…then would you believe?
Most people would say yes–I remember when I was an atheist I said I would believe–if only Jesus would come and show me a miracle, preferably one that defied physics.
And yet, in truth, I would not have believed even then because I was convinced that God did not even exist, so whatever it was I saw must be some trick and not a real miracle.
The best (and worst) example of this is Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus.
For 3 years Judas spent his life in community with Jesus and the other apostles. He was chosen by our Lord himself, and therefore we know Judas saw Jesus perform miracle after miracle. He healed people who couldn’t walk, who couldn’t see, right before Judas’ eyes, and yet in th end, Judas disbelieved.
I do not think that we are so different than Judas, a person who no doubt wanted to be happy, a person with faults, and we each have to make the same choice that Judas made: Do we give ourselves to Christ in love or do we betray him?
Judas rejected our Lord’s grace–Christ’s boundless love and forgiveness–and so could not overcome his pride and his selfishness. He betrayed our Lord, and our Lord was murdered. He then despaired of God’s mercy and murdered himself. These were the radical consequences caused by one man’s actions.
Of course, our Lord wrought the greatest good ever, the redemption of every single human person, from the greatest evil ever, the death of God, for God cannot be overcome, but Judas didn’t have to be the man to betray him; he could have chosen life over death.
Each one of us face the same choice as Judas, and that choice determines our own eternal life (or death) and can dramatically affect the eternal destiny of many others, most importantly our own families and friends.
So today, choose life in Christ; turn to him and ask for forgiveness, ask for his love and for your eternal salvation that he so desperately desires to give you.
I can tell you from experience that you will never regret it.
