A reminder for
today
I am Alpha and
Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was,
and which is to come, the Almighty. (Revelation 1:8)
It is a beautiful and chilly Friday here in South Africa as
winter suddenly returns with a bang. The cold front that we face is here for a
few days and it is predicted that we might still have another before we enter
summer. Spring seems to be outsmarted by an undying winter. Today I want to
stop at this point: Jesus is who He said He is and He is now and forever. Many disputes
the existence of Jesus so let me go outside the bible and prove His existence
for you.
First meet Tacitus—or more formally, Caius/Gaius (or
Publius) Cornelius Tacitus (55/56–c. 118 C.E.)—was a Roman senator, orator and
ethnographer, and arguably the best of Roman historians. Tacitus’s last major
work, titled Annals, written c. 116–117 C.E., includes a biography of
Nero. In 64 C.E., during a fire in Rome, Nero was suspected of secretly
ordering the burning of a part of town where he wanted to carry out a building
project, so he tried to shift the blame to Christians.
Tacitus presents four pieces of accurate knowledge about
Jesus: (1) Christus, used by Tacitus to refer to Jesus, was one
distinctive way by which some referred to him, even though Tacitus mistakenly
took it for a personal name rather than an epithet or title; (2) this Christus
was associated with the beginning of the movement of Christians, whose name
originated from his; (3) he was executed by the Roman governor of Judea; and
(4) the time of his death was during Pontius Pilate’s governorship of Judea,
during the reign of Tiberius. (Many New Testament scholars date Jesus’ death to
c. 29 C.E.; Pilate governed Judea in 26–36 C.E., while Tiberius was emperor
14–37 C.E.)
Now meet Josephus, a Jewish priest who grew up as an
aristocrat in first-century Palestine and ended up living in Rome, supported by
the patronage of three successive emperors. In the early days of the first
Jewish Revolt against Rome (66–70 C.E.), Josephus was a commander in Galilee but
soon surrendered and became a prisoner of war. He then prophesied that his
conqueror, the Roman commander Vespasian, would become emperor, and when this
actually happened, Vespasian freed him. “From then on Josephus lived in Rome
under the protection of the Flavians and there composed his historical and
apologetic writings”
These independent historical sources—one a non-Christian
Roman and the other Jewish—confirm what we are told in the Gospels:
1. He existed as a man. The historian Josephus grew
up in a priestly family in first-century Palestine and wrote only decades after
Jesus’ death. Jesus’ known associates, such as Jesus’ brother James, were his
contemporaries. The historical and cultural context was second nature to
Josephus. “If any Jewish writer were ever in a position to know about the
non-existence of Jesus, it would have been Josephus. His implicit affirmation
of the existence of Jesus has been, and still is, the most significant obstacle
for those who argue that the extra-Biblical evidence is not probative on this
point,” Robert Van Voorst observes. And Tacitus was careful enough
not to report real executions of nonexistent people.
2. His personal name was Jesus, as Josephus informs
us.
3. He was called Christos in Greek, which is a
translation of the Hebrew word Messiah, both of which mean “anointed” or
“(the) anointed one,” as Josephus states and Tacitus implies, unaware, by
reporting, as Romans thought, that his name was Christus.
4. He had a brother named James (Jacob), as Josephus
reports.
5. He won over both Jews and “Greeks” (i.e., Gentiles
of Hellenistic culture), according to Josephus, although it is anachronistic to
say that they were “many” at the end of his life. Large growth in the number of Jesus’ actual followers came only after his death.
6. Jewish leaders of the day expressed unfavorable
opinions about him, at least according to some versions of the Testimonium
Flavianum.
7. Pilate rendered the decision that he should be
executed, as both Tacitus and Josephus state.
8. His execution was specifically by crucifixion,
according to Josephus.
9. He was executed during Pontius Pilate’s governorship
over Judea (26–36 C.E.), as Josephus implies and Tacitus states, adding
that it was during Tiberius’s reign.
Case closed. Jesus definitely is who He is. He definitely existed
and this also confirms the historical evidence we see in the gospels. Two historians
made it clear that Jesus existed and confirms His death. We know the rest. Stand
firm in your faith, my friend and do not let the enemy’s lies influence you.
Lord, thank you for another day give to us by your grace. Let
us use this time and share your love and message with all around us. Let us
bring glory to you and defeat the enemy in all his attempts to deceive us or
those around us. In Jesus name.
Have an awesome day, dear friend of Jesus.
Cheers
