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That God Became Man |
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Reason
One... |
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A Virgin Conceived
If Mary was telling the truth, her baby had no human father. She claimed an
angel appeared to her, told her she would conceive a son by God's Spirit, and
that this child, whom she was to name Jesus, would be the Son of God (Luke
2:26-35). If Mary was lying, the night of Jesus' birth was not holy, and
the only thing that was silent was the truth. But how can we know? How can we
take seriously the kind of story that usually deserves laughs of disbelief?
The answer is in what followed. If there were no witnesses and no evidence,
we could ignore Mary's claims. If her son's life was the same as any other
life, her claim of a virgin birth would be the easiest of all stories to
dismiss.
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Reason
Two... |
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An Old Testament Prophet Predicted the God-Man
What we do know is that in the seventh century BC, the prophet Isaiah made
predictions about a Servant of the Lord who would rule the earth in the last
days. He described a day in which all of the earth would be at peace and all
the nations would go up to Jerusalem to worship God (Isaiah
2). Isaiah announced, "Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given;
and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace" (9:6).
Isaiah also gave a mysterious prophecy that was only partially fulfilled in
his lifetime. It began, "The Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the
virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel" (7:14).
Immanuel means "God with us."
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Reason
Three... |
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Angels Announced the Birth
In the shepherds' fields outside of Bethlehem, a group of witnesses formed a
bridge between Isaiah and Mary. According to New Testament records (Luke
2:8-14), terrified Jewish shepherds were visited by an angel who
announced the birth of Israel's long-awaited Messiah. The angel said, "Do not
be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to
all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior,
who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a
Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger" (vv.10-12).
As the shepherds told it, the sky was filled with angels praising God and
saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men in whom He
is well pleased" (v.14).
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Reason
Four... |
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A Sign Appeared in the Sky
According to the New Testament, a light in the sky gave additional
credibility to Mary. A group of Magi from the East followed a "starlike sign"
to the Jewish town of Bethlehem. What they found was a child they believed to
be the long-awaited Jewish Messiah. For hundreds of years Old Testament
prophets had been speaking of "a Star" and "a Scepter" that would come out of
Israel (Numbers 24:17).
The Old Testament also predicted a ruler of Israel who would come out of
Bethlehem, a ruler "whose goings forth are from old, from everlasting" (Micah
5:2).
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Reason
Five... |
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The Time Was Right
Many believe that the Magi who worshiped Jesus after His birth came from the
region of Babylon. If so, they could have had access to the prophecy of a
Jewish prophet named Daniel. While in exile in Babylon 400 years earlier,
Daniel had a vision that allows for the calculation of the arrival of the
Jewish Messiah. According to Daniel's vision, from the command to rebuild the
temple (458 BC or 444 BC), 69 "sevens" would be followed by the arrival and
death of Messiah (Daniel
7:13-14; 9:24-27). Some believe this prophecy predicted the exact number
of days until Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem.
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Reason
Six... |
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Jesus Claimed to be Equal With God
Some have suggested that Jesus never claimed for Himself what His followers
claimed for Him. Yet the commotion that surrounded His life can be best
explained by His repeated claim to be one with God. John, one of the Gospel
writers, quoted Jesus as saying, "Before Abraham was, I AM" (8:58).
(In Exodus 3:14, the
name I AM was used by God to identify Himself to Moses.) John also quoted
Jesus as saying, "I and My Father are One" (10:30)
and "If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now
on you know Him and have seen Him" (14:7).
According to the Gospels, Jesus said that to love or hate Him, or to receive
or reject Him, was to love or hate, receive or reject His Father in heaven.
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Reason
Seven... |
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His Friends Worshipped Him
Some have suggested that Jesus never claimed for Himself what His followers
claimed for Him. Yet the commotion that surrounded His life can be best
explained by His repeated claim to be one with God. John, one of the Gospel
writers, quoted Jesus as saying, "Before Abraham was, I AM" (8:58).
(In Exodus 3:14, the
name I AM was used by God to identify Himself to Moses.) John also quoted
Jesus as saying, "I and My Father are One" (10:30)
and "If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now
on you know Him and have seen Him" (14:7).
According to the Gospels, Jesus said that to love or hate Him, or to receive
or reject Him, was to love or hate, receive or reject His Father in heaven.
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Reason
Eight... |
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Jesus' Enemies Accused Him of Blasphemy
Jesus' friends may have wanted to believe He was more than a man,
but His enemies did not. The religious leaders of Israel were outraged to
think that the same man who accused them of being hypocritical, blind leaders
of the blind, would also claim to forgive sins, would speak of God as His
Father, and would even say that He was one with God. On more than one
occasion the leaders of Israel picked up stones to kill Jesus, saying, "For a
good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a
Man, make Yourself God" (John
10:33).
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Reason
Nine... |
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Jesus' Miracles Supported His Claim
Jesus' miracles recorded in the New Testament were more than wonders. They
were signs. He did them to encourage men and women to believe in Him for
everlasting life. He healed a crippled man to affirm His right to forgive
sins. He fed thousands of people with a little boy's lunch, setting the stage
for His claim to be the "bread of life." He walked on water, stilled angry
seas, healed the sick, restored paralyzed limbs, gave sight to the blind and
hearing to the deaf, and even raised from the dead an embalmed man by the
name of Lazarus. One reason Jesus performed miracles was to support His claim
to be God. The apostle John wrote, "Truly Jesus did many other signs in the
presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are
written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and
that believing you may have life in His name" (John
20:30-31).
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Reason
Ten... |
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His Departure Was Greater Than His Arrival
Many people down through history have claimed to be gods. Yet only one man
has been willing to die for the sins of others. Only one has risen from the
dead to prove that He is the Son of God. According to the New Testament,
after Jesus voluntarily gave His life on an executioner's cross, He appeared
to His closest disciples and more than 500 other followers for a period of 40
days (1 Corinthians
15:5-8). The eyewitnesses were so convinced of His resurrection that they
were willing to suffer and die for their claims. His disciples said that He
showed them His scarred hands and feet, walked and talked with them, and even
ate with them. Then while they met with Him on the Mount of Olives, He gave
them His last words and ascended into the clouds. With a departure more
spectacular than His arrival, Jesus left us with a better understanding of
the announcement of the angel who said, "There is born to you this day in the
city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord" (Luke
2:11).
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The
Truth! - Freedom |
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You're not alone if you are unconvinced that Christ is all He claimed to be.
But keep in mind that He promised God's help to those who have good reasons
for their questions. He said, "If anyone chooses to do God's will, he will
find out whether My teaching comes from God or whether I speak on My own" (John
7:17 NIV). Here Jesus reminds us that we see things not only as they are,
but as we are.
If you do see the reasonableness of faith in Christ, keep in mind that the
Bible says to the family of God, "For by grace you have been saved through
faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works
[religious efforts and accomplishments], lest anyone should boast"
Ephesians 2:8-9. The salvation Christ offers is not a reward for
religious effort but a gift to all who put their trust in Him.
Again, who is Jesus to you? To find out the
truth, click
more...
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The
Lie! - Bondage |
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By the way, if what you believed about Jesus, God, eternal life, the Bible or
whatever was not true, would you want to know?
Would you want to know the Truth, to examine the evidence and make an
informed decision about very weighty matters?
Or, would you be content with simply believing the Lie?
The choice, as
always, is yours.
more...
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