LIFE OF JESUS

The early life of Jesus

About 2000 years ago a man named Jesus was born in the town of Bethlehem in the land of Israel. He was unique. He was fully God and yet fully human. God had allowed himself to be born as a man so that he could live and suffer among us, to serve as the perfect atonement for our sin, and to offer forgiveness and salvation to anyone who believes.

His birth, mission, death and resurrection were foretold by the prophets of the Old Testament of the Bible and revealed to us by the writers of the New Testament.

Jesus lived among his fellow Jews during a time when the boundaries of the Roman Empire included the land of Israel. He preached and performed miracles for three-and-a-half years until he was crucified by the Romans. He died on a wooden cross and was buried in a tomb.

But his life did not end in death. Jesus Christ was resurrected. And because he was perfect, he is able to open the doors to the Kingdom of God. And because he was sinless, he is able to forgive us our sins so that we too can be accepted into the Kingdom of God.

Jesus explains this in a passage of the Bible called John 3:16, when he said: "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

The following is an overview of the life and teachings of Jesus Christ.

The virgin Mary is told she'll give birth to Jesus

Jesus is born in the town of Bethlehem

Star of Bethlehem appears

King Herod tries to kill the new-born King (Jesus)

The infant Jesus and his parents escape to Egypt

Jesus is taken back to Israel, to the town of Nazareth

Jesus as a young child visits the Lord's Temple

1st year of ministry

The Gospel of John describes three annual passover feasts during the course of Jesus' ministry and this is one reason for the commonly held belief that his ministry lasted for about three years. Luke tells us that Jesus was about 30 years old when he began his ministry. This page explains a few details of his first year of ministry, which begins with his forerunner, John the Baptist.

Jesus is baptized by John the Baptist

Jesus resists the temptations of Satan

Jesus' first miracle, turning water into wine

Jesus cleanses the Lord's Temple in Jerusalem

Jesus talks of God's love and plan of salvation

Jesus tells a Samaritan woman about "water of life"

Jesus' early ministry in Galilee

Jesus heals a royal official's son

Jesus announces that he is the Messiah

Jesus is rejected as the Messiah

2nd year of ministry

The second year of Jesus' ministry is sometimes referred to as the "Year of Popularity." He performed many miracles during this phase of his ministry and became increasingly popular.

Jesus explains he is salvation; God is his father

The workers are few 

Jesus sends out the Twelve Apostles

1. Peter, also known as Simon Peter.
2. Andrew, brother of Peter.
3. James, son of Zebedee.
4. John, brother of James.
5. Philip.
6. Bartholomew.
7. Thomas.
8. Matthew, the former tax collector.
9. James, son of Alphaeus.
10. Thaddaeus, Judas the son of James.
11. Simon the Zealot.
12. Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus.

Jesus gives the Sermon on the Mount

The "Our Father in Heaven" prayer

Jesus heals the servant of a Roman officer

Jesus brings back to life a widow's son in Nain

Jesus talks about the "unpardonable sin"

Jesus calms a raging storm

Jesus brings back to life Jairus' daughter

Jesus heals two blind men

3rd year of Jesus' ministry

The third year of Jesus' ministry is sometimes called the "Year of opposition." Some of the community leaders attempted unsuccessfully to challenge Jesus' authority and were becoming increasingly antagonistic. Jesus continued to perform miracles and large crowds continued to seek him.

Jesus feeds 5000 people

Jesus walks on water

Jesus prophesizes his own death

Jesus is transfigured

Jesus talks about humility

Jesus talks about forgiveness

Jesus heals a man who was born blind

Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead

The final months

The end of Jesus' ministry was marked with a triumphal entry into Jerusalem and great antagonism from local religious leaders.

The triumphal entry into Jerusalem

The question about paying taxes

The authority of Jesus

The widow's offering

The great commandment (the Golden Rule)

Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." (Matthew 22:34-40 NIV).

The persecution of Jesus

This page explains a few of the events during the persecution and crucifixion of Jesus. Jesus was falsely accused of being an anti-government rebel and was crucified and killed. His persecution fulfilled many Bible prophecies that had been written hundreds of years beforehand.

The plot against Jesus

The Lord's Supper (the Last Supper)

Jesus is betrayed by Judas

Peter denies knowing Jesus

Jesus is interrogated, mocked and put on trial

Jesus is crucified

Jesus is buried

The resurrection of Jesus

Jesus was crucified. He died. He was buried. And he rose again. The resurrection is an essential part of Christianity. There is no Christianity without the resurrection (see 1 Corinthians 15). This page explains some details of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Mary Magdalene discovers Jesus' tomb was empty

Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene

Resurrection appearances

Jesus appears before Thomas

The significance of the resurrection

The Great Commission

Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." (Matthew 28:16-20 NIV).

Jesus ascends into Heaven

The return of Jesus

Note:

To read each of the sub-heading please visit : http://www.about-jesus.org/loj1.htm

JESUS FAMILY

The Family of Jesus

According to Matthew 1:18-25, Mary became pregnant with Jesus while she was engaged (but still unmarried) to Joseph. After Joseph found out about the pregnancy, he wanted to break off the engagement. But then an angel came to him in a dream, told him about Jesus, and persuaded him to go through with the marriage.

Mary was still a virgin when she gave birth to Jesus, and he was her first child. But she apparently had some other children later. Evidence for this is found at Matthew 13:55-56 and Mark 6:3, which indicate that Jesus eventually had four brothers and at least two sisters.

The names of his brothers are given as James, Joses, Simon, and Jude. Unfortunately, his sisters aren't named, and we don't even know how many there were.

Some Christians believe that Mary was a virgin throughout her life, and that Jesus was her only child. People who believe this argue that the brothers and sisters mentioned in the gospels must have been step-brothers and step-sisters. However, Luke 2:7 refers to Jesus as Mary's "first-born", thus implying that she had other children later. In fact, most biblical scholars believe that all of the mentioned children were sons and daughters of Mary who were born after Jesus.

Joseph was a carpenter, and he presumably taught this trade to Jesus. However, there is evidence that Joseph died prematurely. Apparently he didn't accompany Mary to the wedding at Cana, and he doesn't appear in any subsequent part of the story either. Also, according to John 19:27, after the crucifixion Mary went to live at the home of the un-named Beloved Disciple, which she probably wouldn't have done if her husband had still been alive.

When Jesus left home to begin his ministry, other members of his family appear to have disapproved. According to Mark 3:21, they said that he was "out of his mind", and some of them attempted to "take charge of him" and bring him home. Matthew 12:46-50 indicates that he refused to talk to his mother and brothers when they tracked him down and tried to see him. And John 7:5 says "even his own brothers did not believe in him."

The gospels don't say how long this rift with his family lasted. But there must have been a reconciliation at some point, because Acts 1:14 says that Mary and all four brothers later joined the Nazarenes, the original community of believers who lived in Jerusalem after Jesus departed.

According to Luke 1:36, Mary was a relative of Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist. Luke 1:39-56 says that Mary went to live at Elizabeth's home in Judea after she became pregnant with Jesus and stayed there for about three months. Some scholars have suggested that Mary used Elizabeth's home as a refuge while waiting for Joseph to decide whether to accept her as his wife.
The oldest brother of Jesus was named James. He became a very important leader in the early church, and is the named author of the New Testament Epistle of James. Because he was very pious, and followed the Jewish religious laws very strictly, he was called James the Just (or James the Righteous). He was condemned to death and executed in Jerusalem in 62 AD.

Another brother of Jesus, called Jude, is the named author of the New Testament Epistle of Jude.(The letters in the New Testament from Apostles to Christians are usually referred to as epistles.)

Website Ref: http://www.gospel-mysteries.net/family-Jesus.html

James

There are three prominent people in the Bible named James, and their profiles are shown below:

• James, the Apostle, son of Alphaeus
• James, the Apostle, son of Zebedee
• James, the Epistle writer

James, the Apostle, son of Alphaeus

James (son of Alphaeus) One of the 12 Apostles. He is named in the list of Apostles in Matthew 10:1-3, Mark 3:14-19, Luke 6:13-16, and Acts 1:13. His mother's name was Mary and she was one of the women who went to the tomb of Jesus, and found that it had been opened. James was also called "James the Less" and "James the Younger."

Because the Apostle Matthew also is the son of a man named Alphaeus, it has been thought that he and James were brothers. But the two were never referred to as brothers, whereas Peter and Andrew, and James (a different James) and John, were consistently referred to as being brothers. Nothing else is known about James except he was among those who went to the upper room to pray after the Ascension of Jesus.

James, the Apostle, son of Zebedee

James the Apostle was one of the 12 original apostles. He was the son of a man named of Zebedee and the older brother of John the Apostle. James was a fisherman, as was his father and brother. He was one of the first apostles to be called by Jesus. Jesus gave John and James the surname of Boanerges, which means "sons of thunder." Together with Peter and John, James was a close confidant of Jesus, being present at many important events, including the resurrection of the daughter of Jairus, Jesus' transfiguration, and the agony in Gethsemane. James was killed by King Herod Agrippa (Acts 12:1-2).

James, the Epistle writer

The Epistle of James is the 20th book of the New Testament. He identifies himself as "James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ." Of the several New Testament people named James, it is possible, perhaps logical, that this James is "The Lord's Brother" (Galatians 1:19), the leader of the church in Jerusalem (Acts 15:13, 21:18). He was a well-known figure of the church and martyred in 62 AD. His book may be the earliest of the New Testament writings.

His book shows the difficulties that were troubling the people of the early church, such as pride, discrimination, greed, lust, hypocrisy, worldliness, and backbiting. James writes to correct these evils by showing that "Faith without works is dead" (James 2:26), that is, mere profession of faith is not enough. He rebukes the rich in (James 5:1-6), tells us to be patient and take courage (James 5:7-11), not to swear (James 5:12), the effectiveness of prayer (James 5:13-18), and turning a fallen Christian back to Christ (James 5:19-20).

Website Ref : http://www.about-jesus.org/james.htm

Jesus' Family Tree

A recreation of Jesus' family tree based on references from the New Testament and the ancient historians Josephus and Eusebius.