Basic Christianity by John Stott
Week 2: Part One — The Claims of Christ (His Character)
Read Part One, Chapter 1 of Basic Christianity by John Stott. Key passages: Mark 10:17-18; John 8:46.
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Stott begins his case for Christianity not with abstract doctrine, but with the concrete person of Jesus — and specifically with what Jesus's own character tells us about who he must be.
Discussion Questions
7 questions1.Stott opens by examining the character of Jesus as attested in the Gospels — his moral perfection, his freedom from guilt or self-reproach, and the striking fact that he never asked for forgiveness or expressed any sense of personal sin. Why does Stott consider this significant? What would we expect of a truly good person who was merely human?
2.He notes that Jesus's enemies were unable to convict him of sin — even at his trial, the charges against him were contradictory and unsubstantiated. How does the historical record of Jesus's opponents' failure to find genuine fault in him add to the argument Stott is building?
3.Stott quotes the challenge Jesus issued in John 8:46 — 'Can any of you prove me guilty of sin?' No one answered. Compare this to the behavior of history's greatest moral teachers (Socrates, Confucius, the Buddha, Muhammad, or any reformer you know of). Do any of them make a similar claim? What does Jesus's uniqueness here suggest?
a.Why would a merely good person never make such a claim?
b.Why would a fraud or a lunatic make it — and would it be credible?
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