Read: John 20:24–31 | Bible in a Year: 1 Samuel 13–14; Luke 10:1–24
These are written that you may believe that
Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have
life in his name. John 20:31
Since its first publication in 1880, Lew Wallace’s novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ
has never been out of print. It has been called the most influential
Christian book of the nineteenth century, and it continues to draw
readers today as it weaves the true story of Jesus with that of a
fictional young Jewish nobleman named Judah Ben-Hur.
Amy Lifson, writing in Humanities magazine, said that
the writing of the book transformed the life of the author. “As Ben-Hur
guided readers through the scenes of the Passion, so did he lead the way
for Lew Wallace to believe in Jesus Christ.” Wallace said, “I have seen
the Nazarene . . . . I saw him perform works which no mere man could
perform.”
The Gospels’ record of the life of Jesus
allows us to walk alongside Him, witness His miracles, hear His words,
and see His triumphal entry into Jerusalem on what we call Palm Sunday.
At the conclusion of John’s gospel, he wrote, “Jesus performed many
other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in
this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the
Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his
name” (John 20:30–31).
Just as Lew Wallace’s research, reading of the Bible, and writing led
him to believe in Jesus, so God’s Word draws us to a transformation of
mind and heart by which we have eternal life in and through Him.
Lord, may the record of Your life be written on our minds and hearts so that we may have ever-increasing faith in You.
Many books can inform, but only the Bible can transform.
© 2017 Our Daily Bread Ministries
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