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Knowing Without Seeing
Jesus was executed as a criminal, suffering crucifixion, the ultimate
humiliation, both in the eyes of Jews and Romans. For the Jews, Deuteronomy
21:23 stated that anyone who is hung on a tree is under God’s curse. For the
Romans, crucifixion was the death of slaves and rebels.
Consequently, Jesus barely warrants mention in the secular history of his
day. Around 116 A.D., for example, Roman historian
Cornelius Tacitus mentioned Jesus in book 15 of his Annals, in a comment
about the origin of Christians. He wrote,
“…Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme
penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our
procurators, Pontius Pilatus…”
There are only about a half dozen such passing historical references to
Jesus. He was hardly even a blip on the radar screen of secular historians.
But belief in Jesus is not rooted in historical documents. It is rooted
in an inner experience of the risen Christ.
Believers today have never seen Jesus, but their hearts have become alive
with love for Him. Christ said in John 20:29, “Blessed are those who have
not seen and yet believe.”
That statement applies to every Christian believer since the first
century. They are blessed not because of logic, a priori arguments,
or incontrovertible proofs, but because of the spark of eternity that God
ignites in their hearts.
The apostle Paul put it this way in Ephesians 2:4-10:
“Because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us
alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by
grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated
us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the
coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace,
expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you
have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the
gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's
workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God
prepared in advance for us to do.”
We believe in the resurrection and ascension of Christ not because we
were there to witness it, nor because somebody convinced us of it, but
because we ourselves have come to know the risen Christ through our own
inner experience. We have come to believe not because we saw God, but
because we have experienced his real presence in our hearts and minds.
I’m Joseph Tkach speaking of LIFE.
Jesus asked his disciples, "Who do you say that
I am?" We have a free booklet, The God Revealed in Jesus Christ,
to help you answer that question. In the United States, to request your
free copy, see http://www.gci.org/god/revealed Or call
us toll-free at 1-800-423-4444.
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