Examining the Words and Deeds of Jesus

The history about the New Testament tells how 27 texts by 8 different authors came down to us from the 1st century. The history that is in the New Testament tells about Jesus – what he said, what he did, and what happened to him as a result. Examining the history that is in the New Testament enables us to decide for ourselves whether Jesus Christ is like Santa Claus – someone only fit to be believed in by children, or whether he’s someone to be believed in by children, women, and, most of all, by men. Why men most of all? Because they’re responsible for women and children.

So what does the New Testament – that is, what do the primary historical sources – tell us about Jesus? I want you to read the New Testament for yourself, but I can outline here what you’re going to find when you do.

What Jesus Said

Although there are some historical facts about Jesus to be found in the New Testament’s epistles, the vast majority of his biographical facts are found in the four Gospels. According to them, Jesus was born in Bethlehem, raised as a carpenter’s son in Nazareth, and became an itinerant rabbi around the age of 30. He traveled throughout Israel, but never beyond it. He taught from the Jewish Scriptures (the Law of Moses and the Prophets – what we call the Old Testament) but he taught them in a way that no one had ever heard them taught before. People were “amazed” and “astonished” at his teaching. He emphasized broad themes of love and justice, but disregarded the petty rules and sacred cows that Jewish religious leaders were emphasizing in those days. Moses’ emphasized behavior but Jesus emphasized motivation, indicating it was the key to lasting behavioral improvement. Both Jesus and his opponents were equally committed to the very same Scriptures, but interpreted them in radically different ways. Those who accepted Jesus’ interpretation became his disciples.

In the course of his teaching, Jesus made statements about himself – statements that would be considered outrageous for any mere human being to make. These are the sort of statements C. S. Lewis was referring to when he said that a man who spoke them would have to be a lunatic, a liar, or the Lord. Here’s a sampling of those extravagant statements:

  • “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.” (Matthew 10:37-38)
  • “…you shall see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, and COMING WITH THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN.” (Mark 14:62) [The all caps indicates that Jesus was quoting the Old Testament in reference to Himself.]
  • “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.” (Luke 21:33)
  • “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me” (John 5:39)
  • “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” (John 8:12)
  • “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.” (John 8:58)
  • “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die…” (John 11:25-26)
  • “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” (John 14:6)

Given these kinds of statements, Jesus had to have been a lunatic or liar if he’s not the Lord, just as Lewis sa id. No wonder so many people have jumped at the chance these last 50 years to believe Jesus is a legend – that such grandiose statements are the result of embellishments added to the historical record well after the fact. But only people unfamiliar with the history of how the New Testament texts were written, circulated, and preserved could fall for such conspiracy theories. Legends take time to develop, and they leave a paper trail of how the legend grew over time. All the ancient manuscripts of the New Testament texts we have – and there are thousands of them, far more than for any other ancient writings – have these and similar statements in them. The documentary evidence speaks of four unchanging reports: Matthew’s, Mark’s, Luke’s, and John’s. Those four reports, being the only authenticated ones to have come out of the 1st century, have kept the lid on embellishments for 2,000 years.

According to the four witnesses, Jesus said these startling things about himself and therefore we must come to terms with them. Such statements require acknowledgment of Jesus’ authority or rejection of his claims; there’s no reasonable basis for neutrality. This man Jesus deserves either to be honored or ignored. He left no middle ground for us to stand on.

What Jesus Did

According to the eyewitness accounts, Jesus healed the sick, opened the eyes of the blind, made the deaf to hear and the lame to walk. He fed thousands of people from a few loaves and fish, walked on water, and even raised the dead. Almost all the miracles he performed were in the service of meeting some basic human need. He refused to perform tricks.

The miracles that accompanied Jesus’ teaching were signs that God was with him. Since only an omnipotent God could be behind the kind of works Jesus was performing, the crowds therefore had ample reason to believe that his teaching was from God as well.

On one occasion, Jesus told a lame man that his sins were forgiven. When critics accused Jesus of blaspheming, he rhetorically asked which was easier: to pronounce the man’s forgiveness or to enable him to walk. Obviously, it’s easier to pronounce forgiveness because no one can see whether or not sins are forgiven. On the other hand, if you tell a lame man to get up and walk, the only thing that’s going to keep you from looking like a idiot is if the man gets up and walks. And that’s exactly what the forgiven man proceeded to do. (See Matt 9:2-8: Mark 2:3-12; Luke 5:18-26.)

What Happened to Jesus

Jesus’ ministry lasted two to three years. What was the response to his teaching and miracles? He was crucified. Crucifixion is a particular gruesome form of execution. It wasn’t just death; it was torture and shame as well. What about Jesus’ teaching and healing warranted such a punishment? He admitted at his trial that he was indeed Israel’s long-awaited Messiah. Some crime! Nonetheless, the Jewish leaders were afraid they’d lose power if Jesus was recognized as king of the Jews, and the Romans didn’t want any competition for the public’s allegiance. Therefore, Jewish and Roman leaders were united on the idea that Jesus was more trouble than he was worth…and so they killed him.

Everyone – friend as well as foe – thought Jesus’ death was the end of the matter…but then he was raised from the dead on the third day. That changed things, to say the least. Jesus’ “second act” has created even more of a stir than his first.

If you struggle to believe that Jesus performed miracles, you will likewise struggle to believe that he rose from the dead. But Christianity is without foundation if Jesus’ resurrection didn’t happen because it would make him a false prophet – for He Himself prophesied it would happen, and happen on the third day after his murder. Either the eyewitnesses of his resurrection have told us the truth, or else they are…liars or lunatics themselves. They had no motive to lie because to proclaim Jesus as alive in their day was to invite death. And the sheer number of witnesses disallows lunacy as an explanation. Jesus appeared to them over a period of forty days at different times and places with different people, sometimes even eating and drinking with them. He provided them many convincing proofs. On top of all that, there’s all the Old Testament prophecies that could only have been fulfilled by his resurrection. Here’s Paul’s summary of the key evidence. (I re-formatted the text and added some explanatory notes to make his points easier to digest.)

Now I make known to you, brethren,
the gospel which I preached to you,
which also you received,
in which also you stand,
by which also you are saved,
if you hold fast the word which I preached to you,
unless you believed in vain.

For I delivered to you as of first importance
what I also received,
that Christ died for our sins
according to the Scriptures,
and that He was buried,
and that He was raised on the third day
according to the Scriptures,
and that He appeared to Cephas, [Peter, in Aramaic]
then to the twelve. [the original twelve apostles]

After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time,
most of whom remain until now,
but some have fallen asleep; [meaning they died]
then He appeared to James, [Jesus’ earthly brother]
then to all the apostles;
and last of all, as to one untimely born,
He appeared to me also.

For I am the least of the apostles,
and not fit to be called an apostle,
because I persecuted the church of God.
But by the grace of God I am what I am,
and His grace toward me did not prove vain;
but I labored even more than all of them,
yet not I, but the grace of God with me.

Whether then it was I or they,
so we preach and so you believed.

The First Epistle of Paul, the Apostle, to the Corinthians 15:1-11

Is this a fantasy for children, or a conspiracy concocted by liars, or the hallucinations of lunatics…or is it plain-spoken history, written for men brave enough to read it and think through what it means?

Related essays:

11/11/25

Question or Comment