Why do we believe? (Feedback)

The following is the response from ConcernedFather to our latest Feedback discussions. I felt that, once again, this man has asked a question worth creating a new post for...

Thanks for your answer. I will be answering over the next few days, but things are rather hectic at the office right now.

I'm enjoying the debate, and I hope it will help atheists understand your point of view - and vice-versa.

My next post will be my last one. Since this is your blog, I'll let you have the final word. In the meantime, could you answer one question: 'Why do you believe that the bible was written by (your) god'. This is not a trap - just a genuine question, as I have problems understanding why believers take that for granted (muslims will believe the same thing about the Koran, of course). Tell a Christian that his wife is cheating on him, or that eating yogurt will make him invisible, and he will check your assertions before acting. But if you tell him that this book was actually written by the creator of the universe, the reaction is 'Oh, yeah, sure'. This really, really puzzles me. (We will make that a digression on the main subject - and I will not answer to you on that specific subject. Thanks).

Thanks for the good quesion! Its a tough one to answer because everyone would answer you differently. Believe it or not but that is actually an amazing thing! The bible was written by over 49 different people from all walks of life. There were shepherds, kings, doctors, priests, prophets, fishermen, etc. All these different types of people wrote what has become the Bible, inspired by the same God to give the same message! That God loves us and wants to bring us back into relationship with him!

With that said I can not tell you what others would say. I can tell you only my own testimony and why I do not bat an eye when others question my faith. Please read as I will point out some interesting stuff before I'm done.

I was actually born into a Christian home. I was raised with the idea that there was a God. Stay in church circles long enough though and you'll learn that a person raised in a Christian home doesn't make him a Christian and that sooner or later I would have to build my own relationship with God.

I lead a pretty normal life. I went to school and learned my abc's and sex ed. I went to camp and learned about God (but didn't accept him through the first few years of it). I lied to my parents and I stole from them and others. I learned to cuss and cheat. My goal in early high school was to have sex before I turned eighteen and I was mildly suicidal around sixteen. I was a normal kid.

You may have heard about other conversions to Christianity as being this day or that and that they had this powerful conversion experience. That happens and is awesome! I, however, can't tell you exactly what day I became a Christian. It was a gradual process for me. I'm sure at some point, as Romans 10:9-10 says, I professed Jesus as Lord and meant it but I can't tell you when. I was baptised late in my fifteenth year. (you'll note that I was already a Christian when I went through my suicidal period - proof that even Christians lose site of the shore now and then)

I did, however, have a vital change in my life when I turned seventeen. I had a car accident. I suffered a head trauma that caused temporary amnesia and swiss cheesed my memories. I had to stay in the hostpital overnight for observation. About a month later I had already been thinking about my life, the universe, and the afterlife more and it was then time for camp. I went to camp that year and God met me there. I can't fully explain what happened but I changed that year. I was, as us Christians put it, on fire! I knew what was true and wanted everyone to know as well.

I scared one of my best friends when I came back because I was so different than she knew me. Over the next year I also made a lot of mistakes because I had such great fire but so little knowledge. I changed that over time. I learned more about this God that I had a relationship with.

To this day I continue to try to absorb all the knowledge I can while maintaining my relationship with Jesus. Here is a snippet from AnswersInGenesis that I thought was appropriate:

‘While we are here on earth, it’s hard for us to test what each “holy book” says about heavenly things. But where books make claims about earthly things2 … aha! Here’s something we can test. Which book best explains the earth’s geology: why we find mountainous layers upon layers of sediments that look like they were pushed up and folded while still wet, and with dead animals and plants buried in them, all over the world? The Bible! Which book best explains biology: why plants and animals reproduce “after their kind”, why we have male and female, why women have pain in childbearing, why we have an ever-increasing number of mutations and genetic disorders—as if the creation is in “bondage to decay” [Romans 8:20–22]? The Bible!

‘And what about the number and distribution of humans around the world—calculating backwards using standard population growth rates gives us a handful of ancestors around 4,500 years ago, somewhere in the Middle East—doesn’t that fit with what the Bible says?3 Doesn’t it explain why scientists now say “race” is biologically meaningless, as if we are of “one blood” [Acts 17:26]?

‘And agriculture: is it just coincidence that many of our crop plants have been traced back to the “Fertile Crescent” between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, which just “happens” to be where the Bible says Babel was located?

‘But here’s the linchpin: no other “holy book” that I know of describes death as an “enemy” [1 Cor. 15:26], which is what it clearly is. Just watch mourners grieving over the death of a loved one; it’s obvious that something’s wrong, death is an intruder, just as the Bible describes. And the Bible not only accurately describes the problem, but also the only logical solution.4 So, if in things that we can test, the Bible wins hands down, which “holy book” are you going to trust?’

I've experienced God's love and his grace. I've seen him heal people and I've watched him change lives. I've read the history and the accuracy of the Bible. When people try to tell me that there is no God I may not test their assertion at the time they tell me because I've already tested the same assertions at a heart level time and time again in the past.

Doubting is not a sin. I've doubted several times as a Christian. It can actually help draw you into a closer relationship with God. But when you find something you know to be true and that won't change from day to day (similar to gravity as an analogy) you trust it. You've tested it and found it to be true.

1 Thessalonians 5:19-22 (New Living Translation)
19Do not stifle the Holy Spirit. 20Do not scoff at prophecies, 21but test everything that is said. Hold on to what is good. 22Keep away from every kind of evil.

Isaiah 1:18 (English Standard Version)
18"Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD:
though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red like crimson,
they shall become like wool.