Can Jesus Be Trusted?
As a follow-up to the post, “What is Truth”, I thought it would be fitting to examine the question: Can Jesus be Trusted?
Simultaneously, we are also asking, can the Bible be trusted? Since Jesus is the word and all sixty-six books of the Bible point to him, it would be unfathomable to separate the Bible's content from the character of Jesus.
A common question that arises concerning the Bible is, "well, if men wrote it, why should I receive it as the final authority of all truth?" The first thing to note is that there is a difference between the author of the scriptures and the Bible's translators. The author of the scriptures is God, and the translators of the Bible, or "textual analysts," did their best to decide which copies best resemble the autographs and produce a "critical edition of the Old and New Testament." (Hays, 2001,2005.2012.2020, p. 6) The various versions of the Bible that we have today underwent multiple processes to get into our hands what we now use as the blueprint for our faith in Jesus Christ.
The various versions of the Bible that we have today
underwent multiple processes to get into our hands what we now use as the blueprint for our faith in Jesus Christ
2 Timothy 3:16 says this:
“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” - ESV
The Apostle Paul was speaking about all the Old Testament and some of the New Testament writings. What gives the Bible its divine authority is that God, who is Spirit, moved upon these writers, compelling them to write or preserve what they received from God for our conversion and usefulness in training. The question of trusting the Bible is in exploring the character of Christ. (2 Peter 1:20-21)
The Holman Illustrated Handbook says this:
“Christian belief in the full trustworthiness, authority, and inspiration or inerrancy of the texts requires a leap of faith beyond what historical evidence alone can demonstrate. But it is not a leap in the dark, flying in the face of the evidence. It is a conscious choice consistent with the evidence that does exist.” (Holman Illustrated Bible Handbook, 2012, p. 351)
God is faithful. The faithfulness of God isn’t just something he does; it is who Jesus is.
Revelations 19:10 reveals that Jesus is not only victorious, but his name is Faithful and True; he is the faithful witness (Rev. 1:5). Jesus came to bear witness of the Father and that God's truth was real. The Greek word for "bear witness" is "martureo," which means to bear witness, give evidence, testify, and give a good report. (Bible Hub , 2004-2021)
When Jesus learned that John the Baptist was in prison, he sent word to him saying these things:
“Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.” Matt. 11:4-6
In another conversation with the religious leaders, he tells them that if they do not believe who he is, consider the works or the evidence that testifies to his divinity. The miracles he performed proved that he was not just a man but fully God. Jesus Christ is still working through his Spirit, indwelling believers to move miraculously; he is still testifying who he is through believers (John 10:38).
The most significant evidence we have to the validity of Jesus Christ is the transformation that occurs after one has received Jesus Christ into their heart as Lord and Savior. We see this in Paul's life, in Acts 9:20-22; Paul persecuted those that named the name of Jesus and transformed to preaching in the name of Jesus!
That is one biblical example, but I could testify to the power of God in my own life.
I can attest to how God delivered me from pornography just from reading the scriptures, from having a history of fornication to being abstinent for four years until I met my husband. Our first sexual encounter was our wedding night, or how he took my appetite for drinking and gave me a desire for his word. These things may not seem like much to some, but everyone has something that they struggle with that, without the power of God intervening in our affairs, we would never get free. These personal encounters are undeniable, and they leave a lasting imprint in our faith.
As I was praying about this subject. The Lord told me to do so from the perspective of him as the "I Am." I went to the book of John because it contains the "I am" statements of Jesus. I went to bed stuck, wondering how this explains how we can trust Christ? I uttered “Lord help,” and went to sleep.
I woke up, and, in summary, this is what he revealed. Moses asked God in Exodus 3:13, what name shall he give to the people when they ask who sent him? God replies in verse 14, “tell them that I Am that I am, tell them that l Am sent you.”
In those days, Egyptians believed in many gods; it was important for Moses to know God's identity by precisely asking his name. Back then, a person's name let us know something important about the person. By Moses asking this question, his hope may have been that the Hebrews would already know God. Each time the phrase "I am" was used in these verses, it is a form of the Hebrew verb, and it means "to be"; it relates to the divine name, Yahweh or "the Lord." "I am" can also be translated, "I will be." The name Yahweh was a clear reminder to the people of the faithfulness of God that he would be with them. (Check out this study on the meaning of Yahweh from Bible Study Tools.) He reminds them that he is the God of their fathers, the God who was faithful to them then and will be devoted to them now. God was saying, consider my track record; he did not fail their fathers and would not fail them.
Yahweh, Jesus, our Lord, revealed in the New Testament. God has highly exalted him and given him a name above every name. By nature, Jesus is God, but humbled himself as a servant, in human likeness, unto death, and his obedience exalted him.
“My precious child, I love you and will never leave you, never, ever during your trials and testings. When you saw only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.”
from “Footprints In The Sand” by Mary Fishback Powers
God was not telling me to rattle off the list of the "I am" statements in John. God was saying, “Remember Me.”
There is a famous poem known as "Footprints in the Sand." It is a poem about how God is with us in every season of our lives. Even when we could not see what he was doing for us, he was present. You can read about Jesus in the scriptures and hear about him through others, but the impact of who he is comes through experience. God was saying, consider your history with him.
My husband said something profound as we discussed this topic. He said this:
"It is the going through of life, the tests and trials, that we can try God and prove that he is what he says he is. It's a short memory; we don't have to think that far back."
It is in those moments when you need help, and Jesus shows up as the helper. When you experience death or a traumatic event, and he shows up as the Comforter. When your sins beset you, he shows up as The Door. When you need rescue, and he shows up as Savior. When you require the care of God, he shows up as the good Shepherd. When you were abandoned and orphaned, and he shows up as Father. When you need an idea or strategy, he shows up as creator. When you do not know what to write, he shows up as the author and the finisher!
He is the "I Am" He made all things, and without him was not anything made that was made. (John 1:3) He is the sum of the Godhead bodily. He is everything that you need. He changes not. It is in the unchanging nature of God that we can trust. His love is unconditional, and we see it in his mercy and grace. I did not wake myself up this morning, and neither did you. It is his very breath in my lungs that I breathe right now. David said, I lie down and wake again because the Lord sustained me.
Men can refute your research, but they can never take from you your lived experience with God.
Beyond all the resources and the research, this is how we learn that we can trust Jesus. It's through experiential knowledge that we come to know him. Men can refute your research, but they can never take from you your lived experience with God. It is overtime where he consistently shows up in your circumstances that you learn to trust him and take him at his word. He said heaven and earth would pass away, but the word of God will not. Why not? Because he will not! Jesus is alive, and he is God. He is eternal; he is not governed by time as we are. He has stepped into time and placed within his redeemed, a piece of eternity in the earth.
Friends, I want to pray for you. I pray that you take some time and recall who God has been to you.
As you reflect on Him, may your trust in him deepen. If you have never had a personal encounter with the Lord, I pray he visits you and reveals himself to you so that you may know him. May you lean not to your understanding but acknowledge Him in all your ways and let him direct your path. I pray this in the matchless name of Yahweh, who is the Christ, our Lord, and blessed Savior.
Go Deeper…
Scripture references for further study:
Philippians 2:5-11; Revelations 1:5, 3:7, 3:14, 21:15; Hebrews 13:8; John 6:35, 41, 48, 51, John 8:12, John 10:7,9; John 11:25; John 10:11, 14, John 15:1,5
Reflection points:
Reflecting on your history with God and using the 7 "I am" statements listed in the book of John (scripture references above), which aspect of God's nature have you experienced?
What is the difference between the author of the scriptures and the translators of the Bible?
How does a person's personal transformation story prove as evidence of the validity of Christ?
Resources:
(2004-2021). Retrieved from Bible Hub : https://biblehub.com/; https://biblehub.com/greek/3140.htm
Hays, j. S. (2001,2005.2012.2020). A Hands-On Approach to Reading, Interpreting, and applying the Bible: Grasping God's Word. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Academic.
Holman Illustrated Bible Handbook. (2012). Nashville: Holman Bible Publishers.
