CONFLICT: REASON vs FAITH?
John 20:29: Jesus said to
him [Thomas], “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who
have not seen and yet have believed.”
· Matthew 22:36–37 (ESV) “Teacher, which is the
great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord
your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”
· 2 Corinthians 10:4–5 (ESV) For the weapons of
our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.
We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God,
and take every thought captive to obey Christ.
·
Proverbs 3:13–14 (ESV) Blessed is the one who
finds wisdom, and the one who gets understanding, for the gain
from her is better than gain from silver and her profit better than gold.
·
WHY OBEY? Deuteronomy 5:15 “You shall remember
that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you
out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the
LORD your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.”
“All you need to do is
to preach the Word.”
WE’RE COMMANDED TO MAKE A DEFENSE FOR THE FAITH:
·
Jude 1:3
…contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the
saints.
·
1 Peter
3:15-16 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense (apologia) to everyone who asks you a reason for the
hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; 16having a good conscience, that
when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ
may be ashamed.
What is Biblical Faith? A Blind
Leap?
RICHARD DAWKINS: “Faith is the great cop-out, the great excuse to evade the need to
think and evaluate evidence. Faith is belief in spite of, even perhaps because
of, the lack of evidence.”
BIBLICAL FAITH IS BASED ON EVIDENCE:
·
“Has any god ever tried to take for himself one
nation out of another nation, by testings, by miraculous signs and wonders, by
war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, or by great and awesome deeds,
like all the things the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your very
eyes? You were shown these things so that you might know that the Lord is God;
besides him there is no other.” (Deut. 4:34-35)
·
NEVER A BLIND LEAP: “Do not believe me unless I
do what my Father does. Even though you do not believe me, believe the
miracles, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in
the Father." (John 10:37-38)
·
"I am telling you now before it happens, so
that when it does happen you will believe that I am He.” (John 13:19;
14:28-29)
·
1 Thessalonians 5:21 but test everything; hold
fast what is good.
“We
have no right to criticize the beliefs of others. You Christians are always
judging!”
COMMANDED TO CORRECT:
2 Tim. 2:24-26 And a servant of the
Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility
correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them
repentance, so that they may know the truth, and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him
to do his will.
Col. 2:8 Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy
and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic
principles of the world, and not according to Christ.
1 John 4:1 Dear friends, do not believe every
spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many
false prophets have gone out into the world.
Revelation 2:14-15 Nevertheless, I have a few
things against you: You have people there who hold to the teaching of Balaam,
who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin by eating food sacrificed to
idols and by committing sexual immorality. Likewise you also have those who
hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans.
“People
aren’t won through reason/apologetics!”
Acts 17:2-4 Then Paul, as his custom was, went in to them,
and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures,
explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from
the dead, and saying, "This Jesus whom I preach to you is the
Christ." And some of them were persuaded; and a great multitude of the
devout Greeks, and not a few of the leading women, joined Paul and Silas.
Acts 18:4 And
he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath and persuaded both Jews and
Greeks.
“Your NT is just the
result of the politics of Constantine. There were many other Gospels which were
burned by the more powerful group!
Hebrews 2:3–4 How shall we escape if we neglect such a great
salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by
those who heard, while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various
miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
1 Thessalonians 2:13 And we also thank God constantly for
this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you
accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God,
which is at work in you believers.
“The Bible is about
believing, not about proofs and proving!”
Acts 2:22 "Men
of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you
by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as
you yourselves know.
Acts 17:31 He has
fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a
Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising
Him from the dead."
John 5:31
"If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true.
Acts 1:3 to
whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs,
being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to
the kingdom of God.
“But we don’t see
miracles today. So don’t talk about proof!”
EYEWITNESS
TESTIMONY: John 20:31 But these [miracles] are written that you may
believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may
have life in his name.
“The Christian faith
isn’t about certainty; it’s about believing! When you’re certain, you become
closed and imperialistic – demanding that others believe as you do.”
Col. 2:2-4 that their hearts may be encouraged,
being knit together in love, and attaining
to all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the knowledge
of the mystery of God, both of the Father and of Christ, in whom are hidden all
the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Now this I say lest anyone should
deceive you with persuasive words.
Hebrews 10:19–23 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence
to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that
he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we
have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart
in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil
conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the
confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.
“But God will
protect us! If I trust in God, I don’t need apologetics. By resorting to
apologetics and proof, you’re not truly trusting in Christ!”
Titus 1:7-11
For a bishop must be blameless…holding fast the faithful word as he has been
taught, that he may be able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and convict
those who contradict. For there are many insubordinate, both idle talkers and
deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, 11whose mouths must be
stopped, who subvert whole households.
“Jesus wasn’t
concerned about providing proof but in touching lives!”
John 14:28-29 "You heard me say, 'I am going away and I
am coming back to you.' If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to
the Father, for the Father is greater than I. I have told you now before it
happens, so that when it does happen you will believe.”
John 20:27–28 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here,
and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not
disbelieve, but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”
“The church doesn’t
need more information; it needs more love and commitment!”
Jeremiah 9:23-24
This is what the Lord says: "Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or
the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but
let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I
am the Lord, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in
these I delight,"
2 Peter 1:2-3 Grace
and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our
Lord. His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through
our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.
“If we
have enough faith, we shouldn’t need evidences and proofs!
Matthew 11:5-6
The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the
deaf hear; the dead are raised up and
the poor have the gospel preached to
them. And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me." (Thomas?)
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