Hard to Believe

I am often asked how some believe, and others refuse to believe. From our vantage point of view Jesus Christ is God. From others’, it is impossible to believe no matter what ‘evidence’ is given. To truly believe, we must use our free will. If it is not free, then belief is an obligation.

The Lord said to the Jews who came to him, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me; and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” The Jews took up stones again to stone him. Jesus answered them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father; for which of these do you stone me?” The Jews answered him, “It is not for a good work that we stone you but for blasphemy; because you, being a man, make yourself God.” Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your law, ‘I said, you are gods?’ If he called them gods to whom the word of God came (and scripture cannot be broken), do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me; but if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe my works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.”

John 10.27-38

Christ encountered something similar. He was faced with a crowd who refused to believe He was God. They could accept He was doing ‘godly acts’ but they could not bring themselves to believe His divinity. Evidence didn’t seem to matter.

Some wonder why God ‘didn’t just reveal Himself fully when He first came. It comes down to love. God wants us to ‘choose’ to believe Him, rather than be forced into belief. There will be a time when there will be no choice. That is what we call the Final Judgment.

Until Christ returns to judge the whole world, we must use our free will, not evidence, to believe in Him as King and as God. Remember what He said to Thomas, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe.” (John 20.29)

Evidence is seeing. Belief is free will. All the evidence in the world cannot force us to believe. We are taught ‘seeing is believing’ but the current trend of transgenderism is just one example that seeing is evidence, but belief requires free will.

If you are a fan of Be Transfigured Ministries, then you know our goal is to Live A New Life In Christ. Today, that means understanding that when we encounter others, we must remember that evangelism is not about evidence. Evangelism is about belief, free will belief.

If you have just discovered our ministry, I invite you to consider how you interact with others, online or in person. Do you debate them trying to convince them to believe? If they didn’t believe the evidence ‘in front of their eyes’ directly from Christ, they will never believe you.

If there is any evidence that ‘might’ convince them to believe, it would be the evidence of your life. When others witness YOUR belief based on YOUR freewill and YOUR commitment to THEIR free will, it might hit a nerve in their heart to consider the truth of God and His Church.

Rather than getting in someone’s face, honor their free will. Rather than offering evidence, answer their questions about your life. Rather than debating them, dialogue with them. God will handle their hearts. If God wants to reveal Himself to them more openly, He will.