"God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast and when I run, I feel his pleasure."
Who is Jesus?
The people surrounded him and asked, “How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.” John 10:24In the weeks leading up to Easter, we will be considering: who is Jesus? It is a question that was asked during his lifetime but which is as relevant for the 21st century as the first. Each week I will end with questions for you to ponder. You might like to journal your answers over the next 5 weeks.
In answer to the question above, Jesus replied: “I have already told you, and you don’t believe me. The proof is the work I do in my Father’s name”. John 10:25.
John 5:36 sees Jesus putting forward as evidence for who he is: “my teachings and my miracles. The Father gave me these works to accomplish, and they prove that he sent me. And the Father who sent me has testified about me himself”.
CS Lewis – who lived, worked and died in my city, Oxford – put forward what has been called the trilemma argument in favour of the divinity of Christ by setting out the only three possibilities that Jesus was either mad, bad, or God. The evidence to support this argument is that Jesus himself implicitly claimed to be God. Prayers and worship were addressed to Jesus, he forgave sins, he addressed God as Abba (Father), and declared that one’s relationship to him would determine one’s eternal fate.
Questions to reflect on:
1 How does public opinion view Jesus today? Are opinions still divided?
2 What convinces you that Jesus really is God?
3 How does believing in Jesus affect you at training, competition or life generally?