The simplest logic is oftentimes the most enlightening.
I’ve long heard the argument from Non-Christians (and even some who’d call themselves “Christian”) that Jesus was a “great man,” a “great teacher” and a “great prophet” but not “God.”
Christian Apologetics goes a long way to prove Christ’s standing as God, but I have never seen this more simply proven than with one logical statement.
It’s a logical statement that’s presented in theological seminaries, Liberty University and written by C.S. Lewis.
The logic statement asserts that while someone who chooses not to recognize the deity of Jesus certainly has that right, it wouldn’t make any logical sense for them to claim he was a great teacher or man in the next sentence.
Jesus walked around Jerusalem calling himself “I am.” He deemed himself Lord of the Sabbath and threw over the tables of the vendors in the temple. He didn’t mince words in asserting his standing at the right hand of God and part of the trinity.
So that leaves three options.
1.He was completely delusional. Perhaps insane and honestly believing what he said but having no authority.
2.He was a liar. Maybe he knew he wasn’t God but he endured the persecution and pain for the fame. (Though who would pay the ultimate price of death for a lie? That’s another argument for another day.)
3.Or he really was God.
As simple as those three options seem, reality would have to fit into one them. There are no other options. Jesus couldn’t have been a great example and a liar. Just as he couldn’t have been a great rabbi and delusional.
While the simple logic statement doesn’t complete the gap towards trusting Jesus as savior it does force a person to move off the fence and make a decision about who he/she will say Jesus is.