Ready to Answer - Lesson 9

By Jim Baird

Is Jesus More than a Great Moral Teacher?

Background Information for the Teacher

Objectives:

Students will be able to explain some reasons that unbelievers might want to consider looking at Jesus as more than just a great teacher.
Students will come to appreciate the remarkable morality that Jesus preached and lived. Preparation:
It is important not just to read these notes to the class.The teacher should be very familiar with the outline and choose how to present the material, making notes in the margins as needed. Practicing the lesson a few times will allow the teacher to look at the students’ eyes while making the presentation.
Some find it helpful to underline the key words that will spark their memory of what to say and do next.
Blackboard should be provided, clean with chalk and erasers.
Students should have access to Bibles, or have overheads of all scriptures.
Prepare the two sheets at the end as overhead transparencies, if you can.
If you are going to use the handouts associated with this lesson, give them out after the introduction. The underlined material in these notes appears in the handouts.

Theme:

Jesus is certainly one of the greatest teachers of human history. But he is far more than that.

Lesson Plan for Conducting the Class

Introduction: (about 5 minutes)

What is so special about Jesus? Is there any reason that a modern person should be more interested in learning about Jesus than about Buddha or Mohammed or Socrates or any of the other great moral teachers of history?
What can we Christians point to that will help unbelievers consider the possibility that Jesus is truly greater than these?
In this lesson, we will look at the extraordinary power of Jesus' moral message as our introduction to the truly remarkable evidence we have for Jesus’ uniqueness.

Learning Experiences: (about 45 minutes)

Even skeptics will usually grant that Jesus has given us some of the most exalted ethical teachings that the world has ever seen.
1. Many will admit that Jesus is the greatest ethical teacher of all time.
2. There are many examples of his great teaching, but two are particularly helpful with modern skeptics:
  1. Jesus’ passionate devotion to bringing good into the world,
  2. And his teaching of non-resistance to evil.
Jesus’ passionate devotion to bringing good into the world sets him apart from famous Eastern sages.
1. Jesus taught and modeled the importance of making this world better, even as he taught his followers to look beyond this world to God’s kingdom to come.
  1. He frequently wore himself out healing the diseases of those who came to him.
  2. He and his disciples had no secure income, but still gave to those even poorer than they. (see for instance Matt. 8:18-20 for Jesus’ poverty, and John12:5&6 and 13:29 for their charity to others).
  3. He repeatedly confronted the hypocrisy of the Pharisees, and opposed their oppression of those they were supposed to teach. (see esp. Mark 7:1-23; Matthew 23 and Luke 18:9-14).
  4. According to the gospels, he saw his own death as a sacrifice for the world.
2. In this, Jesus stands out from the sages and teachers ofIndia, where the typical path of wisdom is detachment from the world.
  1. For instance, probably the most popular part of the Hindu scriptures is the Bhagavad Gita.
    1. It is a long discourse about what is the best way to live, but its setting is a dilemma concerning a young man of the warrior caste who has agreed to aid a great king in battle. On the eve of battle, he sees that his own relatives are in the opposing army, and he asks his charioteer what he should do.
    2. His charioteer is actually the supreme (in this story) god Krishna in disguise, and after some discourse, Krishna gives the following advice,based on the doctrine that what we take to be reality is just a vast illusion. Behind the appearance of reality is the true, hidden Reality (called Life in this translation) which is completely indestructible and unchanging:[Use overhead for the following] Thou grievest where no grief should be! Thou speak’st Words lacking wisdom! For the wise in heart: Mourn not for those that live, nor those that die.Nor I, nor thou, nor any one of these, Ever was not, nor ever will not be. All that doth live lives always! … .Know thou that that by which all this is pervaded is indestructible. Learn thou! The Life is, spreading life through all…But as for these fleeting frames which it informs With spirit deathless, endless, infinite, They perish. Let them perish, Prince, and fight! He who says, 'Lo! I have slain a man!’ He who says, 'Lo! I am slain!’ Those both Know nothing! Life cannot slay. Life cannot be slain! (mostly from David Noss, A History of World Religions, 10th Edition p. 119, quoting Sir Edward Arnold’s translation, 2:11-20)
    3. So in the end, the advice of Krishna is to engage in battle because what happens really does not matter - the suffering of the battlefield is not real.
    4. While Hinduism certainly teaches the importance of kindness and good deeds, the unconcern verbalized by Krishna is at the core of its philosophy. The example of Jesus stands out in stark contrast.
  2. Similarly, Buddha teaches benevolence toward all things, but his primary message is detachment.[Use the overhead provided] One famous story tells of Buddha in a large city meeting a grandmother mourning the death of her grandson. Buddha asks “Why are you weeping?” The grandmother answers, “Because I have lost my grandson.” Buddha asks, “Would you like to have many grandsons, as many as in this great city?” The grandmother answers, “Oh yes, master, that would be a great blessing.” Then Buddha said, “In that case, you would be mourning and weeping everyday, because everyday someone in this great city dies. Only the one who does not love at all does not grieve at all.” (from David Noss, A History of World Religions, 10th Edition)
    1. This is a good illustration of Buddha’s way of detachment.
    2. Contrast this with Jesus at the tomb of Lazarus in John 11. Jesus felt passionately the pains of love and loss, and acted decisively to heal those pains, both in the particular case of Lazarus and ultimately in the conquest of death through the cross.
Jesus teaching of non-resistance and overcoming evil with good to this day represents the one path that can lead out of evil.
1. In this Jesus stands in stark contrast to Mohammed, the founder of Islam, who founded his religion largely on military success.
  1. When Mohammed began to preach his message, a conspiracy arose in Mecca to seize him and have him killed.
  2. Mohammed fled for his life from Mecca to Medina, and built a strong following there.
  3. As soon as he had the power, he began to engage in clan warfare like the other tribal leaders around him. His success as a leader in war began to attract even larger numbers of followers to him.
  4. Eventually, he gained enough power to return to Mecca in a position to negotiate the surrender of his enemies.
  5. Mohammed build a kingdom in the usual way. He died a political success, whereas Jesus clearly died without any political success. To choose between Mohammed and Jesus, we have to ask: who was wiser?
2. But Jesus taught that his followers are not to return evil for evil, but are to turn the other cheek and love their enemies. (Matthew 5:35-42)
3. There is deep wisdom in Jesus’ approach, though it is difficult to follow him in it.
  1. In the 20th century, Mahatma Ghandi and Martin Luther King, Jr. used the approach of non-resistance and love to bring about change in enemies who are using the strategy of force.
  2. Trying to overcome evil with force is doomed.
    1. It gives the illusion that evil can be held down forever.
    2. But force, even in a good cause, naturally breeds counter-force.
    3. This is built into humans - I want my will to be done.
      1. If you stop me from doing evil by force, I feel my freedom curtailed. I feel diminished and I fight back if I can.
      2. So, I begin planning to create counter-force to smash your constraints on me.
      3. Repeatedly history shows that the struggle for freedom from domination calls forth some of the highest levels of creativity and dedication that humans are capable of.
      4. From individual struggles for power in a relationship all the way up to international arms races, we see the weaknesses of trying to overcome evil with force.
    4. Furthermore, trying to counteract evil with force tends to corrupt the force-wielder.
      1. Again, history shows how those who begin by wielding power in a good cause are tempted repeatedly to protect and expand that power by increasingly unjust means.
      2. Once a leader starts down that road, it is hard to get off, since he may be called if he ever lets his power be taken away.
    5. Finally, trying to overcome evil with force tends to lock us in to cycles of retaliation.
      1. If I am depending on force to keep you inline, if you step out of line, I am 'forced to retaliate’ or I will loose my power.
      2. But what I think of as a necessary response you are likely to see as excessive and oppressive. That stimulates you to find ways of striking back at me.
      3. But if you strike back, then I see your action as straight rebellion, and feel driven to use even harsher measures to keep you in line. And so the cycle goes.
  3. Clearly, the strategies for dealing with evil through the use of force are filled with problems. Given the fallen state of the world, governments will be authorized by God to use these methods for a long time into the future, but they are in many ways the lesser of evils.
  4. In contrast, Jesus’ strategy of overcoming evil with good shows deep insight into the psychology of evil.
    1. It attacks evil without attacking the person whois caught up in doing the evil.
    2. It works like this:
    3. When we are doing evil to another person, we work hard to see ourselves as basically good.
      1. The bad guy who likes evil for the sake of evil is mainly a Hollywood fiction.
      2. Usually, a person caught up in evil has a very elaborate system of rationalization in which what they are doing is justified.
      3. [Some examples - add your own or get the class to come up with some examples]
        
        “It is just this once.”
        
        “They should know not to push me when I’m in a bad mood.”
        
        “They make themselves a target by being so irritating.” Etc.
      4. In fact, most humans spend a lot of their mental energy working to maintain their image of themselves as basically good.
    4. But Jesus’ “turn the other cheek” response attacks our rationalizations for evil.
      1. If I am doing evil to you, and you strike back, then my image of myself as basically good is confirmed. (In fact, I’m usually sorry I didn’t hit you harder.)
      2. But if I am doing evil to you, half expecting you to hit back, and instead you respond with love, my carefully constructed view of myself as good crumbles, because I can clearly see that you are good and I am not.
        
        Thus, in India when Ghandi’s followers did not retaliate when beaten and shot, the British image of themselves as the protectors of a superior civilization could not be maintained. It was the Indians who were civilized and the British who were acting like barbarians.
        
        Similarly, when the violent enforcement of southern segregation was met with the non-violent resistance of Martin Luther King, Jr, it became impossible to maintain the old lies that African-Americans were an inferior race. King’s followers showed themselves to be morally superior to their white oppressors.
      3. There are few experiences more painful than the sudden collapse of self-image that comes about when evil is met with goodness in response. (Question: Why does Romans 12:20 talk about coals of fire? Answer: Because that is what it feels like.)
      4. If I am faced with such a moment, I am strongly drawn to repent of my evil.
      5. If I do repent, I turn away from evil because of my own choice, not because I am afraid of you.
      6. This voluntary victory over evil has none of the drawbacks of overcoming evil by force.
      7. Even if I don’t repent, it becomes harder to rebuild my image of myself as good. If I keep running into those crazy Christians who turn the other cheek, my attempts to see myself as good will become almost impossible. If enough Christians follow this strategy, the effect will become almost irresistible.
  5. Jesus’ turn the other cheek strategy overcomes evil by awakening what is best in human beings. By itself, it would secure Jesus’ place at the forefront of great moral teachers. [If there is going to be plenty of time, you might want to include point IV below.]
The origins of Jesus set him apart from the merely moral teachers
1. Only a few other teachers might be significant rivals to Jesus in terms of the quality of their teaching and their lasting impact on the moral development of humanity: We might list Moses, Confucius, Buddha, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Mohammed and a few others, perhaps.
2. But there is one interesting thing about this list: almost everyone on the list was from the ruling classes of society:
  1. Moses was raised in the court of Pharaoh with all the learning of the Egyptians.
  2. Confucius was a member of and wrote for the bureaucratic elites of China.
  3. Buddha was from the princely class in India.
  4. Socrates, Plato and Aristotle were all from the aristocratic class of ancient Greek society.
  5. Even Mohammed, though he may have been poor for part of his life, was from the powerful Quraysh clan and was considered a suitable husband for the wealthy Khadija.
3. But Jesus in contrast was from a poor family (of the proud but financially resourceless lineage of David). Yet somehow, Jesus now stands as the peer, and in most people’s estimation, the superior of these representatives of the ruling classes. This is another way in which Jesus stands out from the other great moral teachers in history.
Jesus’ life and His death fit perfectly with His teachings.
1. Christianity grew and continues to grow on the basis of the story of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.
  1. Everywhere Christianity goes, it institutes baptism and the Lord’s Supper, both reminders of the death of Jesus.
  2. Everywhere Christianity is preached, the core message is always the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.
2. But notice how the death of Jesus is an illustration of non-resistance and overcoming evil with good.
  1. He could have destroyed those who tormented him, but he didn’t. (Matt. 26:53)
  2. The story of His death clearly draws people to Him - by the hundreds of millions now. (John 12:32)
  3. He established a greater kingdom than Caesar or Alexander, not by killing people, but by letting himself be killed and raised by God.
3. So the instrument that made Christianity grow is also designed to keep pushing the followers of Jesus back to non-resistance and overcoming evil with good.

Conclusion

By themselves, the moral teachings of Jesus, and his example, have given many the courage to follow him.
Certainly, the life and death of Jesus, coupled with his humble beginnings, make the power of his moral teachings truly remarkable.
In view of this, it would certainly be unreasonable to say that Jesus is no different from the dozens of other great moral teachers in world history. He is in a different class altogether.

Application: (about 3 minutes)

Some arguments are just matters of logic, so that it doesn’t matter what kind of a person uses them.
But if we use the arguments in this lesson, it does matter what kind of people we are. Why? What kind of people do we need to be?

The Wisdom of the Bhagavad Gita: Krishna’s Counsel to Arjuna on the Morality of War

Thou grievest where no grief should be! Thou speak’st Words lacking wisdom! For the wise in heart: Mourn not for those that live, nor those that die. Nor I, nor thou, nor any one of these, Ever was not, nor ever will not be. All that doth live lives always! … .Know thou that that by which all this is pervaded is indestructible. Learn thou! The Life is, spreading life through all …But as for these fleeting frames which it informs... With spirit deathless, endless, infinite, They perish. Let them perish, Prince, and fight! He who says, 'Lo! I have slain a man!’ He who says, 'Lo! I am slain!’ Those both Know nothing! Life cannot slay. Life cannot be slain! (from David Noss, A History of World Religions, 10th Edition p. 119,quoting Sir Edward Arnold’s translation, 2:11-20).

Buddha’s Teaching of Detachment: Avoiding Suffering by Freedom from Passion

Once when the Buddha was in a large city, he met a grandmother mourning the death of her grandson. Buddha asked “Why are you weeping?” The grandmother answers, “Because I have lost my grandson.” Buddha asked, “Would you like to have many grandsons, as many as in this great city?” The grandmother answered, “Oh yes, master, that would be a great blessing.” Then Buddha said, “In that case, you would be mourning and weeping everyday, because everyday someone in this great city dies. Only the one who does not love at all does not grieve at all.” (from David Noss, A History of World Religions, 10th Edition).

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