Jesus
said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me
will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never
die. Do you believe this?"
--
John 11:25-26
Let's say you're planning to make
a big purchase. Maybe it's for a new car, a smartphone, a digital camera--or
even a cruise. Whatever it is, you've got a big decision to make. And there are
so many choices.
If you're like most folks these
days, the Internet is your next stop. With just a few clicks of the mouse, you
can find dozens of websites featuring helpful information about virtually any product. Some sites
feature reviews from the experts. If you want to compare a Nikon
camera's white balance and exposure compensation ratings with comparable Canon
and Sony models, that information is easy to find. But many of the best product
websites feature comments from consumers. Their observations can be
particularly helpful because they tend to cover the product's pros and cons
without the manufacturer's marketing spin and hype. That glossy brochure might
rave about a tablet computer's speed and futuristic design. But if a few actual
owners write that this same device is difficult to use and prone to freeze-ups,
you'll probably start looking for a better option.
The lesson here is that taking advice from those who know can
help you avoid making costly mistakes. If that's true for
microwave ovens and hybrid automobiles, how about for things of eternal
significance--like the existence of heaven and hell? If heaven exists, how can you get
there? And what's the surefire way to avoid hell?
Ask these same questions to 20
people on the street, and you'll likely get as many different
answers. But God doesn't want His people to be confused. So He personally came
to earth through His Son, Jesus, to live a perfect life and reveal how we're
all to live for today and for eternity. Several of those who traveled with
Jesus during His 3-year-long ministry wrote about their experiences and
confirmed that Christ really is who He claimed to be. What's more, they
personally witnessed His miracles--how He raised people from the dead, healed
the lame and made the blind see.
Luke, the physician who wrote the
Gospel of Luke
and the Acts of the Apostles,
also wanted the real scoop about the Savior. So he interviewed the people who
knew Jesus best and could attest to His authenticity. Consider the opening lines of
the Scripture:
"Many people have tried to
tell the story of what God has done among us. They wrote what we had been told
by the ones who were there in the beginning and saw what happened. So I made a
careful study of everything and then decided to write and tell you exactly what
took place. ... I have done this to let you know the truth about what you have
heard."
The Apostle Peter also reassured
some of the faith's earliest believers with his own testimony:
"When we told you about the
powerful coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, we were not telling just clever
stories that someone invented," he reported. "But we saw the greatness of
Jesus with our own eyes."
Are you uncertain about trusting
what's in the Bible? Is all that stuff about Jesus rising from the dead really
true? And if it is, how should it make a difference in the way you live each day? These are vitally-important questions. So why not avoid a costly mistake
and read some in-depth reviews from the folks who know their stuff: the authors of the Gospels.
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