Know Why You Believe by Paul Little

  1. “Is Christianity Rational?”

Some define faith as believing something you know isn’t true, but the real definition is trust. Faith is only as valid as the object in which it is placed. Testing the reliability of the object of faith is rational and advisable. The Bible stresses rationality, truth, and evidence—Matt. 22:37, Phil. 1:7, 2 Thess. 2:11-12, Rom. 2:8 and 1:19-20. For some, the issue isn’t evidence; it’s the refusal to believe (Jn. 5:40 and 7:17). Doubt in Christians is understandable and healthy. Full answers to every question may elude us—Deut. 29:29.

  1. “Is There A God?”

Mortimer Adler said, “More consequences of thought and action follow the affirmation or denial of God than from any other basic question.” We can’t prove God’s existence by the scientific method, but we can’t prove the existence of many other things we know are real—love, justice, . . . Evidence for the existence of God includes the universal belief among all peoples (the oldest traditions were monotheist, not polytheist—Eccles. 3:11); the law of cause and effect, which says nothing can come from nothing (God is the uncaused cause of the universe); signs of intelligent design (the human body, the universe); the “Big Bang,” which says there was a start to the universe (Ps. 19:1); the moral argument that says all people have a built-in sense of morality; changed lives. There are many ideas today of what this God is like—the cosmic killjoy, a sentimental grandfather, an impersonal force, the creator and ruler of all. The best answer to how we know there’s a God—he visited us in the form of Jesus.

  1. “Is Christ God?”

God took the initiative and revealed himself so we could know what he is like and his attitude toward the human race. Jesus made his identity the focal point of his teaching (Matt. 16:15-16). He claimed to be the Son of God (Jn. 5:18 and 10:30). He claims the attributes of God (Mark 2:5). He was either a liar, a lunatic, a legend, or the truth. It’s easy to reject the first two ideas. If he was a legend, it’s odd that four biographies were written within the lifetime of contemporaries of Christ (probably before 70 A.D.). Jesus had the credentials to back up his claims—his moral character (Jn. 8:46, 1 Peter 2:22), perfect personality (dedication to God, intelligence, kindness, . . .), power over nature (Mark 4:41), power over sickness and disease (Jn. 9), resurrection from the dead, our experience of him today.

4. “Did Christ Rise from the Dead?”

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the foundation stone of the faith (1 Cor. 15:14). There are several reasons to answer the above question “yes”-- the fact of the Christian church (Acts 17:6), the Christian day of worship (Acts 20:7), the change in the disciples, the New Testament that has independent testimony to the resurrection, the appearances of the risen Christ, changes in lives today. If there was no resurrection, there are several possibilities, but they all have problems-- the disciples stole the body, the authorities moved the body, women went to the wrong tomb, Jesus swooned on the cross.

5. “Is the Bible God’s Word?”

The Bible is important for us (2 Peter 1:3). It claims to be inspired by God (Ps. 119, Jerem. 1:9, 1 Cor. 14:37, 2 Tim. 3:16, 2 Peter 1:21). Each author had his own style, however (not dictation). Jesus quoted scripture as final authority (Matt. 5:18, Matt. 4). We may accept the Bible as the Word of God without taking it all literally (Is. 55:12, Ps. 114:4,6). Our claim is that the Bible is inerrant—the original manuscripts were inspired and without error. The Bible uses a human point of view (the sun rises, e.g.), rounds off numbers, has some errors due to copying the texts. The Bible has amazing prophecies—a coming Messiah (Is. 52:1--53:12), Ps. 22, Micah 5:2), the future of kings/nations/cities (Tyre—Ez. 26), the Jewish people (Deut. 28:25, Hos. 9:17, Jerem. 31).

6. “Are the Bible Documents Reliable?”

Looking at the books of the Bible and their origins is called textual criticism. The Old Testament was written on clay and wooden tablets, reed papyrus, and parchment skins. Scribes (those who copied scripture) were extremely careful. The earliest complete Hebrew O.T. is from 900 AD (Masoretic text). In 1947, the Dead Sea Scrolls were found with the complete book of Isaiah and fragments of every other O.T. book except Esther. They were from 100 BC; we see little difference from these to Masoretic text. One other key work is the Septuagint, a Greek translation of the O.T. done in the 3rd century BC. Regarding the New Testament, we have over 5500 manuscripts with only minor variations. The N.T. was done on papyrus and parchment (2 Jn. 12, 3 Jn. 13). The N.T. was complete by about 100 AD. The N.T. is superior to other ancient literature in number of manuscripts and their proximity to the originals. The N.T. is also supported by references and quotations by friends and enemies (90-160 AD). The Hebrew Bible is divided into Law (Gen.-Deut.), Prophets (Joshua, Judges, 1 and 2 Sam.,1 and 2 Kings, Is., Jerem., Ez., Hosea-Malachi), and Writings (Ruth, 1 and 2 Chron., Ez., Neh., Esther, Job, Ps., Prov., Song of Sol., Eccles., Lamen., Daniel). Catholics added Apocrypha (“hidden books”—12 books never received into Jewish canon, not referred to by Jesus or any N.T. writers). A church council in 397 AD fixed the N.T. canon, but only sanctioned what had already been agreed upon informally by the Christian church. There are three criteria for N.T. canon—authored by an apostle? widely recognized by the church? in conformity to sound doctrine preached in churches?

Chapter 7: Does Archeology Verify Scripture?

By the mid 1900s archeological discoveries were substantiating the biblical record -- specific events were verified that at one time had been doubted, overall cultural backgrounds were filled in, conflicts were resolved between the biblical record and information previously available. Archeology helped us understand the time of Abraham (2000 B.C.) with the discovery of several cities, including Mari, Nazi, Alalakh. Writing was well established by 2000 B.C.. Several finds at Hazor, Megiddo, and Giza have documented Solomon's building skills. A stone memorial recently found tells of conflict between Moab and Israel (2 Kings 3). Belshazzar was at one time only mentioned in the Bible; he has now been authenticated as king of Babylon. Luke's reference to Lysanias (Luke 3:1) has been verified although one time it was thought to be a mistake. Archeology has used coins and sacred sites as another way of understanding the biblical record. No historical statement in the Bible has proven false on the basis of evidence retrieved through archeological research.

Chapter 8: Are Miracles Possible?

We as Christians don't need to bother arguing about one particular miracle because there is a deeper issue -- the whole possibility of miracles. Once we assume the existence and character of God, miracles are not a problem. If God exists, he transcends natural law, and, therefore, he is not bound by it. Biblical miracles are defined as acts of God. They could have natural explanations, but some do not have any natural explanations. Miracles are not in conflict with any natural law. Most biblical miracles took place in three time periods -- the exodus, the prophets who led Israel, and the time of Christ/the early church. The purpose of miracles was to confirm faith, authenticate the message, and demonstrate God's love. They were not for entertainment. See Luke 4:1-13, John 10:25/14:11. Why don't we see miracles today? See Luke 16:31. Miracles in other religions are usually believed because the religion has already been believed, but biblical miracles were part of the means of establishing the religion as true. C. S. Lewis said, "All the essentials of Hinduism would remain unimpaired if you subtracted miracles, and the same is almost true of Islam, but you can't do that with Christianity. It is precisely the story of a great miracle. A naturalistic Christianity leaves out all that is specifically Christian." It all comes down to our presuppositions. Christians say God exists, he has originated natural law, he can make or break it, and he can intervene or not. Atheists believe just the opposite.

Chapter 9: Do Science and Scripture Agree?

In the past some scientists and some Christians have disagreed. For example, Bishop Usher in the 1600's claimed the creation occurred in 4004 B.C. The problem happens when each side speaks out of its area of expertise. Carl Sagan, a famous astronomer, said, "The cosmos is all that is or ever was or ever will be." Conflict arises over whether things that can't be verified by the scientific method are valid/real. Some say if a statement cannot be proved in the laboratory than it is untrustworthy. Scientific findings are seen as objective and, therefore, real. But there are ways other than the lab to acquire real and genuine knowledge -- falling in love, the existence of truth, laws of logic, language and numbers. Rationally justified beliefs exist in many fields outside of science. Science itself rests on presuppositions that must be accepted by faith before research is possible -- the universe is orderly, objective truth exists and is knowable, our sense perceptions are reliable. The scientific method began in the 16th century by Christians who believed God did not create an irregular, unknowable universe. Science can tell us the how, not the why. Both science and Christianity have presuppositions -- God/no God. Michael Behe's book Darwin's Black Box examines life on the microscopic level. He shows that biochemistry points us toward a belief in a designer because of something he calls irreducible complexity. Regarding evolution, there is micro (change within species) that both Christians and scientists agree takes place. However, scientists also refer to macro evolution (from lower to higher complexity through the processes of mutation and natural selection). This is where most Christians and evolutionists argue. Evolution is defined as a mindless, unguided, purposeless, solely materialistic process which leaves no room for God. We have discovered that life on the microscopic level consists of not only matter but information (DNA). Where did this information originate? Complex, specified information comes from an intelligent mind. Another difficulty for evolution is the origin of the elements of life. There are a number of areas where there is agreement on both biblical and scientific issues -- the universe had a beginning, time had a beginning, God caused effects even before time, the universe appears to be fine-tuned for life. Regarding evolution and the origin of human beings, the Bible is very clear on two issues -- God supernaturally and deliberately created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1: 1), God supernaturally and deliberately created the first man and the first woman (Genesis 1: 27). There are several New Testament references that confirm Adam and Eve as historic (Rom. 5: 12, 14; 1 Corinthians 15: 22, 45; 2 Corinthians 11: 3; 1 Timothy 2: 13-14; Jude 11). Regarding a date for the earth, it is difficult for Christians to come up with a specific time. One Christian author stated, "As biblical students, we must remain agnostic about the age of the earth. We have no biblical warrant for ruling out the validity of the commonly accepted geological timetable." It has become dangerous to try to prove the Bible by science; if the Bible becomes wedded to today's scientific theories, what will happen to it when science in the future has shifted? For example, in 1861 the FrenchAcademy of Science published a brochure in which they stated 51 scientific facts that controverted the word of God. Today there's not a scientist in the world who believes even one of those 51 so-called scientific facts. There are two extremes when it comes to the issue of evolution -- the assumption that evolution has been proven without doubt, and that evolution is only a theory with little evidence for it. The key is to understand the presuppositions behind those who speak in this area.