I am a voracious consumer of historical biographies. To read about the lives of presidents, generals, caesars, and religious leaders consistently challenges me to aspire to a more meaningful and impactful life and to emulate the personal qualities that make these men and women great.
I especially like to read biographies from the American Revolution as well as the Roman Empire. Notable figures like George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Julius Caesar and Cleopatra jump off the page and into my psyche causing me to imagine their world through their eyes and perhaps appreciate their voluminous achievements at an even deeper level.
So when I think about the biography that would intrigue me the most, the answer is easy. It is the History of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. He is the Subject that I will attempt to cover here, although the task is far beyond my knowledge or even my capacity to acquire knowledge, especially as it will be delivered in an essay rather than a complete one million volume set. The Apostle John said that if everything Jesus did and said were written down, the whole world could not contain the volumes. From this I deduce that what can be read in the sixty-six books of the Holy Canon is a fraction of His history. I may also further deduce that what I will write here is merely a fraction of a fraction of His history.
Jesus said of Himself in Revelation 22:13 that He was the “Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End.” So we will begin where most biographies begin: at the Alpha. Although our Alpha may turn out to be more of a Theta, a hint which those who know something about the Greek alphabet may appreciate later.
This is a map of Israel during the time of Jesus. And the history of Jesus Christ of Nazareth begins (of course) in Nazareth. You will note it is in the southern portion of Galilee, in the northern territory of the map.
In Nazareth Joseph, a skilled worker, and Mary were engaged to be married. Somewhere between 6 and 4 BCE (I will address my reasoning that it wasn’t the year zero shortly), the Holy Spirit did a remarkable thing to Mary. An angel appeared in Luke 1 and said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David.”
Since Mary had never been with a man, including Joseph, this is referred to as the Immaculate Conception, meaning that God Himself fathered Jesus without Mary doing biologically what has always been biologically necessary to create life.
From that moment, Jesus became Emmanuel (God with us), in the form of an embryo that Mary, his mother, carried around.
Now this all occurred during the reign of Herod the Great. His reign, history tells us, ended around 4 BCE. We also know that before his reign ended he ordered the execution of all Jewish baby boys under the age of two. Since this is the case, we can surmise that the beginning of Jesus’ history on earth was probably somewhere between 6 and 4 BCE.
While Quirinius was governor of Syria, Caesar Augustus sent out a decree that all the world should be taxed. Further, the notice read that everyone must return to the place of their birth to pay that tax which, for Joseph, was Bethlehem. So he, Mary, and the yet-to-be-born Jesus started the approximately 93-mile journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem.
In Bethlehem, Mary went into labor. It is common knowledge that there was no room for them in the inn, so it was in a stable that Jesus, wrapped in flesh, made His appearance. He could have chosen a major metropolis like Rome, but instead He chose a humble village populated by, conservatively, around 1000 people. Some say as many as 3000, some say as few as 300.
Either way, the heavens took notice.
When The Alpha arrived, the angels appeared to lowly shepherds announcing the good news. “Glory to God in the highest! On earth peace! Goodwill toward men!” The shepherds made their way down from the hillsides and took the time to worship around His humble throne of hay.
Little is known of His early years, other than the fact that He, along with Mary and Joseph, fled to Egypt to escape Herod’s murderous intentions.
We meet Him again when He is twelve years old. John Piper touches on this briefly in his work “The Son of God at Twelve Years Old”:
Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to custom; and when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it, but supposing him to be in the company, they went a day's journey, and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintances; and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking him.
After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions; and all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. And when they saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him "Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been looking for you anxiously." And he said to them, "How is it that you sought me? Did you now know that I must be in my Father's house?" And they did not understand the saying which he spoke to them. And he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature, and grew in favor with God and man.
Here we observe the complexities of Jesus’ relationship with Mary and Joseph increasing, especially as He reaches the age of accountability. As “Bar Mitzvah” nears, Jesus is doing His Father’s business and becoming more independent from his earthly caretakers. It is notable that His understanding of the law and prophets has advanced already to the point that it amazed all who heard him.
Israel was taking notice.
Jesus: The Missing Years
Much has been written (and mostly speculated) about the eighteen years that followed, between the aforementioned temple scene and Jesus’ arrival at the synagogue to announce Himself as the fulfillment of the Isaiah 61 prophecy.
It is this writer’s opinion that Jesus stayed in Galilee and lived routinely, learning His father’s trade and growing in wisdom, knowledge, and power.
ST.NEKTARIOS MONASTERY provides a compilation of compelling evidence in favor of my theory:
“The fourth chapter of the Gospel of St. Luke contains the following informative passage: ‘And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up: and, as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was delivered unto Him the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He hath anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He hath sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.’ And He closed the book, and He gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on Him. And He began to say unto them, ‘This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.’ And all bare Him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, ‘Is not this Joseph’s son?’" (Lk. 4:16-22).
Three inferences can be derived from the above narrative: First, that Christ was raised in Nazareth. Second, that the Spirit of God exists within Him. Third, that everyone in the synagogue who heard Him expounding the prophecy of Isaiah was (sic) amazed at His wisdom and knowledge—because they knew Him to be a simple carpenter, not a learned individual who had studied abroad. They knew Him as the son of a humble carpenter; this is why they asked, "Isn't he the son of Joseph?" Even though He grew up in Nazareth, it was natural for Him as the God-man to be able to explain the prophecy and amaze the listeners, without having to receive training in foreign lands.
Yet another testimony comes from the Evangelist Mark. "And He went out from thence, and came into His own country; and His disciples followed Him. And when the Sabbath day was come, He began to teach in the synagogue. And many hearing him were astonished, saying, ‘From whence hath this man these things? And what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands? Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Judah, and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?’ And they were scandalized with him. But Jesus said unto them, ‘A prophet is not without honor, but in his own country, among his own kin, and in his own house.’ And He could there do no mighty work, save that He laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them.”
Three Years of Wonder
From there, Jesus went on the perform his first miracle, turning water into wine while attending the wedding at Cana. There is debate about what presently marks the location of this village then-called Cana, but this author believes that current-day Qana in Lebanon fits the bill due to its obvious shared etymology and the fact that, while it is presently situated in modern Lebanon, it was then part of Biblical Galilee, in the Northern region of Israel.
Space does not allow a thorough treatment of the thirty-six months that followed. Jesus fed 5000 with a little boy’s lunch, he healed the blind and deaf, raised the dead, and confounded the Sadducees and Pharisees with his teaching.
He accomplished the latter from the very genesis of His teaching on the Kingdom of God. There He repeatedly used the refrain, “You have heard it said…but I say…”. The “you have heard it said” referenced the teaching of the temple and synagogue. The “I say” referenced his own teaching. This ominously foreshadowed an escalating tension that would define his entire ministry and especially his fateful final week on earth. In short, “but I say” lit a fuse that would three years later explode on Golgotha.
The inauspicious omen of the Pharisaical stance toward his teaching was noted in Luke 4, “all the people in the synagogue were enraged. They got up, drove Him out of the town, and led Him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw Him over the cliff. But Jesus passed through the crowd and went on His way.”
This tension grew for three years. The multitudes followed Him and even celebrated Him. The poor, the sick, the disenfranchised, the captives, the enslaved, the criminals, and the wannabes followed Him with shouts of joy and adulation. The religious leaders, territorial prefects, Roman hierarchy, and those with a measurable interest in Temple economics grew in hatred of Him, seeing Him as a threat to their authority and way of life.
It is into this tension that He arrived in Jerusalem for the Feast of Passover at the age of thirty-three. Consider Dr. Noemi Oliver:
The biblical story of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem is a pivotal event in the life and ministry of Christ, signifying the beginning of his journey towards the cross. As narrated in all four Gospel accounts—Matthew 21:1–11; Mark 11:1–11; Luke 19:29–44; and John 12:12–19—this momentous occurs just days before Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection. Known as Palm Sunday, it marks the commencement of Holy Week, when Christians worldwide reflect on the passionate narrative that led to Christ's sacrifice for humanity.
“In preparation for his arrival in Jerusalem, Jesus instructs two disciples to fetch a donkey from a nearby village for him to ride on. This fulfills an Old Testament prophecy in Zechariah 9:9, which says, "Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See your king come to you...riding on a donkey." As he enters the city gates on this humble animal instead of horseback like powerful kings or military leaders would have done so at that time shows how others depict their authority. The huge crowd gathered there quickly recognized him as their long-awaited messianic deliverer and spread their cloaks along with palm branches on the ground before him, proclaiming, "Hosanna!" This triumphant yet modest entrance by Jesus demonstrated his divine nature. It emphasized that he came not only as Israel's King but also as its Savior, who would grant eternal salvation through spiritual means rather than a political force.”
The prophet Zechariah saw it in a vision in 520 BCE. Jesus had traveled to Jerusalem many times; some recorded, some not. But none of those entrances were as important as this one.
Jesus rode in on a donkey while those whose lives had been directly or indirectly touched by His life laid down palm branches on those dusty roads leading into the city and raised up verbal expressions of praise to recognize the entrance of The King.
Mary Fairchild put forward a good summary of His second day in the city.
The following morning, Jesus returned with his disciples to Jerusalem. Along the way, hecursed a fig tree because it had failed to bear fruit. Some scholars believe this cursing of the fig tree represented God's judgment on the spiritually dead religious leaders of Israel. Others believe the symbolism extended to all believers, demonstrating that genuine faith is more than just outward religiosity; true, living faith must bear spiritual fruit in a person's life.
When Jesus arrived at the Temple, he found the courts full of corrupt money changers. He began overturning their tables and clearing the Temple, saying, "The Scriptures declare, 'My Temple will be a house of prayer,' but you have turned it into a den of thieves" (Luke 19:46).
On Monday evening Jesus stayed in Bethany again, probably in the home of his friends, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus.
On Tuesday morning, Jesus and his disciples returned to Jerusalem. They passed the withered fig tree on their way, and Jesus spoke to his companions about the importance of faith.
This is also the day that Jerusalem’s religious leaders organized a trap with the intent to place him under arrest. The scriptural record says that Jesus was aware of their schemes and said the following:
"Blind guides!...For you are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people's bones and all sorts of impurity. Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness...Snakes! Sons of vipers! How will you escape the judgment of hell?" (Matthew 23:24-33)
As the sun recessed from its high-noon position, Jesus left the city and went with his disciples to the Mount of Olives. The mount is situated east of the Temple and overlooks the city. Here Jesus gave the Olivet Discourse, an elaborate prophecy about the destruction of Jerusalem and the end of the age. He spoke using symbolic language concerning the coming destruction of Jerusalem (which happened in 70 CE under the rule of the Roman Emperor Titus), as well asend times events like His second coming and the final judgment.
The scriptural record suggests that this was also the day Judas Iscariot met with the Sanhedrin, therabbinical court of ancient Israel, to betray Jesus (Matthew 26:14-16).
After a tiring day of confrontation and warnings about the future, once again, Jesus and the disciples returned toBethany to stay the night.
Again, the New Testament is silent about Jesus’ next day in Jerusalem. We can somewhat safely assume that as it lay between the chaotic events surrounding the Olivet Discourse and Passover itself, He may have retreated to Bethany with his disciples.
The week upon which the entire Exiguus Calendar turns took a somber turn on Thursday.
Earlier in the day, Jesus sent Peter and John ahead to prepare for what would be forever termed the Last Supper. As evening fell, Jesus made it explicit what was going to transpire imminently.
"I have been very eager to eat this Passover meal with you before my suffering begins. For I tell you now that I won't eat this meal again until its meaning is fulfilled in the Kingdom of God." (Luke 22)
Later that evening, as He anguished in prayer in a garden in Gethsemane, He was betrayed by Judas, one of His disciples. He was arrested by the Sanhedrin and delivered to the home of the Chief Priest, Caiaphas. As late night turned to early morning, one of Jesus’ closest disciples, Peter, denied Him three times. The third denial was laden with profanity and directed to a teenager girl who recognized him.
This was the dawn of a dreadful day a summary of which is offered by Fairchild, et.al.
According to Scripture, Judas Iscariot, the disciple who had betrayed Jesus, was overcome with remorse and hanged himself early Friday morning.
Meanwhile, before the third hour (9 a.m.), Jesus endured the shame of false accusations, condemnation, mockery, beatings, and abandonment. After multiple unlawful trials, he was sentenced to death by crucifixion, one of the most horrible and disgraceful methods of capital punishment known at the time.
Before Christ was led away, soldiers spit on him, tormented and mocked him, and pierced him with a crown of thorns. Then Jesus carried his own cross to Calvary where, again, he was mocked and insulted as Roman soldiers nailed him to the wooden cross.
Jesus spoke seven final statements from the cross. His first words were, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." (Luke 23:34, NIV). His last wordswere, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." (Luke 23:46, NIV)
Then, about the ninth hour (3 p.m.), Jesus breathed his last breath and died.
By 6 p.m. Friday evening, Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimatheatook Jesus' body down from the cross and lay it in a tomb.
The sky was darkened. The earth stood still. Ten thousand times ten thousands of angels stood at their ready throughout the day to intervene at His Word, but that Word never came. He endured the cross. He despised the shame, but He endured.
It is at this point in the History of Jesus Christ of Nazareth that we must run two concurrent histories: one for His physical body and one for Him. From the time He was removed from the cross, he was in the possession of Joseph of Arimathea and eventually the tomb that he owned. On Saturday, women came to anoint his body with spices as was the Jewish custom. His body lay in state that day and continuing into Sunday morning.
Those familiar with His history know that ascension is coming. But there is another piece that must not be missed! Ephesians 4 spells it out.
“When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, And gave gifts to men.”
(Now this, “He ascended”—what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.)”
He led captivity captive! He gave gifts to men! And on the first morning of the week, He arose victorious over death, hell, and the grave.
I, again, return to Fairchild, et.al.:
Early Sunday morning, several women (Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Salome, and Mary the mother of James) went to the tomb and discovered that the large stone covering the entrance had been rolled away. An angel announced:
"Don't be afraid! I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He isn't here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen." (Matthew 28:5-6, NLT)
On the day of his resurrection, Jesus Christ made at least five appearances. Mark's Gospel says the first person to see him was Mary Magdalene. Jesus also appeared to Peter, to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, and later that day to all of the disciples except Thomas, while they were gathered in a house for prayer.
The eyewitness accounts in the Gospels provide what Christians believe to be undeniable evidence that the resurrection of Jesus Christ did indeed happen. Two millennia after his death, followers of Christ still flock to Jerusalem to see the empty tomb.
This is undeniable evidence to Christians generally, but also to me personally.
For the next forty days, Jesus remained on earth in a glorified body. He spent this time with his disciples. He appeared on the road with two disappointed followers who informed Him that Jesus had been crucified, not realizing that it was Jesus Himself with whom they walked. He allowed Thomas to touch His wounds to assuage his doubts.
He finally instructed his disciples to remain in Jerusalem until they received the Holy Spirit. Then, from the Mount of Olives, he ascended into the heavens. The angels bore witness. To truly bring this to life, I will quote directly from the physician Luke in the book of Acts:
The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen,to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.
And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me; for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.”
Jesus Christ. Born thirty-three years earlier in a Bethlehem stable, celebrated by shepherds, announced by angels. And here He returned from whence He came, again announced by angels.
And this is the History of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. It is a compelling history, a life worthy of examination. But any history must be held to the light. It must be subjected to what we call “peer review” in academic circles. For example, I began this summary by acknowledging that He might have been born anytime between 6 and 4 BCE. There are differing opinions.
But I promised you a full history of Jesus. And every historical biography must have a proper beginning. And the beginning of Jesus was not the Immaculate Conception in Nazareth or the stable birth in Bethlehem. You see, His beloved follower John gave us an enticing clue to lead us to His beginning.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
The same was in the beginning with God.
All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made.
In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
All things were made by Him. And without Him nothing that was made was made. Most believe that “everything that was made” was made 4000 years before the Angel spoke with Mary on a simple piece of land in Nazareth.
So the history of Jesus begins, not in Nazareth in 4 BCE, but rather at least to Iraq in ~4000 BCE. In the beginning “God” (Elohim) created the Heavens and the Earth. Elohim is a plural word. I interpret it to mean “Father, Son, and Holy Spirit”. Jesus stood on the balcony of Heaven engaged in determinate counsel with the Father and the Holy Ghost and released the Holy Ghost to hover over the chaos waters of Genesis 1. He is “the Word”, according to John, and that Word was sent out to create the fish, the fowl, the animals, and the sun, moon, and stars.
Jesus strung the bow of Sagittarius and set the Twins of Gemini in their Heavenly place. From the breath of the Word of His mouth sprang forth the expanse of the Universe. There was a big bang, but that bang was not an astronomical coincidence; it was the Gavel of Heaven’s courtroom pounding on the lectern and announcing the verdict that planets and stars and galaxies would be set into motion according to His will.
Jesus continued to work in determinate counsel with the Father and the Holy Spirit to say “Let us make man in our image and after our likeness…”. Before He was a baby He was a Creator King. However, we need a source to document such a claim. For this documentation I turn to Moses.
Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.
Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.
Yes, it was Father, Son, and Holy Ghost who hung the Earth 93,324,000 miles from the Sun and Who hung the moon in a perfect ballet of push and of pull, creating high tide and low tide. He set the earth in motion, both on its axis and around the sun, creating days and years.
He met with Adam in the cool of the day in the Garden of Eden, where the Tigris and Euphrates joined two other riverheads.
When Joshua prayed by the walls of Jericho, it was Jesus who appeared to him as the Captain of the Lord’s Hosts. Joshua rightly asked, “Are you with us or with them?”, wondering if Jesus would side with Israel or that Canaanite city. Jesus declared back to him, “Neither! As Captain of the Lord’s hosts I am come.” One person creatively translated that moment this way: “I didn’t come to take sides. I came to take over”.
Jesus appeared to Abraham by the terebinth trees.
He wrestled with Jacob by the Jabbock. He appeared to Manoah’s wife to promise Samson.
To a fleeing Israel He was a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.
When three Hebrews, taken away into Babylonian captivity, were thrown into a fiery furnace with the flames seven times hotter than usual, it was Jesus who showed up and walked through the fire.
For someone who wouldn’t be “born” for over a half century, Jesus was already creating material for His historical biography.
Time and space do not allow for the other Old Testament references, but let us move forward to the beginning of this essay and the Angel’s appearance to Mary in Nazareth. While the angel spoke, Jesus stood at the ready. The songwriter said it best:
He left the splendor of Heaven, knowing His destiny.
For a moment one foot was in Heaven, the other was in the womb. Only for a moment. And then began the 33-year segment of history already reviewed.
We must now turn our attention to the moment after the ascension from the Mount of Olives. Remember the Angel said, “This same Jesus will return in like manner.”
But how can a history point to a future? Aren’t we now crossing a line from historiography into predicting the future? Let us again turn to the source! Specifically we turn to Revelation 13:8.
And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
The Apostle Peter moves the idea forward:
For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.
I will place an exclamation point on this part of the research by placing us in the middle of one of Jesus’ encounters with the Pharisees:
…they exclaimed, “Now we know that you are demon-possessed! Abraham died and so did the prophets, yet you say that whoever obeys your word will never taste death. Are you greater than our father Abraham? He died, and so did the prophets. Who do you think you are?”
Jesus replied, “If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing. My Father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me. Though you do not know him, I know him. If I said I did not, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and obey his word. Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad.”
“You are not yet fifty years old,” they said to him, “and you have seen Abraham!”
“Very truly I tell you,” Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I am!”
In His own words, Jesus placed His history pre-Nazareth! Specifically, thousands of years before Nazareth.
I will allow you, the reader, to determine whether this is sufficient evidence to present Jesus’ future as part of His historical record.
The Last Chapter
In the last days evil men will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. The love of many will wax cold. There will be a falling away. There will be wars and rumors of wars, diseases, and natural disasters with increasing frequency (could I be writing this in present tense rather than future tense?)
But draw the line back to the Angel in Acts 1, “This same Jesus that you see leaving in the clouds will return again the same way.”
I turn your attention to Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians:
But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
In Heaven, they will look for one who is worthy to open the seal. They will sorrow and say, “Who is worthy to open the seal?” Let us turn to the Revelator for the answer:
And I saw upon the right hand of the One sitting on the throne a scroll having been written inside and on-the-back, having been sealed-down with seven seals. And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to break its seals?” And no one in heaven nor on earth nor under the earth was able to open the scroll, nor to look-at it. And I was weeping greatly because no one worthy was found to open the scroll, nor to look-at it. And one of the elders says to me, “Do not be weeping. Behold— the Lion from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, overcame so as to open the scroll and its seven seals”.
And just as evil has the world surrounded, while human history hangs in a war-filled balance, while the nations determine to make war with God and all that is His, the Apostle John paints a picture of the historical Jesus turning the tide:
And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.
And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.
And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King Of Kings, And Lord Of Lords.
King of Kings. Lord of Lords. And His name is called The Word of God.
In historical research, they use what is called a “primary source”. It is a first-hand account, perhaps from a witness or the historical actors themselves.
So as I near the close of this mini-history, allow me to turn to the ultimate Primary Source, Jesus Himself, from Revelation 22:
I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.
And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.
He was.
He is.
He is to come.
This is the History of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
-Dr. Craig S. Heath
“Craig In Appalachia”
