Lee Strobel - The Case for the Real Jesus. A Journalist Investigates Current Challenges to Christianity

The Case for the Real Jesus

Also by Lee Strobel:

The Case for the Real Jesus
The Case for the Real Jesus (audio)
Finding the Real Jesus
The Case for Christ
The Case for Christ (audio)
The Case for ChristStudent Edition (with Jane Vogel)
The Case for Christ for Kids (with Rob Suggs)
The Case for Christmas
The Case for Christmas (audio)
The Case for a Creator
The Case for a Creator (audio)
The Case for a CreatorStudent Edition (with Jane Vogel)
The Case for a Creator for Kids (with Rob Suggs)
The Case for Easter
The Case for Faith
The Case for Faith (audio)
The Case for FaithStudent Edition (with Jane Vogel)
The Case for Faith for Kids (with Rob Suggs)
Discussing the Da VinciCode (curriculum; with Garry Poole)
Discussing the Da VinciCode (discussion guide; with Garry Poole)
Experiencing the Passion of Jesus (with Garry Poole)
Exploring the Da VinciCode (with Garry Poole)
Faith under Fire (curriculum series)
Gods Outrageous Claims
Inside the Mind of Unchurched Harry and Mary
Off My Case for Kids (with Robert Elmer)
Surviving a Spiritual Mismatch in Marriage (with Leslie Strobel)
Surviving a Spiritual Mismatch in Marriage (audio)
What Jesus Would Say

INVERT YOUTH SPECIALTIES

The Case for the Real JesusStudent Edition
Copyright 2008 by Lee Strobel

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ePub Edition January 2009 ISBN: 978-0-310-56919-0

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Cover design by David Conn

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CONTENTS

At first glance, there was nothing unusual about Evergreen Cemetery in Oakland, California. There were the expected rows upon rows of grave markers, some decorated with flowers, others with small American flags. I meandered through the property and soon came upon a gently sloping hillside. Standing sentry over a wide expanse of grass was a solitary three-foot-tall headstone: IN MEMORY OF THE VICTIMS OF THE JONESTOWN TRAGEDY.

Beneath the ground are the remains of more than 400 Californians who followed the call of self-proclaimed messiah Jim Jones to move to the jungles of South America and build a paradise of racial harmony. Believing his creed of love and equal opportunity, beguiled by his charisma, they put their complete faith in Jones.

His boldest claim: He was the reincarnation of Christthe real Jesus.

Jones followers, intent on living out his doctrine of peace and tolerance, arrived in a remote rainforest of Guyana, only to realize over time that he was building a hellish community of repression and violence. When a visiting U.S. congressman and a group of journalists threatened him with exposure, Jones ordered them ambushed and killed before they could leave on a private plane.

Then Jones issued his now-infamous command: All his followers must drink cyanide-laced punch, and those who refused were shot. Disciples even used syringes to squirt the poison into the mouths of infants. Soon, more than 900 men, women, and children were in the contorted spasms of death under the scorching sun, and Jones ended his own life with a bullet to the head.

The bodies of 409 victims, more than half of them babies and children, were shipped back to California in wooden caskets and buried at Evergreen Cemetery. The Jonestown tragedy happened on November 18, 1978, and since then, few people have visited this section of the cemetery.

On this day, I stood in silence and reverence. As I shook my head at this senseless loss, one thought coursed through my mind: Beliefs have very real consequences.

These victims believed in Jones. They subscribed to his utopian vision. His belief became theirs. But the ultimate truth is this: Faith is only as good as the one you believe in.

WHO IS JESUS?

Search for Jesus at Amazon.com and youll find 175,986 booksand, yes, now theres one more (which youre holding). Google Jesus name and in the blink of an eye, youll get 165 million references. Invite people to tell you who they think the real Jesus isas Jon Meacham and Sally Quinn did at On Faith (a Web site produced by Newsweek and The Washington Post) just before Christmas in 2006and youll soon be buried in an avalanche of wildly differing opinions, as these excerpts demonstrate:

Jesus is real, in the sense that he exists for those who want him to exist.

By todays standards, Jesus was a liberal.

Jesus was Everyman. His name could have as well been Morris. Too bad he was in male form this time around. Better luck next time.

I believe Jesus is the Son of God. I believe I am a son of God.

Jesus was an enlightened being.

Its not even obvious that Jesus was a historical figure. If he was, the legends around hima Son of God who was born of a virgin, worked miracles, and rose from the deadwere common stories in the ancient Near East. The myths about Jesus are not even original.

Jesus is about as real as Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, or King Arthur.

There is no separation or distinction between where God leaves off and where we begin. We are all One, all Divine, just like Jesus.