Category — Faith
Taste and See
“At the University of Chicago Divinity School each year they have what is called Baptist Day… On this day each one is to bring a sack lunch to be eaten outdoors in a grassy picnic area. Every Baptist Day the school would invite one of the greatest minds to lecture in the theological education center.
One year they invited Dr. Paul Tillich. Dr. Tillich spoke for two and one-half hours proving that the resurrection of Jesus was false. He quoted scholar after scholar and book after book. He concluded that since there was no such thing as the historical resurrection the religious tradition of the church was groundless, emotional mumbo-jumbo, because it was based on a relationship with a risen Jesus, who, in fact, never rose from the dead in any literal sense. He then asked if there were any questions.
After about thirty seconds, an old, dark skinned preacher with a head of short-cropped, woolly white hair stood up in the back of the auditorium. “Docta Tillich, I got one question,” he said as all eyes turned toward him. He reached into his sack lunch and pulled out an apple and began eating it. “Docta Tillich…” CRUNCH, MUNCH… “My question is a simple question,” CRUNCH, CUNCH… “Now I ain’t never read them books you read…” CRUNCH, MUNCH… “and I can’t recite the Scriptures in the original Greek…” CRUNCH, MUNCH… “I don’t know nothin’ about Niebuhr and Heidegger…” CRUNCH, MUNCH… He finished the apple. “All I wanna know is: This apple I just ate-was it bitter or sweet?”
Dr. Tillich paused for a moment and answered in exemplary scholarly fashion: “I cannot possibly answer that question, for I haven’t tasted your apple.”
The white-haired preacher dropped the core of his apple into his crumpled paper bag, looked up at Dr. Tillich and said calmly, “Neither have you tasted my Jesus.”
The one thousand plus in attendance could not contain themselves. The auditorium erupted with applause and cheers. Dr. Tillich thanked his audience and promptly left the platform.” - The Old Time Gospel
I encourage you today to pick up the Bible for yourself and taste and see who Jesus is, let the word of God speak for itself. Taste and see that God is merciful and kind, a mighty refuge for those who are paralyzed with fear–Psalm 34 reads,
“I will extol the Lord at all times;
his praise will always be on my lips.
My soul will boast in the Lord;
let the afflicted hear and rejoice.
Glorify the Lord with me;
let us exalt his name together.
I sought the Lord, and he answered me;
he delivered me from all my fears.
Those who look to him are radiant;
their faces are never covered with shame.
This poor man called, and the Lord heard him;
he saved him out of all his troubles.
The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him,
and he delivers them.
Taste and see that the Lord is good;
blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.
Fear the Lord, you his saints,
for those who fear him lack nothing.
The lions may grow weak and hungry,
but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.
Come, my children, listen to me;
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
Whoever of you loves life
and desires to see many good days,
keep your tongue from evil
and your lips from speaking lies.
Turn from evil and do good;
seek peace and pursue it.
The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous
and his ears are attentive to their cry;
the face of the Lord is against those who do evil,
to cut off the memory of them from the earth.
The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them;
he delivers them from all their troubles.
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted
and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
A righteous man may have many troubles,
but the Lord delivers him from them all;
he protects all his bones,
not one of them will be broken.
Evil will slay the wicked;
the foes of the righteous will be condemned.
The Lord redeems his servants;
no one will be condemned who takes refuge in him.”
August 3, 2009 No Comments
Go Where God Is
You have taken account of my wanderings; put my tears in Your bottle, are they not in Your book? You are close to the brokenhearted and save those who are crushed in spirit. You heal me and bind up my wounds. You bestow on those who grieve a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. You wound, but You bind up. You shatter, but Your hands heal. Though you slay me, yet will I hope in You. You have promised to never leave me or forsake me. You cover me with Your feathers and under Your wings I find refuge. Sovereign Lord, You are with me and You are mighty to save! You take delight in me. You quiet me with Your love and rejoice over me with singing. You are my light and my salvation- whom shall I fear? You are the stronghold of my life- of whom shall I be afraid?
(Psalm 56:8, 34:18, 147:3, Isaiah 61:3, Job 5:18, 13:15, Deuteronomy 31:6, Psalm 91:4, Zephaniah 3:17, Psalm 27:1)
Are you looking for God?
Seeking proof of His existence?
Go where He is.
He’s among the brokenhearted.
He’s comforting those who mourn.
Their tears aren’t unnoticed, but are so precious to Him that He saves every one. The God of the universe saves their tears in a bottle.
Here are two of their stories:
April 16, 2009 No Comments
From Faith to Atheism to Faith Again
A N Wilson had a rather dramatic conversion experience. A self proclaimed “doubting Thomas”, Wilson gives an account to the New Statesmen of his double conversion—one, to atheism, then another back to faith. Here is an excerpt:
By nature a doubting Thomas, I should have distrusted the symptoms when I underwent a “conversion experience” 20 years ago. Something was happening which was out of character – the inner glow of complete certainty, the heady sense of being at one with the great tide of fellow non-believers. For my conversion experience was to atheism. There were several moments of epiphany, actually, but one of the most dramatic occurred in the pulpit of a church.
…For a few years, I resisted the admission that my atheist-conversion experience had been a bit of middle-aged madness. I do not find it easy to articulate thoughts about religion. I remain the sort of person who turns off Thought for the Day when it comes on the radio. I am shy to admit that I have followed the advice given all those years ago by a wise archbishop to a bewildered young man: that moments of unbelief “don’t matter”, that if you return to a practice of the faith, faith will return.
Click here to read the rest.
April 15, 2009 3 Comments
On Raising Questions
Below is an excerpt from Charles Haddon Spurgeon:
“IN THESE DAYS a simple, childlike faith is very rare; but the usual thing is to believe nothing, and question everything. Doubts are as plentiful as blackberries, and all hands and lips are stained with them. To me it seems very strange that men should hunt up difficulties as to their own salvation. If I were doomed to die, and I had a hint of mercy, I am sure I should not set my wits to work to find out reasons why I should not be pardoned. I could leave my enemies to do that: I should be on the look-out in a very different direction. If I were drowning, I should sooner catch at a straw than push a life-belt away from me. To reason against one’s own life is a sort of constructive suicide of which only a drunken man would be guilty. To argue against your only hope is like a foolish man sitting on a bough, and chopping it away so as to let himself down. Who but an idiot would do that? Yet many appear to be special pleaders for their own ruin. They hunt the Bible through for threatening texts; and when they have done with that, they turn to reason, and philosophy, and skepticism, in order to shut the door in their own faces. Surely this is poor employment for a sensible man.
March 30, 2009 No Comments
For Melanie
Melanie was my arch-rival growing up, particularly when it came to things like Bible trivia and Scripture memorization. She definitely had an advantage as she went to an evangelical Christian school, while I attended public school.
About the time we were in junior high, Melanie’s family started attending a different church, and I really never saw her again.
A few years ago I was shocked to learn that Melanie had left her family and her faith behind.
Today the statistics are well-published: 80 to 85% of young people who grew up in church choose to leave it as adults. My heart hurts everytime I think about this. I am grieved everytime I consider each of the 80% of the people I grew up with in church who no longer walk with Christ. Melanie was the impetus for this website, but it could just as easily have been a number of others. There are so many like her.
March 10, 2009 1 Comment