Dear Dr. Graham: I think I’d probably believe in Jesus if He were living today, but how can you believe in someone who lived a couple of thousand years ago? Maybe He didn’t even exist and someone just made Him up. – S.G.

Graham

Dear S.G.: No competent historian today would say that Jesus never lived; the evidence for His life is simply too overwhelming. In fact, there’s more evidence for the life of Jesus Christ than for any other person from the ancient world, including Julius Caesar and Socrates. In fact, even His most determined enemies never claimed Jesus hadn’t lived, or that He hadn’t attracted huge crowds as He walked the roads of Palestine. Those who opposed Him knew that if they ever tried to claim He didn’t exist, thousands who had seen Him with their own eyes would brand them as liars.

As the apostle Peter wrote, “We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty” (2 Peter 1:16).

But Jesus Christ didn’t just live 2,000 years ago; He is alive today! No, you can’t see Him the same way you might see a friend walking down the street. But He rose from the dead and ascended into heaven, and even now He is present with us by His Holy Spirit. His final words to His followers are still true: “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).

Jesus Christ has not changed over the centuries, and neither has our need of God. Don’t turn your back on Jesus, but by faith commit your life to Him and discover the reality of His presence in your life every day.