There are over 400 prophecies in the Old Testament which point to the coming Messiah and to His life and death. Jesus Christ perfectly fulfilled every single one of them. The odds of someone doing that, who was not the Messiah, are too great to even figure. Yet, there are people who refuse to believe in Christ as the Son of God; while there are billions of others who accept Him as Lord and Savior of their lives.
When Jesus began His earthly ministry, many people didn’t believe in Him as the Son of God. Even his own half-brothers didn’t believe in Him at first. But after the resurrection of Christ, James, one of His half-brothers, would become a leader in the Jerusalem church. Peter made sure his release from prison was reported to James. Paul met with Peter and James to confirm his teachings about Christ.
When Jesus was arrested in the garden, the High Priest demanded that Christ proclaim whether He was the Son of God; Jesus answered, “Thou hast said.”
While Jesus was on the cross, the chief priests, scribes and elders all mocked Christ, saying: “He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him. He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.”
When Christ was on the cross, the vast majority of the crowd was mocking Him for claiming to be God’s Son. Yet, Mary, His mother was there. John, the disciple who was closest to Jesus, was there. The other disciples were there, watching from a distance, lest they be arrested and crucified with Christ. Maybe there were a few there of those who had received miraculous healings, or deliverances from demons, watching from a distance, while being confused over this man who could do miracles for them, yet could not come down from the cross. For the most part, everyone there was demanding His death, while mocking His suffering; while He was, in fact, suffering and shedding His Blood for the covering of their sins.
One man in the crowd cried out above the voices of all the others. This man was not a believer, he was not a follower of Christ, he was just there following orders; but even a pagan Roman soldier could tell when something supernatural was happening around him. When the Sun refused to shine for three hours, when the earth quaked and the veil in the temple was torn top to bottom, the Centurion cried out: “Surely this man was the Son of God!”
There was also another invisible being and his followers there that day, who believed that Jesus was the Son of God. Satan and his demons gloated over the death of Christ, thinking that they had outwitted Jehovah and thwarted the plan of salvation for mankind. They would get a big surprise in three days, when the tomb was found empty and Christ was seen, by many hundreds of people, walking the streets of Jerusalem and visiting His disciples, instructing them about the Kingdom of God that was about to storm the world. The demons in the men at Gergesenes believed in Christ as the Son of God, for they cried out when they saw Him: “What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? Art thou come hither to torment us before our time?” I would liked to have seen the look on Satan’s face when Jesus showed up in hell demanding that he hand over the keys of death and hell!
While not everyone will believe in Christ as the Son of God and the only means to eternal life, there will be many others who will believe that Christ has given them a witness within their hearts of Christ’s Sonship and of His eternal life. While Jesus could not heal some because of their unbelief, He did heal many others. He continues to perform the miraculous to this day; and will do so until He returns to take His believers home with Him. Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. He changes not and will continue to be the Son of God, whether we believe in Him or not.
As for myself, I found Him at an old-fashioned altar fifty years ago. During these fifty years I have felt His Spirit surround my spirit, many, many times. I have heard His voice speak on several occasions, giving direction and hope. I have seen Him in several visions and dreams. I have experienced His angels on several occasions. I have seen Him heal me personally of several different afflictions, as well as healing my youngest son from death’s door in Africa, and protecting the whole family from many different dangers. I have had Him protect me from Witchcraft and an African jail, by fulfilling His promise given in Luke 12:11-12, in giving me exactly what to say in the hour of need. I have seen demons respond to the Bible as the Word of God, which it claims to be, as they left the possessed in the Name of the Son of God, as His Scriptures were quoted to them. I have seen miraculous healings take place in His Name. I have been saved from death on several occasions, by calling on the Name of Jesus Christ. I have seen the lives of many people change for good, after they accepted Christ as their Savior and obeyed His teachings. He has promised me personally that He would be with me wherever I go. He has kept that promise, in the dark times and in the times of light and blessings, in times of disobedience and in times of obedience. He is faithful to keep His promises, even when we fail to stay fully committed to Him.
If thou be the Son of God, is not an ‘If’ for me. Jesus Christ is the Son of God and He has proven His Sonship and Godship to me for over 67 years now. He will continue to be my Lord and my God until I stand before Him in my new glorified body, fashioned like unto His, dwelling with Him for all eternity.
Jesus could show Himself to each one who walks this earth, as He did to Thomas. Many would believe in Him by physically touching the nail prints in His hands and feet, as well as the spear print in His side. But Jesus wants His followers to be those who believe without seeing the physical proof of His Divinity. He desires us to believe by seeing with the eyes of our spirits, as our spirits touch His Spirit in the unseen world around us, experiencing physically, as well as spiritually, His unfathomable love and peace as He embraces us in His everlasting arms of mercy.
The Apostle John teaches that Jesus, as the Son of God, came to destroy the works of the devil; and that whoever confesses Christ as the Son of God, has God dwelling in him, as he dwells in God. He that believeth on the Son has the witness in himself. He that believeth not God has made Him a liar, because he believes not the record that God gave of His Son. He that has the Son has life, and he that has not the Son has not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life. (I John)
You, too, can cry out as the Centurion, Surely this is the Son of God! You don’t have to see the Sun go dark, nor feel the earth quake; you just have to confess with your mouth that you believe in Him as your Lord and Savior, in honesty and humility. He will do the rest, through the leading of His Holy Spirit!
