Who was Jesus?

CAROLYN B. SWAN

Some people believe that Jesus was God. Some believe he was just another prophet. Some consider his virgin birth and resurrection as symbolic rather than literal. Conflicting views of Jesus may well set Christians everywhere to searching for accurate information about this most remarkable of all men.

The Bible is not the only record that shows that Jesus of Nazareth did indeed exist. Both Jewish and Roman historians of that period make brief mention of him. But since the Bible gives by far the most detailed record and presents a collection of Jesus' own words, it is the most logical place to look to find out who Jesus himself said he was.

The Gospels show that Jesus often called himself the Son of man. Much scholarly controversy surrounds the interpretation of this designation. But one way of understanding the term is as an indication of Jesus' profound humanity. Like other men he had a human mother. According to Matthew's Gospel, it was in fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy of the coming of Messiah, or the anointed one, that Mary was a virgin when she conceived and bore Jesus "of the Holy Ghost." ^{Matt. 1:18.}

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