2006 updated 6/18/2018
The God who has created everything has revealed Himself by:
• What He has created
• The history of the Jewish people
• Becoming one of us and walking among us for 33 years and allowing us to nail Him to a cross
• His death and resurrection
• The unique collection of 66 books called the Bible
• The Holy Spirit’s testimony to our hearts
What He has created
The Universe is a visual aid that illustrates and demonstrates the awesomeness of our God.
“In the beginning God created the Heaven and the earth.” Genesis 1:1
“Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse” Romans 1:19-20
“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork”. Psalm 19:1
The history of the Jewish people
There are no people in history like the Jewish people.
“And he [God] brought him [Abraham] forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.” Genesis 15:5-6
“And the LORD said, Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do; Seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?” Genesis 18:17-18
“For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth.” Deuteronomy 7:6
“To the chief Musician on Neg’-i-noth, A Psalm or Song. God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah. That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations. Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee. O let the nations be glad and sing for joy: for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth. Selah. Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee. Then shall the earth yield her increase; and God, even our own God, shall bless us. God shall bless us; and all the ends of the earth shall fear him.” Psalm 67
Becoming one of us and walking among us for 33 years and allowing us to nail Him to a cross
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Genesis 1:1
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. John 1:1-4
And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. John 1:14
And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. Luke 2:7
And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him. Luke 2:40
And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man. Luke 2:52
And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears. Luke 4:17-21
For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost. Luke 19:10
Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again. Luke 24:7
His death and resurrection
So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit. John 19:30
Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. So there they laid Jesus, because of the Jews’ Preparation Day, for the tomb was nearby. John 19:41-42
Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb; and he saw the linen cloths lying there, and the [a]handkerchief that had been around His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself. John 20:6-7
For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time. 1 Corinthians 15:3-8
The unique collection of 66 books called the Bible
The Bible is unique among all texts that claim to be about God. The Bible is not just one book but 66 separate books written over a 1500 year period by many human authors from all walks of life: fisherman to king. And yet there is a miraculous cohesion and interweaving of themes and types and foreshadowings and prophecies and fulfillment: from Genesis to Revelation. And Old Testament and New Testament both point to Jesus.
The Holy Spirit’s testimony to our hearts
“Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah— not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their [i]hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”