What do you
think would make your relationship to God stronger, all the faith
in the world without the need for proof or all the proof in the world
without any faith? The Bible documents, in the book of Exodus,
how the Israelites were freed by God's mighty hand after more than
400 years of bondage. They were witness to the many plagues
the Lord brought down upon the Egyptians. They saw how Pharaoh,
the king of Egypt, was humbled before the Lord and set the Israelites
free.
They were guided by God as they
traveled through the wilderness. "By day the Lord went ahead
of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night
in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel
by day or night. Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the
pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people." Exodus
13:21-22. They watched in awe as God Almighty provided them
safe passage through the Red Sea as Pharaoh's armies pursued them. "Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night
the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it
into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went
through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right
and on their left." Exodus 14:21-22.
How relieved they must have been when the Lord brought the waters
down on their enemies, proving God's power and His love for them. "The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen - the
entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea.
Not one of them survived." Exodus 14:28. "And when the Israelites
saw the great power the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the
people feared the Lord and put their trust in him and in Moses his
servant." Exodus 14:31.
You would think
that after everything the Lord had brought them through and all the
physical manifestations of His power and love they had witnessed,
the Israelites would have an unshakeable faith in Him. The Bible
goes on to explain how this just wasn't the case. In fact, not
that long after leaving Egypt, while Moses was on Mount Sinai receiving
the Ten Commandments, the Israelites turned from God and constructed
an idol to worship. "Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Go down,
because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt, have become
corrupt. They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded
them and have made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf.
They have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it and have said, 'These
are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt'." Exodus
32:7-8. The Lord listened to Moses and did not destroy the people
of Israel but they were made to wander in the wilderness for
40 more years before they were allowed to enter The Promised Land.
It's obvious that the Israelites had all the proof they could ever
want of God's physical existence and His love for them. What
they lacked was faith! As Christians, the Bible tells us,"We live by faith, not by sight." 2 Corinthians 5:7. If the
Lord had intended for us to be able to "prove" His existence
to people, there would be no need for faith! It is through our
faith in Jesus Christ that we are made righteous before God. "This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to
all who believe." Romans 3:22. It is through our faith in Jesus
Christ that we are able to have fellowship with God. "In him
and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence."
Ephesians 3:12.
When a person becomes
born again, the Holy Spirit comes and lives in that person. "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who
is in you, whom you have received from God?" 1 Corinthians
6:19. When we humble ourselves before the Lord and allow Jesus
Christ to be the Lord of our lives, He will guide us by His Holy Spirit. "But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in
my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything
I have said to you." John 14:26. We follow in faith knowing
He will not disappoint us or lead us astray. The Holy Spirit
allows us to see and understand things that otherwise we would not
be able to. "The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things
of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except
the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the
thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received
the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may
understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak,
not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the
Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The
man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the
Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand
them, because they are spiritually discerned."
1 Corinthians 2:10-14.
There are many
wonderful books available which discuss the vast amount of physical
evidence that confirms the truth and accuracy of the Bible but;
do we acquire faith by proof? As demonstrated by the Israelites
in the Old Testament, absolutely not! Any attempt to "prove"
the truth and accuracy of the Bible where there is no faith is futile
and where there is faith, proof is unnecessary. Faith is not
the accumulation of information resulting in the intellectual acknowledgement
of the existence of God. "Can you fathom the mysteries of God?
Can you probe the limits of the Almighty? They are higher than
the heavens - what can you do? They are deeper than the
depths of the grave - what can you know? Their measure
is longer than the earth and wider than the sea." Job 11:7-9.
Physical evidence can fascinate us and serve to strengthen our faith
but it is not the seed from which our faith grows. It should
never replace the Word of God and the Holy Spirit, our only true source
of faith. "Are you so foolish? After beginning with the
Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?" Galatians
3:3. We do not "prove" the Bible by physical evidence or by
any science known to man. The Holy Spirit confirms in our hearts
the conviction that the Bible is indeed the Word of God!
So, how do we acquire the faith we need? The Bible gives us
the answer. "Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message
is heard through the word of Christ." Romans 10:17. Where is
the real and only source for the power of salvation found? In
the Gospel of Jesus Christ! "For I am not ashamed of the gospel
of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation" Romans
1:16 KJV. We must know the Word of God in order to acquire
faith and for our knowledge and faith to increase. It is only through
faith in Jesus Christ that we may come to God. In fact, without
faith, we can not please God. "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." Hebrews 11:6.
"The Bible does not give us proofs of the existence of God, it proclaims
Him; it just tells us about Him." Dr. Martyn Lloyd - Jones.
Many people believe that the Bible tells us everything we "want" to
know about God, when in reality, the Bible contains everything
we "need" to know about God! The Bible makes it clear that there
are mysteries of God that are not revealed to man. "The secret
things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong
to us and to our children forever" Deuteronomy 29:29. It is
a demonstration of our faith when we accept the fact that there are
many things about God that we will not be able to understand.
However, Jesus said, "The secret of the kingdom of God has been given
to you." Mark 4:11. The secret is proclaimed to all, but
only those who have faith understand. The secret is that the
kingdom of God has come to us in Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior!
Salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ is not a complicated thing
when we come in faith. "For the message of the cross is foolishness
to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the
power of God. For it is written: 'I will destroy the wisdom
of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.'
Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is
the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom
of the world?" 1 Corinthians 1:18-20. "It is because of him
that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God
- that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption." 1 Corinthians
1:30. Our salvation through faith in Jesus Christ is something
we should accept as simply as a child. "Let the little children
come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs
to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not
receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." Mark 10:14-15.
It is not the
amount of faith we have that will change our lives but the quality.
Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a
mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there'
and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." Matthew 17:20. The power available to each of us through our
simple faith in Jesus Christ is limitless. Such is the quality
of faith we strive and pray for.
"Trust
in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight."
Proverbs 3:5-6.
