Faith By Default
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Faith by Default
copyright 2001 by Malcolm B. Mathieson, Jr.
2 No, you are not looking at a misprint. You are looking at the result of decades of study of Christianity which has resulted in FAITH BY DEFAULT. By that I mean that I believe that Christianity offers the most thorough, most logical, most complete explanation of existence that I know of. Since it does, and since I am aware of strong evidence that Christianity is true, I will retain my faith in Jesus even though I resent the misery and futility of this existence. Due largely to human evil, greed, and stupidity, this planet is in such terrible condition (and it’s getting worse daily) that it’s tough to justify any faith at all. My life has been easy compared to the majority of the world’s population, yet it’s been rough enough that I often feel strong resentment toward God. I believe in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jesus. I can offer strong evidence for God’s existence and for the belief that God loves us and all of His Creation. Even so, I have seen and suffered futility and unhappiness. If God is the kind of god presented by orthodox, Biblical Christianity (all-powerful, all-knowing, loving, able to predict the future perfectly from the beginning), why did He create humans (and demons) such that we would choose evil and stupidity? I don’t know. I am of above average intelligence, and I have often discussed these matters thoroughly with my father, who is an extremely intelligent retired rocket scientist (no kidding). We are both Christians, and we are both far better educated in our faith than the average Christian. My father is a deacon, a former chairman of deacons, a former Sunday School teacher in several churches, and has read the Bible extensively. I have taught Sunday School and Training Union and led Bible studies and prayer groups. I have read the Bible through word for word seven times, in four English translations (King James, New King James, New International, and Amplified). Both of us have on several occasions been asked to preach or to speak to our churches in Sunday services. We have both read quite a few books by credentialed Christian authors on many religious topics. We have done meticulous study of the Bible ourselves with the aid of prayer, concordances, cross-references, and Greek and Hebrew dictionaries. We have tried to live by what we believe. We have analyzed the condition of humanity in the light of what we have learned, and we still don’t have an answer for the unrelenting misery and futility the human race has suffered for its entire history. You may wonder why, if we have not been able to find a satisfying answer for the misery, we continue to retain our faith in Jesus.
3 It is because we have EXPERIENCED assistance and guidance from God, and we are convinced that the God of the Bible is real. We have continued to analyze our faith since we became believers and we have found nothing to cause us to believe that it is not true, with the exception of this single question: how can a loving, all-powerful God, who can see in accurate, minute, and complete detail the results of His actions before He acts, possibly create a species which has become so evil and miserable? We have concluded that we are being tested for the next life - the REAL life. We believe that the only purpose of this life is to sort people into two groups: those who will choose truth and righteousness, no matter what the cost, and those who will not. We believe that it is necessary that we should not be allowed to know the answer to the above question. If we KNEW the answer, there would be no faith involved, and free will would not exist. Since you KNOW the consequences of gravity, you do not leap from tall buildings. Even if you WANT to do so, you restrain your impulse for fear of the consequences. If you KNEW that God existed and would inevitably punish sin, you would at least try to restrain your sinful impulses EVEN IF YOU WANTED TO DO EVIL. God is testing for people who will CHOOSE truth and righteousness even if it is inconvenient, frustrating, painful, or dangerous. We believe that Jesus is the standard of righteousness by which God will sort us. We believe that no one can achieve Jesus’ level of perfect righteousness, but that we can ask to be credited with His righteousness if we will trust God to accept us on that basis. We believe that in the next life, God will complete the transformation of those who do this into Children of God, who can be trusted not to injure the rest of His Creation. God will then not have to be a cosmic police officer. We have no idea why testing should be necessary - especially the sadistichouse-of-horrors, pervert’s-picnic kind of testing so many people are forced to endure on this planet. We have no idea why God, if He is all-powerful, didn’t just create us such that we would all CHOOSE to do right. We have assessed the evidence available to us, including our own experiences, and concluded that Christianity must be true. We therefore intend to continue for our entire lives to live as if we KNEW that it is true, and ask for explanations in the next life. That is what faith is: persisting in the direction you believe is correct, even when you have doubts. We do not believe you should continue in something you believe is wrong or incorrect. We believe that since you will not in this life KNOW, you should look for answers, assess the evidence you have to the best of your ability, and act on
4 your conclusions. We believe this is important because the Bible teaches that in the next life, the rewards and punishments are extreme for right and wrong beliefs we held and actions we committed or omitted in this life. Why, you may ask, should I be punished for a wrong belief? Because the truth is available for those who want to know it. We believe that if you want to know the truth about God and Jesus, for the purpose of acting on truth, they will respond to you if you ask them to show you the truth. It is their desire and their responsibility to do so. If God does love you, then He is WILLING to respond, IF you want to know truth for the purpose of living according to truth. If God is “omni-present” and allpowerful, then He is ABLE to respond when you call out to him. Many passages in the Bible support these statements. Here are just a few: “You will find Me when you seek Me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:13) “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except by me.’ “ (John 14:6) “Neither is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name given under heaven among men, by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) “And I say to you, ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For every one who asks receives; and he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks it will be opened.” (Luke 11:910) Early Christians thought it was worth being fed to lions for, and they had the strongest possible evidence: they saw the miracles. Over five hundred of them claimed to have seen Jesus alive after He was crucified. And not merely to have seen Him: they claimed to have eaten meals with Him, to have touched Him, to have talked with Him...His appearances after His resurrection went on for forty days, according to these witnesses. They were sure enough to die for their faith. Their example is reason enough to ask and seek and knock. I urge you to do so. You will find...the door into Paradise.
copyright 2001 by Malcolm B. Mathieson, Jr.
2 No, you are not looking at a misprint. You are looking at the result of decades of study of Christianity which has resulted in FAITH BY DEFAULT. By that I mean that I believe that Christianity offers the most thorough, most logical, most complete explanation of existence that I know of. Since it does, and since I am aware of strong evidence that Christianity is true, I will retain my faith in Jesus even though I resent the misery and futility of this existence. Due largely to human evil, greed, and stupidity, this planet is in such terrible condition (and it’s getting worse daily) that it’s tough to justify any faith at all. My life has been easy compared to the majority of the world’s population, yet it’s been rough enough that I often feel strong resentment toward God. I believe in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jesus. I can offer strong evidence for God’s existence and for the belief that God loves us and all of His Creation. Even so, I have seen and suffered futility and unhappiness. If God is the kind of god presented by orthodox, Biblical Christianity (all-powerful, all-knowing, loving, able to predict the future perfectly from the beginning), why did He create humans (and demons) such that we would choose evil and stupidity? I don’t know. I am of above average intelligence, and I have often discussed these matters thoroughly with my father, who is an extremely intelligent retired rocket scientist (no kidding). We are both Christians, and we are both far better educated in our faith than the average Christian. My father is a deacon, a former chairman of deacons, a former Sunday School teacher in several churches, and has read the Bible extensively. I have taught Sunday School and Training Union and led Bible studies and prayer groups. I have read the Bible through word for word seven times, in four English translations (King James, New King James, New International, and Amplified). Both of us have on several occasions been asked to preach or to speak to our churches in Sunday services. We have both read quite a few books by credentialed Christian authors on many religious topics. We have done meticulous study of the Bible ourselves with the aid of prayer, concordances, cross-references, and Greek and Hebrew dictionaries. We have tried to live by what we believe. We have analyzed the condition of humanity in the light of what we have learned, and we still don’t have an answer for the unrelenting misery and futility the human race has suffered for its entire history. You may wonder why, if we have not been able to find a satisfying answer for the misery, we continue to retain our faith in Jesus.
3 It is because we have EXPERIENCED assistance and guidance from God, and we are convinced that the God of the Bible is real. We have continued to analyze our faith since we became believers and we have found nothing to cause us to believe that it is not true, with the exception of this single question: how can a loving, all-powerful God, who can see in accurate, minute, and complete detail the results of His actions before He acts, possibly create a species which has become so evil and miserable? We have concluded that we are being tested for the next life - the REAL life. We believe that the only purpose of this life is to sort people into two groups: those who will choose truth and righteousness, no matter what the cost, and those who will not. We believe that it is necessary that we should not be allowed to know the answer to the above question. If we KNEW the answer, there would be no faith involved, and free will would not exist. Since you KNOW the consequences of gravity, you do not leap from tall buildings. Even if you WANT to do so, you restrain your impulse for fear of the consequences. If you KNEW that God existed and would inevitably punish sin, you would at least try to restrain your sinful impulses EVEN IF YOU WANTED TO DO EVIL. God is testing for people who will CHOOSE truth and righteousness even if it is inconvenient, frustrating, painful, or dangerous. We believe that Jesus is the standard of righteousness by which God will sort us. We believe that no one can achieve Jesus’ level of perfect righteousness, but that we can ask to be credited with His righteousness if we will trust God to accept us on that basis. We believe that in the next life, God will complete the transformation of those who do this into Children of God, who can be trusted not to injure the rest of His Creation. God will then not have to be a cosmic police officer. We have no idea why testing should be necessary - especially the sadistichouse-of-horrors, pervert’s-picnic kind of testing so many people are forced to endure on this planet. We have no idea why God, if He is all-powerful, didn’t just create us such that we would all CHOOSE to do right. We have assessed the evidence available to us, including our own experiences, and concluded that Christianity must be true. We therefore intend to continue for our entire lives to live as if we KNEW that it is true, and ask for explanations in the next life. That is what faith is: persisting in the direction you believe is correct, even when you have doubts. We do not believe you should continue in something you believe is wrong or incorrect. We believe that since you will not in this life KNOW, you should look for answers, assess the evidence you have to the best of your ability, and act on
4 your conclusions. We believe this is important because the Bible teaches that in the next life, the rewards and punishments are extreme for right and wrong beliefs we held and actions we committed or omitted in this life. Why, you may ask, should I be punished for a wrong belief? Because the truth is available for those who want to know it. We believe that if you want to know the truth about God and Jesus, for the purpose of acting on truth, they will respond to you if you ask them to show you the truth. It is their desire and their responsibility to do so. If God does love you, then He is WILLING to respond, IF you want to know truth for the purpose of living according to truth. If God is “omni-present” and allpowerful, then He is ABLE to respond when you call out to him. Many passages in the Bible support these statements. Here are just a few: “You will find Me when you seek Me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:13) “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except by me.’ “ (John 14:6) “Neither is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name given under heaven among men, by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) “And I say to you, ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For every one who asks receives; and he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks it will be opened.” (Luke 11:910) Early Christians thought it was worth being fed to lions for, and they had the strongest possible evidence: they saw the miracles. Over five hundred of them claimed to have seen Jesus alive after He was crucified. And not merely to have seen Him: they claimed to have eaten meals with Him, to have touched Him, to have talked with Him...His appearances after His resurrection went on for forty days, according to these witnesses. They were sure enough to die for their faith. Their example is reason enough to ask and seek and knock. I urge you to do so. You will find...the door into Paradise.
