Christological argument

The Christological argument for the existence of God is based on certain claims about Jesus. The argument, which exists in several forms, holds that if these claims are valid, one should accept God exists. There are three main threads; the Argument from the wisdom of Jesus, the Argument from the claims of Jesus as son of God and the Argument from the resurrection.

The essential structure of this argument is as follows:

Some forms of evangelism take this approach. Potential converts are introduced to Jesus as a historical character and the merits of Jesus' teachings are discussed. In such a context, the historicity of Jesus of Nazareth is a crucial factor in assessing the argument.

The principal objections to (1) are the suggestions that:

A related line of evangelical argument addresses the notion that Jesus Christ was a great philosopher and ethicist, but not God. It draws on the Trilemma as postulated by C. S. Lewis and others, which argues that Jesus claimed to be God, and either this claim was true and Jesus was in fact divine, or else he was a charlatan or a madman. Assuming the trilemma to be accurate, the argument proceeds in stating that neither a charlatan or a madman could be considered a great moral teacher and that therefore the possibility of Jesus being merely a great moral teacher is excluded.

The argument conditionally argues for the existence of God; it relies on the premise that Jesus was a great moral teacher. The structure of the argument is as follows:

Those who dispute these premises suggest that:

Another form of attack (similar to the Argument from inconsistent revelations) does not directly dispute the premises, but instead underlines the applicability of this argument to other historical religious figures, such as the Buddha and Muhammed, each of whom is revered in their faith as a wise and moral teacher, and each of whom made specific claims regarding their interaction with the divine.

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