Our Universe has not always existed. Scientists agree that it had a beginning, and they call it the Big Bang theory.

The book of Genesis states that God created the heavens and the earth; and it may very well have been a Big Bang!

Here is a short list of scientists who believed in the existence of God:  Galileo Galilei; Blaise Pascal; Isaac Newton; Louis Pasteur; Robert Boyle; Albert Einstein; Ernest Haeckel; Thomas Huxley; and Charles Darwin.

 

Most modern-era scientists who believe in God are generally not forthcoming about their belief, for fear of being disenfranchised by their peers.  One exception is Dr. Francis Collins, Director of the Human Genome Project.¹

On December 26, 1941, just three weeks after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Sir Winston Churchill came to the United States to address a special Joint Session of Congress in the Senate Chamber.  He spoke of how Great Britain and the United States would be victorious allies in the war with Germany, Japan and Italy.  He concluded his speech with this statement:

 

“… I will say that he must indeed have a blind soul who cannot see that some great purpose and design is being worked out here below, of which we have the honor to be the faithful servants.” ²

 

The great purpose that Churchill was referring to is God’s Plan for mankind, and we are the faithful servants if we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.   Some of you may be thinking, “It’s hard to believe that Sir Winston Churchill was a Christian!  He drank whiskey; and he smoked cigars; and he cussed.”  God does not ask us to be perfect;  He asks us to accept Jesus as His Son, and to accept the blood of Jesus Christ as payment-in-full for our sins, so that we may have life eternal.

There are hundreds of religions in addition to Christianity, such as:  Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Judaism and Baha'i, to name just a few of the larger ones.  Billions of people are followers of these religions.  Is there any way that we can know that Jesus Christ is the son of God?  Yes there is, by answering this question:

 

The Question:  “Where are the founders of all of the world’s religions”, including, but  not limited to Jesus Christ, Muhammad, Siddhartha Gautama, Shri Guru Nanak Dev, Abraham, and Baha’u’llah?

 

The Answer:   They are all still in their graves, except for one: Jesus Christ

 

More than 500-eyewitnesses³ saw Jesus Christ during the 40-days following His resurrection from the grave.  After 40-days, there were at least twelve eyewitnesses as Jesus ascended into the Heavens⁴ from the Mount of Olives, close to the village of Bethany, about 2-miles east of Jerusalem. The resurrection unconditionally established Jesus Christ as the true Son of God.

Photo courtesy of NASA and the Hubble Space Telescope

The Crab Nebula is a constantly expanding, supernova remnant, and pulsar wind nebula in the constellation of Taurus.

Sir Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

for two terms: 1940-1945; 1951-1955

The concept of offering the blood of an unblemished lamb, (or other animals as well), for the atonement of sins was taught to the ancient Israelites in the Book of Leviticus.  “For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.” - Lev 17:11

 

When blood is shed, a life is shed, and in this liturgical act of worship, the Israelites acknowledged that were it not for the grace of God, it would be the worshipper who would die, rather than the animal.

 

Jesus did not come to heal the sick; He came as the Lamb of God to shed His blood as the ultimate atonement for our sins!

“For this cause I have come...” ~ John 18:37

His blood was first shed at the whipping pillar.  Torture went hand-in-hand with the decadence of the late Roman Empire.  The Roman legionnaire used a short whip, (flagrum; cat o’ nine tails), consisting of several heavy leather thongs, (perhaps nine), with lead balls and other objects embedded in the ends of the thongs.  Roman law called for 40-lashes, less one.  The flagrum tore through muscle and tissue until His back was an unrecognizable mass of shredded, bleeding flesh.

 

The purpose of scourging was to torture and to render the prisoner close to death — but not to kill him — because the Romans did not want miss the spectacle of the crucifixion which was to follow.

With a crown of thorns placed on His head, He was led off to Golgotha, where he was nailed to one of three wooden crosses, along with two convicted robbers, one on each side of Him.  This is where He shed His  blood and His life for us.  Throughout the bible, blood is the vehicle for redemption. If you cannot understand blood, you cannot understand Jesus! ⁷

 

After approximately seven hours of hanging on the cross, Jesus said “it is finished”, and at the moment Jesus died, the veil of the temple, (the curtain between the Holy of Holies and the congregation), was torn in two from top to bottom, representing that from then on there would be no separation between God and his people.  There would be no more need for blood sacrifices, since the ultimate sacrifice had been made.

So where are you, right now?  Is your life turned upside-down?  Do you feel hopeless; with no direction; no focus; no answers; no way out?

 

Jesus is the answer.  Really!  Sounds too simple, doesn’t it?  It isn’t!

 

There is a purpose being worked out down here below, as Sir Winston Churchill noted!  We have a hard time accepting that concept, because we think it’s all about us.  It isn’t. It’s all about Jesus Christ.  Once we make that connection, He will turn our lives around!

 

So, what do you do next?  The Bible says if we confess our sins⁵, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  You need to talk to God and pray for guidance, and then contact a local Christian pastor in your area.  This is neither a difficult nor an involved process.  Pray about it and God will provide for your needs.⁶

Footnotes

 

1. Dr. Francis Collins     http://articles.cnn.com/2007-04-03/us/collins.commentary

2. Churchill quote           http://www.winstonchurchill.org

3. 500 Eyewitnesses      1st Corinthians 15:6

4. Ascension of Jesus    Luke 24:50-51

5. Confess our sins        1st John 1:9

6. Ask God for help        Matthew 7:11

7. Regarding Blood…

 

Why is the shedding of Jesus’ blood the key to our salvation?  Jesus has existed forever as a spirit being; and Spirit Beings are not flesh and blood.  When God sent Jesus to this Earth to be born of the Virgin Mary, He had to be born of flesh and blood, “for the life of the flesh  is in the blood” , (go back to the picture of the lamb and re-read the text).  In the Old Testament, the blood of lambs and other sacrificial animals was spilled on the alter as atonement for the sins of the people.  In the New Testament, the blood of Jesus Christ was spilled on the Cross as the ultimate atonement for our sins.

 

All we have to do is accept the blood that Jesus shed on the Cross as payment for our sins.

 

His blood is the key to our salvation!

 

 

 

It’s all about Jesus!

 

Ross A. Swanson ~ Oceanside, CA

Is Jesus the Son of God?