By Jonathan Wright
It’s so predictable—so amazingly predictable.
Every year around this time, the weeks approaching Christmas Day, the media virtually bends over backwards with one obvious intent: to discount, minimize, or altogether negate the original Christian significance of America’s favorite holiday.
Like clockwork, television segments, web sites, and magazines begin churning out stories seriously questioning the veracity of the biblical story of Jesus’ birth and His subsequent ministry approximately 2,000 years ago.
The underlining presumption is that humanity has been duped for the past two millennia, as evidenced by new “evidence” that casts “undeniable” dispersions upon the claims of the biblical accounts and the identity of this man called Jesus.
Every year it happens.
Every year you can count on it.
And every year you can see right through it all.
Many of those who oppose the claims of Christianity, particularly writers and producers who have the bully pulpit of the media in their corner, cannot tolerate the historic Jesus, the one who claimed to be God with the power to forgive sin, who the Scriptures claim conquered death itself and is promising to return at any time.
Such a religious figure, one who claims absolute, irrefutable authority and truth, simply cannot be tolerated—and neither can those who unswervingly believe in Him.
So the obligatory attacks must happen, at least two major times each year if not more often: at Christmas and at Easter.
You can count on it.
Christianity has the audacity to purport Christ’s own claims that He is the one and only way to eternal life. Such an exclusive claim eliminates all other possibilities and flies in the face of today’s popular position that sin is relative and that all roads lead to the same destination.
As mentioned, Christmas and Easter seem to be the primary times each year to routinely attempt chipping away at such claims, belittling them, planting doubt in the minds of those who staunchly believe them.
I have good news, though: It’s not working.
Despite their most determined, relentless efforts—it’s just not working.
One by one each year, the lofty counter-claims have quickly fallen flat and have amounted to, in the words of Shakespeare, a lot of “sound and fury signifying nothing.”
The historical evidence behind the biblical accounts of Christ have firmly stood the test of time for many, many centuries, but also—and—especially in the lives of those who have known the inexpressible joy of surrendering to and being radically transformed by the one and only “desire of the ages,” the only one who can satisfy the deepest longing of our hearts.
This year is no different. The attacks have shown up on schedule, and once again they, too, will fall flat. Predictably.
Why? That’s easy: truth always wins out.
You’d think they’d learn.
Have an incredible Christmas.