Jesus rose again from the dead! How can people not believe?
Postmodern man, Americans especially, pride themselves on being open-minded. A large number of people will claim they are teachable and ready to be persuaded of something if evidence is there.
Scripture teaches the minds of people are blinded (2 Corinthians 4:3-6, John 1:5) unless God gives spiritual sight, so no amount of "evidence" will ever convince natural man of the truth. God must grant sight (faith) to see the truth.
Putting it another way- every person has a set of pre-suppositions about life. One professor of mine called these pre-suppositions "pre-commitments". People have a view of the world formed over time by many influences. Only God can change a person's view of things. This is why you can present all the evidence in the world for the fact of Jesus' miracles and resurrection, and still have a person deny the truth. They have pre-suppositions that will not allow them to believe. Giving more evidence will not make a person believe. Only God can change a person's presuppositions so he or she might see the truth.
Dr. Rayburn put it this way-
"If a person holds unsound presuppositions with sufficient tenacity, facts will make no difference at all. They will be able to create a reality of their own, separate and untouched by, the truth."
God, and God alone, by His Holy Spirit, must convince a person of sound presuppositions for them to believe the truth.
3 comments:
Oh Tony, our Bible study has been talking about this! I am going to repost your words! They are Heaven sent today! Thanks! Glad there are still men of God that hear his voice!
“Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.” (Romans 1:22-23)
Walked in unbelief this way myself for 20 years. Today I'm so thankful to see, by faith, these Easter thoughts:
"Now in that we are raised by the same power to a spiritual life, whereby Christ rose from the grave, it teacheth us how to conceive of the work of the new birth, of the image of God, of the new creature. The work of grace in a Christian is not a slight work, a word and away, as many think; but it is a powerful work, as appears in that there are more hindrances to keep a man dead in sin, from rising out of it, than there was to keep Christ from rising out of the grave. Yet in His resurrection did the power of God mightily appear... Wherefore let those that find a change in their hearts break forth into hearty thanksgiving unto God for His inestimable favour, especially for this powerful work, more powerful than the making of the whole world."
Richard Sibbes (1577 - 1635), The Power Of Christ's Resurrection
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