Ask any liberal this question, "Do you like Fox News?" "You mean Faux News?" will be the reply, mockery dripping from the words. "That station is crap. I get my news from a true source."
Ask any conservative this question, "Do you like MSNBC?" "You mean BSNBC?" will be the reply, mockery dripping from the words. "That station is crap. I get my news from a true source."
The true source, of course, is the source referred to by the other as "crap."
Why does a liberal, who hasn't seen the upcoming news story on Fox News, decide in advance that what will be said there is untrue? Why does a conservative, who hasn't seen the upcoming news story on MSNBC, decide in advance that what will be said THERE is untrue?
Answer: we decide in advance where we will find the truth.
Now, this phenomenon is repulsive to "intellectuals" who fancy themselves as being completely open-minded, above pre-judgment, considering all angles and sides and viewpoints, and completely objective. New flash- no one is objective. No one. Everyone comes to evidence or news or thought processes with pre-conceived notions about the truth, as seen by our friends' reactions to Fox News or MSNBC.
What does this have to do with the Bible?
We approach the Bible the same way.
Blasphemy, Dave.
No, it's not.
I was speaking at a youth conference one time, and afterwards they put me in a room to answer questions that the students had. Naturally, the ones asking questions were for the most part a little on the hostile side to the topic of faith and Christianity. One of the students, who was apparently fairly intelligent, said, "I don't get why you are into this Christianity stuff. I mean, you seem like an intelligent person- why do you believe a bunch of stone-age writings and accept that as truth?"
After dealing with the "stone-age writings" and debunking that by taking him through Proverbs and showing him that nothing has really changed, that we all need God's wisdom, I said, "I'll answer your question. Here it is- are you ready for it?" You could cut the tension with a knife.
I said, "Because I decided to."
He looked at me blankly.
I said it again. "I believe in God because I decided to. Long ago, I decided that God was real and that the Bible was the authoritative, inspired, absolute Word of God, and ever since then, I have been constructing evidence to support that."
He said smugly, "I thought as much."
I said, "What about you? You're an atheist because you decided to be one. Long ago, you decided that God was a myth and ever since then you've been constructing arguments against Him. Don't con me. Don't give me this pseudo-intellectual mumbo-jumbo that you considered all the evidence, all the angles, all the thoughts, all the writings, all the everything else and that is still what you are doing today. Somewhere back in time, you made a decision. You decided to not believe."
"Well," I continued, "I decided the opposite. I decided TO believe. In the end, it comes down to faith. You don't know there is no God. No one does. It can't be proved. I don't know there IS a God. If I did, there wouldn't be a word called "faith." So, you and I both had to decide. So don't give me this condescending nonsense that somehow your beliefs are more intelligent or more real or more thoroughly thought out than mine are. In the end, you have to decide what you believe."
"The only time we will know we've made the right decision is five seconds after we die," I went on. "We won't and can't know until then. I feel very confident in my decision to believe, and that's as far as I can go."
He was very quiet. Then he nodded his head and sat down.
The same is true of the Bible. As unintelligent as it sounds, we have to decide beforehand whether we believe the Bible to be true. It's really not as hard as it sounds- we do that with everything else in life anyway (see again the example of Fox News and MSNBC). When I approach the Bible, I've already decided in my mind, through faith, that I am reading the very words of God Himself. Approaching God's word with this attitude is essential to truly understanding the Christian life.
Many people have legitimate concerns about the Bible. I acknowledge that. Others, however, approach the Bible like a conservative approaches MSNBC- antennae up for anything and everything. It really doesn't matter if the MSNBC hosts tell the truth; they could say the sky is blue and the conservative would shake his head in disgust and call it a lie. Well, maybe it's not that bad, but you get my point. Every one of us approaches the Bible with pre-decisions, whether conscious or unconscious.
My challenge to you is to decide. Decide one way or the other. Is the Bible the Word of God? You have to decide. In faith, you have to decide. There is plenty of evidence that it is, but in the end it comes down to faith. If the Bible is God's Word, that has huge implications for our lives. Recognize what pre-decisions you have brought to God's word, and realize how they are shaping your view of it.
I pray that each of you will decide, in faith, to believe the Bible is God's word. Like I said, it doesn't sound very intelligent, but it's how we operate. Decide now, and let your decision forever shape your life.
Ask any conservative this question, "Do you like MSNBC?" "You mean BSNBC?" will be the reply, mockery dripping from the words. "That station is crap. I get my news from a true source."
The true source, of course, is the source referred to by the other as "crap."
Why does a liberal, who hasn't seen the upcoming news story on Fox News, decide in advance that what will be said there is untrue? Why does a conservative, who hasn't seen the upcoming news story on MSNBC, decide in advance that what will be said THERE is untrue?
Answer: we decide in advance where we will find the truth.
Now, this phenomenon is repulsive to "intellectuals" who fancy themselves as being completely open-minded, above pre-judgment, considering all angles and sides and viewpoints, and completely objective. New flash- no one is objective. No one. Everyone comes to evidence or news or thought processes with pre-conceived notions about the truth, as seen by our friends' reactions to Fox News or MSNBC.
What does this have to do with the Bible?
We approach the Bible the same way.
Blasphemy, Dave.
No, it's not.
I was speaking at a youth conference one time, and afterwards they put me in a room to answer questions that the students had. Naturally, the ones asking questions were for the most part a little on the hostile side to the topic of faith and Christianity. One of the students, who was apparently fairly intelligent, said, "I don't get why you are into this Christianity stuff. I mean, you seem like an intelligent person- why do you believe a bunch of stone-age writings and accept that as truth?"
After dealing with the "stone-age writings" and debunking that by taking him through Proverbs and showing him that nothing has really changed, that we all need God's wisdom, I said, "I'll answer your question. Here it is- are you ready for it?" You could cut the tension with a knife.
I said, "Because I decided to."
He looked at me blankly.
I said it again. "I believe in God because I decided to. Long ago, I decided that God was real and that the Bible was the authoritative, inspired, absolute Word of God, and ever since then, I have been constructing evidence to support that."
He said smugly, "I thought as much."
I said, "What about you? You're an atheist because you decided to be one. Long ago, you decided that God was a myth and ever since then you've been constructing arguments against Him. Don't con me. Don't give me this pseudo-intellectual mumbo-jumbo that you considered all the evidence, all the angles, all the thoughts, all the writings, all the everything else and that is still what you are doing today. Somewhere back in time, you made a decision. You decided to not believe."
"Well," I continued, "I decided the opposite. I decided TO believe. In the end, it comes down to faith. You don't know there is no God. No one does. It can't be proved. I don't know there IS a God. If I did, there wouldn't be a word called "faith." So, you and I both had to decide. So don't give me this condescending nonsense that somehow your beliefs are more intelligent or more real or more thoroughly thought out than mine are. In the end, you have to decide what you believe."
"The only time we will know we've made the right decision is five seconds after we die," I went on. "We won't and can't know until then. I feel very confident in my decision to believe, and that's as far as I can go."
He was very quiet. Then he nodded his head and sat down.
The same is true of the Bible. As unintelligent as it sounds, we have to decide beforehand whether we believe the Bible to be true. It's really not as hard as it sounds- we do that with everything else in life anyway (see again the example of Fox News and MSNBC). When I approach the Bible, I've already decided in my mind, through faith, that I am reading the very words of God Himself. Approaching God's word with this attitude is essential to truly understanding the Christian life.
Many people have legitimate concerns about the Bible. I acknowledge that. Others, however, approach the Bible like a conservative approaches MSNBC- antennae up for anything and everything. It really doesn't matter if the MSNBC hosts tell the truth; they could say the sky is blue and the conservative would shake his head in disgust and call it a lie. Well, maybe it's not that bad, but you get my point. Every one of us approaches the Bible with pre-decisions, whether conscious or unconscious.
My challenge to you is to decide. Decide one way or the other. Is the Bible the Word of God? You have to decide. In faith, you have to decide. There is plenty of evidence that it is, but in the end it comes down to faith. If the Bible is God's Word, that has huge implications for our lives. Recognize what pre-decisions you have brought to God's word, and realize how they are shaping your view of it.
I pray that each of you will decide, in faith, to believe the Bible is God's word. Like I said, it doesn't sound very intelligent, but it's how we operate. Decide now, and let your decision forever shape your life.
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