“Can you believe it?”
We often say this when we see or witness something that is seemingly beyond the normal. We might believe it because we witnessed it, but the person to whom we relate the event is a bit skeptical. We might even qualify our reaction to the event with the phrase, “I wouldn’t have believed it unless I saw it!”
Stories that fit the unbelievable category might be an account of the fish that “got away.” Or perhaps a sports team came back late in the game to defy the odds of coming out with a win. Perhaps it’s an unexpected promotion or job offer. These events may be hard to believe, but because we experienced or trust the source, we believe them.
The Apostle John records many events when the disciples looked at each other and said in Aramaic, “Can you believe it?” Perhaps one would respond, “I wouldn’t believe it except I saw it.”
In discussions of heaven or hell, people ask, “Do you believe they are real?”
In the matter of Jesus being the only way to heaven, people surmise, “Do you really believe he is the only way to heaven?”
In asking about the Bible as the inspired word of God, you might be asked, “Really, do you believe that?”
Many aspects of faith challenge our hearts and minds because we weren’t there to see everything the Bible talks about … in fact, we were not firsthand witnesses of any of the events that are recorded in the Bible.
So can you believe it?
The Apostle John was challenged by people asking the same question. Can you believe Jesus is the Messiah? Can you believe he is real? Can you believe he is the Son of God? Can you believe he accomplished all for eternal life?
The Apostle John didn’t give a dissertation on the doctrine of Christ, although he could have. Rather he simply shared what convinced him that Jesus was the Christ, that he was the Son of God and that eternal life came through him.
What convinced John? Signs. Miracles. Things that only Jesus as the Son of God could do. Change water into wine. Heal from a distance. Make the lame walk. Feed 5,000 people with minimal food. Raise the dead.
John chose seven miracles to record in his Gospel with one key purpose: To answer the question, “Can you believe it?”
The Apostle John wrote in John 20:30-31: “Jesus, in the presence of his disciples, did many other miraculous signs that are not written in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.”
What questions about Jesus do you have? Begin reading the Gospel of John. See and hear the things John records as if you were there firsthand. They will build confidence and trust that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, your Savior.
We pray, Lord, thank you for revealing who you are and what you’ve done in the presence of John and the other Apostles so that we too might have certainty that you are the Christ, the Son of God, and by believing, we may have life in his name. Amen