truth on Jesus

Getting to truth about Jesus, the Son of God – why He came and what He taught. It is in these “last days” that God “has spoken to us by his Son” as the Hebrews writer tells us.

These are just some of the very basic truths about Jesus discovered from Scripture with the help of the BSF.

Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.

Hebrews 1:1-2

sound doctrine: Jesus

We have gathered the most critical questions from the BSF library for truth on Jesus; click on any answer below to go directly to the supporting Scriptures

Why did Jesus come to live as a man?

Jesus made three direct statements about His mission on earth. First, He said He came to “seek and to save the lost.”³ This is possibly the most well known fact about His mission and culminating in His death, burial and resurrection¹⁰. This is repeated and reiterated several times in Scripture in various ways^2,5,6, including Jesus’ own analogy of Himself to a door and a shepherd¹¹.

Second, Jesus said that He came to “bear witness to the truth.”¹ In this He was speaking of the gospel of the kingdom of God⁹. The words He spoke were from the Father (John 17:14-17) and which He embodied in becoming Flesh (John 1:1,14). It’s this second objective that is being highlighted when Jesus says He came not to bring peace but a sword⁴ and when Paul says the Old Law was nailed to the cross⁷.

Third, Jesus said He came for judgement⁸. And in this third mission dynamic we have a linking of all three. Jesus came to judge all mankind⁸ against the truth^1,9 – His words. For those that accept/believe Him (enter through “the door”¹¹) results in their salvation^2,3,8,10.

It should be noted that there is no passage we can find that speaks of Jesus’ mission being to heal the sick or feed the poor. Certainly, He did those things, but according to Scripture they supported Jesus’ mission, done in particular to give authority to His claimn and .

Wasn’t Jesus’ teaching simple with easy to understand parables?

There is no evidence or indication in Scripture that Jesus taught in parables for the benefit of the hearer. In other words, He did not do it as an “effective teaching method” or to make it “easy to understand.”^1,2,4 In fact, it was just the opposite.

The message of the kingdom is hidden¹ for those that are not truly listening² (or it could be said, seeking) for it. Teaching in parables (or figures of speech³) was Jesus’ practice in order to distinguish those that were truly seeking truth⁴.

Do only Jesus’ teachings matter, or at least matter more?

The words of Scripture are in fact the words of God – all of them, regardless of who spoke them.¹ It’s not that Jesus or the apostles were speaking/teaching something different from person to person, but that they all were united in and through the words of God (and it was the same with the prophets — speaking God’s literal word). All disciples, regardless of who taught them,^2,3 are to continue in God’s word.

getting to truth on Jesus is more than a little important, agreed?

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answered by scripture with the Bible Study Framework

What is the nature of the kingdom of God?
Understanding the kingdom of God and its characteristics is fundamental to understanding much of God's revealed word. How and what one understands the kingdom of God to be will impact their understanding of such monumental events as Jesus coming to earth, His promised return and the final judgment! First [more]
Will Jesus return…to earth?
Jesus will return to earth. This is the unchallenged position of many Christians today. It's part of and foundational to a much broader belief around Jesus' second coming - also known as end times doctrine or eschatology. In addition to Jesus’ return to earth, other popularly believed aspects of [more]
Will there be a literal one thousand year reign?
A literal one thousand year reign of Jesus on His throne. There are many that believe Jesus' return is for just that - a one thousand year reign (millennium) on earth. It is widely taught and even passed down as "church doctrine." It is a teaching that comes from [more]
Is hearing the gospel the only way to know God’s will?
Someone hearing the gospel is certainly one way for an individual to come to know about God's word and His will. When somebody hears the "good news" they learn about Jesus, His mission on earth and God's plan for mankind's salvation. While hearing the gospel is one way, [more]
What was Jesus’ mission on earth?
Jesus' mission is something that can be confused with His actions. What Jesus came to this world to do and what he did are not necessarily the same thing. For example, one of the things He did was feed the hungry. But was that Jesus' mission on earth? [more]
Do miracles still happen today?
"It's a miracle!" That's an exclamation we hear often and have probably uttered ourselves. It might be used to describe passing a test you didn't study for or to sum up a great, come-from-behind victory. For example, the great Olympic victory by the U.S. Men's Hockey team is known [more]
Is it required that an apostle see Jesus?
Must an apostle see Jesus? This question gets raised when attempting to justify the appointment of apostles today. The word "apostle" in the Greek (apóstolos) literally means "one who is sent" or "to send off" or simply "messenger". Therefore, while the word could be applied to any missionary or emissary, [more]
What is Christ’s church called?
Christ's church goes by many, many different names in this day and time. The signs in front of Christian churches testify to the countless denominations that exist as well as thousands of independent or non-denominational groups. Christ's church may indeed be hard to identify with a sign.Wikipedia defines a Christian [more]
Why did Jesus teach in parables?
Return of the Prodigal Son, Rembrandt It's well known that Jesus would teach in parables. He taught this way to the masses of people that would gather (like at the Sermon on the Mount). Later in His ministry He would only teach in parables. A parable [more]
Are Jesus’ words (Red Letter Bible) more important than other Scripture?
You've probably seen the red letter Bible -- in fact, you probably own one. These Bibles place all of Jesus' words in prominent red letters in order to stand out from all the other recorded words in Scripture. This is obviously a man-made introduction to Scripture, along with the [more]