When Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, "Do you believe in the Son of God?" He answered and said, "Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?" And Jesus said to him, "You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you." Then he said, "Lord, I believe!" And he worshipped Him.
John 9: 35 - 38 NKJV
The story of the blind man healed by Jesus we find in John 9 is a interesting contrast to the beliefs of that day. On the one hand, we have the man who was healed by Jesus because he had been blind from birth {John 9:1}. Immediately, the disciples of Jesus ask Him THE question. "Who has sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" {John 9:2} What was Jesus' answer? Neither the man nor his parents sinned. I find this passage interesting because all too often when we hear of someone in distress or dire circumstances, our immediate thought turns to what sin they could have possibly done to anger God enough that He would afflict them. I often encountered this while I was in church as well. Many a Sunday I heard more than a few friends would ask me what part of my life God was upset with. Is this how we should react whenever hardships come? I guess the better question would be, are those hardships in our lives a matter of Gods punishment upon us? Well, if you hold to the concept of a angry, vengeful God then your beliefs might just fall in line with this mindset. I don't see things in that way. My own view of God is one of who He truly is. Of the very nature of God. The apostle John assures us that instead of anger, the Lords true nature is love {1 John 4:8}. Are we to believe that a loving God continually finds ways to punish those who fall out of line? Did Jesus look upon the blind man as having sinned and therefore deserving of punishment? No, His first thought was of restoring his sight. From the scriptures we can see plainly that it was not Jesus who condemned, but the Pharisees of the day {John 9:16}. In the end, it was the question of Jesus that changed the mans life forever...Do you believe?
That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Romans 10: 9 - 10 NKJV
I have run across some pretty interesting takes on Christianity in my lifetime. However, I can still confidently say that I believe in Jesus. I have seen the Lord work in ways only He understands, yet I still believe. Some call this blind faith, I prefer to think of it as knowing the truth of who I really am. There are a few simple facts which support my beliefs. I was created in Gods own image {Genesis 1:26}. Not only that, but it was God who breathed into me the breath of life {Genesis 2:7}. From the very start God has been a intimate part of who I am. But that was back in the days of creation, right? Ok, I get that. Yet the apostle Paul assures us of our identity as well. It is Paul who introduces us to Christ in us {Galatians 2:20}. Believe me, there are plenty of haters running around in the world who will try to have you believe that Jesus could never be one with a sinner. Well, that might have been true in the days before Jesus, but not now. For Jesus defeated sin once and for all {Romans 6:6-11}. Could you stand behind a belief that claimed that your sins were forgiven by the death of Jesus on the cross and yet still cling to the belief that you are a sinner? Yeah, me neither. Yet this is the message of more than a few modern church leaders. I prefer to see the Lord for who He truly is. That through His love for me He formed me in His image. That in His love He provided for my life in Him. That is why I believe.
If someone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?
1 John 4: 20 NKJV
~Scott~
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