Have you ever wondered who is the most significant and influential person in History? Well, if you search online you will find there are many websites with lists of thoughtmakers or people who have influenced millions of lives and changed our world forever. Some of these lists include: Charles Darwin, Karl Marx, Sigmund Freud, Thomas Edison, Abraham Lincoln, Adolf Hitler, Albert Einstein, Aristotle, Muhammed and Confucius.
But there is one name that seems to be on every list. Time Magazine, a worldwide weekly news publication based in New York, did an article about the ‘Most Significant Person in History’ and concluded after some very comprehensive and detailed research that Jesus was that person.
His life story is written in the world’s unbeatably best seller and most widely read book in history. It’s also the most written about, shoplifted and translated book of all time. Over 5 billion copies of the whole Bible have been printed in 349 languages and at least one book of the Bible is available in over 2,100 languages.
In addition, the Jesus movie has had more than eight billion views and has been translated into 1,800 languages.
Jesus Christ is the central figure in the world’s biggest religion, Christianity, and is also a common thread in Judaism and Islam. Even some of the major national celebrations in many countries of the world, Christmas and Easter demonstrate the impact and the significance of Jesus.
6. The yearly calendar uses the abbreviations BC and AD. BC for ‘before Christ’ and AD for ‘anno domini or Latin for the year of our Lord. Yet despite being unable to establish the exact date of Jesus’ birth, it was and is still used as the fulcrum for the Western way of marking time.
So, what is it about Jesus that makes Him the most significant person in history?
1. His teachings are the foundation of western government, democracy and moral conduct. Our society follows the precepts found in the ‘Golden Rule’ which encourage us to ‘Treat others as you want them to treat you.
2. He is the greatest example of love and compassion. Jesus’ teaching showed people the importance of a compassionate lifestyle and concern for humanity.
3. Through the example of His own life, He gave us a new understanding of what God is like, a forgiving God who loves us and is prepared to sacrifice everything for them.
4. The understanding that all people are created equal and the basis of our commitment to human rights has its origins in the teachings of Jesus.
5. He laid the foundation for emphasis on human rights that changed the way we evaluate people. In the ancient world, its heroes were conquering caesars and knights in shining armour, but today we esteem a nun who serves in a ghetto, the rescuer who sacrifices his life to save a child and the head of state who relates to the poor and needy. He achieved this by washing his disciple’s feet, by teaching that the meek will inherit the earth and by sacrificing His life, not just for His friends, but for His enemies.
6. He provided a new work ethic of honesty, reliability and commitment.
7. He inspired people to reach their full potential and explore the world around them that led to the discoveries of modern science by Bible believing Christians like Pascal, Pasteur and Newton.
8. Jesus inspired universal literacy. In ancient times, education was for the elite, but the teachings of Jesus and the importance of His message inspired men like Wycliffe and Luther to make the word of God available to the masses taking it from Latin to the languages of the people.
9. His followers were the pioneers of the advances in medicine.
10. He made wonderful promises to His followers including giving peace and happiness in this life and best of all eternal life.
11. He can change lives. Millions of people around the world can attest to the value and transformational nature of the teachings of Jesus found in the Bible.
Jesus truly is the most significant person in history, and He has made a lasting impact on our lives and changed our world.
Christianity is a contagious faith and if you would like to explore the teachings of Jesus and find true happiness and lifelong satisfaction, then I would like to recommend the free Bible Reading Guide, Bridge to a Satisfying Life. This guide will share the hope that can only be found in the Bible and a faith in Jesus. Please go to our TIJ website, tij.tv to request our free offer now.
One Solitary Life
He was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant. He grew up in another village, where he worked in a carpenter shop until he was 30. Then, for three years, he was an itinerant preacher.
He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never had a family or owned a home. He didn’t go to college. He never lived in a big city. He never travelled 200 miles from the place where he was born. He did none of the things that usually accompany greatness. He had no credentials but himself.
He was only 33 when the tide of public opinion turned against him. His friends ran away. One of them denied him. He was turned over to his enemies and went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed to a cross between two thieves. While he was dying, his executioners gambled for his garments, the only property he had on earth. When he was dead, he was laid in a borrowed grave, through the pity of a friend.
Twenty centuries have come and gone, and today he is the central figure of the human race. I am well within the mark when I say that all the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever sailed, all the parliaments that ever sat, all the kings that ever reigned–put together–have not affected the life of man on this earth as much as that one, solitary life.
