Who was the real Jesus of Nazareth? Did He really live? Was He deity? What did He teach? What was His true character? Many people today have created a Jesus that does not equal the biblical Jesus. They have decided in their own minds what Jesus would say and do. The problem with this approach is that it does not allow the New Testament to reveal the truth of exactly who Jesus was. Some have decided what Jesus would be like so they can justify the way they act.
Some say Jesus was just a good man, a good teacher, but we do not have to take seriously what He said. And yet, Jesus said, "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away" (Matt. 24:35). He also said, "He that rejecteth me,and receiveth not my sayings, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I spake, the same shall judge him in the last day." John 12:48) We are not to think of Jesus as simply a religious man with special insight. He was not just a gifted Galilean who got the idea of gathering people around Him and instructing them in things that seemed good or useful, or even necessary. We must come to the understanding that Jesus of azareth was deity in the flesh and claimed that fact - John 1:1, 14; 8:58; 10:30: Mark 2:1-11; Col. 2:9). Jesus said, "I come forth and am come from God, for neither have I come of myself, but he that sent me." John 8:42) His teaching was not self-originated, for He spoke "the words of God." (John 3:34; 7:16; 12:49; 14:24) His knowledge of God was intimately connected to the fact that He was "one" with the Father John 10:30). If we fail to heed His teachings, we bring eternal destruction to ourselves (Matt. 7:24-27; John 8:24; 12:48).
