Let me tell you about my Jesus, the One who put the Christ in Christmas. People celebrate this holiday in many different ways, each with their own twist on what it means. But for me, the celebration is all about my Jesus.
Whether the date coincides with the ancient Roman Saturnalia or something else, once the holiday began to be commonly called Christmas, it was all about Jesus Christ, my personal Savior and Lord. Everything else fades into oblivion.
Let Me Tell You About My Jesus’ Birth and Amazing Life
When Jesus was born in Bethlehem, sometime between 6 and 4 B.C., approximately 300 prophesies were fulfilled.
Professor Peter Stoner calculated the possibility that one man in the first century could fulfill only eight messianic prophecies: “We find that the chance that any man might have lived down to the present time and fulfilled all eight prophecies is 1 in 1017 (1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000).”
Say, for example, you covered the state of Texas in silver dollars to a depth of two feet, then painted one silver dollar red, tossed it into Texas, and mixed them all up. Now, send a blindfolded man out there to find the red silver dollar. That is the likelihood of one man fulfilling 300+ prophecies. Fulfilling 48 prophecies bumps the odds up to 10 to the 157th power!
The commitment to follow Jesus, to believe in the Bible, and to obey its teachings is not a blind leap of faith or a choice to believe in superstitions or fantasies. It is an intelligent move based on demonstrable facts and both historical and archaeological evidence.
Let Me Tell You Why I Trust the Bible
2 Timothy 3:16-17 says: “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”
God-breathed means inspired. The very words of God flowed through the pens of its writers, not human words. Scribes who copied manuscripts throughout the centuries were meticulous. When comparing modern translations to the oldest manuscripts, they are virtually the same. The Bible is the most reliable book in the world.
More recent manuscripts of the Bible exist than any other book in the history of the world. The earliest dates of Plato’s manuscripts date 1200-1400 years after he wrote it. The earliest dates of New Testament manuscripts date 60-70 years after they were written.
The Bible is unique, composed of 66 books written by 40 authors over 1500-2000 years, on three continents, in three different languages. Yet, there is complete unity throughout. It never contradicts itself but tells one amazing story from beginning to end.
Hebrews 4:12 states: “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” This tells me that the Bible has some important things to say about life and its meaning and purpose.
Let Me Tell You About a World Without Jesus
Let’s look at five common questions about life and its meaning. Where did I come from? Why am I here? What is wrong with this world? What can fix our messed up world? Where am I going?
The world tells us that there is no God. We are cosmic accidents without significance, value, or purpose. We are only here to consume, enjoy, and die. Without an all-holy and righteous God, there is no one to set standards of right and wrong, good and evil. Therefore, there is nothing wrong with the world. Everyone is free to set their own standards and decide their own truth and code of conduct. No one has the right to judge.
If the world is a mess, the common solution is that we can decide to improve our behavior and live better lives. It’s all up to us. There is nothing after death. Today is all we have. Life has no purpose, and everything we have ever done was for naught. Our ultimate destination is the grave.
I don’t know about you, but that leaves me with an empty, sad feeling. There should be something more.
Let Me Tell You About the Alternative
There is an alternative. Because I believe the evidence that the Bible is true and that that baby born in Bethlehem is the greatest gift the world will ever know. The Bible answers all of these questions through Jesus Christ. While I have been a Christian for over 50 years, understanding how Jesus answers these questions continues to impact my life and increase my confidence in my faith. It has taught me how to explain the hope I have in Jesus Christ.
God created us with incredible significance, value, and purpose. God created us in His image. Genesis 1:26-27 says, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” Man is the crowning glory of God’s creation.
Because God created me for a purpose, I exist to bring Him glory. I rise each morning to reflect and honor my Creator, Jesus Christ. Colossians 1:16 says: “For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.” My deepest desire to love and be loved, to make a difference in the world, points to this as truth.
Jesus Explains the Reason for the Mess
Rather than the condition of the world being hopeless, when we all see that it is a mess, the Bible tells us exactly what is wrong. The Bible says that WE are the problem. Genesis 3 explains that the first two human beings created brought sin into the world, and it continues down through the generations. Romans 3:23 says, “For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God …”
God cannot have a relationship with anyone who sins. He must punish sin, or He ceases to be a righteous judge. This means we cannot work or earn our way to heaven. This is where the Good News of Jesus comes in …
As for the idea that we can decide to live and act better to fix what’s wrong with the world, God already gave us a test called the Ten Commandments. That pretty much proved we can’t keep even the most basic commands. Even if people stopped committing evil acts, God would still have to punish those already committed because the Bible says He cannot let anything imperfect into heaven. (Matthew 5:43-48)
Let Me Tell You About the Solution Jesus Offers
The alternative is for us to obey the Bible and put our faith in Jesus Christ. At Christmas, we celebrate that God Himself came to earth in human form and paid the penalty for all our sins on the cross. He is the perfect God-man who alone can change us now and save us for eternity.
Colossians 1:19-22 tells us: “For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him.”
In God’s mercy, He did not give us hell and death, as we deserve, but instead, He gave us Jesus, who paid for and forgave all our sins, past, present, and future. John 14:6 says, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” But this is only for those who accept the free gift offered by Jesus.
How Christmas Changed the World
All of us will live eternally somewhere. Whether our eternity is in heaven or hell is up to us, depending on whether or not we choose to put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ.
John 3:16-18 explains the Gift of Christmas like this: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”
Christmas is all about Jesus, the perfect God-man, coming from heaven to earth to live as a man and die for our sins. Jesus bore the penalty for every sin that every man before or after would ever commit. He came to show us the way to a better life, a better world, and an eternity that is certain.
Let Me Tell You How to Receive the Gift
However, for a gift to truly become yours, you have to accept it. I invite you to put your faith and trust in Jesus alone, the only One who can save you from your sin and make you perfect in God’s eyes.
You trust Him for two things. First, that your sin went to Jesus’ account and His goodness went to yours. (2 Corinthians 5:21) Second, you trust that Jesus’ own life inside you can transform you here and now. (Galatians 2:20)
The moment we trust what Jesus did for us on the cross He begins to live inside us. This is what changes lives. This is how we become what God created us to be, people who honor and reflect Him.
The Glory of the Only Son
John 1 says, in part: “In the beginning was the Word [Jesus], and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it … The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
14 “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
May you see His glory this Christmas and for the rest of your life.
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Thanks to Pastor Dave DeChape of New Covenant Church of Albuquerque for “Life’s Ultimate Questions” and his passionate preaching about the reasons we can trust in Jesus Christ.
Strong testimony and apologetics, Norma. Thank you!
People don’t want to admit that we are the problem – our selfish ways drive every problem in the world. We could solve world hunger, peace, divisiveness and wars, and even a good number of health problems – we just don’t want to.
I’m curious about the 3 continents – Europe and Asia for sure. I can only guess that Africa is the third.
Yes, Europe, Asia, and Africa. God bless you!
Well said. Thank you.
You’re welcome! Merry Christmas!
Such a clear explanation of our faith.