(*Note: If only to clarify when I speak of the ancient Hebrew faith I am not referring to Judaism which supplements and adds to the original Torah (first 5 books of the Old Testament scriptures) with the rabbinical writings of the Talmud which were written around the 5th century A.D. )
(**Note: When referring to Christianity it's to the wrings and doctrines/teachings found within the Old and New Testaments as they are literarily read within the given context.)In a rather strict sense, Christianity within its pure form has been present since the very beginning. The Old Testament is full of prophecies and foreshadowing of the Messiah that had been promised ever since the fall of Man into sin and rebellion. (Genesis 3:15) The ancient Hebrew peoples were chosen by God as a nation to point the rest of world towards the coming Messiah until He came and the reason for their special purpose was fulfilled. The special dietary laws, rituals, and temple sacrifices were null and void because they were no longer needed.
In His own time God worked throughout human history until the time had come for God the Son to be born. The Gospels even show Jesus going back constantly to the Old Testament scriptures to show this. One of these times was on the day of Resurrection itself when he talked to two of his followers on their way to Emmaus. He went through all of what the scriptures had to say. (Luke 24) It was by grace through faith in the coming Messiah Himself that always saved. And when the Messiah was revealed it remained by grace through faith one still had full forgiveness of sins and eternal life. Jesus lived a perfect, sinless life whereas we never could. He then paid in full for our sins where can never even hope to do so.
God is Holy and Just. He cannot accept sin and let it slide by since then He would not be God and it would be against His very nature. He is also Forgiving and Merciful because of Christ and what He has done for us. Hell was not originally created for human beings. But only for the fallen angels. Of course, when sin entered the world that all changed.
While the Old Testament looks to the coming Messiah, the New Testament reveals the Messiah...as well as looks back to Old Testament to how the "stage was set" so to speak. The Triune God, 1 God yet 3 persons, is within both the Old and New Testaments even though they are shown in different ways. The original Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic even has words which refer to God's nature to be both the singular and plural.
The center of Christianity has always remained focused on Jesus Christ and just why and for what reason He's our Savior. And for that, again, one would need to go back to the beginning. So, from a Biblical world-view there really is only one God and He created us. No other gods exist.
Many differing faith traditions cross each other out automatically. And I don't speak of just the faiths which hold to absolutes. Even those which claim themselves to be relative are absolutist in nature. This is one area where no vacuum exists. Everyone one of us has some type of world-view that influences and determines what we do, what we think, and who we are. Whatever that may be. We all have faith. The only difference it seems what is the object of that faith.
I did find it odd the title of the thread's focus solely on Christianity. While enjoying discussing matters of faith the bridge for discussion it doesn't do any good to immediately place others on the defensive. One need not agree with or even like the other person's religious beliefs. But it is achievable to still respect the other individual as a fellow human being.
As for the original question in the very first post: Hmmm. I'll only answer what Jesus said to His disciple Thomas. Something about believing without seeing.
Then again the question could easily be turned around to say "What if Christianity is right?" However there were still those in the Bible who saw all the miracles and witnessed the awe and wonder first hand. But what did it amount to? Anywhere from the recently freed Israelites from Egypt who chose to worship a golden calf to many of the religious teachers of Jesus' day who accused him of being in league with Satan himself...it shows seeing doesn't always amount to believing.
This means there's definitely something more to the equation.
For the record I'm a theologically conservative Lutheran, Young-Earth Creationist, and Amillennialist.
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