The above quote came from a government employee who was ridiculing the birth of Jesus, His life and resurrection. He was explaining why he opposed the “Christmas displays” that foster a belief in what he called “fairy tales.” As we all know, that is happening a lot these days, and the Bible is receiving a lot of opposition, to the point that they are being banned in some communities.
We know God never authorized a celebration of Jesus’ birthday as is so common today, but the opposition to “Christmas” is growing, and in several ways, that troubles me. What if our nation became so secularized that it became a crime to be a Christian, to assemble with other Christians to worship God, to utter the name of Jesus in public? Is that where we are headed? Is that what this nation is destined to be?
What about those Bible stories—are they merely “kid’s fairy tales”? Is the Bible filled with a “pack of lies”? All those stories—Is there any evidence for any of them? Or, are we merely being duped, believing fables? It may surprise some, but the Bible’s contents are very well supported by credible evidence, with historical facts that few have seen and most never even looked for. Often it has been honest skeptics themselves who have found the strongest support, evidence for the biblical text. One man who rejected the Bible is widely known universally—John Stuart Mill. Though he denied Jesus’ deity, Mill wrote the following about Him:
About the life and sayings of Jesus there is a stamp of personal originality combined with profundity of insight which must place the prophet of Nazareth, even in the estimation of those who have no belief in his inspiration, in the very first rank of the men of sublime genius of whom our species can boast.
To deny the inspiration of the prophetic words found in the Bible demands that we reject reason and ignore what evidence reveals. Many men of impeccable integrity, thinking logically, have investigated and overwhelmingly declared the evidence as valid. Scripture does not encourage closed minds in such things. As a matter of fact God demands that we “prove all things”
(1 Thess. 5:21). Thayer defines “prove” in these exact words: “Test; examine, scrutinize; to see whether a thing is genuine or not.” There were no “tricks,” no shenanigans. Readers of the Bible are told to investigate. The Bible is what it claims to be—no more, but certainly no less.
When honest people search out these things they discover that the words of the Bible are from inspired sources. The more modern “stories” that surround this time of the year are just that, stories. Contrariwise, when they search the Bible they find verifiable historical sources.
Note the following prophecies along with the accompanying fulfillment in the New Testament:
- He would be born in Bethlehem (see Micah 5:2).
- He would be born of a virgin (Isa. 7:14), and the fulfillment is recorded in Matthew 1:18-25.
- Men would slaughter babies hoping to kill Him (see Jer. 31:15; Matt. 2:16-18).
- His betrayal by a friend for thirty pieces of silver (Zech. 11; Matt. 26:14-16).
A potter’s field would be purchased by blood money paid for His betrayal (Zech. 11; Matt. 27:6-10). - None of His bones would be broken (Psa. 34:20; John 19:33-36).
- He would be born in the days of Roman kings (Dan. 2:31-44; Luke 2:1-3).
These and some 300 others, and Jesus is the only person who could and did fulfill them. Remember the words of 2 Peter 1:20-21: “Prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.”
Skeptics still deny it, and they can continue to do so until that Judgment Day, but nothing will change the fact that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. Neither the Bible nor God is on trial here or anywhere. It is man that is on trial, and a day is coming when a Righteous God will judge all who ever lived on this earth. Denying that fact changes nothing. Do your homework—search the scriptures with an open mind. The more you do, the more you will be convinced and want to be with Him throughout eternity.
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