March toward the Star

I. Introduction

In the nineteenth century, a prominent philosopher coined the phrase “leap of faith.” This three-word metaphor has proved to forever change the course of modern history. Søren Kierkegaard’s leap of faith shifted our conversation from asking “who” to “if”.

In essence, Kierkegaard’s romancing of words, intentional or not, redefined the meaning of faith. Today, faith is viewed as believing in something without the possibility of seeing it. Unfortunately, this creates a standoff between faith and evidence – the assumption being that there is no evidence for things in which people have faith. Otherwise, by modern definition, it wouldn’t be faith at all.

Hope and faith are almost interchangeable in our world. Two thousand years ago, however, trust would have been the correct counterpart. In the case of Biblical texts, having faith certainly came as a result of demonstrating trust.

Contrary to popular belief, God does not expect us to have blind faith. In John 10:38, Jesus pleads, “Though you do not believe Me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me.” Jesus encourages us to look at His works, at the proof, so that we may find life.

Throughout the Gospels, Jesus performs dozens of miracles as a way to prove to the world that He is who He says He is. We are not expected to cross our fingers and hope that we’re right – our Creator wants us to know that He is, always has been, and always will be in control. In Isaiah (Isaiah 1:18), God converses with the Nation of Israel, “Come now, let us reason together.” This verse shows not only the compassion, but also the understanding, of God. He realizes that our minds are set up to ask questions and He has placed an emphasis on the importance of addressing them.

Likewise, in Acts 1:3, Luke writes, “After his suffering, he [Jesus] showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive.” Jesus didn’t assume that people would naively believe His teachings, but He showed them who He was through what He could do.
It’s okay to seek such proof or to search for answers. It’s okay to ask why things work the way they do or if science is at odds with your religion. God gave us a free will and we are wired to wonder.

Believers should not fear science and scientific discoveries. For could a fear of science be a lack of faith? Encourage science and encourage discovery. Why not seek to find the fingerprints of the Almighty that exist all around us?

In the coming pages, I’ll share with you why I believe what I believe. I’ll put forth three topics of discussion, the complexity of life, the origins of the universe, and the historicity of Jesus, that provide convincing proofs of our God. But, we’ll also recount the fictitious journey of three famous wise men who, on the opposite side of the cross, had arguably less to go on than us - millennia full of the promise of a savior but no one in sight. They had no microscopes, telescopes, or DNA sequencing to show the true intelligence of life’s design. Before the manger, people lived by trust and faith for a messiah who, on the earth, was yet to exist.

II. Visitors
Vulique, 1 B.C

The Emperor, Macmer, took to the throne only four days ago. His father had stepped down due to a scandal that took the eastern world by surprise. With a kingdom in near ruin, Macmer knew he would have his work cut out for him.

Civil unrest rocked the streets of Vulique and the countryside was experiencing a heavy drought. Stability and control seemed to be ideas of the distant past. Macmer found himself trying to live day-by-day and unable to lead his people toward peace or prosperity.

His wife, and by default the new empress, always supported Macmer and his sometimes over the top ambitions. Having this power was never anything she had wanted, but she loved Macmer and knew the title came with the territory. As a resilient woman, full obedience was oftentimes against her very nature; nevertheless she strived to please her beloved husband.

The emperor was the first faithful Jew to ever reign over the kingdom and he intended to do so with honor and valor. Having read the words of Isaiah and the songs of David, Macmer was well versed in religious literature. In particular, he had a fascination with ancient prophecies that foretold the coming of a messiah. He awaited this arrival and trusted that the savior’s coming would be on a cloud of glory and with many legions of angels.

As days passed, Macmer continued to struggle finding solutions that would restore dignity to his kingdom. Everything he tried seemed to fail and when he would finally catch a break a stumbling block always followed. Public opinion of his family was also dwindling. Amid rumors of infidelity, his people began hoping for new leadership and direction. Though the emperor knew change would be a necessity, he wasn’t prepared to accept how quickly it might arrive.

“A visitor from the north, your majesty, is requesting to speak with you. He claims to be a scholar, educated on the heavens,” the maid-boy, Kin, alerted Macmer and his royal court.

After several rounds of interrogation, Macmer ordered his servants to see the scholar inside. This in and of itself was a rarity. The high king allowing a mere peasant into his palace was both unheard of and unacceptably against protocol. But Macmer didn’t care too much about protocol these days. He was desperate for help and hopeful that this scholar could give him answers.

However, unbeknownst to the emperor, this one agreement of entrance would forever alter the course of his life.