academic
"Devotion to Jesus as divine erupted suddenly and early ... not gradually and late, as a result of pagan influence."
Source
Larry Hurtado — Lord Jesus Christ
Hurtado, Lord Jesus Christ (2003)
Author
Larry W. Hurtado
Date
2003
Credibility & evidentiary value
Influential study arguing that worship of Jesus was remarkably early. Widely respected; its 'early high Christology' conclusions remain debated.
Citation · Chicago
Larry W. Hurtado, Lord Jesus Christ: Devotion to Jesus in Earliest Christianity (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003).