Who is Jesus Christ? Maybe you've heard his name a few times and you've found yourself here by looking him up. You might be confused, wondering why people talk about him around Easter and/or Christmas, and the people around you don't know him either.
If you don't know him, that's ok! I'd love to tell you all about him and who he is- and why he is celebrated multiple times throughout the year. In this post, I'll be discussing why you need to know him and why this applies to you!
If you're wondering who God is as well, you can click right here to read an introduction. You can also stay tuned for a future post where I talk about who the Holy Spirit is! At the bottom of my home page, you can sign up with your name and email for notifications when I post.
First, I'll answer a few questions that people have wondered about Jesus.
Why should I know who Jesus is?
The reason why you should know about Jesus is because this is the most important thing you will ever learn about in your entire life. You'll want to learn what he's done for you, and how he can change your life more than anything on this earth can.
As you read this blog post, think about these two points:
Learn about who Jesus is
Decide what you think about Him
This deserves to be known and decided by every single person no matter who you are, so you deserve to know who Jesus is.
Why does this apply to me?
This applies to you because what Jesus did, he did for you. I'll get to that in a minute, but first, you need to know that Jesus loves you. Yes, you! You are important to him, and so this applies to you just as much as it does anyone else even if you don't know him yet.
Sometimes, learning about a religious figure can be nerve-wrecking, I understand that! With Jesus, I promise after you get to know him, you won't be worried. The reason why I started this blog is to help you come to know Jesus.
If you'd still like to learn about who Jesus is, keep reading!
Who is Jesus Christ?
Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He is Lord and Savior. He is the way, the truth, and the life. He is also called the prince of peace. He has many great names. You may have heard of the Messiah or the Son of God before around Easter or in Jewish tradition.
For people that know him and choose to believe in him, he is the source of rest, peace, joy, strength, and more to his people who he calls his brothers and sisters.
Jesus is the central part of the Holy Bible, (not including the Book of Mormon) who God speaks of throughout the entirety of the book.
Jesus has truly saved everyone that chose to, and will choose to, believe in him as his or her Lord and Savior.
We can't physically see Jesus with our eyes- but he's with the people that believe in him. In the Bible, Jesus came down to earth, from heaven with his father, God, as a baby around 2,000 years ago. He lived a perfect human life on earth for around thirty years, (some people estimate around thirty-three years), and was crucified on a cross for every person that has and will ever live. He did this, knowing a lot of people would reject his love for them, but he has saved so many people over the years.
This describes his title as the way, the truth, and the life. He provides the way for our freedom and salvation from punishment. He provides truth that we cannot get anywhere else. He provides spiritual and literal life to us, bringing us to an eternity in heaven with him if we choose to believe in him.
Jesus is loving
Jesus shows complete and eternal love through his words in the Bible. Not only does he speak words of love, but he shows them through his actions.
Have you ever felt the feeling of someone's loving words, just to realize that their actions proved to you the opposite? With Jesus, you'll never have to worry if he loves you. This is Jesus' thoughts on loving people:
"You have heard that it was said, "You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy." But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your father in heaven." -Matthew 5:44
Not only does Jesus perfectly love his people, but he reaches out to the people that don't know him, his enemies, and people that are broken and sinful. If you've done nothing but wrong lately and you feel dirty, wondering if this Jesus person will accept you, you have your answer. He will accept anyone willing to believe in him.
One day while Jesus was ministering to people on earth, a lawyer asked him what was the most important commandment according to him. He was wondering what was Jesus' most important instruction for us to live by. This is what he said:
"And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets." -Matthew 22:37-40
Jesus told us to love God first and others as much as we love ourselves. He didn't tell us to pursue fame or wealth, to obtain a certain career, or do anything to lift ourselves up as the most important objective in our life- he models perfect love to us and teaches us how to be loving to each other.
It can be hard to think about doing this, but we would want others to be loving and kind to us. Deep down, every person is looking for love and peace no matter how they treat people.
Jesus is gentle and lowly
"Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." - Matthew 11:29
This is a popular verse where Jesus tells people who he is. He doesn't do this often during the gospels, proclaiming his personality verbally to others, but here he describes himself as gentle and lowly (or humble).
Jesus is peaceful and humble. He is servant hearted towards his people, even though he is Lord and Savior. He doesn't arrogantly tell everyone to look at him and force them to praise him so that he will seem "more godly" to the world, but he already knows his goodness and extends that goodness out towards people out of the love of his heart. He doesn't desire to hurt anyone- but is always willing to forgive.
Jesus is forgiving
Jesus forgives the worst of us all. No matter what faults we commit, he is willing to forgive us and extend his grace to us. When people were crucifying Jesus on the cross, this is what he prayed:
"And Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." And they cast lots to divide his garments." - Luke 23: 34
Jesus could have cursed the people in anger, decided to free himself from the pain of bearing our payment of sins, or called angels down to defend him, but he asked for God to forgive the people around him.
He could have changed his mind, seeing how the crowd that once listened to him and praised him was shouting at him in hatred, but he didn't.
I know that if I were in that position and I had an option to break free, I would have, because without Jesus' righteousness and love I'm lost. He showed perfect love to the world by sacrificing himself for a people that didn't know or love him. Now because of this, we have the chance to saved.
How did Jesus save people if he died?
In the Bible, the wages of our sin, or our faults and shortcomings of righteousness, is death. Inevitably, every single person, including me and you, have and will sin. The only payment for sin that the human race commits every day is death- and everyone will pass away one day. We can't outrun death, but because of Jesus, we get to choose where we go when we die.
The first two humans on earth, Adam and Eve, committed a sin against God in Genesis and ate of the fruit of the tree of life. Before they did this, they lived on earth with God in perfect harmony and righteousness in his presence. God gave Adam and Eve the garden of Eden, but he told them not to eat from the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden because they would die.
They followed God's orders for a little while, but then the devil showed up in the form of a serpent and convinced Eve that it was good to eat the fruit. He tricked her into believing that what God said wasn't true. When she and Adam ate the fruit, they disobeyed God and the fall of man started from that point on. It was the first sin committed against God by humans, and birthed sin into the world. God cannot lie- he is perfectly honest. Everything that God says is true, and everything that the devil says is a lie.
The devil was a former angel in heaven that chose to go against God. He wanted to be God, and God cast him out due to his pride. Since then, the devil has been an enemy of God and all of the christians in the world. Sadly, this is the person that people have started to worship in satan clubs, especially kids in school nowadays. People are lost without Jesus and are still being tricked and deceived by the devil today. The devil will go to hell one day, along with the people that do not know Jesus or reject him, so he will try to destroy the lives of Jesus followers, but he is no where near as powerful as Jesus.
Everyone since Adam and Eve has sinned against God every day. We are all equally sinful and fallen. With the wages of sin being death, and humankind not being righteous enough for God, people that weren't saved by God were sent to hell.
God knew that the human race was fallen and was dying without God, so he sent Jesus.
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life." -John 3:16
Jesus came to save the lost sinner. He paid the wage for all of our sins. This is so powerful that you could become a Jesus follower today, in spirit and truth, and your sins would be cleansed by Jesus. Although he paid the wages of sin around 2,000 years ago, he can still save you today!
How do you know Jesus if he died 2,000 years ago?
Jesus was crucified on the cross, but he resurrected from the grave three days later. Since he is God, he lives eternally. He ascended back into heaven around forty days after raising from the grave and is in heaven today because he lives forever.
Jesus' resurrection from crucifixion on the cross is what Jesus followers celebrate not only on Easter, but throughout the rest of the year.
This is central to a Christian's belief- believing that Jesus raised from the grave.
Jesus is coming back for his followers
One day, Jesus is coming back to take his followers up to heaven with him, also known as the rapture. People that believe in him will hear a trumpet sound, and they will disappear off of the earth and be brought into heaven.
While the people that don't believe in Jesus will stay on earth, they will have another seven years to decide whether or not they choose heaven with Jesus or hell with the devil.
This is why it's so important for believers to share Jesus with people that don't know him. We do it out of Jesus love for those who are lost- because people need to know who Jesus is and have a chance to decide who they believe in.
What if I want to believe in Jesus, but I'm currently in another religion?
The good news is, Jesus will forgive you if you confess to him that you want to become a christian and leave your other religion. He's not a rude tyrant that isn't going to accept you, no matter what other religion you have.
The difference between Jesus and everyone else is that he forgives and brings grace to anyone that is willing to repent and seek him, no matter their past. Actually, he does this because we're so lost and fallen without him. So, if you're currently a Muslim, Buddhist, or even a Satan worshipper, Jesus has the power to take you away from those false religions and into truth and light.
You can absolutely turn from any religion to becoming a christian, but you can't have Christianity and another religion with it. You have to choose one or the other.
That's who he is. He's the answer to what you've been looking for, and the savior of your life if you accept him. He won't force you into following him- but he already loves you.
What if I'm scared to follow Jesus?
Can I be honest? I was, too! I was saved when I was eleven, and there were times where I felt like being a Christian in a world full of people that didn't care about Jesus was terrifying and lonely, but it's worth it! If you think about it, the people that don't know Jesus are lost without him and will perish in hell once they pass away. Christians will be saved by Jesus and live in heaven with him for eternity. Once I remembered that, the anxiety of not fitting in or not being laughed at didn't seem big. My worry ended up being for the people that didn't know or believe in Jesus.
The devil tries to trick Christians into anxiety of not fitting in and not having fun by using others to mock them, making following Jesus harder, but ultimately, it's worth it. With Jesus, you will have true protection, peace, and joy, and the devil can't control you.
How do I become a Jesus follower?
If you would like to follow Jesus today, good news! You can right now.
You can become saved right now without leaving the spot that you're in, free of charge because Jesus has already paid for you.
Becoming saved is a very simple process, but the important part is that you have to be truly sincere with your words. If you speak out loud that you believe in Jesus but don't truly feel that way, then it won't work.
Jesus tells us to worship him in spirit and truth, and he knows your heart no matter how you try to hide your feelings/thoughts, so first, think about what you honestly want to do.
If you sincerely want to become saved, then all you have to do is this confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the grave. Then, you will be saved! No matter your age, former religion, faults, gender, appearance, or anything else, you can become a Jesus follower.
“Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
-Romans 10:9 ESV
If you want to accept Jesus, repeat after me:
"God, I am a lost and broken person. I confess that I have sinned against you, and I want to turn away from my sins. Today, I want to change that and follow you. I want to be a Jesus follower. I confess that you, Jesus, are Lord and Savior, and I believe that God raised you from the grave. Please forgive me of my sins. In Jesus name I pray, amen."
If you've just followed this verse, congratulations- you're a child of God now! Let me say a prayer over you!
Dear Jesus,
I praise you for saving this lovely person, whoever they may be! I thank you for your love and goodness over their life and for cleansing them of all of their sins. Thank you for saving them from an eternity of suffering away from you. Today, I pray that you would give this person your peace and love.
Help them to learn that their life will change for the good from now on, and that they will never walk alone. I pray for protection over them against the devil, and that you would guard them from distractions and spiritual warfare. I ask that you would work in their life to bring community to them, and that they would begin to learn from your word. In Jesus name I pray,
Amen.
If you've just become a believer and prayed this prayer, I'd love to hear from you! Comment "Saved", or you can sign up to become a member on my website and send "Saved" to my inbox!
I'd love to help you in any way that I can at the beginning of your walk with Jesus! If you're wondering how to start your walk with Jesus, you can click the button below to enter your email and receive a free ebook! In this ebook, I'll be talking about what resources helped me in the start of my walk with Jesus!
You've just been introduced to Jesus, but if you would like to read more about who God is, you can scroll down to the bottom of the page to read more about him!
Thank you for reading!
Stay connected!