Genesis 1:1 states “In the beginning God created the Heavens and the Earth. Now the Earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep…” (New International Version, Genesis 1. 1-2). Why is this important? Many believe the biblical concept of creation does not make sense; that Earth could not have been created only 6,000 years ago when science has proved with carbon dating that Earth is approximately 4.5 billion years old. That is because God created the Earth with age. It is imperative for people to rely on authentic research instead of basing their faith on false or misleading information, as well as examine evidence of the origins of the universe and the historicity of Jesus Christ’s existence. To add to the discussion…show more content… Ancient Roman historian, Tacitus, in his last major work mentioned Christians and their founder: “Nero substituted as culprits and punished in the most unusual ways those hated for their shameful acts … whom the crowd called “Chrestians.” The founder of this name, Christ, had been executed in the reign of Tiberius by the procurator Pontius Pilate” (Mykytiuk, pg. 2). Tacitus is considered the most accurate and famous Roman historian of his time. Many scholars do not deny the claims made by Tacitus and trust in his assertions regardless of his sources, “Tacitus, like classical authors in general, does not reveal the source(s) he used. But this should not detract from our confidence in Tacitus’s assertions” (Mykytiuk, pg. 3). Tacitus lived a little under 100 years after Jesus Christ era, and with the resources and historical documents he had available to him it’s safe to say Tacitus’s assertion that Jesus existed as a person is very accurate. Israeli scholar Shlomo Pines writes, “Even the most bitter opponents of Christianity never expressed any doubt as to Jesus having really lived.” (Was Jesus a, pg. 4). Another example that supports the argument for Jesus’ existence is that the Jews never denied it even though they had everything to gain from denying it. Jewish historian Flavius Josephus wrote, ‘“At this time there was a man who was called Jesus. His…show more content… The difference being the Messiah performed all the miracles as told in the Bible and died for the sins of man then rose from the dead three days later. This Jesus, believe it or not, is much more convincing than just believing he was a regular man. Before his death, whether you believe he’s the Messiah or not, Jesus said he was to be betrayed, arrested, and crucified and then return from the dead three days later. Bible scholar Wilbur Smith: “When He said that He himself would rise again from the dead, the third day after He was crucified, He said something only a fool would dare say, if He expected longer the devotion of any disciples - unless He was sure He was going to rise. No founder of any world religion known to men ever dared say a thing like that” (Did Jesus Rise, pg. 2). He said it, and his disciples continued to follow him after his death. Jesus had to come back to life or Christianity would not be a world religion today. If Jesus promised those things, then failed to keep those promises, it would have exposed him as an imposter. Christianity should have died out at the cross, but it didn’t, Jesus’ apostles continued on to establish the largest religion today with two billion followers - almost a third of the world’s population. Even after being horrifically persecuted, his followers did not denounce their faith or quit. Their love for him and faith that he truly was the Messiah
