Jesus Christ: A Shepherd Who Led the World through Love - Term Paper Example

Timothy Pettipiece Religion and Theology 30 November Jesus Christ: A Shepherd Who Led the World through Love The human race, throughout its history and evolution, has witnessed several leaders and heroes, who have shaped its future by transforming barbaric, nomadic people into a civilized society. In order to achieve this, many such leaders have sacrificed their personal comforts and life for guiding the people through their wisdom, by imbibing in them a sense of values, ethics and morals. However, none of them can claim the uniqueness of Jesus Christ, who has suffered relentlessly for sustaining the good of the humankind. The pain and anguish that this great leader has suffered for his fellow humans and the strength of character he has displayed in the face of adversities still remains unparalleled in human history. Jesus Christ is, perhaps, the only leader humanity has seen that combines “divine and human natures,” which are “completely united in one person” (Biblical Doctrine: The Person of Christ 1). Thus, the life and teachings of this great leader and eminent historical figure, apart from being a source of inspiration and enlightenment for millions, have “formed the basis for a major world religion” known as Christianity (Edwards, et.al. 1). As Napoleon Bonaparte has eloquently testified, while emperors and conquerors like him depended on force and violence to build their empires, “Jesus alone founded His Empire upon love, and to the very day, millions would die for Him” (Horner 3). Thus, it transpires that what distinguish Jesus Christ from other eminent leaders in human history is His spirituality and sublimity, as well as compassion, sympathy and love for his fellow beings. On the other hand, many people have questioned the existence of Jesus Christ and it still remains a matter of controversy whether he actually lived on Earth. While atheists and agnostics argue that Jesus Christ is a fictional character, over a “1000 works of literature written very early in Church history” in Jewish and Pagan culture confirm the existence of Christ through some of them claim that he is a human and not the “Son of God” (Link 1). The author further refers to Huleatt writings of AD 50 that refers to the anointing of Jesus with oil, AD 170 writing of Tatian that confirms that God is born as a man, the account of Milito or Sardis in AD 177 on Christ’s Baptism, the Samaritan historian Tallus’ writing of AD 52 “about the darkness that occurred at the Crucifixion of Christ,” among many other documentary proof regarding the existence of Christ (Link 1-2). Moreover, several disciples of Jesus Christ, such as Paul, testify that Jesus Christ has appeared before His followers and refers to “over 500 witnesses who saw the resurrected Christ” and therefore, Link contends that Jesus Christ existed, as can be construed from the “overwhelming and undisputed evidence” (4). Thus, the historical evidences rather tend to support the notion that Jesus Christ has existed in this world in flesh and blood He had elements of divinity in him. Social Setting: Various social changes a leader makes in the society have far reaching repercussions in human civilization. Therefore, in order to fully appreciate the relevance of Jesus Christ and His teachings to the modern world, one has to understand the social setting during His times. In the aftermath of the Exile, Israel had undergone a multitude of changes when Jesus emerged as the leader of the common man. The country was “organized as a kind of sacred State under its high priests” and being ruled by the Romans, after the torment of a large string of battles for freedom, some of which were won while others lost (Stalker 30). During this time Galilee and Peraera were ruled by Herod’s sons, who were petty kings that owed allegiance to the Roman emperor. Judaea, during this time, was assigned to a Roman official and the “Roman soldiers paraded the streets of Jerusalem” and the Jews were literally stripped off all powers (31). The changes in the political front also reflected on the religious outlook of the country and rabbis in the synagogue pushed the “temple with its priesthood” to oblivion (31). However, though outwardly religion appeared to be a dominant element, true spirituality was lacking and in the 400 years between Malachi and Matthew, “no prophet’s voice had been heard” (32). The Pharisees who were the representative religious men at that time, were “ardent patriots” who “despised and hated other races, and clung with undying hope” to the belief that their nation had a bright future (32). It is also a notable feature during this time jurisprudence was a part of theology as most of the scribes who copied the scriptures were the ones who acted as people’s lawyers. The synagogues became the instrument of instruction and people learned from the scholastic class with vested motives rather than learning from religious texts. As years passed, even texts such as the Bible became irrelevant and subject to interpretation by the scholastic community. Thus, the rabbis and scribes became the interpreters of what is right and what is wrong and the ceremonial overrode the moral. People, overwhelmed by pride, lost track of the need for spirituality and they acted for accomplishing their selfish motives, ignoring the concept of common welfare. The society became dominated by the Sadducees, who were the upper class, wealthy and well to do? and the “Pharisees and scribes” were the middle class and in the bottom level were the “publicans, harlots and sinners for whose soul no man cared” (35). However, there were some people, who hoped that the situation would improve and their savior, the Son of the God would emerge to salvage the world from its current state of depravity and doom. The scribes and the Pharisees also believed that a divine presence will emerge, but their hopes were rooted on the concept of the freedom of the nation from foreign power and it focused on seeking the glory of material richness rather than attaining spiritual liberation. Thus, the time was ripe for the savior to emerge, to lead the herd from blackness to light, from degradation to the enlightenment of spiritual bliss, from sin to salvation. Career: Thus, Jesus Christ “appeared at a time when the nation had lapsed from its ideals and caricatured their sublimest features” and required a revival from within (38). He was, therefore, ordained for the task of the “reformation of His own country, and encounter the opposition of prejudices that had accumulated there through centuries of degradation” (38). Consequently, Jesus Christ from Nazareth, a land most of them abhorred, embarked on his career, a noble mission of salvaging his people from the doom of ignorance and degradation to lift them to the world of realization and spiritual bliss. Once Jesus Christ evaluated the work he had to do, He realized that He had to achieve a herculean task within a short span of three years. However, He remained undaunted by the magnitude of the work and called upon all the powers to provide Him strength. The main strength of Jesus Christ’s character seems to stem from the dormant period of 30 years he had spent in Nazareth, remaining below the surface of public life, but within, He was developing a sort of intensity and variety, determination and will power that were necessary for accomplishing the mission that He was destined to take up. Thus, in a life of obscurity He grew within him the entire powers essential for the leadership of his men, to retrieve them from the pit of misery and sin. Jesus Christ’s Baptism and the Temptation could be perceived as the final episodes of His induction into the career of a savior of humanity. Before His arrival, the prophecy has occurred, which eloquently described Christ as one who had been “in communion with his own heart” and one who was “clad in the hair cloak and leather girdle of the old prophets” and the one who possessed an ascetic rigor” (41). During the Baptism rite, John was astounded by the majestic appearance of Jesus, who he thought needed no rites to purify Him as He was already the purest of beings. As Jesus emerged from the holy water the Holy Ghost descended on him and, God, through a rumble of thunder, proclaimed Him to be His beloved son. This solidified the faith of people in their Messiah. Jesus called all people of his nation, people from all caste and creed and social classes and sought them to look into themselves and repent for the sins. He told them that in order to attain spiritual bliss, one must eschew evil and exhorted them to forgo all the sins and imbibe discipline into their lives. Most of the people who listened to him had fear of the God and they believed that if a person sinned, he or she would definitely receive the punishment for it. Thus, out of fear and respect for God, many people who had earlier immersed in sin vowed not to commit mistakes in the future. Jesus Christ could be seen as an entity that reflected human nature on the one hand and the traits of a divine being on the other. In both the perspectives He had displayed highest levels of wisdom and grace, His supernatural knowledge that enabled him also to read minds, and his divine nature was thought to be a peculiar gift of the Holy Ghost. However, the human side of Jesus Christ constantly encountered the temptation of Satan, which could be perceived in terms of using his divine powers for attaining menial goals, accessing the throne by yielding to the power of evil or conformity to the ceremonial religious practices in neglect of spirituality and human welfare. However, Jesus Christ, with his determination and unflinching loyalty to God, overcame the forces of temptation that kept prodding him, attempting to pierce His heart. He continued onto His mission of cleansing the souls of the sinners, showing them the path to the true spirit of God, leading them through love and compassion. Major Ideas/Teachings: Jesus Christ would always be remembered as a divine entity “much more than a man” and “His teachings are the only route to a life beyond the grave and lasting peace for the world” (Jesus Christ: The Real Story 51). The teachings of Jesus Christ encompass all aspects of the universe and human existence, they are specific and diverse. Some of these teachings took the form of conversation with his disciples or other people, appeals to God, the description of his deeds and miracles. Others were in the form of “writings of His disciples, which contain information learned from Jesus, prophecies received from the Holy Spirit and God-the-Father, as well as personal opinion of the authors” (Antonov 5). The New Testament was an embodiment of most of the information from these sources. The main teachings of Jesus Christ comprise of themes and subjects such as God-the-Father, the evolution of God and humans, creation and space, the Holy Spirit, hell and paradise, repentance, freedom of will, destiny, morals and ethics, love for God, compassion, monasticism etc. He had also provided insights to people on topics ranging from love and sex, marriage and divorce, nudism, the spiritual path for man and woman, minorities, the struggle against the lower self etc. Besides, his teachings such as “do not steal, do not lie, help others,” had become a universally known mantra. Jesus Christ maintained that God, the omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent being, existed since eternity and that humans should pray to him for consolation from their sorrows. Another most significant of the teachings of Jesus Christ concerns the relationship of God with humans and how humans as His children need to respond to him. He further portends that those “who weep and are oppressed” by people in power without any consideration for spiritual needs “will be released from every bondage” through the allegiance to God Almighty (Antonov 10). In this context, if one examines the modern theories like Marxism and Socialism, it can be seen that these concepts already exist in the philosophy Christ has preached before a period of millenniums. However, countries that followed the modern theories, most of which eschew the concept of God and promote atheism, without understanding the true implications of spirituality and sense of purpose, have perished while Christ’s message of love prevails over everything else. All such theories, which purport to stand for the well being of the poor and down trodden, seem to be directed towards one end, which is to attain power by manipulating the common man for whom they pretend to stand for and once they achieve their objective they exploit the people who installed them in power. This, as history has witnessed, is what happened around the world. But, in the case of Jesus Christ, the story has been entirely different. Despite the temptations from Satan to embrace evil for attaining power, He refused to budge and this greatness reflects in the blood He has shed on the cross rather than His might weighing down a throne to suppress the people whom he should shelter. Penitence is another significant area where Christ’s teachings become significant, as can be deduced from its impact on the one who repents and how one does it. The social setting just before Christ advocated a system of repentance where the Jews symbolically shifted their sins onto lambs during Easter time, and then “kill these lambs” as “offering to God,” to subsequently devour their bodies (Antonov 23). Just as the modern man’s social and political philosophies allow him to subjugate and exploit the very people whom they are meant to protect, the present time also witnesses people who fight for the rights of animals. However, Jesus Christ during a couple of millenniums ago has opposed this barbarian act and held that a person’s sin cannot be transferred to another being by sacrificing it to appease God. True penitence, he taught, should come from one’s genuine repentance that follows an “intellectual self-analysis that is the main purifier of the soul” (23). The profoundness of this philosophy will not be lost on a human soul that genuinely repents a sin, the one who never tries to shift the blame on a being that lacks any of the faculties for even understanding what is happening to its body. Finally, even Jesus lost his bearing when the people displayed their unique way of response. Everyone needed healing and solace and if he continued, people would develop a certain kind of dependence. Thus, he decided to withdraw, leaving people to take care of themselves because when they knew there was some force that would do their bidding, they would cease to act. However, by this time Christ’s call was attended to. This, perhaps, was the best teaching of Jesus. He roused them from slumber, guided them till their eyes got acquainted to the darkness and once this was done they should be capable of finding their way forward. Jesus Christ has an historical significance, especially in terms of the Biblical foundation of Christianity and He has been a real person as can be discerned through various evidences. The tangible existence of a person becomes a matter of history when he ceases to exist. The basic fact remains that He walked the earth, dined and slept in it, like any other human being, could not be conceived as a matter of fiction. Billions all over the world believe in Jesus Christ and the faith will pass on to generations to come. One cannot simply deny the strength of belief and when it transcends to generations after generations, it cannot be seen as rooted on a fictional concept. All the more significant is the premise on which this man, this divine entity existed, which is love and compassion. These elements in Jesus Christ have been known and felt and then passed onto others from those who really experienced. This could be the reason why the belief still remains with the modern man. Any account of fiction, transferred from one generation to the other will not sustain with such fervor and devoutness as in the case of Jesus Christ. He prevails in this world, with all its technological advancements, as a strong and omnipotent element because at one point of time He existed as a reality, touched and known by others. Works Cited Antonov, Vladimir. The Original Teachings of Jesus Christ. New Atlanteans. 2008. Web. 30 November 2012. Biblical Doctrine: The Person of Christ. n.d. Web. 30 November 2012. Edwards, William. D. et al. on the Physical Death of Jesus Christ. God and Science Org. 1986. Web. 30 November 2012. Horner, Barry. E. The Life of Jesus Christ: According to the Quadraphonic Testimony of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Web. 30 November 2012. Jesus Christ the Real Story. United Church of God, an International Association. 2001. Web. 30 November 2012. Link, Norbert. Jesus Christ: A Great Mystery. n.d. Web. 30 November 2012. Stalker, James. Life of Jesus Christ. Kessinger Publishing. 1880. Print. Read More