THIS CHRISTIAN'S PERSPECTIVE
Joe Nall, © 2000
Introduction Topic list
Let me offer solid evidence to you that rejection of the resurrection Jesus Christ is not an intelligent decision.
As a beginning, suppose you are told by reputable sources that there is a million tax free dollars available to you to claim as your own. All you have to do is go pick it up. It is all legitimate and lawful. You are persuaded it is true because of who told you about it.
However, there is only one way to get to the money. It is at the end of a path 20 paces long. All you have to do is walk down this path and get it. It is an extremely dangerous path though. Every step you take will probably be your last. Each time you move your foot to take a step you understand there is only one chance in a million you will live to take another step. If you do not place your foot in precisely the right spot, in precisely, the right manner you will trigger an explosion that will blow your body into bits. You are not told where to put your feet or in what manner to do it. You are not told whether to go barefooted or wearing shoes.
If you are a sane human, you will not take the first step. Your intelligence will tell you there is no way that you will ever see the money. You will not even attempt the first step. Your intelligence will swiftly convince you that you would die. Your desire to live will persuade you not to proceed down the path. You might be extremely disappointed or even angry. But you will not venture down that path.
If you perceive the numbers correctly, this same exercise of intelligence will immediately cause you to reject the theory of chance driven evolution. I am speaking of the numbers that describe the probability of life as we know it happening by chance. Any serious student of the subject knows that reputable scientists and mathematicians have studied that probability. Life happening by chance is virtually infinitely less likely than your chance of walking successfully down the path to get the million dollars. Said differently, compared to your chance of successfully getting the million dollars, the probability of life happening by chance is zero, realistically speaking. Said differently, compared to the probability of life happening by chance, your chance of one in a million of successfully getting the million dollars is very good...comparatively speaking. But you still will not go after the money, not with just one chance in a million that you will survive.
There is not an evolutionist alive that would take the first step down the path toward the million dollars. But they cling to the theory of evolution despite the overwhelming mathematical evidence that it cannot be so. Why do they do that? It cannot be mere intelligence that causes it. Simple intelligence would cause them to reject the theory of evolution much more quickly than they decide not to step down the path toward the million dollars. There is something other than intelligence at work here. What is it? It is the same thing that causes one to reject Jesus Christ. If it is not ignorance, it must be desire, desire that truth be what one wants it to be...even in the face of strong evidence to the contrary. However, what you or I believe has no effect on unchangeable truth. What we believe does determine, without fail, how this truth affects our lives.
(The hypothetical illustration of these introductory paragraphs of this essay is repeated in the Challenge to Skeptics essay.)
This essay is written from the gut level, or heart level if you will, with the intent of being able to withstand the scrutiny of any serious scholar, with the ever present persuasion that the truth must be found regardless of the consequences. Genuine truth-seeking will not allow consequences to influence the search. This requires one to be honest with oneself, to take the considerable risk that genuine truth might demolish one's comfortable perception of reality. Are you sure you have the truth?
The following topic list is compiled for reference and to assist navigation in this page.
Risk Topic list
Perhaps there is something you have not thought of before. Are you willing to consider some more thoughts? If the claims of Jesus are true, don't you need to be convinced of it? Are you willing to risk the possibility this page contains life changing truth?
Notice the use of the word "willing" in the previous paragraph. If you have already "set" your mind into an immovable mode, you can never know the truth if it is different from what you think it is. For truth to enter a mind, there must be willingness in the mind. People who are afraid of what they might find, or don't like where the evidence seems to be headed, are apt to avoid exploring truth. Does the truth compel you, no matter what it might be?
The following paragraphs begin with an initial fundamental thought that expands into an inescapable conclusion. My challenge to you: risk it. If you can convince me of error, I will quickly change my position.
Design Source Topic list
You are now at a critical point regarding a fundamental conclusion. If you reject this conclusion my persuasion is that you have lost the capacity to know the most basic of all truth. There may be something in you that will cause you to want to disagree, some influence in your being, might lead you to disagree. But it won't be intelligence. If it was simply a matter of intelligence, all intelligent people would agree. But they do not.
The conclusion is simply this: no design can happen by chance. I am one of millions who share the same conclusion. As I ponder it, I understand that designs cannot happen by chance. I know it by my engineering experience in the process of designing. The more I ponder it the more I am riveted to the realization: Designs do not happen by chance. My experience confirms and strengthens the conclusion. As I design, it occurs to me that designing requires conscious thought. Often it requires deliberate, concentrated, focused, strenuous thought. Even at the simplest level, design requires thought.
Every design, from the simplest to the most complex, from a simple paper clip to your computer, is the result of thought. Thought was required just to do the designs. Furthermore, power had to come into play to bring the designs into existence. Something or somebody had to do some action to bring them from design to reality. Both thought and power were required.
Hopefully you have had no trouble accepting and agreeing with this first conclusion: no design can happen by chance. Follow these next observations. Again, some influence in you, other than intelligence, might lead you to disagree.
Design Extraordinaire Topic list
I go to the eye doctor for a check up and notice a picture on the wall of the exam room. It is a drawing of the intricacies of the human eye. I think about the lens, how it automatically adjusts to focus light images on the retina, and the iris, how it automatically adjusts to control the amount of light entering the eye. I ponder how the eye moves to focus on different objects, and the fact that there are two eyes for depth perception. Then I think about the muscles and nerves that make it work, and the signals that come from the brain to coordinate it all.
Then it dawns on me. This is a magnificent design. All of the pieces have specific purposes that contribute to the overall purpose, vision. Vision is the purpose. Which came first, the purpose or the eye that fulfills the purpose. Obviously, unless you are biased against intelligence, it was the purpose. Purpose always precedes design, and for the eye to do what it does, it had to be designed. It has a specific purpose, which it performs marvelously.
(Questions: Since evolution is chance, not intelligence, how can it do anything that requires intelligence, like design? The eye, being a design, is a product of intelligence.
Bumblebees can fly to the moon. They can fly. They can fly upward. Sometimes the moon is upward. They can fly to the moon. Does that sound absurd to you? It is no more absurd than the theory of Darwinian evolution. So what if most of the flight to the moon is by way of imagination. The theory of evolution without a designer is an imaginary trip from beginning to end. It should be called science fiction.)
Then I consider my hands, their purpose and the design…my ears, purpose and design…nose purpose and design…arms, legs, feet, on and on…and then there is the brain which controls and coordinates it all. Each part is a design of huge proportions. When they are all put together in a coordinated, working fashion the result is a design so massive and complex and marvelous that it defies comprehension or description...silent awe comes.
Even the best and brightest engineers have to be awe struck by the design of what we call the human body. It is far too complex to have been designed by any human or group of humans. Also no human, or group of humans, has the power and ability to build a human body, even with billions of living models available. Not a single one of them was designed or made by humanity. All humanity has done is enter the roles of male and female to keep the reproductive process active. The reproductive process itself is a mind staggering design that had no human input.
Requirement of Creator Topic list
See if you can make this statement: "The human body has no purpose". Can you make that statement and honestly mean it. It should be obvious to anyone with a mind that there are manifold purposes to the human body. But where did they come from?
If you do not want to be confronted by a Creator, you are uneasy, perhaps even angry, by now. However, the conclusion at this point is inescapable. Where did the purpose come from? Intelligence intelligence thought of it. There had to be a Designer, and there had to be a Creator to bring the human body into existence. If you cannot accept this, you do indeed love darkness. You have abandoned reasoning intelligence and allowed the love of darkness to control your mind.
Physics to Spirituality Topic list
Consider another reality. If you accept modern physics you understand that your body, at the basic subatomic level, is no different from a slab of concrete. Each has atoms made of protons, neutrons and electrons. All the protons are alike. All the neutrons are alike. All the electrons are alike. It makes no difference whether they are in your body or the slab of concrete.
Furthermore, both your body and the slab of concrete is made up of virtually 100% empty space, space that contains no matter, no mass. The volume of each atom is almost 100% empty space. All of the things we call solids are actually nearly 100% empty space. So why is your body different from the slab of concrete? Why is the activity in the empty space of each different? You say because I am alive. Why are you alive? You say because I have DNA, chromosomes and stuff like that. Why do you have those things? And even so, it is still almost 100% empty space. Trees and flowers have that kind of stuff too. But there is no evidence at all that trees and flowers ponder you. However, you certainly ponder trees and flowers. Why the difference?
Everyone must concede, there is something vastly different going on in the empty space of your body and the empty space of the slab of concrete. Modern physics is virtually shouting, "You are a spiritual being." There is a you inside your body that is the real you. You are not your body. You somehow dwell in the "empty" space of your body. Surely you do not believe you are merely an elaborate arrangement of protons, neutrons, and electrons in a volume of empty space.
When you look in the mirror you are not really seeing you. The real you causes a frown or a smile to appear in the mirror. But that is all you see...a smiling or frowning face. The smile or frown tells something about the real you. But you cannot really see yourself in the mirror. There is something in you commonly called heart or soul that can be touched or seen only one way, spiritually.
But if you do concede the reality of a Creator, and that you are a spiritual being, what does that have to do with Jesus Christ? That is a critical question.
Revelation Topic list
I am left in speechless awe as I consider the enormity of the design of the human body and the power required to bring it into existence. What kind of being could do this? It is too grand, too complex, too big for human comprehension; the mind, the essence of a Creator that could do this...not just one human body, but billions…added to all the other designs existing in the universe.
I wonder if there is some way to know this Creator. How can I define what I cannot grasp. I can see what the Creator has done but I cannot see, touch or hear the Creator. Well, perhaps I can spiritually if I have the faculties. But do I have the faculties? I am like a first grader trying to describe the universe.
I have reached a basic conclusion: there has to be a Creator, and asked a basic question: can I/we know this Creator? What might the answer be? Sometimes, because we can see a little, we act like we can actually describe the Creator. But when we are sober minded we know that our efforts are futile. The Creator is beyond the grasp of our feeble minds.
Is there any way to communicate with this Creator? Communicating should be no problem with the Creator if the Creator chooses to communicate. But what about us, can we find a way to communicate with the Creator, to get a recognizable response? The question and the task seem too difficult.
If the Creator chooses to remain hidden and obscure, it will be so until the Creator chooses otherwise. If we are to have a clear picture of the Creator, it must come from the Creator. It must be by Creator revelation. Human perceptions about the Creator without this confirmed revelation would only be speculative guessing.
Revelation Method Topic list
Now the question arises, will the Creator provide this revelation? Has it been provided already? These are deep, profound questions. The correct answer, or lack of it, will have immeasurable results. There is a book that claims to be this revelation. We call it the Bible. In the Bible the Creator is known as God. But the questions have not ended. Is the Bible true and believable?
That question ushers me, a designer, into another arena, beyond that which is measurable. I am used to dealing with measurable scientific facts and figures. I discover there are scientific facts and figures that apply. But this book goes beyond the measurable. Evaluating this book requires perceptive judgment.
This requirement is especially evident in light of the fact that there are brilliant people on both sides of the issue. Some are persuaded the Bible is just a collection of myths and fables. Some are persuaded the Bible is literally the word of God to man. This is further confirmation that intelligence alone is not reliable in finding the truth.
A man who is physically blind, knows he is blind. Amazingly, regarding the truth, a man can think he sees perfectly when he is actually totally blind. So who is right about the Bible? Is the question really as complex as some think? Or is it simple? The thought of quitting the whole search can be tempting. But hunger for the truth won't allow it.
What should I expect of a book about God anyway. If it is genuinely about God, it should contain material that is mind boggling to human beings. Indeed, it would have to contain stories about the supernatural, since God is supernatural. The Bible does include abundant descriptions of supernatural ideas and events, from the first page to the last. So it passes that test. But how can we be confident it contains truth?
If God is the Creator, He could have chosen to use a world wide PA system speaking to all of humanity audibly and continuously from the sky. Obviously, that has not happened. Perhaps he has chosen a book as a means to communicate. Assuming that is true, how can we validate the assumption, and how should we view the Bible?
There are differing types of books about people. Biographies are written in hind-sight by one person about another person. The Bible does not fit that category, although it does contain biographies. Memoirs are by people writing about themselves as they review the span of their lives. But memoir describes only parts of the Bible. If the Bible is from God, the word diary describes it more accurately. Perhaps it is God's diary, available to humanity so that humanity can know God.
If you really want to let someone know you, what better way could there be than presenting your long term personal diary? At times it would be written in the past tense, present tense at other times. It would contain conversations between you and others. It would contain intimate details, both raw and delicate. Dairies don't hold punches. Your diary would contain exactly how you felt about a variety of events and ideas. It would tell what makes you angry and what makes you glad. It would reveal your history and your goals, the intricacies of who you are.
The Bible contains all of these characteristics. From that perspective it could be considered to be a diary, God's diary, if it is accurate. The fact that it was written over a period of thousands of years by many people is not a problem. It is a plus. Remember the conclusion there has to be a Creator. If God is the Creator and he has been dealing with man all along, his diary would include many generations of man. The Bible does include many generations, and it claims God has been dealing with man from the beginning.
Authentication Topic list
What makes the Bible believable? Numerous things. It has long term prophetic continuity. It was written over a period of thousands of years with a remarkable flow, prophecy made and prophecy fulfilled. Time and again events were predicted that transpired. These are vitally important. Predictions made by God have to come true, if an inquiring mind is to be impacted favorably.
The longevity of the Bible exceeds all other written literature. It should be expected that a book from God to man will endure, if he wants it to. Philosophers have predicted its demise. Concentrated efforts by those in power have tried to stamp it out. But it remains.
The volume of manuscripts supporting the authenticity of the scriptures is many times greater than that of any other ancient literary work. In fact the volume of manuscripts of scripture dwarf the volume of other ancient literature. And the list of archeological finds authenticating the historicity of the book of Genesis is growing ever longer.
All of these are strong supportive factors to me. But historically speaking there is one factor that grips me like no other: Those who gave eye witness reports about Jesus willingly gave their lives rather than change their reports. They could have recanted. But they did not.
How many people are there who will willingly give their lives for simply saying what they know to be a lie? None. One might tell a lie and die to protect someone. But these martyrs said that Jesus rose from the grave and ascended into heaven. They died for saying it. They could have modified their statements and lived, but they did not. The only viable conclusion is that they knew the truth and refused to deny it.
Satisfaction Topic list
All of the arguments that can be made for the deity of Jesus might be convincing. But one can be convinced about all of them and still not be satisfied within. All of these things can be known perfectly and accepted by an intelligent, restless, dissatisfied person, who remains restless and dissatisfied. The results are similar to a hungry person sitting at a table full of fine food and failing to eat. The reason for that is that Jesus is a person seeking a personal relationship with all the individuals of humanity. Satisfaction, peace and joy...life... come from him, they are given by him, when a relationship has been formed with him. But that requires the relationship with him, not just sitting at the table of knowledge about him.
The Right Questions Topic list
That relationship to Jesus belongs to those who ask the right questions, get the right answers, and respond properly. There is nothing easier than asking an unanswerable question. All a small child has to do is ask, "Why?", a few times to silence the greatest intellect. How wise is it to get hung up on unanswerable questions when the vital questions can be answered? Spiritual destruction comes from failure to find the right answers to answerable questions. Both the questions and the answers are in the Bible, God's Diary, his love letter to humanity.
Life's Fence Topic list
There is an intangible fence in life. It is a choice, a decision. All people who have decided to give their lives to Jesus, to trust him for life, for salvation, are on this side of the fence. I say this side of the fence because that is where I am. The fence is intangible but real. It is a work of God that put us on this side of the fence. The Bible refers to it as a new birth. He does it one person at a time as the individual decisions are made to trust Jesus. All other people are on the other side of the fence. God offers life on this side of the fence to all people.
What is life like on this side of the life's fence? It can be difficult and demanding. But it can be joyful and peaceful. In fact, normal life on this side of the fence has abundant joy and inner peace. But not all people on this side of the fence have that kind of life. Many struggle with doubts and fears and fail to find the abundant life Jesus intends for them to have. Sometimes that is the condition of my own life. We are touched by the same maladies as the people on the other side of the fence. But we have different resources to deal with them.
Life can sometimes seem very dark on this side of the fence. When it does there are some very good reasons for it. This reminds me, I am comforted by what God cannot do, as much as what he can do. One of the things he cannot do is make a mistake. He is not limited by this human characteristic. Remember the enormity of intelligence required to design the universe and all that is in it. The universe has been marred by evil. But that was not God's doing.
God makes no errors. He could squelch our pain and suffering. He could prevent it. He could prevent the dryness of soul and the sense of darkness. But he does not continuously, at all times, do so. Which means to us on this side of the fence that there are absolutely perfect reasons for these difficult times. When they happen we can be sure he loves us and we can count on his reasons, submit to his reasons, to his heart. Sometimes we need reminders. Darkness makes one appreciate light. Pain and suffering make us grateful for a sense of well-being. And there may be other good reasons unknown to us.
Look Past Christians Topic list
Don't make the error of one man who reportedly said, "If it were not for Christians, I would be one." Don't judge Christianity by looking at Christians. I know that sounds like double talk. However, there are valid reasons for making the statement. When God placed us on this side of the fence, he did not turn us into robots. We still have to make choices. We are still influenced by evil, as well as good. We do not see everything clearly. We sometimes, or often, make bad choices. When we do the results are bad. Even amongst ourselves we have strong disagreements about the meaning of some scripture. Our faith sometimes falters. We sometimes are guilty of unbelief. Furthermore, many who call themselves Christians are not genuine.
Why is this? We are as diverse in personality as people on the other side of the fence. Our understanding varies from little to much. So also our commitment varies it seems. That sets the stage for what looks like hopeless confusion to the those on the other side of the fence. This has been true throughout Christian history. It was true in New Testament times. But hey, how does humanity look on the other side of the fence?
God is slowly molding us into what we ought to be. Each one of us is to him like a rough cut gem. He is chipping away at us until he reaches the finish product he saw from the beginning.
But there is one common thread shared by all genuine Christians, the identity and person of Jesus Christ. The scriptures teach God is in the process of transforming all of us on this side of the fence into the likeness of Jesus. He does not do it in an instant. It is indeed a process. It is a lifetime pilgrimage. But it is a pilgrimage punctuated with joy and hope. It is a pilgrimage of great promise made by the One who conquered death, the One who lives still, as confirmed by history and experiential reality.
So don't evaluate Christianity by Christians. Look past us. Look squarely at Jesus. Look at his life. Look at who he is. Look at his impact. He is the one who has not failed, who does not fail, who will not fail.
Home Base Topic list
God has given us a home base on this side of the fence, a place to cope in the dark, dry times, a place to find victory, a place of the best times. I first touched this home base when I was about 12 years old. I had been previously baptized. But it had no meaning. One night I became quite alarmed when I realized I was trusting the wrong thing, my baptism and membership in the church, to make me right with God. I simply asked God to forgive me and save me. I don't remember the exact words I used in talking to God. I don't even remember using the name of Jesus. But I am sure I did. I regularly attended Sunday School where they taught about Jesus. I knew what Jesus did for me, and he said no man comes to the Father except through him. My young heart yielded to God seeking His grace, and He gave it. It was like he flipped a switch in my being. The alarm disappeared and deep joy took its place. The kind of joy that makes you smile big from way down deep inside.
I did not know I was touching home base then. All I knew was that I surrendered to God and He gave me peace. The home base concept occurred to me only recently as I was thinking about how to explain life on this side of the fence. I touch home base each time I bow to God in complete submission. The Bible tells us to walk in Christ in the same manner that we received him, that is, as a child, simply trusting. When we put aside all pretense of what we think we might deserve, all thoughts of our own goodness, all ideas that we can do anything without Him, and submit totally to Him recognizing that only He can handle it all, then and only then do we touch home base. Taking that position before God is home base. Any other position misses home base.
When we cease our own fruitless struggling with the issues and problems of life and touch home base, we release God to do what only He can do. He gives us a fresh filling of himself in our inner beings so that it is no longer our simple, natural, human strength operating. We stumble and fall when we try to function without Him. But with His filling, with His presence, we can do all things that He wants us to do, even live the way He wants us to live. As we do, He gives us his joy, his peace.
This home base is available to everyone on this side of life's fence. But many do not understand it and thus fail to live the abundant life God intends for them. But they can if they genuinely understand home base and touch it, even linger on it, regularly. Only people on this side of the fence have access to this home base where God meets with the inner being. Again, no man comes to the Father except through Jesus. God offers this life to you, with the home base relationship with Him. But God says in his word, you cannot have it apart from Jesus. What is your home base now? To what or to whom do you turn in your darkest hour? To yourself? That can't last.
Brightest Hour Topic list
What about your brightest hour? What is it? Where does it come from? Is it superficial, or does it have a firm foundation? To me, it is at home base, and it can occur anywhere, anytime. It can happen standing quietly on a high hill watching a sunset, observing the magnificence of what God has done. As I worship him and praise him and thank him in my heart for what he has done and for the privilege of seeing it, he touches my spirit. Sometimes tears of pure joy begin to flow. Sometimes they don't but there is always a sense of his fullness and peace at these times. I need nothing else. I want nothing else. My spirit is completely satisfied. I don't strive for it. I don't have to psyche myself up for it. I simply turn my heart toward God and submit to him. He gives the joy, the satisfaction, the peace. It does not have to be on a hill. It can be as I lie awake at night...just me and God, or as I drive down the highway, or...
But is my joy any better than that of the gold medallist who stands with tears of joy at the sound of his/her national anthem? I know they have joy. I can see it on their faces. And I sometimes know they have no connection with Jesus Christ. Is my joy any better or any more real than theirs? As I ponder that question I begin to realize there are huge differences. Their joy is that which comes from personal achievement, or acceptance or adoration by their countrymen. All of which is natural.
Notice the contrast. My joy that I am speaking of is vastly different. I also have experienced the joy of personal achievement and acceptance at times. But there is bigger, far better joy. This joy comes from God. It has nothing whatever to do with personal achievement. It does however contain the most precious element, God's acceptance. This joy is that which God gives me simply because I am his and he loves me. Get this; he gives it despite my failures, which are abundant. Let me say that again. I need to hear it. God gives me his joy despite my failures simply because I am his and he loves me. That realization eradicates an array of harmful, destructive emotions. It gives relief and life to a soul grown weary. God does those sort of things for those whom he loves, who belong to him.
There is another contrast, just as stark. The gold medallist's joy, simply being natural, is not the bigger joy God gives and is therefore not based on who God is. Confront this gold medallist with the true claims of Jesus Christ and his natural joy will ultimately disappear. But being reminded of who Jesus is and what he has done has the effect of increasing God's joy in the hearts of his already joyous people. Without hesitation, my strong preference is the joy God gives over the natural joy of the gold medallist.
That is one way God touches my life. Other ways are the wind of the Spirit in my sails and the pressure of the rein on my neck. The wind rises, the sails billow, the boat moves with the power of the wind. As the Spirit of God moves within me I am motivated, energized, empowered, and enabled to work on a project, or to do a task, and to finish it. The rider does not have to struggle with a well trained horse. All he needs to do is apply a gentle pressure with a rein on the horse's neck. The horse knows which way to go and responds immediately. God provides the gentle pressure in my spirit to guide me when I am sensitive enough to recognize it. If I become calloused or hard it takes more than gentle pressure. But he provides what is necessary. If I resist enough, He will allow me to go my own direction. When I do, joy fades, and life takes on an accentuated roughness. I no longer have the wind of the Spirit in my sails. But he forgives and restores, when I recognize and confess my error, and am willing to get back on course.
This is one of the things that confirms to me that my relationship to God is indeed a relationship. It is dynamic. There are no buttons to press to get God to act in a certain way. But there are principles to follow that result in good times with him. On the other hand if I don't follow those principles the times are not so good. Name me an interpersonal relationship that is not that way. He is God. He is approachable. He wants me to approach him...regularly. He is also holy. I cannot approach him just any old way. I need to know him and his ways...from the Bible...through Bible study...through prayer and pondering and listening to his gentle voice in my spirit.
That is how this web site was initiated and developed. The thought of doing a web site came to me. Did I say that right? Yes, I did. It came to me. How arrogant it would be of me to assume I am the origin of all the thoughts I have. I am a spiritual being. God, as well as evil spirits, can inject thoughts in my mind. I am persuaded this one came from God. Why? Because it would not go away after considerable praying and pondering about it. It lingered and grew stronger.
I was pondering it once looking out the window of a jet aircraft. There was a beautiful ocean of white clouds below. As I soaked in the view I wondered again if I should do it. Then I felt the gentle touch of His rein on my spiritual neck. The pressure was in the direction of doing it. Along with it came a warm confirming glow deep within my spirit. I don't think I could have held back the smile if I tried. But I had no thought of trying. It was one of those grand, complete moments, a moment of divine confirmation. The urge to do the web site grew. I began to feel compelled to do it, anxious to do it.
That is one reason I say the thought came from God. Another is that the web site is designed to introduce all who are willing to Jesus Christ. God's enemies would never be the source of such a goal. I will go further and say it is a joint project by God and me. Does that sound arrogant and presumptuous? I have prayerfully pondered this essay so much that I do not know how much of it is by God and how much of it is by me.
I can think of nothing better than it be all by God and none by me. I make no claim to that however. I am just fully persuaded God has participated in the wording and the design. He knows my thought patterns and style better than I. So if I am in symphony with him he can speak to my heart and mind in my language. In that case my thoughts become his thoughts. So it is with everyone on this side of the fence. I have sought that every word would be pleasing to him and that the contents be no more than he wants. How nearly have I been in symphony with him? I don't know. I am simply telling you openly what I have done. Anything that disagrees with the Bible is a miss. All that agrees could be from God. It has taken me longer to do this one essay than it takes some people to write a lengthy book.
So God is a personal, practical, communicating, now God. That should not be surprising. His diary, his word, the Bible says that he is. To those of us on this side of the fence, that is another confirmation of the validity of the Bible. God actually does the things it says he does.
(It amuses me a bit to think of unbelieving psychiatrists, scientists, and philosophers reading all this. How many ways would they characterize what is said? How many different opinions would there be. But the amusement quickly gives way to sober reflection. They too have to deal with the historical, risen, living Jesus Christ. To reject him they have to ignore the evidence or go through the mental gyrations that all must do when they want the truth to be something other than what it is.
Marvelously, the truth is so simple that "simple-minded" people can grasp it. There are some nice things about being simple-minded. There is not such a tendency to have some of the undesirable baggage of high intelligence. It is the more "intelligent" people that are more likely to become ensnared. They have active minds that run this way and that. If they are not very careful, they weave around themselves sticky webs of rationalized self-deception until they cannot break loose. They are not even motivated to break loose. They have deceived themselves so comfortably, they don't even realize they are trapped. Then it is almost as if they are devoured by their own proud, evil hearts. Only a miracle can stop the process.)
Heart Focus Topic list
I have tried to say it already. It is vital. It must be grasped. Ultimate life truth is recognized and grasped with the heart, not intelligence. Or error about life is embraced by the heart, not intelligence. Intelligence is merely a tool with which the heart sorts out and examines clues. Intelligent people on both sides of the fence examine two plus two and find it to equal four. There is no argument. But there are arguments about life. Intelligence on both sides look at the same evidence and divergent conclusions result. The divergent conclusions are due to differences in the hearts of the examiners. How can this divergence be resolved? Here is a significant question: Did my heart choose intelligently?
Can your heart instruct your intelligence to examine all the evidence? Can your intelligence instruct your heart to embrace nothing but the truth, to focus on truth no matter the cost? Will both listen? Both must if truth is to be seen cleanly and purely. Who among humanity can do it? Every honest truth seeker must evaluate how close he/she has come or be suspicious of the conclusions. You know in your heart if there is a wondering if it is true and a suspicion that you have not genuinely examined the evidence.
It is my persuasion that when the heart desires the truth above all else, and the intellect examines the vast panorama of evidence, God works in that fertile climate. The conclusion is inevitably that Jesus Christ is Lord. Even as I write it my heart chuckles warmly at the wonder of it. Jesus Christ is Lord. It is the ultimate statement. Scripture says in Philippians chapter 2 that ultimately every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. That single statement is the foundation upon which all truth rests. Those who miss it are the ones who are willing to miss it, or actually want to miss it. Check your heart to see if this statement is there: "If it is true I really want to know it." Does that suggestion stir an uneasiness? If it does, the uneasiness is a strong clue.
Evil Topic list
Interestingly enough Jesus instructed us not to strive with evil. I believe he was saying don't struggle with the fact that evil exists. It is amazing to me that some people want to blame God for the existence of evil. Surely they have not thought this idea through. They would insist that God give them to the freedom to choose to blame God, and then they blame God for their choice. Stated another way, God cannot give the freedom of choice without giving the freedom to choose the opposite of good, evil. On whom do these people blame good?
By the way, what is evil anyway? Is it some nebulous body of ideas conceived by the giant committee of humanity? Or is is more clearly defined somehow? To get quickly to the point, evil is anything...any motive or intent, word or action, simple thought or elaborate philosophy...anything that is in opposition to God. In the Bible, evil is called sin; sin is evil because it is in opposition to God. It is what separates us from God.
God gave us the marvelous privilege of choice. We chose evil. He loves us enough to rescue us from the terrible consequences of our foul choice if we are willing to reverse our choice and agree with him about what sin is, who he is, who Jesus is, and what Jesus did. God giving us the opportunity to reverse our choice is called his grace. He did not have to do it. We do not deserve it. He does it anyway. But we must choose his grace for it to become active in our lives. We must choose his Son, Jesus. To reject him is evil. What you or I believe has no effect on the truth. What we believe does determine, without fail, how the truth affects our lives.
Programming Topic list
There have been a number of news stories in the recent past about people who had been in some cult. Who had gotten out of the cult and been "deprogrammed." This obviously implies that they had been programmed by the cult. They had undergone some psychological transformation that changed their value system and their behavior. That transformation had to be reversed.
This raises the legitimate question, "Have I been programmed?" Are we all being programmed in some fashion? If so, do we have any input into the programming? I am prone to think this programming concept touches on reality. If it does, I am persuaded we choose the program. The Bible clearly teaches that God is slowly molding and fashioning his people. As we make the right choices we become more and more like Jesus. Ultimately the transformation will be complete. We will reach the point, in Heaven, where we will no longer be tempted by evil. We will no longer be capable of evil. But it will be because we chose God's way, not because it was forced on us.
If I am being programmed by God, I gladly choose it. What he does is perfect. After all, it was he that fashioned the trees, and the flowers...and the heart that is good. I can think of nothing better than to have the choice to be fashioned by God, to make the choice, and then have God do the fashioning. If I am to be programmed, let it be by him so that I am programmed with truth, love, integrity, kindness...all that he is.
Hell Topic list
God gives the option of choosing his way or another way. By his own statement, he offers only one way, his Son, Jesus Christ. If we obey an evil heart and reject Jesus, we automatically choose the consequences. God does not want anyone one to make that choice. The Bible says he is not willing for any to perish. However, he will allow everyone freedom to make that tragic choice. The freedom is given along with endless warnings of the consequences, ultimately hell. That is a fearsome, repugnant thought to the natural human mind. But, what you or I believe has no effect on the truth. What we believe does determine, without fail, how the truth affects our lives.
The Choice Topic list
The human race is without capacity or authority to modify divine truth. We can look at some elements of truth with an evil heart and decide we don't like God, that we want nothing to do with him. And he will give us what we want. Or we can resist the evil heart and realize that he is a marvelous, holy, loving, forgiving God, who yearns to rescue everyone and give abundant life full of blessings without measure. When we do that, we find that our belief ultimately becomes knowledge. We find that he is a fully trustworthy God.
I, and thousands of other people, give testimony today that Jesus is alive. We do so because of the difference he has made in our lives. We have seen the difference in others. We have seen the miraculous happen as a result of our personal relationship with him. We sense within ourselves the truth about who Jesus is. To us, saying that Jesus is not alive, that he is not Lord, would be equivalent to saying we do not exist ourselves.
If you reject the historical fact that Jesus Christ rose from the grave, and that he is alive as God's Son today, you have reached the worst kind of dead end. According to God, rejecting Jesus is the ultimate evil. It is rejecting God's ultimate love gift to humanity. Rejecting him is the choice of an evil heart, not an intelligent mind. This choosing is what will ultimately tag a heart in God's judgment as eternally evil.
Those who struggle against God, against Christianity to the end, find they are tragically wrong. "Voltaire, the famous infidel who spent most of his life fighting Christianity, cried out with his dying breath, 'I am abandoned by God and man: I shall go to hell!'"1 Sir Thomas Scott, Chancellor of England said at death's door, "Until this moment, I thought there was neither God nor hell; now I know and feel there are both, and I am doomed to perdition by the just judgment of the Almighty!"2 Regardless of the efforts of the intellect it is ultimately the heart, the soul, some sense within the inner being that comprehends the truth.
In stark contrast consider the death of evangelist D. L. Moody. "A few hours before entering the 'Homeland' Dwight L. Moody caught a glimpse of the glory awaiting him. Awakening from a sleep, he said, 'Earth recedes, Heaven opens before me. If this is death, it is sweet! There is no valley here. God is calling me, and I must go!' His son who was standing by his bedside said, 'No, no, father, you are dreaming.' 'No!' said Mr. Moody, 'I am not dreaming: I have been within the gates: I have seen the children's faces.' A short time elapsed and then, following what seemed to the family to be the death struggle he spoke again: 'This is my triumph; this is my coronation day! It is glorious!'"3 I do not know how I will die. But I am eternally grateful to God that, like D. L. Moody, I am on this side of the fence. On which side are you?
Proverbs 14:12
There is a way {which seems} right to a man, but its end is the way of death. (NAS)
Does your heart now accept the truth of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ? If so, to review God's proposal click here. Exit and abandon this web site if you wish, but to abandon the truths in the Bible is to abandon life, to abandon any real hope of life.
References Topic list
What you have read to this point is the simple reasoning, faith and experience of one designer. I have sought to write from my heart seeking to speak basic truth in a brief fashion. I am not a scholar. But I have read the works of marvelous scholars. Two books listed below present evidence of overflowing abundance that God is and that the Bible is his word to humanity. How are your desires? If you are not hung up with the desire that the evidence be untrue, you will not be able to refute the evidence in these books. Read them to satisfy your mind, but they cannot satisfy your heart. It will be restless until it rests in God. Click here to examine God's cure for that restlessness. The two books are:
Hereen, Fred, Show Me God, Wheeling: Day Star Publications, 1998.
Jeffrey, Grant R., The Signature of God, Toronto, Frontier Research Publications, Inc., 1996.
Show Me God is a scholarly work written in a way that untrained readers will profit greatly from it. It is a study of astronomy and physics of the universe in relation to questions regarding creation and God. It includes quotations and interviews of many active physicists and astronomers. It also includes a section of biographical sketches about and quotations from famous scientists of the past. It is not necessary to be "scientific" at all to read this section. This section alone is worth the cost of the book.
The Signature of God is great scholarship which includes evidence from history, archaeology, science, medicine, prophecy, math, and other disciplines. It contains a wealth of evidence for the validity of the Bible, varying from simple to complex. It is the type book one would keep for ready reference.
Bibliography Topic list
Walter B. Knight, Knight's Master Book of New Illustrations (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1956), pp. 158-159.
Ibid., p159.
Ibid., p159-160.
© Joe Nall, 2000 Top of Page