Chasing God's Grace - Finding Faith in a Secular Society

Dedicated to preachers Charlie and John, of Castlemilk; to Pastor Hugh of Mossvale; and to Moses Lupton, who appears to have spoken to me from beyond the grave.

Job 11:7 'Can you fathom the mysteries of God? Can you probe the limits of the Almighty?' - Job 11:7

 

It was Monday, 8 May 2017. I had a brief exchange via WhatsApp with John, a preacher at the church I attended. I told him that I found it difficult to reconcile the 'God of the Old Testament' with the teachings of Jesus. I cited the book of Job and asked how testing Job in such a way in order to win a bet with Satan, was an act of a loving God. I seem to recall John advised me to pray, and in any event that's what I did. The following morning, I received my daily verse from The Berean:

 

Just to put that into perspective, there are more than 31,000 verses in the Bible! 

I don't claim to fully understand scripture; I am not a Biblical scholar. However, as a Christian, I feel it's my duty to attempt to make sense of my professed beliefs. I am not dogmatic in my approach and open to correction. 

Introduction

Being a Christian today is not fashionable and probably hasn't been for many decades. I've been ridiculed by some of my friends, who assert that I believe in a 'sky fairy', whilst much of wider society perceives Christians to be judgemental reactionaries seeking to impose their conservative values on a reluctant, libertine society. Alternatively, contemporary Christians are portrayed as sanctimonious, prudish evangelists such as Ned Flanders in The Simpsons.

Hostility towards Christianity is nothing new, of course, but it is becoming increasingly evident. A 2022 report, by Open Doors, confirmed that Christianity was the world's most persecuted religion. Christians today face discrimination, if not outright persecution, in Communist countries such as China, Vietnam and North Korea. In the Middle East, Christians are often prevented, by law, from openly practising their faith in countries like Saudi Arabia and Iran.

Even in the West, The Faith has been mocked throughout the ages. Indeed, I can recall several egregious examples from memory: the Hellfire Club of the 1700s; Monty Python's Life of Brian; the infamous Piss Christ 'art' piece; and Jerry Springer: The Opera. It is routinely derided or criticised in a way that simply would not be countenanced were it applied to other faiths. For example, in Scotland recently, Kate Forbes faced significant adverse media attention on account of her Christian beliefs and their perceived incompatibility with issues such as LGBT rights. Humza Yousaf's beliefs did not receive similar scrutiny, despite his claim to be a practising Muslim! Even my home city of Glasgow, in 2009, hosted a publicly-funded art exhibition, in which people defaced a Bible:

I simply cannot imagine a Scottish art exhibition hosting an event in which people are encouraged to deface any other religious text, let alone receive public funding. On the contrary, I suspect the police would intervene. 

It may not be surprising, therefore that most Scots no longer identify with Christianity:

 

[Source: Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_Scotland]

This is a trend replicated across the Occident. Christianity's decline appears to have been warmly received by the chattering classes, who see it as confirmation that the UK is finally unburdening itself of what it perceives to be superstitious nonsense which has, hitherto, hindered social reform or even been the cause of inequality. Peter Ormerod, writing for The Guardian in 2018, encapsulated this view:

'It’s quite a statement. “Christianity as a default, as a norm, is gone, and probably gone for good,” said Prof Stephen Bullivant this week, in response to figures showing widespread rejection of Christianity among Europe’s young people. He adds a slender caveat: “Or at least for the next 100 years.”

Plenty of people will find all this to be cause for celebration. It’s like a Philip Pullman fantasy made real: the young people of Europe casting off the deadening, corrupting, malignant influence of religion. They appear to be putting that ancient, feeble entity called God out of his misery. It could be seen as a sloughing off of superstition, a thrilling engagement with reality and reason...'

[Source: Peter Ormerod, “So Christianity is no longer the norm? Going underground will do it good,” The Guardian, March 23, 2018]

I was baptised on the 15th May 2016. So, why, you may wonder, did I embrace the Christian faith at a time when the West is rejecting it?

Firstly, I would like to emphasise that I was not raised in the Christian faith, at least not at home. My parents were not religious and I wasn't baptised, which might seem surprising given my biblical name, which was inspired by the fictional character from Thomas Hardy's Far from the Madding Crowd. Whilst my mother would occasionally claim to be an agnostic, she often told me that religion was, "a load of crap." However, she does have an appreciation for ecclesiastical architecture and as a child I frequently visited Worcester Cathedral. She also bought a New English Bible for the family, which I claimed as my own. My father has always been an unwavering atheist. 

Despite my parents' lack of faith, I was fortunate to have attended Church of England schools from the age of nine, by virtue of them being the closest to the family home, and consequently became familiar with much of the Bible. 

I would like to say that I have always been searching for God, but I think, if I am honest, I may have lost that yearning for several years in my teens. Like many teenagers, I was preoccupied with hedonistic pursuits and I was scornful of my clean-living Christian contemporaries. I can even recall staying at a friend's house overnight, having passed out drunk, and the pair of us being woken up by the bells of the neighbouring church, immediately adjacent to his parents' property, and shouting obscenities at the churchgoers from his window. The truth is, I do not have a spotless past, far from it. However, I would say that for most of my life I've had a yearning to understand the purpose of my existence. The idea that human beings are simply biological machines with no real function contradicts my deepest instinct. Indeed, by and large man is a spiritual creature and religion has been found in every civilisation from antiquity to the present.

Secondly, I want to state that I investigated many religions before getting baptised. It occurred to me that it was just too convenient that I was adopting my ancestors' faith and that the only religious text in my home was a Bible. I could write a lot about this, but will save it for another time, or add it as an appendage.

The Christian Faith

Nobody can reasonably claim to be a Christian without defining what their beliefs are. Given there has not been a single, universal church in the West since at least the Reformation (1517 A.D.), and that there are now literally thousands of churches with different doctrines, it's less straightforward than it may appear.

I believe the following:

• The Holy Trinity - one God in three, distinct persons: Father, Son & Holy Ghost.

• That Jesus Christ was both God incarnate but, paradoxically, wholly man.

• That Christ died for our sins, was resurrected and returned to heaven.

• By confessing (acknowledging and showing remorse) our sins, we too can go to heaven.

• That one should try to practice the tenets of the Christian faith, as preached by Jesus and revealed in the Bible. 

• The veneration of Mary, Mother of God, is justifiable and was standard practice until the Reformation. 

• The existence of God's adversary, Lucifer.

I believe the Bible is mostly allegorical and metaphorical, it is not supposed to be interpreted literally, certainly not all of it. A clear example is Revelation, with its mysterious creatures and four horsemen. Another is the Bible's reference to Jesus as the 'Lamb of God' (John 1:29), which is clearly not literal! Given that we know Jesus is God incarnate and that He spoke in parables, it makes sense that God's revelation, as documented in the Bible, is not intended to be wholly literal. 

More controversially, perhaps, is my contention that the theory of evolution and Christian doctrine are not incompatible. On the contrary, just as an oak tree grows from a seed over many decades, I believe that humanity evolved over countless millennia. This is replicated all across nature; consider how a human foetus develops over the gestation period, yet at the beginning it is unrecognisable as a human being. I believe Genesis refers to humans having evolved, too, something I intend to elaborate on further.

'Controversial' Doctrine

There are some tenets of my faith, such as the veneration of Mary, which are rejected by every one of my mentors. I would argue that Mary, Mother of Jesus, was the Living Tabernacle. I believe that this explains the purpose of the Tabernacle in the Old Testament - it was a premonition that God would really dwell upon the earth. I don't accept that God literally lived in a tent in the desert. Mary, on the other hand, literally carried God within her! 

Much of the Old Testament is replicated in the New Testament. In Genesis 22, Abraham was commanded to sacrifice his son, Isaac. Reluctantly, he obliged and took his son and was prepared to follow his instructions; however God prevented him from killing the boy:

12 “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”

Of course, God did send His son to be sacrificed for us. 

Now consider how Genesis is reflected in the New Testament! In Genesis, the serpent (Lucifer) speaks to Eve and Damnation enters the world. In the New Testament, the angel Gabriel speaks to Mary and Salvation enters the world. As St. Irenaeus, the second-century bishop of Lyon, teaches: 

"And thus, as the human race fell into bondage to death by means of a virgin, so is it rescued by a virgin; virginal disobedience having been balanced in the opposite scale by virginal obedience. For in the same way the sin of the first created man receives amendment by the correction of the First-begotten, and the cunning of the serpent is conquered by the harmlessness of the dove, those bonds being unloosed by which we had been fast bound to death. And thus also it was that the knot of Eve’s disobedience was loosed by the obedience of Mary. For what the virgin Eve had bound fast through unbelief, this did the virgin Mary set free through faith." 

[Source: St. Irenaeus of Lyons, Against Heresies, Book III, Chapter 22, Section 4, ~A.D. 180.]

Where Eve came from Adam, Jesus was born of Mary. The Ark of the Covenant, known as the 'Holy of Holies', was the most sacred object for the Israelites. Mary, as the new Ark of the Covenant, playing host to God, must have been without sin, and I would submit is also worthy of veneration. To claim that the earthly vessel of God was simply 'an ordinary woman' is the real heresy, in my humble opinion. Up until the Reformation this was standard doctrine. If you have ever asked someone to pray on your behalf - be it a pastor or a friend - then why can you not pray to Mary for intercession, too? It's illogical.

Let me make it clear, veneration, is not the same as worship. The word is defined as meaning, 'great respect, reverence.' I would argue this is something endorsed by the Bible itself (Luke 1:48).

My research leads me to conclude that the one and true Church is, or rather was (until the 1960s), the Roman Catholic Church. This will be explored in a future post, as it's too vast to be fully considered in this article. However, as the oldest surviving Western institution, it's hard to dispute that Vatican has been blessed. Furthermore, would Christianity have spread throughout Europe or survived to the present era without the Roman Church?

Then, of course, there is God's adversary, who goes by a number of aliases - the Devil, Satan, Beelzebub, and, my preferred choice, Lucifer.   

'Do you really mean, at this time of day, to re-introduce our old friend the devil—hoofs and horns and all?’ Well, what the time of day has to do with it I do not know. And I am not particular about the hoofs and horns. Yet in other respects my answer is "Yes, I do." But I do not claim to know anything about his personal appearance.' - C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

The Bible refers to Lucifer as a fallen angel (Isaiah 14:12-15). To me, this makes the most sense. Lucifer is a seducer, he is the embodiment of temptation. In the Gospel of John, Jesus refers to Lucifer (or Satan) as the 'prince of this world' three times. During the temptation in the wilderness, Lucifer tempted Jesus thus:

5 The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6 And he said to him, “I will give you all their authority and splendour; it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. 7 If you worship me, it will all be yours.”

Lucifer promised Jesus earthly treasures, 'authority and splendour.' That is how he tempts his minions here on earth to do his bidding, by rewarding them with earthly treasures and power. They may often appear smartly dressed, eloquent, and charming. Their mission is to corrupt man and lead him away from Salvation. 

Finally, I struggle with the concept of Hell. I find it difficult to reconcile eternal damnation with the teachings of Jesus. Of course, many people dear to me - friends and relatives - are destined for Hell because they have rejected God and that greatly upsets me. As an unmarried man in a six-year (wholly monogamous) relationship, am I also damned? As a dry drunk, and a curmudgeon with an anxiety disorder, I fear that I would be difficult to live with and that I am not a dependable person, and am therefore wholly unsuited to marriage. I ask God to forgive me this!

Why do we need redemption?

Genesis 3 describes the Fall of man and is profound. It's traditionally suggested that man chose to sin, and thus rebelled against God, by eating the fruit. However, I find that to be a harsh interpretation, because it's clear that the Serpent convinces Eve to eat the fruit. Furthermore, if the couple were not aware of the concept of good and evil prior to eating the fruit, then what was expected of them was blind obedience.

'For the Almighty God, who, as even the heathen acknowledge, has supreme power over all things, being Himself supremely good, would never permit the existence of anything evil among His works if He were not so omnipotent and good that He can bring good even out of evil.' - Augustine of Hippo

The idea that the Fall has been part of a divine plan is almost as old as the Christian faith itself. The above quote from Saint Augustine, who died in 430 A.D., refers to the Fall. It is a logical conclusion - if God is omnipotent and perfectly good, then why would He permit man's temptation? 

Genesis 3:5: "For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." By eating the fruit, man came to know 'good and evil.' In other words, man developed a conscience! This also accords with the Triune Brain theory, which posits that there are three parts to our brain - the reptilian, the mammalian and the frontal lobe - which have developed as man has evolved from a reptilian creature to a mammal and then finally into a human being. I think it's particularly interesting that Lucifer is represented by a serpent (a reptile), which appears to imply that our basest instincts are our undoing.

Genesis 3:7: 'Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realised they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.' So, like animals, the pair were naked prior to eating the fruit!

Genesis 3:16: 'To the woman he said, “I will make your pains in childbearing very severe;
with painful labour you will give birth to children...' Interestingly, due to man's relatively large head, childbirth is much more difficult for humans compared to animals. 

Having evolved a conscience, man is cursed. We know right from wrong, but will often choose to do wrong because it benefits us, and thus came the concept of sin. It is the awareness that one is doing something wrong, yet still choosing to do it, which is evil. This concept is reflected in our criminal justice system - we have the age of legal responsibility, before which a child is not considered culpable, and one can also be found not guilty of a crime 'by reason of insanity.' Furthermore, to be found guilty of murder, it needs to be shown that the perpetrator acted with malice aforethought. Who hasn't wilfully committed an immoral act?

In Genesis 8:21, God makes a promise, “Never again will I curse the ground because of humans, even though every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done."

I am somewhat misanthropic. Whilst I have met many decent people throughout my life, and have acquired some good friends along the way, I'm convinced that people are inherently selfish, egotistical and hypocritical. I include myself in that, as, despite my name, I am no angel. 

We are fortunate to live in a modern society, in which there is an abundance of food, shelter, medical provisions, a welfare state, entertainment and technology. That gives man a veneer of civility. However, in a Lord of the Flies scenario, the vast majority of us would quickly revert to our bestial lower nature. Even now, in the most prosperous of times, we see glimpses of this each time there is rioting and looting.

The Redeemer

“Only a bad person needs to repent: only a good person can repent perfectly… The only person who could do it perfectly would be a perfect person—and he would not need it.” - C.S. Lewis

Consider now that Heaven is a perfect realm. It follows that in order to remain perfect, we would need to have our sin removed prior to entering through those Pearly Gates. If we are not cleansed of sin, then it would surely enter with us, hence the need for our redemption. 

'For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.' - 2 Corinthians 8:9

One aspect of the Christian faith that puzzled me for a long time was the need for a Triune God. I couldn't understand the need for God to have multiple personalities. However, just imagine that God sent someone else, instead of Himself, to suffer for our sins! Offering up another to be tortured to death to repay a debt, even someone else's debt, doesn't appear to be all that virtuous, does it? Conversely, a God who left the comfort of Heaven to live the life of a humble man and offer himself up as a sacrifice, really is the act of a selfless, loving creator. He needed to be wholly human, too, though. As if He was not wholly man, would He suffer like one? 

God, as Jesus Christ, really did humble Himself. Consider the following:

• Jesus was not a physically attractive man. 'He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.' (Isaiah 53:2)

• The Bible implies Jesus was born in a stable, though it's not explicitly stated: 'and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.' (Luke 2:7)

• He had no home. “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” (Matthew 8:20)

• He associated with the marginalised, 'But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”' (Luke 5:30). 

• Many people hated him, “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first." (John 15:18) Indeed, Jews hated Him so much they were prepared to have Barabbas, a notorious prisoner, released rather than Jesus, whose execution they demanded. (Matthew 27:16-20)

• He washed his disciples' feet, 'After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.' (John 13:5)

The Sacrifice

Tom Holland vividly describes the disgusting brutality of Roman society in his book, Dominion - The Making of the Western Mind (see below). That rebellious slaves were tortured to death in such a way, is testament to man's evil nature. If further proof were required, consider that the penalty for patricide was being sewn into a leather sack with various animals (poena cullei) and thrown into a river. Again, I would emphasise that, but for material affluence, I suspect man would quickly revert to such barbarism once more. A sobering thought.

'No death was more excruciating, more contemptible, than crucifixion. To be hung naked, 'long in agony, swelling with ugly weals on shoulders and chest', helpless to beat away the clamorous birds: such a fate, Roman intellectuals agreed, was the worst imaginable. This in turn was what rendered it so suitable a punishment for slaves. Lacking such a sanction, the entire order of the city might fall apart.

(...)

So foul was the carrion-reek of their disgrace that many felt tainted by even viewing a crucifixion. The Romans, for all that they had adopted the punishment as the 'supreme penalty', refused to countenance the possibility that it might have originated with them. Only a people famed for the barbarousness and cruelty could have ever devised such a torture: the Persians, perhaps, or the Assyrians, or the Gauls. Everything about the practice of nailing a man to a cross - a 'crux' - was repellent. 'Why, the very word is harsh on our ears.' It was this disgust that crucifixion uniquely inspired which explained why, when slaves were condemned to death, they were executed in the meanest, wretchedest stretch of land beyond the city walls...Criminals broken on implements of torture: who were such filth to concern men of breeding and civility? Some deaths were so vile, so squalid, that it was best to draw a veil across them entirely.'

[Source: Tom Holland, Dominion: The Making of the Western Mind (Little, Brown, 2019), Preface, pp. xiv–xv]

Jesus died the death of a slave! He'd been flogged mercilessly, humiliated and taunted, made to wear a crown of thorns and yet, He asked for those who persecuted Him to be forgiven! (Luke 23:34)

Jesus' last words on the cross were, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46 & Mark 15:34). Whilst it may appear that He was decrying God for abandoning Him, this was not the case. He was quoting the first line of Psalm 22, which prophesies His crucifixion. Verse one encapsulates the loneliness and fear which Jesus the man experienced:

1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from saving me,
so far from my cries of anguish?

Verses 6-9 succinctly describe the ordeal that he had experienced - the mocking and contempt at the hands of His own people:

6 But I am a worm and not a man,
scorned by everyone, despised by the people.
7 All who see me mock me;
they hurl insults, shaking their heads.
8 “He trusts in the Lord,” they say,
“let the Lord rescue him.
Let him deliver him,
since he delights in him.”

Verses 14-18 clearly foretell His death by crucifixion and the agony of the cross: 

14 I am poured out like water,
and all my bones are out of joint.
My heart has turned to wax;
it has melted within me.
15 My mouth is dried up like a potsherd,
and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth;
you lay me in the dust of death.

16 Dogs surround me,
a pack of villains encircles me;
they pierce my hands and my feet.
17 All my bones are on display;
people stare and gloat over me.
18 They divide my clothes among them
and cast lots for my garment.

Yet, Psalm 22 does not end in despair. Verses 24-27 proclaim God’s faithfulness and hints at man's salvation:

24 For he has not despised or scorned
the suffering of the afflicted one;
he has not hidden his face from him
but has listened to his cry for help.

25 From you comes the theme of my praise in the great assembly

before those who fear you I will fulfill my vows.

26 The poor will eat and be satisfied;
those who seek the Lord will praise him—
may your hearts live forever!

27 All the ends of the earth
will remember and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
will bow down before him

Jesus' crucifixion was clearly foretold in Psalm 22, which is considered to have been written approximately 1,000 BC! It would, therefore, have been commonly known by contemporary Jews who would have been aware of the message, ultimately one of triumph, which Jesus was trying to convey.

Jesus' death on the cross paid the price for our sins. Lambs were traditionally sacrificed by the Jews to atone for their sins (Leviticus 17:11), hence why Jesus is known as the Lamb of God. 

Christ - the Exemplar

Jesus' death was a horrific ordeal. The fact He, sinless and a literal paragon of virtue, suffered such an agonising fate to redeem our sins, is surely the most selfless act one can imagine. His blood bought our freedom and gave us the gift of everlasting life. His sacrifice is an example to us all. 

This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. - 1 John 3:16

However, it was not just his blood sacrifice. The New Testament is replete with examples of Jesus' magnanimity and selflessness. For example, He:

• Healed the sick. (Matt. 8:16–17; Mark 1:32–34)

• Fed the multitudes. (Matt. 14:13–21; 15:32–38)

• Washed His disciples' feet, including the feet of Judas. (John 13:4–5, 14–15)

• Subdued a mob intent on stoning a woman to death. (John 8)

• Healed the ear of the man who was arresting Him. (Matt. 26:51-52) 

It's His preaching of forgiveness that really resonates with me, however. They are as profound as they are gentle:

• "For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” (Matt. 6:14-15)

• 'Then Peter came up and said to him, "Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?" Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.”' (Matt. 18:21-22) 

• “And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.” (Mark 11:25) 

• “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” (Matt. 7:12) 

• “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” (Mark 12:31) 

• “But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.” (Luke 6:27-28)

• “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgement you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.” (Matt. 7:1-2) 

• “But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matt. 20:26-28) 

• “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.” (Matt. 5:7) 

• “For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?” (Matt. 5:46)

One that I find stirs my emotions is that, despite His own suffering on the cross, Jesus entrusted John with the care of His mother:

26 When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to her, “Woman, here is your son,” 27 and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home. (John 19:26-27)

It is impossible for me to distil and articulate the wisdom, compassion and selflessness of Jesus in such a short composition. I simply lack the required eloquence. 

Evidence in Support of Christianity

When I first began investigating the life of Christ, it was important to me to establish that His life was not solely legendary, but that it was substantiated by historical records and other objective evidence. I will compile a brief list of reasons that persuaded me to explore the Christian faith more fully. There are a number of books which explore the subject in great depth, such as The Historical Jesus by Gary Habermas or Jesus and the Eyewitnesses by Richard Bauckham. The consensus amongst historians is that Jesus existed, however this is not proof of His divinity. I was finally convinced to embrace the faith through a number of events that affected me on a personal level, which is something I will consider in another post.

• There is historical evidence which testifies to the existence of Jesus Christ. In addition to Biblical sources, two Roman historians referred to Him, Tacitus and Suetonius, as well as a Roman governor, Pliny the Younger. Given Judea was one of a number of Roman provinces, a remote colony, it would be unreasonable to expect there to be an abundance of Roman sources, and these are therefore significant. Tacitus' record confirms the crucifixion. Additionally, a Jewish historian, Josephus also wrote about the existence of Christ. 

• To emphasise the relative scarcity of historical records documenting historical figures contemporaneous with Jesus Christ, consider that very little is known about Pontius Pilate. The BBC reports, thus: 

The truth about Pilate is difficult to ascertain since records are few. Legends say he was a Spaniard or a German, but most likely he was a natural-born Roman citizen from central Italy.

But the fact that he was definitely the Procurator of Judea from 26 to 36 AD helps to establish Jesus as a real person and fixes him in time.

(...)

Pilate is recorded by several contemporary historians; his name is inscribed on Roman coins and on a stone dug up in Caesarea in the 1960s with the words, PONTIUS PILATUS PRAEFECTUS PROVINCIAE JUDAEAE.

The governorship of Judea was only a second-rate posting, though having the Jewish religious capital, Jerusalem, on its patch would have increased its importance.

(...)

One contemporary Jewish historian Philo, describes him as a violent thug, fond of executions without trial. Another, Josephus, records that, at the start of his term, Pilate provoked the Jews by ordering the imperial standards to be carried into Jerusalem.

[Source: Pontius Pilate: Man behind the myth, BBC, 13th April 2001 - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1273594.stm]

• The Shroud of Turin, once dismissed as a fake, is now considered to be much older than originally thought. Furthermore, I understand that it's still not fully understood how the image was created:

• Jesus was crucified in or around A.D. 33. He prophesied the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem:

20 “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near. 21 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city. 22 For this is the time of punishment in fulfilment of all that has been written. 23 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. 24 They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled." (Luke 21:20-24)

In A.D. 70, Roman forces destroyed the Temple. The historian Josephus recorded that 97,000 Jews were taken prisoner and sold as slaves within the Roman Empire.

• Jesus' ministry occurred during the early Roman Empire, a period of peace and stability known as Pax Romana. This allowed His message to spread with relative ease throughout the Mediterranean region, and later across the whole continent. It was the perfect time for Christianity to flourish. I argue this reflects divine providence.

• With the exception of John, all eleven Apostles were martyred. Tacitus' writings confirm the persecution of Christians by Nero. Are people generally willing to die for a falsehood?

• The Roman Empire, which crucified Christ (at the behest of Jews), adopted Christianity as its religion by A.D. 380 (Edict of Thessalonica). This it went from persecutor to proponent. This, I argue, further indicates divine providence at work.

• Perhaps the most intriguing evidence, is the genealogy found in Genesis 5! The Christian author Charles W. Missier noticed that each Hebrew name had a meaning in English. When put together they surely prophesy the coming of Jesus:
  

  Adam Man
  Seth Appointed
  Enosh Mortal
  Kenan Sorrow;
  Mahalalel The Blessed God
  Jared Shall come down
  Enoch Teaching
  Methuselah His death shall bring
  Lamech The Despairing
  Noah Rest, or comfort.

'Man appointed mortal sorrow. The Blessed God shall come down teaching. His death shall bring the despairing comfort.' Now, consider that Genesis is thought to have been written in 1400 BC!

• The Bible states that the Jewish people are God's chosen (Deuteronomy 7:6, Deuteronomy 14:2, Isaiah 41:8-9 & Romans 11:29). If that is the case, one might expect them to be blessed with exceptional talent, which would be evident throughout history. A cursory glance at history confirms this is the case. Consider the Jewish contribution to the modern world: Freud, Einstein, Oppenheimer, Marx, Durkheim, to name but a few. Jewish people make up just 0.2% of the world's population, yet, >20% of Nobel Prize winners! [Source: Steven L. Pease; The Golden Age of Jewish Achievement: The Compendium of a Culture, a People, and Their Stunning Performance]

• Finally, there is the fulfilment of prophecy. I believe we're now living in the End Times. As demonstrated earlier, we're now in the midst of 'the rebellion' (2 Thessalonians 2:3). Matthew 24:10-12:

'10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold.' 

 

'He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.'

- Matthew 28:6

Happy Easter 2025

Beannachd Dhè air an Àrd-Athar

A Dhè, beannaich mo chridhe,
Mo shùil, mo ghlùn, mo chluas,
Cum mi sàbhailt anns an oidhche,
Agus stiùir mi gu do ghlòir.