Jesus Would Bring Up his Dad in Every Conversation
“Jesus Christ: ‘Hey guys check out what my dad made!’ Blah blah blah…” This may be a controversial one, but funny if you can keep a light heart about matters. As the Son of God, it would be quite intimidating to be friends with him on social media. I mean, he is the most famous figure in Western Culture. Indeed, about one-third of the world is considered “Christian” today. That’s a pretty staggering number – that’s a pretty influential life after nearly 2,000 years. Yes, some religious institutions have confused and cluttered the original message of Jesus over the centuries, but his simple life and powerful words still speak for themselves. Even though there is very little known about the actual life of Jesus of Nazareth, he is potentially the most discussed figure in the world as well. Sparking religious debate, theories, and so much more.
In his mid-30s Jesus had a short public career, lasting perhaps less than one year, during which he attracted considerable attention. The problem in understanding Jesus as a historian begins with the fact that we have rather limited sources for reconstructing his life. Those sources are primarily the gospel traditions that we have in the New Testament, some apocryphal materials from the early Christian tradition, and some sources external to the New Testament. Those sources external to the New Testament are particularly valuable because they’re not directly statements of faith, the way the New Testament materials are. Chief among those external sources is Josephus, a Jewish historian who wrote at the end of the first century and who in book 18 of his “Antiquities of the Jews” has a small passage about Jesus. He also reports about John the Baptist, and about James, the brother of Jesus. And those passages constitute the first external testimonies to the existence of Jesus by someone who was not a follower.