My Road to Fatih

MY OWN ROAD TO FAITH 

 Last week, I was asked how I came to faith in God. Due to my heat exhaustion, I could not speak either English or Japanese very well. So this week, I want to give an overview of my road to faith.

 In short, I have been influenced strongly by my parents and family, excellent teachers, and in particular, three teachers and writers. These three did not start from faith, but began as atheists or skeptics and came to faith using good research methods.

 Family influence: I grew up in a Christian family. So as a baby and small child I went to church whether I wanted to or not. Even though our small country church was often divisive and unloving, I had a good background in both the Old Testament and in the Gospel of Jesus. I loved the songs and the stories. 

 In America in the 60's and 70's, especially in the summers in the South, there were gospel meetings in all the little churches in our area. Churches would compete to see who could afford to bring the biggest name preacher from the farthest distance. My parents loved to take us to these meetings. The preachers preached their best sermons, we learned new songs, and sometimes even got to see people being baptized. The biggest preachers drew crowds too large for the local churches and big circus tents were used for those meetings. All this is to say that my family might go to church 6 or 7 times a week without even being considered weird or fanatical.

 This was before cable TV and long before the Internet. So my faith grew by seeing that not only my family and relatives, but a wide variety of people believed in God. I heard many preachers tell about God's love for us showed through the cross of Jesus for our sins. 

 I knew by the time I was in 5th or 6th grade in elementary school that I wanted to be a preacher or missionary. I am sure there were many reasons, some good and some not so good. I think now that I could not see any other work as having the long-lasting results that preaching the Good News could have. 

 I know that I was baptized when I was 12. In our circle, it seemed that 11 was too young and if you waited much past 12, people were worried you might be an atheist. I think the last time I sat on my mother's lap was when we talked about if I was ready or not. I did not feel a big change in my heart or life after I was baptized. I felt that my sins were forgiven because God said so. In our church, I was now allowed to take the Lord's Supper and even pray in church.

 I did not have a dramatic period of rebellion during my teen years. Maybe because I watched my sister have hers and I was not interested. Maybe because I was not able to drive or play sports, or maybe just because I am a boring person. Or maybe my time of rebellion is still coming, but I really hope not.

 I think my biggest doubts about Christianity stemmed from the way Christians have acted in history. From the Crusades to the American Civil War and other wars to my own tiny church, I was confused about how Christians could read and believe the Bible and still act this way. I take this as a warning for myself now. And Jesus clearly wanted his disciples to show love to each other and to the world. John 13:35

 When I was growing up, it was cool for young people to study the Bible and have quiz competitions against other churches once a month. This was really fun for our family and helped motivate me to read the Bible.

 Evidence from Science: 

When I was in junior high and high school, my family and I began hearing seminars and classes by a man named John Clayton. He has had a profound effect on my faith. He taught high school and also worked as a geologist, helping oil companies find oil. John Clayton was an atheist, as his parents were. Even in college, though, he asked questions even his professors could not answer. He explains that he could not find the answer to the origin of the universe or the origin of life. The professors told him these questions were not the kind of questions science could answer. He explains in the words of Lord Kelvin, a very famous British scientist who said, "If you study science deep enough and long enough it will force you to believe in God." A deep study of science will show you the limitations of science. The answers to the ultimate questions are not found in science. He also met a strong Christian girl and began reading the Bible to show her all the mistakes and foolishness in the Bible. He wanted to write a book about all the mistakes. He was shocked to find no contradictions between what the Bible really said and the truths of physical science or biology . When he decided that belief in God could be consistent with scientific truth, he also studied the religious writings of a many world religions. He found them lacking in various ways. He decided he would believe in the God of the Bible. 

Evidence from history: 

 Starting at a different point are two other teachers and writers. I have never met or heard in person either Josh McDowell or Lee Strobel. They examine the historical evidence for Jesus. Their arguments are very impressive for me. Some facts are very clear from secular sources. A man named Jesus lived. Around the time of his death, something very unusual began to happen. People claimed to have seen, touched, etc., a living Jesus after his death. 

Two arguments I will try to give in brief statements. 

1. Jesus was a respected teacher who claimed he would rise from the dead. There are four possibilities: A. He did not really say these things, but his life and teaching were exaggerated as the story was told and re-told. He was a legend. B. He was crazy, like a guy who says, I am a potted plant. C. He was a liar. He knew the truth, but told lies. This would mean he was not a good teacher. D. He told the truth, he rose from the dead, and he should be worshipped as Lord. 

2. Another argument is sometimes called the acid test for Christianity. It goes like this: Sane people will not choose to die for something they know to be a lie. In the early days of the church, Christians were persecuted terribly. However, given the chance to change their minds, they chose to die for their belief in a resurrected Jesus. There is a powerful argument even from Japan's history. The events called fumi-e show the depth and the passion of these believers. However, the evidence from the first century is much stronger because those disciples would have had more access to information showing that Jesus had not risen, if that were the case.

I wanted to give you my story. It would be possible to claim that I became a Christian due to brainwashing by my parents. However, I have also tried to show you some reasons why I remain a Christian. I believe all truth is God's truth. Scientific truth, historical truth, and any other really true truth is known by God, and will not contradict any other truth. In this lesson, I have not talked at all about the Holy Spirit. I believe that the Holy Spirit, and the Father, and the Son are all working to keep my faith strong. Bible reading, prayer, and Christian fellowship and worship all have contributed to my faith journey. I also hope I have given you some things to think deeply about as you think about your own road to faith.


Every week I want to review Jesus' words about Asking, Seeding, and Knocking.