Thursday 21 March 2013

Glad you asked - do you really think God exists?



Yes, because of creation

The logical conclusion from the intricate and sophisticated reality of nature and the Universe is that an intelligent and powerful designed formed and sustains it.

‘The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.’ (Psalm 19:1)

‘For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.’ (Romans:1:20)

Point people to the sophistication and wonder of nature.

Yes, because of my and your conscience

Our ability to love one another and our internal sense of right and wrong, justice and injustice reflect the goodness of the God who used himself as a template for our design.

‘Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness…” So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.’  (Genesis 1:26-28)

Point people to our innate sense of justice.

Yes, because of Jesus Christ

Jesus could be nothing other than God.  Jesus is God standing up in history and bellowing ‘here I am’.  The Bible is the all-time record of this moment making God available to everyone.

‘In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.'  (Hebrews 1:1-3)

Jesus’ death is the all-time opportunity for people to know God.

‘All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ.’ (1 Corinthians 5:18)

Jesus’ resurrection is the all-time proof Jesus is God.

‘For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.’ (Acts 17:31)

Point people to Jesus.

Yes, because of the church

The church, deeply flawed, is also deeply wonderful – too wonderful, even in its brokenness to be a solely human enterprise.  It is the one community and family, when functioning as God desires, that is a home to all people.

‘His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of two, thus making peace….His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known…’  (Ephesians 2:15, 3:10)

Point people to the church.

Yes, because of my experience, and billions of others affirms these objective, historical realities as subjectively true

5 comments:

  1. "Jesus could be nothing other than God."

    Why do you believe this? The scriptures you have quoted do not suggest this.

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    Replies
    1. You are right Steve, its an unqualified statement. Here s my thought on it.

      http://lionheartedandlamblike.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/glad-you-asked-you-cant-believe-jesus.html

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  3. Thanks Alex for providing the foundation of your conviction. I applaud your zeal for Bible truth and your resolved in declaring the Bible a accurate historical account. The eight points you laid out are very interesting and yet, at the same time, perplexing.

    Since I believe you are truly sincere, I would like to provide some points that challenge some of the foundation of your overall conclusion, that Jesus is God.

    1. I agree the Bible is the written word of God. God's very word supports this fact at 2 Tim. 3:16. The fact that he used imperfect men to record his expressed will, purpose, laws, guiding principles and activities associated with mankind is not a stumbling block. The Bible was written for us, mankind. Who better to physically write it but man. The Bible was not written for angels nor did God want angels involved in the writing of his word for us. We know that God provided the content and direction from what 2 Peter 1:21 states. God used his Holy Spirit (active force) to direct imperfect man in what, how, when and where to write. There is no way 40 different imperfect people over a period of 1,600 years could be involved with writing 66 books all in harmony with each other.

    2. Based on your understanding, Jesus himself claims to be God. John 5:19, 23 and 26 are referenced as support.

    A. 2 Tim. 3:16 tells us that all scripture is inspired of God. On this point we are in agreement. It is in harmony with your first point.

    B. 1 Cor. 14:33 tells us that God, himself, is a god, not of disorder, but of peace. The King James Version states it this way, "For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace".

    All of the scriptures all in harmony with each other. There is no contradiction or confusion with Bible truth. If our understanding of specific scriptures are not in harmony with the rest of scriptures, then the issue is with our understanding, not God's written word. For this reason, I am in disagreement with your assessment of the scriptures in John 5.

    Can you be more specific as to how the scriptures you have chosen to highlight directly state Jesus being God Almighty?

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    Replies
    1. Steve
      Thank you for your thought through and reflective comment and questions. This is such important discussion and it is very important that we seek solid evidence for the foundation of our worldviews. Here is a couple of audio links that go a little deeper in my thinking. The first is a sermon that unpacks John 5 a little more. The second is a short reflection on why we can be confident Jesus is God.

      http://www.thebeaconchurch.com/2013/01/22/john-5v31-39-aharris-20-01-13/

      http://www.thebeaconchurch.com/2013/01/22/john-5v31-39-aharris-20-01-13/

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