This is a good question, a fair question. If most religions are false, and there sure are a lot of them, how do you know yours is true?
There are 8747 false gods mentioned in the Bible. The number of false gods throughout history is most likely uncountable.
There certainly is a designer of the universe. Even Richard Dawkins sees this, yet claims that the fact that everything appears to be designed is an "illusion" and that perhaps aliens started life on earth (since science cannot answer how life originated). The origin of the universe and the origin of life are outside of science. We can look at what we can learn from science, things we can observe, study, test, demonstrate, repeat to come to logical conclusions. It is a logical conclusion when presented with ordered information such as DNA, the blueprint for life, that is too complex for the human mind to understand, since intelligent information has never been observed to form itself, that an intelligent mind produced it. It is logical to conclude that a very intelligent mind designed this universe.
So whose mind was it? Was it an alien, as Dawkins suggests? I don't think so. Dawkins is fine with the idea of intelligent design (if it's an alien that doesn't have rules for our lives) but the idea of the true God from the Bible is abhorrent to him, not because of science, but because of our evil sinful nature that rebels against God and wants to be our own god.
How do we know the maker of the universe? How do we learn what this entity is and wants?
The vast majority of humans have been theists, because it is the inescapable reality that this world was created by someone superior to humans.
God has given us the Bible so that we can learn about Him, and most importantly, learn about Jesus, the ONLY answer to the problem we all have. We are sinners. We've broken God's rules, we've used God's name in vain, we've despised God and His Word, we've dishonored our parents, we've refused God's gifts, we've have murderous thoughts and hurtful actions towards other people, we've had lustful, adulterous thoughts and actions, we've coveted what isn't ours to have, we've stolen and we've lied. We haven't loved other people as we should. We've been greedy, gluttonous, self-absorbed, proud, conceited, boastful, hateful, and all around disgusting. Offensive in the sight of a holy God.
God's love for us was so vast that He became a human, kept the law perfectly in our place, so that He could be the substitute for us and take God's wrath on Himself. Jesus was crucified and died and was buried. He then rose from the dead, appeared to many disciples, and eventually ascended to heaven, and will return in might and power as King to judge the world.
I can't wait to see Him. Everyone who has rejected Him will shake in terror when that day comes, since they will be standing on their own account of actions, thoughts, and words before a holy and just God who judges evil.
I won't be standing on my own account of actions. I will be standing on the holy, perfect account of Jesus Christ, which He has given to me as a free gift through faith, and offers to you as well.
This is what the Bible teaches.
So why am I convinced? How do I know it's true? Am I just brainwashed and accept whatever I was taught?
Let's investigate.
The historicity of Jesus is undeniable. Jesus existed in history, and even Christianity's historical haters and opponents didn't bother trying to deny the existence of Jesus. So who was this Jesus? Was he just a man who managed to deceive a lot of people into thinking He was God? Or was His claim that He is God true?
There is a very low resurrection rate among dead people. Most of the people who die stay dead.
Jesus didn't stay dead. He appeared to many disciples, many of whom were killed for defending their faith. They were eyewitnesses, they were there. If they HADN'T seen a resurrected Jesus, they would certainly not be willing to die to defend the truth that they had.
The Bible is historically and scientifically accurate. The Bible is beyond any book that has ever been written by people. It is filled with goodness, righteousness, truth, wisdom, fulfilled prophecies from hundreds or thousands of years earlier. Look into the historical veracity of the Bible.
The teachings found in it are not of human origin. The teaching of Jesus Christ is counter to sinful man's mind. ALL false religions are based on works-righteousness, that we have to earn our way into god's favor by following rules. The teaching that we are saved by grace through faith is contrary to the human mind that wants, in pride and rebellion, to be good enough without God.
We need saving. Look at the world around you. It's falling apart.
Bombings, suicides, murders, rapes, hatred, wars, child abuse, divorce, poverty, and the grave where we are all destined to decay are a snapshot of the evil inside of every human being.
I believe the truth of the Bible because all the evidence points there. The Bible has been right about everything, from the sinfulness of man, to the fact that the earth hangs upon nothing (which was in the Bible in Job 26:7 something like 3500 years ago, which was discovered much later by people to be true, as impossible as it seemed to ancient people that something could hang on nothing). There are many examples in the Bible where God revealed in Scripture what scientists discovered much later.
The Bible is the truth, it's trustworthy, it's the Word of God, and it's given to us because God loves us and wants us to know Him and know the truth.
Nothing is more important than knowing Him, Jordan.
Don't wait. Don't ignore it. God's calling you now.
We never know when our time of grace will be up, whether we will first die or whether Jesus will return to judge the world first. It could be tonight.
