Why I Believe . . .

We asked children (ages 7-9), preteens (ages 10-12), and teenagers (ages 13-16) from around the world to write for the Review in August. The following article is one they produced. —Editors 

I love reading true stories! Stories about people who survived World War II. Stories about prisoners who escaped. Stories about missionaries who went into danger. Stories about times people had to be brave.

The best true stories always have something in common: They have dates. They have timelines. And they have evidence. Because when a story is real, it can be checked. It can be proven. It is not just a guess. And that is what makes it powerful.

Today I want to tell you why I believe in Jesus.

Because God did not just give us a religion. God gave us evidence. And one of the greatest evidences God ever gave is prophecy. Prophecy is like God writing history before it happens.

Prophecy Helps Me Believe

In the book of Daniel, God gave a prophetic timeline that points straight to Jesus Christ. One of the greatest prophecies in the Bible is in Daniel 8 and 9. It is the prophecy about the 2300 days and the 70 weeks.

Now, I know that sounds complicated, but it is actually really amazing. The 70-week prophecy is like a giant spotlight from heaven pointing to one person: Jesus of Nazareth. The prophecy predicts when the Messiah will come. It predicts when Jesus will begin His ministry. It even points to His death.

I love this quote from Isaac Newton, who was one of the smartest scientists ever. He said the 70-week prophecy is “the foundation stone of the Christian religion.”[1] That means it is one of the strongest proofs that Jesus really is the Messiah. So when people ask, “How do you know Jesus is the Christ?” I can say: “Because Daniel predicted it hundreds of years before Jesus was even born.” That is why I believe.

But here is the problem: Some people believe in Jesus only because their parents told them. Or because they grew up in church. Or because it is tradition.

Prophecy teaches us something important: God does not want us to have a faith based on guesses. God wants us to have a faith based on truth. Because when life gets hard, a weak faith can fall apart. But a faith built on evidence stands strong.

More Than Timelines

Here is something else that is amazing. The prophecy does not just point to Jesus. The prophecy also points to God doing something special at the end of the 2300 days. And what happened after that? God gave His church the gift of prophecy!

As Seventh-day Adventists we believe God gave Ellen G. Whitethe gift of prophecy. Recently I visited the Ellen White Estate at the General Conference offices, and it was amazing. Last year I also got to visit Battle Creek, where Ellen White lived as well. And I learned something important: Ellen White spent her whole ministry pointing people to Jesus. She said her writings were like a smaller light leading people to the greater light, which is Jesus.[2]

So the Spirit of Prophecy is not about making someone famous or being able to tell the future. It is about testifying of Jesus.

There were many miraculous experiences in Ellen White’s life that made people realize God was really using her. For example, people witnessed that during one of her visions when she was a teenager, she held up an 18-pound (8-kilogram) Bible above her head for about 30 minutes. When I visited her house in Battle Creek, I tried to hold a replica Bible and couldn’t even last one minute.

It is also said that sometimes when she was in vision she wouldn’t even be breathing, and people would hold a mirror in front of her face to check. Even though she was not breathing, she was still speaking and describing what God was showing her. That made people realize something serious was happening. Not magic. Not pretending. But God giving a gift.

And what is the point of the gift of prophecy?

The Bible tells us in Revelation 19:10: “For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

So the Spirit of Prophecy is not about making someone famous or being able to tell the future. It is about testifying of Jesus.

That is why I believe.

God Still Speaks

Moses is not alive anymore, but his words are still speaking.

Daniel is not alive anymore, but his prophecies are still teaching.

John is not alive anymore, but Revelation is still preaching.

And Ellen White is not alive anymore, but her writings are still speaking.

So here is my question for everyone today: If God gave us all these prophets, why would we ignore them? Why would we be too busy to read the very messages God gave to strengthen our faith?

The Bible says in 2 Chronicles 20:20: “Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper.” If you want a faith that is strong, a faith that will prosper, you have to read what God wrote; you have to believe what His prophets have written.

So here is my challenge to every person reading, children and adults alike: This week, start a new habit of reading one chapter of the Bible every morning. Start with Daniel. Start with Matthew. Start with Psalms. Start anywhere, but read one chapter every morning. And then read a little from Ellen White every evening, because her writings point you to Jesus. Because the prophets all have one message: Jesus is the Messiah. Jesus is the Savior. And Jesus is coming again.

And that is why I can stand here today and say, I believe in Jesus and His prophets.

With her dying breath, Ellen White whispered the words from 2 Timothy 1:12, “I know whom I have believed.” My question is: Are we honestly able to say the same today?

[1] A. Rupert Hall, Isaac Newton: Adventurer in Thought (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992), p. 372.

[2] Ellen G. White, Colporteur Ministry (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1953), p. 125.