The Real Jesus

The Gospels- the four Biblical accounts of Jesus' life-portray a man of great empathy. Pity and compassion moved Jesus to help people who were suffering from illness, blindness and other afflictions (Matthew 9:36; 14:14; 20:34) The death of his friend Lazarus and the grief this caused to Lazarus' sisters moved Jesus to 'groan and give way to tears.' (John 11:32-36) In fact, the Gospels reveal the wide range of Jesus' feelings - sympathy for a person with leprosy, exuberance over his disciples' successes, indignation at coldhearted legalists, and sadness over Jerusalem's rejection of the Messiah.

When Jesus performed a miracle he often focused on the recipient's part in the process: " Your faith has made you well." (Matthew 9:22) He praised Nathanael as "a real Israelite," saying: "There is nothing false in him!" (John 1:47, Today's English Version) When some thought that a woman's appreciative gift was extravagant, Jesus defended her and said that the account of her generosity would be long remembered. (Matthew 26:6-13) He proved himself a real friend and affectionate companion to his followers, 'loving them to the end.' - John 13:1; 15:11-15.

The Gospels also show that Jesus quickly identified with most people that he met. Whether talking with a woman at a well, a religious teacher in a garden, or a fisherman by a lake, he went directly to their heart. After Jesus' opening words, many of these people revealed their innermost thoughts to him. He struck a responsive chord in them. Although people of his time might keep men in authority at a safe distance, in Jesus' case people crowded around him. They liked being with Jesus; they felt comfortable in is company. Children felt at ease with him, and when using a child as an example, he did not merely stand the child before his disciples but also "put his arms around it." ( Mark 9:36; 10:13-16) Indeed, the Gospels portray Jesus as a man who had such charisma that people stayed for three days just to listen to his absorbing words. - Matthew 15:32.

Jesus' perfection did not make him hypercritical or arrogant and overbearing toward the imperfect, sin-laden people among whom he lived and preached. (Matthew 9:10-13; 21:31, 32; Luke 7:36-48; 15:1-32; 18:9-14) Jesus was never demanding. He did not add to people's burdens. Instead, he said: "Come to me, all you who are toiling...I will refresh you." His disciples found him to be "mild tempered and lowly in heart:" His yoke was kindly, and his load was light. -Matthew 11:28-30.

Jesus' character comes through in the Gospel accounts with a decided ring of truth. It would not be easy for four different individuals to concoct an out - of -the-ordinary character and then present a consistent portrait of him throughout four distinct narratives. It would be nearly impossible for four different writers to describe the same person and consistently paint the same picture of him if that character never really existed.

Historian Michael Grant asks a thought-provoking question: "How comes it that, through all Gospel traditions without exception, there comes a remarkably firmly drawn portrait of an attractive young man moving freely about among women of all sorts, including the decidedly disreputable, without a trace of sentimentality, unnaturalness, or prudery, and yet, at every point, maintaining a simple integrity of character?" The reasonable answer is that such a man really existed and acted in the way the Bible says.


Continues-Next time: The Real Jesus And Your Future