subject: Who Is The Real Jesus? How Can We Know? [print this page] Who Is The Real Jesus? How Can We Know? Who Is The Real Jesus? How Can We Know?
Thousands of books about Jesus line bookstore shelves, and each of them sees Jesus in a slightly different way. The slogan "what would Jesus do" has become extremely popular, but the contradictory descriptions of Jesus' character given in the New Testament gospel accounts make the question impossible to answer. At one moment Jesus is portrayed as tender and merciful, at the next wrathful and judgmental. Thomas Jefferson was so disturbed by this conflict; he felt that he had no choice but to create his own edited version of the gospels.
We might argue that everyone's personality has conflicting characteristics, but many Bible scholars feel that the New Testament gospels contain many differences that are impossible to reconcile. Why is it so difficult to know who Jesus is? Unfortunately Jesus' words couldn't be recorded or his preaching activity caught on video. If a reliable record existed, there would be far less controversy. To understand Jesus, we need to keep these issues in mind:
The New Testament gospels are not first-hand eyewitness accounts. They were written 30-65 years after Jesus' death by people who did not know him or his followers.
Gospels were a genre of writing similar to the "self-help" books available today. They were written to persuade people to believe and were never meant to be accurate histories.
Hundreds of gospel accounts circulated among early Christians. It's impossible to know if any of them were more accurate than the others. The gospels accounts found in the New Testament were chosen because they most closely fit the beliefs of the Roman church, not because they were precise depictions.
No early manuscripts survive. Older copies contain thousands of errors and changes. Often those errors and changes alter the meaning of the text, sometimes quite drastically. Some changes were accidental copyist's errors, but some were purposely made to support a particular belief system.
Human perception also plays a role in knowing Jesus:
Each of the early Christians who wrote about Jesus was limited by their own world view. Unless we let go of our preconceived notions, the brain filters everything we see and hear to fit our world view. Jesus followers were a diverse group. Some followed him for the food and healing he supplied, others because they were looking for a leader who would destroy their Roman oppressors, and still others were looking for a wisdom teacher who could help them make a connection with Source.
Followers rarely understand the full meaning of a spiritual master's teaching. The New Testament gospels make it clear that Jesus' followers were frequently confused and missed the point. They were often more concerned about what position or ranking they had than they were about understanding Jesus' teachings. Unfortunately these followers could only pass on their limited understanding.
It's probably safe to say there were as many different concepts of Jesus as there were early Christians. It would easily take several lifetimes to sort through everything that's been written about Jesus. But no matter how much we read or how long we study, we can never be sure we've gotten an accurate picture since every writer gave their own opinion colored by their own belief system. From that standpoint, can we be satisfied accepting someone else's view of Jesus? Would you want to be known only through the descriptions others gave of you?
If you really want to know someone, you would go straight to the source. And we don't have to know Jesus through second-hand information. We can follow the path taken by spiritual masters and have a direct, personal experience of Jesus. Don't worry; we're not talking about some strange supernatural event or paranormal experience.
Quantum physicists are discovering that consciousness is a field that permeates the universe. As part of that field, we're continuously communicating with everyone and everything whether we're aware of it or not. Since consciousness remains when the body dies, Jesus thoughts are still alive and available to each of us on a first-hand basis. But this field of consciousness is not found in the brain. We can limit ourselves to the brain, but researchers are discovering that the brain does so much more than sort through stored information. The brain is also a retrieval system that can access the field of consciousness and memory that's part of the quantum level of the universe. Spiritual sages understood this principle and tapped into the One Mind we all share with the Divine, and we can too.
If we really want to know Jesus, we can drop the brain's preconceived notions and access the mind. The gnostic Dialogue of the Savior points out that the One Mind is the only teacher we need, ". . .bring in your guide and your teacher. The mind is the guide. . .Live according to your mind. . .Acquire strength, for the mind is strong. . .Enlighten your mind. . . Light the lamp within you." Who is the real Jesus and how can we know? In the gnostic Gospel of Thomas Jesus assured his followers, "He who drinks from my mouth will become as I am; I shall become he, and the things that are hidden will be revealed to him." When we drink in Jesus' words directly through the One Mind, we will know the answer.
