For most of mankind’s history, people had to be within earshot in order to talk with others. So, it was hard to believe inventors of the industrial age who began postulating that someone could talk in one place and have their voice heard in another place, all with the use of electricity and wires. But, as a result of many believers pursuing this dream, such a device was invented, and some demonstrations were staged to help the public become believers. The story goes that on March 10, 1876, Alexander Graham Bell became one of the first to demonstrate that it could be done. Graham strung wires from his office to another room and hooked up his primitive telephones to the two ends of the wire. Here are the results, in his own words:

I then shouted into M [the mouthpiece] the following sentence: “Mr. Watson, come here – I want to see you.” To my delight he came and declared that he had heard and understood what I said. I asked him to repeat the words. He answered, “You said ‘Mr. Watson – come here – I want to see you.'” We then changed places and I listened at S [the speaker] while Mr. Watson read a few passages from a book into the mouthpiece M. It was certainly the case that articulate sounds proceeded from S. The effect was loud but indistinct and muffled. (Bells Journal in the Library of Congress)

Eighteen months later, on 10 August 1876, Mr. Bell made the world’s first long-distance telephone call in Canada, from Brantford to Paris, Ontario, a distance of about 6 miles. We can’t blame people for being hesitant to believe that voices could travel over wires in the mid 1800s. But it is no longer hard to believe, because it is now demonstrated on a daily basis.

The same is true of amazing concepts such as heaven, eternal life, salvation and miracles; they are sometimes hard to believe. Knowing this, God staged a demonstration that is one of the best known and most talked about in all of human history, despite the fact that it happened centuries before many of the greatest communication tools were invented. 

The demonstration was set up in the Old Testament Scriptures, when prophets predicted (in hundreds of places) the birth, death and resurrection of a Savior. Then, to make sure there was no confusion, Jesus claimed to be that Savior and He predicted his own death and resurrection. Unfolding events further proved that this was not a cheap trick or sleight of hand. Jesus was arrested, illegally sentenced on bogus charges and publicly hanged by public enemies. He was buried and guarded by the elite military of His day who wanted to guarantee that He did not rise from the dead as predicted.

But then came Easter morning. In one fell swoop, Almighty God gave mankind the ultimate demonstration of power. When Jesus rose from the dead, He demonstrated that He was more powerful than religious institutions, political powers, death, hell and the grave. The same Bible predicts that one of these days, when the rest of the Bible’s prophecies are fulfilled, Jesus will declareI amhe that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death. (Revelation 1:18) 

Ironically, even such a dramatic and definitive demonstration was not enough for those who do not want to believe. But for those willing to face the facts, heaven and everlasting life are no longer hard to believe. Better yet, billions of people throughout the world who have struggled with life’s difficult questions have discovered a personal relationship with God. As a result, their contemporary, personal encounters with the miraculous continue to demonstrate that God is real, alive and well. For these blessed people the wonderful promises of Scripture are no longer hard to believe.