Jesus asks his disciples who people say he is. They respond that some say he is John the Baptist, Elijah, or another prophet. Jesus then asks the disciples who they say he is. Peter answers that Jesus is the Christ. Jesus then warns them not to tell others about his true identity.

2. Mark 8:27-30
27 Jesus
and his disciples went on to the
villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the
way he asked them, "Who do people say I
am?" 28 They replied, "Some say John the
Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others,
one of the prophets."

3. Mark 8:27-30
29 "But
what about you?" he asked. "Who do
you say I am?" Peter answered, "You are the
Christ." 30 Jesus warned them not to tell
anyone about him.

4. Good News: What’s It All About
 CE: “Who is Jesus?”
 Questions:
 Aren’t all religions essentially the same?
 Isn’t it arrogant to claim Christianity as
the only right religion?
 Isn’t Jesus just a great teacher?

5. Good News: What’s It All About
 CE: “Who is Jesus?”
 Questions:
 Aren’t all religions essentially the same?
 Isn’t it arrogant to claim Christianity as
the only right religion?
 Isn’t Jesus just a great teacher?

6. Who is Jesus?
 Historical figure
 Great teacher
 Moral person
 The Christ

7. Who is Jesus?
 Historical figure
 New Testament Gospels
 Pliny the Younger, Tacitus, Suetonius
 Josephus

8. Who is Jesus?
 Pliny the Younger (writing to Emperor
Trajan)
“They all worshiped your image and the
statues of the gods, and cursed Christ.”

9. Who is Jesus?
 Tacitus (Annals)
“Christus, from whom the name had its origin,
suffered the extreme penalty during the reign
of Tiberius at the hands of one of our
procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most
mischievous superstition, thus checked for
the moment, again broke out …”

10. Who is Jesus?
 Josephus (Antiquities of the Jews)
“About this time came Jesus, a wise man, if
indeed it is appropriate to call him a man. For
he was a performer of paradoxical feats, a
teacher of people who accept the unusual with
pleasure, and he won over many of the Jews
and also many Greeks. He was the Christ. …

11. Who is Jesus?
 Josephus (Antiquities of the Jews)
“… When Pilate, upon the accusation of the first men
amongst us, condemned him to be crucified, those
who had formerly loved him did not cease to
follow him, for he appeared to them on the third
day, living again, as the divine prophets foretold,
along with a myriad of other marvelous things
concerning him. And the tribe of the Christians, so
named after him, has not disappeared to this day.”

12. Who is Jesus?
 Great Teacher/Moral Man
43 "You
have heard that it was said, 'Love your
neighbor and hate your enemy.' 44 But I tell
you: Love your enemies and pray for those
who persecute you, … Matthew 5:43-44
(NIV)

13. Who is Jesus?
 The Christ
 Not a name but a title
 “the anointed one”
 “Messiah” – God sent Redeemer of
Israel

14. Who is Jesus?
 The Christ
 The King sent by God himself to rule
over everything forever
 The Son of God – God himself come to
live in his world as a human

15. The Questions
 Aren’t all religions essentially the
same?
 Isn’t it arrogant to claim Christianity
as the only right religion?
 Isn’t Jesus just a great teacher?

16. True or False?
“In reality, there is only one religion, the
religion of God. This one religion is
continually evolving, and each particular
religious system represents a stage in the
evolution of the whole.”

17. All religions the same?
“When Christians, Jews, Buddhists, and
others pray to their god, all of those
individuals are actually praying to the same
god, but simply using different names for
that deity.”
—registered opinion of 4 of every 10
American adults (Barna poll)

18. All religions the same?
“The soul of religion is one, but it is
encased in a multitude of forms.” Gandhi
“In whatever way men approach Me, even
so do I go to them.” Swami Chidananda

19. All religions the same?
 Christianity — Monotheistic, personal
 Islam — Monotheistic, impersonal
 Buddhism — Monistic, impersonal
 Hinduism — Monistic, polytheistic

20. All religions the same?
“Perhaps the greatest difference of all
[among religious views] lies in the
Christian assertion that none of us can save
ourselves and make ourselves acceptable to
God, try as we may: all the other faiths
assert that by keeping their teachings a
person will be saved, fulfilled or reborn.”

21. All religions the same?
“Jesus is unique among religious leaders
in claiming to bring God to our
world in His own person and making
good that claim by such powerful
evidences.”

22. All religions the same?
“Jesus is unique among religious leaders
in claiming to bring God to our
world in His own person and making
good that claim by such powerful
evidences.”

23. Only right one?
 Christianity is not the only religion that
claims exclusivity.
 Any truth claim excludes its opposite.
 Exclusivity doesn’t require a “holier
than thou” belligerant attitude

24. Only right one?
"It’s one thing for Christians to believe
that," I said. "It’s another thing to
communicate it without sounding
smug or superior. But Christians often
come off that way.“ The Case for Faith

25. Only right one?
"I like their Christ, I don’t like their
Christians." Mahatma Gandhi
"I will believe in the Redeemer when the
Christian looks a little more redeemed.“
Friedrich Nietzshe

26. A great teacher?
 Historical figure
 Great teacher
 Moral person
 But NOT God

27. A great teacher?
No other spiritual leader or teacher but Jesus
Christ…
 …ever claimed to bring God to man (I AM)
 …dealt radically with our wickedness
 …broke the final barrier of death
 …offers to “live inside” His followers

28. A great teacher?
 Lunatic – Mad! Crazy!
 Liar – Bad! Immoral!
 Lord – God!
“I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man
cometh unto the Father but by me.”
John 14:6

29. Who is Jesus?
“Neither is there salvation in any other;
for there is none other name under
heaven, given among men, whereby we
must be saved.”
Acts 4:12

30. Mark 8:27-30
29 "But
what about you?" he asked. "Who do
you say I am?" Peter answered, "You are the
Christ."