WHO IS JESUS?
WHO IS JESUS?
WHAT MAKES HIM DIFFERENT
FROM THE OTHER GREAT RELIGIOUS TEACHERS,
PROPHETS OR PHILOSOPHERS?
If any adjective were to describe Jesus, it would be "UNIQUE"!
His message was unique. The claims He made regarding Himself were unique.
His miracles were unique.
And the influence He has had on the World is unsurpassed by any other.
Jesus was no ordinary man, nor was He merely a great teacher, rabbi, guru, or even a prophet. In a way, He was all of these, but much more. For unlike the other great religious teachers who came before or after Him, Jesus not only spoke about love and God, but He was love and He was the Son of God!
One very outstanding and undeniably unique aspect of Jesus' life is that it fulfilled literally hundreds of predictions and prophecies written in the Bible. Made by ancient prophets and seers--many of them centuries before He was born--these prophecies gave specific details regarding His birth, life, and death that no mere mortal could possibly have fulfilled.
In the first books of the Bible, over 300 such predictions about the "Messiah" or "Savior" can be found. Twentieth-century archaeological discoveries of hundreds of ancient Old Testament manuscripts have proven without a doubt that these prophecies were indeed written centuries before Jesus was born.
The following are only a few of them:
BORN TO A VIRGIN
In 750 B.C., the prophet Isaiah made the following prediction:
"The Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son" (Isaiah 7:14).
Seven and a half centuries later, a young virgin in Israel named Mary was visited by the angel Gabriel, who announced to her that she would bear a Son.
The Gospel of Luke tells us that Mary asked the angel how this could be, seeing she had not had intercourse with any man.
And the angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God ( Luke 1:26-35)
BIRTHPLACE
A full 700 years before Jesus' birth, the prophet Micah foretold the exact town where the Messiah would be born:
"You, Bethlehem, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting"
(Micah 5:2).
Though Joseph and Mary lived in Nazareth, in northern Israel, they were forced to travel to Bethlehem at the time Mary was about to give birth, in order to take part in a nationwide census. It was during their time in Bethlehem that Jesus was born.
TRIUMPHAL ENTRY INTO JERUSALEM
The Prophet Zechariah commanded the people by the spirit of the Lord to:
“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; Shout, O daughter of JERUSALEM: behold, Thy King cometh unto thee: He is just, and having salvation: lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.” ( Zech.9:9 --450 B.C.)
FIVE DAYS BEFORE HIS CRUCIFIXION, JESUS RETURNED TO JERUSALEM and told His disciples, "Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto Me.
... And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them, AND BROUGHT THE ASS AND THE COLT, ... AND THEY SAT HIM THEREON ... AND THE MULTITUDES THAT WENT BEFORE, AND THAT FOLLOWED, CRIED, SAYING, HOSANNA to the Son of David: BLESSED is He that cometh in the Name of the Lord.”
( Mt.21:2-10 )
BETRAYAL
In 487 B.C., the prophet Zechariah wrote:
"Then I said to them, 'If it is agreeable to you, give me my wages; and if not, refrain.' So they weighed out for my wages thirty pieces of silver." Zechariah 11:12.
On the night that Jesus was arrested by His enemies, the New Testament tells us that Judas Iscariot went to the chief priests and said, 'What are you willing to give me if I deliver Him to you?' And they counted out to him thirty pieces of silver. Matthew 26:14-15.
Imagine!--Five hundred years before the event took place, God's prophet, Zechariah, predicted the exact price that Jesus' enemies would pay to His traitorous disciple, Judas!
HIS TRIAL
PROPHECY:
"He was TAKEN from PRISON and from JUDGMENT: and who shall declare His generation? For He was CUT OFF out of the land of the living: FOR THE TRANSGRESSION OF MY PEOPLE was He stricken."
(Isaiah53:8)
In the course of Jesus' trial, Pilate asked the Jews, "Will ye therefore that I RELEASE unto You [from prison] the King of the Jews? Then cried they all again, saying, Not this Man, but Barabbas." (John.18:39)
So Jesus should have STAYED in prison. Pilate, after questioning Jesus, went before the Jews three times proclaiming. "I FIND NO FAULT IN HIM." His judgment, THEREFORE, WAS THAT HE WAS INNOCENT of the charges laid against Him. (John.18:38 ; 19:4,6)
CRUCIFIXION
Another outstanding prophecy regarding the Messiah was made by Israel's King David around the year 1000 B.C. In his prophecy, David gave details of a cruel and agonizing death which he himself never suffered:
"I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it has melted within me... Dogs have surrounded me; the congregation of the wicked has enclosed me. They pierced my hands and my feet... They divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots." (Psalm 22:14-18).
King David died a peaceful, natural death, so we know he was not talking about himself in this passage of Scripture. But also being a prophet, David predicted with uncanny accuracy the circumstances surrounding the cruel death on the cross of the Messiah, the Christ that was to come:
"I am poured out like water... my heart is melted within me." Jesus not only poured out His life for us spiritually, but the New Testament tells us that shortly after He died, while He was still hanging on the cross, one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water flowed out. (See John 19:34.)
"All my bones are out of joint." This describes one of the horrors of death by crucifixion: The weight of the victim's body literally pulls his arms out of their sockets.
"Dogs have surrounded me; the congregation of the wicked has enclosed me." The New Testament tells us that Jesus' wicked and vengeful religious enemies, the Scribes and the Pharisees, gathered around Him as He was nailed on the cross, mocking and reviling Him. (See Matthew 27:39-44.)
"They pierced my hands and my feet." This is probably the most astounding prediction within this prophecy. Crucifixion was not practiced by the Jews of David's time. Their religious laws demanded that criminals condemned to die be stoned to death. But God showed His prophet, David, how the Messiah would die 10 centuries later, executed at the hands of an empire that did not even exist in David's day--Rome--whose principal means of executing criminals was crucifixion.
"They divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots." In the Gospels we find the fulfillment of this prophecy: "Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His garments and made four parts, to each soldier a part, and also the tunic. Now the tunic was without seam, woven from the top in one piece. They said therefore among themselves, 'Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be'" (John 19:23-24).
DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM AFTER HIS CRUCIFIXION!
PROPHECY: "At the end of 62 sevens shall the Messiah be cut off, but not for Himself: AND the people of the RULER that SHALL COME shall DESTROY the CITY (of Jerusalem) and the SANCTUARY (the Jewish Temple)."--Daniel 9:26. In other words, according to this prophecy, AFTER the Messiah's death, the city of Jerusalem AND the Jewish Temple would be DESTROYED! Were they? YES! Only 40 years later!
FULFILMENT: After Jesus was cut off (crucified in 30 A.D.), "not for Himself", but for the sins of the WORLD, do you know what happened to Jerusalem and to the Jewish Temple? In 70 A.D., the Roman legions of the Emperor Vespasian ("the people of the ruler"), under his son, General Titus, marched in and burned Jerusalem to the ground and so utterly destroyed their Sanctuary that not one stone was left upon another!
Jesus Himself, in a set of amazingly detailed prophecies given 40 years before these catastrophic events, predicted EXACTLY what would happen!
(See Matthew 24:1-2; Luke 19:42-44;21:20-24.)
HIS BURIAL
PROPHECY:
"And He made His GRAVE with the WICKED, and with the RICH in His DEATH."
(Isa.53:9)
FULFILMENT: JESUS DIED AS A WICKED MAN IN THE EYES OF THE WORLD, as there were "two THIEVES CRUCIFIED WITH HIM." (Mt.27:38) And after His DEATH "A RICH MAN ... named Joseph ... went to Pilate, and begged the BODY OF JESUS. ... And when Joseph had taken the body, he ... LAID IT IN HIS OWN NEW TOMB"-- (Mt.27:57-60)
HIS RESURRECTION
"For thou with not LEAVE My soul in HELL; neither with thou suffer thine HOLY ONE to see CORRUPTION” (Psalm16:10)
THE WORD "HELL" HERE IS FROM THE HEBREW WORD "SHEOL," which is sometimes translated "hell" and other times "grave." It means both. King David, who gave the prophecy, died and was buried and his flesh saw corruption, but Jesus was raised from the grave and hell three days after His death, and "His soul was not LEFT in hell [or the grave], neither [did] His flesh see corruption." (Acts 2:27-31)
As the angel said to the mourners who came to Jesus' tomb, "He is not here, but is risen. ... Why seek ye the living among the dead?” (Luke 24:6,5)
But a mere MENTAL, intellectual acceptance of these facts is not enough.
For you to be absolutely CERTAIN that Jesus is Who He claimed to be, the Son of God, you simply need to personally TRY Him!
Ask Him to come into your heart, forgive you for all the wrong you've done, and fill your life with His Love, peace and joy.--And He WILL!
You don't have to try to figure Him out,
just let Him in with this prayer!
“Dear Jesus, I need Your love to cleanse me from my mistakes and wrongdoings. I need your light to drive away all darkness. I need your peace to fill and satisfy my heart. I now open the door of my heart and ask You to please come into my life and give me your gift of eternal life. Amen”
“This Jesus of Nazareth, without money and arms, conquered more millions than Alexander, Caesar and Napoleon. Without science and learning He shed more light on things human and things divine than all philosophers and scholars combined. Without the eloquence of schools, He spoke such Words of Life as were never spoken before or since, and produced effects which lie beyond the reach of orator or poet. Without writing a single line, He set more pens in motion, and furnished themes for more sermons, orations, discussions, learned volumes, works of art and songs of praise than the whole army of great men of ancient and modern times.”
Phillip Schaff, noted historian.
Edited From: www.tommyswindow.com
Is This Jesus’ Family Tomb? Apakah ini Makam Yesus?
Is This Jesus’ Family Tomb?
These are some of the major concerns that critical scholars have had. Although we are only at an early point in the research, the consensus so far has been that this tomb is not Jesus' burial site.
12 Major Problems for the "Jesus Tomb" Theory
(Used with permission from a Media Advisory of Christian Newswire February 26, 2007; adapted from the original version written by Ben Witherington and Gary Habermas)
Leading Scholars Dispute Discovery Channel Documentary:
1. The Names "Joseph" and "Jesus" were very popular in the 1st century. "Jesus" appears in at least 99 tombs and on 22 ossuaries. "Joseph" appears on 45 ossuaries.
2. "Mary" is the most common female name in the ancient Jewish world.
3.The DNA evidence establishes no positive links in this tomb whatsoever.
4.The statistical comparison to Jesus of Nazareth is severely flawed.
5.There is no early historical nor tomb connection to Mary Magdalene.
6.There is no historical evidence anywhere that Jesus ever married or had children.
7.The "Jesus" in the tomb was known as "Son of Joseph," but the earliest followers of the New Testament Jesus didn't call him that.
8. It is unlikely that Jesus' family tomb would be located in Jerusalem.
9. The Talpiot tomb was costly. It apparently belonged to a wealthy family.
10. The tenth ossuary has been accounted for without recourse to the "James" ossuary.
11. All ancient sources agree that, very soon afterwards, the burial tomb of Jesus of Nazareth was empty.
12. The Talpiot tomb data fail to account for Jesus' resurrection appearances.
Other Problems
On top of all the above, there is a long list of other problems with the premature conclusion that this is Jesus' family tomb. Here are some of them:
1. All the indications we have dictate that Jesus was not from Jerusalem, so why would the family tomb be located there, especially for more than one generation, as was usually the case?
2. This tomb is considered to be an upper class crypt, or at least to have been a very expensive one, unlike Jesus' family standing.
3. It should not be forgotten, either, that these tombs were frequently kept over a period of decades. Therefore, this tomb could easily contain persons from earlier family generations, or even adopted members whose parents had passed away, or even treasured servants!
4. In the ancient literature, Jesus is not known as "the son of Joseph."
5. If family members readily knew of Jesus' death, burial, and lack of bodily resurrection appearances, how did Christianity get off the ground, since this was the central proclamation?
6. Where was the body hidden?
7. Who moved the bones later to the family tomb?
8. Since names were so prominently displayed on the outside of the ossuary, it does not appear that this matter was being concealed at all.
9. Much research has shown that, from the very beginning, Jesus was proclaimed by his followers as having been raised from the grave, appearing bodily to many, including the dreaded persecutor Saul (Paul) and the skeptic James, the brother of Jesus.
10. What did Paul think he saw on the road to Damascus?
James would have readily known of the family burial plot and who was interred there. How could he truly believe that his brother had been raised from the dead and that he had appeared to him? In the Jewish context of that time, where the predominant conception of a resurrection was that of a literal, bodily resurrection, how could James believe and proclaim his brother's resurrection appearances while knowing that Jesus' body had already rotted and that his bones had been labeled and reburied? This exceptionally strong historical evidence must all be explained.
There is a Talpiot family tomb and a "Jesus" may well have been buried there. However, the evidence argues overwhelmingly that he is not the same
person as Jesus of Nazareth.
Terjemahan Bebas Indonesia
12 Masalah Utama tentang Theory Makam Yesus
1. Para ahli terkemuka mempertentangkan tayangan discovery channel tersebut sebab): Nama Yusuf dan Yesus adalah sangat popular pada abad pertama. Nama Yesus muncul paling sedikit pada 99 makam dan pada 22 kotak batu (ossuary). Nama Yusuf terdapat pada 45 Kotak Batu berisi Tulang (ossuary).)
2. Maria adalah nama yg sangat biasa untuk wanita pada jaman Yahudi kuno.
3. Bukti DNA tidak menguatkan apapun berhubungan dengan kesimpulan bahwa makam tersebut adalah makan Yesus dari Nasareth.
4. Perbandingan bersifat statistik membuktikan bahwa--untuk mengenakannya—pada Yesus Kristus cacat/tidak tepat. Maksudnya tingkat kemungkinan (Probabilitas) bahwa itu benar adalah Yesus dari Nasaret dengan menggunakan kuantifikasi statistik hasilnya adalah 1 / 71,000,000 (Ahli Statistik Andrey Feuerverger).
5. Tidak ada catatan sejarah awal maupun makam yg berhubungan dengan Maria Magdalena.
6. Tidak ada bukti bersifat sejarah dimanapun bahwa Yesus pernah menikah dan mempunyai anak.
7. Nama Yesus dalam makam tersebut diketahui sebagai “anak Yusuf”, tetapi pengikut pertama dalam PB tidak memanggil Yesus demikian.
8. Nampaknya tidak mungkin makam keluarga Yesus bertempat di Yerusalem. Added: Mereka tidak berasal dari Yerusalem, lokasi lain seperti Nasareth maupun Betlehem lebih mungkin.
9. Kuburan yg ditemukan di Talpiot sangat mahal. Nampaknya milik keluarga yg kaya.
10. Ossuari tersebut telah dapat diberi keterangan yg jelas tanpa jalan lain –menunjuk--kepada Ossuari Yakobus.
12. Semua sumber yg terdahulu setuju bahwa kubur Yesus dari Nasareth benar-benar kosong.
13. Data tentang makam Talpiot gagal berhubungan dengan kenyataan penampakan kebangkitan Yesus.
Di atas semuanya, ada daftar panjang masalah lain sehubungan dengan kesimpulan yg terlalu cepat bahwa ini adalah makam Yesus. Ini adalah beberapa diantaranya:
1. Semua petunjuk yg kita miliki menunjukkan bahwa Yesus tidak berasal dari Yerusalem, jadi mengapa kuburan keluarga tersebut berada di sana, khususnya lebih dari satu generasi. Tambahan: Orangtua Yesus berasal dari Betlehem, namun tinggal di Nasareth. Mereka ke Yerusalem hanya untuk menghadiri perayaan agama Yahudi. Yesus sampai penyalibannya disebut orang Nasareth di Galilea.
2. Kuburan ini disadari sebagai milik kalangan atas/orang kaya, karena sangat mahal, tidak sesuai dengan keadaan keluarga manusia Yesus.
3. Tidak boleh dilupakan juga bahwa kubur-kubur ini telah ada selama beberapa abad. Sehingga dapat saja terisi dengan beberapa orang lain dari generasi terdahulu, atau bahkan anggota keluarga yang diadopsi.
4. Dalam tulisan-tulisan kuno, Yesus tidak dikenal sebagai anak dari Yusuf.
5. Jika angota keluarganya telah mengetahui kematiannya, penguburannya dan bahwa ia benar-benar tidak bangkit secara jasmani, bagaimana mungkin kekristenan dapat berkembang, karena inti utama pemberitaan Kristen terletak pada keyakinan bahwa “Yesus bangkit dari kematian”.
6. Dimana tubuhnya disembunyikan?
7. Siapa yang kemudian memindahkan tulang-tulang tersebut kedalam kubur keluarga?
Karena nama-nama tersebut ditunjukkan secara jelas pada bagian luar kotak-kotak tulang terbuat dari batu tersebut (Ossuary) maka tampaklah bahwa kubur ini sama sekali bukanlah sesuatu yang disembunyikan.
8. Banyak peneliti sudah menunjukkan bahwa dari awal para pengikut Yesus sudah menyatakan bahwa Yesus telah bangkit dari kubur, serta menampakkan diri dalam tubuh kepada orang banyak, termasuk kepada Saul (Paul) penganiaya orang Kristen maupun kepada saudaranNya Yakobus yang pada awalnya tidak percaya kepada Yesus.
9. Siapakah yang dipikirkan Paulus telah menampakkan diri kepadanya dalam perjalanan ke Damsyik?
10. Yakobus (James) telah diketahui secara pasti berhubungan dengan kompleks pekuburan keluarga tersebut dan memang ia dikubur situ. Bagaimana ia dapat sungguh-sungguh percaya bahwa kakaknya (Yesus) telah bangkit dari orang mati dan bahwa telah menampakkkan diri kepadanya? (Dalam konteks orang yahudi pada jaman itu, pengertian tentang kebangkitan adalah secara literal, artinya kebangkitan secara tubuh. Bagaimana mungkin Yakobus (James) percaya dan menyatakan bahwa saudaranya (Yesus) telah bangkit serta menampakkan diri sementara ia tahu bahwa tubuh Yesus telah membusuk dan tulang-tulangnya telah dilabel dan dikuburkan lagi? Tanpa pengecualiaan, bukti-bukti historis seperti ini juga harus dapat dijelaskan.
Kesimpulannya: Bahwa memang ada suatu pekuburan keluarga di Talpiot dan seorang bernama Yesus mungkin saja dikuburkan disana. Bagaimanapun juga bukti-bukti menegaskan dengan meyakinkan bahwa orang itu tidak sama dengan Yesus dari Nasareth.
Dr. Darryl Bock - Research Professor of New Testament at Dallas Theological Seminary: Hollywood Hype: The Oscars and Jesus’ Family Tomb, What Do They Share?
Dr. Craig Blomberg - Professor of New Testament, Denver Theological Seminary - Did They Really Find Jesus' Bones?
Dr. Paul Maier - Professor Department of History, Western Michigan University posts an e-mail to friends and readers.
Dr. Ben Witherington Research Professor of New Testament at Asbury Theological Seminary: THE JESUS TOMB? ‘TITANIC’ TALPIOT TOMB THEORY SUNK FROM THE START.
Dr. Andreas Köstenberger Professor of New Testament Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary: The Jesus Tomb.
Dr. Al Mohler president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary was on Larry King Live discussing this with Cameron, Jacobovici, Tabor, and Bill Donahue (Catholic league) - The transcript can be found here.
http://www.powerofchange.org/blog/ 27 Februari 2007
Compiled and Edited/translated by Rev. Son Ngir “Is This Jesus’ Family Tomb?
TEMA PASKAH 2010
PILIHAN TEMA PASKAH 2010:
1. TEMA PASKAH:KEMATIAN YANG MEMBAWA KEHIDUPAN
2. TEMA PASKAH: KEMATIAN YANG MEMATIKAN KEMATIAN
3. TEMA PASKAH:SALIB YESUS: PENDAMAIAN VERTIKAL DAN HORIZONTAL
4. TEMA PASKAH: SUDAH SELESAI...
5. TEMA PASKAH: 7 (TUJUH)PERKATAAN SALIB
6. TEMA PASKAH: PENGORBANAN TERBESAR
7. TEMA PASKAH: KEBANGKITAN YANG MEMBANGKITKAN HARAPAN
8. TEMA PASKAH: KUBUR YANG KOSONG MENGISI HATI YG KOSONG
9. TEMA PASKAH: JALAN TUHAN BAGI PENYELESAIAN DOSA
10. TEMA PASKAH: MENJADI SAKSI KEMATIAN DAN KEBANGKITAN
11. ....
PENDETA DESEFENTISON GEMBALA SIDANG GEREJA KEMAH INJIL INDONESIA SILOAM (GKII SILOAM TARAKAN)
The Miracle at Siloam
And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth.
And his disciples asked him, saying, Master , who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?
Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.
must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day : the night cometh, when no man can work.
As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.
When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay, And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent). He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.
John 9:1-7
Some said, This is he: others said, He is like him: but he said, I am he.
Therefore said they unto him, How were thine eyes opened?
He answered and said, A man that is called Jesus made clay, and anointed mine eyes, and said unto me, Go to the pool of Siloam, and wash: and I went and washed, and I received sight.
Then said they unto him, Where is he? He said, I know not.
(John 9:9-11)
"Orang yang disebut Yesus itu mengaduk tanah, mengoleskannya pada mataku dan berkata kepadaku:
Pergilah ke Siloam dan basuhlah dirimu.
Lalu aku pergi dan setelah aku membasuh diriku,
aku dapat melihat."
Yohanes 9:11
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