In my recent wanderings through the
blogosphere I have been reminded of Jesus' question at the end of the parable of the
persistent widow: "...when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:18). I have noticed a near-refusal to allow faith to be part of what it means to be a Christian...even on many blogs/posts/responses that were written by someone claiming to be a Christian.
I have seen this most often in people (professing Christians and non-Christians) questioning whether the Bible is truly God's Word (as opposed to the Quran, Eastern religions, or, most often, what they happen to think "feels right" or "sounds fair"). And of course, as long as this is in question, people just treat the Bible like a buffet.
Let's see...I think I'll take God's love, but none of that "Holy and just" stuff for me...I'll have Jesus' friendship with sinners, but hold the claims of deity or of being the only way to the Father...and while I'm at it why don't I throw in some karma and reincarnation from the Eastern Religion side of the buffet.
People do not want to accept anything as truth (if they believe that there is such a thing) unless they can "be 100% sure," and by this they generally mean "have undeniable empirical evidence." Can we produce incontrovertible empirical evidence that 100% proves the existence of God, the Bible as His perfect revelation of Himself and His will, or that salvation from sin and to heaven is necessary and is only through faith in Jesus Christ? NO! And I think that any Christians who claim we can are doing a disservice to God and His Word.
There certainly is evidence for the existence of God, the absolute truthfulness of the Bible, and thus the truth of the Gospel and all other teachings of Scripture. We can argue that the presence of design in the universe supports the existence of God the Creator. You wouldn't ever assume a Swiss watch came about by accident...why would you assume that something as complex as a human being came about without a designer?
We can argue that the fact that people have a sense of right and wrong (even though it is often warped) supports the existence of God who is Holy.
We can argue that prophecies fulfilled in detail hundreds of years after they were written support the Bible as being of divine origin.
We can argue that archaeological discoveries such as the Hittite culture, King Belshazzar, and Nebo-Sarsekim support the historical accuracy of the Bible.
Good arguments? Sure, but people are always going to be able to posit alternative interpretations of the data. There comes a point where you have to accept the existence of God, the Bible as God's revelation to mankind, and the claims of Christ on FAITH.
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... 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. – Hebrews 11:1–2, 6
Not a popular thought in our materialistic, scientific, pluralistic culture! So is it possible to "be 100% sure"? You bet, but "proof" is only going to take you so far... after that you have to choose to trust God or not!
I have seen this most often in people (professing Christians and non-Christians) questioning whether the Bible is truly God's Word (as opposed to the Quran, Eastern religions, or, most often, what they happen to think "feels right" or "sounds fair"). And of course, as long as this is in question, people just treat the Bible like a buffet.
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Comments (90)
Absolutely true. Excellent post.
In philosophy class I was taught that it's impossible to absolutely 100% prove anything except my own existence. (Cogito ergo sum.) For all I know I could be a brain-in-a-jar somewhere and this is all a dream or hallucination. So, if proof-of-God doesn't take me all the way to 100% sure, that doesn't bother me much.
Faith (not necessarily blind faith, but faith mixed with reason) is part of all our lives, even for agnostics and atheists and nihilists. The difference is where we place our faith. Because no matter what our paradigm is, evidence and reason will only get us so far--as you say, there are always alternative explanations and counter-evidence. We take our best guess, apply Occam's razor, and go by faith for the rest.
Well-written post.
I couldn't live with myself believing in something with no proof. But that doesn't mean that there is no possibility of their being a god, in my mind. I'm definitely an Agnostic. I believe that I don't know a thing.
Good post
I personally think that is where many go wrong...trying to PROVE it. He didn't tell us to try to prove anything, only asked us to BELIEVE. I'm just glad that faith is the only proof I need!
Great thought-provoking post, :)!
Actually, the theory of evolution is a much better argument for the existence of complex "designed" organism like humans, since evolution does not require an even more complex creator. And who created the creator without being even more complex?
Anyway, evolution is supported by a mass of evidence. That seems to imply that the likelihood of a god existing is not a big one.
Without proof you are just making the truth up as you go along.
Amazing post
Spot on accurate, I couldn't agree with you more!
@loveandpolitics@xanga - Actually ( to use your own words ) the very fact that you used quotation marks on the word designed proves that your "study" of the mass of "evidence" is purposely leaving out the obvious fact of design present in all organisms and systems. How do you suppose a mindless process could have devised all of this???
Faith makes the world go 'round...
I was thinking of those verses in Hebrews when I read the title of the post. Thank you for quoting them. Excellent post. Through faith I am sure of the existence of God--maybe not %100, but I don't need to be %100. I can accept by faith.
@loveandpolitics@xanga - "...since evolution does not require an even more complex creator. And who created the creator without being even more complex?"
God is the uncreated Creator. That's the point. God is eternal. He always was and will never end. Of course, if you don't want to be accountable to a higher power, you can believe in evolution, where your "creator" is merely luck.
No one was there at the beginning. You must take evolution by faith just as much as creation.
I like the legal phrase : "Beyond a reasonable doubt." 100% proof of anything is next to impossible to come by. But there is enough that points to God that a reasonable person can feel justified in accepting His existence. In other words, the facts make more sense on the assumption that there's a personal God than they do without one.
But God doesn't just sit around existing! God is a personal being who is ready to work in anyone's life if they only come to Him on His terms-- a little humility goes a long way, for one.
Faith is not accepting something for which there's no evidence; Faith is trusting in a person.
@ChrisRusso@xanga - No, you didn't learn that you can't know anything from philosophy class, you learned that Descartes thought that. Read some Locke, Nietzsche, or Aristotle, and they'll completely tear that Cartesian notion up.
Annnnd, though I'm a fairly die-hard atheist, I also believe, passionately, that it's impossible to know anything that isn't fact based for certain.The bible was written by man.
And in nature what sex is the creating force?
You'd think if there is a God it would be a Goddess.
you can have 100% faith but not 100% proof, yeah.
I disagree with complexity being proof of a God though, because you could attribute ANY complexity to God, really, including the swiss watch. It also makes sense to say that when there is a need, a demand, and/or an opportunity for something, then that something will probably occur. If there is a need for better quality watches; someone will probably make them. If an earth comes into existence, on which life can form and grow; then life will probably form and grow. If there is a need for life to become increasingly complex so as to triumph over other life forms, then it will probably do that.
I'm 100% sure God exists because humans are walking the earth, planets stay suspended in the universe, and trees grow for no other reason. To doubt God's existence would be to doubt the existence of everything surrounding me.
No we can never be 100% certain whether God exists or not. The only thing I'm certain of is that human beings will never have that level of intelligence or wisdom to understand all that there is to understand about the world in which we exist, and that there is much more than what we are capable of knowing and understanding about this world. Just because we lack proof for something does not immediately deny its existence. I personally believe in the existence of beings "higher" than us, not necessarily one almighty God who created the universe.
You can't be 100% sure of anything, of course.
@ScarletMoth@xanga - you are comparing the "complexity" of a swiss watch to that of creation? There is no comparison. A swiss watch is very simple compared to how the universe is held together, how your eye can see or your ear hear, etc. etc. etc.
For me as a Christian I am 100% sure that God exists - otherwise what's the point of believing it and living it? When we have doubts about God and who He is and what He can do that's when we allow the world and it's ways to grab hold of us and our faith becomes unsteady...
We're not perfect, we don't live out God's will as we should - but I believe that if we did, hypothetically speaking, the necessity to prove His existence would be thrown out the window because He would be undeniably visible in everything all the time. As it is now we can easily lower our eyes and look at ourselves and see what we want to. It should be our desire everyday that our faith in God be increased and strengthened so we can trust in Him for His will to come about.
At the end of the day He is extraordinary! And we should try and believe that, not only is it His will to, but that He can break into our normal humdrum lives!
@sugartomyhoney@xanga - Yes you're right that creation is undoubtedly more complex than a watch! But the author is referring to the teleological argument - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watchmaker_analogy
Don't worry, creation isn't being belittled here!
Look into my eyes and say, "If it ain't 100% it ain't worth it."
God is ultimate truth. If ultimate truth isn't 100% or more, what good is it? Therefore, if I can't get to 100% more work needs to be done. The world we see with our naked eyes screams GOD!
That blind people present us with a majority opinion these days, is simply a sign of the times, not a statement of truth.
hmm , This is a touchy subject. I love god with all my heart but every now and i again i start just coming up with questions in my mind about how certain things could be possible--all having to do with god. Like how did people of a bunch of different races all come from 2 white people ,Why does god let things like 911 Happen,Questions like that.Like i said i love him with all my heart and soul, but you gotta wonder ..
Nobody can ever be 100% sure.
You should read the philosophy of Kierkegaard - he basically shares the same view as you.
I agree that you can't be 100% sure in terms of proof like empirical evidence - and that is where faith carries you.
The only thing I'm 100% sure about is that I may never be 100% sure about anything
But seriously, I think that if we COULD prove God's existance so that there is no room for any kind of doubt whatsoever, then wouldn't that refute the purpose of faith? I don't think it's possible to be 100% certain unless you're perfect, which none of us are. I fight my doubts every day, but I continue believing in God because I still believe He's worth it, no matter how often I may question His ways and feel like He's far away...which has been happening more often than usual lately...
I don't get why people are always looking to science to prove/disprove God's existence. It is scientifically impossible for a bee to fly.