It’s a beautiful and honest question. People have followed many wise teachers and prophets throughout history — men who spoke about peace, love, and the search for truth. Yet Jesus is unlike any of them. He did not come merely to teach a path toward God; He came as the path itself. And that changes everything.
When we read the Gospels, we discover that Jesus did not say, “I will show you the truth.” He said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). Other leaders pointed beyond themselves to divine truth; Jesus pointed to Himself as the very truth of God. He did not only proclaim the Kingdom — He brought it near, because in Him, God’s presence walked among us.
The difference lies not only in His teaching but in His identity. Every other founder of a religion was, at heart, a human being searching for or inspired by the divine. Jesus alone claimed equality with the Father — “The Father and I are one” (John 10:30). That claim, shocking to His listeners, is the center of Christian faith: that the eternal Word of God became flesh and dwelt among us. No other spiritual leader has ever made or fulfilled such a claim through His death and resurrection.
And this is the heart of it — the Resurrection. Many teachers have left wise words, but only Jesus left an empty tomb. His victory over death is not a legend or symbol of hope; it is the proof that God’s love conquers sin and death itself. When we encounter the risen Christ, we don’t just admire a great moral figure; we meet the living God who offers us new life.
In daily life, this means Jesus is not only someone we study or imitate. He is someone we can truly know. Through prayer, the sacraments, and His Word, He continues to walk with us, heal us, and call us by name. We follow Him not as a teacher from the past, but as a living Lord who transforms our present.
May our hearts never grow tired of seeking this mystery — that the infinite God has drawn near to us in Jesus Christ.
He is not only the way to God — He is God’s way to us.
— Fr. John Matthew, for Christian Way
