“Therefore since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses…” (Hebrews 12:1a)

I do not typically hang out with sixteen-year-olds. But on a recent trip to Scotland, one of my traveling companions was my friend’s son. I loved this kid, but I quickly discovered that the so-called Generation Gap was a Grand Canyon.

He is a Baltimore Orioles fan. So, I decided to test the width of this canyon. I started with an easy one. Who was Brooks Robinson? Eyes wandered to the ceiling. No idea.

Okay, how about Frank Robinson? Huge smile- but no idea.

Jim Palmer? Never heard of him.

Boog Powell? No idea. He did tell me he had heard of Cal Ripken, Jr. Bingo!

And then he got me! What did I know about the current Orioles star- Gunnar Henderson? I had to admit- never heard of him.

The generation gap game continued onto the golf course. As we arrived on the 6th tee at Carnoustie, I told my young friend about this famous hole and Ben Hogan’s 1953 win. The par-five is affectionately known as Hogan’s Alley, hitting between bunkers right and OB right.

“Ben Hogan? Who’s he?”, says my young friend. That was a stunner.

This story popped into my mind before we had finished walking down Hogan’s Alley. I believe it helps to know the history of the game--- if you want to be great, or even good. The great players are there to ‘inspire’ you to be better. When I was a kid, it was mainly Palmer and Nicklaus. Others came along. Eventually, I heard about Hogan, Snead, and Nelson. I wanted to swing like Gene Littler. Contemporaries like Bill Rogers and Ben Crenshaw and Larry Nelson inspired me as I got older. I started wearing my collar up because my neck was skinny and Johnny Miller did it. He seemed very cool to me. I wanted to know his story.

Now, transfer this idea to spiritual matters. How many people claim to be “Christians” (I put this in quotes on purpose) but have no idea who the key characters in the faith really have been?

How many so-called Jesus fans have no idea who the basic characters of the Bible really are?

Jesus did not come out of nowhere. The story starts with all the people in Genesis, like Abraham. Do you know him? How about Joseph? Moses? King David? Elijah and Elisha? Flunked all that? We skip over some fairly obscure Old Testament figures who are worth knowing and go to the New Testament. John the Baptist? John the Apostle? Is he John One, or Two, or Three? Do you know Peter? Maybe, since he was the Pope.

But basically, most people are illiterate of basic Christian history yet claim to “follow Jesus”.

So let me make a bold statement--- I am not sure it is even possible to truly follow Jesus Christ if you have no curiosity about how and why He got here. The story starts in Genesis and ends in Revelation. Do you know this story? Being a Jesus fan is not enough. Learn some history.

If you need to know who the heroes of the faith have been, start with the 11th chapter of Hebrews. You will read about Cain and Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac, Jacob and Esau, Joseph, Moses, Rahab, Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and more!

Another good summary is found in Acts 7. Stephen was arrested and accused of blasphemy. He was brought before the high council, and when the high priest asked Stephen, “Are these accusations true?”, his answer is perhaps the best summary of who Jesus was and how He got here found in the New Testament. Stephen started with Abraham’s story, then moved on to Isaac and Jacob. Then Joseph and Egypt, all leading up to Moses. Then, the return to the promised land, and the story of how David and Solomon were told to build a temple. But then he told them plainly about Jesus… “the Righteous One- the Messiah whom you betrayed and murdered.”

And you surely know the rest of the story. “Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed steadily into heaven and saw the glory of God, and he saw Jesus standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand.” Act 7:53. And with that, they killed him.

The story becomes even more profound when you consider that “Saul was one of the witnesses and he agreed completely with the killing of Stephen” (Acts 8:1). Wow, Saul became Paul, who wrote half the New Testament. Indeed, this man Paul explained Jesus better than anyone who ever lived. We would not understand the profound impact of Jesus in our world if we did not have the holy words of Paul.

So, it is true. Jesus is Lord, and His life and death and resurrection are the basics of the “Gospel”. But there are some other names we need to know, too. Dig into the history of your faith.