Who is God and what role does Jesus play?
The Bible tells us that “God is a Spirit” and that “God is Love.’ (Bible, John 4:24 and 1 John 4:8.)
God is the Almighty Spirit of Love! God is the driving force of the universe and is so huge and powerful that it is something completely unimaginable for our understanding! – It’s everywhere, it can do anything and it knows everything! … and even more amazing is that even though he knows everything about us, he still loves us very much. And he would like us to give him a chance, get to know him better and as a result also love him.
Being so huge and unimaginable for us, he has done something to help us understand him better. To prove to us how much he loves us, he sent his own Son, Jesus Christ, to earth in the human body. Through him it is possible to understand God better!
Imagine that more than two thousand years ago God sent his son to earth with a gigantic mission.
Jesus was not an ordinary person. Nor can it be referred to only as a teacher or a prophet. These titles also belong to him, but he was someone much bigger! Unlike the religious teachers who lived before and after him, Jesus not only talked about God and love, but he himself was God’s son and love, so he knew best what he was talking about.
He did good
Jesus accepted not only the human body, but also the human way of life, customs, language and clothing so that he could communicate better with us. He became the resident of this world so that we could experience his love and to give us a message from God.
He came to earth and adopted the life of an ordinary carpenter. It was only at the age of thirty that he began his service as a wandering prophet and religious teacher. He lived like us, worked like us, slept like us, ate like us and did everything we have to do. There were times when he was tired, sad, hungry and thirsty. He became one of us, as the Bible says: ‘He is able to feel for us because he went through the same thing as us. (Hebrews 4:15).
Jesus walked and did good. He gave food to the hungry, healed the sick, encouraged and comforted the sad and sad. He loved everyone, even those who were not interested in anyone else.
He had no church and was not the head of any official church. He simply met people on the streets, on the coast, on the markets… and everywhere he showed love in action. He was also friends with the most despised people of the society of the time: with drunkards, prostitutes and customs officers.
His religion was very simple, and therefore he stated that the easiest way to accept it is to be like a little child. (Matthew 18:3) He never preached or taught about complicated ceremonies and complex religious ceremonies. Everything he preached about and showed was love! (Matthew 22:36-40)
He didn’t have to die
But not everyone liked what Jesus did and preached. Quite the opposite. The religious leaders of the time hated Jesus because his teachings undermined their authority and freed people from their traditions and dictatorial control. In the end, it was they who forced the then government to be arrested, tortured, convicted and crucified.
But Jesus did not have to die on the cross! He said: ‘All power is given to me in heaven and on earth!’ (Matthew 28:18). He was the Son of God and all the cosmic force was at his disposal, ready to carry out his commands. To the one who arrested him, he said: ‘You would have no power over me if God did not give it to you,’ and ‘don’t you know that if I asked my father for protection, he would immediately send me the whole heavenly army? (John 19:11, Matthew 26:53) He could call for help from the heavenly army to help him destroy his enemies, conquer Rome, take over the world and force all men to fall on their knees and worship them. Instead, he decided to lay down his life for us.
Why did he die?
So why did the Lord of the Universe, the incarnate God, allow the people to capture him, falsely accuse him, condemn him, whip him and nail him to the cross as an ordinary criminal? – Because he had a higher plan!
Each of us has done something that wasn’t right at some point, and sometimes we even hurt someone. When we are not kind to the ones we love, it separates us from them. In the same way, when we do something that is not in love, it distances us from God.
And so that God would restore union with us, Jesus, the Son of God, to take on all our evils. He allowed himself to be condemned and suffered a terrible death by crucifixion. He died the death of the sinner, so that thanks to his sacrifice we can reconnect with God and obtain the gift of eternal life in heaven!
Defeat of death
Three days after Jesus’ death, however, something happened that shocked his enemies and proved to his followers that he was truly the Son of God. – He rose from the dead and forever won over death and hell!
After his resurrection, Jesus personally showed himself to hundreds of his followers, encouraged them and gave them strength and courage. He told them that he was leaving for his heavenly Father and that he remained with them in the Spirit and would still live in their hearts. He also gave them a wonderful promise: ‘I’ll be back again one day.’ ( John 14:3) But no longer as an ordinary person, but as a powerful ruler and great king. He said: ‘The Son of Man will come with power and glory.’ (Luke 21:27)
Know him!
Would you like to convince yourself that this person full of love, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, loves you, and would you like to receive his gift of eternal life in heaven? You can start by asking Jesus to enter your life. Maybe by telling him this:
‘Dear Jesus, please enter my life. Forgive me what I have ever done bad. Give me your gift of eternal life in heaven and fill me with your love. Amen.’
Now you can be sure that Jesus is with you and that he will never leave you, you may sometimes forget him, but he will always be with you. He will wait patiently for you to approach him and ask for help whenever you need him. Also, you can already be sure that when you die, you will live with him forever in heaven. He opened the door to a new and wonderful relationship!
The Bible says: Whoever becomes a Christian becomes a completely different person. He is never the same again as he was before. A pretty new life has begun! This is the change that God himself is working. by2 Corinthians 5:17 and 18, SNC)
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One single life, who changed the world
Once upon a time there was a person who was born in a remote village to a simple woman. He grew up in another unknown village and was a carpenter until he was thirty. He then became a traveling preacher for three years.
He never wrote a book. He never held any position. He never owned a house. He never had a family.
He never went to school. He never entered the modern city. He never strayed more than two hundred miles from his birthplace. He never achieved anything that today’s society considers a sign of greatness.
He had no documents of recommendation, only himself. He had nothing of this world, only the power of his divine humanity. Already in his youth, a wave of resistance rose against him.
His friends ran away from him. One of them denied it and another betrayed him. He was put into the hands of his opponents and experienced the humiliation of the trial.
He was nailed to a cross between two thieves. When he was dying, the executioners drew lots for his only earthly possessions – the robe. When he died, they took him down and placed him in the borrowed grave thanks to the compassion of his friend.
Twenty centuries have passed and today it is considered the greatest source of guidance and divine inspiration to which humanity clings.
I will certainly not be far from the truth when I say that all the armies that have ever marched; all naval fleets ever sailing; all parliaments that have ever met; And all the kings who ever ruled did not influence the life of man on earth more powerfully than this one life – the life of Jesus.
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Gospel according to John
The four books (Biography of Jesus) in the New Testament, which are called the Gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke and John – tell the beautiful story of Jesus’ life on earth. You can read the Gospel of John first. You will find out that it is the most understandable, contains the most words of Jesus and explains the impact of his love on our lives.
Here is a key passage and verse from The Gospel of John, which deserve special attention:
Chapter 3 thonodema
What does it mean to be “reborn”?
Among the Pharisees was a man named Nicodemus, a Jewish dignitary. He came to Jesus at night and said to him: ‘Rabbi, we know that you have come as a teacher from God. After all, no one can do the miracles you do if God is not with him.’
Jesus answered him: ‘If one is not born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.’
‘How can a person be born when they are old?’ Nicodemus said it. ‘Can he return to his mother’s womb and be born a second time?’
Jesus answered him: ‘He who is not born of water and of the Spirit cannot enter the kingdom of God. What is born of the flesh is the flesh; what is born of the Spirit is the Spirit. Do not be surprised that I told you: You must be born again.’ (spiritually)
Key verse: John 3:16
For God so loved the world (you) that he gave his only son (Jesus) so that everyone who believes in him… has eternal life.
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