The Depiction of The Life of Jesus in Testaments
The summary of the life of Jesus, here we will analyse what life Jesus has due to the noted both in New and Old Testaments. The story of Jesus begins long before he was born of a virgin here on earth. It begins back in the Old Testament, where so many stories ultimately point to the coming of Jesus. God used Adam, Noah, Abraham, David, Solomon, and many others to demonstrate His love for the world, and He also used His Son Jesus for the same purpose. A short summation of the life of Jesus could be: birth of Christ, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension; but perhaps a simpler explanation is found in the New Testament in John 3:16: “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 virgin birth of Jesus is explained in the New Testament books of Luke (1:26-38) and Matthew (1:18-25), where a young woman named Mary is engaged, but not yet married, to Joseph, a descendant of David. One night an angel named Gabriel appears to Mary and announces that she will have a son who will be named Jesus and who will be called the Son of God.
When Mary asked the angel how this could be since she was a virgin, the angel answered, 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.” (Luke 1:27-35)
Just before Jesus’ birth, the Roman emperor Caesar Augustus required everyone in the Roman Empire, including Israel, to return to their ancestral homes for registration. Because Joseph was part of the house of David, he and Mary had to leave Nazareth, which was in Galilee, and return to Bethlehem, which was in Judea.
As they arrived in Bethlehem, Mary was about to give birth, but she and Joseph could find no place to stay. Ironically, the Son of God was born in the lowliest of places – a stable where animals were kept. The fact that Jesus was born in Bethlehem is important because King David, from whom Jesus descended, also was born there. Additionally, in the Old Testament, Micah prophesized that Bethlehem would be the birthplace for the Messiah:
'But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.' (Micah 5:2)
A star appeared in the sky over Bethlehem at the same time as Jesus was born. This star attracted visitors from the East – the three wise men or magi -- who believed that it marked the birth of a new king. When King Herod the Great, who governed the Jews, found out that the wise men were seeking a newborn king, he ordered the deaths of every infant in Bethlehem, in the hopes of killing Jesus.
An angel again visited Joseph and warned him of Herod’s plans. Joseph took Mary and the baby Jesus and fled to Egypt, where they lived until Herod died. (Matthew 2:13-15) Another tie back to the Old Testament is that Joseph, Mary and Joseph fled to Egypt. Many people, such as Jacob and his sons, sometimes left Israel and sought refuge in Egypt.
Many years later, after King Herod had died, Joseph, Mary and Jesus returned to Israel and lived in a small town called Nazareth in northern Galilee. They feared returning to Bethlehem because Herod Archelaus, the son of King Herod, now ruled there. (Matthew 2:19-23) Jesus lived and grew up in Nazareth until he started his ministry when he was about 30 years old.
Leaving Nazareth, Jesus traveled to the Jordan River, where his cousin John baptized him. As Jesus rose from below the water, the Spirit of God descending like a dove and enveloped him in light. A voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:16-17)
Another Old Testament prophecy occurs in the book of Malachi. “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come, says the LORD Almighty.” (Malachi 3:1). John the Baptist fulfilled this prophecy by proclaiming about Jesus: “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29)
Throughout the New Testament, there are four main Gospels (the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) that document Jesus’ life. These Gospels describe 34 miracles that Jesus performed, which along with all the other important facts and stories from Jesus’ life, could fill a bible! Instead, I’ll condense his accomplishments and just hit the highlights from here.
Jesus’ first miracle involved him turning water into wine while he was attending a wedding party with his mother, Mary. The wedding host ran out of wine, which was considered very embarrassing. When Mary told Jesus about the problem, he miraculously changed six barrels of water into wine. (John 2:1-11)
Additional miracles throughout his lifetime included healing the blind, deaf, sick, and injured. It was recorded that Jesus cast evil spirits from a number of men, a demon-possessed girl whose mother had great faith, and a boy with seizures. He raised the dead, including the son of a widow with no other children, a synagogue leader’s daughter, and Lazarus after he’d been in the grave for four days. When Jesus and the disciples were in a fierce storm, he made it stop. He also made a fig tree wither and never bear fruit again. After Simon and his crew had caught nothing after fishing all night, Jesus told them to cast their net again and they caught so many fish it almost sunk their boats. He even fed thousands from just a few loafs of bread and fish.
As Jesus traveled throughout the countryside teaching, preaching and healing, he gathered followers, or disciples, some of whom he gave the ability to heal people of their diseases and illnesses. Known as the twelve Apostles, they included Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew, James (son of Alphaeus), Thaddaeus, Simon, and Judas. (Matthew 9:35-38)
Along with healing and performing miracles, Jesus preached some of the greatest sermons ever. Considered one of the greatest is The Sermon on the Mount, which is documented in the Gospel of Matthew (chapters 5-7). It is during the Sermon on the Mount that Jesus gives us a way to pray to God through the Lord’s Prayer, or “Our Father in Heaven.” (Matthew 6:6-15) But, at the heart of his teaching was a commitment to love without boundaries.
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48)
The one miraculous act up to this point that solidified the disciples’ belief that Jesus was the Son of God was his miracle of walking on water. Jesus instructed his disciples to go in a boat out onto the lake while he went off to pray. The disciples were startled later by what they thought was a ghost appearing to walk by them on the water. When they realized it was Jesus, they worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” (Matthew 14:22-33)
Another reference in the Old Testament to the coming of Jesus was made by the prophet Zechariah, who spoke of a king presenting himself to Jerusalem while riding on a humble donkey. (Zechariah 9:9) Shortly before he was crucified and killed, Jesus entered the Holy City of Jerusalem on the back of a donkey. (Matthew 21:1-11)
While in Jerusalem, some religious leaders there tried to test Jesus, asking him, “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 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)
It wasn’t long before the chief priests and others plotted to have Jesus arrested for being an anti-government rebel. The twenty-sixth chapter of the book of Matthew begins and ends with prophecies from Jesus. First, that he would be betrayed and crucified, and then that a loyal apostle would deny knowing Jesus three times. Ultimately, both would come true.
Jesus used the Passover celebration as a final meal with his apostles before his impending crucifixion. It is known as “the Last Supper,” and it establishes what is now known in many Christian churches as “holy communion.” (Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:19-20)
While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” (Matthew 26:26-28)
While he and his disciples were at the Garden of Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives, some Roman soldiers and Jewish officials showed up to arrest Jesus. It is as this point that Judas betrayed Jesus – as Jesus prophesized -- and identified him to the soldiers. Peter, in an attempt to defend Jesus, used his sword to cut off one of the soldier’s ear. Jesus scolded him, saying: “Put your sword back in its place for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.” (Matthew 26:52) Jesus then healed the man’s ear.
After Jesus was arrested and led away, Peter was confronted and accused of knowing and being a follower of Jesus. Scared of also being arrested and put to death, Peter denied knowing Jesus three times – just as Jesus had predicted. (Matthew 26:58, 69-75)
Jesus appeared before Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor over the Jews, who eventually condemned Jesus to death. After the trial, the Roman soldiers beat and whip Jesus, and gadve him a heavy cross to carry to Calvary, where he would hang to die. At Calvary, he was nailed through his wrists and feet to the cross and hung to die. In Luke 23:34, Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”
A Roman soldier confirmed Jesus’ death by piercing Jesus’ side with a spear. His body was taken down from the cross by two of his followers, wrapped in cloth and placed into an empty tomb. A large stone was used to close off the burial chamber, and a Roman solider stood guard to prevent anyone from stealing the body. (Matthew 27:57-61; Mark 15:42-47; Luke 23:50-55; John 19:31-42)
It is at this point that the story of Jesus should end. He was crucified, died, and was buried, but then ....
Mary Magdalene went to visit the tomb early the next morning while it was still dark outside. She noticed the stone was rolled away and the tomb was empty. She ran to get Peter and John, who discovered that only Jesus’ burial cloth remained inside the tomb. The Apostles did not understand what had happened. Where was Jesus’ body? (John 20:1-10)
Mary Magdalene stayed at the tomb, crying, as the Apostles returned to their homes. A man asked her why she was crying, and it was then that she realized that man was Jesus. Mary Magdalene was the first person to see the resurrected Jesus.
If it were just Mary Magdalene who saw the resurrected Jesus, most people would not believe her. But Jesus made twelve appearances after his resurrection, to many of his disciples and to as many as 500 people at once! (1 Corinthians 15:6) This – Jesus’ resurrection -- was the beginning of Christianity.
Even still, some have doubts. Thomas, one of the 12 Apostles, was not with the other disciples when Jesus visited them. Thomas said, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it.” (John 20:24-29)
A week later, while Thomas was with the disciples, Jesus walked through a locked door and said, “Peace be with you! Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe. Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” Even today, from this we have the expression “a doubting Thomas.”
During one of his visits with his disciples after his resurrection, Jesus explained the meaning of the “holy trinity”: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit – that God is three-in-one. One God who is God the Father, God the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Jesus said to them, “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)
Afterward, Jesus ascended into Heaven:
“After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God. Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.” (Mark 16:19-20)
The New Testament explains that Jesus will return in the future to judge the living and the dead and to establish eternal peace. Jesus said, “The Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done.” (Matthew 16:27)
In conclusion, while the Old Testament was clear in its message of obedience to God, it also set the stage for the coming of Jesus, who brought his message of loving one another unconditionally. Now, it is up to us to live out Jesus’ story in our own lives each day.
