I briefly looked at this, and didn’t think much, but then I clicked, “Read More…” and out came pouring this huge wall of text. I was impacted by reading it, and I hope it might help someone reading as well.
Happy Valentine’s Day!!
Valentine’s Day is a day that we celebrate love. Out of love for each of you I want to share with you something that is of utmost importance. We don’t know our future – when we may take our last breath, so please don’t put this off. I’m writing to you today because I care about you. I want to share truth with you at the risk of offending you, although I really hope that I don’t. Not only is sharing this the loving thing to do, but it is the responsible thing to do. Just as I could not stand by and let anyone continue toward a door behind which stood a rabid dog or continue floating on a river that led over a huge water fall without at least warning the person of the danger they face if they continue, I cannot fail to share with you the following truth. Please read to the end.
God created the universe and everything in it. The more scientists learn about the vastness, complexity and organization of the universe, living things, etc. the more it becomes apparent that believing it all just evolved is untrue. It would be easier for me to believe that I could take all the pieces of a watch, put them in a jar, shake them, and expect them to assemble themselves and start working than to believe that this complex world evolved by chance. Even single-celled bacteria have an amazingly engineered means of locomotion. Since all creation is intelligently put together there must have been an intelligent designer. The fact that there are moral absolutes, i.e. that it is wrong to torture a baby, also points to God.
But why should you believe in Jesus rather than Buddha, Mohammed, or any other religious leader? Others didn’t claim to be God. Jesus presented Himself as the only path to a relationship with God and the only source of forgiveness. God actually took on flesh as Jesus of Nazareth. He is referred to as God over and over in scripture (Titus 2:13; John 1:1, 14; Hebrews 1:8; Romans 9:5 etc.) and is attributed with the characteristics of God including being able to forgive someone of their sins. He received honor and worship as God which offended the Jewish leaders of His day to the point that they wanted Him killed for His claim. History confirms His existence yet many see Him only as a great moral teacher. But how can he be only a moral teacher and also claim to be God? He must be Lord God, a liar, or insane. If he was a liar, it was in contradiction to his teachings on honesty and He would have been a fool to be crucified for His claims. Isn’t it interesting that everywhere Jesus is proclaimed lives are changed for the better? If He was mad, how could he have maintained balance of His mind when going through all His persecutions? He calmly and correctly prophesied His own death, resurrection, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the founding of His Church, and the destruction of Jerusalem. The skill and depth of His teachings also support a sound mind.
Now you may be questioning all this because it is based on the information in one book or compilation of books – the Bible. The New Testament, which chronicled the life of Jesus, was written during the first century, some of it within 20 years of Jesus’ death and resurrection, while other eyewitnesses were still living. The events of His life were written by eyewitnesses – those who saw Him even after He rose from the dead. Even in the courts today eyewitness testimony is seen as the some of the best evidence in a case. If the reports about His life were not true, they certainly would have been challenged, especially in light of the fact that he was despised by many. Any false evidence would have been quickly refuted publicly. Instead, the first century Jewish historian, Josephus, and Roman historian, Tacitus, along with other early writings, back up Christ’s miracles, death and resurrection.
We have fragments of the New Testament dating back to the early second century. The many thousands of ancient manuscripts of the New Testament and copies of the Old Testament show very little that is different from one to the other – all differences are insignificant being mostly in spelling and word order. Word order does not change the meaning in the Greek language. The two disputed passages do not provide any discrepancy of doctrinal significance. The New Testament is considered to be 99.5% pure with all major doctrines intact. This accuracy is unrivaled by any ancient text. The Canon of the Bible is not an authoritative list of books, but a list of authoritative books accepted by early Christians from many countries based on several important criteria. Archeology and science continue to uncover more and more evidence to support the Bible, something that evolutionists and Mormons cannot claim. Not only that, but if people had chosen to fabricate the story of Jesus’ life, then there would have been no reason to make up all the embarrassing things that the disciples did or include any controversial and politically incorrect statements by Jesus. The writers depicted themselves dimwitted learners, abandoning and denying Jesus in His time of greatest need. If you were part of a group of men trying to pass off a false story, would you depict yourself that way? His eyewitnesses were so sure of the truth that they were willing to preach boldly and be tortured and killed for their faith.
The resurrection also cannot be explained away. It was verified that Jesus really did die with both blood and water coming out when the Roman soldier pierced His side. In front of the opening of the tomb was placed a 2-ton rock. The tomb had been sealed and guarded. The grave clothes were left behind as if His body had passed right through them. Jesus was seen alive by over 500 people after His death! His appearance was not that of a ghost since he ate with people and invited them to touch Him. The evidence all supports that the resurrection is true.
There are over 300 predictive references to the coming of Christ in the Old Testament; all written at least 400 years before Christ was born. It has been calculated that the chances of fulfilling only 8 of those prophesies would be 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000! These fulfilled prophecies indicate that the Bible was inspired by God and Jesus was the prophesied Messiah. The scripture was written that you might believe and have life in His name. (John 20:31)
You may ask, “But how could a good, all-powerful God allow suffering in this world? He gave mankind freewill so that they could choose to love Him. Yet mankind chose evil which diminished the good in the world. Suffering is a result of the sin of mankind. Even so, suffering is compatible with God’s love. He allows us to struggle to help us to mature and to depend on Him and His strength. He provides opportunities and joy to us that we would not have experienced if it hadn’t been for the suffering. God is a God of intent. Everything He puts His hand to has meaning. He uses evil and suffering for His greater good.
Because all mankind sinned, we are all condemned to death and separation from the holy perfect God in hell. (Romans 3:23) But, God loved us so much that he took on flesh and came to earth to pay our punishment for us as His holiness and justice required. (John 1; Philippians 2) Sinless Jesus died for your sins and mine. (Romans 6:23; 5:8) God requires that we accept this free gift by admitting that we have done wrong, believing that Jesus Christ died for us, and sincerely pledging to obey Him. (Romans 10:9, 10) In doing this you become adopted into His family (John 1:12) and you inherit eternal life in heaven. (John 3:16; 14:2, 3) Of course there are many more verses that speak about this – these are just a few.
Will you accept Him by faith, to be your Lord and Savior? Don’t think that living in obedience to God is bondage. It is actually freedom. I actually desire to obey out of love for the One who loves me. I experience freedom, just as children do on a city playground that is fully fenced in vs. one that is without fences. As a Christian I do not live in fear that if I stumble in sin, I will lose God’s approval. I am fully forgiven – past, present, and future. Yet, I know that in following His ways I will lead a fulfilling life. Not following His ways leads to negative consequences. Religions require some level of perfection with good deeds and/or participating in certain sacraments and rituals. Following Him is not a religion; it is a relationship with the one who loves you enough to give His life for you. Jesus said that He is the way, the truth, and the life and that no one can come to God the Father except through Him. (John 14:6) Thank Him for dying for you taking all the punishment on Himself; confess things in your life that don’t please Him and request His forgiveness, trust Him and let Him take control of your life. You’ll find joy, peace, wholeness and fulfillment, an increased ability to deal with the difficulties of life, the ability to love unconditionally, and eternal life with your new best friend.
If you are still skeptical, please don’t let this important decision slide. Do your own investigation of the evidence. Check out the Bible, The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel, and The New Evidence that Demands a Verdict or More Than a Carpenter by Josh McDowell. Some of my information came from these great resources. Look at the historical evidence, science, philosophy, and psychology. Ignorance is no excuse. Search for truth. I pray that you will find it. Feel free to pray to God to reveal the truth to you. I would love talk to anyone reading this about anything I said in greater detail. I have written this letter because I love and care for you. Happy Valentine’s Day!
With much love,
Ellen
