Why I believe in Jesus

I learned something really good from John Calvin as I was flying to America the other day. He says that no one can be convinced that the Bible is true unless the Holy Spirit convinces them. Sometimes I have thought, "what if someone asks me why do I believe in Jesus as opposed to believing in something/someone else or not believing in anything at all." This has given me a little trouble because I can't give any convincing arguments. I'm not an intellectual or an apologist. I'm basically one of those people who are described in I Corinthians 1:18-31. And as I look again at that passage, I see that Paul and Calvin are using the same argument: "those whom God has called". I believe because God has called me. Because God called me, He has convinced me through His spirit. That's basically it. If someone believes, they believe on account of God's Spirit convincing them. If someone does not believe, they haven't been taught by the Spirit to believe. It just comes down to that. In chapter seven of book one of The Institutes of the Christian Religion, Calvin says "the only true faith is that which the Spirit of God seals on our hearts. Nay, the modest and teachable reader will find a sufficient reason in the promise contained in Isaiah, that all the children of the renovated Church 'shall be taught of the Lord' (Isaiah liv. 13)." I love that!

Calvin closed this chapter with this: "If at any time, then, we are troubled at the small number of those who believe, let us, on the other hand, call to mind, that none comprehend the mysteries of God save those to whom it is given."