The Teacher

He was born, baptised and had a family business in carpentry. Later in his life he had a ministry of healing and teaching in Israel 2000 years ago. He set people free, taught them to love one another and told them to worship the One True God. He upset the religious authorities by breaking down the barriers between God and man. He asked people to leave their sinful lives and follow him, healing the sick and feeding the hungry. He was the Son of God and the Saviour of the world, as prophesied in the Old Testament, but the religious authorities did not recognise who he was.

The Saviour

He exposed the stupidity of the priests and spiritual authorities, demanded that they stop oppressing the poor and needy, and turned them violently out of the God's temple in his anger.  He forgave people's sins and set them free from their past wrongs, and performed miracles that proved that he was the Son of God.  He came to save both Jew and non-Jew.  He was merciful with the lost and needy, but hard on those who should know better and those who abused power.  For this the authorities had him crucified.  He was innocent of all the crimes of which they accused him.  In fact, he was perfectly sinless; he had never done anything wrong.  At the point of his death, he prayed to God to forgive his executors.  When he died, darkness covered the land and the curtain temple (that kept people away from God's holy place) was torn in two.  Jesus' body was placed in a tomb. 
 

The King of Life

On the following Sunday, he came alive.  When he died, he took our sins with him but death could not keep him.   He defeated death and rose to life again.  He appeared to his followers and proved he was not a ghost.  He gave them God's Spirit, and was taken up to Heaven to be with his Father.  He lives on, the King of Kings, giving his Holy Spirit to anyone who responds to his call to follow him.  He is alive, and our hope is in his promise that when we die, he will take us to be with him.  Belief is enough, but true belief is always followed by doing what Jesus wants: he wants us to look after the poor, visit the prisoner, heal the sick, pray for our friends and enemies, and love the Living God.