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Human Reasoning Does Not Answer the Challenge of Belief Without FaithReader comment on item: Swiss Minarets and European Islam Submitted by M. Tovey (United States), Jan 7, 2010 at 18:45 If it were possible to put faith aside and develop some format of evidence and reason for the establishment of a Christian's belief, it would have been done at the command of Yeshua HaMashiach Himself; yet it is not so. Nevertheless, were I to take up the challenge of your 'if' and try, would it have any lasting benefit for you? I can only wonder; however, in the context of your presentation, I take a different tact. I will not say that your current belief is false, for you have a mind given to you by the Almighty Sovereign, and in that there is the consciousness of His presence, just as all who have a nominal sense of their humanity in a universe too expansive for a mortal to fully comprehend. For me, and any who claim Yeshua HaMashiach (Jesus Christ) as LORD and Savior, there is only one reliable resource, and I have hit upon that so many times, and will do so every time it is called for-in the Word of the LORD, in the Hebrew Holy Bible. But again, it cannot be understated, that there must be faith in that WORD, or there is no amount of reasoning that can be brought to mind or spoken in human words that is sufficient to explain what Almighty G-d has revealed to the world. So, your request for evidence and reason is insufficient if you are not willing to take into account the facts on the ground-so to speak- that near two thousand years ago, Yeshua, by witness accounts, ministered to the people Israel (and to all others who would receive Him in faith) until such time as He was falsely accused by the religious leaders of His first time, then put to death on a Roman cross, then being raised again from the dead to be the LORD and Savior of all who put their faith in Him. Put it in this context, if Jesus Christ were to appear to you in your thoughts and ask you to believe in Him in faith, would you deny Him then? Ponder that, then ask the question again, are you truly ready to believe? On the issue of the 'propaganda,' both Israeli and non-Israeli sources has told of the arms build-up of the non-Lebanese (Hizbollah and other) forces, and now we have Syria saying they will back up Lebanon if Israel attacks. Why would Israel attack, for they are already holding only that to which there is a question of claim? As for the Goldstein report, it has been demonstrated that political motivation is behind its intentions, even as Mr. Goldstein himself alluded. As a document of political intrigue, no self-respecting government should give any more credence to its validity than the American Administration telling Iran to disarm its nuclear capabilities. Are you wrong to rely on the Goldstein report to evaluate a stand in the Israeli military operating according to its mission to defend its country? Consider it this way, if the report was defending the circumstances of who should hold sovereignty over Kashmir based on the actions of the opposing sides and outsider opinions said India should relinquish their claim, is that valid enough to enforce? What does the evidence say? For this Christian, the only evidence is found in the Holy Bible, as substantiated by the actual places described in there being found in Israel. What does reasoning tell me? The Holy Bible says this "Come now, and let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." (Isaiah 1:18). The answer is as found above, "Yeshua, by witness accounts, ministered to the people Israel (and to all others who would receive Him in faith) until such time as He was falsely accused by the religious leaders of His first time, then put to death on a Roman cross, then being raised again from the dead to be the LORD and Savior of all who put their faith in Him." In the final analysis, I took the challenge more than thirty years ago and found that by Biblical evidence and scripturally based reasoning that the Holy Bible is true to its WORD, and no other evidence other than as provided by faith is necessary to prove that Jesus Christ did not lie to me when He said to believe in Him in faith, and thereby giving me salvation from my sins by His love and mercy. Therein is my challenge met, and HE provides my strength for whatever happens. This is what is offered to you, not as a challenge, but as a gift of eternal life though Jesus Christ the LORD. It is His reasoning you need to ask for, not mine. Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments". << Previous Comment Next Comment >> Reader comments (272) on this item
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