Mr. J. Until, if I remember correctly, He was baptized by Saint John in the river Jordan,4 after which He spent forty days fasting in the desert. I do see, Father, that Christ was most severe with Himself, and of course, for our sake, because He personally stood in no need of such works of penance.
Father S. That’s right. And after that, what did Christ do?
Mr. J. He began a public ministry lasting three years.
Father S. That’s correct. During this time it was not so much His aim to be a true teacher, and assist the people with whom He came in contact, as to prove His divinity and prepare the way for the instruction and sanctification of the people of every nation until the end of the world. We shall treat of this later. Do you know some of the ways in which Jesus proved that He was God?
Mr. J. Yes, if they can be believed.
Father S. Why, you startle me, Mr. Jackson. You have already expressed your firm belief that Christ was the Son of God in human form.
Mr. J. Yes, Father, and I am not beginning to doubt it now.
Father S. You are, in effect; for you do not know whether to believe that He changed water into wine, multiplied the loaves, cured the blind, the crippled, the deaf and dumb, raised the dead to life, etc.5
Mr. J. It does seem that if He was God, He could do these things as well as He could have fashioned the universe. But I have often heard that there are no such things as miracles.
Father S. You wish, therefore, to be convinced that Christ actually wrought the miracles ascribed to Him. How about letting proof of Christ’s divinity and of His miracles go until our next instruction? For the present, let us suppose that the New Testament relates true history. What does it say about Christ’s death?
Mr. J. It tells us that He went freely to His death; that He sweat blood caused especially by mental agony; that He was scourged, His head crowned with thorns; that He was mocked, and cursed, and bore a cross to Mount Calvary, was nailed to it, and died on it, hanging between thieves, after three hours of intense suffering.6
Father S. And after His death, what?
Mr. J. He arose again, remained on earth forty days, then ascended to heaven.7
Father S. Where did His soul go when He died?
Mr. J. The Apostles’ Creed says it went to hell, but that seems unreasonable.
Father S. Well, that needs some explanation. You have already learned that heaven was closed against all people until Christ’s death; that those who, before His coming, lived holy lives, believed in the Redeemer to come, and dedicated themselves to Him, would not be lost. Since their souls went neither to heaven nor to hell, there must have been another place to which the good went, where they were happy, but did not enjoy the supernatural heaven, the vision of God. Saint Peter called them “the souls in prison.” To them Christ’s soul descended to bring the happy tidings that they were now redeemed and were ready for heaven. The Apostles’ Creed means that place by the word “hell.”8
Mr. J. One last question, Father. What does the Creed mean when it says that Christ sits at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty?
Father S. By those words we profess our belief that in heaven, Christ as God is equal in power to the Father Almighty and that as man He shares the power and glory of His Father above all the Saints and exercises the supreme authority of King over all creatures forever. This will be especially manifest to all on the last day when He will judge every one whoever lived in this world.9
Instruction 5
Proof that Christ was truly God
Father S. Tonight, Mr. Jackson, I am going to present to you proof, plain and convincing, that Jesus Christ was truly God.
Mr. J. Why, Father, I have no reason to doubt that.
Father S. That may be true, but I want you to be able to defend your faith by arguments. Even if a person did not believe that the Bible was inspired, you could prove your point from it, because it is certainly reliable history. You would refer to Old Testament prophesies, fulfilled in Christ, to New Testament miracles, supporting His claim, and especially to Christ’s resurrection from the dead. And if your objector was so unreasonable as to spurn any argument taken from the Bible, you could prove the divinity of Jesus from what he is prepared to admit concerning His character.
Mr. J. I need just such argument for a man who works with me. He contends that ignorant and too credulous men wrote the Bible, and that their testimony cannot be relied upon.
Father S. They were far from being too credulous. They were accused by Christ frequently of being too slow to believe, they wanted to see and feel, and even then doubted; they would have been fools to doubt longer. Regarding the charge of ignorance, this was in their favor. God purposely chose the unlearned to convince the learned, because it would better prove that the cause they advocated was divine. It is easy for sharp and learned men to “deceive” others, while there is no testimony so strong as the convincing kind which comes from unlearned and simple folk. Unlearned and simple witnesses at a court trial always testify best when they relate what they actually saw or heard. Beware of the sharp fellow, if he has no conscience.
Mr. J. What proof of Christ’s divinity do the prophecies of the Old Testament furnish?
Father S. In harmony with the traditions of every nation of antiquity, they tell of a Redeemer Who would descend to earth from heaven, and they clearly describe His person, character, the principal circumstances of His life and death.
Mr. J. Just what is a prophecy?
Father S. It is the definite prediction of events, the occurrence of which depends upon either the free will of man or of God, and which could not, therefore, be foreknown by man or angel, but only by God.
Mr. J. Were there many prophesies that Christ fulfilled?
Father S. Yes. I’ll give you some references in the Scripture and you can compare the prophecy concerning Christ in the Old Testament with its fulfillment in the New.1 For instance:
He would be a King: Isaiah 9:7, Luke 1:32.
He would be a priest: Psalm 109 [110]:4, Hebrews 7:24.
He would give a universal form of worship: Malachi 1:10; to all men: Isaiah 2:2, Luke 22:4, Mark 16:15.
He would descend from David: Jeremiah 23:5-6, Luke 3:32, Matthew 1:6.
He would be born of a virgin mother: Isaiah 7:14, Luke 1:35.
He would be born in Bethlehem: Micah 5:2, Matthew 2:1.
He would confirm His teaching by miracles: Isaiah 35:4-6, Matthew 9:4-5.
In a most striking manner the circumstances of His suffering and death were foretold:
That He would be betrayed for thirty pieces of silver: Zechariah 11:12.
That he would be flogged and spit upon: Isaiah 50:6.
That His hands and feet would be transfixed: Psalm 21 [22]:17.
That He would die between criminals: Isaiah 53:12.
That he would be mocked: Psalm 21 [22]:7 and given vinegar and gall to drink: Psalm 68 [69]:22.
That His garments would be divided: Psalm 21 [22]:19.
That His legs would not be broken: Numbers 9:12.
It is evident that Christ was the promised