Confusion

And there was much muttering about him among the people. While some said, “He is a good man,” others said, “No, he is leading the people astray.” John 7:12 ESV

Who is this man Jesus? Where did he come from? Why did some people say he was God and some wanted to kill him? If he was so good, why did he hang around with prostitutes and tax collectors? If he was so bad, why were so many people being healed and saved? Leading up to the time of Jesus’ arrest and execution, the people were becoming more and more divided. And today, not much has changed. Some claim that he is the Son of the only true God. Others than he was simply a good man, who preached a message of love. Still others claim that he was the instigator of centuries of abuse, xenophobia and persecution. There is so much conflicting information about this man that it can feel easier to switch off, especially when life is going well. If you have money in your bank, a family who loves you and food in your fridge, why worry about a guy who lived two thousand years ago? And when everything is falling apart, your marriage, your job, your dreams; who has time to think deep philosophical questions anyway?

There are many, many people who are so much better equipped to answer this question. Books, blogs, sermons are all devoted to answering the question: who is Jesus? And the Bible does the best job of explaining him than any other book can. But I didn’t start following Jesus because of a thorough in-depth study of all the evidence. I started following him because he broke into my life and loved me like no one else had ever loved me. It makes no sense that I worship a broke homeless guy who was killed by his own people. And it is only after coming to faith that I began to add the head faith to my heart faith. I believe Jesus is God, that he came to earth born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, performed many miracles, was betrayed by one of his best friends, was crucified, buried, and on the third day rose back to life. I believe that believing in him is the only way that this life can make sense, and that in him is the promise of another life that is infinitely better than the one we are living now. I believe that Jesus didn’t just come to earth to tell us that he loves us, but to reveal to us the gravity of our sin, and that the consequences of our sin is real and horrifying, and that only he is able to save us from those consequences. Not because we deserve it, but because he loves us so much that he can’t bear the thought of spending eternity without us by his side. Who is Jesus? He is God. He is love. He is justice and mercy. He is the way, the truth and the light. There will always be confusion and division about who he really is, but there is only one truth, and sooner or later the truth always comes out.