Why I believe what I believe - the historical significance of Jesus & the Bible

This past year has been one of the toughest years of my life. Many things contributed to that, but one major contributor was the lack of a Church family. During this period I have grown, as for the first time in my life, I have read straight through the Bible. Ok, well, on December 31st I will have read through the Bible. I'm almost home! I started at the end of January 2008 and have been reasonably consistent throughout the whole year. Reading the Bible has helped, but I wanted to go back to the root of why I continue to believe in Jesus.

Probably 3 weeks ago now, I got in a discussion about Jesus and the Bible. I came to realize that while I have a good grasp of my faith and why I believe the way I do, too many don't. Many just look at the book and say "how can that be true"... they ask questions without seriously wanting the answer, just assuming the Bible is wrong. Even more are on the cusp of believing in Jesus, but they don't understand the Bible is rooted in historical significance and has only been validated by the test of time.

I've always been analytical, I've always asked questions. Through these questions I came to research the Bible and the history of it, learning a great deal. Well, I've made the decision to start a series, using my blog, outlining different themes in the Bible, laying out why I believe everything I believe. The first post will come in a few days, as I am finishing up my research for the first section. After the first section, I'm not sure where it will go, but everything will be based on the historical significance of the Bible and how we can be certain of the reliability of the Bible.

I will not get everything right. I will make overstatements, I will screw some of my views up. Just hang with me, and I think everyone can learn a lot. I also want to do this for my own good. To reinforce my views during a tough period in my life and to have a guide for future reference. Kind of a quick overview so if I need to bring evidence for believing what I do. I've rambled enough, but I want to finish with this.

Why is it important to know the historical relevance of Jesus? I will quote Dr. Gregory Boyd from The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel

To have a relationship with Jesus Christ goes beyond just knowing the historical facts about him, yet it's rooted in the historical facts about him. I believe in Jesus on the basis of the historical evidence, but my relationship with Jesus goes way beyond the evidence. I have to put my trust in him and walk with him on a daily basis.