Who is Jesus: C.S. Lewis and the Trilemma

Who is Jesus? The question is just as pressing today as it was 2,000 years ago when the Lord put it to his apostles outside of Caesarea Philippi (cf. Mt 16). It is a question that haunts some and brings others to tears. Some run from him, some hide from him, some adore him. The fact is, we must all answer the question: Who is Jesus?

In a modern world that is marred by relativism and apathy, it is a question that can hopefully shake the lapsed Christian or non-believer out of his indifference. For while some have a true hatred for Christianity, many have a simple, yet deep indifference for the Christian claim. Many of those suffering from indifference, or what might better be identified as the vice of sloth, are Christians themselves.

It is to these that the words of Jesus in the book of Revelation are addressed, “I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of my mouth” (Rev 3:15-16).

We would do well, I believe, to gently yet intentionally invite the indifferent to answer that question about the identity of Jesus—especially to those who express some nominal faith.

The Sword

That perennial question plays a role in igniting the heart of the indifferent—or at least it should. There is nothing and no one more dividing, awe-inspiring, or shocking than Jesus Christ. The Catholic philosopher, Peter Kreeft, wrote a fantastic little book, Jesus Shock, that wonderfully illustrates the jarringness of Christ.

Even his name is controversial. No one is bothered or embarrassed when you use the name of Muhammad, Buddha, or Moses, so says Kreeft. You can utter the names of Martin Luther, John Calvin, and Joseph Smith in any company you like without fear of any trouble.

So Kreeft asks, “Why are almost all educated, non-fundamentalist Christians embarrassed to talk about Jesus to non-Christians, and why are almost all non-Christians embarrassed to hear such talk?”

Something is shocking about the name of Jesus because there is something shocking about Him. His name carries the weight of his glory. So we should not be surprised when we read the words of Jesus: “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword” (Mt 10:34). And as the author to the Hebrews states, “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword” (Hb 4:12).

This is not to say that the Lord does not give us peace, or that he wishes to bring physical violence to his creation. Rather, the peace that he does bring surpasses our understanding (cf. Philippians 4:7). It is not a political, utopian peace on earth, because it is not a peace that can be had apart from Christ.

That is why Christ brings a sword, that is why he is described as a sword himself. For Christ separates those who choose him and those who reject him. Or, rather, in rejecting Jesus we separate ourselves from him. Because, as C.S. Lewis says, “God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.”

And so it is on the question of who Jesus is that the world is divided. Kreeft summarizes this well, “Jesus is a sword. He divides.”

But for some, the question is of little interest. Perhaps for most, the person of Jesus is of secondary or tertiary importance. There isn’t time to really sit and consider the claims of Jesus and of Christianity, there are careers, bills, politics, and vacations to think about.

All or Nothing

A true wrestling with the question, “Who is Jesus” will erase apathy and sloth because the answer to that question changes everything. An honest answer leaves no room for indifference.

In his essay, “Christian Apologetics” featured in the book God in the Dock, C.S. Lewis made the astoundingly simple, yet terribly true observation: “Christianity is a statement which, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The one thing it cannot be is moderately important.”

Lewis’s point is that the option that most people settle for, that our faith is of some importance, is not an option at all. Christianity and its founder cannot be somewhat important, for the ramifications of the claims of Christ are life-altering. This is a fact that we seem to forget all too often.

Whenever we slip into indifference, we have certainly failed to acknowledge and grapple with the claims of our faith. Jesus Christ and the claims of his Church are either of the utmost importance or are of no importance at all. The one thing Christ and his Church cannot be is a matter of mediocre importance. That is not an option.

The Trilemma

This observation of Lewis corresponds perfectly with his famous statement about Jesus. In his popular apologetic for the Christian faith, Mere Christianity, Lewis makes the case for the divinity of Jesus Christ by use of his famous, so-called “trilemma”.

In this defense, Lewis clarifies an important point. There are really only three different views one can have about Jesus. Yet, the vast majority of modern people hold a fourth view that is not an option at all. He is worth quoting at length. Lewis writes,

“I am here trying to prevent anyone from saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him ‘I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God.’ That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”

It truly is a magnificent observation that Lewis is making here. And an incredibly helpful one. In our quest to answer the question: “Who is Jesus” we must recognize that there are really only three options. Christ could have been lying (knowing he was not God but making the claim still), deluded (thinking he was God when he was not), or telling the truth (knowing he was God and rightfully claimed to be). He was either a liar, a lunatic, or the Lord. Those are the three options.

Yet, in asking the average modern person who Jesus was (even Christians) a common response is some form of a nebulous fourth option—that Jesus was a good man, a moral teacher, a prophet, or a guru.

Even in the first century, some viewed Jesus merely as a good man and teacher. The Jewish historian, Flavius Josephus (37 AD -100 AD), wrote

Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man; for he was a doer of wonderful works, a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews and many of the Gentiles.

Options

However, as Lewis makes clear, this is not an option. Today, this mistaken fourth option is often the result of not really wrestling with the question, commonly the result of apathy and indifference (though it can be the result of truly poor catechesis). And so, we must diligently challenge others with the truth of the divinity of Jesus, and we must invite them to wrestle with that claim, helping them realize that there are really only three options.

We must invite people to (and must ourselves) ask that question—who is Jesus? He couldn’t be merely a good teacher and prophet. So was he lying, was he a lunatic, or was he and is he really the Lord?

And finally, upon answering that question, we must remind them (and ourselves) that the answer to that question changes everything. For if Christ is not God, then Christianity is false and is of no importance. But if he is God, and Christianity is true, it is of infinite importance.