Good Question
The purpose of the Museum of the Bible, opened in 2017 in Washington D.C., is not just to display relics. It shows how the Bible has impacted human history, individual people, and every area of life.
What a timely message, since modern voices claim Biblical teachings are stifling and oppressive. Last year, a British court ruled that belief in the Bible is “incompatible with human dignity” in punishing a Christian physician for disagreeing with certain modern sentiments. It even cited a specific verse (Gen. 1:27) it found offensive. That is a logical sequitur from Karl Marx’s declaration, “The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the people is the demand for their real happiness.” History repeats itself, as in “there arose another generation after them who did not know the Lord” (Jud. 2:10).
Would America be happier without Christians? Consider a few facts. Our oldest universities such as Yale, Harvard, and Princeton were founded by Christians. Each year, one in six patients receive care in hospitals founded by Christians. Over 350,000 congregations help alleviate the pain of human need for over 70 million Americans each year with $20 billion in donations. In post-Katrina New Orleans, churches in Louisiana distributed 62 million pounds of relief supplies. Pastors provide about 140 million hours of counseling and mental health services annually, at no charge.
The world is better when it embraces the Christian concept that all people have value, and are made in God’s image. Look at the video clip of Tim Tebow talking about his “Night to Shine” worldwide prom initiative on “The Tonight Show,” then dancing with Judy. What a contrast to the world Jesus stepped into, where the Roman practice was to discard unwanted girls and babies born with challenges or deformities. If killing innocent humans is despicable today, it’s because of Jesus.
Today’s culture is sailing into turbulent waters, blown by winds of secularism. As the saying goes, “You might get what you want, but you might not want what you get.” Richard Dawkins, author of The God Delusion admitted, “I have mixed feelings about the decline of Christianity, insofar as Christianity might be a bulwark against something worse.”
Steve Green, President of Hobby Lobby, was instrumental in the founding of the Museum of the Bible. He writes about the revolutionary preaching and ministry of Jesus and notes, “Within three centuries, this nonviolent movement had swept the Roman Empire. Doctrines of racism were laid aside, crucifixion and the cruel gladiator games of the arenas were ended, the dignity of life was taken to new levels, the seeds of the emancipation of slaves were planted, and the groundwork of modern science was laid. It was the beginning of countless blessings bestowed on the world by the Christian church. Why would anyone want to see that end?” Good question.
