Testimony of Hindu Friend from India

I came from a Hindu background. In this article, I will try to bring a conclusion on what is my primary motive to follow Jesus Christ.

The first movie that I saw in USA, in theaters, was “The Passion of Christ”. I remember seeing it in the Winter/Spring of 2004. I went to the movie not knowing what to expect because I did not know much about Jesus that time. A good friend of mine took me to the movie, and told me that the movie was about the final ten hours of the life of Jesus Christ.

There was a scene that specially caught my attention: Jesus was arrested and brought before the high priests. Many Jews gave false witnesses and condemned Jesus. They slapped him, spit on him, insulted him. Then one of the high priests came forward and asked Jesus “Tell us. Are you the messiah, the Son of the Living God?”. Jesus said “Yes, I AM. You will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of power and coming on the clouds of heaven” !!!!!!!!

I did not know how to whistle. Otherwise, I would be whistling. My mind was blown away! Here was a man, who was being punished and still confessed the truth.

Next, they brought Jesus to Pilate, who was a ruler. Pilate asked Jesus “Do you know that I have the power to release you?”. Then Jesus answered “You have no power over me unless it is given to you from above” !!!

The movie “Passion of Christ” had put one of the seeds in my heart, to find the truth. Later, when I had the opportunity to know more about Jesus by reading the book “More than a Carpenter” by Josh McDowell, I liked him more. But, the more I liked him, the more I resisted him also. Soon, I understood that he was making more demands. The problem that I had with Jesus was he wanted us to put him in the first place!

Below are some scriptures about his demands:

“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple. 27And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.” – Luke 14:25

“Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” – Matthew 10:39

Many people get discouraged by the above demands. But Jesus claimed that he came to save us.

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” – John 10:10

It was a long journey for me to come to Christ, from Hindu background. Sometimes the experiences were painful and disturbing, seeing demands like the above ones. Hinduism was a very old religion and came much before Christianity. It has many fascinating philosophies and scriptures. But why did we still choose Christ? Because there is no Savior in any other religion who claimed to bear the sins of whole world upon his shoulders and died for the mankind, like Jesus did. Jesus claimed that He died for us, including you and me. The greatest sacrifice that one can do to others is laying down one’s life for others and our Lord Jesus did for us. Even while hanging on his dying cross, he said “Father, forgive them, they do not know what they are doing”. Such a magnificent love he lavished on humans.

Besides his death, there are many pieces in the puzzle that influenced me to come to conclusion that he is “the way” to God, as what he claimed. Some of them include his perfect righteousness, his teachings about mercy and forgiveness, his extraordinary claims, his resurrection, his miracles that are happening even now, sources outside the Bible that talk about his miracles, early Christian church history, and authenticity of New Testament documents.

I am happy now that I accepted Christ and found the truth. There is no joy that equals working for Him and His Kingdom. If you are not from a Christian background, will you open your heart to my Lord? It is not about whether you are right or I am right, but about what is right. Will you please pray this humble prayer?

“Lord Jesus, who are you? I hear a lot about you. I want to know who you truly are. Please reveal yourself to me.”