacked the hard hearted and inhumane way society treated outcasts. He took sides with the pariahs and rejected.

Muslims consider Jesus to be a prophet – and that is true! But he is more than that. Prophets often used the words “Thus speaks the Lord” when they passed on a message from God. But Jesus said: “I tell you” (eg. Gospel of Matthew 5,22)! Jesus claims an unheard of authority!

Revolutionary
Jesus sought a revolution – a revolution of thought, human kindness and relationship to God. He radically denouced beliefs which contradicted this goal.

Jesus live for his goal with such consistency that even his family got embarrassed. One time they wanted to take hime home because they were afraid he had lost his mind (see the Gospel of Mark 3,21).

His consistency for the good didn’t earn him only friendship and recognition. Religious leaders of the time tried to prevent him from attacking them with his own teachings and weakening their power base even more. They started their counter-attack.

King
Jesus could trace his ancestry directly back to the greatest kings of Jewish history. Of course, the Jewish royal family was politically and socially irrelevant at that time. But the Jewish Scriptures contain more than 50 prophecies about a “Messiah”, a prophet from the royal line. Many people waited for this Messiah with hopeful expectation.

Jesus was considered to be this Messiah more and more in public opinion during his ministry. His students also slowly reached this conclusion until finally one of them said to him: “You are the Messiah.” (Gospel of Mark 8,29; “christ” is the Greek translation of the Hebrew word “messiah”)

When the political intrigue had progressed far enough to accuse Jesus before the Roman governor Pilate, it wasn’t hard to find a reason for the death sentence – This Jesus of Nazareth has called himself the king of the Jews.

No Roman Caesar could put up with that – rebellion against his rule! Pilate knew that he had to get rid of this man. He sentenced Jesus to death by crucifixion, the normal way of dealing with rebels. Above the cross, as was the custom, Pilate fastened a note with the charge of the criminal: “Jesus of Nazareth, the king of the Jews” (Gospel of John 19,19).

God
Man, sage, visionary, prophet, revolutionary, king – that still isn’t enough to explain the tremendous mark Jesus left in human history.

Most astonishing, surprising and shocking about Jesus is his own claim to be God himself. The historical sources we have show clearly that Jesus has said that about himself.

How can anyone say such a thing?

There are only 3 possibilities:

1. He lies. Jesus could have simply been a liar. But it would be
   strange if a person only ever does good and then lies in one single
   issue.
2. He is crazy. Jesus could have been a lunatic. He had a
   pathologically confused view about himself. That alsow doesn’t seem to
   be possible, given everything else Jesus said and did made sense.
3. He is right.

The evidence in favor of this last possibility is:
• the supernatural wisdom of Jesus
• his complete integrity in EVERYTHING. One of his closest friends
attests that he NEVER did anything wrong (see the Bible, 1 Peter 1,19)
• accounts of his supernatural works
• accounts of his resurrection following his death at the cross.

If Jesus was not only a teacher of wisdom, a visionary, a prophet, a revolutionary and a king,
if Jesus was really God,
if Jeus is the God who became a human being and entered into this world,
then it is obvious that this man could move the world more than everybody else.

We could also say slightly modified with Franz Kafka: “Jesus is the axe for the frozen sea in us.”
Jesus is also the sun which make the ice melt. Jesus still changes people today.

But to what end should God have become a man? That’s what the “Gospel – the Good News” is all about.

Read more about Jesus...
... of course in the Bible! Start with an account of Jesus’ life at the beginning of the New Testament.

... other good books about Jesus:
Lee Strobel, “The Case for Christ. A Der Fall Jesus. Ein Journalist auf der Suche nach der Wahrheit“, Gerth Medien Asslar 1999.
Josh McDowell, “More than a carpenter”, living books 1987.
Jürgen Spieß, „Aus gutem Grund. Warum der christliche Glaube nicht nur Glaubenssache ist“, R. Brockhaus, Wuppetal 1998.
Craig L. Blomberg, “Jesus and the Gospels”, B&H Publishing Group, 1997.