When the Lord Jesus was on earth and moved among men as recorded in the four gospels, there were many who expressed their thoughts as to who and what He was and to what he did.
The following is a selection of those many and varied opinions:
“A man called Jesus” (John 9: 11)
“a Jew” (John 4: 9)
“Jesus the Nazaraean (Matt. 26: 71, John 18: 5, 7)
“The Nazaraean, Jesus” (Mark 14: 67)
“the son of the carpenter” (Matt. 13: 55)
“the carpenter” (Mark 6: 3)
“son of Joseph” (Luke 4: 22, John 1: 45, 6: 42)
“the son of Mary” (Mark 6: 3)
“that deceiver” (Matt. 27: 63)
“[a] good [man]” (John 7: 12)
“a Samaritan” (John 8: 48)
“Sir” (Luke 13: 23, John 4: 49, 5: 7, 8: 11)
“Rabbi” (Matt. 26: 25, 49, Mark 9: 5, 11: 21, 14: 45, John 4: 31, 6: 25, 11: 8)
“Rabboni” (John 20: 16)
“Teacher” (Matt. 8: 19, 12: 38, 19: 16, 22: 16, 24, 36, Mark 4: 38, 9: 17, 38, 10: 20, 35, 12: 14, 19, 32, Luke 7: 40, 9: 38, 10: 25, 11: 45, 12: 13, 19: 39, 20: 21, 28, 21: 7)
“Good teacher” (Mark 10: 17, Luke 18: 18)
“a teacher from God” (John 3: 2)
“The teacher” (John 11: 28)
“a prophet” ( Mark 6: 15, John 4: 19, John 9: 17)
“one of the prophets” (Matt. 16: 14, Mark 8: 28)
“one of the old prophets” (Luke 9: 19)
“a prophet mighty in deed and word” (Luke 24: 19)
“a great prophet” (Luke 7: 16)
“the prophet” (Matt. 21: 11, John 6: 14, John 7: 40)
“Elias” (Matt. 16: 14, Mark 6: 15, Mark 8: 28, Luke 9: 19)
“Jeremias” (Matt. 16: 14)
“John the Baptist” (Matt. 14: 2, 16: 14, Mark 6: 14,16, 8: 28, Luke 9: 19)
“Lord” (Matt. 8: 2, 6, 8, 21, 25, 9: 28, 14: 28, 30, 15: 22, 25, 27, 16: 22, 17: 4, 15, 18: 21, 20: 30, 31, 33, Mark 7: 28, Luke 5: 8, 12, 7: 6, 9: 57, 59, 61, 10: 17, 40, 11: 1, 18: 41, 19: 8, 22: 33, John 6: 68, 9: 36, 38, 11: 3, 12, 21, 27, 32, 34, 39, 13: 25, 36, 37, 14: 5, 8, 22, 21: 15, 17, 21)
“the Lord” (John 20: 2, 25, 21: 7)
“my Lord” John 20: 13, 28)
“Master” (Luke 5: 5, 8: 24, 45, 9: 33, 49, 17: 13)
“mightier than I” (Matt. 3: 11, Mark 1: 7)
“Son of David” (Matt. 9: 27, 15: 22, 20: 30,31, 21: 9, 15, Mark 10: 47, 48, Luke 18: 38, 39)
“king of the Jews”––magi from the East (Matt. 2: 2)
“the King” (Luke 19: 38)
“the King of Israel” (John 1: 49, 12: 13)
“the Messias” (John 1: 41)
“the Christ” (Matt. 16: 16, Mark 8: 29, John 4: 29, 7: 41, 11: 27)
“the Christ of God” (Luke 9: 20)
“the Lamb of God” (John 1: 29, 36)
“the Saviour of the world” (John 4: 42)
“the Holy [One] of God” (Luke 4: 34).
“the holy one of God” (Mark 1: 24)
“the Son of God” (see Matt. 8: 29, 14: 33, 27: 54, Mark 3: 11, 15: 39, Luke 4: 41, John 1: 34, 49, 11: 27)
“the Son of the living God (Matt. 16: 16)
“my God (John 20: 28)
“This [man] blasphemes” (Matt. 9: 3)
“He has blasphemed” (Matt. 26: 65)
“he blasphemes” (Mark 2: 7)
“Who is this who speaks blasphemies” (Luke 5: 21)
“He has a demon and raves” (John 10: 20)
“Thou hast a demon” (John 7: 20)
He casts out demons through the prince of demons (see Matt. 9: 34, 12: 24, Mark 3: 22, Luke 11: 15)
“He is out of his mind” (Mark 3: 21)
“They derided him” (Matt. 9: 24)
“he deceives the crowd” (John 7: 12)
“this man does many signs” (John 11: 47)
“I find no fault whatever in him” (John 18: 38)
“I find in him no fault whatever” (John 19: 4)
“this [man] has done nothing amiss” (Luke 23: 41)
“just” (Luke 23: 47)
“that righteous [man]” (Matt. 27: 19)
“a man who told me all things I had ever done” (John 4: 29)
“He does all things well; he makes both the deaf to hear, and the speechless to speak” (Mark 7: 37)
“with authority he commands even the unclean spirits and they obey him” (Mark 1: 27)
“Never man spoke thus, as this man [speaks]” (John 7: 46).
These were the expressions of those who saw Christ and they are both interesting and instructive. Yet there is that which is beyond interest and instruction, there is that which is vital and it is this: What do you think about Him?––what about you?––“What think ye concerning the Christ?” (Matt. 22: 42).
