Manmade Religion
We
live in a world with a lot of different religions.
Depending on who one asks or where they are, questions
on religion will
produce a wide variety of answers. There are some stark
differences between Christianity and all other religions
in that the central
figure of Christianity is attested to have been
crucified and resurrected by a considerable number of
eyewitnesses , all of whom suffered horrific persecution
and in most cases death as a result of their testimony.
If one were to visit the grave site of religious leaders
such as Mohammed, Buddha and others they will find these
people are dead and they occupy those graves. On the
other hand, if one could visit the tomb of Christ, it
does not contain His body. And a great number of people
who lived during that time lived lives of extreme
suffering because of their testimony that He arose from
His grave alive.
His coming was prophesied by people who lived hundreds
to thousands of years before He lived. His message of
love and compassion stands in stark opposition to the
self serving messages of other religions. But one of
the most compelling facts of Christianity is what was
done by God on behalf of mankind. Man sinned and
thereby lost fellowship with God. God desired for man
to be reconciled to Himself so He left heaven and
appeared on earth as a man and was rejected and slain by
those He came to save. And in the end, His death at the
hands of mankind served as a substitutionary punishment
for the sins of mans and provided the means for the
forgiveness of transgressions and the means of
restoration to fellowship with God for all. In short,
God, in the form of the man Jesus Christ, paid the
penalty man deserved for his own transgressions.
This act on the part of God was prophesied by numerous
people who could not have known the future. It is not
humanly possible to fabricate such a story thousands of
years before it happened and then have it carried out
with the pinpoint accuracy that it was. A hoax
conceived thousands of years prior to its completion
which ended with the death and resurrection of the
central figure, prophesied and carried out like it was
is completely beyond the ability of mankind to achieve.
The Bible was written by about 40 different authors over
a period of time spanning roughly 14 centuries. From
beginning to end it has a central theme which focuses on
the deliverance of mankind from His sin. The only
explanation for the existence of Christianity is
undoubtedly a result of divine accomplishment.
Christianity cannot be a product of man's invention.
No other religion on earth can make the claim to
authenticity with the same undeniable stamp of divine
achievement. No other religion on earth reduced its
central figure to the status of a servant to all and
resulted in his death at the hands of man for the
transgressions of man. No other religion on earth can
start this grand plan thousands of years in advance and
bring it to fruition through hundreds of generations of
people. No other religion on earth can provide the
supporting documentation of this plan from start to
finish with the overwhelming wealth of manuscripts that
Christianity enjoys. Christianity is the only religion
on Earth that is unmistakably not a religion of manmade
origin. And as such, it is the only religion of the
ones to choose from that is authentic.
We at the church of Christ in Granby, Missouri would
welcome the opportunity to share our faith in the risen
savior with you. Our assembly times are Sundays from
10:00 AM to noon and from 5:00 to 6:00 in the
afternoons. We offer Bible studies on Wednesday
evenings from 6:00 to 7:00 PM. Directions to our
building are south on main street from the traffic light
to the Granby house and then east for 2 blocks on Pine
street. More information is available on our website at
www.granbychurchofChrist.org. All are welcome.
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