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| The Garden Tomb. Jerusalem |
We've looked at how faith operates in life. We also looked at how
the Bible itself gives us the example of
investigating its claims. Luke 1:1-4 for example " Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the
things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who
from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated
everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for
you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you
may know the certainty of the things you have been taught." However
faith THAT something is true is not the same as faith IN it. I believe THAT the
RMS Queen Mary 2 is and ocean going ship. I have never put my faith IN the QM2
to actually take me across the sea.
John 1:11-12
"He came to that which was his own,
but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who did
receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God." John makes
these observations about the Jewish people living in Judea at the time of
Jesus. Jesus, the Jew, came to his own people and was only received by a
comparative few. We might not talk much about "receiving" people
these days, unless we happen to live in a modern "Downton Abbey," but
we can understand that these people welcomed him into their homes (Or
potentially synagogues, although that usually didn't go so harmoniously.) They
also listened to his teaching and accepted it as true. They believed he was who
he claimed to be. We can likewise take the time to read his teachings (We
cannot physically entertain Jesus in our homes but we can receive Him in His
word,) and conclude that they are true, that he is who he claims to be. To use
the analogy from before, this takes us to the dockside and provides us with a
ticket, the right to board and trust the ship to transport us. "He gave
[them] the right to become children of God." Just having a right is not
enough, you have to exercise it if you want the benefits.
The Christian faith is anchored in a historical event, the death
and resurrection of Jesus. We can look at the historical, archaeological, philosophical,
textural or whatever-al evidence for
this physical event. We can be convinced of the truth of it, but when we put
our faith IN Jesus and what he achieved there a spiritual transaction takes
place. That can't happen if we don't believe His Word, and won't happen if we
don't act on His Word.
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