How Do We Know God Exists?

When the critic says there's no God he's basing this on his own insight, and unless he has insight into 100% of all knowledge he can never be sure he's right. But when the Christian says there is a God he's basing this on the fact that God has revealed Himself to the world in the person of Jesus Christ - the image of the invisible God (Col. 1:15) - and His works have been recorded for us in the Bible.

But how do we know that the biblical account of Jesus is accurate? We know because Jesus' coming was predicted in the Old Testament, recorded for us in the New Testament and we can use non-Christian sources to test Christianity's claims.
 

THE OLD TESTAMENT: CHRIST'S COMING PREDICTED
The life of Jesus was told in advance in the Old Testament. Here is a brief look at what was foretold about Jesus. These are just highlights, there are hundreds of prophecies that were predicted and fulfilled by Jesus"

  •  THE SAVIOR WOULD BE BORN IN BETHLEHEM: "O Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting. (Micah 5:2)

  • HE WOULD BE BORN OF A VIRGIN: "Behold! The virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel." (Isaiah 7:14)

    THE SAVIOR WOULD BE GOD HIMSELF: "Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given. And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace! (Isaiah 9:6) 

    HE WOULD BE A SACRIFICE FOR OUR SINS: "Surely He has borne our grief and carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities. (Isaiah 53:4) "By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, For He shall bear their iniquities. Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, And He shall divide the spoil with the strong. Because He poured out His soul unto death, And He was numbered with the transgressors, And He bore the sin of many, And made intercession for the transgressors." (Isaiah 53:10-12)  

    THE SAVIOR WOULD BE RESURRECTED: "For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption. (Psalm 16:10)

    HIS SACRIFICE WOULD BRING US PEACE WITH GOD: "The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed." (Isaiah 53:5)

THE NEW TESTAMENT: CHRIST'S COMING RECORDED
Then we get to the New Testament and find that Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies.

  •  JESUS WAS BORN IN BETHLEHEM: "Joseph [and Mary] went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem… so it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered." (Luke 2:4,6)

    JESUS WAS BORN OF A VIRGIN: "Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. Then Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I do not know a man?" And the angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God. (Luke 1:31,34-35)

    JESUS IS GOD: "And they shall call His name Immanuel," which is translated, "God with us." (Matthew 1:23) 

    JESUS WAS A SACRIFICE FOR OUR SINS: "The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many." (Matthew 20:28)  

    JESUS' SACRIFICE BROUGHT US PEACE WITH GOD: "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." (John 3:16) 

    JESUS WAS RESURRECTED: "He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee." (Luke 24:6)

     

NON-CHRISTIAN SOURCES TELL THE SAME STORY
Now let's examine Christianity's claims against non-Christian sources.

  • The OT prophesied a Messiah or Savior would come. The NT claims Jesus was a historical figure. Non-Christian historians such as Josephus wrote that Jesus Christ was a real person. 

    The OT prophesied that the Savior would be born of a virgin. The NT records that Jesus was born of a virgin. The Koran admits that Jesus was born of a virgin and the Talmud, which is a collection of Jewish commentaries, hint at Jesus unusual birth.

    The OT prophesied that the Savior would perform miracles. The NT records many of Jesus' miracles. The Talmud reports that Jesus performed miracles (although they say His power came from Satan). 

    The OT prophesied that the Savior would be crucified and that He would be raised from the grave. The NT tells us Jesus was crucified for our sins and that He rose three days later. Letters from Roman officials tell us that Jesus was crucified, His body was missing, and that His followers believed He was raised from the grave and worshiped Him as God. 

     

WHAT THE NON-CHRISTIAN SOURCES TELL US
So, using sources outside the Bible sources that were either hostile or, at best, indifferent to Christianity we discover that Jesus Christ was a real person, He was born of a virgin, He performed miracles, He was put to death on a cross, buried, His body is missing and people thought He was God -- everything that the Old Testament predicted. Outside sources tell us what happened to Jesus. The Bible tells us not only what happened, but why it happened.
 

WHAT WILL YOU DO WITH JESUS?
History tells us that Jesus was crucified for claiming to be God. The ancient Jewish commentaries admit that He performed miracles. Rome admits they can't find His body. More has been written about Him than about anyone else in history. His autobiography -- the Bible -- is the world's all-time bestseller. He has changed the lives of billions. We measure history in terms of how many years it's been since He walked the earth. People react to the mere mention of His name with either joy or hatred. He is unique in all of history.

Now, we've presented some facts that provide evidence that Jesus is God, but when it comes to accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior, it's more of an issue of the heart then the mind.

Charles Spurgeon put it best when he said, "every man must serve somebody: we have no choice as to that fact. Those who have no master are slaves to themselves. You will either serve Satan or Christ. Either self, or the Savior. You will find sin, self, Satan, and the world to be hard masters; but if you wear the uniform of Christ, you will find Him so meek and lowly of heart that you will find rest unto your souls."

Jesus said that He stands at the door of our hearts and that if anyone answers He will come in. It's our prayer is that you will invite the Savior into you life.