Hi Friend,

It is a great irony that man can be so gullible to unscrupulous men while doubting the most basic truths of life that are taught in the Bible.

Advertisements in various forms of media are designed to elicit a response which will lead people to purchase the product.  Most of us understand that many ads aren’t intended to be literal.  We know bunnies don’t lay colored eggs but the ads appeal to children.  We know it’s wrong to lie to children.  Yet there is a part of man’s mind that wants to believe a fairy tale even when the truth is more powerful.

It must have been frustrating to Jesus to perform incredible miracles only to be doubted by religious authorities.  He healed the sick, gave sight to the blind, enabled the lame to walk, healed lepers, and even raised the dead to life. Some people believed on Jesus as a result of the miracles they witnessed. When Lazarus was raised to life, “many of the Jews who came with Mary, and had seen the things which Jesus did, believed on him.”  (John 11:45)

But others went to the Pharisees who then decided Jesus should be killed.  Thus, the wonderful miracle of giving life became the catalyst to murder Jesus.   Why do people reject plain evidence of a great miracle?

Once, when a heated discussion broke out between believers and skeptics, supporters of Jesus challenged the cynics citing the evidence of his miracles.  “And many of the people believed on him, and said, When Christ cometh, will he do more miracles than these which this man hath done? “ (John 7:31) It is an enigma why man is so gullible to unscrupulous men but will doubt God when He presents visible confirmation of a miracle.

God seems perfectly willing for the evidence to speak for itself.   But there is a caveat.  He has an expectation that man should view the evidence objectively. When God led the Israelites out of Egypt, He performed at least 10 incontrovertible miracles. When Israel later doubted God, He was justifiably angry for their unwillingness to trust in the visible events.

A few years ago, the Archbishop of Canterbury declared that certain aspects of Muslim law should be recognized in England. Needless to say, it set off a firestorm of protests. And for good reason. We are still looking for a Muslim court to condemn terrorists and terrorism. Why would anyone, especially a Christian, embrace Muslim law?

The basis for justice in Western culture comes right out of the Bible. No other religion has created such a system to allow the greatest good for the greatest number of people. Of all people who have lived, our generation has witnessed one of the greatest validations of Christianity. Namely that justice is a prevailing characteristic of the nation that sincerely embraces the Judeo-Christian ethic. And justice prevails in proportion as the ethos of the Bible is valued.

As Moses said to Israel, “Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the LORD my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it. Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.  For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the LORD our God is in all things that we call upon him for? And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?” (Deut. 4:5-8)

Does God hold America and Western Europe to the same standard as He did ancient Israel and the people who witnessed the miracles of Jesus?  Christians have every right to ask the question, “If Muslim law were imposed on England or America, would we be better off?”  People who reject the biblical system of justice may have to experience another system to be convinced.

Until next time,

Jim O’Brien