Josh McDowell's Blog, page 11

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.

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 Study

Dr. 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.

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!

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 Do the Facts Prove Jesus? appeared first on Josh.org.

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.

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.

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!

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.'”

Intellect or Emotion: Must We Choose?

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.

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!

More Than a Carpenter blog #whoisJesus

Finding Answers, Finding Purpose

Josh 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.

The post Jesus Resurrected, Giving Life Purpose appeared first on Josh.org.

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 Ponder

1. 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.

The post Jesus Christ Offers Meaning? appeared first on Josh.org.

Searching for Happy in 2022

It’s 2022! Are you happy? Does your life have meaning and purpose?

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 Meaning

Josh 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.

Trusting Not Santa, But Jesus, at Christmas

When I was a kid, “Christmas” didn’t mean presents. It meant glittering ice trees; fresh, crisp air; houses and streets festive with colored lights and white-frosted windows. 

My family was part of a cult that embraced a mishmash of various religions and practices, which meant that because of our version of the Jewish “Holy Days,” we didn’t celebrate Christmas. I was bummed that Santa appeared to have been told to skip our house on the night he flew around the world personally delivering gifts to “good” kids.

But I do have a childhood Santa memory, from when I was about six years old, that I’d like to share with you.

More Than a Carpenter blog #whoisJesus

For 50+ years, Josh McDowell Ministry has been delivering breakthrough messages for those seeking meaning and purpose. We offer you our accumulated knowledge and research to help you find truth and encouragement to live a healthy and whole life in Christ.Christmas Promises, Broken

I can recall this memory so clearly. I was at the shopping mall with my parents, begging them to let me sit on Santa’s lap, like all the other kids waiting in line. They finally agreed, but warned me that Santa wasn’t who I thought perhaps he was.

I can still feel the thrill of getting to tell him the gifts I wanted. And I distinctly remember him promising, “Ok! Look under the tree on Christmas morning!” When Christmas day came, I woke early. I hurried into my snowsuit and boots, and ran outside. But looking around, it dawned on me that I had a problem. Santa didn’t say which tree – and we had three! 

Undeterred, I diligently searched under each tree. What did I find? Nothing! Well, nothing beyond the trail of my circling footprints in the fresh snow. Santa didn’t deliver on his promise. Bah humbug! I marched my disappointed six-year-old self back into my house. My parents were right: Santa was NOT someone I could trust.

I share this childhood memory with you because, as Christians, we DO have someone we can trust to keep His promises – and not just on Christmas, but all year: God! I have personally learned the truth of this over the years.

Unlike Santa, who is a delightful but fictional character, God is real, always present, and always mindful of our wants and needs. But He wants a relationship with us, not just have us approach Him with our wish list.

As Josh McDowell shares in his best-selling book, More Than a Carpenter, Christianity is about coming to understand that the Creator of the universe invites us into a personal relationship with Him through the sacrifice Jesus made for us on the cross. It’s about seeing God for who He truly His, and trusting that He deeply cares about us and wants to help us answer our big life questions.

As 2021 closes out, you might be thinking Who am I? Why am I here? Where am I going? If so, perfect timing! In January, we’re starting a new blog series, “More Than a Carpenter,” which we think can help you to answer your big life questions. We all want to know that we’re seen and special. We all want purpose and meaning and joy.

Who Is Jesus? Come Find Out!

We’re basing our new series on More Than a Carpenter, which highlights some of the meticulous research Josh did as a college student to prove to himself, beyond all reasonable doubt, that Jesus was a real historical person. Was He gruesomely tortured and crucified at the hands of the Romans? Did He really supernaturally resurrect? If so, what role did Jesus deserve to play in Josh’s life? 

As a diehard skeptic, Josh wasn’t buying the “blind faith” that many Christians based their faith on.

Were these individuals missing some brain cells?! The idea that anyone could believe that God exists — or cares about them — seemed ridiculous to Josh! Only one thing would persuade him: hard, cold facts. He set out to quickly show that Christianity is a sham, by proving the Bible is factually unreliable.

What did Josh’s evidence turn up? You’ll have to check out the new blog series in January to find out! We can’t wait to take this journey with you!

Up For a Christmas Challenge?

Now, with my own kids, gift-giving is a fun part of our Christmas celebration. But we recognize the true meaning of Christmas isn’t about what Santa might do, but what Jesus has done. For all of us!

>> Join us in reading the first chapter of John, one of the four Gospel books in the Bible’s New Testament. For an immersive experience, read Chapter One three times, in these three translations: NIV, MSG, and NLT. (Hint: “The Word” is referring to Jesus.).

>> Read the story of Jesus’ birth in the Gospel of Matthew, Chapters One and Two. The rich details will help you to see the story in your mind.

>> Online, you might also watch The Nativity Story movie, or episodes of The Chosen, a fabulous online series that shows Jesus beginning His three-year ministry.

Merry CHRISTmas!

Christina Gordon is the digital marketing manager at the Josh McDowell Ministry.

The post Trusting Not Santa, But Jesus, at Christmas appeared first on Josh.org.

Why God? Come and See!

Come and see my Jesus.

I heard about The Chosen television series about the ministry of Christ. Friends highly recommended it, but I didn’t expect much. I mean, how many ways can you tell the Jesus story? It’s been done many times before. And typically on a low budget, with marginal acting. So I didn’t rush to watch it.

In fact, the whole first season (8 episodes) had already aired before I finally sat down to watch the first episode. Again, my expectations were really low. But within minutes I felt myself emotionally drawn into the lives of Bible characters I’ve only read about — Mary, Simon Peter, Andrew, Matthew, Nicodemus — each displaying his or her unique personality and flaws.

But what of Jesus? He doesn’t appear in the show until the end of the first episode. Immediately, it’s clear that He’s different. A man, yes, but possessing a quiet intensity and supernatural force of love that made Him a magnet to sinners, even me. Come and see!

Why God? blog #hurthealedwhole

SCRIPTURE REVEALS JESUS AS GOD

When I read the Bible, I am convinced of Jesus’ divinity. I so clearly see Jesus the Messiah. But I can only see glimpses of Jesus the man. I think because the Bible gives us many details about Jesus’ wisdom and supernatural wonders, but so few details on how He struggled with the constraints of being temporarily housed in a human body.

Yet it’s not lost on me that back then people had the opposite challenge! They struggled with accepting Jesus’ claims that He was God. “Where did this man acquire this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. “Is this not the carpenter’s son?” Matthew 13:54-55

Would I, I wonder, have rejected Jesus’ claims if I’d grown up with Him in Nazareth? Would I have refused to believe, simply because He kept His knowledge and power hidden for the first three DECADES of His life? Would my mind simply refuse to believe out of stubborn pride?

Jesus patiently provided proof of His divinity, as He selflessly ministered to the clamoring crowds over the next three years. Many believed, and many refused to believe, just as they do today. The Bible clearly tells us that even when some personally experience miracles, they will refuse to believe. My heart hurts at thinking that I could have been one of them.

JESUS THE MAN

The disciples struggled with learning to trust Jesus, too. They wholeheartedly embraced His power. In a later episode James and John, whom Jesus nicknames “the sons of thunder,” ask Jesus to rain down fire on some who were unkind to Jesus. The brothers simply couldn’t understand why Jesus didn’t demand His due respect or act like a conquerer. But slowly, oh, so slowly, they came to understand that Jesus was calling them — had personally hand-picked them — to selflessly love as He did, so they could credibly share the message of God’s great love.

In learning to admit and desire to overcome their weaknesses and failings to resemble Jesus, the disciples demonstrate the typical human journey toward God. The disciples show us ourselves. And Jesus shows us who we can be, through His grace and love and power.

Like the disciples, I can’t get enough of this Jesus. Both calm and confident, His actions demonstrate strength and quiet authority. Self-assured yet humble, strong yet gentle, He leads with understanding and compassion as He invites people into deeper relationship with God. This Jesus displays an irresistible sense of humor. I instinctively trust this Jesus. I want to give my all to Him.

Jesus is the image of the perfect man — the man I think God intended me to be, before the Fall brought sin into the world.

JESUS OUR MESSIAH

“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine!” Isaiah 43:1

The highlight of the first episode happens in the last few minutes, when Jesus frees Mary Magdalene of the daily misery of her demonic possession. “Do not fear,” Jesus tells her. “I have called you by name.” Gently cradling her head in his hands, He pours hope and belief into her. “I have redeemed you,” He says. “You are mine.” I watch Jesus reveal the unfathomable grace and mercy of God, and I yearn to be healed and redeemed by Him as well.

In a later episode, Jesus seeks out a man who has been lame for 38 years. Jesus pointedly tells the man, “You only need me. Do you want to be made well?” The man wrestles with having hope that Jesus can actually heal him. “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!” Jesus commands. The man locks eyes with Jesus for another long moment, then clearly decides that he can’t let the opportunity pass by. He attempts to stand on crippled feet, and grows giddy upon realizing he’s healed.

In THAT moment my heart swells in gratitude, too. I am the lame man who has been healed … the blind man who can now see … the person in despair of life’s troubles whom Jesus has personally and joyfully redeemed.

This is the power of The Chosen series. In every episode, we feel the personal heart tug toward the warmth and compassion of Jesus. We are invited, as Jesus continually points us to God, to see truth of the Gospel in an intimately personal and emotional way. The experience includes the rich tapestry of the sights and sounds that Jesus likely experienced as He physically walked this earth. As Jesus pour Himself out to the point of exhaustion to heal, and teach, and encourage, and love, we so clearly see Him as both man and God. This mystery is so astounding. But as we choose to believe, we become The Chosen.

Come and see this Jesus for yourself. Come and see Him remind you of the truth that you need only Him. Say yes, when Jesus asks you, “Do you want to be healed and redeemed?”

>>> God wants a relationship with you. Click here to learn more!

Guest blogger Dan Muenchau is a retired engineer who enjoys showing the love of God to others.

The post Why God? Come and See! appeared first on Josh.org.