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Hebrews 11:6 "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him."
Belief is necessary for faith. You must believe that God exists before you can have faith in Him.
What is belief?
Dictionary.com definition: conviction, confidence in the truth or existence
of something not immediately susceptible to rigorous proof
Merriam-Webster definition: (1): a state or habit of mind in which trust or
confidence is placed in some person or thing (2): something believed: a tenet
or body of tenets held by a group (3): conviction of the truth of some statement
or the reality of some being or phenomenon especially when based on examination
of evidence
What is faith?
Dictionary.com definition: belief that is not based on proof
Merriam-Webster definition: (1): belief and trust in and loyalty to God (2):
belief in the traditional doctrines of a religion b (1): firm belief in something
for which there is no proof (2): complete trust (3): something that is believed
especially with strong conviction; especially: a system of religious beliefs
Faith almost always implies being completely certain of something or someone
even where there is no evidence or proof <an unshakeable faith in God
Belief requires evidence, but faith does not. I believe in gravity, seeing that every time I drop something it falls to the ground. That is evidence. I can have faith that gravity will not fail due to my belief in it. There is no evidence that gravity will not fail, but based on my belief that is based on evidence that I can see and experience, I can have faith that gravity will not fail.
In order to have faith you must believe first. This is true not only in your physical lives but also in your spiritual life. Your spiritual lives also require belief before faith. None of you, nor I, have ever seen God, but we see His workmanship all around us – from the order in the massive universe to the variety and different kinds of life, to photons, gravitons and gluons that are, so far, some of the smallest particles existing, so far. Neither you nor I saw Jesus born, perform miracles, die on the cross, or rise from the dead. Yet, I believe them. I take these things in faith without having seen them or experienced them myself. Why? Why would I believe them? Why would I believe in God? Why would I believe that Jesus is the Son of God? Do I just believe blindly, or is there reason behind my faith? I don’t just believe because “it is in the Bible”. Let’s start with God.
Do you believe in God? If you said, “Yes”, do you know why you believe? If not, then what about God? Why do I believe in God? I will tell you why I believe in Him.
I see the evidence of Him everywhere I look. I see the vastness of the universe and the order and thought behind it and the way it operates according to certain laws. All plants and animals He created to reproduce after their own kind – and He provided many, many kinds. You will never see a spider-goat in God’s creation, or glow-in-the-dark cats – those only exist because of man’s interference in His creation.
“It is of interest that there are more different types of dogs than any other species in the world—yet scientists recognize them all to be in the same "species." That is highly significant. There often can be wide variations within a species, because the DNA permits it. In some species, a narrow number of possible subspecies are possible. The cheetah has such narrowed DNA that it can only produce cheetahs—and no varieties of subspecies. Another interesting fact is that plant and animal breeding can produce new subspecies, but they are never quite as hardy as the basic species. This fact clearly points us to the great truth, seen in the fossil record and everywhere today, that it would be impossible to accidentally or selectively breed a creature to the point that it jumped out of its species and became a new one.” -- http://www.pathlights.com/ce_encyclopedia/encyclopedia/11spec01.htm#What%20is%20a%20Species?
“It took the miraculous to
produce the species.
"If complex organisms ever did evolve from simpler ones, the process took
place contrary to the laws of nature, and must have involved what may rightly
be termed the miraculous."—*R.E.D. Clark, Victoria Institute 1943,
p. 63.
The only acceptable explanation is Creation.
"I think however that we must go further than this and admit that the only
acceptable explanation is Creation. I know that this is anathema to physicists,
as indeed it is to me, but we must not reject a theory that we do not like if
the experimental evidence supports it."—*H.J. Lipson, F.R.S.A Physicist
Looks at Evolution, in Physics Bulletin 31, 1980, p. 138. -- http://www.pathlights.com/ce_encyclopedia/encyclopedia/11spec03.htm#Conclusion
Evolution – big bang notwithstanding – poses the idea that everything
sprang into existence and formed itself into stars, galaxies, solar systems
and planets such as the earth that as it cooled developed life in seas and on
the ground that later developed into invertebrates, then fishes, amphibians,
reptiles, birds and mammals out of which later a branch, primates, developed
into man -- all this with no order or thought behind it – all this automatically.
How could the cells that became the retina, sclera, lens, etc., that developed
into the eye differentiate so differently from those that controlled hearing
or touch or smell or taste, and keep differentiating the same way from then
on? How could simple organisms become more complex? How can information that
did not exist in a living creature be added later on to become more complex?
You can’t add information without messing with the creature’s DNA
– which is what scientists today are doing with genetics – adding
information. It doesn’t occur in nature it has to be added artificially.
Life can only come from life. Evolution is telling me that dead rocks gave birth to life. It just doesn’t make any sense to me. My Bible tells me a different start for everything. God.
Nehemiah 9:6
6 “You alone are the Lord. You made the skies and the heavens and all
the stars. You made the earth and the seas and everything in them.”
Psalm 86:8-10
8 “No pagan god is like You, O Lord. None can do what You do! 9 All the
nations You made will come and bow before You, Lord; they will praise Your holy
name. 10 For You are great and perform wonderful deeds. You alone are God.”
Psalm 95:3-5
3”For the Lord is a great God, a great King above all gods. 4 He holds
in His hands the depths of the earth and the mightiest mountains. 5 The sea
belongs to him, for He made it. His hands formed the dry land, too.”
Psalms 100:3
3“Acknowledge that the Lord is God! He made us, and we are His. We are
His people, the sheep of his pasture.”
Jeremiah 10:11-16
11 “Say this to those who worship other gods: “Your so-called gods,
who did not make the heavens and earth, will vanish from the earth and from
under the heavens.” 12 But God made the earth by his power, and he preserves
it by his wisdom. With his own understanding He stretched out the heavens. 13
When he speaks in the thunder, the heavens roar with rain. He causes the clouds
to rise over the earth. He sends the lightning with the rain and releases the
wind from his storehouses. 14 The whole human race is foolish and has no knowledge!
The craftsmen are disgraced by the idols they make, for their carefully shaped
works are a fraud. These idols have no breath or power. 15 Idols are worthless;
they are ridiculous lies! On the day of reckoning they will all be destroyed.
16 But the God of Israel is no idol! He is the Creator of everything that exists,
including Israel, his own special possession. The Lord of Heaven’s Armies
is his name!”
These passages tell me that God made the earth, the universe, the seas, weather, and everything else that exists. There was thought behind what was created. There was intelligence behind what was created. It didn’t just “big-bang” into existence. (The evolutionists fail to explain what it was that caused the big bang and how it got there).
Man is a special creature.
How is man special? What makes him different from all the animals? No other
creature on earth creates art, music, humor, invents machines to make his work
easier, uses letters and symbols to express in written form the language that
is spoken in words and numbers, or uses fire, as does man. What animal do you
know that passes down wisdom from one generation to another in spoken and written
form so future generations can take advantage of what the previous generations
have learned? Where did man get this “specialness’?
My Bible tells me I was created in the image and likeness of God. God creates, He speaks, He thinks, His creation shows great intelligence and design. He reveals Himself to me in His Word – the written Word, the Holy Bible and the physical Word – Jesus Christ.
God reveals Himself through prophecy.
Isaiah 41:21-23
21 “Present the case for your idols,” says the Lord. “Let
them show what they can do,”
says the King of Israel.
22 “Let them try to tell us what happened long ago so that we may consider
the evidence.
Or let them tell us what the future holds, so we can know what’s going
to happen.
23 Yes, tell us what will occur in the days ahead. Then we will know you are
gods.”
Jesus fulfilled Old Testament prophecy about Himself.
Born in Bethlehem Micah 5:2 &
Matthew 2:1-6
Comes from the Family of David Jeremiah 23:5 & Acts 13:22,23
Born of a Virgin: Isaiah 7:14 & Matthew 1:18-25
Declared to be the Son of God Psalm 2:7 & Matthew 3:17
Triumphal entry Zechariah 9:9 & Matthew 21:1-9
Death by crucifixion Psalm 22:16-18 & 34:20 John 19:18-37
He died for our sins Isaiah 53:4-12 & 1 Peter 2:21-25
Spat upon, smitten and scourged Isaiah 50:6, 53:5 Matthew 27:26, 30
Struck on the cheek Micah 5:1 Matthew 27:30
Hated for no reason Psalm 35:19 Matthew 27:23
Buried in a rich man's tomb Isaiah 53:9 Matthew 27:57-60
Resurrected from the dead Psalm 16:10 Acts 2:24-32
These are just a few examples. See
others at Tenakh/Hebrew/Old Testament Prophecies Fulfilled by Jesus Christ,
Messiah –
http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/Believer's%20Corner/Doctrines/messiah.htm
Men could never have predicted the future like this if they wrote using their own human wisdom, but those that wrote the Bible did so many times. This tells me that God exists and that He spoke through these men. Since Jesus fulfilled these prophecies, He must be the Messiah, the Savior God sent into the world for our salvation. But why believe what the Bible says? Why should I believe in a book or what that book has to say? Isn’t it just another ancient book full of stories?
What is there about this book that is so different from other books? Well, it was written by many men over many, many years from 1400 BC (BCE) to 100 AD (CE), yet I can’t tell where one writer leaves off and another one starts because the style and language are so similar. The books flow one to another so smoothly. I can’t tell that one person wrote the first five books and everyone else wrote the rest it. They do not contradict each other. The New Testament writers do not contradict the Old Testament writers – they quote them. How could these men of such different backgrounds -- some were shepherds, some prophets, some kings, fishermen etc., agree so completely? The answer must be that they were not writing by their own wisdom. The Bible cannot possibly be the product of 40 different minds. It must be the product of one supreme Mind, just as it claims. This leads me to think that God must have inspired these writers. And it follows, that since God inspired these men as to what they were to write, then what they wrote has to be of God. And since it is of God, it is worth believing and following.
History bears out the truth of the
history of the Bible.
As an example, up to the year 1906 there was no proof that the Hittites ever
existed. But in 1906 the archeologist Hugo Winckler excavated Hattusa the Hittite
capital proving the Hittites really did exist. Not only did they exist, but
the Hittite civilization rivaled that of ancient Egypt and Assyria at its height.
Another example is in Exodus where we see that 3 kinds of bricks were made by
the Israelite slaves in Egypt after Moses appeared and demanded Pharaoh release
the Israelite slaves so they could go into the desert and worship God. One of
the cities mentioned was Pithom.
Exodus1:11
11 “So the Egyptians made the Israelites their slaves. They appointed
brutal slave drivers over them, hoping to wear them down with crushing labor.
They forced them to build the cities of Pithom and Rameses as supply centers
for the king.”
Exodus 5:10-21
10 So the slave drivers and foremen went out and told the people: “This
is what Pharaoh says: I will not provide any more straw for you. 11 Go and get
it yourselves. Find it wherever you can. But you must produce just as many bricks
as before!” 12 So the people scattered throughout the land of Egypt in
search of stubble to use as straw.
13 Meanwhile, the Egyptian slave drivers continued to push hard. “Meet your daily quota of bricks, just as you did when we provided you with straw!” they demanded. 14 Then they whipped the Israelite foremen they had put in charge of the work crews. “Why haven’t you met your quotas either yesterday or today?” they demanded.
15 So the Israelite foremen
went to Pharaoh and pleaded with him. “Please don’t treat your servants
like this,” they begged. 16 “We are given no straw, but the slave
drivers still demand, ‘Make bricks!’ We are being beaten, but it
isn’t our fault! Your own people are to blame!”
17 But Pharaoh shouted, “You’re just lazy! Lazy! That’s why
you’re saying, ‘Let us go and offer sacrifices to the Lord.’
18 Now get back to work! No straw will be given to you, but you must still produce
the full quota of bricks.”
19 The Israelite foremen could see that they were in serious trouble when they were told, “You must not reduce the number of bricks you make each day.” 20 As they left Pharaoh’s court, they confronted Moses and Aaron, who were waiting outside for them. 21 The foremen said to them, “May the Lord judge and punish you for making us stink before Pharaoh and his officials. You have put a sword into their hands, an excuse to kill us!”
Archaeologist Naville in 1883 found
in the ruins of Pithom all three types of brick -- clay mixed with straw, then
clay and stubble, then clay alone.
A skeptic, Sir William Ramsay, tried to prove the Book of Acts was wrong by
tracing Paul's journeys. Instead, his experience proved the accuracy of the
Book of Acts and made him a believer. He proved that the Bible was right when
it said Iconium was in a different region from Lystra and Derbe (Acts 14:6),
when all of the other scholars believed differently. (See Archaeology and Bible
History, Free, p. 317.)
In fact "...archaeology has confirmed countless passages which have been rejected by critics as unhistorical or contradictory to known facts ... Yet archaeological discoveries have shown that these critical charges ... are wrong and that the Bible is trustworthy in the very statements which have been set aside as untrustworthy ... We do not know of any cases where the Bible has been proved wrong." -- Dr. Joseph P. Free (Archaeology and Bible History, pp. 1,2,134) All these lead me to think that the Bible is historically accurate and I can trust it.
Isaiah 40:21-22
21 “Haven’t you heard? Don’t you understand? Are you deaf
to the words of God—the words He gave before the world began? Are you
so ignorant? 22 God sits above the circle of the earth. The people below seem
like grasshoppers to Him!
Job 26:7
7”God stretches the northern sky over empty space and hangs the earth
on nothing.”
The Bible reveals truth not otherwise
able to be known.
Isaiah wrote that the earth was round and the writer of Job stated the earth
hangs in space. Today we have pictures taken from space to show the earth's
shape, but how did Isaiah and Job know? God must have revealed it to them and
then it was written down for us.
These are just a few of the reasons
I believe in God and I believe in the authority of the Bible. There are many,
many more. Because of these evidences I believe that the Bible is trustworthy,
historically accurate and I can trust it. Due to my belief, I have faith that
what is within its pages is worth reading, studying and believing. Because I
believe in God, I can believe in the authority of the Bible. Because I believe
in the authority of the Bible, I can believe that God gave it to me to learn
about Him, to learn how to think like He does, to find out what He likes and
doesn’t like, to lead my life according to His ways no matter how the
world around me chooses to live, to share the knowledge I gain from it with
those around me and with you here today. I can have faith in its truth just
I have faith in God and who He says He is. So can you.