Defending Your Hope
But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.
1 Peter 3:5
Christians always have Biblically sound reasoning for their belief in Christ. We never criticize others belief but with Godly wisdom and non-threatening open questions we gently lead them to the God’s truth. It is extremely important to know the reasons we believe the Bible, because the Christian religion is like no other religion. We will reveal some basic truths for why we belief the Bible.
If we look at other religions we see they were usually started by one person who they call a prophet. Muslims follow Mohammed who stated he got a revelation for God. Buddhists follow Buddha who also stated he got a revelation from God. The Christian religion was started by God himself through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. God revealed himself and his divine ways through many prophets. Another significant difference is that in other religions the prophet reveals instructions for how to live life while the Christian religion God reveals himself through the Bible and in our lives as he renews our mind and heart to be like him, and to fellowship with him through the indwelling Holy Spirit. The Lord is active in the Christian’s life.
We have the Ten Commands, not as rules, but to show the character of God and how we fall short due to our sinful nature. That is why the Lord renews our mind and changes our heart so we fulfill the command through a heart of love and forgiveness from Christ who intercedes for us to God the Father. Christ intercedes for us because he died a physical death for our sins and he understands the temptations we go through in this life. We fight sin through the power of the Holy Spirit and with forgiveness from Christ and we fulfill the law, and Christ intercedes for us to the Father, as sinless. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. (Romans 8:3-4)
God reveals himself through the Bible which was written by 40 authors with varying cultural and educational backgrounds over a period of approximately 1500 years. The authors came from 3 different continents – Asia, Africa, and Europe, and the Bible was written in three different languages – Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. Yet the 66 books of the Bible fit together perfectly, with the constant theme of God’s relationship to humanity and God’s plan of salvation through Christ. Historical and architectural discoveries have constantly supported the accuracy of the Bible. There are approximately 2500 prophesies in the Bible and about 2000 have been perfectly fulfilled in every detail hundreds of years later.. And the Bible is alive because it is discerned by the indwelling Holy Spirit who speaks only what he hears. (Hebrews 4:12, John 13:16)When we read and meditate on the Word the Lord will speak to us through the Spirit. No other religion has the Holy Spirit and its writings don’t claim to be alive.
Today know the scriptures and facts so you can defend the hope you have in Christ. Realize the blessings you have in Christ as he presents you sinless to the Father, and reveal the love, peace, and joy you have in Christ. Overcome all fear if other religions try and persecute you because great is reward in Heaven.
Prayer Lord, guide me to always give the hope I have in Christ. Give a hear of love to present this hope to others. In Jesus name, Amen