Here is the second part to my thoughts that came from the seeing the KNOWING movie with Nicolas Cage. If you missed the first blog it’s around here somewhere.
One of my favorite areas to study with the Bible is Apologetics. In short it is WHY you believe WHAT you believe. The word comes from the Greek word, “Apologia” found in 1 Peter 3:15. It is the equivalent for the word “answer.”
But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, — 1 Peter 3:15 (emphasis added)
I fully believe today’s younger generation is ready to believe in something, they just want to know if it is the real thing before they fully commit with their whole heart to it. Apologetics always helps them see the evidence behind the Bible and the life of Christ. I enjoy a good discussion about the Bible and I love to hear from teens and adults who have genuine questions about the Bible or Jesus Christ. I’ll be quick to tell you I don’t have all the answers so please don’t peg me as some know-it-all, Bible thumping, religious fanatic. Ok, enough of the explanations, just wanted to give you a basic introduction to the subject mater.
3. The Bible and Prophecies. Knowing is based around this note written by a 5th grade student 50 years prior. The note is discovered to have all these predictions which come true as the movie unfolds. It made me think back to the Bible and one of the reasons it is unique compared to other religious books in the world. The Bible contains over 1200 prophecies within the 1189 chapters that make it up. There are over 300 prophecies about Jesus. What would be the odds of everyone of those propheciescoming true? Josh McDowell a former atheist, turned believer, who set out to discredit the Christian faith years ago has calculated some of those odds.
Taking just 8 prophecies made the odds 1 x 10(17 power) Or taking 48 prophecies made the odds 1 x 10 (170 power) The numbers are extremely large and the odds are very high. I’m trying not to get to technical with the numbers, they are a bog killer for sure, but if you want the specifics on those prophecies and number you can check them out in McDowell’s book called The New Evidence that demands a Verdict.
We are just a few weeks removed from March Madness where the 65 teams go into the brackets and everyone tries to guess who the final winner will be. We all know it’s the administrative assistant at your work that fills out the bracket and wins ever time. The NCAA brackets are just about impossible enough to get right, but the prophecies in the Bible make the brackets look like flipping a coin. No other religious book in the world has the amount of fulfilled prophecies that the Bible does. It is just one of the areas in which the Bible stands out.
4. It still takes faith. Well numbers and statistics aside, you can spend years looking for answers and still not come up with a absolute conclusion to the questions that plaugue the universe, even with all the evidence and history to look at as a reference. I have heard objection questions before like, “Why does God just give us some continous miracle showing us that He exists?” I believe that God has given us every bit of proof that he wants us to have. If He choose to give us a continuous miracle then there would be no doubt that God exists and people would choose Him not because they loved him, but because it would be the obvious choice to have eternal life.
The Bible even says in Deuteronomy29:29 “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law.” We all have to realize that there are somethings we will never be albe to understand or know with 100% certainty. That’s where faith comes to play in the matter. The Bible tells us many things about the role of faith in our lives.
Hebrews11:6 says without faith it is impossible to please God and those that earnestly seek God will be rewarded. It is our faith that saves us through the grace given by Jesus death on the cross. (Ephesians 2:8-9) the Bible has many verses that point to a active faith, one of works and actions, not to have a faith that is dead. (James 2:17-26) Having faith is not just “an easy way out” of not having all the answers, but it is more of listening to the Holy Spirit tell you the that what you have heard and read is the truth and something you can place your trust in. I think there is a difference between having a “blind faith” and a “intelligent faith.” A “blind faith” has no evidence or support for making a decision, but an “intelligent faith” looks at the evidence and then makes a decision based on the unknown factors that can’t be seen or proved.
Where is your faith? What kind of faith do you have? Have you ever considered the evidence that supports the Bible and it’s claims? Consider these questions; Do you truly believe that God exists, Do you believe that the Bible is a book written from God? Was Jesus God, as He said He was? Let me encourage you to examine the evidence and proofs that God has given us in creation, the written word, and in the person of Jesus Christ.
DId God Really Say... 