A little inside baseball for you readers. I check out Facebook a few times of days and I have friends from all walks of lives. Including atheists. I have some atheist friends that are just that and they'll share pictures from their family's barbeque. But then I have those other atheist friends, the ones who insult Christ as much as I praise Him. So sometimes I get worked up and I start to use this blog as a way to vent, I write what makes me angry, then I try to address where I think the problem comes from, where they have a miscommunication and how as Christians you and I should go about addressing it.
Sometimes these guys like to argue "science" as a means to oppress Christians. To diverge a little bit for a minute. Everyday I like to listen to a local Christian radio show and the host loves to share current event science stories and dives into other scientific research that proves what the Bible says is true, and uses it to show Christians how to argue against popular "proofs" of a godless universe. There's tons of books out there using science to help back up the Bible, there's tons of atheist research that also helps back up the Bible and the show I listen to makes these lessons available for further study.
I was thinking about my atheist friends today who seem so angry and confrontational in their statuses and thought about, what if they were this vocal in the parties we bumped into each other at? I thought to myself in this fantastical situation, it's a real shame because I know the Bible very well. I know how we can see God in everything nature has to offer. I can point to the fact that Jesus was a very real person, that most historians agree on that, and not only that but most historians agree that Bible gives a very accurate account of the Hebrew people, so why does it stop being right when referring to the religious aspects? But the shame of it is, I can't properly cite these scientists who have all but proven things like Young Earth, Rare Earth and the studies that disprove Evolution.
As I type this up now, I'm on a computer, I'm posting to the internet, I'm sharing it on Facebook and Twitter, so yes, I can find webpage after webpage of these scientific proofs. But I probably still won't remember it, I won't be read up on further studies into this research and I'm not going to carry a briefcase of printed studies. But I really stopped and thought about what I said to myself, it's a shame I only know the Bible. Is it though?
Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so...Yes Jesus loves me, the Bible tells me so. That children's song is so simple. Jesus is God, He's in Heaven, He loves me, I'm going to be with Him one day. Why? The Bible tells me so.
Think about the rich man in Hell. "Let me tell my brothers about Jesus and Hell." What does Jesus tell us Abraham says to the rich man though? "They have Moses and the Prophets, let them listen to them." Jesus means the words found in Scripture. My pastor once told me that this rich man wasn't given a name because everyone knew who Jesus was talking about, the rich man about town who recently passed away. How loving that even though that man was told his words would not be able to reach his brothers, they did anyways, Jesus told it to His people, people who knew who this rich man was, and now 2000 years later, here we are talking about this man's warning to his brothers, that no one makes his mistake.
So do I need to know more than the Bible? To tell you the truth, I don't think we do. It's no surprise that science backs up the Bible. It is nice that we have people with doctorates backing up the Bible's truths. But the Bible, that's Jesus' Word. He is the way, He is the truth, He is the light. Jesus is our salvation. If science is fact and fact and the truth are interchangeable then we know that Jesus who is perfect truth is a fact.
So the argument now comes down to I'm in a situation where an atheist is arguing that because of evolution and big bang there is no God, and we say no, we know the Bible tells us otherwise, their response is going to be, "I don't believe what the Bible says." Here's the thing again, it's a privilege that we have studies to show them that back up what the Bible says. Here's a point though, and I mean to insult no one's intelligence. The fact is this though; let's say a scientist finds irrefutable proof that the Earth is 6000 years old and that humans just came from humans. In this situation there is no argument to be made otherwise. Here's the problem, where is God in all of this? We have to go back to the Bible. We can prove every scientific and historical event in the Bible, but never once will a chemical test tell us the name of Jesus, never once will a lost city reveal that Jesus died for us, it is impossible for a carbon dated document to let us know that Jesus will be coming back to judge us at any moment.
I think the problem with some of these people is they don't want there to be a God. So we can show our scientific documents and theories, and they can share theirs, but with no Bible on either side of the argument, how do we prove there is a God, or what Jesus has done and is doing and will do? I'd go as far to argue that it'd be a harder fight for us against the Qur'an. At least then they're arguing a different god.
So to be honest with myself, I don't think there is a winning argument, even if my science convinces them, my Bible probably won't. So what I might want to say in this situation is this; I think you may want to read up on things like evolution and young universe because there have been many scientific breakthroughs in these areas that are proving otherwise. Also, I believe the truths of the Bible and know that God is the creator of all things and trust Jesus as my Savior. If you are interested in what He has done for you and me I am always open for discussion and can refer you to a pastor if you'd feel more comfortable to talking to him. What's more is I will respect our differences, but perhaps you could refrain from insulting Christianity, if that has been the case.
Let's hammer home the points that we gone over time and time again. Treat your oppressors with love. Be unflinching in your faith in Christ. Study His Word and verse yourself in it. Act in a Christlike faith and point to Christ's perfect life and death on the cross. Celebrate His resurrection and His coming again, and don't be surprised when this sinful world comes up against you. Pray for your atheist friends and oppressors. Remember through Jesus, all things are possible.
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