Who Is This Man Jesus? Historical Evidence, Extraordinary Claims, and Eternal Significance
- Jack Selcher
- Jul 28
- 4 min read
Summary
Jesus is the most influential person in history. The Gospels and non-Christian sources affirm His historical existence, while His miracles, resurrection, and extraordinary claims distinguish Him from every other religious leader. Christians believe He is fully God and fully man. His death and resurrection provide salvation. Ultimately, every person must decide who Jesus is and respond to His invitation of eternal life.
Social Media Fame Compared with Jesus’ Global Following
The top three influencer-entrepreneurs on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube in June 2025 were MrBeast (634 million followers), Dhar Mann (137 million followers), and Jake Paul (79 million followers).1 In 2025, Jesus had 2.6 billion followers in the world, gathered without the help of social media.2
Who is this man Jesus? Why do so many follow Him?
The Early Life and Ministry of Jesus
Jesus was born about 4 BCE in Bethlehem, a descendant of King David, and grew up in Nazareth. His public ministry began when he was about 30 (Luke 3:23) and lasted about three years, ending with His crucifixion in Jerusalem after accumulating a relatively small core following of about 120 people (Acts 1:15). He had thousands of superficial followers.
Preparing to Examine His Claims
Jesus made stupendous claims about Himself. Before we examine them, we will explore what we know about Him as a historical figure.
Historical Sources About Jesus
The New Testament Gospels are the primary sources. The first three of its books, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, were written within forty years after Jesus’ death and resurrection.3 The non-Christian writers Flavius Josephus (Antiquities of the Jews), Tacitus (Annals 15.44), and Suetonius (Life of Claudius 25.4) also reference Him.
Miracles That Confirmed His Identity
According to the Gospels, Jesus moved about Israel, teaching, miraculously healing, feeding thousands from meager resources, bringing the dead to life, abruptly ending storms, and walking on water. His miracles confirmed His identity as God’s Son, and His resurrection left no doubt (Romans 1:4). The historical evidence for that resurrection is substantial.4
The Heart of Jesus’ Teaching
Jesus preached the necessity to love God and one’s neighbor self-sacrificially (Mark 12:33) and demonstrated both on Calvary’s cross.
Teaching With Divine Authority
He taught with unprecedented authority and wisdom about the Kingdom of God, using concrete illustrations to both explain and veil spiritual truth (Luke 8:10).
Confronting Religious Hypocrisy
He rebuked the Jewish religious leaders for pretending they were spiritually healthy when they did not practice what they preached. Their lips honored God, while their hearts were far from Him (Mark 7:6).
The Plot to Crucify Jesus
His revealing spiritual X-rays of their hypocritical lives and His spiritual influence in Israel so angered them that they plotted to kill Him (Matthew 26:4). They worked through the Roman government to have Him crucified.
God’s Plan of Salvation
The Bible teaches that Jesus’ death was not an unforeseen tragedy, but part of God’s deliberate plan to rescue human beings from the penalty and power of their sins through the substitutionary death of His Son in their place (Acts 2:23) on that cross.
The Resurrection Changes Everything
The crucifixion was not a period, but a comma in Jesus’ life. His tomb was empty. He rose from the dead and was repeatedly seen by His followers, as many as 500 at once (1 Corinthians 15:6).
He supplied them with many convincing proofs that He was alive (Acts 1:3). His core followers were so convinced that they boldly declared His resurrection and no longer cowered in fear as they had immediately after His crucifixion. After His post-resurrection appearances, He ascended into heaven (Luke 24:51).
Fifteen Extraordinary Claims of Jesus
Jesus’s claims distinguish Him from every other religious founder. He claimed that:
1. He was God (John 8:58), identifying Himself with God in the burning bush that Moses encountered (Exodus 3:14).
2. He and the Father were one (John 17:11).
3. He deserved the same honor as the Father (John 5:23).
4. He had a glorious existence with God before the creation of the Earth (John 17:5).
5. He could forgive sins (Matthew 9:2).
6. He was the exclusive path to a relationship with the Father (John 14:6).
7. He could grant eternal life (John 10:28).
8. He would judge every human being (John 5:22).
9. He was the resurrection (John 11:25).
10. He should be loved more than one’s closest relatives (Matthew 10:37).
11. People’s response to Him determined their eternal destiny (John 3:36).
12. His words would last forever (Matthew 24:35).
13. He would send the Holy Spirit to His followers (John 16:7).
14. He possessed unlimited authority (Matthew 28:18).
15. He would return to earth as Ruler and Judge (Mark 14:62).
Who Is This Man Jesus?
Who is this man Jesus? Christians say that He is fully God and fully man, who loves you and offers you a full, meaningful life (John 10:10). What you say about Him determines your eternal destiny.
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