A dogmatic belief in objective value is necessary to the very idea of a rule which is not tyranny or an obedience which is not slavery.
C. S. LewisRead
A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said wouldn't be a great moral teacher. He'd be either a lunatic on a level with a man who says he's a poached egg or else he'd 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.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote presents the idea that Jesus' claims are so significant that one must either accept his divinity or consider him unhinged.
C. S. Lewis argues that the moral teachings of Jesus are so profound that it's impossible to simply regard him as an ordinary man. He challenges the reader to choose between three possibilities: that Jesus is the Son of God, a madman, or something even darker. This perspective invites deep reflection on the implications of Jesus' identity and the absoluteness of moral authority.
Themes
JesusChoiceMoralTeachingDivinity
In practice
Example use cases
In a sermon discussing the nature of faith and belief.
More from C. S. Lewis
All quotes →I enjoyed my breakfast this morning, and I think that was a good thing and do not think it was condemned by God. But I do not think myself a good man for enjoying it.
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Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither.
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Forgiving and being forgiven are two names for the same thing. The important thing is that a discord has been resolved.
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I pray because I can't help myself. I pray because I'm helpless. It doesn't change God - it changes me.
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The instrument through which you see God is your whole self. And if a man's self is not kept clean and bright, his glimpse of God will be blurred
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