The Case for Christ- page 167-168

We had spent a lot of time talking about the Jesus of the Jesus Seminar- A symbolic Jesus, but one who's impotent to offer the world anything except the illusion of hope. But before we left, I wanted to hear about the Jesus of Gregory Boyd. I needed to hear about the Jesus he researches and writes scholarly books about as a theology professor is the same Jesus he preaches about on Sunday mornings.

"Let me get this straight,"I said."Your Jesus-the Jesus you relate to-is both a Jesus of history and a Jesus of faith."

Boyd clenched his fits for emphasis, as if I'd just scored a touchdown. "Yes, that's it exactly, Lee!" he exclaimed. Moving to the very edge of his chair, he spelled out precisely what his scholarship-and his heart have brought him to believe.

"It's like this:if you love a person, your love goes beyond the facts of that person, but it's rooted in the facts about that person. For example, you love your wife because she's gorgeous, she's nice, she's sweet, she's kind. All these things are facts about your wife, and therefore you love her.

But your love goes beyond that. You can know all these things about your wife and not be in love with her and put your trust in her, but you do. So the decision goes beyond the evidence,yet it is also there also on the basis of the evidence.

So it is with falling in love with Jesus.To have a relationship with Jesus Christ goes beyond just knowing the historical facts about him,yet it's rooted in the historical facts about him.I believe in Jesus on the basis of the historical evidence, but my relationship with Jesus goes way beyond the evidence.I have to put my trust in Him and walk with Him on a daily basis".

I interrupted to say,"Yes, but will you acknowledge that Christianity makes some claims about Jesus that are just plain hard to believe?"

"Yes,of course I do," He replied. "That's why I'm glad we have such incredibly strong evidence to show us they're true".