Do you have the faith to be an atheist?
All too often we are challenged by our friends and aquaintances to defend our faith. It seems that those issuing the challenge tend to put out a lot of facts to support their point and confusing the truth in a hidden mess of half truths and partial facts.
Here are a couple thoughts to help in those discussions:
The Bible is a collection of books written over a period of several hundred years and yet are consistent in message and historical data. These 66 books were written by authors most of whom never met and came from varied backgrounds. This is more than coincidence. This is the Holy Spirit guiding authors to deliver a message that is as valuable today as it was 2000 years ago.
You are encouraged to read Proverbs on a daily basis in addition to whatever other Scripture reading you may be doing. There are 31 Proverbs, every morning for a month read the chapter corresponding to that day of the month. You will be amazed at how often the message of the chapter that day will relate to something you are facing in your life. Equally amazing about Scripture and its ability to withstand the test of time is the ability Scripture has to send out important messages relating to different subjects. 2 people can read the same verses and get entirely different and yet completely relevent messages from the text. In Bruce Almighty we found there were several powerful spiritual messages taken out of the movie. The movie related to different people in different ways. And that's a movie, Holy Scripture takes that to a whole new level.
There are several books to help you understand the arguments presented by questioning people, non-believers and true seekers. A couple good ones are "The Case for Christ" by Lee Strobel and "Evidence That Demands a Verdict" by Josh McDowell.
A couple other key notes to think about. It is okay to question, in fact it is responsible to question things related to your faith. Seek answers to questions or confusing points. Turn to your youth leader, Sunday school teacher or Pastor. Parents and Christian friends are also good sources. God tells us in Revelation Chapter 3 16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.
Basically, God can handle your questioning, your anger and your love....it is apathy that upsets The Big Guy!
Bring your questions to the Lord, while He may not chose to answer in your timeframe, there is no doubt He will supply with the information you need to move forward in faith.
Finally, we encourage you to clearly understand the theology of church doctrine (law and tradition) as it relates to your knowledge of the Bible. If there is something that doesn't make sense to you, seek out answers from a knowledgeable source. They won't be upset and will look forward to clearing up questions to the best of their ability.
Have a great week, in HIS SERVICE.
Here are a couple thoughts to help in those discussions:
The Bible is a collection of books written over a period of several hundred years and yet are consistent in message and historical data. These 66 books were written by authors most of whom never met and came from varied backgrounds. This is more than coincidence. This is the Holy Spirit guiding authors to deliver a message that is as valuable today as it was 2000 years ago.
You are encouraged to read Proverbs on a daily basis in addition to whatever other Scripture reading you may be doing. There are 31 Proverbs, every morning for a month read the chapter corresponding to that day of the month. You will be amazed at how often the message of the chapter that day will relate to something you are facing in your life. Equally amazing about Scripture and its ability to withstand the test of time is the ability Scripture has to send out important messages relating to different subjects. 2 people can read the same verses and get entirely different and yet completely relevent messages from the text. In Bruce Almighty we found there were several powerful spiritual messages taken out of the movie. The movie related to different people in different ways. And that's a movie, Holy Scripture takes that to a whole new level.
There are several books to help you understand the arguments presented by questioning people, non-believers and true seekers. A couple good ones are "The Case for Christ" by Lee Strobel and "Evidence That Demands a Verdict" by Josh McDowell.
A couple other key notes to think about. It is okay to question, in fact it is responsible to question things related to your faith. Seek answers to questions or confusing points. Turn to your youth leader, Sunday school teacher or Pastor. Parents and Christian friends are also good sources. God tells us in Revelation Chapter 3 16 So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.
Basically, God can handle your questioning, your anger and your love....it is apathy that upsets The Big Guy!
Bring your questions to the Lord, while He may not chose to answer in your timeframe, there is no doubt He will supply with the information you need to move forward in faith.
Finally, we encourage you to clearly understand the theology of church doctrine (law and tradition) as it relates to your knowledge of the Bible. If there is something that doesn't make sense to you, seek out answers from a knowledgeable source. They won't be upset and will look forward to clearing up questions to the best of their ability.
Have a great week, in HIS SERVICE.
1 Comments:
Now, I gotta ask, which came first? Sunday school or this? Great message, hope to see you at Relay.
Post a Comment
<< Home