“Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.” ― C.S. Lewis.
I was once told by a non-Christian friend to ‘convince’ him that God was real. I must admit, I was excited by the opportunity, as I was certain that I knew exactly what to say to do just that. So, I pulled out every great article, every ‘go-to’ bit of scripture, found some great short videos, awesome songs, and literally threw everything at this one chance I had…
My friend was not convinced.
And when I asked him why, his answer was really no surprise: ‘You speak of Jesus as a rescuer, a forgiver, a saviour, but I don’t feel I need rescuing, forgiving or saving. So, He must only be real to those who need that kind of stuff.’ He had a point.
Except, he was wrong. It boils down to our perspectives.
If I look at my life and think that I am perfect just the way I am, then I will never be open to the thought that I need rescuing or forgiving or indeed saving. But if (and that might be a big if), I can just take a step back, and change my perspective, and note that I may not be perfect, then what Jesus brings starts to be of some significance. If I start realising, that there are things that may be chaining me down; some of these things are practical (be it bad decisions that have landed me in bad situations, or simple unfortunate turn of events), some emotional (anger, un-forgiveness, sadness, etc) or spiritual (this requires a very different perspective than what the world offers).
With this perspective, suddenly there is a need for something or someone to help. This is not a popular thought, as we are continually told that we can achieve everything we want and need by ourselves. However, we learn in scripture that Jesus comes that those who believe in Him can have life, and have it abundantly. We read that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. For years, I thought these to just be nice descriptions of what God is, but as I started changing my perspective, I began to understand, even when I thought I had it all together, I needed a saviour.
You see, Jesus is our rescuer, and allows us to be chainless and fearless. Jesus brings redemption for every affliction. There is NOTHING too big, or bad, or difficult for God to handle. And after Jesus died on the cross, rose again three days later, and then ascended into the heavens, He sent His Holy Spirit, to live in us, to guide us, to make the impossible possible.
Now, that may still all seem unconvincing and ridiculous. Fair enough, then it is of no importance. HOWEVER, if any of what we know of Jesus is true, then that’s a game changer, and of infinite importance. So why not come and find out for yourself. Come join us at GBC, or visit St. Mary’s, or plug in somewhere, and explore what it may mean to you!
I learned with my friend, I can’t convince you or anyone because it’s not my job to convince. God does that! I just have to be open and honest.
Fancy chatting about this? I’d love the opportunity to hear your thoughts!
Get in touch, and let’s set something up. You won’t be the first, and hopefully not the last either!
Simple Faith 