The young minister was painfully uncomfortable standing in front of a largely secular group of college students. He dabbed the sweat from his pallid face and intoned "Are you at peace with God? Are you sure that you will enter heaven to be with God in the afterlife? Or will you go to the place of separation from God in the afterlife? This blatantly religious appeal seemed odd and out of place. The audience began to show its disdain.
Then the other speaker, also a minister, stepped forward. He was smartly dressed, flamboyant and gregarious. He was athletically built and his firm, steady voice brought the audience to a hush. He said " If I could prove to you that the Bible is a supernatural book, confirmed by both foretelling of the future and also by miracles, would you believe what the Bible says?"
"What miracles!!??" someone heckled from the back row.
The speaker continued "The 53rd chapter of Isaiah, written over 700 years before the birth of Christ, describes the most important aspect of the ministry of Jesus Christ!! This is a clear Bible prophecy foretelling that God would cause the punishment for our sins to fall upon Jesus. [The word "Christ" in Hebrew is "Messiah."] Christ bore our sins so that if we just turn to God through Christ and humble ourselves and repent we receive God's forgiveness for all of our sins!!!"
The audience was rowdy now. Some of the students had come just to harass the speakers. Conservative Christian speakers were a rarity on their campus and they wanted to make it rarer. Someone shouted "Show me a Bible miracle that's recorded in SECULAR history!!"
The first of the two speakers stepped forward again. His boyish face was flush and confident now. "Have you ever heard of Phlegon of Karia? He was a Greek historian who lived in Asia Minor during the first century. He wrote extensively about natural phenomena-- earthquakes and such. In his book Chronicle of the Olympiad he records a miracle mentioned in the New Testament. The New Testament in Matthew 27:45 records that while Jesus was on the cross there was darkness over all the land for three hours. A few verses later in Matthew 27:51 it is recorded that there was an earthquake at the exact moment that Jesus died.
"Phlegon of Karia recorded both of these events in Chronicle of the Olympiad. He wrote that during the fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad there was a period of unexplained darkness and there was an earthquake that collapsed buildings in Nicea in northern Asia Minor. The fourth year of the 202nd Olympiad was in 33 A.D.!!! The darkness and earthquake were evident not just in Jerusalem but also in Nicea which is over 300 miles away from Jerusalem! It was recorded by a Pagan author who had no desire to promote Christianity yet he confirmed the Bible record! I will also point out that the Roman historian Thallius also recorded these events.
The audience was quieter now and gave the speakers the respectful hearing that they deserved.
The dramatic story recorded above is fictional but the facts presented, namely -- Bible prophecy, Phlegon and Thallius' writings, etc., are very true. You can be sure that faith in God is not blind faith. The Bible is a book that is a record of facts and not myths. The Bible is indeed confirmed by science, archaeology and history. The Bible is God's book of love and redemption.
The Bible is scientifically accurate! Find the evidence at www.icr.org.
Steps to salvation:
Jesus said "Ye must be born again." (John 3:7)
- Believe that God created you and loves you and sent the Messiah (Messiah is Hebrew for Christ) to redeem you.
- Believe that Jesus the Messiah came in fulfillment of over 300 Bible prophecies to die for you to take upon Himself the penalty for your sins. (Isaiah 53:5-6, John 6:29, Romans 4:5, First Peter 3:18)
- Turn from sin and call on the name of Jesus to receive forgiveness. (Romans 10:13)
- Receive Jesus as Savior and experience the new birth. (John 1:12, Acts 2:38)
- Follow Him as Lord. (John 14:21)
"Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Romans 10:13)
To receive the salvation that Jesus purchased for us at the terrible cost of His suffering and death on our behalf I invite you to pray this simple prayer:
"Dear heavenly Father, I thank you for sending Jesus, the promised Messiah, to die for my sins. I admit that I am a sinner and I ask for your forgiveness on the basis of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I ask you to fill me with your Holy Spirit to empower me to serve you under the Lordship of Jesus Christ, Amen."
If you prayed that prayer in the humble sincerity of your heart then you have received everlasting life, which includes power to live right in this life and entrance into heaven in the afterlife!
Bill Nugent, Overcomer Ministries of West Harrison, New York, USA
(C) 2010 William P. Nugent, permission granted to email or republish if credit given
Read Bill Nugent's award winning Christian book, Lawful or Legalistic: How New Testament Believers Must Understand Old Testament Laws. For more information and to order click here.
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DEFENDING THE FAITH
APOLOGETIC ARTICLES
Bill Nugent currently writes a series of articles called "Defending the Faith" which, as the title suggests, defend the Christian faith from the many attacks leveled against it in our postmodern world.
The articles deal with such topics as evolution, UFOs, cults, modern/postmodern philosophy, liberal theology and popular culture. At the end of each article is an invitation to receive Christ as Savior and Lord. These articles are sent out over the Internet to several opt-in email lists. People who receive these articles are encouraged to resend them to their own lists and in this way reach their own unsaved relatives and friends with the Gospel.
All Defending the Faith articles are © 2009 William P. Nugent, permission is granted to email or republish if credit given.
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