Josh McDowell's Blog, page 10
March 1, 2022
Get Quiet to Hear God
We all have painful memories and scars, the result of society’s deterioration of civility, harmony, and even friendliness. As the writer Henry David Thoreau noted more than 150 years ago, “Our once boundless optimism was slowly replaced with ‘lives of quiet desperation.’” Many, today, feel that despair has only amplified.
So how might you and I effectively share the Good News with a world so filled with discord? Some people think that God has gone quiet. Perhaps He has. If so, what might change if you and I started a quiet, personal revolution within ourselves, our churches, and our communities? Could it be that He hasn’t gone quiet, but that we’re not getting quiet enough to hear Him?
Deafening Noise, Desperate SoulsPeter Catapano, a senior staff writer with The New York Times, wrote about his daughter’s emotional baggage of going off to college with “a vivid awareness of mass shootings, natural disasters, the climate crisis, poverty, racial and political hatred and violence, and at last, the unimaginable — a silent, invisible pandemic that has so far killed nearly six million people — had all become undeniably woven into the fabric of life.”
Catapano admitted that he could not bring himself to look his daughter in the eye and tell her everything was going to be okay. It wasn’t, not really, and she knew it. “People are frustrated and angry,” he wrote. “And those feelings are fueling increases in violent crime, customer abuse of workers, student misbehavior in school and vehicle crashes.”
Another writer lamented over the angst of our culture, noting, “All that’s left is to yell at one another.” But I’d bet my last dollar that our powerful and majestic God doesn’t share that opinion. He has a better way: building hope and love and peace, through you and me. It’s time that we, as committed followers of Jesus Christ, quietly reach out to our friends, neighbors, coworkers, and communities in love. But first, we need to get quiet. How?
Get Quiet to Hear GodI can suggest these six ways to get quiet to hear Him.
Quiet Confessing – Our first step is to agree with God that we have added to the noise by sinning with our words, thoughts, and actions. Let us quietly confess, with personal humility. Who do you need to forgive? Who do you need to ask to forgive you?
Quiet Repenting – Once we admit our sin, we must change how we live. God empowers us to alter the direction, speed, and motivation of our life as we purposefully change our words, thoughts, and actions. As we repent and take action, God can use us to quietly impact others for Him.
Quiet Praying – Let us frequently retreat to a quiet place without people, phones, and other distractions. We need this break from the noise that continually bombards us. Personally, I find quiet in my prayer closet. I meet with God early to pray, even before my dog gets up. And I meditate on His word. I will admit to you that I have a well-developed ego and pride, so my kneeling is a physical act that helps me to get humble before God. Only after this quiet time do I turn on, log in, and catch up with the world.
Quiet Listening – When people talk, our immediate response should be to actively listen. Not to debate or argue, but to open our minds to seeing life from another’s point of view. God is looking for gracious, patient listeners to be His ears, hands, and feet. We can’t listen if we’re too busy trying to be heard. Shhhhhhh!
Quiet Waiting – We must get still to invite God to speak. This is hard for many of us, as we have so much to do. But we’ll find that when we do wait on God, He often will direct us to where we need to go, and what we need to do. As a technology geek, it’s hard to admit that I recently lost five chapters of a book I’m writing. When the text “disappeared” from my computer, without backup, my natural response was to blow a gasket and look for someone else to blame. God provided me with very godly advice through my wife, which involved waiting and rewriting the chapters.
Quiet Serving – Let us look for ways to meet the practical needs of others without fanfare or “likes” on social media. We needn’t go on a mission trip to serve. The needs are great in our own neighborhoods. I recently volunteered with a local food bank, helping to develop an advertising video to help raise needed funds via email and social media. And don’t forget the power of numbers. We amplify our ability to quietly serve when we invite others to join us. Who might you ask to quietly, humbly, generously serve with you this week?
Quiet Examples in ScriptureThe Bible tells us many stories of people who got quiet to hear God speak.
During a time of severe drought, for example, as he sat hungry beside a dried-up brook, the prophet Elijah got quiet before God. God directed Elijah to “go at once” to a town called Zarephath, where a widow would supply Elijah with food. Upon asking the woman for water and bread, Elijah learned that she and her son were in desperate need themselves. Possessing only a handful of flour and a tiny bit of olive, the widow was about to make their last meal “that we may eat it — and die.”
God was about to do some compounding. Elijah responded, “Don’t be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the land.’” In getting quiet before God, Elijah was empowered to meet the nourishment needs of the widow, her son, and himself until the end of the drought. And let us not forget that God answered Elijah’s prayer to breathe life into the widow’s son when the boy got sick and died a short time later. Many believed in God when this happened!
In the book of Luke, we read that “Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit” after being tested by Satan in the wilderness for 40 days. How did Jesus defeat Satan, despite his terrific hunger and thirst? He got quiet to remember who He was — and His mission.
The Bible also gives us the example of Tabitha, a Christ-follower who was part of the inner circle of the early church. Here was a woman who did more than just think or talk about doing good. She took action by serving the poor in her town of Lydda. When Tabitha died, her friends called for the disciple Peter, who was visiting a neighboring town. When Peter arrived, the weeping widows for whom Tabitha had made garments were eager to show Peter the beautiful clothing. Peter got quiet before God to pray that Tabitha be restored to life. She was, which gifted her even more time to continue her generous, quiet serving. Peter inspires us to remember the power of getting quiet before our powerful God. Tabitha inspires us to see the quiet impact we can have on others as we serve.
I’m tempted to suggest that you pick the “quiet” step above that you find the easiest, and start there. But I believe that God requires us to start with the basics: confessing and repenting. It is only in our getting humble before Him that we are able to reset our hearts and motivations. It’s the daily example Jesus demonstrated for us to follow.
NEXT STEPS> Interested in knowing God personally? Get started with this really good info.
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> We invite you to read Josh’s book, More Than a Carpenter. This short apologetics classic examines the historical evidence of Jesus. He died. He rose. He lives. He is our hope and example!
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February 28, 2022
Does Science Disprove Christ?
Welcome back to our blog series based on Josh’s best-selling apologetics classic: More Than a Carpenter. Our goal is to show you that Jesus definitely lived, died, and resurrected. Why? Because if Jesus really is the truth, then He puts everything else about life into perspective!
In this post we answer, “Does science disprove Christ ? Does it hold that power?”
“Often when I’m speaking to a philosophy or history class,” notes Josh, “someone confronts me with the challenge, ‘Can you prove the resurrection scientifically?’ I usually say, ‘Well, no, I’m not a scientist.’ Then I hear the class chuckling and the students say things like, ‘Then don’t talk to me about it,’ or ‘So I’m supposed to take it on faith?’ Their response makes me chuckle!”
More Than a Carpenter blog #whoisjesus
Does Science Disprove Christ? Yes/No?No is the correct answer. Those students have it wrong: Science can only prove what it can repeat in a controlled environment. Science is great when it stays in its lane. But it oversteps its authority when it chooses to make definitive claims beyond its boundary. This hasn’t stopped the scientific community, in general, from curtly dismissing the miraculous and supernatural as “old fashioned” and “preposterous” ideas that belong in the past.
This explains why many people mistakenly hold the belief that if something can’t be proved scientifically, it isn’t true. Many have accepted that science has adequately disproved the basis for rational faith — when it hasn’t. Because it CAN’T.
Think about this reality for a moment: YOU freely accept, as truth, many facts that can’t be verified by the scientific method. Did you watch TV last night? Did you eat lunch today? Don’t try using the scientific method to answer these questions, because it can’t. But you can find answers using legal-historical proof.
> The scientific method is related to measurement of phenomena and experimentation or repeated observation. This method, however, can’t prove anything outside of an environment it can replicate. So the scientific method isn’t a reliable tool when we’re seeking to learn the truth about historical events or people.
> Legal-historical proof incorporates three sources: oral testimony, written testimony, and exhibits (perhaps a bullet, glove, or other item). This method provides answers, beyond reasonable doubt, using available evidence. Courtrooms rely heavily on legal-historical proof to determine verdicts. An inquiry into whether you watched TV or ate lunch might begin with these questions: Was someone with you? Did an eyewitness observe you? Is there a restaurant receipt? What’s in your trash can?
Did George Washington chop down a cherry tree? Science can’t say. Was Martin Luther King, Jr., a civil rights leader? Science can’t say. Did Jesus live, die, and resurrect? Science can’t say, despite its assertion that miracles don’t happen and God doesn’t exist.
Do we value the scientific method? Highly. Do we believe that science has proven many facts about the earth and how the universe works? Absolutely. Do we believe that science alone validates what is true or possible or believable? No way. Science has proven many things, but it has not disproved God. Don’t blindly accept that it has. Instead, dig into the wealth of legal-historical proof that shows that Jesus is so much more than a carpenter!
Jesus: He’s More Than a Carpenter!> FREE download: Read the first chapter of Josh’s bestseller, More Than a Carpenter. You can buy the book here.
> Watch how More Than a Carpenter changed one reader’s life AND set off a chain reaction that introduced many others to Jesus. That’s how the truth of God’s love is shared: person to person!
> Want to learn more about starting YOUR personal relationship with Jesus? Click here.
The post Does Science Disprove Christ? appeared first on Josh.org.
February 21, 2022
Was Jesus a Lunatic?
Jesus! He’s our focus in this blog series based on Josh’s best-selling apologetics classic: More Than a Carpenter. Our goal is to definitively answer “Who is Jesus?,” to help you answer these big life questions: “Who am I? Why am I here? Where am I going?”
Last week we asked if Jesus was a liar. In this post let’s ask, “Was Jesus a lunatic?”
As Josh notes, today we would treat someone who believes himself to be God the same way we’d treat someone who believes he’s Napoleon: as totally deluded and self-deceived. But if we look closely at Jesus, it’s a breeze to answer this question!
More Than a Carpenter blog #whoisjesus
Jesus: Just a Lunatic?Don’t miss this point: in Jesus we don’t observe any abnormalities or imbalance that accompany crazy. “If Jesus was insane,” says Josh, “His poise and composure was nothing short of amazing.”
What do YOU think? Is there anything you think you see in Jesus’ behavior (other than His claim to divinity) that would suggest to you that He was a lunatic? Anything that would persuade you He wasn’t sane?
As recorded in the Bible, we can look at Jesus’ words and recognize that they are not the thoughts of a deranged, unbalanced man, but those of a wise and profound thinker. Jesus blew people away with His intelligence and love. He intimately connected with others because He could so clearly see — and cared about — their needs. That required sanity.
“Is such an intellect — clear as the sky, bracing as the mountain air, sharp and penetrating as a sword, thoroughly healthy and vigorous, always ready and always self-possessed — liable to a radical and most serious delusion concerning His own character and mission? Preposterous imagination!’ ~Philip Schaff
Jesus wasn’t put to death because He was a liar. He wasn’t put to death because He was a lunatic. He was put to death because His followers believed that Jesus was divine, and that scared those in power. Jesus’ followers suffered terrible persecution, if not death, for their faith. How did they stay committed? Their trust in Jesus! #savior
“I can’t personally conclude that Jesus was a liar or a lunatic,” notes Josh, after intensive research. “The only other alternative is that He is the Christ, the Son of God, as He claimed. The issue with these three alternatives isn’t which is possible. Rather, the question is, ‘Which is most probable?’ The evidence is clearly in favor of Jesus as Lord.”
Many people still don’t believe. If the evidence for the deity of Jesus is so clear, what reasons can you come up with for why people reject Him in this role? Stay with us. We have a lot more to share about Jesus. Be sure to read all the links in this post!
Jesus: He’s More Than a Carpenter!> FREE download: Read the first chapter of Josh’s bestseller, More Than a Carpenter. You can buy the book here.
> Watch how More Than a Carpenter changed one reader’s life AND set off a chain reaction that introduced many others to Jesus. That’s how the truth of God’s love is shared: person to person!
> Want to learn more about starting YOUR personal relationship with Jesus? Click here.
The post Was Jesus a Lunatic? appeared first on Josh.org.
February 14, 2022
Do the Facts Prove Jesus?
Welcome back! In this, our blog series based on Josh’s best-selling apologetics classic: More Than a Carpenter, it’s time to ask, “Is Jesus a liar?” Or can we actually have confidence in Him? YES!
As Josh notes, Jesus claimed to be God, and it was of fundamental importance to Him that we believe Him to be who He is. Christianity does require our faith. But its foundations are historically factual.
Here at the Josh McDowell Ministry, we provide fact-based knowledge. Josh recognized early that many Christians don’t actually know the facts — so they easily crumble when skeptics push back. Once a skeptic himself, Josh took pleasure in causing Christians to question and lose their faith. But over the last 50 years he’s been educating Christians to be rock-solid in their faith. Just follow the facts!
More Than a Carpenter blog #whoisjesus
Do The Facts Prove Jesus?All religions need to provide truthful, objective history that distinguishes fact from fiction, myth, and legend. Specific to Christianity, a historian needs to ask, “Was Jesus a real, historical person?” — and see what the facts say about that specific question. One must, however, stay aware of the danger of viewing the facts through the lens of personal bias.
In this article, for example, the author shows his bias early by stating, “For most of my life, I had taken it for granted that Jesus, although certainly not a god, was nevertheless an historical personage – perhaps a magician skilled in hypnosis.” He asserts that the burden is on Christians to fully prove the claims of Jesus. But that expectation is also biased.
If we decide to reject Jesus as God … if we reject God … we alone take full responsibility for our decision. We don’t get to pass the buck or blame our choice on others.
Christians need to stop falling into this trap; simply recognize that many skeptics won’t believe because they hold Christianity to a standard they don’t hold for daily life or Science. “I haven’t met Jesus,” skeptics might say, “So I simply can’t know for sure that he lived, much less resurrected.”
Okay. Let’s follow that logic: Have you met Abraham Lincoln? Or Mother Teresa? What is your acceptable proof that they lived, or said and did the things attributed to them? After all, you weren’t there.
As intellectual as Josh is, he admits that he couldn’t meet God until he was willing to open his mind AND his heart.
Guidelines For Objective StudyDr. Robert Price, an atheist and mythicist, suggests that Jesus should be seen as a mythical figure. Yet historian Bart Ehrman, who also rejects Jesus as God, counters that Price and other scholars skeptical of Jesus the historical person are choosing to disregard clear evidence.
If academics can look at the same facts and reach different conclusions, are they following the same guidelines for objective study? Here are three critical guidelines:
1) The historian should be clear about his/her guiding presumptions and biases.
2) The historian must detach from his/her biases, willing to confront data and arguments contrary to their preferred hypothesis.
3) The historian should submit his/her ideas to unsympathetic (critical) experts for review/feedback to reach accurate conclusions.
If a historian is skeptical of rational claims of knowledge — meaning he follows the assumption that what is “knowable” is only what he interprets to be real — it will be difficult to adhere to these guidelines.
The late historian Charles A. Beard asserted that we can’t expect to know, with certainty, that a historical event actually took place. Historians didn’t see the event for themselves, he said, so they can only subjectively view it through the lens of others. They can’t, he added, make definitive conclusions about an event.
Hmmm…. that’s like saying that we can’t label the Holocaust “horrific” after objectively reviewing the facts. Can you agree that’s absurd?
For many skeptics, their difficulty lies in accepting the miraculous. Jesus was born of a virgin? And walked on water? And resurrected because He’s God? Impossible x3. Their bias of viewing miracles as purely theological prevents them from accepting that the Bible holds authority for objective study.
Jesus: He’s More Than a Carpenter!What’s the “story” you’re telling yourself about the possibility of Jesus being God? What’s the story you’re telling yourself about God being real? Stay with us on this journey as we continue to chase the facts!
> FREE download: Read the first chapter of Josh’s bestseller, More Than a Carpenter. You can buy the book here.
> Watch how More Than a Carpenter changed one reader’s life AND set off a chain reaction that introduced many others to Jesus. That’s how the truth of God’s love is shared: person to person!
> Want to learn more about starting YOUR personal relationship with Jesus? Click here.
The post Do the Facts Prove Jesus? appeared first on Josh.org.
February 7, 2022
Did Jesus Say He Is God?
Yay! You’re back for more in this series based on Josh’s best-selling apologetics classic: More Than a Carpenter. We’re continuing to look at Jesus, to answer the question, “Who is He?” A teacher? A crazy person? Or actually God?
Everything about Jesus seems confounding! At least until we begin to really look at Him, getting clear on the facts of what He did, what He taught, and what He said about Himself. Many Christians, if they are honest, struggle with the humility of the cross. Surely, if Jesus is God, He needn’t have entered and exited this world a lowly servant and sacrificial lamb! How does that represent a mighty God?
More Than a Carpenter blog #whoisjesus
Jesus, Are You God?Did Jesus say He is God? Many argue that Jesus didn’t give a definitive answer. But maybe He did! Let’s look at Jesus’ own words, as they are recorded in the Bible.
In John 5:16-18, there’s a confrontation between Jesus and a group of Jewish leaders. It’s triggered when Jesus cures a lame man on the Sabbath, the day on which Jews are forbidden to work. The Jewish leaders begin harassing Jesus. He replies, “My father is always working, and so am I.” Jesus could have said, “Our father,” but He didn’t. He said, “MY Father.” By the rules of the Jewish language, Jesus makes a claim the Jews can’t misinterpret. And in choosing this phrase, Jesus clearly places His own activity on an equal plane with God’s.
Jesus then adds fuel to the fire by declaring, “The Father and I are one” (John 10:30). A.T. Robertson, an esteemed Greek scholar, explains that the Greek word “one” in this passage doesn’t indicate one in person or purpose, but rather one in essence or nature. Jesus’ claim stirs the Jewish leaders to uncontrollable anger. They pick up stones to kill Him. Jesus responds, “At my Father’s direction I have done many good works. For which one are you going to stone me?” (John 10:31-42).
Jesus also boldly asserts, “If you knew me, you would also know my Father” (John 8:19). And adds, “For when you see me, you are seeing the one who sent me” (John 12:45), and “Anyone who hates me also hates my Father” (John 15:23), and “Everyone will honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Anyone who does not honor the Son is certainly not honoring the Father who sent Him” (John 5:23). In Mark 2, as Jesus heals a paralytic man, He says, “My child, your sins are forgiven.” “What is He saying?” cry the Jews. “This is blasphemy! Only God can forgive sins!”
It didn’t take long for people who knew Jesus to realize that this carpenter from Nazareth was making astounding claims about himself, notes Josh. “It became clear that these claims were identifying Him as more than a profit or teacher. He was obviously making claims to deity. He was presenting Himself as the only avenue to salvation and the only source of forgiveness of sins — things they knew only God could claim.”
Under oath at His trial, Jesus is asked point-blank, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the blessed God?” Jesus replies, “I am, and you will see me, the Son of Man, sitting at God’s right hand in the place of power and coming back on the clouds of heaven” (Mark 14:60-62). By His own words, Jesus incriminates Himself, setting into motion the crucifixion that forever covers believers in God’s amazing grace. Jesus didn’t come to impress us with God’s might, but to bowl us over with His loving sacrifice. Sure, Jesus could have saved Himself the anguish and torture of the cross. But that would have been the easy way out for the Creator of the universe.
In most trials, adds Josh, the accused are tried for what they are alleged to have done. Jesus was tried for who He claimed to be. How blind were His accusers! As Jesus suffered in excruciating agony on the cross, the Jewish leaders mocked Him with His own words. “He saved others,” they scoffed, “but He can’t save Himself! So He is the King of Israel, is He? Let Him come down now, and we will believe in Him! He trusted God, so let God rescue Him now if He wants Him. For He said, ‘I am the Son of God.'”
So God really exists? Yes. And Jesus is really God? Yes! Stay with us in this series. We have a lot more to tell you about the Savior of the world!
Jesus: He’s More Than a Carpenter!> FREE download: Read the first chapter of Josh’s bestseller, More Than a Carpenter. You can buy the book here.
> Watch how More Than a Carpenter changed one reader’s life AND set off a chain reaction that introduced many others to Jesus. That’s how the truth of God’s love is shared: person to person!
> Want to learn more about starting YOUR personal relationship with Jesus? Click here.
The post Did Jesus Say He Is God? appeared first on Josh.org.
January 31, 2022
Jesus: Truth That Changes Everything
Welcome back to our series based on Josh’s best-selling apologetics classic: More Than a Carpenter. If you’ve read the four January posts, then you’re up to speed on how Josh journeyed from diehard skeptic to stunned believer in the truth of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Josh then had to decide if he was willing to call Jesus “Savior.” For many, it’s a struggle.
The name “Jesus” seems to bother people, notes Josh. It embarrasses them, makes them angry, or makes them want to change the subject. You can talk about God, and people don’t necessarily get upset, but mention Jesus, and people want to stop the conversation. Why don’t the names of Buddha, Muhammad, or Confucius offend people the way the name of Jesus does?
Josh decided it’s because these religious figures didn’t claim to be God. Or present themselves as the single route to truth and salvation, as Jesus did. How exclusive! We humans like options, not restrictions. And who wants to humbly admit to being a “sinner” in need of forgiveness and restoration?
More Than a Carpenter blog #whoisjesus
Our Truth Or God’s Truth?These days, spirituality centers around subjective choice. Society champions cherry-picking: We’re encouraged to create a spiritual truth that personally “works” for us. The rest we get to breezily reject. God is seemingly findable here, there, and everywhere, in the flavor we like best. The reality, though, is that our personal “truth” will never trump God’s unchanging truth, simply because we’re not God.
Josh once claimed that Christianity, God, and Jesus were a joke that only “dimwits” should accept. So committed was he to these claims, that in college he took aggressively mocked Christians. He delighted in pushing Christian students to doubt their faith. As some faltered, Josh cemented his stance that Christianity’s foundation is shaky, if not outright fantasy.
But in the months Josh spent researching the truth of Jesus’ resurrection — when the facts became more than he could comfortably push aside and still consider himself “intellectually honest” — Josh had to admit that he was wrong. The facts did point to Jesus having supernaturally resurrected, as His early followers claimed. And if Jesus was God in human form, then what Jesus taught about God is unchanging truth.
In accepting that Jesus is God — the “infinite and perfect spirit in whom all things have their source, support, and end” as theologian Augustus H. Strong put it, Josh finally could understand why the students who challenged him to disprove Christianity could claim Jesus as the source of their consistent hope and joy. Because they followed Him, they could confidently answer, “Who am I? Why am I here? Where am I going?”
Some people choose to worship a deity with the head of an elephant. Others the head of a dog. Christians believe in a God so mighty that He refuses to be reduced to a recognizable form. His coming to us in human form was so we could tangibly grasp the great love, compassion, and mercy He has for us. The Creator of all invites us into an eternal, personal relationship with Him!
Accepting Jesus as a great teacher, compassionate healer, or even a revolutionary isn’t all that hard for most people. It’s accepting that God chose to be born to a virgin (!), in a smelly stable (!), to an ordinary family (!), to then die a humiliating and agonizing death to supposedly cover our sin (!) that they reject. Why would God show up so … weak? As Josh once did, many choose to set themselves as judge and jury of how God should show up to prove His existence and authority over all.
In rejecting God, some say, “I don’t need a savior” … “I’m the boss of my life, not God” … “Christianity is irrelevant in modern society” … “I can’t follow a God who allows so much evil in the world.” Josh similarly found such excuses intellectually solid, until he recognized this life-changing truth:
Nowhere else will we find the unconditional love, compassion, understanding, and connection that we innately crave daily. We can fight God’s preeminence, or get offended at the sacrifice Jesus made for us. But Jesus is the truth that changes everything for us.
Like that group of Christian students, Josh finally recognized that he’d found the stability he’d long been chasing. Stay on this journey with us. There’s so much more to discover about Jesus!
Jesus: More Than a Carpenter!> FREE Download: the first chapter of Josh’s book More Than a Carpenter. You can buy your copy here.
> Watch how More Than a Carpenter changed one reader’s life AND then introduced many others to Jesus!
> Want to start your personal relationship with Jesus? Click here.
The post Jesus: Truth That Changes Everything appeared first on Josh.org.
January 24, 2022
Jesus: Truth or Fantasy?
Thanks for joining us for more in this series based on Josh’s best-selling apologetics classic: More Than a Carpenter. So far you’ve learned about Josh’s search for meaning and purpose, and how he accepted the challenge from a group of college Christians to prove that Jesus was real, not myth. Josh accepted — expecting to easily prove they believed a fantasy.
But after meticulously researching authentic, historical documents for months, Josh had to admit that the evidence pointed to Jesus resurrecting, as the Bible says. And that was a problem, because Josh was not open to the idea of a “savior” who died for him, a “sinner.”
Josh wanted to assert that he had life by the tail. But deep down he knew he was a mess. Everything he desperately craved — meaning, purpose, peace — was leading him straight back to the God he didn’t want to acknowledge. If God was real — and loving and good, as Jesus taught — why had He allowed Josh to experience years of abuse at the hands of not just one man, but two? Why had God allowed his mom to also suffer from his alcoholic father, and die of a broken heart?
Was God playing favorites? Or did these Christian students know something about God that Josh didn’t? Was their “relationship” with Jesus the puzzle piece lacking in his life that fueled their apparent joy?
More Than a Carpenter blog #whoisjesus
Real Faith or Pure Fantasy?Josh’s high, protective walls had to crumble before he could clearly see God’s nature without blinders. He had to stop fighting the idea that God loved Josh, and wanted to help him heal from the wounds of his abuse and loneliness. Josh had to stop holding onto his rage, for God’s love to begin to have influence over his thoughts and actions.
Josh began to realize that God wasn’t a fantasy — any more than He was an ogre who handpicked His favorites. Deep in his heart, Josh could hear God whisper that Josh wasn’t damaged goods. He was worthy of love and joy and meaning, simply because he was one of God’s treasured creations. Josh could now feel God’s sorrow at the hurt humans choose to inflict on others. Hurting people hurt people. It’s why our world is in such a mess.
And Josh now understood why the Christians students so confidently asserted that Jesus Christ was the difference in their lives. They “got” that they were deeply loved and accepted by God, which helped them to be kind and loving — to themselves and others. Because of Jesus, they felt hope, and joy, and purpose. Even when they made messed up and sinned. They trusted that they weren’t doing life alone, but with His help. Nothing could separate them from His grace!
Intellect or Emotion: Must We Choose?As blogger Benjamin Sledge puts it, “I know that if I were to stack up my cards against most church people, I’d fold every time. I’m not that good at following rules, and I run my mouth a lot. And yet, God loves me and is cheering for me as I get better and especially when I fall down. Where I see failure, He sees opportunity for growth. Where I see addiction, He sees an opportunity to take a step. Where I’ve given up, He whispers, ‘You can make it.'”
With Christianity, must it be an either/or? Josh once thought so. But God used Josh’s skepticism — just as He’ll use something in your life to try to get your attention to show you the truth of Himself.
Only when Josh was intellectually satisfied that Jesus Christ really lived, died, and resurrected could he admit that far from being a fantasy, God is real — and good. So good that He wants to be in a personal relationship with each of us, to support us as we do life. We were always meant to be living with Him in Eden; we messed that up, not Him.
As Bob Dylan wisely noted, we gotta serve somebody. Will you give God a chance to prove His love to you? Stay with us on the journey! You just might decide Jesus is someone you really, really want to get to know. (He is!!) But you must be open and seek the truth, like Josh did.
“In spite of the firmness of the facts and the authenticity of the experience,” notes Josh, “Christianity is not something you can shove down anyone’s throat. You can’t force Christ on anyone. You’ve got to live your life, and I’ve got to live mine. All of us are free to make our own decisions. All I can do is tell you what I’ve learned. After that, what you do is up to you.”
Jesus: More Than a Carpenter!> FREE Download: the first chapter of Josh’s book More Than a Carpenter. You can buy your copy here.
> Watch how More Than a Carpenter changed one reader’s life AND then introduced many others to Jesus!
> Want to start your personal relationship with Jesus? Click here.
The post Jesus: Truth or Fantasy? appeared first on Josh.org.
January 17, 2022
Jesus Resurrected, Giving Life Purpose
We started this More Than a Carpenter series two weeks ago, when we shared how Josh earnestly began to search for meaning and purpose when he got to college. His journey to finding answers took a surprising turn when a group of campus Christians challenged Josh to prove his claim that Christianity was pure fantasy.
Josh did recognize that the students had a consistent peace and joy that he lacked, but he wasn’t buying that their “relationship” with Jesus had supplied it. The fastest way to disprove the claims of Jesus, he reasoned, was to discredit the Bible as being historically reliable. Once he showed that it couldn’t hold up to intense scrutiny, the students would have to see that Christianity is a sham!
“Christians could show me that their own book said Christ was born of a virgin, that He performed miracles, and that He rose from the dead,” asserted Josh, “but what good was that?” No skeptic would settle for that!
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Finding Answers, Finding PurposeJosh had no idea that his research would take months — even requiring him to drop out of college for a time to study in historically rich libraries across Europe. But the day came that Josh had to concede a truth he struggled to accept: the abundant evidence he had meticulously poured over pointed to the Bible’s Old and New Testament documents being among the most reliable writings in antiquity.
“And if they were reliable,” notes Josh, “what about this man Jesus, whom I had dismissed as a mere carpenter in an out-of-the-way town in a tiny oppressed country, a man who had gotten caught up in his own visions of grandeur? I had to admit that Jesus Christ was more than a carpenter. He was all He claimed to be.”
Years later another college student would ask Josh why he couldn’t find a way to disprove Christianity. After all, numerous skeptics and atheists had seemingly done so, no problem. Josh’s response: “For the simple reason that I was unable to explain away the fact that the resurrection of Jesus Christ was a real event in history.”
And because Jesus resurrected (a supernatural event evidenced by hundreds of witnesses, which the Jewish leaders who had gotten Jesus crucified were unable to refute), shouldn’t we trust what He said — and demonstrated — about God’s great love for us? Knowing God gives our life meaning and purpose!
“Christianity,” says Josh, “isn’t a myth, not a fantasy of wishful dreamers, not a hoax played on the simpleminded. It is rock-solid truth. I guarantee that when you come to terms with that truth, you will be on the threshold of finding the answers to these three basic questions: Who am I? What is my purpose? What is my destiny?”
Over the coming weeks we’ll walk you through the vetted facts of Jesus’ crucifixion, burial, and resurrection. But today, we’re offering you FREE access to Undaunted, the powerful movie of Josh’s testimony, from his painful childhood to why he has chosen to call Jesus “Savior” for the past 50+ years.
Watch Undaunted, the story of Josh’s conversion, RIGHT NOW on your device!> Get instant access to the movie and study guide on your computer. Click here!
> Want to purchase Undaunted? We sell the DVD and book in our store.
> Jesus demonstrated God’s deep love for us. Learn more about God’s amazing nature here.
Jesus: He’s More Than a Carpenter!> FREE Download: the first chapter of Josh’s book More Than a Carpenter. You can buy your copy here.
> Watch how More Than a Carpenter changed one reader’s life AND then introduced many others to Jesus!
> Want to start your personal relationship with Jesus? Click here.
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January 10, 2022
Jesus Christ Offers Meaning?
Last week, when we started this new More Than a Carpenter series, we shared with you that when Josh got to college, he began to earnestly search for happiness and meaning. But he grew increasingly frustrated by the answers offered up by both his church and his college professors. Not even partying or taking on prestigious student leadership roles quenched Josh’s “thirst” for meaning or happiness.
Like many of us, Josh pretended to have it all together. He acted like life was great. But in reality he was miserable and exhausted from faking it. So when Josh noticed a group of students who seemed to be genuinely, consistently happy, he asked them what made them different.
Whatever it was, he wanted it! That is until the prettiest girl in the group confidently answered, “Jesus Christ.”
“Jesus Christ?” Josh hadn’t expected to hear those two words included in an intelligent discussion on campus. “Don’t give me that garbage,” he snapped. “I’m fed up with religion. I’m fed up with the church. I’m fed up with the Bible.”
More Than a Carpenter blog #whoisJesus
Jesus Christ = Meaning?“I didn’t say religion,” the girl shot back. “I said Jesus Christ!”
Josh apologized for his rudeness, but admitted that he wanted nothing to do with religious people. Faith was for dimwits, not smart people who demanded evidence!
The students didn’t get offended. But they did challenge Josh to make a rigorous, intellectual examination of the claims of Jesus: to determine, for himself, who Jesus is — and what His resurrection accomplished. If Josh was going to assert that only dummies could follow Jesus, why not prove it?
At first Josh thought they were kidding. But then he realized that they were handing him the opportunity to debunk Christianity — and knock the props right out from under them. A pre-law student, Josh knew how to conduct thorough research. He actually got excited about their challenge. But where to start?
Josh decided to collect evidence that disproved the historical reliability of the Bible. Poke enough holes in “God’s Word” — and their faith would fall apart!
Piece of cake…right?
Join us for next week’s post to find out. Inquiring minds wanna know, right?
Questions to Ponder1. Do you think Christianity is a religion for “dimwits”? If so, why?
2. Have you read the Bible? Or researched why many scholars believe it to be historically reliable?
3. Do you find it easier to believe what atheists or scientists say over what Christians say? If so, why?
Link: FREE Josh Library Videos > “Is the Bible Reliable?“Jesus: He’s More Than a Carpenter!> FREE download: Read the first chapter of Josh’s bestseller, More Than a Carpenter. You can buy the book here.
> Watch how More Than a Carpenter changed one reader’s life AND set off a chain reaction that introduced many others to Jesus. That’s how the truth of God’s love is shared: person to person!
> Want to learn more about starting YOUR personal relationship with Jesus? Click here.
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January 3, 2022
Searching for Happy in 2022
Welcome to our new More Than a Carpenter blog series, in which we focus on Jesus! Let’s get started with this quote by Thomas Aquinas, the famous philosopher and theologian: “There is within every soul a thirst for happiness and meaning.” Do you agree?
Some people feel this “thirst” early. Others only become aware of it in the moments life slows down and they get quiet. Some people notice it as a vague annoyance. Others feel it acutely, like physical pain.
Josh first began to notice his thirst in his early teens. “I wanted to be happy,” shares Josh. “I wanted my life to have meaning. I became hounded by the three basic questions that haunt every human life: Who am I? Why am I here? Where am I going?“
Josh felt an emptiness, but also a smoldering rage from the physical and emotional abuse he endured at home. Just a kid, he didn’t know how to handle either. But when he escaped to college, Josh decided to find answers, to grab the great life the world owed him for all he’d been through. But where to start?
More Than a Carpenter blog #whoisJesus
Searching for “Smart” Happy and MeaningJosh had grown up in a religious farming community, so he first looked for answers in church. He picked one near school, showing up whenever the doors were open. Josh found that he felt worse, not better, when he was there. Intellectualism was paramount to Josh; being told to “have faith” wasn’t going to cut it with him. How could people be so silly to blindly believe what they were taught?
“I thought Christians were walking idiots,” Josh admits. “They told me what they believed, but they couldn’t give me any common sense, intelligent reason for why they believed it.”
Chucking Christianity, he turned to his professors for answers. He says he quickly became their most unpopular student by pestering them with his questions. Josh found that his frustration mounted, when he realized that his professors seemed to be as clueless as he was about how to be consistently happy or find meaning.
Spotting a student wearing a T-shirt that said, “Don’t follow me, I’m lost,” Josh decided the sentiment summed up the wisdom his university could offer.
Josh then tried to fill the void by becoming a student leader on campus. His efforts gained him prestige and power, but even they failed to fulfill him. By now Josh was miserable — but hiding it so well that his friends thought he was the happiest guy on campus. They didn’t catch on that Josh’s mental state depended entirely on his circumstances. “I was like a boat out in the ocean tossed back and forth by the waves,” he says. “I had no rudder, no direction or control.”
Josh admits that he only made it through the grind of each week by partying hard on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights.
Are unhealthy habits or addictions what get you through each day? If so, check out our Resolution Movement, a safe, encouraging community where you can grow and thrive.Was anyone truly happy, he wondered? Or, like him, was everyone just faking it, getting through life with the crutch of their own unhealthy habits?
Josh happened to notice a group of eight students who looked “disgustingly” happy — and consistently acted like it. They were nice to each other as well as those outside their group. What “happy” pill were they taking? A few weeks later, Josh got the chance to ask. The answer was NOT what he was expecting.
Join us for next week’s blog post to hear how this conversation unexpectedly set Josh on the path of pursuing the God he thought only silly people could believe in!
Jesus: He’s More Than a Carpenter!> FREE Download: the first chapter of Josh’s book More Than a Carpenter. You can buy your copy here.
> Watch how More Than a Carpenter changed one reader’s life AND then introduced many others to Jesus!
> Want to start your personal relationship with Jesus? Click here.
The post Searching for Happy in 2022 appeared first on Josh.org.
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