“I think God, in creating man, somewhat overestimated his ability.”
― Oscar Wilde
I’m humbled as Holy Week arrives this week. Being able to worship the blacksmith from Campbell’s Bay leaves me awestruck. The impact this Canadian from the little-known river town in Quebec, has had on my life and the 2.1 billion followers currently alive around the globe? Astonishing. People have said for years, nothing good comes from Campbell’s Bay. Yet this nondescript Canadian has changed the world century after century.
Never heard of him? Me neither because he doesn’t exist. The fact is, we don’t have multiple options to pick from the messiah category. There are no other blacksmiths, farmers, candle-makers, or carpenters from small villages in China, Iran or South America. For a brief moment in the late 60s, Eric Clapton, kicking and screaming, donned the moniker from adoring fans. Only those with lost marbles believed it and him as Lord.
Name another person who made a similar claim. Are they relevant? Vital? Are lives changing around the globe 100, 500 or 2,000 years after their death? It’s not as if there’s a new guru every century or even every 10 years. You see what I’m saying? Christ resonates. We forget how unique He is. Before I was a follower, I never dug deeper than, “All religious stuff is for weak, narrow people.” I didn’t ask some of the tougher questions, and certainly didn’t wrestle with this verse from John 14:6.
“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
Who else has made such a claim? Buddha didn’t. Not Muhammad, Moses, Gandhi or Nelson Mandela. There are numerous folks throughout history who declared with significant grandiosity, God-like incarnation. The problem is the they never pulsated beyond a teeny circle of influence. Here are three, all alive now: Owobusobozi Bisaka, Inri Cristo, and Shoko Asahara. Not familiar? Try to find a place to worship them in Dallas, Indonesia or Paraguay. Will their fame jump continents and centuries with claims of a better life for their followers?
Think how HBO, Hulu, Apple or Virgin are marketed. Quite sophisticated. Could it be the Christian church has been filled with brilliant marketeers every century? Did marketing exist in 1800 or 1200 or 400AD? Doubtful we have the talent to keep a campaign alive for hundreds of years without juju from the heavens.
When you look at the major religions of the world, Christianity and Islam are number one and two with 2.1 billion and 1.3 billion followers. Non-religious, secular-agnostic-atheism are number three at 1.1 billion, then Hinduism at four with 900 million. Judaism is roughly number twelve with 15 million followers. You get to the lower numbers of the top twenty and you find Zoroastrianism (2.6 million), Tenrikyo (2 million), and Neo-Paganism (1 million). All of these figures are give or take estimates. The tendency is to think pick one and be on your merry way, like a religious buffet. Or one might assume Zoroastrianism is particular to a specific culture. Fair enough, but why is the culture of an Israeli carpenter from Nazareth relevant in Texas in 2020? Why was His culture compelling to African slaves who adopted the religion of their oppressors in the United States in the 1700s and 1800s?
One thing on my mind during Holy Week is the fact Christ is 1,700 years older than the United States. How can someone who lived centuries before the formation of our country, from another continent, still be relevant? Why is He worshiped on Sunday mornings around the world? When Christ grabbed me in a metaphorical headlock, I wrestled with the idea of the Old Testament as the only true word of God. The Torah is factually older, no question. If the New Testament was fabricated, why aren’t there 2.1 billion Jewish converts in place of Christians? In no way am I saying Judaism is false, maybe the New Testament fulfills the story, exactly as it claims.
I can’t “logic” or “history” you into belief. Christianity is a combination of faith and empirical evidence. Most of all, it lives or dies on the idea of Christ’s love for you and every person you know. His love — if true — is the most powerful force imagined. Risk the force. I encourage you to try a simple little prayer below. Ask God to reveal Himself. Try it this week as we head towards Easter. Be skeptical, you won’t be the first. Keep your radar up, and see what happens. Possibly-maybe the door opens for a journey you’ll never regret.
“God, if you’re real, I want to know you. I’m not sure what I believe about you or heaven, or the idea that I’m not good enough for entrance. Show me the path. If this guy Jesus is relevant, if He’s real, if He can help me and make my life better, I’m all ears.”
Occam’s razor says “when presented with competing hypotheses that make the same predictions, one should select the solution with the fewest assumptions.” It’s paraphrased, “the simplest solution is most likely the right one.” The explanations and conspiracies about how Christianity spread, become far too complicated unless…
John 14:6 is true. Occam’s razor… Jesus is God.
See ya next time. ML