Dethroning Jesus: What Popular Culture Says About Jesus – Part 7

[This material is excerpted from our television series, “The Battle to Dethrone Jesus,” with Dr. Darrell Bock and Dr. Daniel Wallace. The entire series is available in our online store.]

What Evidence Do We Have From the Bible That Jesus Was More Than Just a Man?

Starting With the Gospel of Mark

Dr. John Ankerberg: If you are talking to students about the historical evidence for who Jesus claimed to be, where should they start?

Dr. Daniel Wallace: I advise starting with the Gospel of Mark. Both sides of the theological aisle agree that Mark is the most primitive Gospel. By stripping away theological accretions assumed to exist in Matthew, Luke, and John, you reach the core of the historical record. Even within this early document, we find powerful glimpses of Jesus being seen as God.

Jesus Appropriates Divine Authority

Dr. Daniel Wallace: Consider Mark 2:5-7. Jesus is in Peter’s house, and friends lower a paralytic through the roof. Jesus says, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” The religious leaders mutter, “He’s blaspheming. Only God can forgive sins.” They are right that only God can forgive sins, but they are wrong that Jesus is blaspheming. When Jesus heals the man to demonstrate His authority, He is claiming a capacity that belongs to God alone. He is functioning as God.

The Disciples' Struggle for Understanding

Dr. Daniel Wallace: In Mark 4, after Jesus stills the storm with a mere command, the disciples ask, “Who is this guy?” They are loyal, but they lack a category for Him. Later, in Mark 8 and 9, even after Peter confesses Jesus as the Messiah, the disciples still do not understand what it means for the Messiah to suffer, die, and be raised. They debate the meaning of resurrection because it contradicts their understanding of a final, end-of-time resurrection. This historical confusion proves they did not invent these doctrines after the crucifixion; they were clearly taught by Jesus Himself.

The Apostle Paul and the Reality of the Resurrection

Dr. Daniel Wallace: The light bulb moment for the disciples was the resurrection. But for the apostle Paul, the journey was different. As a devout Pharisee, Paul knew Deuteronomy 21:23: “Cursed is every man who hangs on a tree.” Paul was passionately against Christians because he believed God had cursed Jesus. Yet, his experience on the road to Damascus forced him to reconcile two truths: the Bible says God cursed Jesus, but his own indisputable experience shows God raised Him from the dead.

Paul’s logic is undeniable: If Jesus was cursed by the law for His own sins, He could not have been raised. If He was raised, He must have been sinless. If He was sinless, He must have died as a substitution for others. Eventually, Paul realizes that if Jesus died as a substitute for the sins of the world, He must be in a category all by Himself—the category of genuine deity.

Next up: Part 8 – Who did Jesus say that He was?