Since the dawn of time civilization (as defined by intellectual, cultural, and material development) has been a never ending a journey of change and expansion. From the days of organized agriculture through the industrial revolution human development has been marked by the emergence of complex political and social institutions and progress in the arts and sciences. Additionally, the technological development of the 20th century is unprecedented in the history of man - we have put men on the moon, transplanted hearts, cloned animals and unraveled the mysteries of DNA, but all our progress has yet to answer many of mankind's basic questions. Who am I? Where am I going? What will happen tomorrow, next week? What happens when I die? Will this never ending race be all for naught? To a greater or lesser degree we are all capable of fulfilling our earthly ambitions - a boy practicing his swing may see his dreams of being a professional baseball player become a reality. A young woman with the hopes of a happy family life and/or career could also see that come to pass. While not everyone has a ‘rags to riches’ story, certainly some of us do attain some measure of success in a lifetime of smaller accomplishments. But sadly success does not always provide the answers to questions like ... What do you really have that will be there come hell or high water and doesn't hang on by the most slender of threads depending on the right set of circumstances and 'luck' to stay intact? ... The Government? The Economy? Your Health? Your Career? Home? Family? Money? The Weather? Which of these really gives you an unshakable anchor in today's fast paced and unstable world? And what about the long term? When old age creeps up and you review your life is there any hope that something will come of all the labor and heartache... wins and losses? Was it all leading somewhere?” [1] Is there no culmination, no reward? You live, you do your best (according to your own standards of course) and you die. By any chance can you does the following Biblical quote apply to you? All that my eyes desired I did not refuse them. I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure, for my heart was pleased because of all my labor and this was my reward for all my labor. Thus I considered all my activities which my hands had done and the labor which I had exerted, and behold all was vanity and striving after wind and there was no profit under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 2:10-11 NASB) However the human spirit resists the idea that all we are will be cut off - ended, annihilated, exterminated -- at death. Somehow it does not make sense. It insults us. Or are we supposed to take heart in the belief that we are rendered immortal through our offspring, or through those that remember us and preserve our stories? That the best we can hope for is that our grandchildren remember our names ten years after we are gone. (Even this seems unlikely in this day and age). The Search For Meaning
There is something within us (most of us anyway) which continues to hope for some security beyond the present. In the quest to grasp at the slightest straw of hope that there is something beyond the grave we scour the universe in search of that one 'indefinable' truth. That one gem that will give us hope, a reason for being, a reason to go on. Something to believe in. So we scour the universe in search of that one 'indefinable' truth. That one gem that will give us hope, a reason for being, a reason to go on - something to believe in - to fill the little understood void deep within ourselves. This never ending quest to have something real to believe in has spawned multi billion dollar industries which prey off man's insecurities and needs. We carefully read the weekly astrological forecasts in the newspapers (I don't really believe in it.. it's only for fun). Cross the gypsy's palm with silver, call the psychic hotline (How did she know that?) shuffle the funny cards and leave the dregs in the bottom of the cup. We dabble with strange and new philosophies, ways of life and religions. Trust in self proclaimed prophets, spiritual leaders, and gurus. Retire to our inner sanctums to seek the divine or get in touch with ourselves. Some retire to our inner sanctums to seek the divine or get in touch with ourselves. Others dabble with strange and new philosophies, ways of life and religions and trust in self proclaimed prophets, spiritual leaders, and gurus. The hope that someone out there has the answers causes the self-help and ‘spiritual’ books to fly off the bookshelves faster than any other.
The Questions We Should Be Asking
More importantly, if you intend to put your life (quite literally) into their hands what is the basis for your trust in them, how can you know they are right or even close to the truth?
Have you ever considered that virtually all the information we have comes from a source outside of ourselves, making the reliability of the source all-important. (How many people would go to a historian to learn something about the intricacies of DNA?) The chances are you would do a very thorough investigation before investing hard earned money in the stock market, yet are you willing to gamble your very soul on something that you haven’t carefully investigated... that you KNOW is the truth? Or is it enough that your beliefs sound pretty impressive and makes you feel good? That it doesn’t disturb your comfort level? For example, a New Age web site I once came across stated that the soul makes a sacred contract before we are born. Could we, just for a moment, not get carried away by the lofty words, but take the time to ask one simple question... How did the author know this? Was she there or know someone reliable who was... Similarly Buddha taught reincarnation. That you are relegated to rebirth after rebirth in an attempt to “get it right”. But Buddha was a man, so how did he know that this really happens? What was his source of his information? Has the atheist exhaustively searched every part of every universe and dimension with an infallibly accurate method of detecting every
non-physical entity that could possibly exist? In spite of loud protestations to the contrary the theory of evolution has yet to be backed up by any tangible evidence. And who was the last person who has ‘met’ God and is therefore qualified to tell the rest of us exactly what He is like? However, if you happen to be one of those people who don’t believe in absolutes and can’t even be sure of reality, then you don’t know if you are really reading this page. Maybe you should give up and go home... If it’s there.
Christianity Is Not Exempt From The Same Hard Questions.
What evidence is there that what the Bible and Jesus said is true? What was the source of information for the authors of the Bible? What authority did Jesus have for making the claims He did?
IF the Bible is the Word of God and Jesus is the Son of God, then the case is closed. The ultimate authority.. God Himself.. has laid out the facts which we can accept without question. Remember that belief and facts are two very different entities. Beliefs have changed innumerable time throughout history after a careful investigation of the facts. But, without investigation, beliefs in all manner of wrong things would have persisted, to our detriment. You, me and everyone else on this planet has the right to ‘freedom of thought’ but what none of us have the right to is freedom from the consequences of believing wrong things. At one time people sincerely believed the earth was flat, that bathing and fresh air were bad for you and that a pocket full of herbs would protect them from the plague. (People were buried with dead leaves in their pockets and luckily the earth ignored us, kept its shape and continued spinning). Finally, if you believe that arsenic and sugar are interchangeable, but all the evidence points to arsenic being a deadly poison, would it be “intolerant” of me not to try and convince you to reconsider spooning arsenic into your coffee? Or would it be inhuman of me not to do so? I am pretty certain that most humans would pick the latter option... Which is this site’s reason to exist.  See
Choose Life That You May Live
Many, if not most, non-Christians assume that Christianity is a "blind faith"... that Christians ignore reality and have unquestioning loyalty to an absolute belief system without proof or evidence. In fact, that they believe contrary to all evidence and facts. Much to the contrary, the Christian faith is a commitment based on evidence. The Judeo-Christian faith consistently stresses the importance of truth, and makes appeal to evidence to support it's truth claims. In fact, it is actually quite remarkable as to how many times God, Jesus, and the prophets of both the Old and New Testaments, appealed to facts to support what they said and taught. This evidence includes the Bible’s humanly impossible authorship, it's candor about the faults and failings of it's main characters, fulfilled prophecy, and it's archaeological and scientific accuracy... none of which are seen in the books of other religions. And Salvation - Part I
When all is said and done, virtually all humans have two things in common. 1) Almost everyone is searching for a 'better life'. 2) No one wants to die - our spirit rebels at the thought that no matter what we have accomplished in our seventy odd years here on earth, we are eventually going to become worm food. However, if your defenses are well honed and you claim to be satisfied with the short life given to you then don't bother with this article written for those who do not wish to arrive at death's door without being certain of where it leads. The fact is Christianity alone offers you something you cannot get anywhere else - life without end in God's kingdom. In fact, Jesus said the reason He was sent to earth was to announce this Kingdom which, by the way, is no pie in the sky ethereal place 'somewhere out there' but matches, in every respect, the world most men and women would choose to live in. However, there is one stumbling block that keeps you (and everyone else) out of God's kingdom.
End Notes
[01] The Relevance of Christianity: An Apologetic Rick Wade. https://www.leaderu.com/orgs/probe/docs/relevanc.html
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