Was Jesus just a good teacher?

Eli: Can you admire Jesus as a wise teacher, and leave it there?

Eli: C. S. Lewis noted that people often see him exactly that way.

Eli: But he argued that option doesn't quite hold together.

Eli: Lewis argued that the sort of things Jesus said rule out 'just a teacher.'

Eli: A mere man saying what Jesus said, he argued, would be a lunatic, or worse.

Eli: The catch: critics say historical-Jesus scholars agree he didn't spend his ministry declaring himself divine.

Eli: They also say three options leave out other possibilities.

Eli: So it doesn't settle things, but 'just a teacher' gets harder.

Eli: Here's a line from the Gospel of John, a New Testament book about Jesus.

Eli: I and the Father are one.

Eli: Read John slowly, and notice what Jesus says about himself.

Eli: Or ask a pastor, a real person, what they make of it.