The Bible and Truth
There is a stunning phenomenon or trend that I see happening among non-Christians these days. Many skeptics who have never read the Bible are willing to state that it isn’t true. They not only state that the Bible is untrue, but they often have an unmovable hostile opinion regarding the authors and their (often mistaken) view of what the Bible teaches. However, they don’t really know what the Bible teaches because they are basing their opinion on other skeptical opinions that they have heard or even imagined rather than facts and self discovery. Most people get their information from the Discovery Channel, National Geographic, the Learning Channel or other pro-science, anti religion television channels. As a disclaimer, I do not trust so-called “Christians” on one of those “God” channels to relay Biblical doctrine to anyone. The fact of the matter is, there is no better way to understand the truth then to discover it for yourself. When did people stop searching for truth and become satisfied with other people’s bias opinions?
Before I became a Christian I subscribed to the same unchecked hostilities toward the Bible as the next guy. I saw all the shows, listened to all the skeptics and read about all the scientific data. I was convinced that the Bible was a book of stories and Christians were just gullible individuals. When I was around Christians I would try to regergitate all the challenges I saw on TV or read about. The question I should have asked myself, is “How can I have such a strong opinion on something I have never read?”. Only when a skeptic is willing to read the Bible and honestly challenge it’s claims, does his skepticism hold any water. I would say that most people avoid reading the Bible because they are afraid of what may happen if they discover that it’s true.
If you are a skeptic and are reading this, I challenge you to test the claims that the Bible has made and be honest about what you discover. I tested the Bible myself, and still am to this day. I have no reason to believe it isn’t true anymore and one thing I know above most other things is that Jesus has been proven to be true. If you are a non-Christian that should be a call to action, especially if you know the claims He’s made. Here are two of the many:
I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. John 14:6 NKJV
You say [rightly] that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice. John 18:37 NKJV
The sooner you go to the source, the sooner your opinion will be rooted in truth.Who does not want to be on the side of truth?
How ridiculous would it be if I told you that your favorite movie was horrible? Then, I went into how the camera angles were off, the actors did a terrible job, and the story line was vague. Next, when you asked me when I saw the movie, I simply said, “I never have actually seen the movie, but I read some reviews and heard some things from other people who don’t like movies in the first place.” You would probably look at me puzzled at how I came to my conclusions. That is almost exactly what happens when people refuse to be honest skeptics and follow what they’ve heard.
I’ll leave you with one final thought. When you find the truth, you’ll find your purpose in that truth.
The LORD [is] near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth. Psalm 145:18
You ask when did people start just “monkeying” what others have told them?? Try the beginning of recorded history. If that doesn’t work, then try the year GWBush was elected. Why do so many Christians spend so much of their time being so non-Christ like?? Suspicious and critical. You dye -in-the-wool self proclaimed Christians and Bible loving believers are the very reason Christianity has taken a nose dive. The world knows hypocracy when it sees it.
All thing will come to those who truly live and teach through EXAMPLE, not empty rhetoric and criticism…………
Very good post. What you say is true. Often people have hostility toward the bible because they think they know what it says, but have not actually read it. God makes an outstanding promise in His word that if these folks trully took up they wouldn’t be skeptics any longer..
“And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.” Jeremaiah 29:13.
It is an affirmative, positive declaration that you will find Him if your search with all of your heart. I know from personal experience that this is true as I was once skeptical.