Photo by Christian Buehner on Unsplash
Here are a few recent stories from various news outlets regarding Christians.
Famous author slammed after taking shots at ‘Bible,’ calling it a work of fiction.
Newly elected Speaker of the House Rep. Mike Johnson, R-La., responded to liberals and those in the media trashing him for his Christian faith Tuesday.
There is a sense today, actually a reality, that Christians, the Christian family, the Christian church and nonprofit ministry organizations, including missions and certainly universities are under attack.
They are now experiencing direct, head-on challenges to their existence or worthiness, to their beliefs, values, and goals. And they are experiencing flanking movements, hijacking the meaning of words or promoting new anti-biblical ideologies, approaches that are just as threatening, if not more so, as the frontal assaults.
These stories and many others have prompted me to declare that Jesus is alive in 2024.
Here are a few verses from the (not fictional) Bible that stand as beacons for Christ followers in 2024.
The skeptic swore, “There is no God! No God! – I can do anything I want!
I’m more animal than human; so-called human intelligence escapes me.
“I flunked ‘wisdom.’ I see no evidence of a holy God.
Has anyone ever seen Anyone climb into Heaven and take charge? grab the winds and control them? gather the rains in his bucket? stake out the ends of the earth? Just tell me his name, tell me the names of his sons. Come on now – tell me!”
The believer replied, “Every promise of God proves true; he protects everyone who runs to him for help.
So don’t second-guess him; he might take you to task and show up your lies.”
Proverbs 30:1-6 The Message
If seeing is the only form of believing, then Christ-followers are doomed.
We believe having not seen.
We believe choosing to believe the Word of God is true.
We believe because of an inner witness that affirms the Word of God is true.
Then Jesus told him, “You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.” John 20:29 New Living Translation
After his resurrection, Jesus commended Thomas for believing that he (Jesus) had risen from the dead. However, he spoke to the future when he added, “Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.”
I’m Alive. I died, but I came to life, and my life is now forever. See these keys in my hand? They open and lock Death’s doors, they open and lock Hell’s gates.
Revelation 1:18 The Message
The resurrected Lord tells the excited John that he is alive, though once dead. He tells him that he possesses the keys to death, hell, and the grave. Whoever holds the keys holds the power to use the keys, and Jesus has exercised that power through his resurrection.
The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith, is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living. It’s our handle on what we can’t see.
Hebrews 11:1 The Message
Faith is a fundamental fact of existence. The glue holds together the belief in things we have yet to see.
Most importantly, I want to remind you that in the last days scoffers will come, mocking the truth and following their own desires.
II Peter 3:3 New Living Translation
Those who mock—make fun—of the truth will be prevalent in the last days. In my lifetime, I have seen that which was taboo become accepted, that which was sacred become ridiculed, and that which was a way of life become mocked, as many types of phobias.
You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. Matthew 10:22 New International Version
Jesus said you will make it if you hang with him until the end.
There is a great irony here: proclaiming so much love, experiencing so much hate! But don’t quit. Don’t cave in. It is all well worth it in the end. Matthew 10:22 The Message
The Message says it will be worth it if you hang with him (Jesus) until the end.
So, this day, I open my mouth and speak with my voice, proclaiming that Jesus is alive in 2024.
A close personal relationship with the Godhead provides you a living hope. It is a living anticipation full of expectation of something good happening.
A close personal relationship with the Godhead is a journey. I invite you to follow along. As I learn, I will pass it along so you, too, can learn. I hope that as you learn, you can pass it along so that I (and others) might learn.
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