Jesus

Who Is He?

By Tim LaHaye
Questar, $18.99

ISBN 1576730425

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The essential verdict

Review by Margaret Feinberg

While skeptics may reject belief in His deity and philosophers may refute His teachings, no one can deny that any one single person has had a greater impact on human civilization than Jesus Christ. In a wave of secular publications including Time and Newsweek examining the life and authenticity of Christ, respected speaker and author Tim LaHaye challenges both doubters and believers in Jesus -- Who Is He?

LaHaye begins by examining the skeptics and what they believe. He continues by looking at the credibility of the gospels, the testimonies of those who knew Jesus, the fulfillment of prophesies, and the bodily resurrection. By the end of the book, LaHaye presents enough historical and biblical evidence to demand a verdict from every reader: Who do you say that Jesus is?

The author traces the fascinating history of the skepticism born in the last 400 years. LaHaye shows how the Jesus Seminar, a group of academicians who gathered in 1985 and determined that much of the gospels are inaccurate, has had a widespread impact on the media. "Honest skeptics do not doubt because there are no answers to their questions about Jesus' identity; they doubt because they lack exposure to those answers," writes LaHaye.

Testimonies from John the Baptist, Peter, John, and those who knew Christ best are supported by rich portions of Scripture that testify to the deity of Christ. LaHaye goes into depth examining 28 of the 109 prophesies that Christ fulfilled as the Messiah, but he clearly shows that the core of Christianity rests upon His resurrection.

Six of the theories that try to explain away the resurrection are examined closely: people looking for Jesus in the wrong tomb; wild dogs ate His body; someone stole His corpse; and one theologian actually believed that the Lord telegraphed pictures of Himself to His disciples to convince them He had risen from the dead. Each of these theories are refuted with biblical evidence, written testimony, and enough logical arguments to convince the most difficult of skeptics that Jesus Christ did indeed rise from the dead.

This well-written and convincing book concludes with a chapter entitled, "Evidence that demands a verdict," and gives readers the opportunity to accept Christ into their life. Jesus -- Who Is He? is good meat for questioning unbelievers. New Christians and old will become better defenders of the faith after examining the historical and scriptural support for belief in Jesus Christ. This well-written book is the perfect gift for friends who may be interested in knowing more about Christianity.