Why I Believe

For a generation that has lost faith, my small contribution can only be to explain why I have not.



History

It cannot be reasonably disputed that there was such a person on earth a couple thousand-plus years ago, who we know as Jesus Christ. His existence and fundamental story is corroborated by a variety of sources, both biblical and secular.



Even the secular sources confirm that Jesus was a Jewish preacher who traveled the middle-eastern countryside spreading his message and performing miraculous healings.



Also mostly undisputed is that he suffered the brutal Roman method of execution, crucifixion.



Had that been all there is to the story, his followers would have simply dispersed and gone on with their lives. The story may have lived on as a terrible tragedy and example of extreme cruelty perpetrated by Jewish religious leaders and the Romans who feared a challenge to their power. But it would not have given rise to the worldwide religion called Christianity.



As Paul himself said, if Jesus Christ did not rise from death, then there is no Christian faith.



After his crucifixion, his tomb was found empty. Nobody disputed that fact; indeed, the Jewish leaders attempted to spread a story that his disciples simply stole the body to manufacture the myth of his resurrection.



But if that were true, it would seem that at least one of the disciples would have recanted in the face of their own torture and cruel death. But all 11 held fast to their faith, so that 10 of them suffered horrific executions while the 11th spent his last years in hiding and exile.

Then there were the more than 500 eyewitnesses who saw the risen Christ after his crucifixion, and that was only counting the men. There were at least as many women who were eyewitnesses to the resurrection as well.

The Church established by Jesus spread like wildfire, fanned by the apostles and those hundreds of eyewitnesses to the point that untold thousands of early Christians were subjected to torture and death they could have avoided by simply recanting their faith. Do any of us today believe in anything strongly enough to give ourselves up to tortures and execution rather than recant?



Personal

God has made himself known to me in many ways and on many occasions.



Not by appearing in some sort of miraculous heavenly glory and speaking to me in a thunderous voice, but by revealing truth to me in personal revelations and life experiences.



I know that sounds strange and vague. But that's sort of the function of individual enlightenment, which doesn't happen in a blaze of glory but in small experiences which add up over a lifetime to create a body of evidence that give me the satisfaction and assurance that there is a God, He loves us, and all He wants from us is our love for Him and each other.



OK, want some examples? I've been blessed with these personal revelations:

• A fleeting vision of heaven (in what some would call a Near-Death Experience)


• Visions of future events (my mother's passing)


• Clear messages (some would call them inner locutions)

You might say these are all tricks of the sub-conscious, and perhaps some may be. But only I had these experiences, you did not, so only I can judge whether they were tricks played in my own brain or supernatural.

But as dramatic as those experiences may seem, on their own they do not form the foundation of my faith. That foundation is actually based on a lifetime of study, seeking God where He may be found. And the wonder of experiencing the miracles of our world, such as the miraculous birth of three children, and seeing one of those children survive and thrive when it seemed almost impossible given his much-too-early arrival.

Those who scoff at people like me and sneeringly call us "weak-minded" or "superstitious" are missing something that goes to the core of our very existence. I feel sorry for these atheists, who like petulant children rebel against their heavenly Father just like my own children would rebel and throw tantrums against their earthly father when he disciplined them or denied them their desires.

I firmly believe every one of us has an innate knowledge of God, but we reject Him because of either personal pride, base desires, or anger with a God who doesn't give us what we want.

The non-believer tries to use two common themes in what they think are disproving the faith of believers.

The first theme is Science and Evolution. Atheists make the argument that evolution represents sufficient "proof" that there is no God. They sneer at evangelicals who believe in a literal interpretation of the Genesis origins story, throwing the baby out with the bathwater by suggesting no reasonable person could conclude the earth is only 6500 years old.

I simply find it ironic that those most fervently opposed to religion place a religious fervor into their faith in scientific theories, especially the unobserved and unreplicated theory that somehow bringing some of the right elements together will magically create the building blocks of life.

Secondly, the non-believer points to Christians acting Un-Christian as justification for their lack of faith.

That is the most troubling, and certainly there are people who call themselves Christian who treat others worst than many non-Christians. From the well-publicized problem Catholics have with pedophile priests to fallen preachers like Jim Bakker and Ted Haggard, too often Christians fail to meet perhaps one of the most important responsibilities of a Christian.

On the other hand, I know that it's pretty much impossible for any Christian person to achieve perfection in matters of consistent morality. We all fall short, but the point is there is still salvation for us if we simply confront our failings, express true regret, and constantly try to be a better person.

That's what sets Christianity apart from any man-made religion. Jesus asked us for only those two things: Love God and each other. He didn't tell anyone to give him money, make human sacrifices, or force anyone else to "convert" to his religion. Rather, he challenged us to strive to be better people.

There is so much more I could never fit into a blog post, but the best closing argument I can think of is this:

Consider the alternative, which is already visible as our own society descends into anti-religious secularism.

What I know without a doubt is that a moral, righteous man of integrity will never:

Demand someone else give him housing, food, medical care, a living

Leave his wife and children alone to fend for themselves in poverty

Take the government handouts in form of Unemployment and not bother looking for gainful employment

Sell a home mortgage to someone he knows cannot afford the payments

Take out a home mortgage he knows he cannot afford

Sell financial derivative investments he knows will soon be worth zero

Expect a Physician to treat him and his family for free

Provide medical care only to those who have insurance or the cash

Brings lawsuits against people who were not negligent but have plenty of cash or insurance

Engage in extramarital and/or homosexual relations without restraint, then demand special privileges and transfer payments in honor of his "alternative lifestyle"

Lie and cheat for personal gain or to destroy a rival

If at least a majority of men were to choose to be men of honor, would our current societal meltdown have happened? I would say no.

Honorable men are becoming difficult to find.

You see, I'd rather believe and never discover that I was wrong, than not believe and find out much too late that I was horribly wrong.