Faith-Lift ... Inspiring & Restoring Faith

by David Kidd (email churchofgodslove4@gmail.com if you also want David’s more recent and much shorter books, Countdown to Faith, Countdown to Faith FOR ISRAEL & Feeling the Squeeze in the Bay of Plenty - There’s Hope!)

For PDF or Word Documents of books or articles on this site, please email David at churchofgodslove4@gmail.com and they will be emailed to you. Please indicate your town and country.

Jesus said, “if you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes”.  

                                                             Mark 9:23                                                                                                  

Tragically, a whole generation is being led to believe this life is all there is.

If you favour knowledge over ignorance, or perhaps are confused or can’t understand why people from all sections of society, including world leaders and scientists, devote themselves wholeheartedly to Christ, this will be enlightening and perhaps faith-building.

If there's the slightest stirring within you for God, or admiration for Christ, or a desire for eternal happiness, but you need more faith, just read on. This is a journey through much of the reasoning that strengthens my faith and the faith of many.  Just continue your search for truth, and this book will pleasantly surprise you.

Reader's comment

This is bold, clear, and authentic. You have not shied away from the tough truth that the modern secular world finds so difficult. ...  [Y]ou have listened to your heart and speak to other hearts. ... There is great need for a 'Faith Lift'.  You have been straight and honest. You are dealing with material that maybe only those with ears to hear can hear.

LASTING LIFE AND LIFESTYLE CHANGES

If you are longing for change in your life or lifestyle, through faith and God’s love you can be radically transformed and experience the peace and joy that passes all understanding. Let us help you come to the faith which moves mountains. Contact us at churchofgodslove4@gmail.com if you would like to experience lasting faith-based change. We also encourage you to seek God with all your heart as you read Faith-lift below.

Contents

      Introduction

1.   Meditations on the Great Way of Salvation

  Through Christ   

2.   The Suffering Creator

3.   Faith-Lift

4.   Knowing Your Eternal Destiny

5.   Truth or Hoax? 

6.   What are the Chances? 

              Be sure to read the sub-heading ‘The ‘Freak’ – why Darwinian evolutionary theory has no foundation!’

7.   A Grace of God Experience

8.   Nahum: Historian, or God’s Chosen Prophet? 

9.   Blessed Are Eyes That See! 

10. Ahead of its Time

11. Divine Declarations

12. Up-lifting the Muslim’s Faith in Christ

13. The Psalm of the Cross

14. The Reliability of the New Testament

15. The Resurrection of Christ

16. Restoring the Faith of the Wanderer

17. Go Again! 

18. ‘My Lord and My God’ 

19. You Don’t Have to See Miracles to Believe

      (Author’s personal story) 

Acknowledgements

I give glory to God for giving me ears to hear and a heart and mind to understand the wonderful gospel message. I thank Him too for the inspiration for the chapters of this book, many of which originally were sermons which I prayed for His guidance to prepare. I thank my wife and also Pastor Phil Kordahi for their constant love and support over the years.

2016 Published by David B. Kidd

South Australia 5083                        

Sixth edition ISBN 978-0-9805924-9-8   

Scripture from New King James Version (unless otherwise indicated). Copyright 1982 Thomas Nelson,

   Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Introduction

‘You only live once’ (YOLO), many say.

What about the caterpillar who became a butterfly? Did it live once or twice? What about people who doctors say are dead, but who come alive again minutes or even hours later? Did they live once or twice? What about Jesus Christ? Most of us have an opinion about Him. Mine is, if He only lived once, then ‘YOLO.’ If Jesus didn’t rise from the dead to never die again, then what confidence can we have that anyone will?

Living once would be a very depressing truth if it were true. Most dying people in hospital would rather live than die if they were given the chance to again live a happy and healthy life. How about you? Be honest. Would you choose the same if you were in that person’s shoes?

The faith question is one worth investigating. If this book helps you believe Jesus is still alive it will make an amazing difference in your life and bring you a great sense of hope and joy. Many in this world are losing faith and hope. Not only are they ‘losing their religion,’ as the famous pop song goes, but many have never given faith the time of day. However, the faith question does not go away easily. Life is filled with timely reminders.

This book has two aims. Firstly, it aims to help doubters and those who don’t know much about the Christian faith to understand the great reasons why many people trust in Christ and the Bible. You will see that God’s signature is all over the Bible in many special ways. I believe this will also be stimulating and uplifting to anyone struggling to find meaning and satisfaction in life and to all who are hungering for truth.

Secondly, it aims to restore or strengthen faith and hope in Christians by showing them they have every reason to believe and to hold on to their precious hope of an eternity with a glorious God.

By showing how truly amazing the Bible is I hope many will come to understand why it is not necessary to see miracles to have a strong and fulfilling Christian faith. The Bible alone provides us with a great feast to fill us with faith. My heart’s desire for you is you will have the kind of faith that never fails and that will see you live with God with great joy, now and forever.

Now, may you find the following journey through much of the reasoning that strengthens my Christian faith in a loving God (and the faith of many others too) eye-opening and life-changing.

Enjoy a faith-lift.

Chapter One

Meditations on the Great Way of Salvation Through Christ

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.                       Ephesians. 2:8-9

Before looking at why we can believe the Christian message I’d like to share a little about the beauty of the message. The truth is, most of us generally believe what we want to believe. May this chapter provide some of the ‘want to’ before we see in the following chapters why Christianity certainly does not require blind faith.

The average person on the street who has not given Christianity much thought would probably think that simply being a ‘good person’ would qualify a person for heaven and being saved from the problems of this world. However, the Bible does not teach this!

The way of salvation in Christianity is not through doing good works, but through faith, and according to God‘s grace shown toward us through Christ. Salvation, according to the Bible, is a free gift which we could never earn by our own goodness or good works. To try to receive God’s free gift by working for it, or paying for it, would be insulting, just as it would be very offensive for a wife to offer to pay for the flowers her romantic husband gives her. Whilst followers of Christ are strongly encouraged to do good and love their neighbor as themselves, this is not the means or way of salvation. Rather, this is only part of the evidence a person has come into a personal relationship with the Saviour.

The way in other religions compared

This way of salvation is very different to the way of salvation other religions suggest. For example, the eastern religions are based generally on the idea that our position in life depends on our behaviour in a previous life. Our good deeds could cause us to be reborn as a wise or wealthy person on Earth or see us directly through to ‘heaven/nirvana.’ On the other hand our misdeeds might see us being reborn into a lower or inferior situation, such as being reincarnated as a poor person or a cockroach. The clear and important difference with Christianity is people of these eastern religions are told they can save themselves through their good works, whereas Christians have a Saviour. According to Islam, at the last judgment, the record of the Muslim‘s deeds is the most important thing in determining whether they go to heaven or hell. The Muslim’s deeds are weighed in the balances.

By comparison, the apostle John was so certain of the Christian’s eternal hope for the kingdom of heaven he could even write of it as a present possession of the believer (provided the believer continues in the faith):

These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe ... (1 John 5:13)

Meditations on the Christian way

Below are some meditations on why the way of salvation in Christianity is so wonderful. I hope they encourage you to have faith in Christ or to continue in the faith.

. As Christians we have great security and confidence in our salvation. We do not have to reach a certain level of goodness to be accepted by God. We do not have to get to a point where our good deeds are more than our bad deeds. We are not left wondering on Judgment Day whether we were good enough to earn the everlasting joy of Paradise. The righteousness of Christ, who we trust in alone for our salvation, is counted as our righteousness before God.  He fully paid for our sins on the cross.

. God guarantees our salvation by giving us the Holy Spirit as a guarantee and assures us of it (see 2 Corinthians 1:22 & 5:5, 1 John 3:14-15 & 5:11-13).

. We can be certain that God will not change His mind because He has sacrificed so much to restore us to Himself – namely His only begotten Son, who suffered terribly on our behalf.

. Our way of salvation truly demonstrates God‘s unconditional love toward us – It‘s very easy in Christianity to see God as an amazingly loving God. Not even His only begotten Son, who willingly gave Himself for us, is spared in bringing about our salvation. God goes all out for us. His love is unquestionably awesome.

. It is God who saves us, not we ourselves. This is very comforting and reassuring because we are all far from being perfect. We have all done many things we’re not proud of.

.   We have God living in us through the Holy Spirit strengthening us to continue in faith to the end. God does not leave us alone to go through this life on our own strength, but rather comes to us in a very personal way. Of course challenges to our faith arise, but we have God living in us giving us strength and guidance all along the way.

. We have a demonstration, strongly supported by many witnesses, of how one can be raised from the dead – namely, Jesus Christ. See chapter 15 on the resurrection of Christ.

. Even a mass murderer can be forgiven by God, even today, and even if they repent late in life. They don’t have to do a certain amount of good to make up for all their evil. That’s great news for us if we feel the things we have done in our life are unforgivable.

. God shows His confidence in us from the start. The Bible tells us we are valuable, chosen, and righteous in God‘s sight right from our conversion. We don’t have to prove ourselves before God will accept us.

Why don’t you stop now and think about each of the highlighted meditations above?

If the message attracts you, why not read on to see just how believable it is. Perhaps you have never given this wonderful Christian message much thought before. I pray you see it is well worth doing so, and that you do.

Chapter Two

The Suffering Creator

These were more fair-minded … in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.      Acts 17:11

Sometimes we just need to be honest with ourselves. Are we open minded or aren’t we? Would there be anything other than standing before God that would cause us to admit He exists? For many, nothing would allow them to have faith, except seeing God, and then it wouldn’t be faith. However, perhaps today you might be willing to go on a journey with me and be prepared to ask yourself the question, ‘what would I expect if the Creator described in Genesis, the first book of the Bible, came to Earth?’

Expectations of the Creator

In summary, according to Genesis chapter one and two, the Creator made everything in six days, including the earth, stars, planets, elements, vegetation, sea and land creatures. He also says He made humans in His own image, Genesis 3:31 says God considered all He had made to be very good (so He was very pleased with what He had created). He then rested on the seventh day, blessed it, and set it apart as holy.

Based on this summary, the following would be my expectations if the Creator came to Earth. I think you will find them to be quite reasonable.

I would expect the Creator would be able to control the sun, the moon, the stars, and the elements. Since He made them so quickly and easily, it would just be a small thing for Him to simply exercise control over them. For the same reason He should have control over light, plant life, animal life, human life, and His own life. He should also be able to know what His creatures are thinking, and the seventh day of the week should hold some special significance for Him. Further, since He was pleased with what He had created, I would expect His love for it would be great, especially for humans, whom He made in His own image.

I hope you can agree these are reasonable expectations of the Creator seen at work in Genesis, and that no one else, but God, could fulfill all of these expectations. However, the next statement may surprise you.

Jesus meets all expectations

Jesus Christ, when He came 2,000 years ago, actually did everything we could reasonably expect of our Creator, and more.

Consider for example the control or influence He had over the elements. He walked on water and calmed the storm, the wind, and the sea (see e.g. Matthew 14:29-32). Some witnesses of these events asked as a result, “Who can this be? For He commands even the winds and water, and they obey Him!” Others worshipped Him and said, “Truly, this is the Son of God.”

What you might also find amazing is what’s recorded as happening in the heavens and the elements at Jesus’ crucifixion. Matthew records how there were three hours of darkness during the day while Jesus suffered on the cross (see Matthew 27:45-46) and an earthquake the moment He died (Matthew 27:50-51).

Such things were also seen by many people. It would take a brave or foolish person to write that these things happened, soon after they occurred, if they didn’t actually happen. It would take an even more foolish person to be prepared to die for what he wrote, especially if he knew for a fact it wasn’t true. It is believed Matthew was indeed put to death for his preaching of Christ. Furthermore, there is historical evidence of the unusual darkness on the day of Jesus’ crucifixion (see chapter 5 below).

So Jesus showed control over the elements, and the sky turned dark at His death. What about control over animals and plants? There was an event written about in Mark 5:11-13 where demons asked Jesus’ permission to enter a herd of pigs. Jesus gave them permission and the pigs immediately went down into the sea. This story certainly shows Jesus had authority over these animals. The control Jesus exercised over the creatures of the sea was also amazing when one considers the way He was able to miraculously increase the amount of fish caught by fishermen who had fished all night without catching a thing. There was also a time when Jesus cursed a fig tree that had no fruit. His disciples were amazed when the fig tree immediately died (Matthew 21:19).

Jesus’ incredible healings of the deaf and blind certainly show His control over human life. It’s interesting that some of the miracles He chose to do still cannot be done today. He could have chosen to heal someone of an infection but nowadays we might not be that impressed, since we have antibiotics and can heal people of infections as well. However, even today, doctors still cannot heal those blind from birth, as Jesus did.

Jesus’ control over human life is nowhere more powerfully shown than in His works of bringing back those who had died, such as Lazarus, who had been dead four days. Such events seem too incredible for many to believe, but certainly if God had the ability to create us, it would be just a small thing for Him to bring the dead back to life.

Jesus also showed remarkable control over His own life. The Bible shows how many wanted Him dead. The religious leaders were especially angry with Him because they rightly understood that in a sense He was making Himself equal with God (John 5:18), except in relation to position (John 14:28). Several times they tried to take Him, but as Jesus the Lamb of God made clear, He Himself was going to lay down His own life (John 10:18) at the time chosen beforehand by God – at the feast of Passover.

Jesus also showed His God-like power of knowing everything about us in the story of the woman at the well. This woman shared throughout her village how Jesus told her all she ever did (John 4:39).

How about our seventh day Sabbath expectation? Did Jesus, like the Creator, give special importance to the seventh day? Luke 4:16 tells us it was His custom to go to the synagogue on the Sabbath. It’s interesting, but hard to understand, why the three major religions who believe in Moses, who himself honoured the seventh day, and passed on God’s command to keep it, have three different days of the week they generally regard as holy – Friday for Muslims (6th), Saturday (7th) for Jews (and some Christians), and Sunday (1st) for most Christians. Jesus identified Himself with the Genesis Creator in this very special way, unlike Buddha, Muhammad, or other major religious leaders.  

The centerpiece of God’s plan

Finally, let’s consider probably the most important expectation concerning our Creator. We would expect He would show a deep love for the beings He created – us! Did Jesus also fulfill this expectation? He did, but perhaps too well. Although we would have expected Him to show His love by healing the sick and raising the dead, no one seriously would have expected Him to be willing to suffer and die on the cross to save His people.

Jesus’ death was not what His followers or Jewish believers in a Messiah generally expected. They expected the Messiah to deliver them from the Romans who ruled over them. This takes some thought, but if we think deeply about Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross we might understand why this is the most powerful sign of all that Jesus is the Creator described in Genesis. It’s probably the only act another powerful being, such as Satan, another ‘god’, or an alien (if you believe in other ‘gods’ or aliens) could not or would not do.

Yet, Jesus’ sacrifice does not meet our expectations because it shows us God loves us more than we deserve. We would never have imagined our Creator doing such a self-sacrificial thing. Perhaps a story about the wisdom of Solomon will help us understand why Jesus dying on the cross shows the love of the true God in a truly special way.

You might remember the Bible story in 1 Kings 3:16 where two prostitutes sleeping in the same house each had a baby. One awoke to find her baby dead because she had laid on him. She swapped her dead baby with the other woman’s living baby while this poor woman slept. An argument over the living baby arose and the women wanted King Solomon to decide who the true mother was.

King Solomon knew how he would handle this sad case. He called for a sword and said, “Divide the living child in two, and give half to one, and half to the other.” Of course, the true mother loved her child more deeply than the other woman did, and to save her child’s life she told the King to give the child to the other woman. Therefore, King Solomon knew immediately who the child’s true mother was.

Just as King Solomon was able to know who the true mother was by her willingness to sacrifice to save her child’s life, we may know who the true God is by His willingness to suffer and sacrifice to save His creation. When I often hear people criticize God by saying “why doesn’t He step in and do something about all the suffering in the world,” I say, “He has; just understand the cross.”

Putting an end to suffering

When we’re feeling upset about the terrible suffering in the world and God’s patience towards it, it’s useful to consider what God’s options are for putting an end to it. In my limited mind I see God basically has four options.

He could choose to step in every time someone is about to do something hurtful to another. How many of us would like a God who stepped in every time we were about to do something He didn’t like? How many of us would complain about Him being a terrible ‘Big Brother’ figure?

Secondly, He could destroy all who sin, since greed, lying, stealing, adultery, murder, and all manner of self-centered attitudes and actions are by far the main reasons for why suffering exists. We probably wouldn’t like this option, as we all have attitudes and actions that are against God’s will. Who would be left?

Thirdly, God could turn us all into robots who have no free will, and who always do exactly what they’re programmed to do. I’m sure this option does not sound all that good either.

The remaining option, as I see it, is to try and turn our hearts away from doing the wrong thing by loving us so much that we would never wish to hurt Him or others again. That’s the approach God took through the cross. It’s the heart of God’s plan to bring about the world we all desire where there is no more pain or suffering.

Becoming an atheist or becoming an agnostic has rarely, if ever, turned anyone away from crime, but millions have been turned away from lives dangerous to themselves and society through turning their lives to Christ. Love changes hearts better than anything. This is one of the greatest things about God’s plan.

Sadly, however, because most are still not responding to His love, God will have to bring this world to a close, and apply the second option to all those who refuse to accept His gracious free gift of eternal life through trusting in His Son. For now, we can just praise the Father and the Son for their patience, their love, and their free-will-respecting plan for ours and the world’s salvation.

Many, perhaps you, still struggle to relate to why the Creator would come to earth in the form of a man. A good story I once heard about a flock of geese might help:

A man always told his wife she was stupid for believing God would lower Himself to come to earth as a man. He just couldn’t relate to the idea. One day some blind, lost and dying geese, which should have finished their flight south for the winter, were caught in a nasty storm and accidentally bumped into the man’s house a few times.

The man felt sorry for the geese and wanted to save them. He had a barn, so he decided to risk his own life in the terrible storm and get them safely into his barn. He tried everything to get them into the barn, but nothing worked. Realizing they would not follow a human, he thought to himself if only he were a goose, he could save them. He cleverly decided to get his one and only goose and he carried it behind the geese and threw it towards the barn. The stray geese then followed his goose to safety in the barn. At that point he remembered how he had told his wife she was stupid for believing the Creator God would lower Himself to save his blind, lost and dying creatures by becoming one of them. The idea no longer seemed so strange to him.

Jesus proclaimed as Creator

We’ve seen above how Jesus meets all reasonable expectations of the Genesis Creator, and He does so much more than we could ever have expected. The actions and abilities of other great prophets or leaders just don’t measure up to Christ’s. However, not only do Jesus’ actions identify Him as Creator, the scriptures directly say He is our Creator.

John 1:1-3 &14 say:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.  … And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

Hebrews 1:1-2 says:

God … has in these last days spoken to us by His Son … through whom also He made the worlds.

Colossians 1:15-20 says:

He is the image of the invisible God … for by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth … All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. … For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself … whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.

Conclusion

Directly and indirectly, Jesus is proclaimed as our Creator. He suffered to the extreme to save His creation. He is all-loving and all-powerful.

May God bless you as you think about these things.

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16

Chapter Three

Faith-Lift

But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.  Hebrews 11:6

Introduction

I don’t know which would be more important to you right now – a face-lift or a faith-lift, but I do know one of these will only serve a short-term purpose and the other may have great benefits now and forever.

In this material and technological age it seems faith has gone out the window for many. Not so many years ago in Europe I came across a proudly sophisticated attitude along the lines of “You don’t still believe in God do you?” It seemed to come from a glorying in humanity’s great technology and scientific knowledge.

There was once a similar attitude back in Moses’ day when Moses was told by God to go to Pharaoh and do signs and wonders to cause Pharaoh to let the Israelites go. However, when the Egyptian magicians were able to copy some of the first miracles done through Moses (thus partly explaining them) the Egyptians doubted whether they were from God, as in their minds they could also do the same. Moses’ God was excluded by their pride and understanding.

I think we can turn this reasoning around though, and reason that the existence of an all powerful God should seem more acceptable to modern man (with its advanced technologies) than ancient man. Just consider for a moment some of the great things the Bible says God can do.

The things God can do

According to the Bible, God can create the universe in just six days. He can create things we can see out of things we can’t see (Hebrews 11:3). Nothing is hidden from His sight – all things are naked and open before his eyes. He can receive millions of incoming prayers all at once and remember all that has been prayed for. He can hear our prayers whether we are on an airplane or in a submarine. He can totally destroy the Earth in a moment. He can raise us into the clouds of the air to meet Jesus at His coming, and can open the ears of the deaf and eyes of the blind.

Humanity’s technological explosion

All of these abilities above are very interesting in light of the technological advancements of the last 100 years. The statement of Hebrews 11:3 that “By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible” may seem a bit confusing. Things we can see not being made of things we can see? I could appreciate it if people in the nineteenth century scratched their heads in wonder over this one. It doesn’t seem logical and seems hard to believe, especially if you lived before the first pictures of individual atoms were viewed under an electron microscope in 1970.

Whilst this verse is probably not meaning atoms, nevertheless, it’s interesting scientists have discovered everything around us is made up of atoms, and atoms are incredibly tiny. An atom is more than a million times smaller in width than a strand of human hair, and as tiny as atoms are, they consist of even smaller particles called protons, neutrons, and electrons – all invisible to us. God is believable. Modern science has given us one less reason to doubt a God who can make things we can see out of things we can’t see.

I could also understand if people living before the 1900s found the scriptures describing the destruction of the Earth a little bit more difficult to understand than us. They did not live with the fear of super-powers or terrorists using nuclear bombs which could destroy the Earth many times over. Given the great size of the Earth and the limited nature of their weapons, a weapon that could destroy the whole earth must have seemed like magic – miraculous. Yet we have such seemingly impossible weapons now.

There are several other quite recent inventions that make the things the Bible says God can do seem more believable. Take for example Skype. If we lived only 200 years ago and I said to you one day you could be on the other side of the world in your house, on a boat, or up a mountain, and we will be able to have a conversation, and you will be able to see me, you would most probably think I’d gone mad. Such a possibility would seem as miraculous to you as almost anything you could imagine. And yet this began to become reality beginning with the patent of the first telephone by Alexander Graham Bell in 1876.

The thought of God being able to hear our prayers instantly doesn’t seem so strange anymore does it? But what about the thought of God being able to receive and process millions of incoming prayers all at once and remembering what each person has prayed for, and the thought of God being able to create billions of things in just six days?

Was there something created in the twentieth century which processes and remembers large amounts of information with great accuracy and can do billions of things each second? Certainly there was - the computer. The world’s most powerful computer can do billions of calculations per second. Now, that is an incredible power, and doesn’t believing in an even more incredible power, God, seem yet again less difficult because of our own greatly improved knowledge.

Need I also mention the x-ray that sees through into our inner parts? Need I mention how our ability to help the blind and deaf has improved greatly? Need I mention the wonders of air and space travel or the wonders of the satellite and video surveillance cameras that can record all we do under the sun, and can keep a record of it until the Day of Judgment?

It shouldn’t be too hard then for humanity, who continues to advance technologically at a fast pace, to believe in a God who can do these things, and who can do them so much better than us. The idea of an all knowing, all powerful, and all present God should be easier to relate to in this present era – truly an age of wonders.

Miracles happen

What about the idea of Jesus Christ returning to Earth and taking control of the world? If you are anything like me, you might have days when this thought seems too incredible, or too good, to be true. The thought of waking one day and then experiencing this great life and world change can seem like fantasy or science fiction, but so too did the telephone, the atom, the computer, aviation, space travel etc, and that’s not to mention the thousands of other fantastic discoveries made in the twentieth century, and which are still being made well into the twenty-first century.

Also, what about the millions of ‘miraculous’ living things around us that are incredibly more complex than the inventions mentioned above, such as the brain, reproductive systems, and eyesight. I love the homing pigeon. This amazing bird has never left its town before. The owner puts it in a small box. It can’t see where it’s going. It’s taken 1000 kilometers from its home. It can’t read maps or road signs, but it’s expected to find its way home as fast as possible. How it does it is fantastic. It seems magical. Yet, it does it. Just how it does it has not been all that clear to scientists.

A new world

The thought of waking one day to a new world with Christ the King of Kings can seem unbelievable to us, but reality tells us fantastic things, things hard to believe, happen, and indeed have happened regularly over the last 100 years as knowledge has increased.

A mighty being or a God with the powers the Bible describes is no longer as strange as we might have imagined!

May these thoughts give us all a faith-lift.

Jesus once said:

… assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.  Matthew 17:20

Chapter Four

Knowing Your Eternal Destiny

… Jesus Christ … now made manifest, and by the prophetic Scriptures made known to all nations …

                                                                          Romans 16:25-26

Do you want to know your eternal future or destiny? In what, or in whom, do you trust? This chapter will show how wonderfully trustworthy God is. The prophecies below have played a large part in the author’s faith. I pray they will help yours too.

Consider the following passage of scripture, and as you read it, consider who you think the writer is writing about and whether the passage was written before Jesus walked this earth or after:

He is despised and rejected by men … Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows … But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by his stripes [lashes] we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, everyone, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet he opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth. … For He was cut off from the land of the living; For the transgressions of My people He was stricken … He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him … He poured out His soul unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors, and He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

Who do you think the writer is writing about?

Most people who have even only a little knowledge of the life of Jesus Christ will say it is about Him and His horrible experience on the cross, and many who do not know the Bible very well guess it was written after Jesus’ death. In fact, it is written about Jesus Christ, but surprisingly, it was written by the prophet Isaiah about 700 years before Christ.

The prophet Isaiah knew the future because God showed it to him. In what, or in whom do you trust for knowing your future? Who else do you know who can tell the future like this?

A closer look

Let’s look more closely at chapters 52 & 53 of the book of the prophet Isaiah where these words were taken from. I pray that by doing so you will gain a greater trust in the Bible.

Verse 13 of chapter 52 says, “Behold, My Servant shall deal prudently.” In other words, this Servant was to be a wise man. The New Testament tells us that many people were amazed at the wisdom of Christ. Many examples could be given.

Verse 13 also says, “He shall be exalted and extolled [honoured and praised greatly] and be very high.” Many, as Jesus entered Jerusalem just days before His death, wanted to honour Him by making Him king, but He was not ready to be their earthly king. Acts 2:33 refers to Jesus being raised up to sit at the right hand of God, and Philippians 2:9-10 says, “God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth … and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Verse 14 says, “Just as many were astonished at you [Jerusalem (see v1)], so His visage [appearance] was marred more than any man, and His form more than the sons of men.” The terrible physical punishment Jesus suffered is partly described in Matthew 26:67-68 and 27:26-27. As a result of being whipped, beaten, and crucified Jesus’ appearance was horribly changed.

Chapter 53 continues the very prophetic description of Christ’s life. Verse three foretells how “He … [was] despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.” After Jesus’ death, the Apostle John wrote in John 1:11, “He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.” It is even written that his own brothers and community rejected Him. To make things worse, His own people wanted to save a rebel and murderer - Barabbas, from crucifixion rather than Him (Matthew 27:21).

Through the many sufferings Jesus experienced on this earth He knew grief all too well. He also cried for others, such as Mary, Martha and Lazarus. The sins of His own people made Him especially sad (John 11:35, Luke 19:21).

Verse three also adds that, “we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.” Even His disciples left Him and ran away when He was arrested (Matthew 26:56). Peter denied Him three times. The leading priests in Israel especially hated or despised Him. Mark 15:10 tells us they were jealous of Him. Instead of being esteemed, or held in high regard, Jesus was mocked and spat upon.

Verse four says, “Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God and afflicted.” It’s interesting that the word for ‘grief’ here, ‘choliy’ in the first language this was written in (Hebrew), can mean disease, or grief, or any bodily problem. Matthew 8:16-17, quoting this verse, says it was fulfilled in Jesus casting out demons and healing all who were sick. Despite the many wonderful healings Jesus did, many in Jerusalem thought it was a good thing for Him to be crucified. They, like Job’s friends, thought He deserved it, and that God was rightly punishing and afflicting Him.

Verse five clearly prophesies of Christ when it says, “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes (lashes with the rod or whip) we are healed.” This accurately prophesies several things. Jesus was not to be punished for His own sins, but rather for ours. The Bible confirms that Jesus was without sin. He indeed was to provide the perfect sacrifice to save us from our sins and to make us right with God (a spiritual healing). He brings us peace with God if we accept His sacrifice (Romans 5:6, Colossians 1:20 & Hebrews 9:27).

Verse six shares the saddest truth of history that “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” This is a prophecy stating it was God’s plan for Jesus to suffer the consequences of our sins. Consider how true this prophecy is when we remember what Jesus prayed in the garden of Gethsemane before the cross. He prayed, “not my will (Father), but thine.”

Verse seven rightly foretells how Jesus “… was oppressed and … afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth.” Matthew 27:12-14 show just how quietly and lamb-like Jesus went to the cross. He did not struggle with those who arrested Him, or defend Himself against His enemies.

Verse eight says, “He was taken from prison and from judgment and who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgressions of my people He was stricken.” Jesus did lose his freedom and was judged, just as the prophet said He would be. Acts 8:31-35 says this prophecy was about Jesus not receiving any justice, which was also true. The evidence of false witnesses was used against Him (Matthew 26:60), and Pilate found no reason to put Him to death (Luke 23:4). Also, in fulfillment of this prophesy, Jesus was ‘cut off’ – He died an early death at the age of about 33 years old.

Verse nine predicts, “And they made His grave with the wicked – but with the rich at His death, because He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth.” Matthew 27:57-60 shows us how a rich man, Joseph of Arimathea, had Jesus body put in a new tomb – a rich man’s tomb. Certainly Jesus was also a truthful man and a peaceful man, who both taught and practiced turning the other cheek.

Verses 10-11 say, “Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand. He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, for He shall bear their iniquities.” In other words, although it was God’s plan for Jesus to be sacrificed for the sins of all, God saw the good that would come from it.

Did you notice the exciting part of this prophecy? The one who was to be offered (Jesus) was to see His seed and have his days prolonged (continued). This is a prophecy of His resurrection. Interestingly Jesus, when talking about His own death, was recorded in John 12:24 as saying, “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.” Jesus was resurrected to see that His death was for a great purpose. Many (His ‘seed’) have followed Him and been accepted by God through faith in Him.

Verse twelve also foretells Jesus shall have a “portion with the great, and He shall divide the spoil with the strong, because He poured out His soul unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors, and He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.” In fulfillment of this, Jesus has been worshipped by millions throughout history and is seated at the right hand of God. He was numbered with the sinners too, as he was treated as a criminal, crucified in between criminals, and God put the curse of the world’s sin on His back. But on the cross he cried out for those who had delivered Him to be crucified by praying for their forgiveness – “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Jesus now is our High Priest still making intercession for our sins to God, or in other words seeing to it that those who repent of their sins are forgiven (Hebrews 7:25).

Suspicions?

These prophecies of Isaiah are so detailed and true it is understandable if someone might be suspicious or doubtful about them being written hundreds of years before Christ was born in Bethlehem. However, the learned people of today do not dispute this. In fact, in 1947 a complete copy of the book of Isaiah was found in the Dead Sea Scrolls. It was dated as being written before Christ came to Earth, and it had only very minor differences to the book of Isaiah we have today. Some might try and reinterpret the book of Isaiah, but few deny its date.

Ancient Israelites/Jews, before the coming of Christ, also understood Isaiah 53 as a prophecy about their coming Saviour (Messiah). Since Judaism does not believe Jesus is their Messiah, they have had to change their interpretation. However, many Jews have been unable to deny that Jesus fulfilled these prophecies. Indeed, Christianity started because some Jews accepted He did. What may further amaze you is that the Bible contains many more specific Old Testament prophecies about Christ which He clearly fulfilled, including prophecies about where and when he would be born, the family he would be born into, the way he would live and many specific things about His death. The Old Testament over and over again tells us many things about Jesus’ life in advance. (See also Psalm 22 and chapters thirteen and eighteen below).

Trusting the Bible

The prophet Isaiah and other Old Testament prophets wrote truly of the times hundreds of years ahead of them surely because God was with them. Do you want to know your future – your own destiny? In what, or in whom, do you trust? If you want to know your eternal destiny, you will find the answer in the Holy Scriptures of the Bible. I hope you can see that you can trust them because God inspired them. No man could make predictions like Isaiah did without God’s help.

When I see or hear of tarot readings, palm readings, tea leave readings etc. being given to help people know their future I would like to sit down with the people and instead give them a ‘Bible reading’ and show them what the Bible says about their future. The following are some scriptures that might be used at a ‘Bible reading.’

Hebrews 11:6 says that without faith it is impossible to please God. If you lack faith your future is therefore limited, because you don’t please God. Further, Jesus in Matthew 10:37-39 and Luke 10:27 says, if we are not living for God above all else we shouldn’t expect to be in the kingdom of heaven with Him. Also, 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 and Revelation 21:8 both have long lists of the types of people who will not be in the kingdom of heaven. If you are one of these types of people your eternal future is in great doubt, unless you turn to God.

On the other hand, and on a more happy note, Romans 8:11 says, “if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies … .” Jesus also said in John 3:16:

God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.

That’s a wonderful destiny, and you can trust the God of the Holy Bible, who was willing to even suffer for you to secure your eternal destiny, to make good on his promise, because He loves you so much.

Then He said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!  Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?”  And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself. Luke 24:25-27

“These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me.”  And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures. Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And you are witnesses of these things. Luke 24:44-48

Chapter Five

Truth or Hoax?

For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty.

                                                                          2 Peter 1:16

Some who wish to bring Christianity down seek to prove Jesus was just a mythical figure who never existed. They suggest Christians have been tricked and have fallen for a hoax. What historical proof then is there that Jesus was a real person who walked this Earth about 2,000 years ago?

Mysterious circles

Murray J. Harris, in his book Three Crucial Questions About Jesus (Baker Books, 1994), points out that “history is full of hoaxes, some humorous, some devilish, [and] some insignificant” @ p13. Harris highlights what he describes as one of the most humorous and well known hoaxes. This hoax was created by two British landscape painters who for 13 years flattened crops into mysterious circles in the grain fields of southern England. Many explanations arose for this ‘strange phenomenon’ including UFO landing spots and ball lightening created by atmospheric microwaves. A whole new science even developed called cereology, and a new academy – The Circles’ Effect Research Unit. All along, however, this circles’ example was caused by two ‘clowns’ playing a trick on everybody.

This was a light-hearted hoax. But what if Jesus’ existence was based on a hoax? The Apostle Peter in 2 Peter 1:16 writes we are not following cunningly devised fables or fairy stories. He’s saying we are not following a hoax. But what evidence is there to back this up?

Independent evidence for Christ’s existence

The doubters of course will say Peter is biased, and the Bible is biased, thereby not providing strong independent evidence. So then, what evidence is there outside the Bible that 2,000 years ago Jesus of Nazareth walked the Earth?

Evidence from only three writers will be presented below, but a few other sources do exist, including the Jewish historian Josephus who was born in A.D. 37, and passages from the Jewish Talmud. Whilst there is not a large amount of evidence outside the Bible, it’s more than enough to convince nearly all learned men and women that Jesus lived on Earth.

It must also be remembered that most books written thousands of years ago have not survived. In fact, very few have. For example, one would think the writings of an important person like a Roman emperor would still be around. However, it is known from other books that Emperor Claudius wrote 37 books, yet not one of them has ever been found.

This is a most frustrating thing for historians, but what is encouraging for Christians is how, compared with most very old writings, the Bible has lasted better than any. As the Psalmist wrote, “the Word of the Lord endureth forever.” Men and women, even at the cost of their own lives, have saved the Holy Scriptures for us. We owe them a great debt for making it possible for us to enjoy the riches of wisdom found in the Bible.

Thallus

Outside the Bible, the first writer I draw your attention to saying Christ existed is Thallus, an historian who wrote around A.D. 50, and who wrote a world history in three books. We only know of Thallus’s books because of parts found of Julius Africanus’ writings who lived about A.D.160-240. He was a Christian chronographer who wrote a five volume history of the world to A.D. 217.

In one part of his work he writes of the unusual three hour darkness, which the Apostle Luke described as happening during Jesus’ daytime crucifixion (Luke 23:44-45), writing in his third book:

… Thallus calls the darkness an eclipse of the sun – wrongly in my opinion.

Neither historian doubts the darkness occurred. They just give different reasons for the darkness. Africanus was pointing out that Thallus’s view could not be correct because an eclipse of the sun was not possible at the time of the full moon, which it would have been at Passover time when Jesus was crucified. Thallus, nevertheless, is the first non-Christian writer we know of to accept that Christ existed.

Pliny the Younger

Another ‘non-Christian’ witness of Christ’s existence to consider is Pliny the Younger. He was a lawyer, trained in Rome, who lived around about A.D. 61-112. When there was violence in Bithynia-Pontus, Pliny the Younger was sent by Emperor Trajan to bring peace and order. His writing concerning Bithynia-Pontus has been saved, along with many of his general letters and essays.

In book ten of his letters, believed to be written about A.D. 111, he tells Trajan about Christians he has arrested:

I have asked them if they are Christians, and if they admit it, I repeat the question a second and a third time, with a warning of the punishment awaiting them … They also declared that the sum total of their guilt or error amounted to no more than this: they had met regularly before dawn on a fixed day to chant verses alternately amongst themselves in honour of Christ as if to a god, and also to bind themselves by oath, not for any criminal purpose, but to abstain from theft, robbery, and adultery …

We see from Pliny’s writings clear support for Jesus being an historical figure who was still making a difference in people’s lives 80 years after His death. His followers were also willing to suffer for Him, saw Jesus as worthy of worship (‘as if to a god’), and practiced good moral principles.

Cornelius Tacitus

The third and final early ‘non-Christian’ witness to Jesus Christ’s existence I want you to consider is Cornelius Tacitus. He is widely held to be the most distinguished historian of the ancient world. He was born about A.D. 56 and may have lived until A.D. 117-138, the time of Hadrian’s reign. In his work, The Annals, he writes of the terrible fires that burned out of control in Rome in A.D. 64 and provides a clear and lively account of how 10 of Rome’s 14 districts were affected for more than six days.

Tacitus knew of the rumour that Emperor Nero had started the fires because he wanted to be the founder of a new capital city. He stated that Nero tried to put the blame on Christians and started arresting and punishing them. Tacitus writes:

Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of … Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome ...

Tacitus also painted the picture of Christians being “hated for their abominations.” He described them as a people “who have a hatred for the human race,” and called the Christian movement a ‘pernicious superstition needing to be checked, and a ‘disease.’ Clearly, Tacitus was not a fan of Christians. If anything, he would be biased against them. However, he provides excellent confirmation again, not only of Christ’s existence, but also of Christ’s painful death overseen by Pontius Pilate.

Conclusion

The facts show us Jesus Christ existed, was crucified by Pilate, and was later worshipped by adoring and committed followers.  Obviously, it’s foolish to deny His existence. To say Jesus is simply a myth one would have to ignore the historical records. That, however, leaves us with one very important question. Who do we say Jesus is?

Jesus asked the apostle Peter a similar question and Peter responded, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”  How will you answer?

As you seek to keep an open mind whilst reading this book, may your faith be uplifted to say the same as Peter - for we do not follow fairy stories written to trick us.

-------------------------

Please note that Harris’s book, referenced above, has been heavily used in preparing this chapter.

See also Lee Strobel, ‘The Case For Christ’ (Zondervan, 1998), who also covers much of the same material as Harris.

Chapter Six

What are the Chances?

Shall the thing made say of him who made it, ‘He did not make me’?   Isaiah 29:16

Introduction

I thought about the world. I thought deeply about life and meaning. I pondered everything. Even if there was a ‘Big Bang,’ as many scientists think, why this, how that, where did, and what if …? So many questions. So few real answers from scientists. Only theories raising more questions.

‘Mysterious’ origins

Okay, let’s suppose for argument’s sake that our planet somehow by chance arrived in this part of the universe perfectly positioned in relation to our wonderfully stable sun for the possibility of later growing living things. And let’s say that somehow natural forces just so happened to arise that put the Earth on a perfectly stable and consistent orbit around the Sun.

I guess the moon then must have by chance been put into its perfect position and orbit of the Earth at the same time too because I mean, I’m just not sure how a moon would later just come along and say, “yep, I am about the perfect size to orbit this planet Earth, and I think if I stop right about here, I should be able to have a good influence on the Earth’s tides, should the Earth develop oceans one day. Okay I’ll set my orbit up here and start spinning at the right speed.” Just how the moon and Earth got their shapes and knew the importance of rotating at the right speeds to keep things together, without an intelligent designer, we really don’t know.

Well we’re here aren’t we, so we obviously got here somehow? Where on earth though did all of this water come from? I can’t seem to remember there being much, if any, water anywhere else in the universe that we know about. Haven’t you heard about all the excitement about the possibility of there once being water, oceans, and rivers on Mars? Some scientists are now convinced there is enough evidence to conclude Mars was once flooded. How strange when they laugh at the idea of our watery planet ever being flooded? Perhaps that idea is just a bit too biblical for them. Oceans, rivers, springs, seventy per cent of the Earth’s surface alone being made up of water, with some parts of the ocean being as deep as Mt Everest is high (and even deeper) - how did it all get here?

I’m also amazed at how some of the water organized itself into sandy, tidal oceans that generally know when to stop overflowing onto the land. Did we always have so much water? Did it come at the same time as the Earth started, or after? Many scientists say that at the Earth’s formation the water was trapped in the rocks in the Earth’s crust and it was slowly released to fill the oceans. Is that why the Bible says God got water for the Israelites from a huge rock? I don’t think so, but it’s an interesting story.

Maybe it just rained a whole lot for thousands of years (aren’t you glad that pattern didn’t continue) and so all this liquid just filled the Earth over time. You’d have to admit that would have been really lucky though, clouds somehow developing on their own along with all the other necessary things which help us have rain, snow, and hail. I wonder how all the gases and chemicals needed for these things came into existence and came together in the required way? Those ‘Big Bang’ and ‘Nebula’ things, suggested by scientists, must have been really magic.

The brilliance of diversity

Talking about magic though, don’t you just love the many kinds of useful substances that supposedly unguided random forces left us with, or at least gave us the chance to have?

Don’t you just love soil for example? I can put a little seed in my garden and like magic, the soil helps me to grow all kinds of things, as long as I have water, but as you know, water’s been taken care of. But how did this soil thing get going in the first place, and if there were no seeds to go with it, it wouldn’t be anywhere near as useful anyway?

We’re told of course that soil is formed by environmental forces such as water breaking down rocks and similar materials that lie on or near the Earth’s surface. We sure do have an awful lot of soil in this world so evenly spread though. Those environmental forces would have had to work overtime. They would have been very thankful when water finally built up enough to help the process along, and when plants and animals came along to help out.  Soil must have also been really thankful when insects and animals later came along to give it amazing nutrients. But what a terribly long wait it had, if the scientists’ continually changing time lines are anything to go by?

There’s another necessary chemical substance that just so happened to be around at the beginning too that I’m really thankful for – that’s oxygen. Apparently we have to take it with us whenever we leave this planet, as it’s just not the same elsewhere. Virtually all life forms on Earth, including plants, need it to survive. Why are we so blessed?

The great variety of natural things I see around me, with all their different colors and textures, just amazes me. All of these said to be made possible and brought to you by the mindless Big Bang, the resulting nebula of gas and dust, and the sun which our planet somehow theoretically came from with our moon. As you read the list below of just a few of the many wonderful natural substances that somehow exist, why don’t you feel the textures, see the colors, and admire the beauty and diversity:

sand, shell, sea weed, gold, silver, bronze, diamond, sapphire, wood, magnesium, copper, uranium, iron, glass, coral, leather, wool, skin, hair, finger nail, fur, feather, blubber, spider web, wax, bone, ivory, antler, silk, oil, milk, blood, honey, grass, seed, leaf, bark, flower, pine needle, cactus, flax, coconut shell, orange peel, banana skin, melon, salt, spices, grain, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, sulphur, and fire.

Ask yourself, what are the chances of all of this developing in the universe, without a maker or designer?

The many different mechanisms in nature also should cause us to think. Just think deeply about their complexity and practical usefulness as you read the list of just a very few of them below:

atmosphere, air, ocean current, electromagnetic wave, sound wave, sonar, cell, atom, reproductive system, nervous system, digestive system, excretory system, respiratory system, internal healing mechanism, brain, blood clotting, hearing, smelling, seeing, speaking, gravity, electricity, seasons, photosynthesis, thermogenesis, hydrologic cycle, wind, rainbow, and sunset etc

Please seriously ask yourself again, what are the chances?

The ‘Freak’ – why Darwinian evolutionary theory has no foundation!

Now think of the very first form of life (let’s call it ‘the Freak’) that most scientists think came into existence through chemicals just happening to come together by chance in the right combination. Darwin’s theory requires such a life form to first exist. Without this first life form Darwin’s theory can’t begin to work. It can’t begin to work because the theory requires an existing life form that can reproduce or replicate itself.

This first life form imagined by scientists though is so complex that all the scientists in the world still can’t make such a thing! Highly intelligent twenty first century scientists, with all of their knowledge cannot create from non-living chemicals life that can reproduce itself. At much expense, great efforts have been made by scientists to try and create a simple life-form. However, as Jonathan Sarfati’s review of a leading attempt to do this shows, despite all that scientists have tried, they are a world away from creating life purely from non-living material. See creation.com/synthetic-life-by-venter. The great difficulty associated with this task only shows the impossibility of such first life happening all by itself outside the laboratory without great intelligence being involved.  If our incredibly intelligent scientists can’t make such a thing, then any honest person would have to admit that it can’t happen all by itself outside the laboratory. Even if scientists could, this would only show that great intelligence was needed.

Since Darwin’s theory requires an existing life form that already has the ability to reproduce, ‘The Freak’ therefore did not have millions of years of Darwinian evolutionary processes to help make it. If this Freak then, which scientists say just happened as a result of chemicals coming together in a ‘warm soup’, was to have benefited anyone, it would have needed to be able to reproduce or replicate itself before it dies, or base one for evolutionary theory would be lost? If it couldn’t survive long enough to reproduce itself, then its death would be the end of the process. It sounds like the first simple life form couldn’t have been all that simple after all.

Again I ask, what are the chances? What is the likelihood of a life-form with the complexity to sustain itself, reproduce itself, and the already inbuilt capacity to evolve into every known living plant and creature just happening through chemicals coming together by chance?

Surely nil! We have no evidence of such a thing happening way back in the past or ever, and try as they may, intelligent scientists can’t make life from non-life. There’s more chance of a far simpler thing such as a computer (which is not too complex for scientists to make) being made by chance forces. We know that this is impossible. Even if all the parts for this computer were placed near each other, and even if they had billions of years to come together all by themselves, the chances of a computer being formed are still nil.

Hence Darwinian evolutionary theory has no foundation at all. It can only explain why there are small variations in creatures of the same kind, such as dogs, but it can’t answer the big questions of life*. So what’s the alternative? Sadly, the alternative is no alternative at all for many, because they don’t want to know about it for whatever reason. Many strangely prefer to remain in ignorance of the more logical and happier alternative that we are here because we have a loving Creator.

I reason that life only comes from life, just as the famous scientist Louis Pasteur showed. About Pasteur, the World Book Encyclopedia states:

he was the first to show that living things only come from living things. Before that, many scientists believed in spontaneous generation, a theory that life could come from things that are not alive, such as dirt. (1986 edn, Vol. P, p. 170)

If life only comes from life, then doesn’t it stand to reason that a life form must have always existed and that that life-form is super-intelligent? Perhaps it’s God. No, it must be God.

Conclusion

No, it is God!

*See also p37 where the limitations of Darwinian theory are further discussed.

Please also note that the basic scientific information contained in this chapter comes from The World Book Encyclopedia (1986 edn)

“Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?
Tell Me, if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements? Surely you know! … Job 38:4-5

By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible. Hebrews 11:3

Chapter Seven

A Grace of God Experience

… The Lord is gracious and full of compassion.

                                                                                   Psalm 111:4

How is it that there is still life on this planet? Have you ever wondered about this?  Either God, our Creator exists, or He doesn’t.  If He does, why hasn’t He destroyed the human race for all of its evil? If He doesn’t, what’s stopped us from being destroyed by our own wickedness and weapons of mass destruction. Certainly there have been opportunities for humanity to destroy itself. Many times the ‘Cold War’ between America and Russia after World War II came very close to turning into hot nuclear war.

Furthermore, what’s stopped our old planet being destroyed by asteroids, or all of us being destroyed by a failing moon or sun, terrible tsunamis, earthquakes, or our own abuse of the Earth. Or what’s stopped us from being destroyed, or overrun, by incredibly advanced aliens who scientists think could have evolved billions of years before us?

How is it that you and I are still here? I want to suggest it is only by the grace of God (His undeserved kindness) that our planet and our lives continue.

In God’s shoes

To help you relate to this thought, let’s go on a grace of God experience together. Here’s how we’re going to do it. Let’s just step into God’s shoes for a moment. Now you’re going to need more than a few extra pairs of socks to do so, but just do your best.

Adam and Eve

Now you recently created Adam and Eve. You’ve given them a very beautiful garden to enjoy. That’s right, you have! Remember you’re in God’s shoes now. Got it? You’ve gone to a lot of trouble to make it a paradise for them, taking care of every little detail. You even put the twinkle in the stars. You’ve given them each other. Adam’s perfect physically and Eve’s the most beautiful woman ever. And you’ve given them freedom to enjoy everything in paradise, with only one restriction – they can’t take fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. What more could you do for this blessed and beautiful couple?

However, they do the one thing you asked them not to. They take the fruit you told them not to take and open the door to evil and suffering. How do you feel?

You rightly discipline them and act responsibly by taking away their right to the tree of eternal life, but allow them to happily live out their natural lives. However, as the years go by their children become so evil that every thought of their hearts is evil. Violence fills the Earth, and pain and misery are everywhere.

The Flood and Babel

You are sorry you made the Earth. Why didn’t you just completely destroy them all there and then? Why did Noah and his family find grace in your eyes?

You make a fresh start with righteous Noah leading the way. Surely his children and his children’s children would respect you. However, they became very proud and wicked and built a tower to heaven.

Israel

You don’t give up though. You turn to Abraham, and by grace you plan to raise up a holy nation through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob - Israel, and you bless them greatly. You show them your power, taking them out of Egypt with amazing miracles. You provide them bread from heaven, quail, and water from a rock in the desert.

But then one day when the people can’t wait any longer for Moses to come down from the holy mountain, your people shamefully say, “Come, let us make Gods for ourselves.” They brake off their golden earrings, make an idol with them, and say, “this is our God who brought us out of Egypt.”

You say to Moses, “leave me alone that my wrath may burn hot against them and that I may consume them.” However, Moses urges you not to destroy them. Your grace allows you to cool off, and you still bring your people into the Promised Land, a land flowing with milk and honey.

You increase Israel as the stars of heaven. You destroy the nations in the Promised Land who were so wicked they even practiced child sacrifices. You bring Israel in, fighting all their battles for them. Yet, they later refuse you as their ruler and say, “we want a king just like the other nations.” You say to them, “You have today rejected your God who himself saved you from all your enemies and troubles.” If it wasn’t for your grace and mercy I imagine this would have been the end of them.

But their sin seems to get worse, and you continue to send your people godly kings and prophets, whom they hurt and kill. Like an adulterous wife they totally betray you, even worshipping false gods and sacrificing their children (your children) to them. Eventually you have to let them go, at least for a time, into the terrible hands of the Assyrians and Babylonians.

A vengeful God?

Today people accuse you of being a vengeful, mean, and nasty Old Testament God.  Okay, you’ve now been in the shoes of God for a few thousand years. Do you feel like you have been a vengeful and nasty God?

I didn’t think so. In fact, aren’t you amazed God has not completely destroyed Israel, and all mankind, and taken a few righteous men and women away with Him to Heaven. I marvel at God’s grace and mercy which last forever. I’m very surprised He did not cast Israel off forever.

The crucifixion of Your Son

And then you go and do something that is so amazing I find it difficult to explain, apart from your Godly love. You show yourself to the world in a human body through Jesus Christ. You come to your own people Israel in great fulfillment of promises you made long ago. You heal the blind, feed the hungry, help the hurting, and preach good news to the poor. You do not judge, but show mercy to sinners. Your love is pure and poured out like generous winter rains.

Shockingly, however, even those close to your Son betray Him and leave Him alone. They desert you. Then your Son is mocked, spat upon, badly beaten, and crucified shamefully and painfully at the cross at the demand of guess who – yes, your own special people - Israel.

Jesus cries out in his last painful moments on the cross, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And what do you do? You actually forgive them. You regard Jesus’ sacrifice as an acceptable payment or atonement for the sins of all. People of that day better understood the significance of sacrifices for sins. This may seem strange to us in our culture because we no longer have sacrifices for sin – or do we? Perhaps we’ve wronged a loved one and felt the need to make it up or atone for what we’ve done, but our efforts have fallen short in our own minds or theirs. I know people who when they do evil also feel they need to make things up to a God they don’t know or don’t really believe in. They try to do good to make up for the bad things they have done.

You God, however, have provided us a perfect way of atonement to be reconciled to yourself. It used to be by the blood of bulls and goats, but now it is by accepting the perfect once for all sacrifice of your Son. Sometimes we know there is nothing we can do to make up for the things we have done wrong. The cross provides us all a wonderful way to be free from all guilt. But God, it’s sad many still won’t accept your free atoning gift or love offering.

I don’t understand God. You not only forgave those who killed your Son, you gave them the wonderful hope of eternal life through the worst thing they, or humanity as a whole, has ever done and will ever do to you or anyone.

Amazing grace

I marvel at this. I’m amazed at how you in your grace decided to react by bringing the greatest good out of the greatest evil. You showed your love for us so powerfully. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. What amazing grace!

Then you allowed the world to continue on after it killed your Son, whom you raised from the dead. And the world still continues on even though the most horrible crimes are committed day after day after day.

In the twentieth century we saw how Israel was even restored by your grace. You allowed your rebellious chosen people - Israel, after not being a nation for nearly 2,000 years, to become a nation again from 1948, even though most of them still have not accepted your Son as their Saviour.

Nagasaki

Perhaps it was time for this, as the sins of the rest of the world as seen in World War I & II were absolutely shocking. On the infamous morning of 9 August 1945, near the end of World War II, on a bright summer’s day an airplane loaded with the most terrible thing, an atomic bomb, flew unnoticed towards Nagasaki where about 260,000 people lived. Below is one person’s* sickening account of this terrible day:

The inhabitants of Nagasaki heard the faint rhythmic droning of American engines and they looked up curiously as three parachutes dropped. There came a bright flash in the sky and many shut their eyes at its brilliance. Others kept them open and in a few seconds the bright flash built up within itself a heat so incredibly radiant and vicious that their eyeballs were savagely seared into blindness. Then the ball of fire above belched out a haze of white smoke which roared downwards at them and the bright summer day darkened unnaturally.

Directly under the blast, the skin on exposed Japanese people turned crisp black. Where workers or pedestrians had stood on metal or stone just disgusting shadows of their outline were left. They themselves vanished, charred to death so that the negative might be eternally and uselessly etched on stone or mineral. Wooden houses burst into flames. Injured people lay helpless and unable to move whilst slow-growing fires incinerated them.  All the crops and vegetation for about 2,000 meters vanished leaving only blackened earth. ... All this and more happened in one ten millionth of a second!

In the next two weeks thousands were to go blind. Of the 100,000 directly exposed to the bomb in Nagasaki some 40,000 died. [And humanity has gone on to produce many more bombs much more powerful than the Nagasaki bomb]. *source unknown

The patience of God

And you, still in God’s shoes, looked upon all of this from heaven. You then watched the ‘Cold War’ knowing just how close we came to full scale nuclear war which could have destroyed all life on this planet.

Today you also see many terrorists who want to get their hands on today’s powerful nuclear weapons to cause mass destruction. I marvel again at your grace which has surely saved us from destroying ourselves.

Conclusion

Praise be to God who throughout the centuries, despite all we’ve done and continue to shamefully plan and do, keeps His hand outstretched to all who would accept His offer of eternal salvation by grace through faith in Christ. Praise be to our God who is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance and be saved. But for the grace of God, where would we be?

Chapter Eight

Nahum: Historian, or God’s Chosen Prophet?

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.

                                                            James 1:5-7 (NIV)

The Old Testament prophet Nahum wrote about the incredible downfall of the ancient city of Nineveh. His writings have proven to be historically accurate, thus giving support to the Bible being a history book we can trust. The question though is whether Nahum was only writing history, or was he inspired by God to give a chillingly accurate prophecy?

Nineveh

Nineveh, the ancient capital city of the great Assyrian empire, for centuries and centuries was only known because of what was said about it in the Bible. What the Bible says about it is quite amazing. In the Old Testament Bible book of Jonah, we read that Nineveh was a very great city. However, as great as it was, there was no archeological evidence to prove it ever was a city. The doubters who did not believe the Bible was God’s word, as you can well imagine, were enjoying making fun of the Bible.

However, in the late nineteenth century, Nineveh was first dug up by Sir Austen Layard and other archeologists who began looking very closely at its ruins. Encyclopedia Britannica states it was the oldest and most populated city of the ancient Assyrian Empire and that it sat on the east bank of the Tigris river. Britannica also says that its total area was about 700 hectares and that it had a wall that was about 12 km long and 45 m wide in some parts. Three chariots could have ridden side by side along it.

Many temples and a very great palace were found there. The large library of King Ashurbanipal, with 20,000 tablets or parts of tablets on subjects including mathematics, religion, botany, chemistry, and literature, was also found. The existence of several biblical characters including Sennacherib, Shalmaneser, and Tilgath-Pilneser was confirmed by what the archeologists found. So when Nineveh’s existence was so clearly proven, the doubters of the Bible really had to eat some serious humble pie, as they have many, many times before.

Nineveh’s fall

In B.C. 612, a Babylonian and Medo-Persian army captured and destroyed the city. The prophetic Bible book of Nahum has an interesting prophecy about Nineveh’s destruction. Assyria had been cruelly treating the northern kingdom of Israel for about a century when Nahum, a prophet in Israel, spoke God’s word that Nineveh would soon fall. Nahum cried:

The burden against Nineveh … God is jealous and the Lord avenges; the Lord … is furious. The Lord will take vengeance on His adversaries … [T]he Lord is slow to anger and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked. (1:1-3)

Fire

The prophet Nahum, before Nineveh fell, wrote how it would fall. He prophesied:

For while tangled like thorns, and while drunken like drunkards, they shall be devoured like stubble fully dried (1:10) … I will burn your chariots in smoke, and the sword will devour your young lions (2:13) … Fire shall devour the bars of your gates (3:13) 

Britannica, relying on Diodorus of Sicily II, confirms the importance of fire to Nineveh’s destruction saying that great quantities of ash, representing the destruction of the city by the Babylonians, Scythians and Medes in 612, have been found in many parts of what were once the high and well-defended walls of the city.

Rapid fall

Nahum, in a poetic way, also foretold the great speed of Nineveh’s fall, writing:

they shall be devoured like stubble fully dried (1:10) … All your strongholds are fig trees with ripened figs … Ifthey are shaken, they fall into the mouth of the eater …The gates of your land are wide open for your enemies. (3:12-13)

Britannica says that the city was surrounded and attacked in B.C. 612 and it lost its importance after B.C. 612. This suggests Nineveh fell in less than a year. George Meisinger in his Master’s thesis The Fall of Nineveh (Dallas Theological Seminary, 1968) wrote: “When one considers that Psammetichus besieged Ashdod for 29 years, a city of considerably smaller dimensions than Nineveh, it is amazing that Nineveh fell in just 3 months. However, God’s prophet Nahum had prophesied that as a ripe fig falls off a tree when shaken, so Nineveh will fall.” Meisinger further suggests it was only God’s power that brought Nineveh down so quickly:

… overwhelming military might cannot satisfy the requirements of Nahum’s picture. Allowing that the coalition had all the most advanced techniques, military know how, and the weapons of its era, it still would not be able to penetrate Nineveh’s walls with ease. Walls that are 100 ft high, with towers manned by a veteran army, plus a 150 foot wide moat do not come down easily within three months.

Utter destruction

Nahum also predicted the total and final destruction of Nineveh, writing:

But with an overflowing flood He will make an utter end of its place ... He will make an utter end of it. Affliction will not rise up a second time (1:8-9) … Thus says the Lord: ‘though they are safe and likewise many, yet in this manner they will be cut down when he passes through … Your name shall be perpetuated no longer.’ (1:12-14)

Merrill Unger confirming this total destruction wrote:

In 612 BC the ancient splendid city and capital of the Assyrian empire was so completely obliterated, according to its prophesied decimation by a Hebrew Prophet that it became like a myth until its discovery by Sir Austen Layard and others in the nineteenth century. [Unger’s Bible Dictionary Rev. ed. Chicago: Moody Press, 1966, 54/795]

Joseph P. Free wrote:

A century ago such familiar Biblical cities as Nineveh … and many others were shapeless mounds the very identity of which in some cases had been forgotten. [Archeology and Bible History, Wheaton: Scripture Press Publications, 1950]

The Bible’s accuracy

The book of Nahum in many ways certainly proves to be historically accurate. More than simply being reliable as history though, Nahum tells us of a remarkable downfall which surely speaks the hand of God. Furthermore, what should really cause us to stop and think is that Nahum does not claim to be writing history. His writings are predictions or prophecy – indeed a bold and chilling prophecy about the quick downfall of a heavily defended city by fire and flood, not to rise up a second time and to be forgotten.

Historian or prophet?

Is it possible today to prove one way or another whether Nahum wrote before or after the downfall of Nineveh? Let me suggest to you that it is more reasonable to accept at face value that Nahum indeed wrote before the fall of Nineveh rather than after. This is so because his book has already been given the great honour and respect of being chosen to sit alongside the other highly respected books of the Bible and to be placed in there as prophecy. Please think with me to understand why it is reasonable for me to say this.

Imagine if I had written about the Twin Towers falling September 11, 2001 two days after the terrible events of that day and I wrote exactly how it happened, the number of planes involved, the time of day and the number of deaths etc. And then imagine if I claimed I wrote it before September 11. People would want me to offer some kind of proof for this amazing claim. If I could not prove it to a wide enough or respected enough audience, then my claim would be ignored and quickly forgotten. Even if I had written it two days before I would still have to prove I did.

The fact is, Nahum’s prophecy has not been ignored or forgotten. It found its way into the most holy collection of prophetic books in the Old Testament even to sit alongside the inspiring prophecies of Christ’s first coming written by the God-inspired prophet Isaiah. Men as careful as those who arranged the books/canon of the Bible were convinced Nahum was a true prophet of his time. He must have proved he was a true prophet to those living in or near his day. It should therefore be up to those who say he did not write before the downfall of Nineveh to prove it. Also, the same line of reasoning could apply to the Bible books of Isaiah, Daniel and Jeremiah etc. Considering all of this, we stand in awe of Old Testament prophecy and of the prophet’s amazing God – our God!

Our strongholds

Some important applications from this story arise for us.  Nineveh was very strong. This Assyrian city’s defenses or strongholds seemed strong enough, but in fact they were like ripened figs ready to fall just by a light shaking. Why did their strongholds fail so easily? The reason was because God was not on their side. That is the same for anyone today who is not right with God. Eternal disaster can come quickly upon us any time. Our fragile lives can be lost at any moment, by a simple mistake behind the wheel or by a heart attack. If we do not have God on our side, then this will mean a complete end for us, just like Nineveh’s end.

On the other hand, more positively, if we are putting up strongholds or defenses against God coming fully into our lives these can also come down quickly and easily, as Nineveh’s defenses did. If we are open to God’s Holy Spirit we can be brought close to Him even today. Jesus would like that because He says He is coming, and that His coming will be as a thief in the night, when we may be unprepared like the Assyrians. Hence we need to watch that we are ready at all times. If we are ready, our name will live on forever.

As Nahum wrote “the Lord is slow to anger and great in power and will not at all acquit the wicked.” Therefore let us be sure we are pleasing in God’s sight through Christ.

The author acknowledges that in preparing this chapter much reliance was placed on Josh McDowell’s, ‘Evidence that Demands a Verdict’, (Rev. ed., Here’s Life Publishers, 1979)

Strangely, unlike most religions today, Assyrians and Babylonians did not believe in man’s good works qualifying them for heaven (http://www.ancient.eu/article/701/ ). Does the Christian message of salvation through trusting in Christ’s sacrifice at the cross rather than your own good works also seem strange to you?

Consider how one can change citizenship. There are so many rules and restrictions. One way is through marriage. Maybe you will meet the right person and become one with them through marriage. But if you want to marry someone, especially someone from another country, there are all kinds of intercultural considerations. In some cultures there is a price to be paid (a dowry). Permission from the Father or parents must be gained. The bride needs to be pure. In western culture, love is the main thing.

You can relate this to the cross of Christ. There are two kingdoms (countries), the heavenly and the earthly. The Bible says the way to become a citizen of heaven is through faith in Christ and God’s grace. Christ is the groom and His followers are His bride. The good news of Jesus dying for us and rising again is all about the Father paying the bride price and cleansing or purifying us to be one with Him through His Son’s sacrifice so we can be citizens of His kingdom. The dowry, the Father’s permission, purity and love are all there. It’s all taken care of in God’s great plan which relates to all cultures. Ephesians 5:25 says:

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,  that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish. 

To be with God forever is like simply agreeing to marry someone who not only loves you more than anyone, but who is also the kindest, smartest and richest person you will ever meet.

Imagine living in the poorest country in starvation and danger. Then imagine that you and the leader of the richest country fell in love and he was willing to do anything to marry you and have you become a citizen of his country. Of course you would happily accept his offer.

Are you willing to accept an even greater offer than that? Will you come to know Christ, freely accept God’s love at the cross, and give yourself to Him forever? You will find no greater lover than Jesus. He will always treat you well and will never leave you.

Chapter Nine

Blessed Are Eyes That See

Eye has not seen, nor ear heard … the things which God has prepared for those who love Him. But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit.

                                                                 1 Corinthians 2:9-10

Eyes are marvelous things. It must be terrible to lose one’s sight after enjoying good eyesight. As great and wonderful as seeing eyes are though, and as great as the design of the human eye is, the eye is absolutely useless without two things - which I’ll get to.

Thanks for the eye

I’m thankful for the positioning of my eyes. I’m glad they are in the front of my head, and not the back, although that would be useful from time to time. I’m glad my eyes are not down at my feet as it would be harder to see into the distance, and dust would be rather annoying.

I’m thankful my eyeball is set in a protective cone-shaped cavity in my skull – namely the orbit, so I’m protected from annoying pieces of dust coming at me sideways. That’s not to mention the further protection in the form of fatty tissue inside the orbit that surrounds the eyeball and cushions it against blows. This also allows my eye to turn easily.

It’s great as well that the front of my eyeball is also protected by eyelids, another obvious, but necessary design feature. Then there’s the eye lashes to block the sneaky particles that may try to enter my eye from above. Any sudden movement in front of my eye, or anything that touches the lashes causes my lids to blink in a protective reflex action. Not so fast ‘buster!’ Who thought of all this? And there’s so much more that can be said about the in-built protections and other wonders of the eye. However, as wonderful as our eyes are, they are still useless without two things, which we’ll get to.

Natural forces, or rather, whoever designed my eyes, also provided them with a clear jelly-like substance known as the vitreous humor, which takes up about 80% of the eye ball. Without it my eye would lose shape and pressure like a car tire does, and my vision would let me down.

I’m very thankful for all of this, but I’m also grateful for the conjunctiva, which is a membrane that lines the inside of my eyelids and goes over the front of the white part of my eye. Any exposed and well-designed moving part, such as an eye, will have a means of lubrication. My conjunctiva does this so well by producing mucus, which is a clear slimy fluid that lubricates the eyeball. Furthermore, any exposed well-designed part needs to stay very clean, so the conjunctiva also produces tears which help keep my eyes clean, and helps me to express my emotions once in a blue moon.

A good design also has back-up systems. My conjunctiva’s cleaning role is not its main one. It’s only providing back-up for my lacrimal glands, which lie at the upper outer corner of each of my orbits. I’m indebted to these glands because every time I blink a smooth layer of mucus and tears is spread over my eyes. This mucus comes from my trusty lacrimal glands.

A well-designed machine not only has back-up and cleaning systems, but also mechanisms for making sure excess fluids are drained properly. Indeed, the tears and the mucus once they have done their job flow into tiny canals in the eyelids and these canals lead to the lacrimal sac. From here the tears and the mucus drain through a passage into the nose, and how you or I get rid of these from there is our own personal business.

One final part of the outer eye worth talking about is the cornea which helps light rays to enter the eyeball. We’re still only scratching the surface of the eye here, but I want to deal briefly with some of the features of the inner eye, remembering that as interesting and as complex as the eye is, it’s still absolutely useless without two things, which we’ll get to.

The inner eye has a substance called melanin which also protects the eye by absorbing strong light that otherwise might dazzle the eye and cause blurred vision. The inner eye also has the pupil (the little black circle) which also controls the amount of light entering the eye. The lens and the ciliary body are also found in the inner eye. The muscles of the ciliary body make constant adjustments to the shape of the lens helping to produce a clear visual image. It also produces a clear watery fluid called aqueous humor which nourishes the cornea and lens. This fluid, rather conveniently, has its own specially designed drainage system too. Then there is the retina which makes up the innermost layer of the wall of the eyeball and is about as fragile as a wet piece of tissue paper. It has two types of light sensitive cells - rods and cones. In fact, it has about 120 million rods and six million cones!

Eyes of other creatures

That’s enough about my eyes and your eyes. Much more could be said about the design of the eye, and I haven’t even said much about how it actually works, but I think you get the picture. The human eye is wonderfully designed. However, as amazing as it is we should also realize there are eyes in the animal world perhaps even more incredible than ours, and that as amazing as they are they are also absolutely useless without two things, which we will soon come to.

Hawks can see up to eight times more clearly than us. A vulture can see its live lunch on the ground from a height of up to four kilometers (and its food isn’t elephants). There’s a strange fish with a strange name – anableps, which has two eyes which work together as four eyes. Swimming with its eyes half in and half out of the water it has good vision below, in the water, and above, in the air. It can do this as it has separate corneas and retinas. Spiders, amazingly, have eight eyes.

Light and connection

As incredible as all of this is though, let me now tell you why all of these eyes are totally useless without two things. The eye must firstly have light, and secondly, a connection to the brain. The eye does not actually see objects. Rather, it sees the light reflected off other objects. And if the eye is not connected to the brain through the optical nerve we would see nothing, since the eye doesn’t see of itself. It just changes light rays into electrical signals, which are then sent to the brain through the optic nerve. The brain then helps us to see pictures.

There’s a phrase in the Bible in Ephesians 1:18 that captures this thought about our eyes being useless without light or a connection to the brain, and further links it to spiritual things, which is want I want to talk about for a moment. The phrase is simply, ‘the eyes of your understanding being enlightened.’

The eyes of our understanding

In this simple phrase (‘the eyes of our understanding being enlightened’) the three parts of sight are present – the eyes, the understanding (the brain), and enlightenment (light). Just as our physical eyes are useless without light and a connection to the brain, so it is true with our spiritual sight. We need the light.

Have you seen the light? Jesus said to his disciples, “blessed are your eyes for they see,” and “assuredly, I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see and did not see it.” He wasn’t just talking about what they could see with their physical eyes.

However, Jesus said of other people, “seeing, they do not see.” That’s very disappointing, because they had a very great light to cause the eyes of their understanding to see clearly. Matthew says of Jesus, “the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light.” Jesus also said, “I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” Sadly though, then and now, many wouldn’t (or won’t) open their eyes, despite the light’s loving efforts to shine through.

The scriptures also say of Jesus that “in Him was life, and the life was the light of men, and the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it” (John 1:4-5).

Brightening a dark world

Is your world dark? I like how the above verse says ‘shines’ in the darkness, rather than ‘shined,’ because it reminds us that the light of Jesus is still shining in this dark world where people’s minds seem strangely to be ever so interested in crime, witches, vampires, adultery and all kinds of evil, especially that shown on television or in movies.

You may feel your heart or mind is too dark to be helped by the light. On the other hand, you might feel you already have enough light. Or perhaps you’d love more light. The following verse is well worth considering:

For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness who has shone in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

We can all have even better spiritual sight if we turn our eyes upon Jesus more, because the light of the glory of God is in His face. The verse also says that God made light shine out of darkness. Given His extraordinary ability to do this, He can certainly lighten and brighten us up more than we could ever imagine. We can look to Him and truly live.

So we can get greater light by looking at or to Christ more and more. But in doing so, we can’t ignore our brains. The eyes of our spiritual understanding will be dark indeed if there’s no connection to our brain.

A spiritual optic nerve

I suggest there are two parts to this connection to our brain, and they must go hand in hand. One part is our own serious efforts to study the Bible and God’s wonderful works. The other is the Holy Spirit.

If you enjoyed reading about the amazing eye above, and perhaps thought for a second that evolution’s tools for creating the eye seemed rather blunt and useless for making an eye, then I encourage you to search out more of this wonderful information about our incredibly beautiful and complex world. I suggest then the theory of evolution will soon become darker and sicker to you than you ever imagined.

For example, consider just how limited it is as a way for making something like an eye. Scientists say that evolution works in two ways - natural selection and mutation. If you have, for example, four long haired sheep and four short haired sheep living at the North Pole, natural selection works over time to save the long haired sheep. The short haired sheep will soon die out as they are not as well adapted to the freezing cold environment. Did natural selection lead to anything new? Of course not! It just selected what was already there. Natural selection, standing alone, is therefore a very useless tool for creating new things. It certainly can’t add any new information to the DNA (which Darwin’s ‘molecules to man’ evolution requires).

That only leaves us with mutation working hand in hand with natural selection for possibly creating the badly needed new genetic information for the theory of evolution to work. Mutation is about copying mistakes, again through the process of reproduction. Do you really believe that a chance series of copying mistakes could lead to something as complex as an eye or a brain evolving over millions of years, along with millions of other incredibly complex things in the same period?

You are of course allowed to believe this, but how likely do you really think it is? Is the eye, and are we, simply mutants - simply the result of an improbable series of copying mistakes? Of course, you can look at the evidence for yourself if you want to try and prove you are a mistake. However, what I think you will find, if you study this with an open mind (looking at the arguments from both schools of scientific thought) is that there is very little evidence for mutations being helpful to any creature, and if they are, it’s almost completely, if not completely, because of a loss of genetic information, rather than the creation of the necessary new genetic information (which is required for the theory to have any truth whatsoever). The fact is, helpful mutations do not happen often enough to support the theory.

The Bible certainly encourages us to use our brains and not to blindly accept what it says. The Bereans, people mentioned in Acts 17, were praised for being fair-minded in searching the scriptures daily to see if what the Apostles were teaching them was true. The eyes of our spiritual understanding will certainly be dark if there is no connection to our brain through serious and open-minded study of the scriptures and the beautiful and complex world around us.

The Holy Spirit

The second necessary part of our spiritual optic nerve leading to the enlightenment of our minds is none other than the Holy Spirit. The Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 3:

Eye has not seen, nor ear heard … the things which God has prepared for those who love Him. But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. (v. 9-10)

Even so, Paul adds:

But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to Him, nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. (v. 14)

Paul is telling us that our own thinking will not be enough for us to have the blessed eyes that see, if we don’t have the help of the Holy Spirit as well.

Conclusion

How then may we receive the help of the Holy Spirit? Jesus was a great one for encouraging us to ask, to seek and to knock. He said:

Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, knock and the door shall be opened to you.

Jesus further encouraged us to seek the kingdom as we would for hidden treasure. He also encouraged us to come humbly, even as a little child. If you deeply desire more meaning and enlightenment in life, in contrast to the negative and depressing scientific world view that you simply evolved as a result of an incredible number of unlikely mistakes, just pray to God with all your heart for Him to open the eyes of your understanding. If you do, and you suddenly find you have the desire to study the Bible and to seek God’s presence more and more, you’ll know He has answered your prayer. The Holy Spirit will then use the Word of God to convince you of your need to turn from attitudes and actions that are against God’s will.

You will then be counted amongst those of whom it is said:

Blessed are your eyes, for they see.

You will have great joy and a wonderful eternal hope.

Then Jesus said … “Receive your sight; your faith has made you well.”  And immediately he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God. Luke 18:42-43

Chapter Ten

Ahead of its Time

Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.  Hebrews 10:22

King James Bible used below

Why would anyone want to truly follow the way of life set forth in the Bible unless they were sure the Bible was the word of the living God? While there are great benefits in living a moral life, the Bible shows us a way of life that is very different and requires great sacrifice. King Solomon in Ecclesiastes, one of the books of wise sayings of the Bible, said if there is no God, it would be better just to ‘eat, drink and be merry’ (Eccl. 8:15). But, what if the words of the Bible really were God’s Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth?

Egyptian remedies

Moses, who is generally accepted to be the writer of most of the first five books of the Bible, lived about B.C. 1500. Acts 7:22 says Moses knew the wisdom of the Egyptians. We see some of their medical ‘wisdom’ in an old document called the ‘Papyrus Ebers’ dated about B.C. 1550. This document has several hundred ‘medical’ remedies for diseases, including lizard’s blood, swine’s teeth, putrid meat, stinking fat, moisture from pig’s ears, excreta from many creatures including dogs, cats, and even flies. Whilst the Egyptians were advanced for their time, and many of the remedies were reasonable, the benefits of the kinds of remedies mentioned above have since been shown to be highly questionable. However, we see in the writings of Moses trustworthy medical wisdom that is still followed today.

Biblical health and sanitation laws

Throughout history there have been many times when humanity has not been careful with household and personal waste. Today’s sewerage technology is a great blessing because poor toileting and sanitation practices have caused millions of deaths in the past and have contributed greatly to outbreaks of bubonic plague.

Some statistics you might find interesting include the following. In Rome, in A.D. 262, one of the worst bubonic plagues killed about 5,000 people. The ‘Black Death’ destroyed a quarter of the population of Europe in the 1300s! In London, more than 150,000 persons died of the bubonic plague between 1603-1665. In India from 1894-1914 more than 10 million people died from the plague! (Source World Book Encyclopedia, 1986 edn, Vol. B, p. 545)

We see in Moses’ writings, excellent health and sanitation laws which God gave to Israel. If these laws had been followed by all nations, much pain and misery and loss of life might have been avoided. Let’s consider a few examples.

Moses wrote:

Also you shall have a place outside the camp, where you may go out; and you shall have an implement among your equipment, and when you sit down outside, you shall dig with it and turn and cover your refuse (Deuteronomy 23:12-13).

These are unclean to you among all that creep [referring to mole, mouse, lizard etc v29]. Whoever touches them when they are dead shall be unclean until evening. Anything on which any of them falls, when they are dead shall be unclean, whether it is any item of wood or clothing or skin or sack, whatever item it is, in which any work is done, it must be put in water. And it shall be unclean until evening; then it shall be clean. Any earthen vessel into which any of them falls you shall break; and whatever is in it shall be unclean: in such a vessel, any edible food upon which water falls becomes unclean, and any drink that may be drunk from it becomes unclean. And everything on which a part of any carcass falls shall be unclean, whether it is an oven or cooking stove, it shall be broken down; for they are unclean, and shall be unclean to you. Nevertheless a spring or a cistern, in which there is plenty of water, shall be clean, but whatever touches any such carcass becomes unclean (Leviticus 11:31-36).

These Mosaic laws contain wisdom ahead of their time. They show much understanding about the dangers of spreading disease through touch and dirty water.

The law of God given to the Israelites in Leviticus 11 also listed the kinds of animals that were best not to be eaten, such as the pig, the mouse, and many creatures that were scavengers of the earth and the sea. Science today confirms the increased dangers in relation to raw or improperly cooked pork, shell fish, and rodents, and the diseases that can be caught from them.

Moses certainly was not sharing any doubtful Egyptian ideas with the people, but knowledge he says he got straight from God, and knowledge which still makes sense today. The Bible is a serious book and one to be taken seriously.

Hand washing

One other thing I think you will find very interesting is the Bible’s wisdom on washing. This early wisdom will seem all the more important if I firstly remind you of humanity’s sad history concerning hand washing.

Ignaz Semmelweis was a Hungarian doctor who saw the importance of using antiseptics in childbirth at the Vienna General Hospital around about 1850. The World Book Encyclopedia states that:

… he discovered that puerperal fever, which then killed about 12 mothers out of every 100, was contagious, and that doctors themselves were spreading the disease by not cleaning their hands. He was ridiculed for the idea. But he maintained his stand … Opponents of his ideas attacked him fiercely, and this battle eventually brought on a mental illness. (1986 edn, Vol. S-SN, p. 235)

Soon after Semmelweis died, it was accepted he was right. However, many needlessly died because his advice was ignored.

We know that careful hand washing is very important for good health; yet, as short a time ago as 1850 doctors did not even take it seriously. The Bible, however, had seen its importance thousands of years before. Modern wisdom stresses the importance of running water in hand washing. It also requires four necessary things in a modern hospital-grade cleaning agent – soap to remove the dirt etc, an irritant to make you rub, an antiseptic to kill the germs, and an abrasive to get the hard to get bacteria and dirt.

Now there’s a wonderful passage in the Bible, which we will get to in a moment, which shows Moses was somehow aware of all the things needed for proper washing. However, before we look at this it’s interesting to consider when soap is said to have been invented. The World Book Encyclopedia states:

No one knows when or where people first made soap. The ancient Romans may have used soap 3,000 years ago. People in France used a rough kind of soap about A.D. 100. By about 700 soap-making had become a craft in Italy. (1986 edn, Vol. D, p. 134g)

According to World Book Encyclopedia, the English started using soap much later in A.D. 1200.

So there’s a little history about soap. Remember the things needed for a modern hospital-grade cleaning agent. Now let’s consider what God caused Moses to write.

And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,

‘This is the ordinance of the law which the LORD hath commanded, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring thee a red heifer without spot, wherein is no blemish, and upon which never came yoke: And ye shall give her unto Eleazar the priest, that he may bring her forth without the camp, and one shall slay her before his face: And Eleazar the priest shall take of her blood with his finger, and sprinkle of her blood directly before the tabernacle of the congregation seven times:  And one shall burn the heifer in his sight; her skin, and her flesh, and her blood, with her dung, shall he burn: And the priest shall take cedar wood, and hyssop, and scarlet, and cast it into the midst of the burning of the heifer. Then the priest shall wash his clothes, and he shall bathe his flesh in water, and afterward he shall come into the camp, and the priest shall be unclean until the even. And he that burneth her shall wash his clothes in water, and bathe his flesh in water, and shall be unclean until the even. And a man that is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer, and lay them up without the camp in a clean place, and it shall be kept for the congregation of the children of Israel for a water of separation: it is a purification for sin. And he that gathereth the ashes of the heifer shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even: and it shall be unto the children of Israel, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among them, for a statute for ever. He that toucheth the dead body of any man shall be unclean seven days. He shall purify himself with it on the third day, and on the seventh day he shall be clean: but if he purify not himself the third day, then the seventh day he shall not be clean. Whosoever toucheth the dead body of any man that is dead, and purifieth not himself, defileth the tabernacle of the LORD; and that soul shall be cut off from Israel: because the water of separation was not sprinkled upon him, he shall be unclean; his uncleanness is yet upon him. This is the law, when a man dieth in a tent: all that come into the tent, and all that is in the tent, shall be unclean seven days. And every open vessel, which hath no covering bound upon it, is unclean. And whosoever toucheth one that is slain with a sword in the open fields, or a dead body, or a bone of a man, or a grave, shall be unclean seven days. And for an unclean person they shall take of the ashes of the burnt heifer of purification for sin, and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel: And a clean person shall take hyssop, and dip it in the water, and sprinkle it upon thetent, and upon all the vessels, and upon the persons that were there, and upon him that touched a bone, or one slain, or one dead, or a grave: And the clean person shall sprinkle upon the unclean on the third day, and on the seventh day: and on the seventh day he shall purify himself, and wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and shall be clean at even’ (Numbers 19:1-19).

Remembering that animal fat is a main ingredient of some kinds of soap, did you notice the biblical cleanser and cleaning process described above included the burning of an animal and the ashes of an animal, an irritant (the cedar wood), an antiseptic (the hyssop), an abrasive (the scarlet wool), quarantine, running water, and repeated washings of both the body and the clothes? I think you can agree the Bible’s wisdom relating to physical cleanliness is excellent.

Spiritual cleanliness

If you agree with this, then perhaps you might also be willing to hear what the Bible has to say on being spiritually clean, especially since it is far more about the spiritual than the physical. Jesus said:

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside … [you] are full of extortion and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside may be clean also (Matthew 23:25-26).

The Bible says Jesus washed us from our sin in His own blood (Revelation 1:5) and if we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Therefore we can fully trust in the cleansing blood of Jesus to cleanse us from all dirtiness of the soul and spirit.

Jesus is no ordinary cleanser though. He’s also the prophesied cleanser of our souls. Way back in Moses’ time on the first Passover day when the Israelites came out of Egypt they had to sacrifice a lamb that was in excellent condition – an unblemished, perfect lamb, whose blood they sprinkled on the doorposts of their houses so they would be saved from the angel of death taking their first born. The angel would ‘pass over’ their house. Trusting in the lamb’s blood saved them.

This lamb was an extraordinary prophetic picture or type of Christ which foreshadowed Christ as the greatest cleanser and Saviour, whose life was perfect and spotless from sin. Guess what time of the year Jesus was crucified by the Romans. Indeed, it was Passover. Without knowing they would be fulfilling the prophecy of the Old Testament Passover, the Romans crucified Jesus at the prophesied time, during the Passover celebrations. Hence, the Apostle Paul calls Christ in 1 Corinthians 5:7 ‘Christ, our Passover.’ Certainly, the Israelite religious leaders who wanted Jesus dead, and who pushed for his crucifixion, would not have been too happy about this incredible ‘coincidence.’ You be the judge though. Was this timing a coincidence, or was Jesus, who is called in scripture ‘The Lamb of God,’ killed at exactly the time God had pre-planned?

Conclusion

The following verses are very appropriate to finish with:

For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? (Hebrews 9:13-14). 

Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water (Hebrews 10:22).

And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God (2 Corinthians 6:16 – 7:1).

Thanks to Peter Sparrow (Creation Ministries) and Dr Allan Steere for their insights, thus making this chapter possible.

Do you find it hard in the 21st century to relate to the idea of Jesus’ sacrifice about 2000 years being for our benefit?

Consider how important in most cultures remembering the soldiers who died in battle is. In Australia and New Zealand, apart from Christmas and Easter, the most important day of the year is Anzac Day. It’s a day of remembering the soldiers who died as heroes so we can live in peace and freedom. It’s treated as a holy day. If anyone dare speak against the way the day is observed they are treated like blasphemers. Those who go overseas to celebrate the day are not seen as tourists, but rather pilgrims. Also, the battle most remembered and revered – Gallipoli, was not a battle we won, but a terrible loss or suicide mission where many brave Aussies and Kiwis lost their lives. Lest we forget their sacrifice for our freedom and salvation.

The idea of Jesus sacrificing Himself for our salvation and freedom from sin and its terrible consequences should not sound so strange to Australians or New Zealanders, or any nation who honours the sacrifice of its heroes and rejoices in the freedom we still enjoy. Lest we forget the Son of God’s sacrifice at the cross which opens the door for all mankind to be cleansed from sin, to be free forever and to live forever. The battle might have appeared to be lost when Jesus died, but in fact He was resurrected, and it was the greatest victory of all with the greatest consequences for those who by faith accept Christ’s sacrifice for them.

Chapter Eleven

Divine Declarations

But, who do you say that I am?

                                                            Mark 8:29

Many are happy to see Jesus as a great philosopher, prophet, healer, or speaker, but strongly reject the idea He is God in any sense. Many argue Jesus Himself never claimed to be God, or the Son of God. Concerning the view held below that Jesus is God, let the reader note I am not saying He is the same person as the Father. This is a much debated and difficult issue, but I believe the story of Jesus’ baptism considered below shines useful light on this very important question.

Jesus on Jesus

In the story of Jesus’ baptism we see several clear declarations about Jesus being divine, or God. Before we get to the Apostle Matthew’s contemporary account of Jesus’ baptism though, it’s interesting to note the Apostle John’s account of the words he heard Jesus say about Himself. Certainly Jesus had a human body, but the Apostle John records Jesus saying the following amazing things about Himself:

“… I have come down from heaven …” (John 6:38).

“… You are from beneath; I am from above, you are of this world; I am not of this world” (John 8:23).

“… O Father, glorify me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was” (John 17:5).

Jesus’ baptism

The Apostle Matthew, in the story of Jesus’ baptism, provides us with several more interesting and powerful divine declarations about Jesus from several different sources. They are powerful, because if they are true, and if we are not worshipping Jesus (as several Bible verses say people were), then why aren’t we? If Jesus is our divine Creator, then why wouldn’t we be listening very carefully to everything the most trusted writings about Him, the Bible, say?

The first divine declaration in Matthew’s account of Jesus’ baptism in chapter three is by John the Baptist in verses one and two:

In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, ‘Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!’

If the kingdom of heaven is at hand, who then is at hand? God is at hand. God is near. God is close!

Well was He? Matthew in verse 3 makes an earth shaking divine declaration about God being at hand:

For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying:

‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight”.’

Matthew is quoting the prophet Isaiah and declaring John the Baptist is indeed the voice in the wilderness Isaiah said would come preparing the way of the Lord. Matthew is announcing the fulfillment right before their eyes of a great Bible prophecy they were looking forward to seeing happen.

The deep importance and divine nature of this declaration becomes clear when we read in full the actual prophecy he was quoting from in Isaiah 40:3 which says:

The voice of one crying in the wilderness:

‘Prepare the way of the Lord; Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.’ (my emphasis)

Therefore, the one that John was preparing the way for, was both Lord and God. The kingdom of heaven was at hand, and God was at hand.

The people thought John, himself, was very special. They thought he was the Messiah/Saviour, but he said, “I am not the Christ” (John 1:20). However, he did agree he was the voice crying in the wilderness preparing the way of the Lord (John 1:23).

It’s no wonder though people were thinking great things about John for we read in Matthew 3:4-6:

Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and honey. Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.

John the Baptist was behaving just like the mighty prophet Elijah, who also came as a hairy man, wearing a leather belt around his waist, eating wild locusts and honey (2 Kings 1:8).

It’s also no wonder people thought John the Baptist was the Messiah, or Elijah raised from the dead, because many, many people were being changed through his preaching, confessing their sins, turning from them, and being baptized.

Luke also records the people making divine declarations about John:

Now the people were in expectation, and all reasoned in their hearts about John, whether he was the Christ or not.

The people expected great things, not only because of the great power of John’s ministry, but also because of the prophecies of their Holy Scriptures (our Old Testament), especially Daniel chapter nine, which identified their day as the time in which the Christ would appear to save them. They were expecting the Messiah to drive out the Romans from their land. However, the salvation of God at that time was not to be the physical kind of salvation they were expecting. It was to be spiritual, the consequences being forever.

The people thought very highly of John, but John then says something that would have shocked and amazed them. He said:

I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire (Matthew 3:11).

John was saying, “You think I am mighty – well you ain’t seen nothing yet!”

Who baptizes with the Holy Spirit – man or God? Surely, only God; John has made another divine declaration. We’ve had Matthew’s, John’s, and the people’s declarations. And now Jesus’ arrival just at the appointed time, following closely on from the prophesied voice in the wilderness preparing the way for God, says much about who He actually is.

Matthew 3:13 simply says:

Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him.

John, knowing who Jesus is does not feel worthy to baptize Jesus and says:

… I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me (v. 14)? 

But Jesus answers:

… ‘permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness’. Then he allowed Him (v. 15).

Now for the most surprising and important divine declaration of them all. Immediately, as Jesus came up from the waters of baptism, the heavens opened. The Spirit of God came down like a dove in bodily form. It was seen by John the Baptist (and probably the crowds – see Matthew 3:16-17, Luke 3:22 & John 1:32) and the Spirit rested, not upon John, but upon Jesus. Then there was a voice from heaven from the Father saying:

… This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased (Matthew 3:17).

Son of God

We must appreciate the divine significance of Jesus being called ‘the Son of God.’ It was certainly understood by the Jews of that day, and it is understood by Muslims today, who do not believe Jesus is the Son of God, and who are against Jesus being given such a name. The Apostle John even writes that the Jews wanted to kill Jesus partly for Him saying God was His Father (John 5:18). They understood this to mean Jesus was making Himself equal with God. They considered this to be a most shocking case of blasphemy. Indeed, it was one of the main reasons they wanted Jesus crucified.

Does the reader understand why being the Son of God makes Jesus equal to God? Consider a human father and son. A human father has a son who is of the same kind or substance as he is – namely human. The son also has the same potential as the father. In every way, except for their position (and the son needing to grow up, which he will), they are equal. Now do you see why Jews and Muslims disagree with the Christian view of Christ? The Bible says Jesus came forth from God (John 8:42) and is God’s only begotten Son. What a human gives birth to (begets) is human. What does this suggest then about who God begets?

What is said indirectly here about Jesus in the Father/Son relationship, is also stated clearly in several Bible verses, which refer directly to Jesus as God. John chapter one and Hebrews chapter are excellent examples. The New Testament has many declarations that Jesus is divine, to be worshipped (as only God should be – see Revelation 22:8-9), and adored.

Contradicters

Many in Jesus’ day had to make a decision as to who Jesus actually was. Today it’s our opportunity to make our own decision. If we conclude Jesus is divine (and there’s a lot more to go on than what I’ve discussed here) then no other religion or philosophy will do for us. They just won’t measure up, as they say many things that are very different to what Jesus and His closest followers said.

For example, the eye witnesses of Christ said He is the Son of God, that He died on the cross to save us by paying the penalty for our sins (which we deserved), and that He rose in victory from the grave. The Koran was written hundreds of years after Christ walked the earth by someone who was not an eye witness, but who claims to know better than those who lived at the time of Christ and who were closest to Him. It says that Jesus was not God, or the Son of God, He did not die on the cross for our sins, and He was not raised from the dead. This is the opposite to what the Bible says and goes against the heart of Christian teaching. It also fails to recognize that the Old Testament of the Bible also spoke of God having one Son. For example, Proverbs 30:4 asks: “Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is His Son’s name.” Psalms 2:7 declares: “The Lord has said to Me, You are My Son.” Further, verse 12 commands: “Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish in the way.” Now whose writings do you believe – the eye witnesses’, or the far later writings of Islam? Which seem more reliable? Who do you say that Jesus is? That’s your own personal decision.

The New Testament also says that no matter how many good works we do we cannot earn our way into heaven, or qualify for heaven. Salvation is only by God’s grace through faith. In other words it’s only through His kindness which we don’t deserve. However, the followers of eastern religions generally say the opposite. They say we can save ourselves by our own good works, and that it is therefore not necessary to have Jesus as our Saviour.

I hope we can all see just how wrong it is to say, as many do, that all religions are basically the same. Plainly they’re not!

Our decision

You’ve read about the divine declarations in the story of Jesus’ baptism. Jesus said to John it was necessary He be baptized to fulfill all righteousness. If this was so for the Son of God, the sinless and divine one, you might ask, if you haven’t asked yourself already, if it fitting for you to be baptized.

The answer is, “it depends.” Many people came to John the Baptist for baptism, but he would not baptize them because they were not truly repentant. Those who stole needed to stop stealing and the ‘haves’ had to give to the ‘have-nots.’ If our hearts are true and our faith in Jesus as the Son of God is real, it is fitting for us to be baptized.

Jesus still invites such people to come to Him today. He says:

If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.

Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him.  By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments.  For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome. For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? 1 John 5:1-5

Chapter Twelve

Up-lifting the Muslim’s Faith in Christ

And we are witnesses of all things which He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem …

                                                            Acts 10:39

There once was a king who was loved very much by his people. One day his great castle was destroyed by his enemies. They were very jealous of his castle and how the people loved him.

His closest friends were saddened by his loss and comforted him. They and the people helped him rebuild. There was a great celebration when they had finished.

His friends understood the special importance of these events and soon after each wrote their own similar stories of what happened to the king.

However, one day the king’s enemies turned against his closest friends. They were faced with the terrible choice of betraying their king or being killed. They chose to die.

Several hundred years later, a man came along who told a very different story about what happened to the king. He said the king was not a king, but only a rich man, his castle was never destroyed, and it was never rebuilt.

Who would you believe – the closest friends who saw what happened, wrote about it not all that long after it happened, and who died for their king, or the man who came several hundred years later telling a very different story?

Of course, if we are honest with ourselves, we would believe the close friends of the king.

The closest friends of Jesus wrote He was the Son of God, He died on the cross for our sins, and He rose from the dead for our salvation. Many of them also were killed for their faith.

By contrast, the writings of Islam 600 years after Christ, said Jesus was not the Son of God (but only a prophet), did not die on the cross at all (let alone for our sins), and was never raised to life on Earth.

Now which story would you tend to believe?

Chapter Thirteen

The Psalm of the Cross

David … speaks of the blessedness of the one to whom God credits righteousness apart from works: … ‘Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord will never count against them.’

                                                                          Romans 4:6-8 (NIV)

Do you find it hard to love God? One of the most important keys for loving God is loving His word. The people I have met who really love God’s word all seem to love God with a great passion. Come on another journey with me and discover more treasures of the Holy Bible.

King David, who lived about 1000 B.C. meditated on God’s word, including God’s commandments. According to Psalm 119 (probably written by David) he thought about them day and night. No other writer in the Bible spoke of his love for God as much as David did in the Psalms. There are some amazing, exciting and wonderful things in one of David’s Psalms - Psalm 22. There are things that might surprise you and make you say ‘wow!’ They speak to us about the love of God and I pray will fill us with love for God’s word and especially with love for God Himself.

The Son of David

One unusual thing you will notice about Psalm 22 is that David writes it in the first person as if it’s all about him, yet the New Testament suggests it is about Christ (see John 19:23-24 and compare Ps 22:18). Whilst unusual, this is understandable when we remember that Jesus’ favourite way of referring to Himself was as the ‘Son of David’ and that Jesus did come through the family line of David (Matthew 1:6-16).

Also, David’s life pictured Christ’s in many interesting ways. For example, both were born in Bethlehem. David means ‘beloved,’ and God said of Jesus, “this is my beloved Son.” Both were shepherds (Jesus in the spiritual sense). Both were doubted and mocked by their people, brothers and by the king. However, both were also loved by the poor and those hated by society. People in high places were jealous of them and tried to kill them. Neither of them had a hand laid on them by their enemies without their consent. Both faced what looked like impossible situations, but brought salvation for their nation in unexpected ways. No one thought David would bring the giant Goliath down with the unusual method of a single sling shot. Not even Christ’s disciples expected Him to be resurrected and bring salvation for all through the surprising way of the cross. David is Israel’s most famous and loved king. Jesus is the King of Kings. As kings they both suffered terrible betrayal by those close to them and experienced great suffering, but they were both restored.

The similarities are many, so we can understand why David can write Psalm 22 in the first person, while at the same time the Psalm’s deepest meaning is found in Christ. Despite all of these similarities, it’s interesting how Jesus thought it necessary to remind us He was much more than David’s son. Matthew 22:41-46 says:

While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, saying,“What do you think about the Christ? Whose Son is He?” They said to Him, “The Son of David.” He said to them, “How then does David in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool”’? If David then calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his Son?” And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore.

From this, we see that Jesus played a special part in David’s life as his Lord and God. Jesus is so much greater than David, but David is still given very special importance in the Bible. Jesus is not called the Son of Abraham or Moses, but the Son of David. The tribe or house Jesus is said to come from is not the House of Abraham or Moses, but the House of David. It’s not the throne of Solomon Jesus reigns from, but the throne of David. Acts 15:16-17 says Jesus came to rebuild, not the tabernacle of Abraham or Moses, but the tabernacle of David. The city of Jerusalem which pictures the heavenly city of New Jerusalem is not the City of Moses or Abraham, but the City of David.

Knowing just how close King David and Jesus (the Son of David) were will now help us make sense of Psalm 22. David writes it as if it’s about himself, but you will see, as we go through this Psalm of the Cross verse by verse, that it is an amazing prophecy about Jesus, the Son of David.

The Cry

My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from helping Me, And from the words of My groaning? (22:1)

These are the very words Jesus spoke while suffering on the cross (Matthew 27:46).

The mockery

But I am a worm, and no man; A reproach of men, and despised by the people. All those who see Me ridicule Me; They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, “He trusted in the Lord, let Him rescue Him; Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!” (22:6-8)

This was exactly how Jesus was regarded and treated by His enemies and most of the people who called for His crucifixion.  Luke 23:35 says: “And the people stood looking on. But even the rulers with them sneered, saying, ‘He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ, the chosen of God.’”

Christ’s background

But You are He who took Me out of the womb; You made Me trust while on My mother’s breasts. I was cast upon You from birth. From My mother’s womb You have been My God. (22: 9-10)

The Apostle Matthew tells us how the man Jesus was conceived of the Holy Spirit. He therefore had an incredibly close connection to God, even from conception (Matthew 1:18,20).

The angry mob

Be not far from Me, For trouble is near; For there is none to help. Many bulls have surrounded Me; Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled Me. They gape at Me with their mouths, Like a raging and roaring lion. (22:11-13)

When it was time for Jesus to be taken and sacrificed He was like a helpless lamb surrounded by raging bulls or lions. Matthew writes that a great many people came after him with swords and clubs (Matthew 26:47). He also tells us how Jesus was surrounded by many soldiers who hurt him very badly.

Pain and exhaustion

I am poured out like water, And all My bones are out of joint;
My heart is like wax; It has melted within Me. My strength is dried up like a potsherd, And My tongue clings to My jaws; You have brought Me to the dust of death. For dogs have surrounded Me; The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me. They pierced My hands and My feet; I can count all My bones. They look and stare at Me. (22:14-17)

A person hanging on a cross would have their bones out of joint as they hung there. The cross is like a rack that tortures people by stretching them. Death by crucifixion is understood to be one of the most painful, if not the most painful, kind of deaths. The word we use today to describe the worst kind of pain is the word ‘excruciating.’ It’s very interesting that the word ‘excruciating’ has a link with the word ‘crucifixion.’ Charles Spurgeon also writes:

We know that the greatest … pain that the body can endure, is that arising from a bone out of its place … Now when the Lord was raised up upon the cross, and his sacred body hung in the air from the nails, all the joints began to give, so that the bones were parted one from the other so visibly that, in very truth (as David had prophesied) they might tell all his bones, and thus, throughout his whole body, he endured acute torture. Whilst our Lord suffered these torments, his enemies, who had so earnestly desired to see him crucified, far from pitying him, were filled with delight, as though celebrating a victory. (The Treasury of David, Vol. 1, Hendrickson Publishers, p. 343).

It’s amazing David knew exactly the kind of death Jesus would die, even specifically stating that Jesus’ hands and feet would be pierced. Jesus was indeed nailed to the cross by His hands and feet. Did you notice also that the prophet David said in verse 15 God did this to Jesus? It was God’s plan to save us through His Son’s sacrifice.

Casting lots

They divide My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots. (v. 18)

The apostles John and Matthew, Jesus’ close disciples, both write about how the soldiers shared Jesus’ clothes among themselves by casting lots.

God answers Jesus’ cries and raises Him from the dead

Save Me from the lion’s mouth And from the horns of the wild oxen! You have answered Me. I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will praise You. You who fear the Lord, praise Him. All you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him, And fear Him, all you offspring of Israel! For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; Nor has He hidden His face from Him; But when He cried to Him, He heard. (vv. 21-24)

God raised Jesus from the dead. He heard His cries, but did not save him immediately as He had a greater plan for us. Jesus, for 40 days, showed the brethren he had been raised from the dead. Therefore, his followers praised and glorified Him. The Christian movement would have died if Christ’s followers had not seen Him alive again.

A world religion ruled over by Christ

All the ends of the world shall remember and turn to the Lord,
And all the families of the nations shall worship before You. For the kingdom is the Lord’s, and He rules over the nations. All the prosperous of the earth shall eat and worship; All those who go down to the dust shall bow before Him, Even he who cannot keep himself alive. A posterity shall serve Him. It will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation, They will come and declare His righteousness to a people who will be born, that He has done this. (v. 27-31)

Today, in Christ’s spiritual kingdom, people from every country of the world worship Jesus because of the love he showed all of us through taking the suffering for our sins on the cross. Many from all nations serve Him. Jesus has been raised and sits on the throne and is seated at the right hand of God (Acts 2:29-33). Many obedient believers from all nations (Jew and Gentile) hope in Christ who reigns over them (Roman 15:8-12). Much more could be said about the prophetic significance of Psalm 22:27-31.

Conclusion

I hope you can see just how incredible Psalm 22 is, knowing that it was indeed written 1000 years before Jesus suffered on the cross. Do you have trouble loving God with all of your heart? Why not take the time to study the Bible carefully. You will notice that God has sent you a personal love letter with His Almighty signature all over it.

Do sin and guilt weigh you down? – Just CROSS them out!

When I was at school I remember my handwriting mistakes and how I would use my saliva and a rubber to rub them out. Sometimes I would even make holes in the page while doing this. Trying to cover up my mistakes in an effort to look good usually made things look worse. My teachers were not impressed and told me “just cross out the mistake and move on”.

The Psalm of the Cross reminds us how God has given us a way to have our mess cleaned up by Him through the cross of Christ. Our own efforts to clean up our mess often make things worse, so let us leave our sins and guilt at the cross of Jesus and move on. Just let them be CROSSED out by the cleansing blood of Jesus.

God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.   Romans 4:13-17 (NIV)

Chapter Fourteen

The Reliability of the New Testament

… Your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth. Isaiah 25:1

One day a famous man called Dan told his wife Sarah he thought a few women were not very nice. Sarah then told her best friend that Dan believed some women were evil. The next day this best friend told the girls at the Café that Dan thought all women were evil. One of these ladies who happened to be writing Dan’s life story thought she’d include this in Dan’s biography, but accidentally included the word ‘children’ after women so readers were led to believe Dan thought all women and children were evil. Dan’s first statement had been changed so much that the truth had been lost. Some believe the truth Jesus spoke has been lost in a similar kind of way, but let’s look at the facts.

The Facts

It is true there are no surviving originals of the 27 books of the New Testament (NT) that we know of. We only have copies. Decay, loss, and destruction are the common reasons why the originals of ancient writings such as the NT no longer exist. So, if all we have are copies, how can we be sure the NT books we have today are anything like the originals? This important question needs answering.

Jesus was crucified in about AD 30. Most experts agree the original NT writings were written before AD 100, within 70 years of His death and resurrection. Most of them were written before AD 70, and about 10 of them were written only 20-30 years after these events. You may rightly question how anyone would be able to produce such dates for the originals when the originals no longer exist, but there are several reliable ways.

One way is to look at references to NT books, or to the writers of NT books, in the writings of other ancient writers. For example, the authors known as the Apostolic Fathers wrote mainly between AD 90-160. There is much evidence in their writings they were aware of most of the NT books. They often refer to them and quote accurately from them. The second century writings of the Gnostics also do the same.

Another way is to look at internal evidence in the NT book itself. For example, if we are sure who the author is and we know when they lived this gives us a general idea of when the original was written. Sometimes authors refer to themselves in their writings, such as the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 1:1. If the author does not identify themselves, their writing style often tells us who they are. Another useful piece of evidence, giving more specific dates for Paul’s writings, is the information we have about his times in prison. From the information in some books of the NT we can know about what time Paul would have been in prison for his faith. It is clear from the NT books themselves that Paul wrote some of them from prison.

The evidence strongly pointing toward the NT books being written so close to the death of Christ is very significant. Early writing means the writers were eyewitnesses, or knew eyewitnesses. It also means the memories of the writers were good. Also other witnesses of the events would be around to back up or call into question what was written.

The next factor greatly in favor of the dependability of the NT is the fact there are over 5000 ancient copies, in whole or in part, of NT books. This is a massive amount of copies compared to any other ancient book. The oldest existing complete copy of the NT is called Codex B or Vaticanus. It is dated around AD 325-350 and is kept in the Vatican. It contains all of the NT books and also most of the OT books in Greek. Three other similar complete books include Codex Sinaiticus, the Alexandrian text, and the Ephraemi Prescriptus text. These date back to the mid-300s, except for the Alexandrian text (AD 450).

The oldest copy of a part of the NT is a small section of the gospel of John (Jn 18:31-33, 37-38) dated AD 130. John 18:36-37 says:

Pilate therefore said to Him, “Are You a king then?” Jesus answered, “You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.” Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews, and said to them, “I find no fault in Him at all.

Two other early and significant existing documents are the Chester Beatty Papyri, dated about AD 250 and containing the oldest known copies of the Apostle Paul’s letters and Revelation chapters 9 to 17, and the Bodmer Papyri II, dated AD 175-225 and containing John 1:1-14, 26 and the earliest copies of Luke, Jude and 1 & 2 Peter.

Another helpful thing for supporting the reliability of the NT is the fact copies of NT writings have been found in several different countries, and there’s great consistency between such copies. Further, there’s evidence the NT books were quite quickly translated from Greek into other languages. The oldest translation is the old Syriac and old Latin versions dating back to the latter half of the second century.

What benefit though is there in having all these early Greek manuscripts, including many from different regions, so many ancient translations, and many accurate quotations of scripture from early writers when experiments easily prove it is difficult to copy out a passage without making at least one or two mistakes? New Testament scholar Dr F. F. Bruce answers this question as follows:

When we have documents like our New Testament writings copied and recopied thousands of times, the scope for copyists’ errors is so enormously increased that it is surprising there are no more than there actually are. Fortunately, if the great number of mss increases the number of scribal errors, it increases proportionately the means of correcting such errors, so that the margin of doubt left in the process of recovering the exact original wording is not so large as might be feared; it is in truth remarkably small. The variant readings about which any doubt remains amongst textual critics of the New Testament affect no material question of historical fact or of Christian faith and practice.  F.F. Bruce, ‘The New Testament Documents (Intervarsity Press, 1992, p. 19-20)

To understand this better, try and think of it this way. Suppose there is an original document containing 50 verses and 20 people copy it, or one person copies it 20 times. It is not likely the copies will all have the same copying mistakes is it? Therefore, by looking at each of the 20 copies of one of the verses and comparing them you will probably get 18-19 of them which are the same and one or two that aren’t. From this, it is easy to tell which is the original version of the verse – the one that has been copied the same 18 or 19 times. Therefore, the fact there is such a large amount of comparison material for the NT is great for its reliability. Other experts in this field, including the late Dr Bruce Metzger, long time professor of Princeton Theological Seminary, agree that the NT copying errors are so small that no doctrines of the church are put in doubt by them.

The treasures of Luke

Another treasure we have in favor of NTs accuracy has been called ‘the treasures of Luke.’ Luke was not one of the 12 disciples, so he was not an eyewitness of many things, as other NT writers were. However, as he states in Luke 1:1-4, his purpose was to write an orderly account of the gospel events based on eyewitness accounts. What’s especially important about Luke’s gospel is how he puts his story in an historical context. This means the accuracy of his work can be tested. He gives a lot of historical information, such as names and titles of rulers. Time and time again historical research and archeology has confirmed Luke’s accuracy. Even the detailed account given by Luke in Acts 27 of the sea voyage of the Apostle Paul near Malta has proved helpful to experienced sailors in that part of the Mediterranean.

Another treasure of Luke, and one more way the NT’s reliability can be supported, is when non-Christian historians confirm events in the scriptures. Luke in Acts 12:19-23 describes King Herod dying in a most unusual way. The Jewish historian Josephus in Antiquities, Book 19, Chapter 8.2 confirms Luke’s account of Herod’s unusual death by providing quite a similar account.

Given all the evidence we have about the NT, if we don’t accept its reliability we can’t accept the reliability of any ancient documents. It passes the reliability tests of historians far better than other ancient writings. Compared to them, it was written very soon after the events it records, the oldest surviving copies are close in time to the originals, there are numerous copies, and there is great support for its accuracy from many other sources.

The Canon

Just how the 27 books were arranged into the canon (the officially accepted books) of the NT is another important question relating to NT reliability. People sometimes claim church councils may have made mistakes in selecting the books to go into the NT. Bruce writes that the first councils considering the issue of canon were as late as AD 393 at Hippo Regius and AD 397 at Carthage, “but what these councils did was not to impose something new upon the Christian communities but to codify what was already the general practice of those communities” (ibid, p27). Since then, only the accepted canon of Catholicism has been changed. The seven books of the Apocrypha were added to the Catholic Bible at the Council of Trent in 1546.

As we have seen already, the 27 books of the NT were well accepted by Christians before any council was called to recognize them. Basically, the 27 books chose themselves because of their widespread acceptance among the Christian community. The books under consideration that didn’t make it were kept out because they did not match the 27 that fitted together so well. The quote below from the gospel of Thomas (not likely to be from the real apostle Thomas), one of the books suggested by some to be a book which should have been in the Bible, gives us a good example of why such books clearly excluded themselves and were not put in the Bible:

(114) Simon Peter said to them, "Mary should leave us, for females are not worthy of life." Jesus said, "See, I am going to attract her to make her male so that she too might become a living spirit that resembles you males. For every female (element) that makes itself male will enter the kingdom of heaven."

 http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/thomas/gospelthomas114.html

So many translations – why?

It is often asked why there are so many different translations of the Bible if we are satisfied of its accuracy. One important reason is that the English language, like other languages, constantly changes over time. Words take on different meanings, or they even fall out of use. For example, the word ‘let’ is used in the King James Version of the Bible in 2 Thessalonians 2:7. Back in the days that this version was written the word ‘let’ meant to ‘stop’ or ‘prevent.’ Today, the word ‘let’ means to allow. What’s important is not that we keep the same word, but rather the same meaning. That is why ‘let’ has been replaced with ‘restrains’ or ‘holds it back.’ Many, many examples of the need to update words to keep the same meaning could be given. Perhaps if you looked up on the internet what the original 1611 King James Version looked like and tried to read it, you would quickly see the point of having new translations.

Another genuine reason (as opposed to a questionable financial reason) for new translations is that archeology has given us a better understanding of biblical languages, culture, customs and history. Also, very importantly, translators have access to many more ancient copies of the scriptures, and in some cases they are far older too, than what the translators of the authorized 1611 King James Version used.

Chinese whispers

One further issue, bringing us back to the question raised by Dan’s example in the introduction above, is the question of being sure things hadn’t changed by word of mouth before the original NT scriptures were written in the first century. Several points can be made here. The obvious point is that this argument does not apply to the eyewitness writers Matthew, John, Peter, James and Jude who walked and talked with Jesus. There can be no corruption of their accounts in the manner suggested by Dan’s example to the extent they wrote down their own direct experiences. Further, the Chinese whispers objection is really weak when we remember Luke and the Apostle Paul, who probably wrote the rest of the NT, were able to talk directly to Matthew, John and many other eyewitnesses. Their passion for honesty, integrity, and accuracy also shines through, as does the other writers’, in the pages of their lives.

Finally

The fact there are multiple witnesses to many of the main events of Christianity also adds to reliability. As you will see in the next chapter, there were over 500 witnesses to the resurrected Christ, and many of them were still alive when Paul wrote to comment on Paul’s claim they were witnesses. The NT writers were making big claims. They had many friendly and unfriendly eyewitnesses to challenge what they wrote. Often in their writings they appealed to the knowledge of their hearers saying such things as, “you yourselves also know” (Acts 2:22). Key events of the NT, such as the crucifixion and Pentecost, occurred publicly.

Much of this chapter is based upon the work of Dr F. F. Bruce in, ‘The New Testament Documents – Are they reliable? Only a small part of the evidence for the reliability of the NT documents is presented here. If this issue continues to be a problem for your faith, you are encouraged to look more deeply into the evidence.

Chapter Fifteen

The Resurrection of Christ

And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty … And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile … If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable.

                                                                       1 Corinthians 15:14-19

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is central to Christianity. It is incredibly important. If there is good reason for believing in it, then we can be excited about the great resurrection promised to all true believers. We can have a wonderful hope for everlasting life. As human beings, it makes sense then we would be very interested in knowing about it, seeing our lives are so short and can be lost so easily. How much do you know about the resurrection?

Test your knowledge of the resurrection of Christ below by answering the following questions. See how you go.

1. Over about how many days does the Bible record Jesus showing Himself to be alive after his death on the cross?  

A. Two     B. Ten    C. TwentyorD. Forty

2. About how many times does the Bible record Jesus appearing to others after His death? 

A. Two    B. Three   C. Tenor  D. Twenty  

3. According to the Bible, about how many eye witnesses saw Jesus alive after His death? 

A. Eleven     B. Twelve    C. One hundredorD. Five hundred plus

4. Were all the sightings of Jesus only for short periods of a few minutes or less?

A. YesorB. No

5. Were the New Testaments records written while many of witnesses to Jesus’ resurrection were still alive? 

A. Yes   or B. No

See the answers at the end of this chapter.

After having checked the answers below the reader will know the sightings of Jesus alive from the dead were highly significant. They were very different to the short and doubtful sightings of UFOs we sometimes hear about. If a Royal Commission, or trial, had been held in AD 50 to find out whether or not Jesus rose from the dead, the evidence supporting this truth would have been unshakeable.

       Your Call

If you were to call each of the witnesses cited in the New Testament to be cross-examined for 15 minutes each, and you went around the clock without a break, it would take you from breakfast on Monday until dinner on Friday to hear them all. Would nearly 128 straight hours of eyewitness testimony make you more likely to believe that Jesus came back to life? Why or why not?

                     Lee Strobel & Jane Vogel, The Case for Christ, Youth edn, p102

Answers:    1. D (Acts 1:3)    2. C (John 20:10-18, Matthew 28:8-10, Luke 24:13-32, Luke 24:33-49, John 20:19-23, John 20:26-30, John 21:1-14, Matthew 28:16-20, Acts 1:4-9, Jesus also appeared to Paul)    3. D (1 Corinthians 15:3-8)    4. B (e.g. see Luke 24:33-49 & John 21:1-14)    5. A

Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”

Then the Jews said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?”

But He was speaking of the temple of His body. Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said. John 2:19-22

Chapter Sixteen

Restoring the Faith of the Wanderer

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.

Hebrews 10:23

Elijah was a prophet of Israel who lived about the ninth century B.C. He has been described as the ‘grandest and the most romantic character that Israel ever produced’ (Holman Bible Dictionary, 2nd Edn, p478). He was used by God in incredible ways. By God’s power he did miracles that had never been done before and he stood strongly against false prophets and Israel’s enemies. However, like many Christians today, who have experienced the highs and lows of serving God, Elijah also experienced a great low, and found himself in need of restoration. It is my prayer Elijah’s story in 1 Kings 19 will help anyone who finds themselves struggling with God and God’s plan for their life.

Elijah running

Queen Jezebel wanted Elijah dead. He ran from her, but not only her. He ran from God’s call to serve His chosen people. Elijah was fully aware of the terrible sins of his nation, and he felt there was hardly a godly person left in Israel. Many Christians also run from their call to serve God’s people and this evil generation.

Why did he run? Fear caused him to run for his life. Fear causes us to do all kinds of things that just don’t make sense. Due to bad religious experiences some of us have felt the need to run to get away from being choked or seriously hurt. Many a person’s defenses therefore go up at the slightest possibility of a spiritual experience or discussion. There are people who have not dealt with their fears and who would rather risk their eternal relationship with God than overcome their fears. However, such fears need to be faced head on, or restoration will never happen.

Where did Elijah run to? Verse 4 says he ran into the wilderness. It wasn’t ‘out of the frying pan into the fire,’ but rather out of the frying pan into a dry and empty place. At first there is a great emptiness when we run from a group of believers we have been strongly attached to, or from seemingly crazy or fanatical parents or spouses, or from God Himself. Our hopes and dreams for this life and the next may at first seem much darker or even lost.

What Elijah did after he ran for his life into the wilderness shows how fear and disconnection cause us to do stupid things. He laid down under a tree and prayed that he might die. He ran from Jezebel because he did not want to die, but now he wants to die? Fear certainly causes confusion and contradiction. Some run, in a sense, for their lives from hypocrisy in the church, but soon end up in a spiritual sense lying down, sleeping, throwing their Bibles in the bin or even wanting to die because enough’s enough. Now who’s a hypocrite? Now who’s a bad example of a Christian?

God’s tender hand

Thankfully, God does not leave us alone in our confusion. He knows how to respond in a touching and tender way. He is an understanding and caring God. While Elijah slept under the tree, suddenly an angel touched him and provided him with cake and water (v. 5). However, God’s first move to restore did not move Elijah. He just ate and drank and lay down again. The fearful, disconnected, and hurt are not easily restored and often fight against those trying to help them, or respond only a little before falling again.

But thank God He doesn’t give up on us. The angel of the Lord came back a second time, and touched Elijah, and said, “Arise and eat, because the journey is too great for you” (v. 7). God gave Elijah a second touch because He loved him and had great plans and purposes for him. The God who will never leave or forsake us also has great purposes for us to fulfill. He tells us we are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and His own special people that we may declare His praises.

Spiritual wanderings

The second touch strengthened Elijah greatly, as v. 8 says he arose and ate and drank, and went on the strength of that food forty days and forty nights as far as Horeb, the mountain of God. I wonder why he was heading for such a holy place as Mount Horeb (another name for Mt Sinai), where God appeared to Moses in a burning bush and where Moses received the Ten Commandments? This is only a guess, but it is a speculation that serves a purpose, because some readers might relate to it. Had Elijah now decided to go on his own independent spiritual journey? And don’t we feel a lot of strength when God lifts us up off the floor; and don’t we get excited about our new spiritual path that we alone are going to walk because who else is really true out there anyway? We have a lot more desire and energy for this path than any other path we have ever taken because we feel like it is God’s revelation to us. Initially we feel set free.

Forty days and forty nights is a terribly long time to go without food and drink. Elijah was greatly renewed, but as we will see in a moment, he was not yet restored, as he was not walking the path God wanted him to walk. Sometimes we may also feel renewed and experience greater strength and self control than ever before, but there is just one big problem - we are now in a cave, a holy cave. According to verse nine, when Elijah reached the top of Mount Horeb he went into a cave.

In a cave

God, however, had a very relevant question for Elijah. “What are you doing here, Elijah?” He said. Perhaps the Lord was really questioning why he was going back to being a cave man, hiding out in a cave like a monk or hiding his light under a basket. Now you might be forgiven for thinking God’s question is a rather strange one of Elijah when He was the one who gave Elijah the food and drink that strengthened him for forty days and forty nights, and when Elijah is at this most holy and spiritual place.

Elijah responds firstly by saying, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of Hosts.” The expression ‘I have been’ is very revealing for two reasons. Firstly, if you know anything about Elijah’s life before he started running, you will know there is no doubt he indeed had great desire for the Lord. Most people who have been hurt badly by religious experiences would probably not have been hurt so much if they had not put so much into the church and their faith in the first place. Secondly, Elijah’s ‘I have been very zealous,’ is very telling because he no longer was. He was far more interested in his own well-being and saving his own life.

Elijah also responds to God’s seemingly strange question by saying in v. 10, “the children of Israel have forsaken your covenant.” I suppose God could have responded harshly, ‘so what! - does that also give you the right to refuse to do what I want you to do?’ Can you just imagine God giving Elijah the old cliché – ‘if someone jumped over a cliff would you follow after him?’ God does not give up on His people when they go the wrong way, but rather He stretches out His hand of grace, just as we all need to do.

Finally, Elijah responds to God’s searching question by giving the further excuse “I alone am left and they seek to take my life.” Elijah felt all alone as God’s prophet and believed there were few, if any, righteous men and women left in Israel. I have met people like Elijah who feel there is no church they can go to because there’s none just quite right, or at least none in their area. Nevertheless, God’s call to serve the people of God and to do good, ‘especially’ to those who are of the household of faith, remains (Galatians 6:10). Probably Elijah’s greatest excuse for being in his holy cave was his life was in danger. But God does not accept this. He has the keys of life and death. Jesus Himself said “he who loves his life will lose it and he who loses his life for my sake shall find it.”

A still small voice

Then He [God] said, ‘Go out, and stand on the mountain before the Lord’. And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks into pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake, and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire, and after the fire a still small voice. (1 Kings 19:11-12)

Amidst all the noise of the wind, earthquake, fire and Elijah’s excuses, then comes a still small voice. We are not told what it said, but I believe it encouraged Elijah, as v. 13 says he moved to the entrance of the cave. If we have run for our lives into a wilderness feeling that enough is enough, but have been touched by our loving Lord not once, but twice or more, and then gone on our own spiritual journey only to find ourselves in a holy or not so holy cave (or have had similar experiences), then I suggest there remains a still small voice speaking to us in the midst of all our fears calling us to restoration. Perhaps it too is asking us ‘what are we doing here?’

In verse 13, God repeats again His ‘what are you doing here’ question to Elijah who now, encouragingly, is at the entrance of the cave. Elijah repeats the same excuses, but seemingly with much less force or belief because God says to him with authority, “Go return on your way,” and Elijah does. God now gives him the command because he knows Elijah is ready, being positioned to move at the entrance of the cave. The Lord has done all the ground work in his restoration.

Just think about the restoration process so far. The Lord did not forsake Elijah when he was at his lowest. Rather, He reached out to him. The Lord kept him alive and strengthened him to follow the direction of his choice, knowing that Elijah would one day learn what he needed to learn. The Lord challenged him with a question. The Lord let him give all of his excuses and then came softly to him with the still small voice of His word. Only one more necessary thing was left for the Lord to fully restore him to serve the people of God, something that is also absolutely essential before those of us who are like a hand without a body can be restored to serve the people of God.

You are not alone

In verse 18 God says, “Yet I have reserved seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal.” God is saying, “don’t be afraid, there are others like you.” Elijah then knew there were godly people to serve and that he had been wrong in thinking he was the only one. Often knowing we are not alone helps us to overcome our fears. God dealt with Elijah’s fears. Therefore he left the cave to serve the Lord and the people of God and he went on to do many more mighty things for Israel. He was fully restored despite Jezebel’s threat to kill him still being a real one. He knew God was with him.

Our restoration

What about our restoration? God may not come to us in the very special way he came to His prophet, but we have God’s still small voice of the Holy scriptures interpreted by His still small voice of the Holy Spirit, and such clearly tell us why God wants his people who are in caves restored to fellowship where they can work as part of a healthy body. However, it is important it is a healthy body as it is no good a hand being restored to a body in which the heart is not pumping blood to the hand. You certainly do not want to be restored to a body where the mouth is kissing the feet of Baal or Satan.

Just though as Elijah was reminded and reassured there were seven thousand like him, we are reassured by the still small voice of scripture that the church will stand as a witness until Jesus returns. We are also reassured that at the end of the age there will be living Christians caught up in the air to meet the Lord at His coming. Therefore, if you do not know any, I urge you to search for fellow believers whom you can worship God with in spirit and in truth. However, be prepared to bear patiently with their weaknesses and mistakes, for as surely as night follows day they will need to be patient with you too.

If we already fellowship with other believers, but need restoration in our relationship with God and our service toward Him, be assured that our God is still a great God of restoration. Just as He chased after Elijah to restore him to serve the people of God He is going after you even now. Just reach out your heart to Him and He will be your ever present help in time of need.

Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,  and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,  and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. 1 Corinthians 15:1-6

Chapter Seventeen

Go Again!

For the love of Christ compels us …

                                                                             2 Corinthians 5:14

God told Hosea to marry a prostitute! God did what? Not only that though, God told the prophet Hosea to take this woman back after she fell back into prostitution. Hosea’s story will strengthen us to love when it hurts, and it will powerfully show us the great depths of God’s love and forgiveness.

Does God hurt?

An interesting theological issue is whether God can experience real suffering. A God that can’t feel hurts of any kind does not seem to be the God we see in the book of Hosea. And this is not the God who said to Noah, “I will destroy man, for I am sorry that I made him,” or to Moses, “I have seen this people and indeed it is a stiff-necked people – now let me alone that my wrath may burn hot against them and consume them.” This God seems to be pained by wickedness. In Hosea, we not only learn about how God suffers and how His heart breaks when His people sin against Him, we also learn about the undying nature of God’s love for all mankind.

The book of Hosea opens our eyes to the heart of God and the heartbreak of God, especially when His people are unfaithful to Him. You shouldn’t be surprised to hear God has strong feelings. After all, where do you think we humans, made in God’s image, got some of our strong emotions from?

Hosea’s heartbreak

Hosea’s story is a very interesting one. He was a prophet of Israel living about B.C. 750 whom God told to take a ‘wife of harlotry’ because the land had committed great harlotry by departing from their God (1:2). Most Bible experts believe God told Hosea to marry a prostitute. Others say Hosea was told to marry a woman who later became a prostitute. Whoever is right, it is clear that Gomer (Hosea’s wife) if she wasn’t a prostitute in the first place, became one, since verses one and two of chapter three explain how God commands Hosea to go again and love a woman who is committing adultery. This woman Hosea was commanded to love must have been his wife Gomer who had left him, since God would not have commanded Hosea to share in the sin of adultery which the woman had been committing. Hosea then paid 15 shekels of silver and one and a half homers of barley to buy back his prostitute wife.

Why would God command Hosea to take such a woman back? Why should Hosea take her back? It seems as if God is giving Hosea first-hand experience of the pain He Himself was experiencing because of the unfaithfulness of Israel who were loving false gods (3:1-2).

Consider the terrible life Gomer had got herself into and how it polluted her. Why would God command Hosea to ‘go again’ and love her? Just consider how Hosea must have been feeling towards her.

In chapter one, we see from verses 3-8 that she had become the mother of three of his children, and they weren’t triplets, so they had been married for at least two years before this prostitution. All kinds of horrible feelings would have been in Hosea’s bones like rottenness. How could she betray his love and the children and leave them alone? What kind of mother does this? How could she bring him, a prophet of God, such dishonour by her betrayal, and how could his beloved wife even lower or degrade herself so? Just think of the worst thing a loved one could ever do to you emotionally, or has done, how it made you feel, and whether you could forgive them. This would be how Hosea was feeling.

God’s heartbreak

God seems to be opening Hosea’s eyes and heart to His own anger and how He felt about forgiving Israel. God’s disgust felt toward His unfaithful people is clearly shown in the following statements recorded in Hosea about Israel:

. She is not my wife. Let her put away her harlotries lest I strip her naked and expose her and slay her with thirst (2:2-3)

. I will not have mercy on her children, for they are children of harlotry. (2:4)

. She went after her lovers and forgot me (2:13)

. They shall seek the Lord, but He has withdrawn Himself (5:6)

. I will pour out my wrath on them like water (5:10)

. I will be to them like a moth and rottenness (5:12)

. Their glory shall fly away like a bird, no birth, no pregnancy, no conception.  I will bereave them to the last man (9:11-12)

. All their wickedness in Gilgal. For there I hated them, because of the evil of their deeds. I will drive them from my house. I will love them no more (9:15).

Going again

God, nevertheless, commands Hosea who was experiencing something similar to “go again, love a woman who is loved by a lover and is committing adultery.” At first it seems that God Himself is not so willing to ‘go again’ with Israel. But here we see the immeasurable depths of God’s love, for He was willing to go again. Later in the book of Hosea, God says:

. How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? … My heart churns within Me; My sympathy is stirred. I will not execute the fierceness of my anger … For I am God, and not man, the Holy One within your midst … (11:8-9)

. I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely, for my anger has turned away from him. I will be like the dew to Israel; he shall grow like the lily, and lengthen his roots like Lebanon. His branches shall spread; his beauty shall be like an olive tree, and his fragrance like Lebanon (14:5-6).

What a wonderful picture of the nature of God’s love for us. He is God, and not man, and if the Spirit of God dwells in us we can go again too, even in the worst of situations.

Strength to overcome betrayal

Then hundreds of years after Hosea lived, God’s people do the worst thing to Him one could ever imagine, far worse than being unfaithful by worshipping false gods. They give up His only begotten Son to be tortured horribly and killed, crucifying Him on the painful cross.

I want to suggest to you that way back in Hosea’s day, when God might have given up on Israel because of their unfaithfulness, God knew full well what they were going to do to His Son many years later on the cross. However, knowing this, God was still willing to go again, as Hosea did by having Gomer back. Hosea only had to pay 15 shekels of silver and one and a half homers of barley to go again, but God demonstrated His own love toward us in that while we were still sinners, Christ, His only begotten Son, died for us. God was willing to pay the highest price - the blood of His Son - to go again. Oh praise the Lord!

Through God’s, Hosea’s, and our own betrayal experiences, may we better understand the importance of remaining faithful to God and better understand how God feels about our own unfaithfulness. Knowing the incredible depths of God’s love for us; knowing the great price God was willing to pay for us despite our wickedness and unfaithfulness; and knowing the strong, strong emotions of God, I urge us all to be more determined not to sin against God.

Conclusion

May Hosea’s story not only encourage us to be more determined not to betray God through sin, but may it also encourage us to share God’s love with others even to the point of making sacrifices to do so. Will we sacrifice our time for doing good works in love? Will we sacrifice our pride and everything else to show kindness, love and mercy to, not only the people we like, but also to those who may be hurting us?

May Hosea’s story also encourage us to restore those who are living in unfaithfulness to us and to God. Let’s be ready to forgive and ready to reach out to the sheep that have strayed, no matter how much it hurts. If we ourselves are the ones needing to be restored to God, may Hosea’s story encourage us to cry out to God for His tender mercies and lovingkindness. God still cares about all of us.

Finally, let us stand in awe of the strength God had to go again in the most incredible way at the cross. This same strength is in us through the Holy Spirit if we have surrendered to God and let Him into our hearts, or it can be, if we will only give our lives to Him even today.

Is there anything we need to ‘go again’ in? Let us hear what the Word of the Lord says to us:

For the love of Christ compels us, and we judge thus: that if one died for all, then all died; and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him, who died for them and rose again. (2 Corinthians 5:14-15)

And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.

1 John 4:16
Chapter Eighteen

My Lord and My God

And Thomas answered and said to Him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.’ John 20:28

I have known of situations where a person’s connection to Christ has been based partly or wholly on another person’s relationship with Christ. For example, a son or a daughter has a connection through their parents, or someone falls in love with a strong Christian and ‘converts’ to Christianity, or a person becomes a believer because of the strong influence of an exciting or controlling leader they follow.

In Acts 19:13-18 we see an example of this third party connection when some exorcists try to cast demons out in the name of ‘Jesus whom Paul preaches.’ Not having their own personal relationship with Christ, their efforts to cast out the demons fail and the demons turn on them. A third party connection is a form of false trust. It helps no one.

What we can conclude from this is that we need our own personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ. We must be able to cry out to Christ with all our heart, as the apostle Thomas did, ‘my Lord and my God!’

Now what gives a person a deep faith in Christ or love for Christ is not the same for everyone. The disciples of Jesus walked and talked with Jesus and saw His miracles and His death, burial, and resurrection. They also experienced Christ’s love. They would no doubt say it was their own personal experiences which strengthened their faith and fueled their love for Christ. Others, however, might say their faith and love comes more through their understanding of the word of God, and this is okay, as Romans 10:17 says “so then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

For me, it’s my understanding of the word of God, more than personal experiences, that sustains my faith and my love for God. What ever it is for you, the important thing is that you in fact have your own personal faith in your own personal God so that you can cry out ‘my God.’

Isaiah 42

Let me share yet another reason why I see Christ as my Lord and my God by giving one more example of how the prophetic accuracy of the Bible impresses me and strengthens me in the faith. In chapter 4 we already learned how Isaiah the prophet lived hundreds of years before Christ and how a very similar copy of his book was found in 1947 in the Dead Sea Scrolls. We saw in Isaiah 53 the brilliance of his God-inspired prophecy about the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. His prophecy in Isaiah 42 is equally interesting and accurate! Isaiah 42:1-9 reads:

1. ‘Behold! My Servant whom I uphold, My Elect One in whom My soul delights! I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles.

2. He will not cry out, nor raise His voice, nor cause His voice to be heard in the street.

3. A bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench; He will bring forth justice for truth.

4. He will not fail nor be discouraged, till He has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands shall wait for His law.’

5. Thus says God the Lord, Who created the heavens and stretched them out, Who spread forth the earth and that which comes from it, Who gives breath to the people on it, and spirit to those who walk on it:

6. ‘I, the Lord, have called You in righteousness, and will hold Your hand; I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people, as a light to the Gentiles,

7. To open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the prison, those who sit in darkness from the prison house.

8. I am the Lord, that is My name; and My glory I will not give to another, nor my praise to carved images.

9. Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I declare; before they spring forth I tell you of them.’”

In this passage several of the wonderful acts of my Lord, and some beautiful things about His character are foretold.

The person being talked of in verse one is described as a ‘Servant.’ Certainly Jesus served humanity while on this earth, feeding, teaching, and healing many. In Mark 10:45, He said He did not come to be served, but to serve. He loved to serve His Father as well. He said His ‘food was to do the will of God.’ This ‘servant prediction’ might seem like an easy prediction to make, but then again, would one naturally expect such a mighty One from Heaven to come in the humble form of a servant?

The Servant of this passage is also described as God’s Elect One in whom God delights, and upon whom God puts His Spirit. If we consider Jesus’ baptism experience, again it seems reasonable to say Jesus fulfills this part of the prophecy. Remember what God said to Jesus when He came up out of the Jordan river after being baptized. He said, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” God delighted in Him. Matthew also records that at Jesus’ baptism the Spirit of God was seen to come down upon Him in the form of a dove. This would appear to be a very special form of anointing. Remember also, what Jesus said when He first started preaching:

The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. (Luke 4:18-19)

Jesus certainly was God’s Elect One - His anointed.

The last part of Isaiah 42:1 says that the Servant will bring forth justice to the Gentiles. Just listen to some of the things that the New Testament says Jesus did for the Gentiles and decide for yourself whether my Jesus also fulfills this:

On the next Sabbath almost the whole city came together to hear the word of God. But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy; and contradicting and blaspheming, they opposed the things spoken by Paul. Then Paul and Barnabas grew bold and said, ‘It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first; but since you reject it, and judge yourself unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles. For so the Lord has commanded us:

‘I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, that you should be salvation to the ends of the earth.’

Now when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord. And as many as were appointed to eternal life believed. (Acts 13:44-48)

Now I say that Jesus Christ has become a servant to the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers, and that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy, as it is written:

‘For this reason I will confess to You among the Gentiles, and sing to Your name.’

And again He says:

‘Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people!’ …

And again, Isaiah says:

‘There shall be a root of Jesse; And He shall rise to reign over the Gentiles, In Him the Gentiles shall hope.’ (Romans 15:8-12)

Justice is about bringing fairness and giving people what’s right. It might well be remembered how Jesus also reached out to the Samaritan people (a people hated by the Jews), such as the woman at the well, and how He showed mercy to the Canaanite woman whose daughter was demon possessed. The Apostle Paul also clearly explains the effect of Jesus death and new covenant on the standing of all men before God. He writes:

There is neither Jew nor Greek … for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. (Galatians 3:28-29)

Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh … at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who were once far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. (Eph. 2:11-16)

Justice for the Gentiles was certainly brought through the cross.

Several further parts of Isaiah’s prophecy also neatly apply to Jesus. The Servant, according to verse two, would not cry out, nor raise His voice, nor cause His voice to be heard in the streets. A person who did such things would seem to be an attention seeker. Contrary to the popular picture of Jesus in the movies, the Bible does not have Jesus walking around preaching the Sermon on the Mount with a loud voice to the people. Rather the Bible says He sat down and spoke this message to His disciples (see Matthew 5:1-2 & Luke 6:20 …). There were also times where Jesus told people whom He had healed not to go and tell others (e.g. Matthew 12:15-21). Jesus was not an attention seeker.

The Servant was not to ‘break a bruised reed’ or ‘quench smoking flax.’ If this is a poetic description of a person who is gentle and compassionate toward the weak, then it fits Jesus perfectly. The woman caught in adultery who was about to be broken by people with stones in their hands comes to mind. Jesus saved her from being stoned to death. Jesus showed unexpected compassion toward sinners, whilst the Pharisees wanted to break them and snuff them out.

Verse 4 says the Servant will not fail nor be discouraged till He has established justice in the earth, and the coastlands shall wait for His law. Jesus finished His mission successfully. If He had sinned once He would have failed. He experienced much temptation, taunting, and suffering, but He kept His self-control. He had many reasons to be discouraged too, not the least of which was the disappointing behaviour of His own people and, at times, His own disciples. However, He was able to say, ‘it is finished,’ and because of His success the message of the Bible has spread to the coastlands - in fact to all the countries of the world. Many have accepted Him as their ruler, king and lawgiver.

If anyone doubts my interpretation of Isaiah 42 so far, one need only read Matthew 12:15-21 where the apostle Matthew tells us that it was fulfilled in his day.

I have faith in God because He accurately foretells the future, and I love Him because He is a God of justice, compassion, and truth. Isaiah 42:5 also gives us reason to admire God for His awesome creative power.

The prophet in verse 6 goes on to make a very unusual prophecy about the Servant:

I, the Lord, have called You in righteousness, and will hold Your hand; I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people, as a light to the Gentiles.

Here the Lord (God) is speaking to the Servant. He will give Him as a covenant to the people. This seems to be an unusual prophesy, as normally a covenant is in writing, or, as was the case in Israel, an animal’s blood was spilled at the making of the covenant (see Genesis 15:8-18). Isaiah, who surely was inspired by God, quite incredibly foretells that the covenant to the people would be written in the Servant’s blood.

Matthew again writes:

Then He (Jesus) took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you. For this is the blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.’

Jesus made the new covenant with His own blood at the cross. Hence, another interesting detail of Isaiah’s prophecy about the Servant finds fulfillment in Christ.

Finally, verse seven predicts the Servant will open the eyes of the blind and free the prisoners. This could be interpreted as being fulfilled both literally and figuratively by Christ. Not only did He heal those who were blind physically, He also opened the spiritual eyes of many. Not only did He help the woman escape who was caught in adultery, He also freed many who were prisoners of their own sins.

Conclusion

Given the clear application of Isaiah 42:1-7 to Christ’s ministry, it’s no wonder my God could say so boldly in verses 8-9:

I am the Lord, that is My name; and My glory I will not give to another, nor my praise to carved images. Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I declare; before they spring forth I tell you of them.

I believe in Jesus. I believe in God the Father. I love my Jesus, and I love my Father. You may not get as big a thrill as I do from fulfilled prophecy about Christ. Maybe your own personal experiences of God strengthen you more. That’s great if they do. However, if your heart is telling you that you don’t have your own deep personal faith in God and love for God, then you need to seek God for yourself with all your heart, so you can truly cry out to Him, ‘my Lord and my God.’

Chapter Nineteen

Author’s Personal Story

You Don’t Have to See Miracles

So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

                                                                                    Romans 10:17

Maybe you have thought about believing in God and His Son before, or even felt like you were walking with God for a time, but doubts came along because He didn’t seem as real to you as He seemed to others. Many of them spoke of God’s miracles and presence in their lives, but you couldn’t speak of any similar experiences. Maybe you’ve longed for God to show Himself to you in a very special way, but as far as you know He hasn’t. If this is you, I think you will relate to my story.

I grew up in New Zealand in a household that wasn’t very ‘religious’. I didn’t know of anyone in my family who placed great importance on God, apart from my grandfather Ron Finlay who was a Baptist pastor. Nor was religious teaching a part of my schooling. I hardly set foot in a church before I was 19, and I had very little contact with Christians.

My number one passion from the age of eleven to about twenty three was competitive tennis. I enjoyed competing, winning, and the ‘glory’ (in my own head) that went along with it. My giant ego affected my whole life. I remember not being well liked at school because I was so proud. When I was about 14, I boasted to my schoolmates I was going to win the speech, science, creative writing, cross country, and tennis competitions all in one year. This did not go down well in New Zealand where the proud and boastful were strongly criticized and called ‘skites.’ Kiwis had a healthy dislike for such behaviour, and still do to a good extent.

I really enjoyed life, and in my pride didn’t care too much about those who didn’t like me. I loved life so much though that the thought of losing it scared me. I am not sure whether this fear was the only thing God used to move me toward spiritual things, or whether it was also a Christian singer who came along once or twice to my primary school and encouraged all of us to ask Jesus into our hearts (which I did). What ever it was, I soon found myself reading a freely available religious magazine, and reading the Bible too.

As a result, I tried to live a good life as far as I could. I hated lying and immorality in general, and I’m sure some of my family members would have seen me as being a bit too self-righteous. However, my competitive spirit often brought out the worst in me. I remember training on the school cross country course. We were being timed and I wanted to break the school record. Three of us were running as fast as we could at the front when one of us fell and was injured. The other runner stopped to help, but I ran on for ‘glory’ and the ‘school record.’ As it turned out, interestingly enough, just before the cross country event that year I injured myself and missed out on the race. I also remember a time when I was very grumpy on the tennis court and dismissed the umpire. I went on to lose 6-0 6-2. The tournament organizers decided to give the umpire I had embarrassed the prize for being the best umpire of the tournament. I felt really bad for what I had done.

After many further years of reading my religious magazine, and the Bible, and trying to be ‘good,’ my fear of death and my God-given desire to please Him finally saw me make a wholehearted commitment to Christ many years later when I was about 24.

I never saw any miracles to help me believe or to make this decision to give my life to God. I’m still not 100% sure whether I’ve definitely seen any. I did fall out of a car as a kid without suffering serious injury, and I have been hit in the back of my motorbike while stopped and waiting to turn without being injured at all. I praise God for this. I was also saved from drowning a few times. Some, if they knew about the way my law publishing business has developed, might consider that God has really had His hand on my life there. I praise Him for this too, but if you asked me if I could say I had definitely experienced or seen miracles I’m not sure I could say that. I believe though God has been really good to me and that He guides all His children.

Further, I can’t say I have enjoyed supernatural experiences like predicting future events in detail, seeing angels, or hearing God’s voice. Nevertheless, since making my commitment to God, my desire to trust and obey Him (including turning away from selfishly following my own interests and glory), my passion to serve Him, and my passion to share the good news has always been strong. Some may even think this is miraculous, given my highly competitive and self-seeking nature described above. 

One scripture in the Bible about faith that really encourages me is Romans 10:17 which says, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” My faith is rooted in this very way. It’s the kind of Bible-based reasoning which I have included in this book that has built up and kept my faith through everything, and which gives me so much certainty that Jesus is the Son of God who is to be worshipped and adored.

Maybe you have found it hard to stay strong in the faith. Maybe when things go wrong in your life, or when things go wrong in the church, or during times when you don’t feel God is close, you start doubting and wanting miracles from God. My experience is that you can have a strong and blessed faith without seeing miracles or hearing God’s voice. In fact, signs and wonders may not help you as much as you might think.

Jesus said, “an evil and adulterous generation seek after a sign” (Matthew 12:39). The Bible also gives several warnings about how many people will be tricked by signs and wonders. Satan is described as one who comes with all power, signs, and lying wonders (2 Thessalonians 1:9). The Israelites even saw some of the greatest signs and wonders ever done by God, but when the signs stopped for a while, they fell back into great wickedness. The truth is, even if you saw miracles (which I believe still happen), this may not necessarily create or sustain a deep faith in you. However, understanding (thanks be the grace of God), and applying the wonderful word of God in my life, has helped my faith greatly, and I know it can help yours too, just as Romans 10:17 says.

May understanding the awesome word and love of God encourage you to have a life-long faith that remains strong to the end. Jesus is the Son of God, and our Lord and Saviour! I encourage you to believe in Him as your Saviour and to tell others of your faith.

For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. …“Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” … For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. Romans 10:10-13

As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith … abounding in it with thanksgiving.  Colossians 2:6-7.

Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And … He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.  Philippians 2:5-11