Dr. Jeremiah J. Johnston was once skeptical of the famous Shroud of Turin, which many believe depicts a fascinating image made at the time of Christ’s resurrection.
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Johnston, author of “God’s Peace Bible: Discover and Experience God’s Shalom Throughout the Bible,” told CBN News that he has complete confidence in the reliability of the New Testament.
“There is no doubt about the reliability of the New Testament,” he said. “The Bible is a book of history…they are books about real people, real places, and real events. Our holy books are not fairy tales. They are not legends. They are not folklore. And they are well-documented.”
Among the factors that convinced Johnston of a true and authentic view of the Bible are discoveries made by archaeologists who regularly examine centuries of information and artifacts.
“Archaeologists use six books to make sure they’re digging in the right place in Israel,” he says. “They always use these six books: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, and then Josephus.”
Johnston continued, “If the archaeologists excavating, and many of them were not Christians, they would use the New Testament, because…it’s very similar to what we expect the world to look like in the first century. You better believe I’d use the Bible, too.”
Biblical experts said there are dozens of evidence-based facts about Jesus’ life, death, miracles and resurrection based on archaeological materials.
“Christianity is the only religion that can be tested against history, and it passes the test every time,” Johnston said. “And here things like the physical resurrection of Jesus are very well attested. And I believe what’s amazing is that as we get closer to the second coming of Jesus Christ, we’re going to see a revelation of controlled discoveries related to technology.”
Johnston specifically mentioned the Shroud of Turin, which reassured him about the reliability of the Bible.
“This is the only relic other than the Bible that we have that combines the evidence of Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection in one relic,” he said. “And I’ve met many of the 102 scientists, and I’ve put my scholarship and reputation on the line…to prove, and this is the first time I’ve ever used that word, that the Shroud is not a hoax. It’s not artificial. There are no pigments. There are no dyes. There are no colorants.”
The Bible expert went on to say there is no way to explain the images on the Shroud, something he said is the real “kicker.”
“The reason it’s there is because God showed his love for you and for me, and when we were at our worst, God sent the best for us,” he said. “That’s the sign of the Shroud.”
Ultimately, Johnston said the Shroud brought much peace to his life. This is a surprising reality considering that he had previously criticized holy relics.
“I wrote a best-selling book about the Resurrection called The Text of Evidence, but I never mentioned the Shroud because I was completely skeptical about it,” he said. “That’s the interesting part. I mean, I got my PhD in England… and it was like, this shroud was drilled into me that it was… counterfeit.”
Johnston said he was “acting on the sound bite, not the content” when he downplayed the Shroud, but that things changed once he dug deeper and started talking to experts. Eventually, his entire perspective changed.
“I think this is the greatest missionary discipleship training tool I have ever seen in my ministry,” Johnston said.
His evolution on this subject was interesting, given how passionately he had questioned it in the past. But he now points out that the pollen spores on the Shroud came from Jerusalem, leaving no doubt whatsoever.
“I now believe that the Shroud is real,” Johnston said. “If you look at the blood, you’ll see type AB blood, human blood, Semitic blood… and pollen spores.”
Watch as he talks more about the Shroud and his new book, God’s Peace Bible: Discovering and Experiencing God’s Shalom Throughout the Bible.
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