It is pretty much agreed they were not eye witnesses. - Peter Jennings

Mark 8:27–29 And Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” 28 And they told him, “John the Baptist; and others say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.” 29 And he asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You Are the Christ.”

The Da Vinci Code, claiming Jesus was not divine, sexually involved with Mary Magdalene, and bore a secret child.

The National Geographic Society published the Gospel of Judas, a document claiming Judas was doing a good work when He betrayed Jesus. And He actually betrayed Him at Jesus’ own request.

The Jesus Seminar, claiming that the Bible doesn't contain true eyewitness accounts. It is just a collection of stories that were written down hundreds of years later. Jesus preformed no miracles, the was no virgin birth, and there was no resurrection.

1.What do we think we know about Jesus?

Isaiah 53:2 He had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him.

2.What can we really know about Jesus?

Jesus doesn’t mean what he says. - Robert Funk

Red: Jesus did say or do it Pink: He probably did Gray: He probably didn’t but it reflects His basic ideas Black: It never happened or was never said

3.Are the Gospel accounts reliable?

The integrity of any ancient writing is determined by the number of documented manuscripts or fragments of manuscripts we have to examine.

When the Bible says that something happened, did it really happen?

4.Don’t the gospels contradict each other?

5.What about the others gospels that do contradict the Bible?

6.Did Jesus claim to be divine?

The Da Vinci Code, claims the concept of His divinity was put forward by power hungry church leaders at the council of Nicea in 325.

The belief in Jesus’ divine is rooted in the eyewitness accounts of His life in the four New Testament gospels.

John 10:30 I and the Father are one.

John 10:36 I am the Son of God.

John 14:9 Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.

Mark 14:61-62 The high priest asked him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” And Jesus said, “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.”

Jesus fulfilled every single prophecy about the coming Messiah. Over 200 minor prophecies and 4 dozen major ones.

7.What about the resurrection?

No one questions the crucifixion and death of Jesus. No one questions that on the third day, there was an empty tomb. No one questions that His followers, seeing Jesus killed, went into hiding. Later they claimed to have seen Him alive.

They instantly went from frightened to courageous; timid to bold; cowering behind locked doors to preaching in the streets. Even some of those opposed to Jesus, claimed to see Him alive, and were dramatically changed. So did He, or didn’t He?

I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: 'I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept His claim to be God.' That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic……

on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg - or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God……

But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to. - C.S. Lewis

What do we really know about Jesus?

More than you might have thought and more than enough to believe.

There is more than enough to know your faith is not based on wishful thinking for bedtime stories.

Who do you say I am?