Jesus isn’t a fairy tale – Honest Talk
- Chad Smith
- Jun 28, 2020
- 3 min read
Jesus isn’t a fairy tale. A man named Jesus Christ really walked the Earth, and He claimed to be the Son of God. Needless to say, a man claiming to be God’s Son set the entire world on its ear.
But 2,000-plus years later, He’s still the most influential person in history. The Bible, which chronicles the life and ministry of Jesus, is the bestselling book of all time. Business Insider Dot Com says it’s sold almost four BILLION copies in the last 50 years. Jesus turned the world upside-down in just three years! “But Chad, how do you KNOW He walked the Earth,” is something you might say.
Jesus is mentioned in writings outside the Bible. Did you know that? The website Cold-Case Christianity talks about several non-Christian historical writings that mention Jesus, and all were written between the first and fifth centuries. I’m not going to try to blow smoke up your nostrils, because the non-Christian historical messages aren’t always friendly to what was a brand-new religion back then.
However, even the outright hostile writings that mention Christ all confirm one thing: He walked the Earth, just like you and me. Jesus was a REAL person, not some mystical unicorn that might or might not have existed. No one made this guy up. Many people witnessed first-hand everything the Bible says Jesus did and said during His 33 years on the planet.
A writer by the name of Thallus was the earliest non-Christian writer who mentioned a man named Jesus. His writings are so ancient that they likely don’t exist anymore. So how do we know he wrote this and when he did it? Julius Africanus, writing around 221 AD, quotes Thallus, who previously tried to explain away the darkness that occurred during the crucifixion of Jesus.
“On the whole,” he said, “there pressed a most fearful darkness; and the rocks were rent by an earthquake, and many places in Judea and other districts were thrown down. Thallus, in his third book of History, calls this darkness, as appears without reason, an eclipse of the sun.” (Julius Africanus, Chronography, 18:1)
J Warner Wallace, the man behind the cold-case Christianity website, says there are some things we can take away from this; “Jesus LIVED, He was crucified, and there was an earthquake and darkness at a certain point during His crucifixion.”
I’ll give you one more, even though there are many examples.
Shortly after 70AD, Mara Bar-Serapion, a philosopher from Syria, wrote a letter to encourage his son. He compared the life and persecution of Jesus with that of other philosophers who were persecuted for their ideas. The fact that Jesus is known to be a real person with a whole lot of influence is huge. He refers to Jesus as the “Wise King.”
“What benefit did the Athenians obtain by putting Socrates to death? Famine and plague came upon them as judgment for their crime. Or, the people of Samos for burning Pythagoras? In one moment, their country was covered with sand. Or the Jews by murdering their wise king? After that, their kingdom was abolished. God rightly avenged these men. The Wise King lived on in the teachings he enacted.”
From this account, Wallace says here’s what we can take away: “He was a wise and influential man who died for His beliefs. The Jewish leadership was somehow responsible for Jesus’ death. Jesus’ followers adopted His beliefs and lived their lives accordingly.”
Other historians who wrote about Jesus include Cornelius Tacitus, Plinius Secundus, Suetonius, Lucian of Samosata, Tertullian, Justin Martyr, Josephus, the Jewish Talmuds, and many of the early church fathers. All people with funny, hard-to-pronounce names that ALL wrote about Jesus Christ.
There are even more but what I want you to take away is this: Jesus wasn’t a mystical figure that someone made up. He walked the Earth. He claimed to be the Son of God. He performed miracles. And you’re going to have to decide for Him someday. Unfortunately, not deciding is the same as a “no” decision.
Put unbelief aside for a moment. If the SON OF GOD loved the human race enough to vacate his throne (temporarily), come to Earth in human form, and die a HORRIBLE death in your place, isn’t that someone you’d want to follow? For the life of me, I can’t imagine why He wouldn’t be.
He took my place because HE loves me. I can never repay that gift. The good news is I don't
have to!
It’s not about rules. It’s about a relationship with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Look into it. He promises, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah, 29:13)
Seek. Do it today.
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