Let's discuss reality...Part II: Sustaining Faith

Previously, I likened faith to believing in something even though it makes no sense to me, because of the person who demonstrates it to me. For the sake of a common understanding, allow me to continue the use of this analogy.

Roses cannot be heard, I believe we can agree on that. Therefore, I will find it incredibly hard to sustain my faith based on what you tell me, because I do not know it myself. Shake a rose at me, and to me, it'll sound almost the same as any stick I've heard before. It doesn't matter how many times I hear you talk about the beauty of roses, my belief in your words will die quickly enough.

The only way for me to grow in my belief is NOT to hear more descriptions of roses, but to receive the senses I lack so that I too may experience it for myself. I must grow eyes to see, skin to touch, and a nose to smell. There is no other way.

Therefore, in the same manner, it is not sufficient to believe in an Almighty God who is a loving Father with only our five physical senses. Give it enough time, and the input from your physical senses will wear down any faith you have. How then is it possible to sustain faith in God the Father?

We must grow new senses so that we can "see" Him, "touch" Him, "smell" Him, "hear" Him and "taste" Him. Jesus teaches of a spiritual realm, where God reigns from, and the only way for a man to see the Kingdom of God and all its glory is for him to be "born again". In fact, Jesus has this exact conversation (John 3:1-10) with a man named Nicodemus, who had great knowledge of God, but did not have a personal experience of Him.

How will you personally experience God the Father unless you personally spend time with Him? Faith in God can come in an instant, but faith is like gold. You will not know how pure it is until it is tested with the fire of difficulties in life.

Postscript: "Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing." - James 1:2-4

Let's discuss reality...Part I: Defining Faith.

What is real and what is not? If I can see it, touch it, smell it, hear it, taste it, then it must be real? Philosophers will argue for something far more abstract, but for the rest of us ordinary thinkers, let's keep it at ground level.

If any of my five senses can perceive an object, it must have some substance or basis in reality, even if it cannot be detected by all of my senses. But, for discussion's sake, let's assume I have only one sense available to me - the sense of hearing. I cannot see, taste, touch or smell. My whole world is constructed from my sense of hearing, and indeed it is a very limited world. For if you try to explain to me the smell of roses, or their vibrant red color, or their soft petals, you will find that I probably will not believe you. I have plenty of reasons to doubt you, based on what I know the world to be.

If I do however believe you, that is faith. I may not know how roses smell, look or feel, but because I trust you, I believe that roses exist. And because I believe you, roses are red, smell wonderful and have soft petals. This is the essence of faith - that when something that is essentially unknowable to me is revealed to me by the ONLY means I can know the world by, I believe in that which is revealed to me. In this case, it is the existence of a thing called roses.

When somebody asks me about God and why I believe in an Almighty Creator God, who is a loving Father, I point to Jesus Christ, whom I liken to the person who came to explain to me (with only a sense of hearing) patiently and kindly about roses. He came, embodied the Creator God, spoke of a higher reality - a spiritual realm - and most importantly, demonstrated love that completely contradicts the "survival of the fittest" mentality I was conditioned since young to have.

Therefore, to quote C.S. Lewis, “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.”

Postscript: This explanation is not unfamiliar to those who have read sufficiently widely and deeply, but for both our sakes, I pray you recognize the intent of this blog, that is to educate those who do not yet know better.

Justice vs Mercy.

For those who share my tendencies, here is a thought for your fair consideration:

Perfect justice requires perfect knowledge and insight, but perfect mercy requires compassion and the means to convey it.

Which then of the two is easier for me to perform as an individual human being?

I hope you come to the same conclusion as I did.

"Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. Therefore

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
If he is thirsty, give him a drink;
For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.”

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." - Romans 12:19-21