Article

 Samuel Ferrell - May, 2025

Who is this Jesus?

Most of us likely fit into 3 different categories:

1. You follow Jesus

2. You know or you’ve heard about Jesus

3. You don’t know much about Jesus

Most people have at least heard the name of Jesus once in their lifetime. His name has become a household name, and rarely would you find someone that hasn’t heard of Him before.

Jesus is very popular. He’s praised in Christian circles, mentioned in History class, and ridiculed by a lot of people. Jesus isn’t some ordinary man: there’s something more to this “Jesus.”

For someone so popular and so commonly named every day by thousands of people, very few will listen to what He has to say. The Bible shows us who He is and what He has said, but very few people pick it up and read it. Even some proclaiming Christians will claim that they know Jesus, but they won’t live by what He says. Many include themselves in the Christian category, while only following Him when things get dicey; they limit Jesus in their lives to their trials and only accept what He says when it will bring them peace and prosperity.

If Jesus is so popular, why don’t people listen to what He has to say?

In all reality, knowing Jesus requires a relationship with Him; most people don’t have it. If you want to know this Jesus, then you need to start with building your relationship with Him. Most people have known about Jesus, but few know Him.

Do you know Him?

Luke 8:22-25 KJV — Now it came to pass on a certain day, that he went into a ship with his disciples: and he said unto them, Let us go over unto the other side of the lake. And they launched forth. But as they sailed he fell asleep: and there came down a storm of wind on the lake; and they were filled with water, and were in jeopardy. And they came to him, and awoke him, saying, Master, master, we perish. Then he arose, and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water: and they ceased, and there was a calm. And he said unto them, Where is your faith? And they being afraid wondered, saying one to another, What manner of man is this! for he commandeth even the winds and water, and they obey him.

In this account, Jesus is seen with his disciples: his pupils and trusted students. These men were with Jesus every day, and they were being trained by Him, but a storm shook the boat, and all the mentorship faded away. It was almost as if they’ve never met Him before. They said:

V.25 — What manner of man is this! for he commandeth even the winds and water, and they obey him.

What’s more important than asking the question is why they asked the question: His commandments have supreme authority. When He spoke to the winds, they ceased. When He spoke to the water, they were calmed. What kind of man can do that? No man could do this, except:

1. Jesus, the eternal God

John 8:53-58 KJV — Art thou greater than our father Abraham, which is dead? and the prophets are dead: whom makest thou thyself [Who do you claim to be]? Jesus answered, If I honor myself, my honor is nothing: it is my Father that honoureth me; of whom ye say, that he is your God: Yet ye have not known him; but I know him: and if I should say, I know him not, I shall be a liar like unto you: but I know him, and keep his saying. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad. Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham? Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.

The Jews were questioning who Jesus was claiming to be. They made claims that they were related to Abraham and that they didn’t need salvation. They didn’t see their Spiritual problems and thought Jesus was a lunatic for calling them out. But Jesus showed them why He was right: He said that He existed before Abraham and used the same name that God used to describe Himself:

I AM

He always was — even before Abraham — He always is — even today — and He always will be — no question about it!

Jesus is God! He’s the Master of the wind, He’s the director of the waves, He’s the Creator of all things: He’s the all-powerful God above all! If you don’t believe it, then listen to what Jesus has to say: Where is your faith? Even before Abraham was, I AM.

Above every other thing Jesus could be called, this is the most important one: if Jesus is not God, then none of His other descriptions would mean anything. If He was only a significant character in the history book and had all these titles thousands of years ago, He would not be relevant to our eternity today. But He is relevant today!

Revelation 1:8 KJV - I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.

Jesus is the beginning and He is the end: He is the almighty. Jesus has all power and all authority, but He did something so bizarre that puzzled the highest of the Jews.

1 Timothy 3:16 KJV - And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness [or of our faith]: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

This is where the Good News, the Gospel, comes in: Jesus is God, but He chose to limit Himself and fulfill the plan that He has for humanity. This plan is laid out in the Old Testament and it’s centered around:

2. Jesus, the Christ: the Anointed One

Isaiah 9:6-7 KJV - For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.

This was written by the prophet Isaiah hundreds of years before Jesus was born. This goes to show how God had a plan for the Christ from the very beginning. There was going to be a savior and He would come as God in human flesh. He would be called a Son, yet He would be referred to as the Everlasting Father. He would bring everlasting peace and the increase of His government wouldn’t end.

Jesus is the Christ! He fulfilled all of the prophecies that had to do with a future savior, a willing sacrifice, and a mighty King. He is the specially chosen and anointed one that the prophets spoke of. He is much more than a man with divine characteristics. Think about it: He authored the plan of the Christ, He showed His people the plan of the Christ, and He stepped down from all the glory and power of heaven and took on flesh to fulfill the plan of the Christ. He did that for you!

The plan of God was made for you, and it required the Most High God to step down and be the Christ, the anointed one. Peter recognized this truth, and Jesus built the church upon the revelation of this truth.

Matthew 16:16 KJV - And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.

Knowing Jesus only by His divine nature — the Son of God — leaves out the fact that He chose to limit Himself of this nature to be the Christ. Being the Christ highlights His next important attribute. Jesus did more than limit Himself in the flesh; He gave Himself for us. He is:

3. Jesus Christ, our Spotless Lamb

Isaiah 53:3-7 KJV - He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.

Here goes Isaiah again: this man will take all of our sins, put them on His account, and suffer the punishments that we deserve. He will be like a lamb to the slaughter: silent and obedient. He will suffer for the crimes He never committed. Lambs were sacrificed under the Old Covenant as a cover for sin, but Jesus would do more than provide a covering. As the spotless lamb, His blood would be used as the remedy for our sin. Beforehand, there had to be countless lambs and sacrifices to account for the sins of the people, but Jesus chose to put an end to the sacrifices and be the spotless one. No other sacrifice could amount to the lamb of God.

John 1:29 KJV - The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

If you ever wonder why Jesus chose to limit Himself, it’s because of you. If you ever wonder why Jesus was punished with incredible sufferings like a lamb to the slaughter, it’s because of you. 

Looking in the mirror should remind us all of why Christ suffered on the Cross. 

Jesus fulfilled the plan to be the Christ because He loves you: no other explanation can satisfy His reasoning. This is the one who created the whole universe and formed each of us uniquely, who holds all things together and has all authority and power. Yet, He saw us in our disobedient lives and chose to save us!

Romans 5:6-9 KJV - For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

He is our spotless lamb. He died for us when we were at our lowest, and He rose from the dead, defeating death so we could live as new creatures in Christ. His resurrection affirmed all of His teachings about who He is: the Christ, the Spotless lamb, and the God above all.

Because of what He did for us at the cross, the door has been opened for us to be justified. In justification, Christ is standing on our behalf and declaring us guiltless. He’s our advocate with God the Father and He has given everyone the opportunity for forgiveness. He is:

4. Jesus Christ, our High Priest

Hebrews 4:14-16 KJV - Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

Our High Priest has one proposition for us all: abundant grace. We have all disobeyed God in many ways, but Jesus is standing on our behalf and offering mercy. Our High Priest has suffered like we have. Our High Priest has been tempted like we have. Our High Priest understands the problems we face, and He is offering grace to help you in your times of need.

Jesus Christ became just as we are, yet without sin, so that we could longer be held down by sin, but delivered from it altogether!

Hebrews 2:17 ESV - Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.

He’s offered us abundant grace and mercy, and He understands who we are and what we go through. So what’s holding us back?! We need to run to Him every chance we have to find the grace that helps us in our times of need! The throne of grace has been opened up to us, but what are we doing about it? He’s done everything we could ask for, and He’s all we need. What’s holding us back?

Before too long, His time as our High Priest will be shut off, and the grace period will be closed. Soon, He will finalize all of His condemnations against sin as:

5. The King of Kings

Daniel 7:13-14 ESV - "I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.

Jesus Christ will always be the King of Kings. He rules and reigns from the heart when we accept His sacrifice for our justification. When the King steps in, the enemy steps out. Jesus, as our King, paid the price for our salvation and provided the means for us to be victorious. We have the victory because of the King, and it is all because of the opened door that comes from His priesthood.

But soon, His role as our Priest will come to an end. Soon, the door will be shut and His reign will be everlasting. His priesthood was for our salvation, but His Kingship is the result of our salvation. There will be a day when His heavenly Kingdom will be established in all the earth and the path to salvation will be closed. 

The question is: 

Have you accepted Him as your savior and Lord? 

Is He the God, Christ, Lamb, Priest, and King of your life?

If you really want to know who this Jesus is, you need to start by accepting what He’s done. If you really want to know this Jesus, it starts with the relationship.

Do you know this Jesus today?

Oh, my brother, are you ready for the call?

To crown your Savior, King, and Lord of all?

The kingdoms of this world shall soon before Him fall;

We shall see the King when He comes!