1. JESUS BEFORE JESUS – INTRO

I have been asked several times why I preach Jesus with so much audacity. Like…there are so many more religions that also preach morality and peace and whatnot; why do you insist that Jesus must be the way? I could take the route of laying out other major religions, more especially Islam, which is the world’s second largest religion, and show without using scripture how arbitrary the birth of the religion was. But I’d rather not. Or at least not before I have obeyed Peter’s instruction in 1 Peter 3:15 AMP – to always be ready to give a logical defence to anyone who asks for me to account for the hope and confident assurance that is within me. He adds – yet do it with gentleness and respect. And that’s exactly what I intend to do with this series. 🤝🏽

When a conclusion is reached, it is not reached in vacuum. If you try to reach a conclusion by basing it on only one instance or on nothing at all, you’re said to have jumped to conclusions. Ring a bell?😁 So you mistakenly end your girlfriend’s call when your phone rings and she concludes you’re out with another girl. She has whaaattt? Let’s say it together😊: JUMPED🦘TO CONCLUSIONS😂. Or you tell a lie about where you’re going one time, your mum finds out and concludes that every time you’ve been out, you lied to her about where you were going to. She has whaaattt? Let’s say it together😊: JUMPED🦘TO CONCLUSIONS😂! To prove that their conclusion is wrong, what you do is to provide evidence – hard facts – of instances that show the opposite of what they’re saying. The big word for that funny process that conclusion-jumpers never listen to😂 is the word: 👇🏽

CORROBORATION!

Google Dictionary defines it as evidence which confirms or supports a statement, theory, or finding OR [simply] confirmation. And this is essentially what ‘Jesus Before Jesus’ as a series will be doing – giving you corroborative evidence of the ‘Christ-ship’ of Jesus.

This is merely an introduction to the relevance and the object of the series. The substance of it begins next Monday, but before we get into it, it is important to clarify one very important thing. Every corroborative evidence will come from scripture, and because what we are seeking to establish is what the truth is, it is important to establish the authenticity of even the Bible itself. We’re talking discoveries of hand-written documents/manuscripts [most popular being the Dead Sea Scrolls], 40 authors most of who never met writing over a period of about 1600 years, three languages, three different continents, archaeological findings🤯. This in itself could be series on its own. So instead, here are two✌🏽 solid materials that can begin you on a journey of discovering the authenticity of the Bible for yourself. Once we agree on the authenticity of scripture, we can boldly delve into it to establish that Jesus Was, Jesus Is, and Jesus Forever Will Be God and the only logical Way to the Father.🤝🏽

1. WHY WE CAN BELIEVE THE BIBLE by Voddie Baucham: [MUST WATCH! 😊]

2. TOP 10 ARCHAEOLOGICAL DISCOVERIES THAT AUTHENTICATE THE BIBLE by “The Land and the Book” Radio Show [proof of biblical objects]:

And as bonus [focuses more on proof of the existence of biblical people and their artefacts]: 40 ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROOFS OF THE BIBLE by Scriptures & Science:

Love,

      Rad! 💖