JESUS COMPLEX:
Is Jesus God?
Have you ever met somebody with such personal magnetism that they are always the center of attention? Possibly their personality or intelligence---but something about them is enigmatic. Well, that’s the way it was two thousand years ago with Jesus Christ.
Jesus’ greatness was obvious to all those who saw and heard him. But, whereas most great people simply fade into history books, Jesus of Nazareth is still the focus of numerous books and media controversy. And much of that controversy revolves around the radical claims Jesus made about himself.
As an unheralded carpenter from an obscure Galilean village in Israel, Jesus made claims that, if true, have profound implications on our lives. According to Jesus, you and I are special, part of a grand cosmic scheme, with him as the center of it all. This and other claims like it stunned everyone who heard them.
It was primarily Jesus’ outrageous claims that caused him to be viewed as a crackpot by both the Roman authorities and the Jewish hierarchy. Although he was an outsider with no credentials or political powerbase, within three years, Jesus changed the world for the next 20 centuries. Other moral and religious leaders have left an impact---but nothing like that unknown carpenter from Nazareth.
What was it about Jesus Christ that made the difference? Was he merely a great man, or something more?
These questions get to the heart of who Jesus really was. Some believe he was merely a great moral teacher; others believe he was simply the leader of the world’s greatest religion. But many believe something far more. Christians believe that God has actually visited us in human form. And they believe the evidence backs that up. So who is the real Jesus? Let’s take a closer look.
As we take a deeper look at the world’s most controversial person, we begin by asking: could Jesus have been merely a great moral teacher?
Great Moral Teacher?
Almost all scholars acknowledge that Jesus was a great moral teacher.
In fact, his brilliant insight into human morality is an accomplishment
recognized even by those of other religions. In his book Jesus
of Nazareth, Jewish scholar Joseph Klausner wrote, “It
is universally admitted … that Christ taught the purest
and sublimest ethics … which throws the moral precepts and
maxims of the wisest men of antiquity far into the shade.”1
Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount has been called the most superlative
teaching of human ethics ever uttered by an individual. In fact,
much of what we know today as “equal rights” actually
is the result of Jesus’ teaching. Historian Will Durant
said of Jesus that “he lived and struggled unremittingly
for ‘equal rights’; in modern times he would have
been sent to Siberia. ‘He that is greatest among you, let
him be your servant’—this is the inversion of all
political wisdom, of all sanity.”2
Some have tried to separate Jesus’ teaching on ethics from
his claims about himself, believing that he was simply a great
man who taught lofty moral principles. This was the approach of
one of America’s Founding Fathers.
President Thomas Jefferson, ever the enlightened rationalist, sat down in the White House with two identical copies of the New Testament, a straight-edge razor, and a sheaf of octavo-size paper. Over the course of a few nights, he made quick work of cutting and pasting his own Bible, a slim volume he called “The Philosophy of Jesus of Nazareth.” After slicing away every passage that suggested Jesus’ divine nature, Jefferson had a Jesus who was no more and no less than a good, ethical guide.3
Ironically, Jefferson’s memorable words in
the Declaration of Independence were rooted in Jesus’ teaching
that each person is of immense and equal importance to God, regardless
of sex, race, or social status. The famous document sets forth,
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are
created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain
unalienable Rights …”
But the question Jefferson never addressed is: how could Jesus
have been a great moral leader if he lied about being God? So
perhaps he wasn’t really moral after all, but his motive
was to begin a great religion. Let’s see if that explains
Jesus’ greatness.
Great Religious Leader?
Did Jesus deserve the title of “great religious leader”? Surprisingly, Jesus never claimed to be a religious leader. He never got into religious politics or pushed an ambitious agenda, and he ministered almost entirely outside the established religious framework.
When one compares Jesus with the other great religious leaders, a remarkable distinction emerges. Ravi Zacharias, who grew up in a Hindu culture, has studied world religions and observed a fundamental distinction between other religious founders and Jesus Christ.
"Whatever we may make of their claims, one reality is inescapable. They are teachers who point to their teaching or show some particular way. In all of these, there emerges an instruction, a way of living. It is not Zoroaster to whom you turn; it is Zoroaster to whom you listen. It is not Buddha who delivers you; it is his Noble Truths that instruct you. It is not Mohammad who transforms you; it is the beauty of the Koran that woos you. By contrast, Jesus did not only teach or expound His message. He was identical with His message."4
The truth of Zacharias’s point is underscored by the number
of times in the Gospels that Jesus’ teaching message was
simply “Come to me” or “Follow me” or
“Obey me.” Also, Jesus made it clear that his primary
mission was to forgive sins, something only God could do.
No other major religious leader ever claimed the power to forgive
sins. But that is not the only claim Jesus made that separated
him from the others. In The World’s Great Religions,
Huston Smith observed, “Only two people ever astounded their
contemporaries so much that the question they evoked was not ‘Who
is he?’ but ‘What is he?’ They were
Jesus and Buddha. The answers these two gave were exactly the
opposite. Buddha said unequivocally that he was a mere man, not
a god—almost as if he foresaw later attempts to worship
him. Jesus, on the other hand, claimed … to be divine.”5
Did Jesus Claim to be God?
Clearly, from the earliest years of the church, Jesus was called
Lord and regarded by most Christians as God. Yet his divinity
was a doctrine that was subjected to great debate . So the question—and
it is the question—is this: Did Jesus really claim to be
God (the Creator), or was his divinity something invented or assumed
by the New Testament authors? (See “Did Jesus Claim to be God?” )
Some scholars believe Jesus was such a powerful teacher and compelling
personality that his disciples just assumed he was God. Or maybe
they just wanted to think he was God. John Dominic Crossan and
the Jesus Seminar (a fringe group skeptical of scholars with presuppositions
against miracles) are among those who believe Jesus was deified
in error.
Although books like The Da Vinci Code argue that Jesus’ divinity was a later doctrine of the church, evidence shows otherwise (See “Was there a Da Vinci Conspiracy?”). Most Christians who accept the gospels as reliable insist that Jesus did claim deity. And that belief can be traced all the way back to Jesus’ immediate followers.
But there are those who accept Jesus as a great teacher, but are unwilling to call him God. As a deist, Thomas Jefferson had no problem accepting Jesus’ teachings on morals and ethics while denying his deity.6 But as we’ve said, and will explore further, if Jesus was not who he claimed to be, then we must examine some other alternatives, none of which would make him a great moral teacher.
Even a superficial reading of the Gospels reveals that Jesus claimed
to be someone more than a prophet like Moses or Daniel. But it
is the nature of those claims that concern us. Two questions are
worthy of attention.
- Did Jesus actually claim to be God?
- When he said “God,” did Jesus really mean he was the Creator of the universe spoken of in the Hebrew Bible?
To address these questions, let's consider Jesus’ words in Matthew 28:18: “I have been given complete authority in heaven and on earth.” What does it mean that Jesus has been “given” authority?
Prior to Jesus taking on human form, we are told that he eternally coexisted with his Father, and as God he had all authority. But Philippians 2:6-11 tells us that even though Jesus had existed in the form of God, he “stripped himself” of God’s powers to be born a human being. Yet the same passage tells us that after his resurrection Jesus was restored to his former glory, and someday “every knee will bow to him as Lord.”
So, what did Jesus mean when he claimed to have complete authority
in heaven and on earth?
Authority” was a well-understood term in Roman-occupied Israel. At that time, Caesar was the supreme authority in the entire Roman world. His edict could instantly launch legions for war, condemn or exonerate criminals, and establish laws and rules of government. In fact, Caesar’s authority was such that he himself claimed divinity.
So, at the very least Jesus was claiming authority on a par with Caesar himself. But He didn’t just say he had more authority than the Jewish leaders or Roman rulers; Jesus was claiming to be the supreme authority in the universe. To those he spoke to, it meant that he was God. Not a god—but the God. Both their words and actions testify to the fact that they truly believed Jesus is God. (See "Did the Apostles Believe Jesus is God?")
Did Jesus Claim to be the Creator?
But is it possible that Jesus was just reflecting God’s
authority and was not stating that he was the actual Creator?
At first glance that seems plausible. Yet Jesus’ claim to
have all authority seems to make sense only if he is the Creator
of the universe. The word “all” encompasses everything–including
creation itself.
As we look deeper into Jesus’ own words, a pattern seems
to emerge. Jesus made radical assertions about himself that, if
true, unmistakably point to his deity. Here is a partial list
of such statements as recorded by eyewitness accounts.
- “I am the resurrection and the life.” (John 11:25)
- “I am the light of the world.” (John 8:12)
- “I and my Father are one.” (John 10:30)
- “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.” (Revelation 22:13).”
- “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6)
- “I am the only way to the Father [God].” (John 14:6)
- “If you’ve seen me, you’ve seen the Father.” (John 14:9)Once again, we must go back to context. In the Hebrew Scriptures, when Moses asked God his name at the burning bush, God answered, “I AM.” He was telling Moses that He is the only Creator, eternal and transcendent of time.
Since the time of Moses, no practicing Jew would ever refer to
himself or anyone else by “I AM.” As a result, Jesus’
“I AM” claims infuriated the Jewish leaders. One time,
for example, some leaders explained to Jesus why they were trying
to kill him: “Because you, a mere man, have made yourself
God” (John 10:33).
But the point here is not simply that such a phrase fumed the
religious leaders. The point is that they knew exactly what he
was saying—he was claiming to be God, the Creator of the
universe. It is only this claim that would have brought the accusation
of blasphemy. To read into the text that Jesus claimed to be God
is clearly warranted, not simply by his words, but also by their
reaction to those words.
What Kind of God?
The idea that we are all part of God, and that within us is the
seed of divinity, is simply not a possible meaning for Jesus’
words and actions. Such thoughts are revisionist, foreign to his
teaching, foreign to his stated beliefs, and foreign to his disciples’
understanding of his teaching.
Jesus taught that he is God in the way the Jews understood God
and the way the Hebrew Scriptures portrayed God, not in the way
the New Age movement understands God. Neither Jesus nor his audience
had been weaned on Star Wars, and so when they spoke
of God, they were not speaking of cosmic forces. It’s simply
bad history to redefine what Jesus meant by the concept of God.
But if Jesus wasn’t God, are we still okay by calling him
a great moral teacher? C. S. Lewis argued, “I am trying
here to prevent anyone from saying the really foolish thing that
people often say about Him: ‘I’m ready to accept Jesus
as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to
be God.’ That is the one thing we must not say.”7
In his quest for truth, Lewis knew that he could not have it both
ways with the identity of Jesus. Either Jesus was who he claimed
to be—God in the flesh—or his claims were false. And
if they were false, Jesus could not be a great moral teacher.
He would either be lying intentionally or he would be a lunatic
with a God complex.
Was Jesus a Liar?
One of the best-known and most influential political works of
all time was written by Niccolò Machiavelli in 1532. In
his classic, The Prince, Machiavelli exalts power, success,
image, and efficiency above loyalty, faith, and honesty. According
to Machiavelli, lying is okay if it accomplishes a political end.
Could Jesus Christ have been motivated by this Machiavellian principle?
In fact, the Jewish opponents of Jesus
were constantly trying to expose him as a fraud and liar. They
would barrage him with questions in attempts to trip him up and
make him contradict himself. Yet Jesus responded with remarkable
consistency.
The question we must deal with is, what could possibly motivate
Jesus to live his entire life as a lie? He taught that God was
opposed to lying and hypocrisy, so he wouldn’t have been
doing it to please his Father. He certainly didn’t lie for
his followers’ benefit. (All but one were martyred.) And
so we are left with only two other reasonable explanations, each
of which is problematic.
Benefit
Many people have lied for personal gain. In fact, the motivation
of most lies is some perceived benefit to oneself. What could
Jesus have hoped to gain from lying about his identity? Power
would be the most obvious answer. If people believed he was God,
he would have tremendous power. (That is why many ancient leaders,
such as the Caesars, claimed divine origin.)
The rub with this explanation is that Jesus shunned all attempts
to move him in the direction of seated power, instead chastising
those who abused such power and lived their lives pursuing it.
He also chose to reach out to the outcasts (prostitutes and lepers),
those without power, creating a network of people whose influence
was less than zero. In a way that could only be described as bizarre,
all that Jesus did and said moved diametrically in the other direction
from power.
It would seem that if power was Jesus’ motivation, he would
have avoided the cross at all costs. Yet, on several occasions,
he told his disciples that the cross was his destiny and mission.
How would dying on a Roman cross bring one power?
Death, of course, brings all things into proper focus. And while many martyrs have died for a cause they believed in, few have been willing to die for a known lie. Certainly all hopes for Jesus’ own personal gain would have ended on the cross. Yet, to his last breath, he would not relinquish his claim of being the unique Son of God. Jesus used the terms “Son of Man” and “Son of God” to identify his dual nature as both man and God (See “Did Jesus Claim to be God?”).
A Legacy
So if Jesus was above lying for personal benefit, perhaps his
radical claims were falsified in order to leave a legacy. But
the prospect of being beaten to a pulp and nailed to a cross would
quickly dampen the enthusiasm of most would-be superstars.
Here is another haunting fact. If Jesus were to have simply dropped
the claim of being God’s Son, he never would have been condemned.
It was his claim to be God and his unwillingness to recant of
it that got him crucified.
If enhancing his credibility and historical reputation was what
motivated Jesus to lie, one must explain how a carpenter from
a poor Judean village could ever anticipate the events that would
catapult his name to worldwide prominence. How would he know his
message would survive? Jesus’ disciples had fled and Peter
had denied him. Not exactly the formula for launching a religious
legacy.
Do historians believe Jesus lied? Scholars have scrutinized Jesus’
words and life to see if there is any evidence of a defect in
his moral character. In fact, even the most ardent skeptics are
stunned by Jesus’ moral and ethical purity. One of those
was skeptic and antagonist John Stuart Mill (1806–73), the
philosopher. Mill wrote of Jesus,
"About the life and sayings of Jesus there is a stamp of personal originality combined with profundity of insight in the very first rank of men of sublime genius of whom our species can boast. When this pre-eminent genius is combined with the qualities of probably the greatest moral reformer and martyr to that mission who ever existed on earth, religion cannot be said to have made a bad choice in pitching upon this man as the ideal representative and guide for humanity.8"
According to historian Philip Schaff, there is no evidence, either
in church history or in secular history, that Jesus lied about
anything. Schaff argued, “How, in the name of logic, common
sense, and experience, could a deceitful, selfish, depraved man
have invented, and consistently maintained from the beginning
to end, the purest and noblest character known in history with
the most perfect air of truth and reality?”9
To go with the option of liar seems to swim upstream against everything
Jesus taught, lived, and died for. To most scholars, it just doesn’t
make sense. Yet, to deny Jesus’ claims, one must come up
with some explanation. And if Jesus’ claims are not true,
and he wasn’t lying, the only option remaining is that he
must have been self-deceived.
Was Jesus a Lunatic?
Albert Schweitzer, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1952 for
his humanitarian efforts, had his own views about Jesus. Schweitzer
concluded that insanity was behind Jesus’ claim to be God.
In other words, Jesus was wrong about his claims but didn’t
intentionally lie. According to this theory, Jesus was deluded
into actually believing he was the Messiah.
C. S. Lewis considered this option carefully. Lewis deduced the
insanity of Jesus’ claims—if they are not true. He
said that someone who claimed to be God would not be a great moral
teacher. “He would either be a lunatic—on a level
with the man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would
be the Devil of Hell.”10
Even those most skeptical of Christianity rarely question Jesus’
sanity. Social reformer William Channing (1780–1842), admittedly
not a Christian, made the following observation about Jesus: “The
charge of an extravagant, self-deluding enthusiasm is the last
to be fastened on Jesus. Where can we find traces of it in history?
Do we detect them in the calm authority of His precepts?”11
Although his own life was filled with immorality and personal
skepticism, the renowned French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau
(1712–78) acknowledged Jesus’ superior character and
presence of mind. “When Plato describes his imaginary righteous
man, loaded with all the punishments of guilt, yet meriting the
highest rewards of virtue, he describes exactly the character
of Christ. … What presence of mind. … Yes, if the
life and death of Socrates are those of a philosopher, the life
and death of Jesus Christ are those of a God.”12
Schaff posed the question we must ask ourselves: “Is such
an intellect—thoroughly healthy and vigorous, always ready
and always self-possessed—liable to a radical and most serious
delusion concerning his own character and mission?”13
So, was Jesus a liar or a lunatic, or was he the Son of God? Could
Jefferson have been right by labeling Jesus “only a good
moral teacher” while denying him deity? Interestingly, the
audience who heard Jesus—both believers and enemies—never
regarded him as a mere moral teacher. Jesus produced three primary
effects in the people who met him: hatred, terror, or adoration.
And today, 2,000 years later, Jesus is still the most polarizing
person in our world. Yet it is not his morals, ethics, or legacy
that enflames passions. The message Jesus brought to the world
was that God made us for a purpose–and that purpose is wrapped
up in His Son.
The claims of Jesus Christ force us to choose. As Lewis stated, we cannot put Jesus in the category of being just a great religious leader or good moral teacher. This former Oxford professor and skeptic challenges us to make up our own minds about Jesus:
"You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to."14
In Mere Christianity, Lewis explains why he concluded that Jesus Christ is exactly who he claimed to be.