While my husband and I served at our third church, I taught the adult Sunday school seekers’ class for 10+ years.
Most of the students were intellectuals from Mainland China. They raised many interesting questions, which helped me reevaluate my Christian belief in different ways.
On one Sunday, the lesson was about the Godship of Jesus Christ. I flipped to a page in the binder and spoke from my handwritten notes. Afterwards, one of the newcomers, a woman named Julia, raised her hand. “Do you know about Falun Gong?”
I nodded.
Her voice sounded curt. “Li Hongzhi, Falun Gong’s leader, declares that he is God. Why don’t you believe in him but you accept Jesus’ claim?”
The room fell silent as all eyes focused on me for a response.
Lord, please give me wisdom. I sucked in a deep breath. “Being a scientist by training, I try to maintain an open mind. If anyone could point to some ancient books that prophesied his coming, and if he was also willing to die for my sin according to the prophecies, then I will take a serious look at the validity of the case.’”
Julia squinted. “Where are the prophecies about Jesus?”
I checked my notes. “According to studies, more than 300 prophecies from the Old Testament were fulfilled in Jesus Christ.”
“How do you know those were not inserted into the Old Testament by Jesus’ disciples?’”
“Good question.” I fiddled with my pen to calm down. “Have you heard about the Dead Sea Scrolls? They are considered among the most significant archeological finds in the 20th century. Except the Book of Esther, all the other Old Testament books were there. Experts have dated many of them to be 100 or more B.C.E., long before Jesus was born. Comparing those manuscripts with the editions we have now, the difference is negligible, less than 1%.”
Julia’s face went pale. She pushed against the desk to stand up and walked out.
My heart sank. Oh, no. Have I offended her?
Wendy who sat to my left patted my arm. “Julia is a member of Falun Gong. Your answers are to the point. I hope she will take them into consideration.”
We never saw Julia again at church, yet the memory of the incident remained with me till today. I firmly believe that we Christians need to fully grasp the themes in both the Old and New Testaments in order to develop a full picture of God’s salvation plan.
