March 11, 2007
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Hebrews 11:1-3,6 "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. ...And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
I Corinthians 2:11-14 "For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned."
Some would say that belief in God nothing more than the result of psychological need, and that faith is merely choosing to believe certain things in the face of evidence to the contrary. Rather than faith being a choice to believe unsupported lies, I would rather think of it as a choice to believe truth that is supported by the promises of God himself. The fact that the promises have not yet come to fruition within the framework of the fourth dimension of time does nothing to affect their truth. I can feel fully secure with God's definition of Himself, His created universe and me.
God used his triune nature to entered history as a savior in the incarnation of Jesus Christ. Jesus told us that he is God and did miracles and even rose from the dead to prove his power and authority as well as the truthfulness of His claims. The mere passing of time discredits neither the claims nor the miracles.
We cannot dismiss him as a lunatic or a liar and must take his claims and his atoning work on the cross with utmost seriousness. Jesus Christ will enter history again as judge, and they there will be ample evidence to the contrary for those who would choose to believe that God does not exist and dismiss the Almighty Creator as a figment of our own imaginations. The second coming of Christ will be a historical, undeniable fact. The Bible says that everyone will notice.
Not knowing the time that the event will take place does nothing to lessen the certainty that it will indeed happen. If my husband goes out to work in the morning do I begin to doubt his existence simply because I don't know the exact minute of his return? I do remember that when my children were babies that they cried every time I went to the bathroom because they did not understand that I would soon emerge from behind the closed door. I left the door open for them. Sheesh.
Just as it would be illogical to doubt my husband's existence in the afternoon, to say that the Bible is not true because the second coming has not yet taken place is also illogical. Time does not cancel out truth. If Christ has not yet actually reentered history in the second coming, the world should be thankful for the delay and not engaging in doubting and mockery. God is giving us an extended time of grace for even one more sinner to repent and come to him, and escape the judgement that is to come.
We are actually commanded not to make or even imagine gods for ourselves for whatever reason. It dishonors God, because with our limited knowledge we could never even begin to cook up a even a half baked image of all that He is. It also limits us in knowing Him. If I am praying to a statue, my concept of God stops at the idol before me. God defines Himself in the Bible, and we are not free to redefine Him. This includes adding to or subtracting from any part of the Bible that we find inconvenient to the image of God that we want to make for ourselves in our minds.
The God of the Bible defined himself, but perhaps it is fair to say that other gods are the products of a human psychological need for a god. We were created to feel physical hunger so that we will know that we need to eat. We were created to feel spiritual hunger so that we will know that we need God. I have heard it said that those who leave other religions to believe in the God of the Bible say that they knew that they were looking for something in their former religion, but found it only in a relationship with God through the work of Jesus Christ on the cross
Why does the fact that God is indeed there disturb some people? They cannot see Him, granted, but God is a spirit, and knowledge of Him must be understood spiritually. Experiencing God is expectedly difficult for those who would say that we have no creator and that we are here only by chance and the law of survival of the fittest. I cannot see a rainbow in the sky if I do not open my eyes. If I do not believe that the rainbow is there and don't bother to open my eyes to see it, I miss the experience and have no one to blame but my stubborn self.
Perhaps the fact that God is there disturbs people because if He is indeed there, they must have some response to Him. He cannot be ignored. They understand very well that they must change their behavior in accordance with Creation as He defines it. They must drop the pride that they have in the works of their own hands and minds and admit that they are sinners in need of forgiveness. Rationalizing sin away by defining good and evil away through relativistic philosophy and "killing" God may seem to provide an easy solution to the problem of human sin. Only time will tell if this "solution" is superior to the sacrificial death of Christ on the cross for our sins. It is a dangerous gamble. If I am wrong and there is indeed no God then I have lost nothing, but if God is there, the ones who dared to think that they could define an alternate universe have lost everything.
Are atheists allergic to all gods equally, or mainly the God of the Bible? If so, why? Perhaps because the God of the Bible is less willing to share His place as Creator and is less willing to allow us to define the universe for ourselves?
There are also those who would want to do away with all religion because it creates conflict. But are there also not political and economic causes of the conflicts? It is not only about religion.
God tells us that He loves and comforts those that are in His will. Why should it be strange for us to go to Him for love and comfort when we need it? If as a child I skinned my knee and ran to my mother for help and comfort it may very well be the result of a psychological need, but is it not logical that I would run to a real place where my need really be would be met?
