Why Believe in Jesus Christ

Many people who do not believe in Jesus Christ have this view because they really do not know much about His life. Jesus' life is told in detail in the Bible's New Testament; a collection of some 25,000 documents written by a group of people who lived around the time of Jesus Christ in the 1st century AD. These documents have been vetted and validated by many scholars over time, and very much support each other as to His life. As a mater of fact, these documents have been stated by some as being 99.5% accurate. Below, are some of the amazing facts about Jesus' life that many are not aware of.

The New Testament of the Bible concentrates on Jesus Christ's birth, life, death on the cross, resurrection from the dead on the 3rd day, His return after His resurrection on 12 separate occasions to groups of 1 to 500 people each time, and then His ascension into Heaven on the 40th day after His resurrection; as viewed by His disciples. What is so remarkable about Jesus' life is that so many of the great prophets of the Old Testament (Moses, David, Isaiah, Micah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Zechariah, Malachi and Others) foretold his life with amazing accuracy 450-1,400 years before Jesus was even born. Further, over 300 prophecies of the Old Testament regarding the future Messiah were fulfilled by Jesus' actual life. All of these prophecies are very specific, and the chance of any one of them being fulfilled is improbable. The chance of 300 of these prophecies being fulfilled is 'Zero.' The only reason why these prophecies were fulfilled is that these prophecies were inspired by God, so that His 'Word' in the Bible could be seen as true. It should be noted that the Old Testament documents referred to here have been meticulously reviewed in detail by many biblical authorities over the years and the words of the Bible still hold true.

According to the Bible, God sent his son Jesus to die on the cross as the perfect/blameless substitute payment for the past and future sins of all mankind, so that we could have eternal life with him in Heaven; if we should accept God's free gift, and believe and have faith in His Son. Jesus mentions several times in the Bible that not only is he the 'Son of God', but also the pathway to eternal life. In John 14:6 Jesus states that “I am the Way and the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” Jesus Christ was truly Fully God (Son of God) and Fully Man. In fact, Jesus was the greatest man that has ever appeared on earth, and his hundreds of miracles (40 recorded in the New Testament alone) attest to this fact. Not only did he raise three persons from the dead (John 11:1-44, Luke 7:11-15, Luke 8:41,42,49-55), but he healed the sick (Matthew 9:35), healed the paralytic people (Mark 1:12), healed the deaf (Mark 7:31-37), the mute (Matthew 12:22), and the blind (John 9:1-7), healed lepers (Luke 17:11-19), performed exorcisms (Mark 5:13), turned water into wine at the Cana wedding (John 2:1-11), fed thousands from just a few fish and loaves of bread (Matthew 14:13-21), walked on water (John 6:16-21), calmed the seas (Mark 4:35-41), etc. It would seem that these works were truly not the works of an ordinary man, but one given authority by His Father in heaven.

Many of the most famous and revered scientific thinkers over the last few hundred years came to the conclusion that God created the universe and all mankind. Noted Scientists such as Collins, Descartes, Newton, Bacon, Pascal, Copernicus, Pasteur, Kepler, Kelvin, Boyle, Mendel, Marconi, Planck, Faraday, Morse, Linnaeus, and many others all came to this conclusion; and all of the above scientists also became Christians and believers in Jesus Christ. Today, many still think that current day scientists definitely do not believe in a God or in Christianity, but Wikipedia.org (the online encyclopedia) tells a different story. In an article List of Christians in science and technology it states that "a review of Nobel prizes awarded between the years of 1901 and 2000 reveals that (65.4%) of Nobel Prizes Laureates have identified Christianity in its various forms as their religious preference. Overall, Christians have won a total of 72.5% of all the Nobel Prizes in Chemistry, 65.3% in Physics, 62% in Medicine, 54% in Economics." This article lists many of the most prestigious scientists by century, as well as what they were noted for in their lives. Surely, this profile of very acclaimed scientists is quite different than what most people believe today.

There are many reasons why I personally believe in Jesus Christ, and further believe in the Bible itself. First, Jesus' life was one that fulfilled over 300 prophecies mentioned in the Old Testament regarding the coming of a future Messiah; all made by prophets many hundreds of years before His birth. Second, Jesus' life was one filled with amazing miracles and deeds. His 40 recorded miracles, His resurrection from the dead on the 3rd day after His crucifixion, His 12 post-resurrection appearances to many, and His ascension into heaven on the 40th day after His resurrection (in view of his disciples) are all clearly supernatural acts. They are acts that support who Jesus had always claimed to be - the Son of God. Third, one of the things that I personally believe validates Jesus' resurrection and His reported life, is the fact that His apostles and disciples after his death were afraid and in hiding, wondering what to do next; as the one that they loved and believed to be the Messiah had just died on the cross. But Jesus appears to them several times after His resurrection, and commissions them to take His 'Word' and make it known to all of the nations of the world. He advises them to wait for His Holy Spirit to arrive and give them the power to go forth on their journey. His apostles and disciples remember what Jesus had said when he had been with them – that He was the Son of God, and that He would rise from the dead on the 3rd day. Then, certain that Jesus was who He had always claimed to be, they go out to preach His Name and 'Word' in an earnest and fervent manner; knowing that many of them would be (and were) killed for their beliefs and actions. Their mission though was successful, and today some 2.4 billion of a total 7.6 billion total people in the world today call themselves Christians, and consider Jesus their Savior and Redeemer. Fourth, while on earth Jesus speaks continually about His Heavenly Father, and the fact that He is His Son. He states over and over that he came to earth to do the will of his Father above. He knew that his mission on earth was to die on the cross for the past and future sins of all mankind, so that all mankind could have eternal life if they should believe and have faith in Him and and His resurrection; and desire to change their life for the better.

Lastly, the life of Jesus Christ, as outlined in the New Testament of the Bible, is the 'Greatest Story Ever Told', and if you have never read the Bible, and particularly the New Testament, I would encourage you to do so. It could change your life, as it did mine. I owe the reading of the Bible to a new life that has purpose, and a total belief that an eternal life in heaven is mine. If you decide to read the Bible, I would start with the New Testament and the Gospel of Matthew, and then continue on from there. Also, if you should require some further assistance to learn more about the Christian faith, please talk to a Christian Pastor in your local area, or a knowledgeable Christian friend. Both would love to talk to you and provide any guidance/help that you may need.

As a last note, if you feel you would like supporting information on either of the following two areas mentioned herein: 1) Jesus Christ's 12 Post Resurrection Appearances, or 2) Old Testament Prophecies of the Messiah Fulfilled by Jesus, please click on the 'GO TO HOMEPAGE' button below. On the Homepage you will find two articles (#11 and #12) addressing both of these issues.

GO TO HOMEPAGE

References:

1. Bible (New King James Version). Old and New Testament.

2. Dr. Hugh Ross, “Fulfilled Prophecy: Evidence For The Reliability of The Bible,” Reasons To Believe.

3. “Biblical Prophecies Fulfilled by Jesus,” CBN.com.

4. "How Many Times Did Jesus Appear After His Resurrection,” Biblocality.com

5. "List of Christians in science and technology," Wikipedia.com