Jesus of Nazareth is not just the central figure of the New Testament, he is its sine qua non. A proper overview of the life of Jesus would require considerable space; a detailed account of his life would fill more books than “the world itself could . . . contain,” as the testimony of the beloved disciple states (John 21:25). However, in a volume like this we must be content with a survey of the most important events. The Gospels of Matthew and Luke begin with announcement and birth narratives. John’s Gospel takes readers back to the premortal existence when Jesus was the firstborn spirit son of a divine father (see Doctrine and Covenants 93:21), which is the only proper way to truly comprehend the significance of Jesus’s mortal life.
The prologue to John’s Gospel (John 1:1–18) begins by declaring that the premortal Jesus was the “Word” (Greek, logos). The term logos is defined as “messenger of salvation” (Doctrine and Covenants 93:8), the agent of God the Father. This harmonizes with the concept of logos – in our language words act as a messenger. Similarly, Jesus Christ acts as the mediator, medium, or messenger of his Father. Jesus’s life and teachings are the perfect expression of the Eternal Father’s mind and will.
In John 1:1, John implies, though does not explicitly state, that the premortal Jesus was Jehovah, the Great I Am, come to earth. John merely says that “the Word was with God and the Word was God” (emphasis added). However, John knew as a Jew that there was no other way to take his assertion than that Jesus was Jehovah—the one true God of Israelite religion (Deuteronomy 6:4). The terms Jehovah (Exodus 6:3) and I Am (Exodus 3:13–15) are related, the first derived from the verb “to become, to bring into being” and the second from the associated verb “to be, to exist.” Thus, the premortal Jesus of Nazareth was the eternally existing God of Israel.
According to John, the premortal Jesus was also the maker of “all things” (1:3). Latter-day revelation confirms John’s witness with greater detail, explaining that Jesus Christ “created the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are” (3 Nephi 9:15). But even more spectacular than his infinite creative power is his infinite redemptive power—he is able to save all that he creates (Doctrine and Covenants 76:42).
With the birth of Jesus, God himself physically entered history—the “Lord Omnipotent who reigneth, who was, and is from all eternity to eternity, [came] down from heaven among the children of men, and [dwelt] in a tabernacle of clay” (Mosiah 3:5). This is known in Latter-day Saint theology as the “condescension of God” (1 Nephi 11:26–33).
Luke reports that the announcement of the Advent was preceded six months earlier by the angel Gabriel’s announcement to Zacharias that the son his wife, Elizabeth, would deliver in her old age, John the Baptist, would be an Elias—a servant who would prepare the way for the coming of the awaited Messiah (1:16–17). All of the Gospels indicate that this is exactly what John did once he reached maturity—“preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins” (Luke 3:3), quoting Isaiah 40:3 (“prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight,” Matthew 3:3), and boldly declaring to the religious leaders of his day that his baptisms by water were a foreshadowing of the baptisms by fire and the Holy Ghost to be performed by Jesus, “who coming after me is preferred before me” (John 1:27; compare Luke 3:16).
Luke states that Mary was a virgin living in Nazareth of the Galilee at the time of Gabriel’s announcement of her impending conception (1:26). The Book of Mormon prophet Nephi adds that she was “exceedingly fair” (1 Nephi 11:13). Nazareth was small and insignificant biblically, the only major Christian site not mentioned in the Old Testament, the writings of the historian Josephus, or the Talmud. Archaeologist James F. Strange put the estimated size of Nazareth at under sixty acres, most of which “was empty space in antiquity.”
Mary and Joseph were espoused, or betrothed, at the time of her conception (Matthew 1:18), a circumstance much more binding than modern engagement to be married. Joseph’s righteousness is seen in his desire to quietly divorce Mary rather than have her stoned or exposed to public disgrace when she was found to be pregnant. Only after the test of his character was he instructed in a dream by an angel to complete the marriage process. As a result of Jesus’s extraordinary conception, the idea of illegitimacy was perpetuated by uninformed sources and caused both Mary’s and Jesus’s reputations to suffer throughout their lives.
Jesus was born in Bethlehem and grew up in Nazareth. At twelve years old, he astonished the doctors of the law at the temple with his knowledge and insights. The Joseph Smith Translation provides an important note about Jesus’s maturation and young adult years: “Jesus grew up with his brethren, and waxed strong, and waited upon the Lord for the time of his ministry to come” (JST Matthew 3:24–26).
The Gospel of Mark introduces his account of Jesus’s earthly ministry using the Greek word euangelion, “good news” or “good tidings,” translated as “gospel.” This closely parallels a Roman proclamation about the birth of Caesar Augustus as “the beginning of good tidings for the world.” One gets the sense that Mark was trying to persuade Roman audiences that Jesus is the real ruler and bearer of good tidings.
Luke associates the beginning of Jesus’s public ministry with his baptism by John in the Jordan River. Immediately after, Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness near the Dead Sea to commune with his Father and fast for forty days.
Jesus called twelve apostles and performed many miracles, including healing the sick, raising the dead, and feeding the multitudes. He gave the Sermon on the Mount, teaching principles for a Christlike life. He instituted the sacrament at the Last Supper. In the Garden of Gethsemane, he suffered intensely and bled from every pore. He was arrested and subjected to an illegal trial. Jesus was crucified and on the third day was resurrected, appearing to many followers.
Through his teachings, example, Atonement, and Resurrection, Jesus Christ fulfilled his foreordained role as Savior and Redeemer of the world. Faith in him and obedience to his gospel bring salvation and exaltation.