Like many people, I believe in the Bible because I believe in God. But I know plenty of people who think it ought to happen the other way around, that a person needs to believe the Bible in order to believe in God. So they'll give a Bible to a non-Christian in the hope that by reading about God, that person will be enlightened. Certainly that can happen, but it seems kind of backward to me. I mean, what possible reason would someone have for believing this story if they didn't already believe in God?
Doug Pagitt, A Christianity Worth Believing, p. 64
A bit ago, I saw a couple of accounts from this video.
More Than Dreams - DVD
The two I saw were the accounts of Khalil and Khosrow.
One thing of note in each of their accounts was that, for each of them, their starting point was the Bible--Khalil was given the assignment to study the Bible so as to prove it wrong, and Khosrow was given a New Testament when he visited a church.
Here is another site, with links to YouTube versions of the videos.
More Than Dreams: The Power of the Bible
Romans 10:17 (New International Version)
17Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.
How could they have knows what to believe, had they not started with the Bible? These were men who already had faith in a god, what could have changed that except the Word of God?
3 comments:
I would say the verse from roman's you quoted was describing a time before the Bible was together - the hearing there was not hearing the Bible.
And, if you are some how suggesting that faith starts with the Bible, then I might suggest that your faith is really in the Bible and I implore you to put your faith in God.
Was there no Scripture at the time Paul wrote that verse? In Acts, we are told that believers in Berea did search the scripture, to be sure that what they were being taught was really true.
What happened in the accounts I refer to, Mr. Pagitt, was that the men started by reading the Bible. One of them in particular set out to find errors in it, and in the end couldn't. In finding the Bible to be true, they found that God was true.
For what good is a God whose Word is not true?
But perhaps you can tell us, Mr. Pagitt, what kind of God do you expect people to believe in, if you do not think it good to start with the Word He has given to us?
Yoo-hoo??
Mr. Pagitt??
Aren't you going to answer?? It's been a few day.
I mean, really, one post and done? That's hardly helping the conversation go forward.
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