The writings of Josephus are not without it's criticisms, but that is nothing new in the world of hermeneutics. Calling it a "falsification" is a bit of an exaggeration. Josephus is viewed as somewhat of a defector/traitor among some----like I said, he is not without being scrutinized. However, his writings (love them or hate them) have been helpful information for historians.
Another testament to Jesus being real is something called the "Alexamenos graffiti" (or sometimes the blasphemous graffiti). Wikipedia estimates it to have been etched around 200 AD but who knows when it was originally etched?
How knows anything of the past for that matter? There is a difference between history and historiography. If you had a time machine and traveled back in time, saw a man spit on the eyes of a blind man, then saw the man exclaim that he was healed; this still would not cure all people of suspicion. There is an explanation for everything, so not even witnessing a miracle would be enough to convince some people about certain things (like the existence of God or the existence of Jesus).
Whether you believe it or not, all you can/should do (to be fair) is treat historical accounts in the same manner that you would other historical matters. For some people, it's enough to believe; for others, it is not---and each has their reasons.
According to John, Jesus prayed for people who would believe in God through him--"I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; (Jhn 17:20 NASB95). Later he also states--Jesus said to him, "Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed [are] they who did not see, and [yet] believed." (Jhn 20:29 NASB95). As a Christian, I am obligated to what we call the great commission and I keep in mind these particular verses when discussing whether or not God or Jesus is/was real. They may not be relevant to a non-believer but I see a lot of people as potential believers, and that means that these verses and a lot of other things apply to them in the same way that they've applied to me. So even though I am a believer, I'm not too unlike an agnostic. I don't know everything, if I did, I wouldn't say that I'm a believer I would say that I know.
Another testament to Jesus being real is something called the "Alexamenos graffiti" (or sometimes the blasphemous graffiti). Wikipedia estimates it to have been etched around 200 AD but who knows when it was originally etched?
How knows anything of the past for that matter? There is a difference between history and historiography. If you had a time machine and traveled back in time, saw a man spit on the eyes of a blind man, then saw the man exclaim that he was healed; this still would not cure all people of suspicion. There is an explanation for everything, so not even witnessing a miracle would be enough to convince some people about certain things (like the existence of God or the existence of Jesus).
Whether you believe it or not, all you can/should do (to be fair) is treat historical accounts in the same manner that you would other historical matters. For some people, it's enough to believe; for others, it is not---and each has their reasons.
According to John, Jesus prayed for people who would believe in God through him--"I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; (Jhn 17:20 NASB95). Later he also states--Jesus said to him, "Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed [are] they who did not see, and [yet] believed." (Jhn 20:29 NASB95). As a Christian, I am obligated to what we call the great commission and I keep in mind these particular verses when discussing whether or not God or Jesus is/was real. They may not be relevant to a non-believer but I see a lot of people as potential believers, and that means that these verses and a lot of other things apply to them in the same way that they've applied to me. So even though I am a believer, I'm not too unlike an agnostic. I don't know everything, if I did, I wouldn't say that I'm a believer I would say that I know.