I Doubt; Therefore I May Be?

Apologies to René Descartes (ri-nay’ day’-kahrt), the famous French philosopher who wisely realized, “I think; therefore I am.”

Very little in this life is certain.  How long has the earth (or universe) been in existence?  Did life originate from accidental cosmic forces zapping a primordial goo or did an Intelligence far beyond human understanding create life?  When is a conceived baby alive?  How much longer before the coastlines are all underwater or the earth fries?  If CO₂ is what feeds plants, why is it bad for the environment?  Does Joe Biden really believe that the best word to describe America is ‘Asufutimaehaehfutbw’? 😁

As young people go to college this fall, more than half of those who attended churches as teens will leave church out of their schedules when they sign up for classes.  According to a Lifeway study, 66% stopped going to church during their college years.

While this may not reflect specifically the number who lose faith in God, it is concerning, because most of those never return to church.  How does a young person maintain faith without a supportive community?  For that matter, how does anyone of any age do that!?

How do they address the doubts raised by sharp and intelligent professors who unabashedly disavow faith and suspect anyone who believes in God to be an idiot?  When confronted with “science” that refutes the Bible or raises questions about some of its record, how can they respond?  What can strengthen them to continue to trust in Jesus when most of their peers are more interested in “hook-up culture” or “hookah” parties?

There are many stories in the Bible that are quite unbelievable . . . from a humanist perspective.  Moses’ command to the Israelites to move forward when the Red Sea was blocking their way presents just one of many stories modernists dismiss as “myths” to tell moral lessons.  Floating axe-heads . . . really?   Three men go into a furnace and come out unscathed without even the smell of smoke on their clothes!?

The New Testament is no different at presenting miracles that defy human understanding.  From turning water into wine to making the lame walk to raising dead people, Jesus and His disciples did the impossible . . . if you believe the records.

But other spiritual leaders also had claims of miraculous events from Guatama Buddha’s instant walking after birth and leaving lotus flowers where ever he stepped to Joseph Smith’s revelation from the angel, Moroni, in a cave to give us the Book of Mormon.  And along the way, Zoroaster planted the massive Cypress of Kashmir he had brought from Paradise to honor a king who believed in his words.  And then Mohammad split the moon in two and could speak with animals before his alleged ascension after an overnight hike of 914 miles (1471 km) from Mecca to Jerusalem.

So what is a “believer” to believe?

Let me encourage the young person heading to college (or anyone, for that matter) to examine the historicity of any of the claims of miraculous phenomena and how the world was affected by them.  A clear and thorough investigation will raise significant questions on the “miracles” of other religions.  Either the historical record is very spotty and very ancient, or the miracles were attested long after their claimants assert they occurred.  And be sure to consider the effect on the world’s societies as you examine these claims.

When you begin to research the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, like tuning a crystal glass, there is a distinctive “ring of truth” to the narratives that myths lack.  Add that Jesus’ immediate followers would not deny His resurrection to the point of death, even though most of them died at the hands of persecutors determined to snuff out this nascent faith.  More so, calculate that the effect of Christianity on the world has produced the most and best advances in every area of society from science to philosophy to social structures to democracy.

Doubts are a natural part of faith.  Even some of Jesus’ own followers, at His ascension recorded in Matthew’s Gospel, had doubts.  Realize doubts are not the same as disbelief!  Doubts come in any intelligent mind searching for truth before all the facts are disclosed.  Disbelief is the choice to refuse the evidence.

When you have doubts about your faith in Jesus or the Bible, come back to the Cross and the Empty Tomb!  There is no fact of history more validated and demonstrated than the truth that Jesus arose from the dead.  And if this is true (and it IS!) we can rest assured that what He taught about His Second Coming is true as well.

So when you are off to college (or at any age or stage of your life), when you doubt, return to the Cross and the Resurrection.  There you will find assurance that you have not followed “cleverly devised myths” when you put your faith in Jesus, “and we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.”

My Most Important Blog EVER

News hits us faster than we can absorb it.  This began with television reporting back in the 60s and 70s of the last century.  The joke about our level of engagement came with a news anchor announcing, with a bright smile, “10 killed in hit-and-run on Broadway, film at 11.”

We are saturated 24/7, 1,440 minutes per day, with available information any time we look at our watches, phones or computers, most of which is unrelated to our daily lives, very little about which we can do anything, and most without consequence for any length of time, only lasting until the next broadcast or posting on social media.

But there IS something that matters, something integrally related to your life, something over which you have complete control, something that will last for all eternity: 
What will you do about the claims of Jesus, called the Christ? 

Jesus is the focal point of history, changing for over half the world the way we count the days of our lives ever since shortly after He walked on earth.  And He made some pretty audacious claims, so auspicious that I capitalize pronouns when I refer to Him.  Nothing particularly holy about capitalization, but simply to reflect that He is higher, better, greater (every positive superlative of which you can think) than any other human, past, present or future.

To understand who Jesus claimed to be one must read His biographies, which we call the Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, the first four books of the New Testament. (Many online sources are available and each one can be read in your native language in less than an hour; my favorite source is at Biblegateway.com where you can see if your language is listed.)

Even those who do not trust Him as what He claimed to be admit something unusual happened after He left the world, something that transformed His followers from meek and frightened, politically disenfranchised jellyfish to robust and daring defenders of what they had experienced.  What they experienced is recorded in Matthew 28, John 16 and 20, and Acts 1 and 2.  And all but one of them died rather than recant; only John survived to old age, but that was in exile on a prison island.

These disciples who had deserted Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, are next seen hiding in quiet rooms, afraid the High Priest, Sanhedrin or Roman authorities might be coming after them next.  Their political aspirations were dead, their leader had been crucified and the Jewish leaders had ensured that none of the disciples could steal His body.  They were confused and dismayed that the One they expected to lead Israel to international prominence, even over the Roman Empire, was dead and buried in a Roman-guarded sealed tomb.  How much worse could it get!?

But rather than getting worse, some women went to the grave in which Jesus was buried and found it empty, encountering angels who declared, “He is not here, for He has risen!”  Mary Magdalene, hardly an archetype of integrity, did not believe the angels and came at first to announce to the disciples, who were cowering in their chamber, that the tomb was empty.  Two of the disciples, Peter and John, ran to the tomb to see for themselves and also found it empty.   But then Jesus met Mary Magdalene in the garden where His tomb was and showed her that He was alive!  A couple of others returned from Emmaeus and said they had seen Jesus alive!

In all of these encounters, the ones who knew Jesus best resisted the stories and did not understand the Old Testament scriptures and refused to believe tales of seeing Jesus.  They still could not think of the things He had taught them about His death!  It was just too much for a rational brain to take in . . . until He appeared to them in a locked room.  (They were still afraid and could not sort through the events that were happening faster than the Fall of the Berlin Wall in modern times.)   But when Jesus appeared to them, He showed them His wounds from the crucifixion and they finally believed.

So what did He claim about Himself? 
That He is the bread of life that came down from Heaven.
That He is the light of the world.
That He is the good shepherd.
That He is the resurrection and life.
That He is teacher and Lord.
That He is the way, the truth and the life.
That He is the true vine.
That He is not from this earth.
That He is King of the Jews.
That He is The I Am!  This is arguably His most significant claim to be God, as He claimed to be one with Father, the I AM.

This short blog does not allow nearly adequate space for me to show you from the Bible all that it teaches of who Jesus is, but you are all intelligent and capable learned people.  Hey, you access a computer and blog! 😉  So do not take my word alone for this.  Read the Gospels and discover for yourself if you can trust this Jesus to be what He claimed to be.  What will you do?  You MUST do something, either admit these to be true or reject them to be false.  There is no middle ground.

If you believe, the next step is to receive Him.  John 1:12 says, “To all who receive him, who believe in his name, he gives the right to become children of God.”  Picture you came to my home and I offered to feed you dinner.  You could believe I was going to provide a meal; you could thank me for it; we could sit at the table together and talk about the food in front of us . . . but if you did not reach out and take the food, you would leave my home as empty as when you came.

So, first, reach out in your heart and mind to Jesus.  He is God and knows what is in your heart and thoughts even before you say it.  So invite Him to come and live in you.  Admit you are a sinner and have not let Him rule your life yet.  Turn away (repent) from your self-guided life and tell Jesus that you will trust Him to lead the rest of your life.  Do not worry that you are not perfect, or that you do not understand all this yet.  Simply trust Him that He will come live in you and begin to work in you to perform His will.  There are no special formulas for praying.  Just talk to Him as you would your own earthly father.

Secondly, if you decide to do this, the next step is to begin reading the Bible.  It is His directive to us, an ultimate guide for life and practice.  Do not be intimidated by the size (it is actually a library collection of small books; just take one at a time.)  There are numerous Bible-reading “plans” you can access, but just read!

Thirdly, if you talked with Jesus to invite Him to live in you, you have begun to pray.  Keep it up.  Again, there are lots of books and helps for praying, but remember, it does not take any special language.  Plus, as you get to know Jesus better (not just know about Him, but know HIM), you will find prayer is not just you talking to God.  In times of His choosing, He will talk to you!  Although the value of prayer cannot be measured by its volume, it can safely be said that prayer is valueless if you do not pray.  Make time to pray.

Lastly, God does not call “Lone Ranger Christians.”  Find a community of people who are seeking and experiencing the Presence of God.  Some will be phony; some will be misguided or misinformed; some will be manipulative; some will be dishonest; but you need them as much as they need you.  And as you pray and read the Bible, you will grow in grace and in knowledge of our Lord and your Savior, Jesus Christ.

Certainly, there is no requirement or expectation for you to contact me regarding your Journey into Faith, but if you want to contact me, please feel free to email me at capost3k@gmail.com.  No question is off limits.

Finally, let me assure you from many years of Bible study and examination of world religions from Atheism to Zoroastrianism, from Buddhism to Hinduism to Islam to Jainism, there is no intellectual reason for rejecting the claims of Jesus.  There is no text more authentically relayed to our generation than the Bible.  There is no way to get to know who God is, other than through the God-Man, Jesus.