The best christmas gift ever was wrapped in a manger

I am trying to call my parents but the connection is bad, which is usual because it's not the weekend, and somehow the cell phone could not reach the ten thousand miles distance. I was reading "Thenewevidencethatdemandsaverdict", a book by Josh McDowell that I owned but never had time to read. It will be my companion during the three days and two nights trip to Surabaya this week.

I am trying to call my parents to tell them "I thank you." Mom and dad used to be moslem although I doubt that they'd ever practiced it, but they were baptized after they got married. My mom is such a dreamer, she always has dreams about things, and before she married my dad, she had a dream of seeing my dad sitting in the living room of my grandmother's house with only the light of oil lantern that became stronger and stronger. They knew each other since my mom was little, my dad always had a crush on her, and finally got married when he was 32 years old and she was 22. Being raised as a christian where my parents essentially were also still "learning" about christianity was interesting in itself. I always love the sunday school activities, the competitions, the bible reading contest, the christmas parties where I got to perform in many things (from singing, dancing, music) as a hyperactive kid. I knew who Jesus was, but that's because my parents told me so. And because the bible told me so. And because that's how I was raised, to whom my mom taught me to pray to. I used to immitate her when I pray. In Javanese, we address Jesus as the "Gusti Pangeran ingkang wonten suwarga", it means "The Lord, the Prince who art in heaven". I always wondered why we or she called God as the Prince, as if God has a son, and Jesus was the Son of God, and would God had a son, and who was the Holy Spirit.

Not until when I was in high school, I started to learn and to question who Jesus is. I learned more from the books I read, not all of them written by christian scholars, but many other point of views that contradict the point of view that Jesus was just a mere human being but reject his claim as the Son of God.

I remember a friend of mine, a good friend of mine, who used to be a baptist and convert into moslem, asked me if I believe that Jesus was God and why I believe that He is God. I grew up around moslem and I know their biggest rejection is that Christianity worship "three God" (they don't believe the concept of Trinity) and God obviously doesn't have a Son; and God would not be a man or came down to earth to be a man, a poor man who had nothing. I started to sit down to answer her question because it's gonna be a long one! I believe Jesus is God because: The bible that has historical evidence of future propechies and past prophecies and was inspired by God, said so. The entire bible, a collection of writings from the Hebrew history that was written throughout history through prophets with thousands of years span and 40 writers who lived in a different time and place, was written to tell the story of Jesus. The love story of God to men and women whom He loved. The story of redemption that God had written since the beginning of time. The story about the coming Messiah who is the Son of God, fully man dan divine at the same time. And Jesus is the only person, who can fulfill the entire prophecies including all the details, from John the Baptist who prepared his coming, The virgin Mary, his birth, his life, his ministry, his suffering, his death, his ressurection, and our forgiveness. And Jesus said himself that He was God. And there were more than 500 early christians who saw Him after his ressurection, whom all died, to defend what they experienced, to witness that Jesus was the Son of God, who could loose everything with nothing to gain. And there were 12 disciples who followed Him and knew his teaching and his miracles.

And there's more to that. Throughout my life, I have been blessed by God. Small little things of answered and unanswered prayers strengthened my belief that Jesus is God. I searched for Him and now I found Him everywhere, even in the evidence of science that only conforming to me that God is love, and therefore "Jesus" makes sense. The bible even said to "Test Him" and asked us to "decide to yourself." He's not afraid because He knows the truth. His idea, his teaching of love, and about love, and what He did to love the whole world, is just so overwhelming to me. Everything He said was true and I believe that. I am in awe of Jesus. I am in awe of what He has done in my life. I am thankful that He has made himself known to us and that He loves us, all of us!

In chapter seven of the book. JoshMcDowell cited JamesKennedy and JerryNewcombe in their book WhatIfJesusHadNeverBeenBorn to show the highlights of Jesus' sole influence in human race: Hospitals which began in the Middle Ages; Universities that were started by christians; literacy and education of the masses; representative of government; separation of political powers; civil liberties; the abolition of slavery; modern science; the discovery of the new world; benevolence and charity; higher standard of justice; the elevation of the commonm man; the high regard for human life; the civilization of barbarian cultures; greater development or art and music; countless of changed lives; the eternal salvation of countless souls. When God, the YHWH, sent his Son, the world was never be the same.

CS Lewis said that there's no way to believe Jesus only as a "historical figure" or a "great teacher", because his life didn't resemble that. He was either God, a liar, or a lunatic. The more I am searching to find Him, the more I am in love with Jesus. Not in love - in love - but perhaps it is more like "in awe". With all the things I've seen and read and experience every day, I could only see his affirmation of who He is and who He is in my life.

Jesus fulfilled the prophecies of Isaiah, 700 years before him: For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6, KJV).

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoseever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. That is my friend, the best love story I've ever heard....

Thank you God, for the best christmas gift ever.