Doubt Busters

Since the Scriptures say that God exists from eternity past to eternity future with no beginning or end, it would be disconcerting to think of God as possessing any kind of nationality – he was present before any nation existed on earth!

It’s a different story with Jesus. When the Son of God became flesh, born of a virgin, he took on the ethnicity of his mother. Jesus could not be born just anywhere. God wanted to make sure we could identify his son when he came, so through prophecy he gave us particular features to look for.

One of the identifying features of Jesus Christ was his birthplace. Remember when the wise men followed the star and came to Herod asking where the King of the Jews would be born? Herod consulted with the scribes, who found the verse in the Bible that indicated that Jesus would be born in Bethlehem: “But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not the least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you shall come a Ruler who will shepherd My people Israel” (Matthew 2:6, quoting Micah 5:2, which was written hundreds of years earlier). Through fulfilled prophecy we know Jesus is God’s Messiah, whom God sent to save us from our sins. If Jesus was born in any other city, then he would not fulfill the prophecy and would be a false prophet.

Why can’t Jesus have been an African born in Bethlehem? God had proclaimed in advance that the Savior of the World would come through King David. The two genealogies in Matthew and Luke trace Mary and Joseph’s lineage to King David, a Jew.

So it’s very important that we see the Messiah as Middle Eastern, because God said that’s how we could identify him. This means that we need look for no other Savior, for he has already come! Through him God will deliver us from sin and bring us into a relationship with himself.

What Do You Think?

a. If you are a non-Jewish believer, would you feel closer to Jesus if he were your own nationality? Why or why not?

b. Are you reluctant to accept Jesus’ Jewish ethnicity? If so, can you trace that hesitancy to its roots?

God can do what no one else can do. If you wanted to prove that you were God, you would probably prove it by accomplishing what ordinary mortals cannot do. Perhaps you would fly. Or disappear and reappear in a new location. Or raise someone from the dead. You might lift several trucks up in air and juggle them. Perhaps demonstrate invulnerability by diving into bubbling lava and walking out again. You could go to the nearest VA hospital and cause new limbs to grow.

In a secular culture, you might even submit to tests of all kinds so skeptical scientists could measure the results scientifically.

The Christian God was very careful to prove himself when he had the Bible written. He wanted to make sure you would recognize him as God when he set his plan of salvation into effect. He did this by accurately telling us what the future holds. No person on earth, no medium or psychic, can claim the accurate prediction rate of God. God gave times, people’s names, and place names so we could check out history and verify his work. He even gave us the name of a historical figure centuries before the fact!

Now if you wanted everyone to know that you, as God, was going to appear as a human being, you would explain what you would be like so you would be recognized. You could put in the city of your birth, where you grew up, what kinds of deeds you would do, your temperament, your purpose, even how you would die.

God did all that in the Old Testament. It was all in written form four hundred years before Jesus’ birth. The New Testament gospels follow Jesus and point out some of the places where He fulfilled the prophecies.

If you haven’t been exposed to biblical prophecy before, let me give you several examples.

Daniel recounts in chapter eleven of his book of having received knowledge of future events from God. Written in the 6th century B.C., Daniel gives us an accurate description of events winding down to 199-198 B.C. He foresaw Alexander the Great’s kingdom split up into four factions. The prophecy predicts details of the conflict between the Ptolemy and Seleucid dynasties. Skeptics cannot believe the account was written before 164 B.C. Unlike Nostradamus’ cryptic writings, Daniel chapter eleven describes plain schemes and conquests that are easily followed by the student of history.

Can you name the next president of the United States just two years ahead of time? Can you guess what name a friend will come up with for her new baby barely nine months into the future? No? Well, how about naming a king who will not appear for another 150 years, and name his nation? The prophet Isaiah did just that. In Isaiah 44:28-45:1 God tells us that Cyrus, king of Persia, will decree regarding Jerusalem, “You shall be built,” and regarding the temple, “Your foundation shall be laid.” In 2 Chronicles 36:22-23 and Ezra 1:1-3 we find that Cyrus did indeed come to power and called the Jews to return to Israel and rebuild Jerusalem, which had been destroyed earlier. Thus saith the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him; and I will loose the loins of kings, to open before him the two leaved gates; and the gates shall not be shut;”

Can you predict when the Messiah (God’s chosen one) will appear in the world? Daniel 9:24-25 tells us that the Messiah would die 483 Hebrew years after ‘the going forth of the command to restore and build Jerusalem.’ (Enemies of Israel had destroyed Jerusalem twice in Israel’s history.) Nehemiah 2:1-8 tells us that King Artaxerxes issued that decree (March 5, 444 B.C.). 483 prophetic years (360 days to a year in the calendar of the ancient world) and seven days later, Jesus the Messiah was crucified.

How could a prophet accurately predict the dismantling of a world empire hundreds of years beforehand? How could a prophet give us the name, nation, and decree over a hundred years prior to the king’s birth? How could a man foretell to the year the life and death of Jesus unless he really heard the voice of God? (I can’t even predict which shirt I’ll wear tomorrow.) These are only a small sample of prophecy in the Bible. One quarter of the Bible is prophecy. Several archaeological discoveries have verified these and many other accounts. God has proven his existence wonderfully.

What Do You Think?

a. Nearly a quarter of the Bible is prophecy. Do you believe that consistent, accurate reporting of facts with names, places, and events hundreds of years in advance demonstrates a God-like intelligence?

b. Most of us have no problem guessing or even gambling on various outcomes. In what ways do the prophecies mentioned above go beyond guessing?

c. The coming of Jesus Christ fulfilled around one hundred prophecies. Another one hundred or so prophecies yet remain regarding his Second Coming. How many prophecies must accurately be accomplished before someone should take God seriously?

What do statesman Benjamin Franklin, football player Jackie Robinson, and television actress Lucille Ball have in common? They all wrote autobiographies. Their words are an open door to their world. We learn of their thoughts, plans, and accomplishments. Though they are dead, their words bring them to life and make them familiar figures.

We can know what God is like because he too wrote a book about himself. Through the Bible we learn of God’s values and plans. Here are some of the things I’ve learned about God. In Genesis I learned that God is powerful, having created the universe and every living creature out of nothing over the course of six days. God also desires fellowship, for he created Adam and Eve, and wanted to walk with them. God is also merciful, for when Adam sinned, God made a way to cover Adam’s sin. He is also a God who makes promises, for he told Adam that he will bring a redeemer to save them from the curse that their sin brought into the world.

He is also a righteous judge, for when the whole world turned wicked, leaving one righteous man left, God punished the world with a flood, saving the one righteous man, Noah, and his family. God also sets plans into motion that will take centuries to finish. He befriended Abraham, granting him righteousness by faith alone. Through Abraham’s seed God would bring the redeemer.

In Exodus I see that God is a covenant-maker. His covenant with the Israelites tells me he wants to dwell with us and bless us. However, he is just and must punish sin and unrighteousness, but not before warning us first.

In Leviticus I see God providing a substitute for my sin. That is, through the animal sacrifices I learn that God will transfer my sin to another, allowing the other to take my blame and punishment. He is also a holy God, untainted by sin.

In Numbers I see a God who journeys with us throughout life, desiring to bring us to a better place, taking care of us all along the way.

I see in Jesus God’s fulfillment of all his plans and promises. Jesus, the Son of God, is the redeemer who willingly took my sins on himself and died for me, just like the animal sacrifices taught. Under his own power, he rose from the dead. As God befriended Abraham by faith, so I enter into a relationship with Jesus by faith, and through that faith I am made righteous in his sight. He breaks the curse that Adam started. Through Jesus, the Holy Spirit was sent to be with me and guide me all the way to the kingdom of God in glory.

God has revealed himself wonderfully in the scriptures, and in the lives of those who follow the truths in the Scriptures.

What Do You Think?

a. Can you learn of people through their biographies? Why or why not?

b. Why does God reveal himself through a book, then send his followers around the world to translate that book for others?

People have many ideas about what God is like. Some treat him like a vending machine. Every time you put in money, the vending machine returns an item. Since they never get what they want every time they pray for something, they conclude there is no God.

When God created the first human beings, he made them social creatures who naturally meet with fellow human beings to talk. Today we meet to talk about many things – sports, cars, television shows, celebrities, ourselves, events in our home, school, workplace, and so on. In his prayers in the Psalms, King David talked to God about many things. He gave his thoughts on the ungodly (Psalm 1:4-6), requested help (4:1), shared his sorrows (6:1-7), and worshiped (9:1-5). In prayer, we socialize with God.

So we learn that prayer is not just about asking God for things. God is not a vending machine or a Genie with several wishes to grant. He is a Father with a mind of his own. As you have learned, he does not grant every petition. My son loves to play police officer, spy, CIA agent, and other roles in the hero mold. He has a small armory of plastic weapons to help him pretend. But if he asks me for a working flame-thrower or bazooka, would I give it to him? He knows me well enough to ask within my will.

Then how do we get our prayers answered? The Bible tells us that God hears us and answers us: “And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him” (1 John 5:14-15).

We ask according to his will. God has a purpose for us here, and he has graciously invited us to participate in that work. For example, God desires that I train up my family for the coming kingdom of God. Occasionally I ask him what I should be training my son for next. Whether two seconds or two days later, I am frequently delighted to get an answer, such as giving him more responsibilities, or relaxing a rule that no longer applies.

God’s great desire is that we enter into a relationship with him and get to know him. Direct your prayers to that end, with a follow-through of obeying the scriptures, and you’ll become more confident about your prayers.

What Do You Think?

a. If you do not answer someone’s question, does that mean you don’t exist?

b. Are there reasons why you would not want to answer certain questions? If so, could you give God the benefit of the doubt?

God demonstrates his love in different ways to his children. If a child is in rebellion, he may demonstrate his compassion with chastisement to bring her back to repentance. If a child is living by faith, God may demonstrate love with a deeper intimacy in her prayer life. God’s love will continue toward his children, but how that love is experienced may be conditional.

Perhaps we ask this question because we think we have to bargain with God to stay on his good side. We may think we’ve gone so far off track that God no longer loves us. No, God will always love his children, even when they are wayward. Jesus gave us a lovely example of this with the story of the Prodigal Son.

In that story, recounted in Luke 15:11-32, a young man leaves his father with his inheritance, which he then spends foolishly until he had spent it all. In shame he gets a job feeding pigs, which is an unclean animal to the Jews.

God’s love is like this father’s love. His love is unconditional in that he does not stop loving when his son turns from what’s best. But it is conditional in that we receive the greatest blessings of his love when we walk with him in faith and obedience. Which kind of love do you want God to show you?

What Do You Think?

a. If you are a parent who loves her child, would you still love your child if she disobeys you? Why or why not?

b. What is the difference between “love” and “tough love”?